I enjoy the challenge.
When I first bought the game it was fun. But I remember one night having the family on vacation and I realized my elementary school kid had just about maxed out painting. At that point I decided the game was too easy and shelved it for a long time.
Most of the time I play MMORPGs (like World of Warcraft). But inevitably they do something to irritate me and I quit. The tomb raiding in WA is a nice substitute.
One time when I came back, I started reading about this challenge. It reinvigorated the game for me. If it weren't for Metro and all the people who work on this, I would have kicked this game to the curb a long time ago. Given what I've spent on expansions and the EA store, I'm sure that EA thanks you.
I have failed more times than I can count, but that's what keeps me coming back. My current attempt looks very promising. But I try to keep the degree of difficulty high so it doesn't get boring. I thought about making a post called "There Must Be 50 Ways to Doom Your Dynasty" a la the old Paul Simon song, but I couldn't figure out where to put it.
At any rate, I almost hope I never finish it because then what will I do?