FromSoftware games truly evokes the sense of accomplishment, and I am glad they don't have an Easy mode (see Staff Post)

[DonaldKimball]

Sekiro isn't even hard. Once you get used to parrying it becomes a joke.

It is super fun to play though and is a classic Fromsoft game. I hope they never cater to casuals.

 

[LiK]

FROM games feel like old school NES games back in the day. Merciless but satisfying to beat.

 

[Deleted member 32018]

I love from games and have beaten all of the Souls Style games outside DS3 from them.
I still wouldn't mind them having a easy mode that didn't require a user to always summon. This isn't exclusive to From though, i'm very big on games being something for everyone. Regardless of skill level.

Click to shrink...

Yep, exactly this. It would work the other way around for games like Pokemon having a hard mode too.

 

[D.Dragoon]

No, it doesn't. It makes me feel like I have accomplished something.

Click to shrink...

That is what difficulty settings are for. Play on the hardest difficulty if that is what you need to feel like you accomplished something.

 

[dred]

I agree with you, OP. Everyone talking about elitism and difficulty scaling is completely missing the point of this topic. To be honest Demon's Souls and the games that followed wouldn't exist if FROM listened to the type of pressure that's on display in this thread.

I don't consider myself a highly skilled gamer but I do have stubbornness and determination if I feel like a goal is fair and attainable. Souls, Bloodborne, and now Sekiro have tapped into this side of me and given me a greater sense of satisfaction and accomplishment than any other games, due in large part to their singular vision and uncompromising nature.

If the games aren't for you that's fine, but there is a reason FROM has made the deliberate and intentional decision to exclude a difficulty option from every one of these games. It means more for those who see the challenges through, and that is a vital part of the experience.

 

[Stat]

I'm not interested in lack of options to feed gamer elitism.

Click to shrink...

Agreed. I am enjoying Sekrio and I like Bloodborne. I like Dark Souls as well.

But I've never seen a more gatekeeping community than Soulsbourne fans. It's nuts.

I think given a vote, they would rather make the game harder and have fewer people play the game than welcome anyone new to the community by adding a mode that has increase damaged / more health.

I know people talk about worst (or most elitist) gaming communities and it tends to be multiplayer games like Fortnite, but I really think Soulsborne games is up there. And its coming from a fan of the design and lore, and gameplay.

 

[Dolobill]

I agree with OP. As an example of how difficulty options can remove enjoyment from a game, I find it pretty common for people to say that they found the Halo series to be average or mediocre after playing through on Normal... and I would agree with that, because that isn't playing the game as it was intended (Heroic). Playing on normal doesn't force you to strategize, choose and use weapons tactically, understand the mechanics of weapon types, shields vs armor, etc. which makes for a more shallow experience. The same would apply to From's games, even moreso.

 

[maxxatom]

It's fine for creators to make a hard game...I'm just most likely not going to play them. So it's just a question of wanting those sales or not.

 

[cecilpaladin32]

I think Sekiro could have actually easily had difficulty settings based solely on the timing windows/speed of enemies. That way, even on lower difficulties, you're still "learning" from the bosses and getting punished for not playing well - just it's more forgiving to learn those things/more opportunities to get through the same hurdles.

I don't disagree with anything that the OP said as I understand where he is coming from, but I also understand the other side completely, as well (and my stance is firmly neutral here). With Sekiro, I realize I will personally never beat the game and I'm fine with that - I'll push myself as far as I can while still enjoying the experience (currently only 6 mini-bosses and 2 bosses defeated).

 

[Blade Wolf]

Choose Hard mode and flex your turgid e-peen with pride, my dude.

Other people having options to enjoy an experience - options that do not affect you at all, mind - won't kill you.

Click to shrink...

I don't think you understand my post.
I am not saying that I don't want others to play on easy mode, I am saying that I don't want myself to play on easy mode. Because I absolutely will if given the choice.

Here's my point, for those who don't get it:
If Sekiro had an Easy mode I would switch to it in a heartbeat, but the experience wouldn't be the same.
It is precisely the fact that it doesn't allow me to do that that makes the experience so much more meaningful.

 

[Domcorleone]

Games are always build with a set difficulty in mind thus any game that provides you with multiple options will suffer on one of the difficulty levels. Usually hard modes just give the enemies extra HP and the ability to deal more damage. FromSoftware games are difficult because they require patience and planning. I don't know how effective these games would be at forcing players to use all the mechanics otherwise.

 

[CielTynave]

I'm gonna quote Yahtzee on this:

"A gentler barrier to entry would have turned less new players off, and more to the point made the ones who did get through a bit less insufferably smug."

 

[Deleted member 32018]

I hope they never cater to casuals.

Click to shrink...

Ah, classic elitist gatekeeping...

 

[Rodjer]

I think your take is bullshit and I think you're an ableist.

Here's the fucking deal: not everyone is as capable as you. Some of us have issues with muscle tension and coordination. I might work just as hard as you, but I got a handicap, so any accomplishment you feel, I work ten times as hard to get. It would be nice to play a game that feels just as good to me as it does to you. That's what difficulty modes are for.

The fundamental problem with assholes who think there should be no difficult modes is a lack of empathy. You think everyone shares your body, your skill level. You think everyone has the same experience.

You don't. Fuck outta here with this take.

Click to shrink...

There are a ton of accessible games on the market, having litterally 3 or 5 games with a fixed difficulty is not a bigger deal like are you trying to make. I could agree with you if every game is like Sekiro, but it's not. For every Sekiro on the market there are 1000 games way easier for everyone.

 

[luther manhole]

I don't think all art needs to be for everyone, personally. So for the most part I agree I guess.

 

[whatsarobot]

Not having an easy mode makes me work harder to experience the game. If there was an easy option I'd choose it in a moment of frustration and end up cheapening the experience.

Creative ways to overcome (grinding, hidden items, etc) are always helpful, but there can be space for games which require you to just improve or fail to progress. Controversial opinion around these parts, but I really don't think every game needs to be fully accessible from a challenge stand point.

 

[DonaldKimball]

You can still grind for skill points and level up medicine or spirit emblem stacks. You can also farm for confettis that make some of the bosses a cakewalk.

I get what you're saying but there are still ways in this game to make the experience easier.

Click to shrink...

Nah, most skills are useless for the main boss fights. The only worth ones are aquired very early. The rest is just qol improvements.

 

[Rush_Khan]

Spoiler: Sekiro early boss spoilers

Yes man. Lady butterfly with little posture left. Me with a pixel width of health left and no healing items. Knew I just had to go all out. Both throwing blows and deflects at other.


Guess who came out on top?


Honestly never felt so much adrenaline while playing a game before.

Edit: I will add that accessibility options are NEVER a bad thing. Just don't select them. For example, MK8's smart steering is one of the best accessibilty features for a long while. Doesn't mean you have to use them.

 

[Dr. Monkey]

While we're talking about accessibility, that yellow text is horrible on light theme.

 

[DrDeckard]

It's because it makes you feel superior to those who fail.

Click to shrink...

I really hope this is sarcasm. My enjoyment purely comes from a respect of the developer and their talent to create an experience what they deem to be a challenge, but one that can be ultimately overcome with a mixture if talent, skill, planning etc.

I would not want a difficulty setting in a fromsoft game. The whole point of the game is to be challenged.

 

[Yossarian]

I'm not interested in lack of options to feed gamer elitism.

Click to shrink...

Hypothetically, wouldn't 'forcing' games to have as many accessibility options as possible be curbing creators' creativity?

 

[butman]

I love games that only have one difficulty level. The developer's one.

 

[Okabe]

A good source of potassium is Banana's

 

[Pompadour]

I honestly believe if they added an easier mode to these games they wouldn't be nearly as beloved. More people would fail at normal and drop to easy and the game would be less satisfying.

Not to say that an easier difficulty mode shouldn't exist but if it did I'm sure people would care less about them.

Tangentially, my biggest issue with DMCV is that there's no hard mode out of the gate. You can sleep walk through normal mode pretty much.

 

[Uthred]

No. Because you could always drop down the difficulty.

Click to shrink...

Got it. Other people shouldn't have access to it because you have no self control. It must be tough been so stronk at video games but only when the developer enables you by not letting you give in to your impulses. Clearly all the elitist nonsense in this thread is a cry for help.

Edit: I'd meant this as sarcasm but it seems in between posting and refreshing the OP said this is literally the case. Honestly kudos on explicitly stating your selfish desires as opposed to trying to obfuscate them.

 

[Jeronimo]

Seems like this has been discussed to death. I knew that some would ridicule you for the feeling of "accomplishment" from completing a video game challenge, and that others would criticize why your preference requires fewer options for others.

I appreciate that developers are sometimes able to tune a game to a single difficulty and get almost exactly the experience they want, but sometimes they miscalculate and some part of games end up unnecessarily frustrating. Options are good for that reason.

 

[Pascal]

Sekiro is a beautiful game with some really amazing areas to explore and I think it's a shame that more people won't get to experience it because the game is simply too hard for most people. Maybe having more difficulty options isn't an inherently bad thing.

 

[Kazer]

I don't think you understand my post.
I am not saying that I don't want others to play on easy mode, I am saying that I don't want myself to play on easy mode. Because I absolutely will if given the choice.

Here's my point:
If Sekiro had an Easy mode I would switch to it in a heartbeat, but the experience wouldn't be the same.
It is precisely the fact that it doesn't allow me to chicken out that makes the experience so much more meaningful.

Click to shrink...

So just don't swap to Easy mode and you're golden.

 

[BeaconofTruth]

I think an easy mode would make them a lot more accessible to gamers with disabilities.

Click to shrink...

Larger problem for accessibility is the controller, less the difficulty. Lack of rebindable controls, limited options on camera askjstment, limited interface options, etc.

Challenge isn't some arbitrary concept of a game, it is a meaningful part of the art. Learning a set of systems, pushing yourself to adapt n be better isn't exclusionary as a concept.

Gutting that doesn't really make the experience accessible, it just means you paired it way down to compensate for not having a better interface/control options for that individual.

 

[Death Penalty]

Oh god the "if there was an easy mode, I'd be too weak and use it!" argument. You're arguing that people with disabilities should not get the option because you don't have willpower. How selfish can you get?

 

[MegaMix]

I mean these games aren't even that hard to begin with. Easy mode for Souls is just summoning someone. Sekiro is piss easy as it is. Take the five minutes to learn the mechanics. There's even a training area where they teach you and have you practice. Parrying and deflecting makes every boss a joke and it is so lenient.

 

[AntiMacro]

Would the game be less difficult if it also had an easy setting for people who needed it? No? Then take your elitist 'git gud' bullshit and hit the fucking road.

 

[Deleted member 32018]

Hypothetically, wouldn't 'forcing' games to have as many accessibility options as possible be curbing creator's creativity?

Click to shrink...

How? They can go batshit crazy with the difficulty on the hard difficulty if they so choose.

 

[random88]

Lot's of people didn't read the OP:

These games forces me to face the challenges that I would otherwise tone down had I been given the choice.

Click to shrink...

1. It's designer's choice

2. Beating a Souls game on easy mode would be a very shallow experience. Gameplay is good exactly because it makes you play carefully and keeping you on the edge at all times. Same goes for the story.

3. Not everything in every aspect of life has to be inclusive.

If games are "art" then having a specific experience you want people to have is absolutely necessary. This absolutely includes difficulty. Games like Dark Souls and Cuphead would not be the same if you didn't have to overcome bosses and instead just switch to easy mode.

You have to "git gud" at these types of games and the blood and sweat from that is absolutely part of the experience.

Click to shrink...

Well said

 

[nStruct]

I personally would have no problem if FROM introduced an easy mode into their games, and honestly think it would be a good idea for them to do so. As long as they marked their typical difficulty as "normal" that's what I would choose.

 

[JahIthBer]

BB & Souls already have easy mode, it's called summoning & grinding to overlevel content, Sekiro though is a different beast, maybe From could have put something in there to balance out the absurd difficulty.

 

[oni-link]

I don't think there is anything wrong with an easy mode, but if they don't want to add and balance one into their game, and it can still be successful without an easy mode, then I'm happy for them to not include one

If they wanted to add an easy mode that would be cool with me too

I don't think people are entitled to an easy mode any more than they're entitled to a God mode or infinite ammo mode

 

[airbagged_]

FromSoftware has consistently put out games where i FIST PUMP and jump off the couch and yell when I accomplish something... I can't say the same for many over developers.

 

[Blade Wolf]

I think your take is bullshit and I think you're an ableist.

Here's the fucking deal: not everyone is as capable as you. Some of us have issues with muscle tension and coordination. I might work just as hard as you, but I got a handicap, so any accomplishment you feel, I work ten times as hard to get. It would be nice to play a game that feels just as good to me as it does to you. That's what difficulty modes are for.

The fundamental problem with assholes who think there should be no difficult modes is a lack of empathy. You think everyone shares your body, your skill level. You think everyone has the same experience.

You don't. Fuck outta here with this take.

Click to shrink...

I think you missed the part where I said I suck at games and I pretty much always play on Normal in most other games.
I can't even beat God of War on Hard, I switched back to normal after like 3 hours.

A good source of potassium is Banana's

Click to shrink...

Highlighting makes things easier to read, no everyone one is gonna read a wall of text, I rather they only see a few words that at least gets my point across than nothing.

 

[Deleted member 11626]

If taking away accessibility for people is a problem to you then you're the problem.

 

[Rodjer]

BB & Souls already have easy mode, it's called summoning & grinding to overlevel content, Sekiro though is a different beast, maybe From could have put something in there to balance out the absurd difficulty.

Click to shrink...

Sekiro is not absurd, the first 5-10 hours are brutal, but once you practice with deflects and parries the game is really enjoyable without raging, Sekiro revolves around player own skill and training, nothing more.

 

[Enforcer]

Nah, most skills are useless for the main boss fights. The only worth ones are aquired very early. The rest is just qol improvements.

Click to shrink...

I mentioned the significant ones in my post. Like having a higher heal can afford you more mistakes and higher emblem count can let you spam feathers more which makes boss encounters easier.

Divine Confetti literally stunlocks apparition bosses.

These aren't just QOL improvements.

 

[Yopis]

Meet the challenge or get out. Everything doesn't need to accommodate everyone.

Seems like some want every game to have a one button never die mode.

Games like this should still exist. Some enjoy the challenge.

 

[KillLaCam]

Yeah it's tiger only non-competitive game that does that for me

 

[theotherMittens]

I love these games for so much more than just the difficulty or even gameplay and I'd prefer people could experience those things if they don't want to have a hard time.

That said, I don't really like when a game asks me what difficulty I want to play at the beginning. Just give me cheat codes.

 

[SigEpTendo]

No one gives a shit if you beat Dark Souls, but you do.

Click to shrink...

Nah, I don't give a shit if I beat it either. I don't play games for "accomplishment." I play them for fun. If I wanted to accomplish something and be productive, I'm not playing a video game.

 

[Spenny]

Idk. Up until NG+2 it already felt like it was on easy mode. I wouldn't mind them making it accessible for other people.

 

[Bulby]

I wish there was a harder training mode.

I dont want to spoil bosses but sometimes you have a 10 minute set up for a boss fight and if you arnt familiar with the moves they will decimate you in 30s. Sekiro is the most brutal in this regard.

 

[rodrigolfp]

Doom and Doom 2 on Nightmare truly evokes the sense of accomplishment, and I am glad they have an Easy mode. ;)

 

[Majukun]

they definitely treat the gamer as an adult and i'm glad they do..this being said, with darksouls they counted a bit too much on players looking for a wikia to explian some basic concepts that should have been explained in the game itself.

dunno if it's the case with sekiro though