Are Games “Too Easy” Now?


dragonquest

Back in my day. . .

Every video game was hard. It didn’t matter what console it was on, they were all impossibly difficult. There was no Internet to consult, and any hints or tips cost money: Books, VHS, Nintendo Power, GamePro, none of it was free. And as someone who primarily played games involving heavy exploration, and roleplaying games, every game felt like a soul-crippling challenge. Dragon Warrior, Blaster Master, Final Fantasy, Chrystalis, Ninja Gaiden 2, the list just goes on and on. Most RPGs back in those days really required you to talk to everyone and explore, experiment, and just find your own way, even if it was linear. You had no idea where the Edrick’s items were. How the hell were you supposed to know to search in one of the swamps where you take damage?! I sure didn’t for a long time! I had to literally talk to everyone, and that wasn’t enough. And for Final Fantasy for example, if you don’t want to suffer, you talk to everyone in every town and maybe break it up with some grinding.

Nowadays though, the information is literally everywhere. You can go to Gamefaqs, or simply google, or whatever search engine you want. Games just. . . feel easier now. But with the Souls craze hitting the web, those types of insanely challenging games might be coming back. I don’t know though; I feel like most games are easy now, thanks to ease of access of information. Even with Nintendo Power, that wasn’t enough! Most games I wanted to work on simply weren’t covered. You were at someone elses’s mercy. There were no Let’s Play channels or any of that stuff. You had to either get good, or don’t play. What do you guys think though? Are games “too easy” now? Can you think of a good, modern RPG that has that sort of old-school level of difficulty?

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