Too Much Success

[Susan Arendt]

This is why I like having difficultly settings. For those who want a easy time or to just enjoy the story or whatever there's easy. And for those who want hell there's hard and whatever else comes after that.

I agree completely. More skilled players shouldn't have to sacrifice a challenge just so that more people can play a game - but lesser-skilled players (or those who simply don't feel like wrestling with the learning curve) should be able to enjoy themselves, too.

Well i think we have seen a problem with difficulty settings pretty much since they were invented but lately especially mass market games have become less challenging.

The typical problem with difficulty settings in many modern home console games is that, since 'normal' difficulty seems to have been ramped down a bit the "Hard" or "Really hard" essentially just makes things take more hits and you take less. This typically does not make a game 'harder' as it does "A bit cheaper and more frustrating".

Difficulty balancing should be done in a more thoughtful way; like we have seen in games like "New Vegas" or the "STALKER" games. In new vegas whole new mechanics come into play; You need to drink to survive, medicaine has less of an effect, the games punishment ramps up a whole notch rather than just going "This dude takes 5 head-shots now". "STALKER" changes a lot of the under the hood mechanics; as well as taking less damage you are also more susceptable to bleeding, you find less ammo and health, resources are more scant all round and (i think) atrifacts become more rare.

Most games are originally balanced for a certain difficulty level and the idea that you can make a game work better just by making you takes less hits or have to give out more is really very flawed.

Absolutely true. In an ideal situation, an entire team would be dedicated to creating the difficulty differences, but that's not really very practical. And the current method of making the protagonist bullet proof or tissue paper, depending on the difficulty, is an inelegant solution at best.

 

[Reliq]

I thought this might be relevant

Spoiler: video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1A-Ymf1VYY

Heh, funny. Kinda weird to me though because some people actually do rage that much at achievements. I personally don't mind 'em because I've never met someone who was a douche about them or acted superior because of it. My friends and I don't mention scores, we just ask if anyone did such-and-such achievement and maybe ask how; it's not a big deal. Indeed, by using them everywhere, they devalued them to a point where no one should care, aside from the extra-hard ones. So no real reason to rage, unless someone secretly really cares and tries too hard to hide it by "hating" them

Dont mind 'em, but don't hunt for them either. I just remebered this episode when i read the article

 

[Jegsimmons]

Reminds me of the parenting style argument:
Make him a winner and pander to them too much and they become a spoiled shit.
Give them some childhood drama and have them accept losing as a way of dealing with life and they build character.

i welcome difficult games. What feeling of success can you achieve when you dont work for it.
RPGs like fallout and realistic games like S.T.A.L.K.E.R. do this very well.
another example would be minecraft, make your own entertainment by giving yourself a project and if you die you lose you stuff and work for it again.

 

[William the Muddy]

I just wanted to point out that Wario Land 2 did this WAY before the Kirby series did with Epic Yarn. And it was way more fun, too.
/hipster