Ask a Final Fantasy 14 player and they will probably tell you that suffering through the first 100 or so hours of the MMO is worth it because eventually it gets good. I've put in that time and let me tell you, that is an exaggeration. There's no reason not to skip straight to Heavensward, the expansion that most people think rules, unless you want to feel duped.
The games below are the ones that earn a recommendation despite taking an absurdly long time to enjoy. There are some caveats, though. You won't find games here that are designed to be played endlessly, which means MMOs, idle games, and live service games are out. There are exceptions to this, of course, but unlike those games, this list can't become my hobby.
