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sfried

520th Post

New Red Carpet Member

"Do you play easy games?" , posted Sat 17 Apr 07:24

Does anybody here sometimes suffer from a case of difficulty/dedication/frustration burnout when playing?

I think I might have recently experienced one when I "crashed" from playing Strange Journey (no, my save file is okay thank you): I just fought the second/third boss in the Bootes sector, and my mind suddenly craved for something of a "light distraction", hence why I started to ask recommndations for a Kirby game (since I've played Super Star to death).

I remember my childhood experiences only dedicating myself to one game until I have completed it 100%, so easy games would naturally be a turn off for me if I wanted to get more meat out of a purchase, but nowadays I just find myself going with whatever I feel is entertaining. The Kirby games, for one, are like those titles you return to like chicken soup (especially at spring). I don't know why I sometimes develop a fondness/obsession over a certain genre for a certain period, even sometimes having an urge for something very difficult or very easy depending on the mood.

I know most people tend to shy away from anything that is too easy (even labeling those with the derogatory "casual" term). I'm not sure how others are able to "binge" from one big budgeted title to another, so I'm curious to hear your habits.

Replies:

Mozex

407th Post

Gold Customer

"Re(1):Do you play easy games?" , posted Sat 17 Apr 08:18

I switched halflife 2 from hard to easy halfway through because I was getting frustrated at a particularly tough section. I then realized that the only difference the difficulty made was how much damage I took per hit and left it on easy for the rest of the game. I don't think I will ever touch the game again.

I am a ninja dog. I was tired of the maze aspect of Ninja Gaiden Sigma so I went to the easiest difficulty and just had fun hacking at stuff. I don't think I will ever touch the game again.

I don't mind a difficult game, but it has to be enjoyable for reasons other than being hard to complete. If I like the game on easy or normal then chances are I will like it more on hard.

Be kind to goblins.

karasu99

333th Post

Bronze Customer

"Re(1):Do you play easy games?" , posted Sat 17 Apr 08:20

quote:
I'm curious to hear your habits.

I exhibit much the same behavior. Kirby is one of my 'light' choices as well, as is SOTN, which I have played so many times that I've found I often need to set arbitrary rules for play for myself (i.e. using only a certain weapon, etc.). I find it to be truly relaxing.

I think a definite distinction can be drawn between fun, challenging games and games that are played for relaxation (or that are relaxing because of pleasant memories).

Digitalboy

684th Post

Red Carpet Regular Member

"Re(2):Do you play easy games?" , posted Sat 17 Apr 09:53

During the Playstation One and Gamecube era, I would normally cheat to just know the story. So it would be considered easy, since I cheat to win. Now, if I am frustrated in a game, I just give up and not play it for a while.

Easy games are not that bad. Easy to enjoy and easy to put down.

I would not mind playing Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 for the difficulty, but I find myself much more frustrated because they did not fix the camera problem from the 360 version. Besides the different modes and characters available, one of the "improvements" that Tecmo did was to enable boob shaking with the six-axis controller...

quote:
I'm curious to hear your habits.

I don't know how to live
But I've got alot of toys...

Ishmael

3757th Post

Platinum Carpet V.I.P- Board Master

"Re(2):Do you play games?" , posted Sun 18 Apr 01:59

quote:
I think a definite distinction can be drawn between fun, challenging games and games that are played for relaxation (or that are relaxing because of pleasant memories).

Very true, but for me there are challenging and relaxing games, both of which are fun in their own way. While I can appreciate that old school push your way through impossible odds style of games I don't view that as my primary definition of what a game should be. I view games more as a source of enteractive entertainment. That's a wildly broad definition but it also gives me plenty of leeway in what I play. Sometimes I'll want a game full of challenges and split-second timing, other times I'll want to play a game like Way of the Samurai 3 where I spend a huge amount of my game wandering around stealing radishes. Both types of games are equally valid in my mind.

sfried

522th Post

New Red Carpet Member

"Re(3):Do you play games?" , posted Sun 25 Apr 09:36

quote:
I think a definite distinction can be drawn between fun, challenging games and games that are played for relaxation (or that are relaxing because of pleasant memories).
Very true, but for me there are challenging and relaxing games, both of which are fun in their own way. While I can appreciate that old school push your way through impossible odds style of games I don't view that as my primary definition of what a game should be. I view games more as a source of enteractive entertainment.

Approachability is one of the few aspects I sometimes look for in a title. Just because it has easy mechanics does not mean it lacks depth.

I think pacing is also another issue which I've seen games refine throughout the years, although many titles still suffer from that sense of overwhelming the player with too many tasks which don't necessarily come from micromanagement, but rather from padding the gameplay too much.

Cave Story is a nice example of a game that treads between relaxing and challenging. On one hand they give you one simple strightforward task at a time with a clearly defined goal. On the other you're essentially exploring a Metroidvania, but they don't give you too many branching paths to explore immediately nor too many secrets to uncover in one area. It's clear that Pixel knew when things got repetative that it was time to shake up the scenario, without feeling you have missed something once you've ended a stage. It's a good example of when the developer hides "player incompetence" for the sake of keeping the game flowing without ruining the balance and becoming "unchallenging". (Kirby Super Star seems to work in a similar manner by gradually stepping up it's levels difficulty until the player has become comfortable and adept enough to try a single round of difficult levels.)

Pollyanna

2902th Post

Platinum Carpet V.I.P- Board Master

"Re(4):Do you play games?" , posted Sun 25 Apr 10:36

I play a lot of different games from a lot of different genres, but I generally don't like easy games. If a game is too easy, it doesn't feel fulfilling to me. It's not just "easy", but "engaging", really. There are some games that are "easy" in terms of overall difficulty, but give you so many things to do that you feel challenged (or at least engaged) on some level at all times.

That being said, I will not pass on an otherwise excellent game because of lack of challenge. Although I don't ever crave easy games, I sometimes need to take a break from more difficult ones. After a particularly tough boss, for example...I might step away for half an hour or so. Then there are times where a game asks too much of something annoying from me, and I won't bother.

I hope I don't sound like I'm trying to be "hardcore" or anything. I'm really not terribly good at games to begin with (despite how much I play), so "challenge" is kind of relative. The only games in recent memory I can think of that I play on higher difficulties are Bayonetta, Ouendan and Tales games.

青春謳歌　弱肉強食

Spoon

1935th Post

Gold Carpet V.I.P- Platinum Executive

"Re(3):Do you play games?" , posted Sun 25 Apr 12:11

I know that there are games that I would find easy now that I would've found pretty damn hard in the past, and that there are games that I found hard in the past that are still pretty damn hard now.

During the 8-bit days, I played everything I could get my hands on. Having a Famicom in North American meant that it was hard to get ahold of games, so if I got a game, it didn't matter if it was too easy or too hard: it was something new, and therefore something worth playing.

Incidentally, I ended up with a lot of games that I'd consider challenging, and as a result one of the things that has colored my perception of a gaming experience is that it has to matter that I was there, that I was the one playing. One of my most favourite moments in all of Ninja Gaiden is a ridiculous jump in Ninja Gaiden 3 where you have to leap off of a moving platform down a nearly screen-tall vertical shaft that is only slightly wider than your character and is lined with electrical things that will shock you and make you die if you touch them... and you have to land onto a moving platform below. I'm not actually sure just how difficult that jump is, but it is so harrowing, and escape seems so narrow, that it creates a bowel-clenching moment that is always cathartic. I don't need every game to be like that all the time, but moments like that really leave me with the feeling that I had experienced something that was worthwhile.

One of my favourite PS2 games is Sky Gunner. I could harp about any number of things about it that are excellent, but there's one tiny touch in it that really strikes a chord with me. When you take a bunch of damage, you have to mash buttons/wiggle the stick to regain control of your plane. When you do that successfully, a popup appears informing you of your success. In really, really tiny text on that pop-up, is a message saying something along the lines of "it was possible because it was you". One of the reasons why competitive games are fun for me is because there is an understanding that victory or defeat comes about as a result of ME playing; if anybody else played, the outcome would've been different. With many RPGs, victory often comes across as an inevitability, and instead I'm supposed to just enjoy the ride. If that's the case, then that better be a DAMN GOOD RIDE.

I'd say that I've had a good time with a bunch of RPGs that I'd consider easy. FF3 (or 6) on the SNES wasn't hard back then, and I immensely enjoyed it. Chrono Trigger's new game+ was fun, and the game certainly isn't hard when you do that. But games which manage that have to have quite something around it in order for them to captivate me. Flower, Sun and Rain isn't exactly hard, and isn't exactly fun, and is somewhat questionably designed, but for me it is certainly engaging and interesting.

Catalyst

463th Post

Gold Customer

"Re(1):Do you play easy games?" , posted Sun 25 Apr 13:26

For me it depends on the given circumstances.

Prior to my game purchases, I do a lot of research if I know I want to keep the game and keep myself occupied for a very long time.

If I know the game has a lot of quests, things I need to get, achievements, etc. then I will play on easy mode just to get through the game due to the limited amount of time I have. Just to enjoy the game and what it has at the moment.

I think I haven't been online for the past 3 months just to play my games? [blitzrush85 if anyone wants to add me on the PSN network].

But, despite that i'll definitely plug the game into hard mode to enjoy the game more with a challenge.

One time though I've felt frustration, was doing a secret mission in DMC 4 trying to not get hit once by lizards. Mission number 9 unbreakable. That made me say screw this for a good point in time.