Playing games on easy difficulty- how do you feel about it?

[SniperCT]

No shame in it!

For me it depends on the game. I prefer shooters on harder mode (most of the time), but RPGs I prefer to play easier with some exceptions. I went through FF7R on easy and I have no regrets. The normal mode was too frustrating, I'm not a fan of NON boss fights that take an eternity.

[Egomaniac]

Most games on normal barely need skill. Also, skill is not something you have, it's something you practice. If said person is so casual why would they play it twice? If you want to get better at it, you are only wasting time on easy. Normal at least has some mechanics most of the time.

They played on easy. They got better. They played it again on normal. Just like how you play on Normal, get better, and can play it again on hard. It's not that complicated.

And again, if the person is enjoying the game...how exactly is it a "waste of money"?

What makes you the arbiter of their enjoyment?

It's fine to say that you can't enjoy a game on Easy. It's a completely separate matter to tell other people that they can't enjoy it on Easy. Don't be a gatekeeper.

[TEHPALLYTANK]

Errr, you can turn off multiplayer in Dark Souls you know. It's not like WoW where you have to play online. The same people who would waste their time trolling low-skilled players already waste their time beating the lower skilled people somehow playing online. You're using a very specific situation to spawn a problem out of thin air. If people playing on Easy don't want to get griefed they'll play offline, or only go online near fog gates to summon help- you know, just like they already do.

Plus that's not an argument for games like, say, Sekiro that have no online components whatsoever. Then again I would also argue Sekiro succeeds at the "git gud" philosophy where Dark Souls can fail; in the latter you can always change your build, summon people and/or grind more levels to overpower bosses. Sekiro doesn't really allow you to do that, if you can't parry for shit Genichiro will stomp you no matter what, and if you can't time and dodge Guarding Ape will molest you. Thus it needs more difficulty levels less, but for the sake of argument Dark Souls having a multiplayer component is no argument in my eyes when plenty of MP games have the same.

To your first point: Multiplayer is an appeal of Dark Souls for me, I'm well-aware you can turn it off, I was pointing out how splitting the player pool into multiple difficulties would impact my experience. That poster was claiming there would be no impact on my game if there were a lower difficulty, I was pointing out the only scenario in which that could realistically hold true (ie. locking difficulty at character creation and locking out lower difficulty from all online play). The PvP in Dark Souls massively appealing factor to me because it is the most fair PvP experience I have ever had in a game that provided both PvE and PvP content.

To your second point: I wasn't discussing Sekiro or making any arguments for it, as it makes absolutely no sense to bring up multiplayer in a title that is exclusively single player. Those "plenty of MP games" splitting their playerbase by difficulty don't have the same appeal to me as Dark Souls, because they are different games that are often designed differently. Adding multiple difficulties to Dark Souls, without locking them out of online play, would harm an aspect of my game experience that is unique to Dark Souls. As you pointed out, there already are other games that provide experiences for people who want multiple difficulties and multiplayer.

What I want is to keep something somewhat unique, and from my perspective people asking for multiple difficulties in Dark Souls are effectively asking for that unique thing to be destroyed, simply because they think it is too challenging.


Sekiro is a single-player title that does offer multiple difficulties and I have no problems with that because of how the difficulty settings are implemented. You aren't shuffled into a menu during the start of the game asking you to arbitrarily pick difficulty, you start off at the easiest difficulty and unlock the higher difficulties by playing the game. More games do than don't, in my experience, leave the difficulty as a menu option to be chosen before you get to play the game. It is that process that I usually dislike. I don't think it reasonable to ask me to choose a difficulty prior to playing a game, unless the difficulty explicitly outlines the differences between each mode (which some games do, I don't have any issues with a being asked to choose a difficulty in single-player or co-op titles when the difficulty select provides details about which parts of the game are changed with the difficulty setting).

It is puzzling out what the difficulty settings change that I dislike, having to do that to figure out which setting I want to play usually kills my motivation to play and changes the game from being a fun diversion into a tedious chore I have to go through before I can even start having fun. That is why the majority of games that I enjoy playing typically have one difficulty, or multiple difficulties without a difficulty menu, or a detailed difficulty menu explaining the specific differences between the difficulties.


TLDR; Fundamentally I'm not opposed to multiple difficulties. I'm just arguing against multiple difficulties in Dark Souls unless they adhere to a specific caveat, and expressing my distaste for games that poorly communicate their difficulty settings.

[Djuntas]

I dont play many single player games, but for instance Kingdoms of amalur is way to easy even on hard.

[Koriani]

Been a gamer since the early 1980s - Computers and Consoles. I play games how I want.

Usually that means "easier than normal" for me because I'm not someone who finds enjoyment in having to redo fights/levels repeatedly just because I missed the timing of one swing or jump, etc. I enjoy just playing the game and having the fun I like to have - which is usually the story and progressing through it. So if the game provides an ability to turn the difficulty down from 'normal' I usually end up doing so.

And I don't feel bad for it, nor do I care how anyone else enjoys it. I don't hate on games that don't have alternative difficulties (that's the dev's choice) - but I have *not* bought games that I knew were more challenging, without any ability to lessen that challenge (as I don't spend that much money on things I may not actually enjoy).

I'm more surprised we got 11 pages on this question. Why anyone would care what other people think about the way they play their own game, I don't get at all. Why anyone would judge anyone else on how they choose to play a game - I also don't get.

But it is a fast way to identify the turds around you and who to avoid! =D If someone wants to shame me or try to make fun of me because I play a game on easy mode then they just make it really easy to know who to ignore.

Because this really isn't anything anyone should be worrying about or stressing over. For themselves, or anyone else. Humans are so silly!

[Sughs]

They played on easy. They got better. They played it again on normal. Just like how you play on Normal, get better, and can play it again on hard. It's not that complicated.

And again, if the person is enjoying the game...how exactly is it a "waste of money"?

What makes you the arbiter of their enjoyment?

It's fine to say that you can't enjoy a game on Easy. It's a completely separate matter to tell other people that they can't enjoy it on Easy. Don't be a gatekeeper.

Most people who play on easy, specially in SP games, aren't looking to improve and usually are people without a lot of time in their hands. You are talking about a minority just to keep your argument.

No? If you spend 60€ on a game to beat it on easy in 5 hours, seems like a pretty big waste of time/money to me. This being MY OPINION is more than implied.

I am not saying they can't enjoy the game, I am saying they are not taking full advantage of it and their money.

[Eapoe]

Play however you want. Personally, I play on normal/medium difficulty because (a) I’m old and come from playing games when if you played easy the game ended early or you got incomplete endings, and (b) because I find hard(er) modes frustrating.
I’ve even played with cheat codes in some (usually after I beat them or if it’s a game like The Sims) just to drop in some extra fun.
As long as your experience doesn’t hamper others (cheats/hacks) in multiplayer games then play how you want to and have fun.

[schwank05]

I play on the easiest mode possible games should not cause stress or be infuriating they should be fun and enjoyable. This is why I love coming into Farm content for WOW so I can get my Loot and bosses fall over quickly and efficiently. I hated games like Bloodbourne because it was just hard for the sake of being hard and I spent 3 nights playing it and was like, nope done... That and I totally thought it was 100% Co-OP not randomly on specific bosses.

[MasterHamster]

I only go for "Easy" difficulties if its a game where I care a lot more about the story than the combat, such as Mass Effect where I felt that the combat inbetween was just for pacing and not the main focus of the game.
Most games get boring if you cannot "lose", so I prefer say Difficulty lvl 3 out of 4. I don't much enjoy getting oneshot either, hence one step below "max".


But of course, Easy difficulty does fill a purpose. Many times you don't want a challenge, you want to relax and plow through some enemies or whatever.

[Egomaniac]

Most people who play on easy, specially in SP games, aren't looking to improve and usually are people without a lot of time in their hands. You are talking about a minority just to keep your argument.

No? If you spend 60€ on a game to beat it on easy in 5 hours, seems like a pretty big waste of time/money to me. This being MY OPINION is more than implied.

I am not saying they can't enjoy the game, I am saying they are not taking full advantage of it and their money.

You are making an undue generalization just to make your argument. Look at the things people have been saying about why they choose to play a game on easy. Not a single person has said "well, I just don't have enough time". A very common theme is they just want to relax and enjoy the story.

People play on Easy for all kinds of reasons. Sure, sometimes its because they just don't have a lot of time to dedicate to getting good. Sometimes they just want to enjoy the game without worrying about the difficulty. Sometimes they are just struggling through on normal. The reasons they play on easy are their own. The value they get out of it is their own as well. All that matters is if they feel that they are getting their money's worth.

As i said, if you feel that YOU aren't getting full value out of a game if you play it on easy...that's fine. You should play it on whatever difficulty you want and get whatever value you can out of the game. But don't go around telling other people that they are "wasting their money" because they don't enjoy playing games the same way you do. That's utter bullshit.

[RCA]

Like some challenge in my games so I wouldn’t ever select that option. If it’s kids or someone who doesn’t play that much sure whatever. It really comes with the territory and depending on how the game is structured. Playing a lengthy campaign with no option until after I beat it, might not play again...but if that game has much more added to it during this increased difficulty, then you most likely have me come back.

[Itisamuh]

It depends on why I play the game. If story is the main reason then I want the gameplay as easy as possible so I can focus on the story without being distracted by anything. If the gameplay itself is the reason then at least somewhat of a challenge is good. If I like both the gameplay and story then a medium difficulty where I have to pay attention to stay alive but can still somewhat relax would be my go to. But I was never one for enjoying beating my face against a brick wall for ages trying to figure out how to beat something. If I want a real challenge I play multiplayer.

[Varvara Spiros Gelashvili]

Games are design for having fun... Do what is fun for you.

[Sughs]

You are making an undue generalization just to make your argument. Look at the things people have been saying about why they choose to play a game on easy. Not a single person has said "well, I just don't have enough time". A very common theme is they just want to relax and enjoy the story.

People play on Easy for all kinds of reasons. Sure, sometimes its because they just don't have a lot of time to dedicate to getting good. Sometimes they just want to enjoy the game without worrying about the difficulty. Sometimes they are just struggling through on normal. The reasons they play on easy are their own. The value they get out of it is their own as well. All that matters is if they feel that they are getting their money's worth.

As i said, if you feel that YOU aren't getting full value out of a game if you play it on easy...that's fine. You should play it on whatever difficulty you want and get whatever value you can out of the game. But don't go around telling other people that they are "wasting their money" because they don't enjoy playing games the same way you do. That's utter bullshit.

I already said 2 or 3 times, in my replies, that it's MY opinion that they are wasting money. For some reason you keep ignoring that and telling it over and over again.

When someone says something it's obvious that it's their opinion. There's no need to start every sentence with "In my opinion..."

[Egomaniac]

I already said 2 or 3 times, in my replies, that it's MY opinion that they are wasting money. For some reason you keep ignoring that and telling it over and over again.

When someone says something it's obvious that it's their opinion. There's no need to start every sentence with "In my opinion..."

Yes, it's obvious that you're speaking "YOUR OPINION"....just as it's obvious that I'm giving MY OPINION on your Opinion.

As you said:

When someone says something it's obvious that's it's their opinion. There's no need to start every sentence with "In my opinion..."

And MY OPINION is that "YOUR OPINION" on how other people play games is meaningless.

[Sughs]

Yes, it's obvious that you're speaking "YOUR OPINION"....just as it's obvious that I'm giving MY OPINION on your Opinion.

As you said:

And MY OPINION is that "YOUR OPINION" on how other people play games is meaningless.

You were the first one to challenge a clearly subjective opinion and you keep doing it. What's your plan, staying here all night? You seem like those people who can keep a meaningless discussion for days if the other party lets them so I am out. Have fun!

[Egomaniac]

You were the first one to challenge a clearly subjective opinion and you keep doing it. What's your plan, staying here all night? You seem like those people who can keep a meaningless discussion for days if the other party lets them so I am out. Have fun!

So what? Are you saying that opinions cannot be challenged? I didn't agree with your opinion. I stated as much. That could have been the end of it right there..but you felt the need to respond to my response. And to keep on responding.

Now you're making another reply saying that you don't feel the need to make another reply? What's the reasoning behind that? I mean...you could have just stopped responding without saying anything at all...then there'd be nothing more for me to respond to.

[Boricha]

I haven't played a game on easy in a long time because it became consistently boring. That said, I'm not a big fan of multiple difficulties in games because it's usually done poorly. With multiple difficulties, game mechanics have to be designed around the idea that they are ignorable until scaled up to a certain point, unless they literally remove un-ignorable mechanics from the lower difficulties. If they do that, then great. If everything is just scaled up, then the "challenge" can often feel cheap and lazy.

[Zuben]

I approve when the game mechanics are clunky af or when the player is only interested in the story.

[Afrospinach]

I had to turn Doom Eternal down to "Too Young to Die" to fight the final boss and I'm satisfied. I've been stuck on the fight for probably a week or two now, and on the game as a whole for nearly three months, and I just wanted to be done. Even on TYTD it was still pretty intense, though.

In general, is there any shame in playing games on easy? Maybe it was just because Eternal was so mentally exhausting and (literally) headache-inducing to me that I finally needed to dial it down a little- 99% of the time I just play games on normal and they aren't nearly as intense.

I am generally a "make the hard mode harder" type player. I have not played doom at all so I cannot comment but particularly FPS I play the hardest modes. It is a case of "what are people doing to make this possible". Or was, I am pretty good at most things like that now.

I shamelessly play Starcraft on the easier difficulty though rather than the top difficulty. People do things in these games that I simply do not enjoy. As soon as APM is in your vocabulary you are probably boring me. I do miss out on some of the feeling of achievement though, I think I got around 90% of the harder difficulty achievements in the original terran campaign, never bothered later on. Basically whatever works for you. After all if we are talking difficulty levels we are talking about your own time in a single player game.