Game difficulty

[Spottedkitty]

Here’s a question. I was reading a report on the BBC Site where Laura Fryer the director of the Xbox Advanced Technology Group says that the games companies need to start making their games easier so as not to frustrate everyone and allow them to get into the game easier.

So my question is, do you guys think games need to be easier? Personally I’ve played some damned easy games of late. It’s taken me only about a week with a few hours of gameplay a day to completely unlock all that Midtown Madness 3 has to offer and in Zelda:TWW there were a few challenges but even those were relatively easy on the scale of thing.

Also, what do you guys do? If there’s an option do you got for the hardest setting first or start of at “normal” or even the lowest option?

I tend to go for the Hardest first then, if I’m not too far in and things get too frustrating (like being stuck on the same are for DAYs with no end in sight) I’ll drop it down a notch.

[Mayhem]

F-Zero GX, Mario Golf, Viewtiful Joe... I think Nintendo have been telling their 3rd party partners to make their games bloody difficult by comparison as these three are some of the toughest games I've played in many a year.

[digitalpress]

Games need to be SIMPLER, in my opinion, that doesn't mean they need to be EASIER. In fact, I think most of today's games are too easy or they're mad-difficult with not nearly enough falling inbetween.

If a game requires more than two buttons and a directional it's already too complicated for me .

[Spottedkitty]

Hmmss, I’ll need to get my hands on F-Zero GX myself. I quite enjoyed the original…

Anyways, I think I have to agree with you there DP. I’m wondering if I came to the wrong conclusion after reading the report. Annoying controls is why I gave up on Metroid Prime after only playing it a few times. I just hated the control system which, ironically, I thought would’ve suited the large Xbox pad more than the GC one.

[Oobgarm]

Simple games can be hard, too.

F-Zero GX is extremely hard, but rather simple in design. Contra: Shattered Soldier is the same way. Those two spring to mind instantly. Super Smash Bros. Melee is another good example, but only if you're going for all of the trophies or 100% completion.

I agree with your sentiment on Metroid Prime. I played it for no more than an hour, and became tired of it. Too many things to remember, too many buttons to press. That's also why I disliked Splinter Cell. I really wanted to enjoy those games, too. :/

Oh, BTW, you do need to get your hands on F-Zero GX.

[Nature Boy]

I agree that, if they want video games to remain a 'mainstream' activity, the developers need to make sure the average gamer can get through their game.

That doesn't mean they have to stop making games challenging though. I think all they really need to do is provide you with options.

Take a game like Halo for example. You've got four difficulty levels to choose from. If you're not the hardest of core you can play on "Normal" (or "Easy") and feel like you've gotten your money's worth. Plus you can always switch half way though if you're finding it too simple or too hard.

Along the same lines, a pet peeve of mine is making a game hard just to elongage it. I *hate* that. If your game is short that's fine - don't make me repeat the same battle 70 times in order to prolong my experience. Either build a longer game or make that shorter game *memorable* (something Ico does extremely well I think).

[Half Japanese]

I think sometimes that the supposed difficulty of a game comes not from the game actually being difficult, but in poor design by the developers. Case in point: Vexx, from Acclaim. It was a fun little game for a while, but then you have to start solving these puzzles based on oddly-worded riddles and that just ruined the entire experience for me. Also, some of the puzzles had NO hints whatsoever and you really had to be on the same wavelength as the developers in order to figure out what to do or where to go. I too think that games are getting overcomplicated to a degree. Lately if I can't sit down and figure out the control scheme within about 5 minutes of picking up the controller I say "fuck it!" and toss the controller down in disgust. Simple design and a good interface are all that games really need, as well as a learning curve. Games like Ikaruga prove that hard can still be extremely fun.

[hezeuschrist]

The most recent rewardingly challenging game I have played was the first Devil May Cry. It had been literally years since my last actual challenge in a videogame, so I found it to be rather refreshing. Normal difficulty just seemed to hold the perfect balance between frustration and ease.

I do have F-Zero GX, but that's just stupid hard. Like insanely ridiculously hard. I just need to hope Pinball Petes has an AX machine.

[Captain Wrong]

Games need to be SIMPLER, in my opinion, that doesn't mean they need to be EASIER. In fact, I think most of today's games are too easy or they're mad-difficult with not nearly enough falling inbetween.

If a game requires more than two buttons and a directional it's already too complicated for me .

Exactly.

This is why I got back into the arcade thing. I hate having to read a 1000 page manual and spend hours upon hours learning how to play the damn game. I like the "easy to learn, difficult to master" credo.

And as for games either being too easy or too hard, correct again. But even the hard seems different, like it's not really do-able hard (like the Ghosts and Goblins series, for instance) it's just pull your hair out, you're never gonna get it, hard. Maybe I'm just older and my patience has dropped.