Dark Soul’s Difficulty Is In Its DNA – The Easy Mode Debate

Pixelgate writes:

''Earlier this week I spoke about people wanting ‘Easy mode’ put into Dark Souls 3. The reaction was fairly split between people for this and against it. Obviously my views remain the same, Dark Souls should stay the way it is. The idea that people see difficulty as a problem is rather disheartening. Much like a good story or a neat mechanic, difficulty can enhance a video game. In truth, challenge can enhance most things in life, even if you don’t like to admit it.''

[Manio31]

Difficulty is integral to the formula in Dark Souls. That'd be like asking for the Assassin's Creed series to remove assassinations.

[PixelGateUk]

They already did that, Shadows of Mordor ;)

[Geekman]

Pretty sure you assassinate some folks in Shadow of Mordor.

[PixelGateUk]

@Geek

But you're not playing as an Assassin :P

[naruga]

Many cannot understand that DSouls games are not difficult are challenging and have their own learning curves (from easy to expert but they just dont serve it you lavishly ... if you compare DSouls game with a 90's or even 00's game does nt differ at ll in difficulty ..but then came the complete downfall of challenge in gaming which is called X360 and mobile giving the games completely "gnawed" up for you only to swallow

[KOIMOJO]

What people don't get is you just have to learn how to play. Only way to make it easier is by basically letting you tank with your health or do more damage, but anyone who has a lot of experience with these games can tell you that it won't matter if you're careless because you will still die. There's just no way around needing to learn the level layout and enemy patterns. That is fundamentally what this game is and when you take the time to do that the games aren't really that hard :/

No need for easy mode guys.

[DefenderOfDoom2]

To me if, you play thru a game on easy mode, it ruins the fun for the player.

[Lennoxb63]

They could do an easy mode. But the trade off could be that you don't earn achievements/trophies on that playthrough.

[Chaos_Order]

I personally don't see how this approach would work, or how it would have any effect, but then again, trophies mean literally nothing to me. The moment I got the chance to turn off trophy notifications I did it in an instant and never looked back.

[Baka-akaB]

Not true in practice . Like it or not , with an easy mode in mind , the design of a game is different . Especially when most game just bump up the stats of foes and/ohe amount of spawns , rather than designing different and separate experiences .

In games like the Souls series , the game actually becomes easy when you do know perfectly enemy pattern and how to deal with them . If you add an easy mode for such an experience , it will potentially be even worse and as easy in less difficult mode , than impossibe to fail games like assassin creed . And the difficult/normal mode we know will suffer in design from the changes and concessions they'd make to have a better easy mode

[SkolarVisari]

That makes no sense, the creators already have to balance the game that currently exists. Giving players access to different settings does not change this. It's fundamentally a part of the work they already do.

[Baka-akaB]

I definitively don't agree , the game's difficulty isnt entirely tied to damage numbers and others stats ... it's about how traps are hidden from your field of vision , knowing where to walk , timing to avoid some of those traps , and the foes' attack and their ck pattern . Trying to add an easy mode to a game like that definitively change the whole experience and the required design . That's how i see it anyway

[uth11]

Easy mode - die every 10 minutes
Hard mode - die every 5

[silvacrest]

The guys looking for an easy mode should be looking for a different game, yeah i said it

[jerethdagryphon]

Agreed . the single comment on the articles page is a joke. Its hard therefore unaceptable and crap... Lame its hard therfore rewarding and interesting. Eso loses my interest quickly so did skyrim and such im lvl 354 i think on dks2 sotfs and plan my no rest run through next on ng 4

[TheColbertinator]

Plenty of games available for you if Souls or Bloodborne is too hard.

Back in the SNES/Genesis days we had Megaman,Contra,Battletoads,Cha kan and 7th Saga so it just so happens that brutally hard games were always around yet we didn't complain

[specialguest]

What the hell is wrong with this new era of gamers wanting an easy mode?!? You play the game, you die and learn from your mistakes. You learn the patterns of certain enemies and bosses, what you need to overcome it, and you advance on. Its that simple folks.

Boo-hoo, but i don't have time for all of that. Its too much, just let me win and let everyone get a trophy for effort....

Oh shut the hell up! Go play another game!

[Chaos_Order]

The thing is, the games aren't just hard because of enemy damage or whatever. There are no invisible walls keeping you from rolling to your doom, you lose your souls upon death, there are carefully hidden traps, areas where your field of vision is impeded, hidden shortcuts etc. To change all of these things to make it easier would require revamping the entire game world and completely changing the way the game plays, and how you have to approach it. The playing experience would be completely different, not just the same thing but easier.

From have made these games with a specific kind of experience in mind. If you don't like it, fine. If you wish the game was easier, fine. But don't ever, ever say that From Software should give you an easy mode out of principle, or because "bigger audience", or because they should cater to everyone and that by not, they are somehow anti-consumer. I for one believe game devs should be the ones to decide what to make, and then we show support with our wallet.

If you want an easier game, buy literally anything else on the market. You're being catered to just fine.

[Max-Zorin]

I didn't know people complained about the difficulty of the Souls games.

[nitus10]

I was quite surprised and delighted a few years ago when I showed Dark Souls to my then eight year old niece.

When I let her play from scratch she actually got to the second fire in the castle after you exit the undead asylum before her character died. She actually enjoyed the game and had a pretty good idea on how to change her character's attributes and pick the type of weapons that fitted into her game-play.

For her the challenge was half the fun and dying was one way of learning.

[uth11]

Kind of a moot debate. This is the last game in the series and it's finished, so not gonna happen

[Playable_Gamez]

Dark Souls is not even that hard. It just takes a little effort. For those who complain about it's difficulty, are people who don't like putting effort into video games.

[sullynathan]

This discussion for a souls game getting am easy mode shouldn't be happening

[SkolarVisari]

Does anyone remember articles being written about how DMC shouldn't have an easy mode because it would ruin the franchise's identity as difficult? Does anyone remember people saying that easy mode should be removed in order to stay true to the series?

[PixelGateUk]

Devil May Cry had easy mode, you unlocked it by dying 3 times on normal. DMC 4 had easy mode as setting standard

[SkolarVisari]

@Baka-akab it doesn't matter what your opinion is. It is a fact that enemy A.I. settings are a part of the balancing work that is already done. It is fundamentally factually wrong to suggest that difficulty settings would require the team to create new maps.

[jambola]

he didn't mention new maps?

[Momo118]

there is plenty of games out there for those looking for a less challenging game