Poll: What difficulty level do you play on (first playthrough)?

[Yargaflarga]

Normal is how I roll the first time around.

 

[tucci]

the highest difficulty on there so i have a reason to stop playing the game if its too terrible

 

[Shadow Tyrant]

Normal or hard, depending on the game, then I go up higher on the second playthrough. And if I get to a point where I can't continue, I play until I beat it. I never drop down a level. Ever. To me, that's like giving up. I might as well not even play the game anymore if I'm going to wuss out on a hard part.

 

[SimuLord]

On my first play through any game I always use the default difficulty (usually Normal/Medium) to get a feel for what kind of game I'm up against. In genres where I'm really not that good (WRPGs in particular---I'm embarrassed to admit how bad I was at Oblivion when I first got it) I dial the settings down to where I feel comfortable. In genres like strategy where the AI on normal doesn't give me much of a challenge and I can usually beat the campaign without breaking a sweat, I smash through it the first time then steadily dial up the difficulty setting until I'm actually forced to scramble to win.

 

[gigastrike]

the first playthrough is always for story, so I play it on normal.

 

[CyberAkuma]

If it's an FPS, Hard Mode.

Anything else - on Normal.

 

[tiamat5]

Normal. As a seasoned gamer I have no time to play easy. There is no point to it. No game is even that hard on Normal settings anyway.

 

[Stranger Danger]

Usally second to hardest, and if I like it I'll do another playthrough on the hardest

 

[The_Deleted]

I tend to play on normal until it gets too hard or boring.
Going through God of War on Normal and the Cliffs of Mental is already kicking my Spartan ass.
However, this is a game I could play forever so I'll happily keep at it. Most games barely keep my attention at all and if it stops being fun then why bother?

 

[meatloaf231]

I start on normal because it's just that. Normal. It's the way the game was made to be.

 

[Sir Broccoli]

I always start on easy.
In a second playthruogh i make it harder though.

 

[mooncalf]

I figure "Normal" translates loosely as "How the developer intended" so that's where I start. Hard/Insane modes are saved for when I have a working knowledge of the game to build on

 

[Dommyboy]

Normal first, on easy it feels like I am not really experiencing it properly.

 

[HolyMouse]

I normally play on medium or hard the first time, because I love completing a challenging game and get the cutscenes as a reward.

 

[Programmed_For_Damage]

Depends on the type of game. Normal or Intermediate for driving or sports games, Hard or Difficult for FPS and Easy or Beginner for RTS ;-)

 

[Limos]

I usually play through on Normal if there is one, if not then Easy. I don't usually play through on Hard to start.

Once i've played enough to get a handle on the gameplay and learn some tricks I start over on hard so I won't get owned on the starting levels.

 

[DannyDamage]

Normal/Intermediate usually.

Except when there's a "Mega Monkey Mode" option!

 

[Syntax Error]

When considering a game series, I usually use the previous game as a measuring stick to judge the difficulty, hence, my choice of difficulty on Kingdom Hearts. On the flipside, you get this sense of accomplishment if you beat a higher difficulty if you are playing the game for the first time, because you have no prior knowledge of the game and need to figure out patterns on the spot.