Were games harder back then than they are now?

Games are easier now, but for a good reason.

Back in the old days you played a game for the sheer enjoyment of playing - the game was the point and there was very little else.

Now we have a situation where games are stories with plots that require resolving: for example in Mario you were trying to rescue the princess but did the plot impact on the game or your desire to beat it? No, the motivation for beating it was to beat the challenge - which a significant number of players wouldn't have achieved.

In this day and age you cannot have a game that is 'unbeatable' as people will not find out the end of the story - Imagine the frustration of watching half a movie and then not being allowed to watch the end until you beat a tricky computer game - people wouldn't go to see a similar film in the future.

Game designers have tried to add replayable elements into their games though - working on the principal that people will want to play the story through again, like having a film on video.

 

I'm wondering if the games are easier, or are we just more skilled. Perhaps years of game evolution have molded us into Veterans. But have we reached the top of the challenge? Have we explored every level?

 

Games are getting easier.

I can only think of a handful of games that gave me a challenge in the last few years: Jedi Outcast,Metroid Fusion,Empire Earth,Warcraft 3 on Insane level.

And think how easy Ocarina of Time was next to old Zelda games.

Games like Castlevania,Super metroid,Doom,Red Alert,TMNT,Jedi Knight and Double dragon all stand out in my mind as difficult games of yesteryear.

Out of the titles I've mentioned, only Jedi Knight and Metroid have really retained their difficulty.

 

*L* Hey now, cut me some slack!

I was 7 at the time, and didn't own my own NES. Whenever i went over to my friend's house, well.. I mean, they were all sick of Mario, so we rarely played it. Whenever i did get to play it, i was completely humiliated..

Ok ok I'm sorry again. I didn't necessarily beat it right away when I first played it either. It's just that some people consider it to be the hardest of the first three but I would put it in the middle (SMB 2 being the easiest).

Games like Castlevania,Super metroid,Doom,Red Alert,TMNT,Jedi Knight and Double dragon all stand out in my mind as difficult games of yesteryear.

Absolutely, I still haven't beaten Castlevania or TMNT for NES and I've had them for many many years.

 

'One flaw in your theory: Ninja Gaiden. There are many, many people who never found out the ending to that story...'

And how many people will buy the sequel? Like it or not economics is what drives the games industry, just like any other.

Obviously there are exceptions even now but they are few and far between and certainly don't represent the majority of games today.

 

Ok ok I'm sorry again. I didn't necessarily beat it right away when I first played it either. It's just that some people consider it to be the hardest of the first three but I would put it in the middle (SMB 2 being the easiest).

Strange enough SMB 3 was the first one I beaten (mind you with warp, I was too unskilled for that annoying water level in world 7), infact I couldn't beat SMB until I was a teenager

 

You were probably too busy playing Zelda.

 

...eh, the last game i played that i couldn't beat was "Star Wars: Jedi Power Battles" for the PS1.. Course, it was more bad game design (poor control, jumping, hit detection, etc.) then anything else that made the game so bleepin' difficult..

I still haven't even made it past the second level....(heck, surviving thru the FIRST is a near-impossible task)

 

I personally believe that games have become "easier" in modern times, but I think it is also a function of the style of play. Also, this is for all genres, since a few have maintained difficulty.

For example, I find most bosses in most modern adventure games way too easy to beat - it's like MegaMan syndrome. Most bosses nowadays have some gimmick or trick which if you do it correctly, you kill the boss with like 3 or 4 shots. Back in the day, you only had a couple different weapon options and it was more of a stamina issue to drain a boss of his energy before yours was emptied out.

I think Viewtiful Joe is the closest game in a long time to be similar to old school video game play.

I think fighting games have pretty much upheld the same level of difficulty, if not actually being harder nowadays with all the different combos to remember.

 

I have to agree with Quest. I wish they'd make a good sidescroller for a moderm console. I miss Super Mario Borthers for SNES.

I think it is becoming harder and harder for game developers to actually achieve this. Now that we have (good) 3D graphics it is much harder to make a decent sidescroller and keep the 3D-ness (Viewtiful Joe is one though and also Mystical Ninja 2: Starring Goemon on N64. But that's only two). The average gamer sees a 2D sidescroller and thinks 'that must be crap, it has bad graphics'. So developers can't really revert to 2D for a sidescroller and have it sell (well). And 3D sidescrollers aren't often very good and/or challenging. Sidescrollers generally suit the 2D medium much better.

 

Another question should be, why are the games of today shorter than the older games?

For example look at the difference between Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. In Ocarina of Time, there were 9 stages of the game: the 3 Spiritual Stone stages, the 5 Medallion stages, and then Ganon's Castle. Then Majora's Mask comes out 2 years later and there's only 4 stages, one for each of the temple.

I don't understand, either the developers are too lazy to make long games anymore, or it has to do with what Quest said about them spending too much time on the graphics.

I'm starting to think about how KOTOR 2 might turn out to be. By the time it's supposed to be released (Feb '05) It wouldn't even be two years since the original KOTOR was released. Hopefully that game won't be much shorter than it's predecessor. To me, I actually like games that I have to wait forever to be released, because then at least I know that they took the time to make it right instead of rushing to get it done by a certain time.

 

go play Ghosts 'n' Goblins for the original NES. two hits and you're dead, no password, no save. thats a tough game.

nowadays there every game has a save feature in some form. that makes it a lot easier because you can make mistakes and redo levels.

 

Maybe another reason why games are sometimes easier is because the lack of artificial intelligence. Thats just my opinion, I never really thought about it. That reason could very well play a factor on whether or not games are easier. I remember a game on the snes called Busby. It was a fun game but sometimes a little difficult.

If you got hit by an enemy once you died. To top that off if I remember correctly you also had to start from the beginning of the stage. Another game for the snes I had was Lester. That game was difficult. In that game it only took one hit for your character to die. I don't know if you guys heard of those games before but I just thought I'd share them with you.

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"Your lack of faith disturbs me."-Darth Vader

 

Well, let's look at certain franchises over time:

SMB1 was harder than SMB2 and SMB3. SMB3 was harder than Super Mario World. I think Super Mario 64 was probably the "easiest" of them all. They all started getting a lot longer to make up for being easier.

Metroid was harder than Metroid 2 which was harder than Super Metroid. I think Fusion was pretty easy. I think Prime goes back to being harder, but the style of game is completely different.

Maximo is practically a sequel to the Gist'n'Goblins / Ghouls'n'Ghosts franchise, and probably much easier.

 

Well, there is a different audience to think about these days too. Many of todays gamers haven't touched a 2D game unless if they have a Game Boy. I think the yonger generation typically avoid hard games. Ninja Gaiden is an exception, but then again it's aimed at an older audience too. The devs have to try to find some kind of balance that seems attractive to the gamers, but finding that precise golden border between easy and tough seems to be very tricky to find.

 

Well, they didn't have much of a choice either.

 

it would be great if they did a game with the complcatedness of super contra or q-bert(dont lie thaty game is impossible to beat) bu have the graphics of metroid prime and halo and half life 2

 

almost every game these days has difficulty settings where you can Make them easy or hard. (to a point)

I find current games a bit harder but then maybe I am just getting old. Seriously though I think that may be due to the set ending like someone said above. You could play Pac Man forever with the ghosts just getting faster and faster each level you beat. So the first 10 or so levels were cake when the rest opened up a pac can of whoop tushy on you. When you have a set ending the game only gets "so" hard and thats it.


Either way I like the difficulty settings myself. If I rent a game and it's a bit tough for me I can play easy mode and still finish it before it's due. That way I can see the whole game. I never play games I buy on the easy mode.

 

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I'm starting to think about how KOTOR 2 might turn out to be. By the time it's supposed to be released (Feb '05) It wouldn't even be two years since the original KOTOR was released. Hopefully that game won't be much shorter than it's predecessor. To me, I actually like games that I have to wait forever to be released, because then at least I know that they took the time to make it right instead of rushing to get it done by a certain time.[/b][hr][/blockquote]Two things on that one:

[ol][li]It uses largely the exact same engine and gameplay mechanics as the first chapter, thereby cutting down on #2's overall development time, and...[/li]

[li]...chances are mighty good that #2 was put into early turnaround [i]prior to[/i] the release of #1, similar to other series in which future sequels' storylines are pre-vetted ([i]i.e., Grand Theft Auto[/i], etc).[/li][/ol]

 

yeah hopefully it will be longer than the first, i really enjoyed it

as for the older video games, look at super mario bros
you have what? 3 lives? for the entire game and if you lose them you start over, not to mention that if you get hit once you die
i think older games overall were harder