Favourite video game difficulties

[DraconianWing]

Depends on the genre I'm playing. I shy away from high difficulty settings in stuff like RPGs, but I prefer to play the highest difficulty on racing games (ie. Elite on WipEout and Expert/Master on F-Zero)

 

[Pokemon Game Fan]

I enjoy Normal the best. If I am experienced enough, hard.

 

[Shhwonk]

My answer depends on what the definitions of "Easy" and "Normal" are in the respective game, and exactly what genre the game is. I rarely go Hard mode because I'm too easily frustrated by games, and I like moving on in the game's narrative at a brisk pace. Although if one of the game's major facets is its reward for overcoming its challenges, then I'm all for some Hard mode.

I never choose Easy mode if it means the game will literally walk me through the plot and I will have infinite health. I call this Baby mode. Most FPSs have Baby mode, so I'll normally go with its Normal difficulty.

RPGs differ as well. A lot of them have a ton of grinding just to beat a boss. If it's a hella long game, like 40 hours or longer, then sometimes I'll pick Easy to cut down on the massive time-waster that is grinding.

I'm thankful for games that let me choose the difficulty setting mid-game. It changes depending on my mood and how sick I am of the game at hand. I'm also sort of grateful for games that DON'T let the player choose the difficulty, like Dark Souls, because everyone is essentially experiencing the challenges of the game equally.

 

[LatiasSoulDew]

The easiest difficulty, because I love to stomp the weak. Usually it's satisfying.

 

[Khoshi]

Easy mode. I lack the skills to ever go beyond easy mode.

Easy modo? Kyahahaha!

Just kidding. I can only really handle easy mode, and if I do well in easy, I move up to normal. I play most RPGs at easy to adapt, but then ramp them up to normal or even hard if I'm feeling adventurous.

 

[Leviathan]

I admittedly go for the easiest difficulty available from the start. I play games for the storylines, so if I liked my first playthrough, then and only then will I consider attempting a higher difficulty.

 

[Kameken]

I go with normal my first playthrough, and if the game warrants a replay, I move up in difficulty.

 

[Torshavn]

I like to pick the hardest setting available because I love being on edge. Picking the hardest mode means I need to concentrate a lot and it really does make the whole experience of playing the game a lot more immersive for me.

 

[pkmin3033]

It depends, really. Hard mode these days tends to mean either "lol let's give the enemies more health" or "lol let's make enemies do more damage" (or sometimes both) which isn't so much challenging as it is just more time consuming. If I'm going to play on hard, I usually will with my first playthrough, because I haven't learned the game's patterns/mechanics yet and it's actually challenging, rather than just the same game I played before on a lower difficulty but more time consuming. I think the only game that has deployed standard "buff enemy" tactics on higher difficulties that I've found genuinely hard in recent years is Resonance of Fate, and that's mostly because on the standard difficulty that game was brutal. There was also the Forgotten One in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow's second DLC, but we don't talk about that.

But I don't mind starting on higher difficulties, as sometimes games can be dreadfully boring on easier difficulties. Rhythm games in particular really suffer for the lack of notes they have on easy mode, because they're not even remotely in time with the beat, which ironically makes them harder for me as I want to press buttons at different times which make more sense than what the game wants! It also makes a story mode playthrough on a lower difficulty more enjoyable, because it's ridiculously easy by comparison and you can just blast through the whole thing.

That said, I strongly dislike being forced to play on hard mode, because there are always one or two certain moments that will REALLY screw you over, no matter how good you are. Bioware, I'm looking at you. Mass Effect 3 on Insanity and Dragon Age Inquisition on Nightmare are two of the least fun experiences I have ever had and I hate you for it. Timesink games with a lot of story content should NOT make you play on hard, period. If I want to enjoy the story I'm not going to play on hard, and being forced to for a trophy is a serious pain in the backside. I've had some horrific stage experiences in Warriors game as well which have really put me off them at times. Difficulty-related trophies need to die. Like I frequently do when forced to play hard mode for a trophy.

Usually I'll go easy or normal, but sometimes I'll go hard if I'm bored. If trophies are involved, I'll go hard and moan a lot about it if it's actually hard because, of course, that's grossly unfair, haha.

 

[Palkia]

I don't like my games to be difficult. I want them well behaved, mm'kay.