Why Having an Easy Mode Makes Games Harder

Many people bemoan the presence of an easy mode in games like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, but are these modes really a negative?

[ifrit_caress]

They are certainly not a negative if they are optional. I like to play a game on normal because most of the time I don't have the patience to play it on hard and I won't exactly enjoy a game if it's easy, ie provides minimal challenge or difficulty.

[Cobra951]

Right, which is why a range of difficulties is best. If it's single-player non-competitive, then I don't understand why anyone has trouble with *optional* easier (and harder) modes.

[nitus10]

I don't mind a difficulty selection for some games (mainly single player) at the start of the game but having the ability to change the difficulty on the fly is IMHO like having a cheat but then again the only person you are cheating in a single player game is yourself.

BTW. Games like Oblivion and Skyrim do have a difficulty changer in that you can change the difficulty on the fly. I actually found that this was useful in the later stages of the game where you become so overpowered that the game becomes too easy so for a reasonable challenge I changed the difficulty to extra hard.

[PiNkFaIrYbOi]

Don't see the big fuss about this. More choices the better it is or at least that is what everyone says. If you don't like the easy mode don't play it.

[New_Age_Retro_Hippie]

Believe it or not, I once had a friend who straight up preferred that rather than Ghosts'N Goblins be given an easy mode, that it just be cancelled.

[SpinalRemains138]

Your friend is a good man. A man of integrity and an old soul who 'gets it.'

[New_Age_Retro_Hippie]

Like I said in the article though, GNG clearly can work with an easy mode. UGNG is still a ton of fun.

If an optional easy mode ensures that I can play these challenging games for longer without seeing the whole game dumbed down, I'll take 'em.

[NapalmSanctuary]

@SpinalRemains138
If by "man of integrity" you mean acting like a possessive baby, then I totally agree.

@New_Age_Retro_Hippie
No offense to you or your friend. BTW, you are absolutely right. Adding easy modes tends to leave the core, developer intended normal modes untouched by the need to make games more accessible. No one ever complained about easy modes in Ninja Gaiden and DMC games until the core games themselves became easy mode (NG3 & DMC2, DmC: Devil May Cry).

[New_Age_Retro_Hippie]

@NapalmSanctuary No offense taken. And yeah, I think without an easy mode, developers feel a little too nervous to make certain games too challenging.

[Yui_Suzumiya]

I'm not afraid to admit that I always play on easy

[modelgod]

Your a discharge to all Trophy and Achievement heads. I'll never run with you in Battlefield or any game that's competitive! !

[CorndogBurglar]

Poor guy....

[attilayavuzer]

Same. I play video games to unwind and have fun, getting frustrated ruins the experience for me. Also I have a gigantic backlog and work full time-I don't want the few hours I spend gaming to be wasted replaying sections.

[nitus10]

There is nothing wrong with playing a game on easy if it is a single player game.

If the game has an online component with player versus player then you better "git gud" or just don't play online. 😊

[New_Age_Retro_Hippie]

And nothing wrong with that. Play in the way that makes it the most fun!

[narsaku]

Makes games less enjoyable to play, you mean?

..There's legitimate difficulty like in Bloodborne, which has it's entire experience catered to one difficulty, which the developers test rigorously until it feels, "challenging". And then there's building a game for easy/normal mode, and then just lazily increasing mob hp/damage by 500% on hard because they don't want to go back and develop the gameplay all over again.

..What's REALLY important is if a game is, "FUN!"

..Shooting a bandit in the head with a sniper rifle and they only lose 15% of their hp ISN'T FUN OKAY?!?!?

Hardest difficulty bullet sponge enemies that 1 shot you with a squirt gun is a BAD THINGGGGGGG!!!!!

[nitus10]

I definitely agree that bullet sponge enemies (eg The Division) are no fun to the point where you don't care anymore and quit playing.

With games like the Soules/Borne series, the enemies you face are fair in that they play by the same rules that your avatar does. I know that the jape is "git gud" but everyone who wants to play these games has to at least make an attempt.

The Souls/Borne games do allow you to call NPC's or even online players who will actually help you but because you are online you also run the risk of getting invaded. Even if you are not online there are still NPC's who can help you although in certain places you may find that some NPC's will simulate an invasion.

BTW. For those that have not played a Souls/Borne game try "Lords of the Fallen". You should be able to get it cheaply and it was free for PS+ players over a year ago. It is not a bad game although it does have some bugs in it such as having the odd crash (rarely happens - restart your machine if this happens) to loss of sound (the game is fully voiced). If you do get a sound loss you are best resetting the game or get to a save point then reset.

Like the Souls/Borne games, LotF is fair and IMHO is an excellent lead into playing the Souls series and Bloodborne. Basically, you have a choice of three characters (fast - thief, medium - cleric, slow - fighter) and three spell modifiers which can give you the choice of nine distinct playable characters. Hint: have faith no matter what character you choose. 😉

[blawren4]

Agreed. make the game harder by increasing the damage of weapons(both yours and the enemies), increasing the number of enemies, or make ammo rarer, not enemy HP. No human enemy should be able to withstand a headshot, Make the game more realistic will increase the difficulty.

[Artemidorus]

Changre easy mode to responsibility mode

[RedDeadLB]

It depends on the game, I guess.

Prime examples of games where optional difficulty would ruin the game are Dark Souls or Bloodborne.
The difficulty is what these games are all about gameplay wise. If you got stuck, you had to learn the boss's moves, practice your timing and your tactics. Only then will you beat the boss, granting you a sense of major accomplishment.
Now imagine if you could just lower the difficulty and beat the boss without even making an effort. Doesn't sound that nice, does it?

On the other hand, a game where you're all powerful very quickly, you should be able to ramp up the difficulty if the game itself isn't paced properly. That's the reason I always play single player games on Hard if I have a choice. I get more time on the game and some sort of sense of accomplishment when I finish it.

[C-H-E-F]

Easy difficulty is good for trophy run collectibles and speed runs. I prefer to play the first playthrough on the hardest difficulty however, I end up playing on all difficulties if I enjoy the game enough to platinum it.

[Bleucrunch]

Easy mode has its place. There are some people who do not like games to be too difficult, but there should be no achievements/trophies for completing the game (or any at all for easy mode) and the only thing that is important is the saved game file.

For me, I want a challenge, could you imagine a game like dark souls with an easy mode? Blasphemous I tell you Blasphemous!!!