Normally when I play a game I go through it on at least normal mode. Lately I've had alot on in my life, particularly the stress of a promotion at work (who said bosses have less work?) and when playing Dead Space 2 I got to Chapter 8 on normal, then decided to turn down to normal. Now I know why I did it - I don't have too much free time, I've got a large backlog of games (curse you steam sale!) and dvds to get through, I'm ususally tired when I get back from work and I still want to enjoy the game. Yet, I'm feeling a large amount of shame at turning the dificulty down to easy, and feel that other people would look down on me for playing on easy. I know it's a ridiculous feeling, and that the decision made sense, but do you think that there is a stigma attatched to playing through games on easy mode?
The stigma of easy mode
- Thread starter Volucer
- Start date
Not really. I tend to play on easy mode first because it helps me get a feel for the overall controls and environment and allows me to develop a strategy when i start playing on the harder difficulties.
There is a stigma because the sort of gamers you'll run into online are the sort of hypercompetitive asshats who make XBox Live such an unpleasant place to be, and anyone who doesn't play the game on ansolute hardest difficulty with dozens of handicaps will be ridiculed.
These are known as 'Stop Having Fun' Guys, and anyone who believes that it makes a difference what difficulty you play a game on, especially in single player, is a SHFG.
I tend to play most games through all the difficuly settings, and then spend most of the replays on Easy or Normal, just because it's more fun. One of the best examples for me is John Woo's Stranglehold, because although the game is hardly difficult, even on the hardest difficulty setting, there is much more fun to be had when you are a dual wielding God of men wading through your enemies like you are actually in a John Woo movie.
These are known as 'Stop Having Fun' Guys, and anyone who believes that it makes a difference what difficulty you play a game on, especially in single player, is a SHFG.
I tend to play most games through all the difficuly settings, and then spend most of the replays on Easy or Normal, just because it's more fun. One of the best examples for me is John Woo's Stranglehold, because although the game is hardly difficult, even on the hardest difficulty setting, there is much more fun to be had when you are a dual wielding God of men wading through your enemies like you are actually in a John Woo movie.
There's never been a stigma attached to playing a single player campaign on easy. There is a stigma attached to people who brag about completing games on easy mode however, and rightly so. You get praise for defeating what is considered a challenge by most, not a cake walk.
There are people who will look down on you for playing it on Normal.
I tend to play it at Normal because I'm usually able to get through the game without too many deaths at the level. Any game that's boring me usually gets turned down to Easy simply because I have no desire to play through the same boring fights over and over again because there's some bit that I'm having trouble with. I recently did this in God Of War. Fights weren't really all that hard, but I was so bored by all the QTE monsters that when I ran into a bit of a wall, I opted to go Easy... funny thing about that wall, the first playthrough I did the best, but started sucking more and more as boredom sank in. I'll probably end up doing the same when I get back to Dragon Age, as I don't like the game nearly enough to sit through the same battles three or four times because of cheap tactics.
Just pick a difficulty that makes sense for you and don't worry that all the Legendary Kids are going to look down on you.
I tend to play it at Normal because I'm usually able to get through the game without too many deaths at the level. Any game that's boring me usually gets turned down to Easy simply because I have no desire to play through the same boring fights over and over again because there's some bit that I'm having trouble with. I recently did this in God Of War. Fights weren't really all that hard, but I was so bored by all the QTE monsters that when I ran into a bit of a wall, I opted to go Easy... funny thing about that wall, the first playthrough I did the best, but started sucking more and more as boredom sank in. I'll probably end up doing the same when I get back to Dragon Age, as I don't like the game nearly enough to sit through the same battles three or four times because of cheap tactics.
Just pick a difficulty that makes sense for you and don't worry that all the Legendary Kids are going to look down on you.
I like struggling through games. Having to rethink about how to do something and do it better, it I die 50 times in the same room trying to pass through it doesn't bother me at all and makes actually getting past that area a million times more rewarding than if I had just held down run and fire.
However I couldn't care less what other people play on, if you don't like having to work to get through a game I can see why, but so long as the game caters for both keep hard as hard and easy as easy I don't care.
So... no stigma here, until the challenge option gets taken away.
However I couldn't care less what other people play on, if you don't like having to work to get through a game I can see why, but so long as the game caters for both keep hard as hard and easy as easy I don't care.
So... no stigma here, until the challenge option gets taken away.
I have to disagree with your premise, that a game is more fun on easy mode. Being able to wade through tons of enemies is entertaining for a while, yes, but there's really little pay off. It's like turning on God mode. Everybody does it when they're bored with the game, but the novelty and fun quickly wears off because what's the point?MelasZepheos said:
I enjoy games far more when they are difficult. Halo on easy is a boring shooter that anyone can just breeze through. Bump that up to Legendary, and you have to be tactical and plan ahead, weighing your gun options and ammo count, try to be a bit sneaky, and suddenly the game becomes a completely different and more rewarding experience. Starcraft on easy is an even better example (talking about the campaign here). In this case, you can either easily tech up and hit the computer with 200 supply worth of battle cruisers when the computer has yet to build anti-air or you can build 10 marines and just kill everything in your path because the bad guys have no health and deal no damage. Either way, it gets boring. But on brutal, you have to play right. You have to adapt your strategy and think things through. Now the game is fun.
I don't play games to see the final cutscene. That's what Youtube is for. I play games to enjoy the gameplay. Upping the difficulty often makes the game more fun and extends the life of a single player campaign. I will adjust difficulty according to my ability, though. For instance, older games like Jedi Knight 2 (which I just got from Steam) is impossibly difficult on hard. I restarted on normal, and it's challenging, but that makes it more rewarding.
In my mind, the Stop Having Fun Guys are the people that look at a game and think "I want to beat this game as quickly as possible, so I'll give myself every possible advantage and just walk through it." Because at that point, you're not playing the game for fun. You're playing it as a chore.
Usually i'll play through on Normal and up the difficulty on each playthrough.
Unless i dislike the combat (looking at you Dragonage!) then i'll just put it on the lowest difficulty and plow through the combat sections to get to my precious dialogue!
Unless i dislike the combat (looking at you Dragonage!) then i'll just put it on the lowest difficulty and plow through the combat sections to get to my precious dialogue!
While I don't play on easy myself, I don't think you should be ashamed to play on easy due to the game being too hard, or having a lack of time. Games are meant to be played and enjoyed, and if playing on easy lets you do that, then go for it.
I like easy under two conditions (both must be met). Your character must be plot-uber-powered (Grey Wardens should be darkspawn-grunt pwning, Cole McGrath can shoot electricity and jump off buildings, etc) and I mustn't have played it for any decent time on a higher difficulty.
If one of these don't apply, playing on easy feels like a waste of time.
If one of these don't apply, playing on easy feels like a waste of time.
Yes, I look down on you, why do you care though, why do you even need to mention this to people, are you the type who brags about beating games on Hell difficulty or something?
Seriously, if you don't have the time and you feel you're compromising your experience with the game, just play something you can handle and postpone this specific game till you can play it as you deem appropriate.
Seriously, if you don't have the time and you feel you're compromising your experience with the game, just play something you can handle and postpone this specific game till you can play it as you deem appropriate.
I play video games to have fun and get away from real life for awhile. Doesn't everyone? Why not play on easy? More importantly why make fun of people who do? I enjoy having ammo for the BFG instead of only having 1 shot for it. I like wading into 30 enemies and wasting them all instead of getting one shotted because my character's arm was sticking out.
IMO - Play how you want to. Let others do the same
IMO - Play how you want to. Let others do the same
Sometimes it depends on the game. I know a couple games where the normal mode is actually stupidly hard so I had to go easy mode. I had to go easy on my first Gears of War run because I kept getting owned.
I tend to mainly just play it on normal and find it about the right difficulty for a causual playthrough. I can't remember the last time I toned a game down to 'easy', I also like the challenge and would feel like lowering the difficulty was a bit of a cop-out.
At the same time if I can't get anywhere on say the hardest playthrough I'll stick it for so long then just call it in. I do sometimes feel like I'm quitting but some games are just impossible and it removes the fun completely.
At the same time if I can't get anywhere on say the hardest playthrough I'll stick it for so long then just call it in. I do sometimes feel like I'm quitting but some games are just impossible and it removes the fun completely.
It's probably the stigma that has stopped me going on to easy mode in the past. It's not often I feel the need to, but games like Guilty Gear XX Accent Core, when it takes you around 20 goes to beat the final boss on normal mode, it stops being fun and becomes proving a horrible point of some sort.
It does adversely affect some games though, Rare FPS games on the N64 were pretty dull on easy, since easy just took away all of the interesting parts of the in-game missions.
It does adversely affect some games though, Rare FPS games on the N64 were pretty dull on easy, since easy just took away all of the interesting parts of the in-game missions.
Honestly, I don't mind it when people play on easy mode. I play Minecraft on Peaceful whenever I'm building stuff, for example.
What DOES bug me is when there is ONLY an easy mode, and there is no option for those who want a challenging experience (I'm lookin' at YOU twilight Princess!)
What DOES bug me is when there is ONLY an easy mode, and there is no option for those who want a challenging experience (I'm lookin' at YOU twilight Princess!)
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StopHavingFunGuysbojac6 said:
That's the definition I use. A good example can be found in left 4 Dead:
Whatever difficulty you play it on, you'll probably have your own style, weapons you favour etc, so then you play it online and go for your preferred weapon, but because you haven't chosen the autoshotgun, you're immediately vote-kicked (L4D is notorious for SHFGs)
A SHFG is someone who believes that the only way to play the game is on the hardest difficulty setting, because everything else is for casuals and scrubs. (Scrubs are players who would accuse a player who uses the best weapons of cheating because they aren't balanced with the rest of the game, or even bans players who use the better moves and weapons)
Both just as bad as the other, but the SHFG in regards to difficulty mode is the most common, because, especially with the advent of achievements, people seem to believe that games are designed to be beaten with a challenge, rather than designed to have fun with.
Bottom line is that if someone has fun playing all the time on easy mode, more power to them, and it probably isn't right to assume that someone who plays always on easy finds it unfulfilling. Back to Stranglehold and I find it more fun to play on easy because you can pull off much more graceful moves and make much more use of the gameplay than in hard where you spend msot of the game hiding behind a table trying to plan your next move. If I play Halo I may be playing it to feel like an invincible hero of the galaxy, in which case why would I want to spend most of the game cowering behind a pillar? I play games for the story, not the gameplay. If the gameplay complements the story fine, but if I buy a game what I paid for is a rounded experience, including story and, most importantly, fun.
Different strokes for different folks, don't knock someone else's play just because it's not what you play a game for.