The competition is real

Why has this turned into some sort of competition about who the best player is, who can handle the difficulty, why it’s hard for some, what mistakes they’re making, etc.? Why do so many people feel the need to tell others what they should think or feel about the difficulty?

Games should be about providing a challenge and fun. But like in every game, a sense of achievement is essential to keep players motivated. If that’s missing – because some aren’t good enough, the weapons are too weak, the enemies too strong, whatever – then those players will most likely give up at some point. And in the worst case, they won’t even buy the next game because of that negative experience. Suddenly, the difficulty that many struggle with becomes a problem that affects everyone. If the game doesn’t sell, this can especially be devastating for indie developers, and suddenly everyone loses – even those who like to tell the “bad” players how cool the difficulty is.

A simple solution would be different, adjustable difficulty levels, like so many other games already offer. I have no idea how easy that would be to implement. But the goal should be that everyone who loves the story can have a good time – at the difficulty level that’s right for them.

If we want indie developers to be successful and continue creating amazing games, maybe we should stop seeing this as a competition and avoid saying things like “ok, then just don’t play it or try harder.” That’s arrogant bullshit that, in the worst case, ends up hurting the developer studio.