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Forums - Gaming - Is it fair to criticise a game for being too hard/easy?

 

Is it fair to criticise a game for being too hard/easy?

Yes, for both 43 39.45%
 
No, for both 21 19.27%
 
Only for being too hard 4 3.67%
 
Only for being too easy 12 11.01%
 
Other / it depends... 26 23.85%
 
I don't play games, show me the results 3 2.75%
 
Total:109
CladInShadows on 14 October 2017
S.T.A.G.E. said:
Flilix said:

Games like Pokémon and Mario often get criticised for being to easy. Harder games (like Cuphead and Dark Souls) on the other hand, rarely* get criticised for their difficulty (it almost seems like they're getting praised for it).

Do you think this is fair? Should games get criticised for being either too hard or too easy? Why (not)?

 

 

 

(*Of course they do get criticised by some people, but I feel like it doesn't happen nearly as much as the other way around. Maybe this isn't true, maybe it's just me, but that doesn't matter. This thread is about your opinions.)

A lot of people who review games are old school gamers or at least have gained a status as a hardened gamer who has a broad reach of understanding for difficulty, or conniseur if you will. Games like Cuphead and Dark Souls were made for the hardended gamer and publicized as such because thats who they aim to attact. Yes, it is a badge of honor or a feather in your cap for specific gamers to beat this games. These games are billed for conniseurs. People who like easier difficulty games want to feel like they should be able to fit in with the "elite" crowd who play the hard games...but honestly thats why its called a game. Its meant to be surpassed. If you cannot...then you should accept you aptitude and or level of difficulty that you are able to swallow.

I feel this way too. Play the games you're more suited to.  Not every game is supposed to appeal to (or be beaten by) every gamer.



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Flilix on 15 October 2017
Shaunodon said:

Might be easier to discuss if you gave some examples, and explained why those games deserve more praise/criticism for being easy/hard.

All very subjective, and the OP is too open-ended.

Alright, here are two examples:

Recent Pokémon games are too easy. Your Pokémon always level up extremely fast, so you never get to fight an opponent that's somewhat difficult to beat. Gym battles, rival battles and the Pokémon league, which were all supposed to be harder, never provide a challenge. I've beaten all of them on my first try, so they didn't give me any satifaction. This results in a boring game where you constantly feel overpowered.

Monster Hunter games are too hard. The first few monsters are fun, they provide a challenge, but they aren't too hard. However, after a while you'll have a very hard time beating each monster. When you have to do the same battle for the twentieth time, it simply isn't fun anymore. And then, if you're lucky and you manage to beat the monster, the game just gives you another monster that's even harder. I ended up being completely stuck, and I hadn't even played half of the game yet. It's a shame that this game don't let you enjoy the full game, simply because you aren't good enough.

-Are they both equally fair for me to say?
-Are they both equally fair for a reviewer to say?
-Would it be fair if a reviewer lowered his score because of these complaints?



VAMatt on 15 October 2017
Flilix said:

-Are they both equally fair for me to say?
-Are they both equally fair for a reviewer to say?
-Would it be fair if a reviewer lowered his score because of these complaints?

You can say anything you want, and it is fair.  It is your opinion.

As for a professional reviewer, I'd say that it is fine for him to score the game based on difficulty, so long as he tells the reader why he scored it the way he did.