Personally never bothered me how others experience a game. I remember Game Sharks being used by a friend to blow through old RPGs with no grinding or leveling because all they wanted was the story. I could argue that is "wrong" but it didn't prevent me from playing it how I wanted.
I like Demons' Souls and all its successors because I enjoy that style of challenge. If the developers don't want levels of difficulty that is fine, but it is also fine if they do. I beat Horizon on normal with maybe one or two deaths (both my fault) and was fine with it. The harder and easier modes introduced later are fine, and I'll likely go back someday and play it on hard because I enjoy that.








