Hard modes

[Angrist]

Most of the games these days are becoming easier. Compare a new Mario with SMB 1, 2 & 3 and you'll know what I mean. Or the newest Kirby, where you cannot die. Ever. Keep walking into enemies, nothing happens. Fall into a pit and you'll be fished out of it.

Fortunately there are still games that offer hard modes. With names like Brutal, Hardcore and Insane they only appear to get harder and harder. Starcraft II for example has 4 difficulties: Casual, Normal, Hard, Brutal. Metroid Prime 3 has 3 (1 unlockable): Normal, Veteran, Hyper. Good stuff.

Right?

I felt cheated when I found out these games were not any harder than their predecessors. Metroid Prime 1 & 2 only had 2 difficulty settings, normal and hard. With Metroid Prime 3, there was a 3rd one... only it was easier than the previously normal ones. Hyper was the new Hard, Hard was the new Normal... and Normal was added for casual players.
Exception? No, take SC2 as an example. Warcraft 3 and its expansion The Frozen Throne had 2 difficulties: normal and hard. Hard was really really hard, some levels were almost impossible. So when Starcraft 2 offered Brutal difficulty on top of Hard, at first I feared it a little bit. Until I remembered Metroid Prime 3.
So I started playing SC2 on Hard difficulty, which wasn't hard at all. I actually tried Normal after that and it was incredibly boring. I was right, they added lower difficulty settings and renamed them. A few weeks ago I started SC2 on Brutal. Guess what? It's even easier than WC3 on Hard.

Games want to look hard, but they're actually getting easier. Give us something that's really a challange!!

[Bube]

I'm not so sure about Starcraft and such, but I agree with you on the other games. Games have become much more mainstream than they were 15 years ago, and this is the way for them to go..

And hearing that it isn't really that hard, maybe I should start playing the SC2 campaign on hard :)

[Angrist]

I'm pretty sure you'll be able to handle it.

[Bube]

To be honest, I don't think that I can't handle it. I just like to finish fast, and I play very basic and cut corners to achieve this in campaign games. So I hate having to start over when that basic plan fails :D

[Angrist]

Yeah you do have to take your time. Just defend until you have built a nice army. Even the levels where you need to be fast aren't that hard.
But if you're not going to enjoy it... ;)

[BreakABone]

I honestly don't care for hard modes, the only games I remember ever going back and playing on insane difficulties are the Gears of war and Halo.

I prefer a game that offers a challenge without relentlessly beating up the player.

[Combine 017]

Halo: Reach is probably one of the hardest ones out there these days.
Other than that, Fallout: New Vegas has a Hardcore mode, and while I havent played on it yet it will probably be really freaking hard.

[Fox 6]

Halo: Reach is probably one of the hardest ones out there these days.
Other than that, Fallout: New Vegas has a Hardcore mode, and while I havent played on it yet it will probably be really freaking hard.

Yeah, ive heard that hardcore mode takes into account your hydration level, and endurance when carrying heavy loads, limiting your travel time before you need to rest.

[Typhoid]

Yeah, ive heard that hardcore mode takes into account your hydration level, and endurance when carrying heavy loads, limiting your travel time before you need to rest.

Hardcore mode is very different.
Your companions can die, you have a meter for hydration, food, and sleep - and you need to take care of those as you do with HP, or else you'll die. You can only fast travel as far as you could travel normally without water or food. Ammunition has weight, everything heals over time instead of immediately.

[Professor S]

My problem with modern "hard" modes is that there is often a massive jump in difficulty from normal. Normal is too easy, but when I switched to "hard" on Dawn of War 2 I was gang raped by about 3X as many enemies and haven't been able to get past the fourth mission.

To me, "hard" should not be gaming on a dare, but simply a more challenging experience that lets you enjoy the game at a higher level without the sensation of having your shit pushed in.

[Angrist]

While I agree that there should be graduates with a nice learning curve, I also think that there should always be a 'gaming on a dare' option. It's just so satisfying when you can play that!

[Typhoid]

I'm with Angrist on this one.
Having a ridiculously hard mode on a game compared to normal difficulty [Like Legendary on Halo, if you also turn on some of the skulls, for example] makes it so much more satisfying when you actually are successful. Plus it makes the game more epic.

I can run through Halo on normal difficulty no problem, just because I've played it so much - but if I put it on Legendary, and put on a bunch of the skulls, each time you see a group of Elites and grunts you have a pretty intense battle most of the time.


New Vegas on Hardcore mode on Hard is also really fun. It feels 'realistic' in the sense that you're constantly scrounging for food, water, and a place to sleep rather than just worrying about blasting people's heads.