‘Game of Thrones’ Season 3 Getting Longer Episodes!

If there's one shortcoming to HBO's epic adaptation of George R.R. Martin's fantasy series 'Game of Thrones,' it's that budgetary restrictions keep the seasons at ten episodes, even dividing longer books like "A Storm of Swords" across seasons 3 and 4. So how best to get around said limitation? By expanding the episode lengths to incorporate additional material! Find out just how super-sized 'Game of Thrones' season 3 will be inside!

'Game of Thrones' fans, the day is yours. Not only does each passing sunrise bring us closer to the March 31 premiere of season 3, but today Entertainment Weekly announces the new season to have increased in size! The story will still unfold over 10 episodes, comprising the first half of George R.R. Martin's "A Storm of Swords," but individual episode lengths have increased from the standard 52 minutes.

“There’s almost another full episode’s worth of extra minutes spread across the season,” says executive producer D.B. Weiss. “One of the great liberties with HBO is we’re not forced to come in at a specific time. We can’t be under 50 minutes or over 60, but that gives us a lot of flexibility.” Co-executive producer David Benioff chimes in, “A super-sized season, as befitting 'Storm of Swords.' Last year we had a lot of 52-minute episodes. This year is a lot of 56, 57.”

Even beyond that, HBO has confirmed that the third season finale may well run longer than 60 minutes, a rarity among HBO programs. Considering "A Storm of Swords" clocks in at 973 pages, with some serious blood to shed (warning: spoilers!), we're not complaining in the least.

What say you? Are you happy to have a King-sized third season of 'Game of Thrones?' Check out the preview below, and tell us what you want to see when 'Game of Thrones' season 3 premieres on Sunday, March 31!