Games that are too easy

[j_factor]

A lot of people talk about games like Ghouls n' Ghosts and how they're too hard. But I rarely, if ever, hear anyone mention games that are too easy. Am I alone in even thinking that there is such a thing as a game that should've been more challenging?

Of course, Barney games and other things of that nature don't really count.

I was thinking about this because I just beat Shadow of the Beast and I remember everyone complaining about it being impossible. I rather enjoyed the difficulty myself. I think back to an easy game like Yoshi's Story and I just remember being bored to death because of the lack of any challenge. I like challenging games, because I feel more engaged -- when a game has no difficulty, it feels like I'm just going through the motions and my eyes kind of glaze over, my brain feeling unstimulated. (Of course, it's different for certain genres)

Any thoughts or amens?

[Haoie]

Are games getting easier or harder?

Old schoolers often think, easier. Now why is that?

[starfox316]

I can't think of very many that were TOO easy, just some that were harder than most.

I'm playing thru Breath of Fire for the SNES right now and am incredibly bored at how easy EVERY SINGLE battle is in it, I just tap the "accept" or action button over and over again, attack the monsters and repeat, over and over and over and over... you get the point. It seems like I'm power leveling against powderpuff monsters the whole game, no challenge yet. Does anyone agree about BoF?

either way, back on topic: No one game stands out as a total pushover to me, the Kirby games are all really really easy but thats ok because the fun factor is there, and they're all just cute, lighthearted games that wouldn't be as much fun if it were any more challenging.


to Haoie: because NES games are f*cking hard as hell. I've beaten nearly three times as many ps1/ps2 and xbox games as I have NES/SNES etc. games that I have. It pisses me off when a game is TOO hard. even if the game is really good, a severely high difficulty makes the game almost unplayable for me.
hence, I am an rpg fan, games that are meant to be played through to experience a story/adventure, not to induce nosebleeds and random controller throwing like some other genres

[j_factor]

I think that games have gotten both easier and longer, and I think the two are related.

Why are games getting easier? A lot of reasons. First off, it's much more difficult from a development standpoint to make a "fair challenge" in a 3D game than a 2D game. Notice how with 3D games, there is much more of a dichotomy of games being either easy or very difficult. Second reason, it's become much more in vogue to have RPG elements, which always makes a game easier. Third, I think tastes have shifted to favor easier games. Most of the chart-topping games nowadays, like Pokemon and etc., are pretty easy. People like games that fit buzzwords like "nonlinear", "immersive", etc. It's also genre-related; the hard games of the past were lots of straight-forward action games, shooters, arcade games, etc. -- types of games that are either gone or not very big nowadays.

[vultar]

As much as I loved both of them, Sly Cooper and Okami both really needed to be harder than they were. I don't really play platform type games, I'm almost exclusively a Turn-Based RPG player, but I ended up with 100%, time trials included, on Sly Cooper. I normally don't shoot for that kind of thing, I'm more concerned with playing the main game, and the fact that it happened at all says to me the game was lacking in difficulty. I'm guessing it's the fact that the whole thing runs on a rail and the buttons will pretty much complete jumps for you, but still... Okami just needed more variation, and some more puzzles.

[goemon]

I mainly play PSOne games, and I'd say there's a good balance of easy/hard on the system. The Choro Q series, for instance, is fairly easy, while Gran Turismo is much harder because of the realism and tuning. Of course, difficulty can be subjective. People talk about how easy Pepsiman is, and I can't get past the stage where the bikers blindside you out of nowhere. The difficulty can vary greatly in individual games. When I started playing Kitchen Panic, I breezed through the first two worlds thinking that I would make it through the game in no time. I barely made it through the third world and now I'm slowly making progress through the fourth. So, I would say that mainstream games might be getting easier, but there are enough difficult classic games to at least keep me entertained until my dying day.

To people who say that RPG's are easy: play some Shin Megami Tensei and get back to me about that.

[starfox316]

Yeah, man rpg's by and large are easy with a few exceptions. Maybe easy isn't the right word; rpg's focus more on other elements than just on challenge alone. I've played some mind-numbing roleplays in my day, but by and large the genre is a different breed, not hindered by difficulty.

[Jared]

Barbie, for the NES was incredibly easy. I don't think there were even any enemies in that game!

[LAGO]

Whenever i think of an easy game I think of Psychic Detective. I beat that game the second time I played it. What i hoped would entertain me for a weekend lasted about an hour.

[kaedesdisciple]

I remember playing the original FF and trying time and again to get through that last dungeon. Sure you could spend plenty of time building yourself up before that, but once you're in there, it's just plain hard. Those brutal fights every few steps tenderize you just enough to make the last fight a challenge.

Personally, I love the challenge of a good RPG fight. Having just enough resources and having to win the fight by the skin of my teeth by improvising and changing strategies every turn is what made the games exciting for me. Having characters that are over-powerful takes away all that fun for me.

Granted, I haven't played an RPG in a while and don't plan to for a long time if ever again. I simply don't have that much time to invest in one game anymore.

[roushimsx]

Capcom's Aladdin for SNES was far too easy. If you can't beat that game without a continue on your first try, then your 2d platforming skills have truly gone straight to hell :)

In contrast, Jak II for PS2 is difficult and extremely frustrating. It has more to do with bad design decisions like blind jumps, weak controls, and a punishingly spaced out checkpoint design than anything, though. Jak 3 is quite easy in comparison, but at the same time it's also a hell of a lot more fun because you're never really overly frustrated. That and the level/world design is just a whole hell of a lot better in the third game.

While Okami wasn't too difficult, it WAS dull as hell. Making the game more difficult wouldn't have made it better, but trimming out two thirds of the excess crap in that game and tightening up the pacing would have done wonders for it. Sly 1 and 2 were pretty solid too, with a really nice balance and difficulty curve throughout both games. The master runs in the first game were a nice addition for anyone that wanted a nice challenge.

Spikeout Battle Street for Xbox suffers from being too fucking hard in its single player mode. The game is made doubly frustrating by its insanely long load times and the lack of checkpoints in the levels; if you want to continue, you're going to have to start the entire level over from scratch...after watching a good chunk of the piss-poor level introduction cinematic and staring at a level loading screen for a minute or so.

Space Hulk for the PS1 had better load times than Spikeout.

[Daria]

Rhapsody.


Great story, quirky characters, but damn was that a breeze. Your main character was suppose to be used solely for support, she "cheers" on her puppet army adding bonuses. However it is alot faster just to blast your way through the game using her as a tank. Even boss enemies go down in three to four hits. No strategy what-so-ever.

[Soviet Conscript]

Rhapsody.


Great story, quirky characters, but damn was that a breeze. Your main character was suppose to be used solely for support, she "cheers" on her puppet army adding bonuses. However it is alot faster just to blast your way through the game using her as a tank. Even boss enemies go down in three to four hits. No strategy what-so-ever.

i'll second that, one of the easiest games i've played.

also the FF remakes for the GBA are incredibly easy. i remember playing the first one on the NES and it being somewhat of a challange, not hard but not a complete cakewalk either. the gba versions i've played are laughable. i understand they wanted to tone it down cause it was ment to be portable and for short plays but i think the save anywhere feature was enough, they didn't have to dumb it down. i guess thats the thing to do with remakes though (i'm not that fond of remakes in the first place though). dragon warrior for example, not a big fan of the first game, i just didn't think it was very good but at least the massive amount of level building you had to do to make it through gave you a sence of accomplishment in the end. i hear that they made the gb remake much easier. well take away the difficulty and your just left with a crappy game.

i miss harder rpg's i suppose i'm one of the few people that acually enjoyed the "grind" of leveling and acually having to fight a boss several times before i either figured out a correct stratagy, leveled sufficently or just got lucky. these days i rarely come across a boss in an rpg that i can't take the first time around, not counting a few side quest super bosses.

[RJ]

Dont mean to be sexist, but isnt Rhapsody aimed toward the female RPG'er? Maybe that's why it was easier...?

Anyhoo, I beat RC Helicopter (PS) one night in one sitting.

[crazyjackcsa]

I've actually found games to be getting harder, or perhaps less enjoyable. The switch to 3d created all sorts of new problems that still have yet to be worked out completely. One thing that really bugs me is the grinding and replaying required to get 100%. That isn't replay value, it is crapola.

[skaar]

We were actually having this discussion when I was playing through God of War 2. Video games used to teach you how to play by KILLING YOU. GoW2 seems to be a return to that tradition. When I moaned about playing the same sequence for the dozenth time my friend reminded me of this.

[bangtango]

Because of unlimited continues and the ability to continue exactly where you died, Wizards and Warriors (NES) was the easiest game I ever played. Other than climbing the castle and making it through two of the boss fights, the Skeleton Changeling and Malkil, there was no challenge whatsoever. I recall Bugs Bunny's Crazy Castle being pretty simple, too. That game was just really long. If you want to include games where you can cheat, then Contra (30 man code), Life Force (30 ship code) or Bad Dudes (64 lives) all get pretty easy seeing that your character regenerates exactly where they die.

People could name a ton of games on the 2600, like Haunted House or Venture, but that honestly depends on the difficulty level you choose. At their easiest difficulties, those two games are a cinch. Not to mention all of the games you can literally play forever and continually roll the score over.

[Daria]

Dont mean to be sexist, but isnt Rhapsody aimed toward the female RPG'er? Maybe that's why it was easier...?

No... I think it's just broken. Disgaea certainly ups the difficulty level though.

[ryborg]

Pathetically simple games, even for kids:

Super Mario Bros 2
Capcom Disney games (Ducktales, Chip & Dale, etc)
MAD's Spy vs. Spy
Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
Super Mario Land on GB
Kirby on GB
Jackal

etc etc etc


Are games getting easier or harder?

Old schoolers often think, easier. Now why is that?Modern games aren't harder, they're just incredibly more involved and therefore, time consuming. Older games involved a ton of trial and error and frustration to get past certain parts. Also gamefaqs wasn't around yet, so if you got stuck in a game you just bought, you worked on it until you figured it out.

[Steven]

Capcom's Aladdin for SNES was far too easy. If you can't beat that game without a continue on your first try, then your 2d platforming skills have truly gone straight to hell :)

LOL, that was the first game that popped in my head when I saw this topic. Ironically, I just played it for the 1st time earlier this week. Easy indeed.

Even easier though is An American Tale: Fievel Goes West (SNES). Talk about freakin' easy!

[xtremegamer]

Ren and Stimpy: Stimpy's Invention (Genesis)
Robotron 64

[Ruudos]

Because of unlimited continues and the ability to continue exactly where you died, Wizards and Warriors (NES) was the easiest game I ever played. Other than climbing the castle and making it through two of the boss fights, the Skeleton Changeling and Malkil, there was no challenge whatsoever.

Malkil isn't even challenging if you're standing at the right spot. If W&W wouldn't have had unlimited continues it would have been a very challenging game I guess.

[GaijinPunch]

The challenge in RPGs is finding the time to drudge through them w/o getting bored to tears. I've never beaten one that I wasn't very thankful was over by the end.

This topic really needs "challenge" defined though. There are very few action games where you can save and get items that are really challenging (Shinobi, Kunoichi, Ninja Gaiden, are a few). Now go play some arcade game and try to clear it on one credit. Completely different, and I dare say (on average) way more challenging than Ninja Gaiden could ever be.

The unfortunate thing is, very, very few companies are putting out this style of game. Puzzle and Shooting are about the only two genres left with the "pure" challenge. The irony is sometimes it takes longer than an RPG to actually clear an arcade game. I owned Ketsui for years before I cleared it, and haven't touched it since. And that was only the first loop!

[Pantechnicon]

Another vote for Super Mario Land on the GB. This was the first Mario game I ever played. It seemed like quite the ordeal back in 1989 but in retrospect (I played it through last night, in fact) I now find it ridiculously easy and short.

[Atari 5200]

What about Bonkers for the SNES? I think I beat it in an hour or so and I remember that I was saying to myself this is obviously a child's game. So, maybe that's why.

[Captain Wrong]

Am I the only one who finds a majority of the TG-16 library easy?

[evildead2099]

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Had this game's difficulty lived up to the precident sent by CV1 and 3, this game would've ranked even higher on my list of all-time favourites. As it is, the majority of bosses in the game are pushovers.

[Push Upstairs]

"Wacky Races" on NES was really easy, I don't think I had to continue once the first time I played it.


I'd still like to own the game, it was fun.

[cyberfluxor]

On the Saturn D was VERY easy. It took less than 90mins to wonder through the whole thing and you can't die! Sure, the effects are cool and actually had nice control but damn, what a short and non-challenging game it was.

[Gentlegamer]

Pathetically simple games, even for kids:

Super Mario Bros 2You must be joking.

[bangtango]

Malkil isn't even challenging if you're standing at the right spot. If W&W wouldn't have had unlimited continues it would have been a very challenging game I guess.

Well, I'd agree that Malkil is a lot easier than the Skeleton boss, who is quite hard to beat only because it takes so long to kill him. I always hated climbing the castle worse than anything. That and spending what felt like hours trying to scrounge up 200 gems to get by the door guard in one of those stages near the end.


You must be joking.

I have to agree here. Super Mario 2 wasn't the most challenging game in the Mario series but it wasn't a total cakewalk either. Even if people can get by Birdo (fireball version), Mouser and Wart ok, which isn't a lock for some people, other bosses like Clawgrip and Tryclyde can keep a few people on their toes. I wouldn't call any of the Mario games super easy.

Just in general:

All three of the NES Mario games will give most "casual" or fair-weather gamers a fair challenge if you play them from start to finish without using warp zones. What makes the NES Mario games, particularly 2-3, so easy to some people is the fact that the longer you play, the more extra lives you pile up. The other thing that makes them seem easy is plenty of practice.

Sure, I can get through the Mario games quite handily, just from having played them so often. Same with a lot of people on this board who have been playing them for 10, 15 or 20 years. However, that doesn't mean the majority of the population can rip through them like it is second nature. Personally, I think people who call the Mario games easy are gamers who just happen to be pretty good at them. Myself, I still know a lot of people who "suck" at one or more of the Mario games and have at least one or two they have never beaten (at least not without using a warp zone).

I believe the games that fit into this topic are games that almost anyone, even mediocre gamers with average (or worse) reflexes, can get through. One such game which I forgot to mention is the NES version of Guerrilla War. Unlimited continues and your guy regenerates from the exact spot he died. That is a recipe for a game anyone with a pulse can finish with an hour to kill and a little willpower. Another game that falls into that category is the NES title Wizards and Warriors. Anyone who is concentrating can beat Contra with the 30 man code, if they are able to get through the lasers in the Energy Zone level (Stage 6?) without burning up 30 men on that stage alone and I have seen one or two lousy gamers achieve that dubious feat.

[Push Upstairs]

Mario 2 was not "too easy", that last castle place was kind of a pain in the ass.

Today Mario 3 is a cakewalk...I don't even play the game so much as I just automatically complete levels. My girlfriend watches me play and tells me I make the game look like it is the easiest game ever made.

But I remember a time when I'd have to continue numerous times to get anywhere in the game....I even recall a time when I'd have to continue in World 1.

[Jorpho]

Well, Mario 3 does have a few challenges here and there, but some of the real pain-in-the-neck levels are the ones that can be bypassed. (I still can't stand that World 8 Airship level.)

Frankly I think Super Mario Land 2 is actually easier than the first Super Mario Land. The tiny sprites and stiff play control are probably what add most to the challenge, though.

I also think the Capcom Disney games are surprisingly difficult too.

[Push Upstairs]

The P-Wing makes the Airship level a breeze. :wink 2:


And "Super Mario Land 2" is really easy, but SML wasn't terribly difficult either.

[Sparkster]

Pathetically simple games, even for kids:

Super Mario Bros 2
Capcom Disney games (Ducktales, Chip & Dale, etc)
MAD's Spy vs. Spy
Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
Super Mario Land on GB
Kirby on GB
Jackal

etc etc etc

Modern games aren't harder, they're just incredibly more involved and therefore, time consuming. Older games involved a ton of trial and error and frustration to get past certain parts. Also gamefaqs wasn't around yet, so if you got stuck in a game you just bought, you worked on it until you figured it out.

Maybe my skills weren't as good back in the day, but SMB2 was pretty challenging. I found someone on another forum who had played it without having beaten it. Ducktales is pretty hard too for a kid, especially if you don't know how to control Scrooge.

But in general, Disney games are quite easy. I think I beat Aladdin that weekend that I had rented it. I thought I heard that some of the other SNES Disney games were challenging - Lion King, Beauty and the Beast.

[RugalSizzler]

The thing is the game only has to challenging enough so that both an kid and adult auidience can enjoy the over all exprience.

Like for me P.N. 03 is very easty once you get the hang of the controls but after you stop playing for awhile you start to forget how to controll Venessa.

Also it is great that games are made to be easy. This means many people can enjoy the game for other reasons besides challenge.

A great example is beyond good and evil. That game is soooooOOOOOOOOooo easy for me and makes martial arts look like pancakes. The game itself is short but for some reason I can replay the whole game over and over and over and never get bored.

Lastly is a game is too challenging or too anything then you will not want to pickup the controller.

Like RE4 or any RE game. After awhile I get tired of searching for key A-B-C or seeing Zombie transformation A-B-C. Then there is not that much too it besides great looking graphics but then agian the whole thing is basically a horror movie and after awhile you kinda get tired of seeing so on get killed and so on actions. This is why they have Challenge levels in RE2 and everything afterwards including extra games and alternative endings and so on. RE4 has that super cool water world area in the Merinaries game.

I get super bored after playing RE the first time I mean I have more fun playing Beyond Good and Evil six times in a row. The only reason I would go back to any RE game is after forgeting about the game for a long time or to pay the mini games. That is why they have the costumes.

Still even if games are too easy that does not mean you will not still enjoy the game itself. Also if the game has a chioce of Hard difficulty then just play it on hard. I play all RE games on Hard difficulty all the time and this is probably the only reason I would go back to RE4 since they make you unlock Hard modeX_x


You must be joking.

I second that.

SMB2 drive people nuts while I admit the game is easy after awhile even if it all about correct timing.

[j_factor]

On the Saturn D was VERY easy. It took less than 90mins to wonder through the whole thing and you can't die! Sure, the effects are cool and actually had nice control but damn, what a short and non-challenging game it was.

I would say that something like D doesn't really count, because it's a type of game that's really not meant to be challenging. It's more trying to be an interactive movie, something you just watch and experience. I can't imagine that game having any challenge without it being annoying and frustrating.


This topic really needs "challenge" defined though.

Fair enough. There are five main types of "challenge" as it applies to videogames:

1. "Direct" challenge, being challenged by enemies coming at you, pit traps, etc. I.E., stuff that causes you to die / lose life / lose the game. Pure action games and Tetris-style puzzle games use this kind of challenge.

2. "Indirect" challenge, like having to figure out where to go, what item to use, solving puzzles, etc. Adventure games rely on this. Lots and lots of games use both 1 and 2.

3. "Optional" challenge, unnecessary stuff that the player may feel compelled to do, but isn't required to beat the game or whatever. This is stuff like getting 100%, collecting all the trinkets, etc. I would also put beating an arcade game on one credit under this category, since arcade games with buy-in were designed with multi-credit play in mind. Although that's a bit of a grey area (since the arcade game would have to have #1 in it or else you would never need to continue).

4. "Time consumption" challenge, like in random-battle RPGs where bosses are only tough because the player doesn't want to spend too much time leveling up. This and #3 don't really count, IMO.

5. "Artifical" challenge is when a game is made more difficult by bugs, crippled controls, bad collision detection, etc. This isn't what I'm talking about, but the absolute hardest games all have some of this.

[DragonMaster Sam]

Final Fantasy I (NES/Playstation) was not easy. However, Chaos in the final battle was no problem.

[RJ]

I'll second "D" doesnt count, it's not DESIGNED to be challenging like a platformer, shooter, etc. or any other games mentioned here thus far. It has a 2-hr time limit, afterwhich you lose. Once you finish it, you can race thru it in 45 min. Not much replay value, I'll admit.

[Jorpho]

Fair enough. There are five main types of "challenge" as it applies to videogames:

1. "Direct" challenge, being challenged by enemies coming at you, pit traps, etc. I.E., stuff that causes you to die / lose life / lose the game. Pure action games and Tetris-style puzzle games use this kind of challenge.

2. "Indirect" challenge, like having to figure out where to go, what item to use, solving puzzles, etc. Adventure games rely on this. Lots and lots of games use both 1 and 2.

3. "Optional" challenge, unnecessary stuff that the player may feel compelled to do, but isn't required to beat the game or whatever. This is stuff like getting 100%, collecting all the trinkets, etc. I would also put beating an arcade game on one credit under this category, since arcade games with buy-in were designed with multi-credit play in mind. Although that's a bit of a grey area (since the arcade game would have to have #1 in it or else you would never need to continue).

4. "Time consumption" challenge, like in random-battle RPGs where bosses are only tough because the player doesn't want to spend too much time leveling up. This and #3 don't really count, IMO.

5. "Artifical" challenge is when a game is made more difficult by bugs, crippled controls, bad collision detection, etc. This isn't what I'm talking about, but the absolute hardest games all have some of this.

Nicely summarized.

[scooterb23]

Dragster is way too easy...I can beat the whole game in like, 6 seconds...sometimes even less!

Complete pushover.

[Kevincal]

A lot of people talk about games like Ghouls n' Ghosts and how they're too hard. But I rarely, if ever, hear anyone mention games that are too easy. Am I alone in even thinking that there is such a thing as a game that should've been more challenging?

Of course, Barney games and other things of that nature don't really count.

I was thinking about this because I just beat Shadow of the Beast and I remember everyone complaining about it being impossible. I rather enjoyed the difficulty myself. I think back to an easy game like Yoshi's Story and I just remember being bored to death because of the lack of any challenge. I like challenging games, because I feel more engaged -- when a game has no difficulty, it feels like I'm just going through the motions and my eyes kind of glaze over, my brain feeling unstimulated. (Of course, it's different for certain genres)

Any thoughts or amens?

Yoshi's Story can be incredibly easy (If you run through it eating any fruit) and/or incredibly hard...Ever try finding 30 melons(ONLY) in a stage? It's freaking hair-pulling stuff trying to get all the freakin' melons! (They are the light green ones...)

[Captain Wrong]

Dragster is way too easy...I can beat the whole game in like, 6 seconds...sometimes even less!

Complete pushover.

lollertrain

[j_factor]

Yoshi's Story can be incredibly easy (If you run through it eating any fruit) and/or incredibly hard...Ever try finding 30 melons(ONLY) in a stage? It's freaking hair-pulling stuff trying to get all the freakin' melons! (They are the light green ones...)

I have always hated that kind of stuff. I refuse to go for every melon, every token, every crate -- it may be challenging, but it's so ridiculously boring. Plus, I consider it laziness on the developer's part. "Why create real, balanced challenge when we can just throw random objects in weird locations?" Granted, they could be even lazier and not even have that, but still, I consider it a cop-out way of propping up a game's difficulty. Purely as an extra, that kind of challenge can be interesting, particularly if I absolutely adored the game and want to get more out of it. But for a game to rely on that kind of challenge, well, it's just lame IMO. And I'm really not going to bother with it at all if I didn't greatly enjoy the underlying game beforehand. Yoshi's Story simply didn't do anything for me -- not only was it way too easy, but I found nothing interesting about it at all -- and I don't think melon-hunting will make me like the game more.

[Tron 2.0]

I think the last time i played a easy game were Lego StarWars 1&2.

Ture there kids games but i gave them a try given, how good i herd both are.

Unlimted continues and such make it a breeze to play.. unless your trying to collect every thing in it.

I can list a few more as well that were easy to me.

Bubble Bobble
Duck Tales
The Legend of Kage (NES) the arcade one is more difficult ugg.
Zelda TP boss's in that one are a push over.
Trouble Shooter
Contra (NES)
Castlevania II Simon's Quest

There's more i could list but that's all i can think of for the moment.

[Keir]

The NES version of Lode Runner. The original gets hard after only a few levels and just keeps getting harder. I was able to beat all 50 levels of the NES version in one sitting.

[Gentlegamer]

Contra (NES)Really? Using the standard 3 lives, Contra was easy to you?


Castlevania II Simon's Quest
So you were able to figure out all the things that there were no clues for in the game like holding the crystal to get the boatman to take you to the next mansion?

[bangtango]

Castlevania II Simon's Quest

There's more i could list but that's all i can think of for the moment.

If you want more of a challenge, you can always try getting through the entire game without using laurels (including the fight with Dracula).

[mailman187666]

the easiest game I played was the Nintendo World Championship cart. Ever since 1990 I've just always gotten the high score, so I decided to just smash it into i million pieces and throw it away. Actually none of that is true and I would have punched myself in the face if I did that. I did play the game once before though, it wasn't that easy to win (but that was 17 years ago at the championships in MA).

[Ruudos]

Felix the Cat (NES) is far too easy

[Tron 2.0]

Really? Using the standard 3 lives, Contra was easy to you?
So you were able to figure out all the things that there were no clues for in the game like holding the crystal to get the boatman to take you to the next mansion?
Yeah i can beat contra with out the 30 man code.

As for, CV2 Simon's Quest i've used a walk through to beat it in one sitting.

[Tron 2.0]

If you want more of a challenge, you can always try getting through the entire game without using laurels (including the fight with Dracula).
Naw beating it in one sitting is enough for me right now.

Dunno maybe later on i'll try that.