Too easy or too difficult?
Playing games isn´t always easy, sometimes you really have to work for that achievement/trophy! But there are also games where you can get achievements/trophies without too much trouble. In a way there isn´t really a middle ground, often games are too easy or too difficult. There aren´t many games that are in the middle, with just the right amount of difficulty to make the game challenging but not unbeatable. Maybe some developers are afraid that a game might be too difficult and people won´t buy it because of that, others might want to make it difficult because they hope this will make the game more interesting to play. But what happened to games that are fun to play but still challenging? A game that will take some skill to beat but won´t keep you stuck at the same point for days. I won´t say it´s easy to find that balance, but it´s strange that so many games seem to go for the easy road and not make it too difficult. I guess you have a difficulty setting to make it harder for yourself but then there is a good chance you find yourself in a situation where everything just goes horribly wrong. Like enemies that first didn´t know what to do turn into hunter killer drones that won´t give you one second of rest.
I have to admit that at first I hardly ever bothered with the hard difficulty setting , I never considered myself good enough to complete a game on that difficulty. I was already satisfied if I could beat it on medium/normal. It was Goldeneye 64 that changed that for me, because I beat the game on 00 agent difficulty (hard mode). Not just one level but all levels and I unlocked all cheats, which means beating levels on a certain difficulty within a certain time. But I guess it helps when you really like a game, you want to go further and complete it. I took that with me when they introduced achievements (and later trophies on the Ps 3). I wanted to get as many achievements as I could, which would often mean that I had to beat games on a higher difficulty then I´m really comfortable with. With some games that would be difficult if not impossible for me, but with others I actually suprised myself with my skills. When I first played Halo Reach I never thought I could beat that on legendary difficulty, but I did that without the help of anyone. I did the same in Halo 4, but in my opinion that was easier, and it really boosts your morale. The same counts for Resident Evil 5, completing the game on professional was also a good feeling. It helps me with trying higher difficulties in other games, something I might have avoided in the past but something I try out now more often.
So games don´t have to be too difficult as long as they have a higher difficulty setting? Well yes and no, it´s nice when you can make it harder for yourself and that players who are not so good at playing games still have a good chance to beat them. Because you don´t want Ninja Gaiden problems, where the game is just hard on normal, where you have to fight for every encounter as if it was the final boss fight. Oh and don´t get me started about the boss fights! I think that most games could use a medium difficult setting as a standard, don´t make things too easy for you like in Saints Row IV. It was nice to make progress but you breeze through the game way too fast and that doesn´t make it fun to play for a long time. When a game lacks multiplayer then you really need to invest in the single player mode! But I do agree that having the option to make games easier or harder for yourself should always be there in the options. Like in Mass Effect or Dragon Age where you can change difficulty at any moment and that really helps you get past annoying moments.
Should difficulty achievements/trophies exist in the achievement/trophy list? I have to admit that I´m not a big fan of these achievements/trophies, but they´re usually worth a lot of points or have more value as a trophy (silver or gold) and that makes them desirable. Besides it looks good in your achievements/trophies list to have that one completed, I do think that gives you some bragging rights. But do you really need them? No I don´t think you need achievements/trophies like that, it´s just lazy to put these type of achievements/trophies in a game! I guess they convince people to try a higher difficulty, something not everyone would do if there wasn´t an achievement/trophy tied to that. So I do see the reason why they do it, I´m just not that happy with it. I think it´s the worst for people who have all the achievements/trophies in a game but just miss one of those difficulty achievements/trophies and if that´s something you can´t do then you´ll never be able to complete the game. I don´t think I have to mention how much that sucks, so maybe difficulty achievements/trophies should no longer be a part of the achievement/trophy list. At least that´s how I feel about it!
I have to admit that at first I hardly ever bothered with the hard difficulty setting , I never considered myself good enough to complete a game on that difficulty. I was already satisfied if I could beat it on medium/normal. It was Goldeneye 64 that changed that for me, because I beat the game on 00 agent difficulty (hard mode). Not just one level but all levels and I unlocked all cheats, which means beating levels on a certain difficulty within a certain time. But I guess it helps when you really like a game, you want to go further and complete it. I took that with me when they introduced achievements (and later trophies on the Ps 3). I wanted to get as many achievements as I could, which would often mean that I had to beat games on a higher difficulty then I´m really comfortable with. With some games that would be difficult if not impossible for me, but with others I actually suprised myself with my skills. When I first played Halo Reach I never thought I could beat that on legendary difficulty, but I did that without the help of anyone. I did the same in Halo 4, but in my opinion that was easier, and it really boosts your morale. The same counts for Resident Evil 5, completing the game on professional was also a good feeling. It helps me with trying higher difficulties in other games, something I might have avoided in the past but something I try out now more often.
So games don´t have to be too difficult as long as they have a higher difficulty setting? Well yes and no, it´s nice when you can make it harder for yourself and that players who are not so good at playing games still have a good chance to beat them. Because you don´t want Ninja Gaiden problems, where the game is just hard on normal, where you have to fight for every encounter as if it was the final boss fight. Oh and don´t get me started about the boss fights! I think that most games could use a medium difficult setting as a standard, don´t make things too easy for you like in Saints Row IV. It was nice to make progress but you breeze through the game way too fast and that doesn´t make it fun to play for a long time. When a game lacks multiplayer then you really need to invest in the single player mode! But I do agree that having the option to make games easier or harder for yourself should always be there in the options. Like in Mass Effect or Dragon Age where you can change difficulty at any moment and that really helps you get past annoying moments.
Should difficulty achievements/trophies exist in the achievement/trophy list? I have to admit that I´m not a big fan of these achievements/trophies, but they´re usually worth a lot of points or have more value as a trophy (silver or gold) and that makes them desirable. Besides it looks good in your achievements/trophies list to have that one completed, I do think that gives you some bragging rights. But do you really need them? No I don´t think you need achievements/trophies like that, it´s just lazy to put these type of achievements/trophies in a game! I guess they convince people to try a higher difficulty, something not everyone would do if there wasn´t an achievement/trophy tied to that. So I do see the reason why they do it, I´m just not that happy with it. I think it´s the worst for people who have all the achievements/trophies in a game but just miss one of those difficulty achievements/trophies and if that´s something you can´t do then you´ll never be able to complete the game. I don´t think I have to mention how much that sucks, so maybe difficulty achievements/trophies should no longer be a part of the achievement/trophy list. At least that´s how I feel about it!
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