As I said at the beginning of my post:
While I will most certainly agree that a lot of games are a bit too eays now, Ninja Gaiden was pretty difficult.
I alluded that games should be more challenging if i said they are "a bit too easy", which I, funnily enough, did.
I also said:
And having added in a difficulty select at the beginning of the game - of the "EASY" variety - would have helped the game be more enjoyable for a large number of people.
All these points were covered.
While I will most certainly agree that a lot of games are a bit too eays now, Ninja Gaiden was pretty difficult. A learning curve should be gradual, and having such a difficult boss (the horsemen) so early in the game is a strong deterrant for many gamers. I have been playing computer and console games for over 25 years, and I have to say that NG is one of the more difficult ones out there.
On one hand, making such a difficult game can be good, for some reasons cited by previous posters. But on the other hand, it is bad for several reasons, one of which is this: Harder games are for a niche market.
NG was not geared for a few elite gamers. It was made and heavily marketed for as large an audience as possible. And large audiences like games easier than what NG is. So a fe wposters here and onl lots of gaming boards constantly ridicule the majority of people who say it is hard by saying "I don't see why everyone says it is so hard. I beat the flying demon woman on my 2nd try." Well congratulations for you.. You're in the top 2% of the people who bought the game. And consequently, that isn't enough to keep large game development companies in business. Here in Japan, NG sold well at the beginning, but I sure as hell see a lot of copies of it at used game stores now, unlike GTA3.
If they gear the sales of a game for a wide audience, then they need to develop it for that wide audience. And having added in a difficulty select at the beginning of the game - of the "EASY" variety - would have helped the game be more enjoyable for a large number of people.
I never finished NG because like a growing number of gamers out there, I have a job, and a life which is not just me playing games at home. My game time is limited, which means I will only play games that I enjoy. And constantly getting my arse handed to me by an incredibly difficult boss on the 2nd level of a majorly hyped up "you have to have this game" release does not make me want to keep playing. I'd rather go back and play some GTA:VC, which I beat a year and a half ago at 100%, than keep losing over and over and over and over again.
Making NG so difficult is going to hurt the initial release sales of NG2, I am quite sure, because a large number of people who thought the first installment was too difficult will think the same holds true for the sequel.
Slashdot Mirror
As I said at the beginning of my post:
While I will most certainly agree that a lot of games are a bit too eays now, Ninja Gaiden was pretty difficult.
I alluded that games should be more challenging if i said they are "a bit too easy", which I, funnily enough, did.
I also said:
And having added in a difficulty select at the beginning of the game - of the "EASY" variety - would have helped the game be more enjoyable for a large number of people.
All these points were covered.
While I will most certainly agree that a lot of games are a bit too eays now, Ninja Gaiden was pretty difficult. A learning curve should be gradual, and having such a difficult boss (the horsemen) so early in the game is a strong deterrant for many gamers. I have been playing computer and console games for over 25 years, and I have to say that NG is one of the more difficult ones out there.
On one hand, making such a difficult game can be good, for some reasons cited by previous posters. But on the other hand, it is bad for several reasons, one of which is this:
Harder games are for a niche market.
NG was not geared for a few elite gamers. It was made and heavily marketed for as large an audience as possible. And large audiences like games easier than what NG is. So a fe wposters here and onl lots of gaming boards constantly ridicule the majority of people who say it is hard by saying "I don't see why everyone says it is so hard. I beat the flying demon woman on my 2nd try." Well congratulations for you.. You're in the top 2% of the people who bought the game. And consequently, that isn't enough to keep large game development companies in business. Here in Japan, NG sold well at the beginning, but I sure as hell see a lot of copies of it at used game stores now, unlike GTA3.
If they gear the sales of a game for a wide audience, then they need to develop it for that wide audience. And having added in a difficulty select at the beginning of the game - of the "EASY" variety - would have helped the game be more enjoyable for a large number of people. I never finished NG because like a growing number of gamers out there, I have a job, and a life which is not just me playing games at home. My game time is limited, which means I will only play games that I enjoy. And constantly getting my arse handed to me by an incredibly difficult boss on the 2nd level of a majorly hyped up "you have to have this game" release does not make me want to keep playing. I'd rather go back and play some GTA:VC, which I beat a year and a half ago at 100%, than keep losing over and over and over and over again.
Making NG so difficult is going to hurt the initial release sales of NG2, I am quite sure, because a large number of people who thought the first installment was too difficult will think the same holds true for the sequel.
Anyways.. that is just my take on it.