Poll: The difficulty you prefer.

[Musical_Tails]

Because I've only had 7 years of video game experience, I don't want to compete with those who have 20. Your guy's 'normal' is my 'impossible'.

I really hate how the only games for intermediate players like me are only Mario Kart and Rock Band. The only other games out there are insanely hard FPS's or incredibly easy My Little Pony games.

 

[Kiju]

For me I usually start the game on Easy to get a hang for the controls, play a little bit more on Normal to get a feel for the game's difficulty, then go through it entirely on Hard.

Hard is like playing it on the difficulty it was meant for...but still with a little more challenge to it. I'd definitely play it on Impossible if I had a friend with me, though, since then it's a lot more challenging...but results in some funnier deaths if you've got a buddy to get blown to hell with.

Halo is a good example of this. Seeing your buddy get a plasma grenade stuck to his face by a Grunt, panicking, then running into a crowd of enemies to suicide it is always hilarious.

 

[Mister Awesome]

on fps's i usually go for the hardest difficulty because everything else is too easy and for rpg's i always go default difficulty and then maybe go up one on another playthrough. but i never do the hardest difficulty on rpg's

 

[-Samurai-]

Normal for most games.

Metal Gear Solid and Guitar Hero games I play on the hardest difficulty.

Way of the Samurai 3 I play on 1 hit kill mode, and it is awesome. Draw stance swords with a sweet ronin hat make me feel like a total bad-ass. I get in my stance, and when they come at me, I draw my sword, cut them down, then re-sheathe it before their body hits the ground. It looks great every time.

 

[Jodah]

Depends on the genre. Action/Adventure (like GoW) I usually do the hardest one available at the start of the game. RPGs I do normal or hard. FPS usually get hard mode treatment. RTS I usually go normal.

 

[YepGeddon]

Normal to get used to the game world and make proper strategies.

Hard- to challenge my skills and patience.

That. The only game I ever played above Hard was Devil May Cry 4.

I spent ages playing that damn game and finally..finally! beating Dante Must Die and Hell vs Hell mode.

It did not defeat me...which I was immensely proud of. (it was ridiculously hard people)

Pretty much what this guy said. And the rest of the DMC games really. I just dont usually venture into anything harder than normal on any other games.. Except for Dead Space. Because that was just hilariously fun.

 

[Shilkanni]

I usually start with Hard, I feel like you don't really see the game and you don't have to use tactics playing a game on normal. I feel like I learn more and am usually forced to 'get' the game. I don't mind dying or save/reloading a lot.

 

[SimuLord]

Default out-of-the-box (usually Normal), until the game shows itself to be too easy or I master it, at which point I jump it up until I find a difficulty I'm comfortable with.

 

[Gunsang]

Except for RPGs, most of the time I play on the hardest or second hardest difficulty. Once I get the hang of a game I'm usually pretty good at it.

 

[Grayjack]

Depends on the game. Sometimes Normal, sometimes Hard.

 

[Klopy]

I feel that difficulties are stupid. If one feels that they need to increase the difficulty, then there is probably something wrong. I'll play any game and enjoy it as long as its 'playable'. Demon's Souls is one of my favorite because people say its impossible, yet I'm on my second play through with it. I like a difficulty where its challenging yet rewarding. Making it so you become a god among puppies ain't fun and being Alien Hominid among gods is just annoying.

 

[Hazy]

Survival horror games are always hardest difficulty. No exception.

For everything else, I typically go medium/standard option, with some notable exceptions being STALKER (which I've always played on Master - they know how to balance difficulty very well.)

 

[snow]

Give me the most impossible setting you can find please. I remember in the good ol' days those credits rolling down the screen were rewarding, what happened to that?

 

[Dango]

I usually go for hard on my first playthrough, and normal on my other playthroughs.

 

[Tomster595]

I usually go for the hardest, but if its a genre I'm not really so good at I might do normal. For most FPS's I do hardest, but I will usually go easier for RPG's or RTS's.

 

[chozo_hybrid]

I tend to jump on the hard one, impossible is usually an unlock. But if it's not, I will at least try the game on that difficulty first, usually stick with it as I am persistent XD.

 

[stabnex]

My first go is usually on Easy to learn the controls and the game layout. Then I skip the Normal setting and move right on to Hard and use it as a standard. I haven't finished many games on Impossible though. Not enough time, especially since I got a full time job.

 

[Lord Monocle Von Banworthy]

I find the level I CAN do when I first start the game, then turn it up one more so I have something to strive for.

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

I always start on normal, but I eventually go all the way up if the game interests me enough and if I have the skill to manage it. Devil May Cry and Ninja Gaiden for example. I can't do it for fighting games though. Mind games, pressure, and all that other stuff doesn't work against computer players that know just when to throw out this attack or that.

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

Normal for most games, but if I'm playing my beloved Touhou games I'll not step a foot below Lunatic. (Well, except 10-12)
Easy for fighting games because I'm horrendous at 'em.

I still never figured out how anyone beats them on Lunatic. The sheer visual overload defeats me every time. I can't make sense of it all at once and react the way I want to.

I default to normal/hard. Hard is mostly for practice. I at least have a shot of reaching the final boss on normal unless it's Subterranean Animism (dammit Orin!)