Game Difficulty has Not Changed

GamerFitNation: Recently, I got into an argument with a friend about the difficulty in gaming. He said that games have been getting easier, and nothing is a challenge anymore. I don’t agree with him. The communities tastes in games has changed. We now demand story-based games which should not be compared to the games of old. Aside from simply demanding more complex games, we also don’t want to sit around playing the same game for months.

[GamingPerson]

mainstream consoles.

[jeseth]

Well, I have to agree with the author's friend. I find games extremely easy "now-a-days" compared to years past.

There is almost no penalty for dying anymore, objectives come up as a dot to walk to on a HUD style map on the screen, and there are so many auto saves that sometimes its just easier to die and go back to your previous save/checkpoint.

Now, of course to play Devil's Advocate people can bring up games like Demon's Souls and that is true ... there are a few challenges out there, but, for the most part games are very easy and I've never completed more games than I have this gen.

Its not a bad thing, but games are much easier.

[Conzul]

Did not read the article myself.

Games on the whole are getting easier to play and finish, and that's not a bad thing. The Bad Thing is the ( nearly ) complete disappearance of games which *do* present a genuine challenge to beat. Instead of giving us a little of everything, the companies have been giving us a *lot* of what we want.

Back in my single-digit years, I used to feed goats for a little scratch. They got fed two things: Hay, and sweet oats. I remember getting cautioned repeatedly to avoid leaving the barrel of sweet oats out where they could get to it, because apparently they would get into it and gorge until their stomachs burst and they died.

To steal an adage from a pinball documentary, "the perfect game is easy to learn, easy to play, and hard to beat."

[TopDudeMan]

I'd be inclined to agree. I typically play a game on normal just for speed, but if I really like the game, I may play it again on the hardest difficulty.

But truly difficult games don't have difficulty settings. Like your old school mario games. Like just about anything that came out before 1995. Like demon's souls and dark souls. I could think of more, but you get the point.

It's not the game that's coddling you, it's yourself for not being brave enough to pick the hardest difficulty there is.

[NYC_Gamer]

Some games on the hardest difficulty are still easy....

[TopDudeMan]

Well yeah, but most of these games are ones which change the difficulty artificially by giving enemies more HP or sending more enemies after you. The A.I. doesn't get any smarter.

If you could kill 10 enemies in these games you can kill a thousand.

Look at games like call of duty. A game series that has been widely criticised for being dumbed down for the masses. Tried playing that on veteran? Not only do the enemies get smarter (i.e. you're a lot less likely to see an enemies back) but you have less health. Now, that is difficulty.

Same with all 3 uncharted games on crushing. Really hard games to beat on that mode. You have to think about where you are positioned in relation to the guy running up to you with the shotgun who can kill you in one hit, but at the same time, if you spend too long looking for a new piece of cover, a sniper will take you out.

What games do you mean, so I have a clearer idea of what you're talking about?

[DestinyHeroDoomlord]

Difficulty is killed by persistence, everytime.