Topic: Is insane difficulty becoming a thing of the past?

[The Last Belmont]

I just popped in Adventures of Bayou Billy into my nes for the first time in probably about 5 years and gave it a go. I got about halfway through level 4 as usual and game overed. I remember nintendo pushing that game like crazy back in the day and everybody I know had it, but nobody I know of ever finished it w/out cheats. I was thinking about it and I can't think of any game made recently that is hard like that, all the ones that come to mind are at least 12 years old. Do you guys think the gaming companies now are making games easier or are there still games coming out that yall feel are almost impossible? I always loved the challenge of Billy and had lots of fun w/ it, if I could just pass those damn driving levels I could probably finish it as I'm crazy fast with the zapper and have completely mastered the hand to hand combat.

[Clara E. Leet]

Check out Contra 4.

[Mr Sven]

I miss games being difficult.

It could be argued that due to memory restrictions back in the day, games had to be made hard for longevity reasons.

These days we "apparently" dont play games to be challenged but to enjoy a story, though I don't agree with that in the least or there wouldn't be a retro scene or a virtual console.

admittedly you will get the odd - and i mean very odd - difficult game, the likes of ninja gaiden for example and metal slug/ikaruga are some recent examples i can think of.

dont get me wrong, lots of games these days can be challenging but not many of them are truly ones that make you want to slam your controller through the wall after you just died for the 46th time in five minutes.

I'm not sure if games companies are intentionally making games easier or not, but if they are you're more likely to finish it then go buy something else that lines the pockets of the developers and publishers.

I think they also cater for the casual gamer which makes up a large majority of the gaming culture these days. casual gamers want something arcadey - quick/easy to get into/not much thinking etc so the developers cater for those people as they will get the greatest profit from that sector.

perhaps i am being cynial but i believe games are becoming easier due to the sole reason of money and greed.

[The Clark]

Another thing I never see anybody bring up is that the ridiculous difficulty of older games was an obvious byproduct of gaming's arcade roots. Arcade games were made difficult to eat your quarters, and I guess it just kinda became the norm back then, even when the developers were working on home consoles. Just like how so many games had scores and timers when each generally served no purpose. Why did Super Mario Bros. 3 keep track of your score? Why did they feel that Castlevania's stages needed a timer? Why was Ninja Gaiden so difficult? Arcade roots.

[elbryan42]

Battletoads, Ghouls N Ghosts, Contra, Gradius, and Ninja Gaiden are all considered to be the toughest games out there. And they all originated in the arcade. Since then, though, the games have gotten MUCH more difficult than they ever were in the arcade (well, except Gradius 2 and 3 ).

Games are WAY TOO easy nowadays. If it can't be beaten in 2 days it's too tough for today's gamer.

And if I hear one more time about Halo's legendary mode, I will shoot someone. I want a genuinely tough game. Not a game where the only way to make it challenging is to make it one hit, you're dead. In an FPS, quick reflexes, enemy placement, level design, massive amounts of enemies and weapon strategy make the games tough. Advanced AI and minimal health just masks a shallow game.

We shouldn't have to pump the games up to max difficulty to get a real challenge from a game.

Speaking of FPS, you all should try Action Doom. It's Contra with the Doom engine! Nice and tough.

Even if Contra 4 had more than one hit before you die, Normal and Hard mode would both give any new age gamer a run for their money.

In short: We need more games like Contra 4 and Ultimate Ghouls and Ghosts.

And we absolutely need a NEW 2D Ninja Gaiden game.

On a side note, I just ordered the Parodius, Twinbee and Salamander collections for the PSP. More tough as nails difficulty is coming my way.

[Rugal]

Gamers these days are a bunch of pansy kids that cry when a slight challenge is thrown at them.

And yes, I was playing Ninja Gaiden 2 last night on my Wii, and I can only get through the final stage 1 out of 4 times, and when I do get through it, I get my ass handed to me on a platter served over linguini by Jaquio.

[Xain]

And yes, I was playing Ninja Gaiden 2 last night on my Wii, and I can only get through the final stage 1 out of 4 times, and when I do get through it, I get my ass handed to me on a platter served over linguini by Jaquio.

I feel your pain....oh do i feel it. at least the game is nice to you and shuffles through some of the music tracks in the game for that level.

It sad but true....my brother makes fun of me all the time when i beat a game quickly. says im a waste of money. (in context of the game being a gift) As much as i advocate high difficulty in games nothing...and i mean nothing...should be on level with Ultimate Ghouls n' Ghosts.

[Cypress]

Yea, there are very few games that are as hard as the old ones. New games tend to act like they are difficult to make them seem cooler (GoW had a mode called hardcore I think...lame) But they can't compare to the old games like Military Madness (I need to study so I can beat it, Revenge of Shinobi, Ecco the Dolphin (more frustrating than hard), Bram Stoker's Dracula on hard mode (wth), etc. For some games I think it is good that they aren't that hard, rpgs and shooters, but I still wish they were a lot harder. The only game I can think of now that reflects the old hardness is the hard mode lv. 1 in PoR.

[shelverton.]

Games these days are just kinda... long.

Though Devil May Cry 3 was tough, and Shinobi on ps2 was kinda hard too. And Ninja Gaiden on xbox. Also, Contra: Shattered Soldier.

I actually get my ass handed to me more in Devil May Cry than in the NES Ninja Gaidens. I guess it all depends on what you grew up on.

[CVfan13]

How could anyone LIKE a difficult game? I don't want it to be a cakewalk, but I don't want it to be difficult? Haven't you heard the story of how I broke my GBA SP because a difficult game?

[shelverton.]

In Reply To #10

Difficult is fine, frustrating is not.

[Slayer]

In Reply To #10

This coming from the man who decides not to play any other games than CV titles...

[A vicar in a tutu]

Games are WAY TOO easy nowadays. If it can't be beaten in 2 days it's too tough for today's gamer.

Damn right!
I remember beating Metroid Zero Mission on the same day I got it on midnight!

In Reply To #12
Maybe man is not the appropiate term..
Maybe he's still younger..like those who like to play average games like Pokemon or something else..I guess..

[Profbeanburrito]

Yeah games are way too easy these days. I think games still need the option of difficulty and not every game has that. One thing I love about the Metal Gear Solid series is that there is a difficulty level for when you get spotted its a game over

[CVfan13]

In Reply To #10

This coming from the man who decides not to play any other games than CV titles...

Lol, yeah that's true. But the game that broke my GBA SP was the classic NES series CV.  :

In Reply To #12
Maybe man is not the appropiate term..
Maybe he's still younger..like those who like to play average games like Pokemon or something else..I guess..

No, I'm not that young as to play Pokemon, but not exactly a man yet either, as I'm almost in high school.