Article contributed by David Allen
Hero shooter Overwatch has an incredible diverse roster of characters: cowboys, robots, soldiers, even the undead. One character, however, stands out as particularly meta: South Korean professional gamer turned mech pilot D.Va.
As the only avatar in the game that is actually a gamer, D.Va has the distinction of spouting numerous voice lines filled with video game references. A personal favourite of many players seems to be “Is this easy mode?” It is meant as an insult of the opposing team, but it also perpetuates a troubling attitude among gamers.
What’s so bad about easy mode?
There has always been a bit of a “cult of difficulty” in the gaming community. Bragging rights, be they in the school yard or on online forums, seem to be a driving motivation for many gamers. Some gamers always are looking to “beat” somebody, be that other gamers or the game developers.
The rise of developer From Software and their style of brutally difficult, unforgiving gameplay, certainly has contributed to this “cult of difficulty”. The From Software formula is usually referred to as “Soulsbourne”, a portmanteau of the games Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls and Bloodborne. These titles famously do not feature difficulty settings; the same brutal difficulty applies to all players.
The From Software style even helped make a meme famous among gamers: “git gud”, an intentional misspelling of “get good”. This phrase has been used to mock players who struggle with difficult games.
What is particularly troubling is that many game developers seem to buy into this “cult of difficulty”. Numerous games released in the last few years make it a point to actively mock gamers for playing on an easier difficulty.
Ninja Gaiden Black, released in 2004 for the Xbox, for example, included a difficulty mode called “Ninja Dog”. On this difficulty setting, protagonist Ryu Hayabusa wears a purple ribbon to signal his lesser status. Non-playable characters in the game openly mock him throughout the game, even in victory.
Multiplatform shooter Wolfenstein: The New Order, released in 2014, includes difficulty settings that insult the player from the word go. The lowest difficulty is called “Can I play, Daddy?” and is accompanied with a picture of protagonist B.J. Blazkowicz dressed as a baby. The description even refers to the player as a “spineless gamer”.
Even worse, some developers decide to include an easy mode in their game, then actively lock players out of content unless they switch to a higher difficulty. Cuphead, rightly praised as one of the most beautiful games of this generation, offers a simplified mode for its brutal boss battles, then locks players out of the final area of the game.
Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire, released in 1996, omits a final cut scene on the “easy” difficulty, leaving the players with a cliffhanger unless they replay the entire game on “normal”. Did playable character Dash Rendar survive? On easy mode, it appears he did not.
The end effect is a gaming culture that is exclusionary. A vocal group of gamers excludes others who love games on the grounds of not being “good enough”. Some developers buy into this attitude, and eliminate difficulty settings or openly mock gamers who play on lower difficulties.
Video games are an interactive medium. There should be an effort to enable interactivity for players of all skills levels. Thankfully, some developers are moving in the right direction with what best can be described as a “Narrative Mode”.
A narrative mode enables gamers to play on a difficulty setting that focuses on story or world exploration and eases combat difficulty. Playstation exclusive Horizon: Zero Dawn calls this setting “Story”. Death Stranding, another Playstation exclusive, calls it “Very Easy Mode”. Assassin’s Creed: Origins refers to it as “Discovery Mode”.
The gaming industry has been reaping the benefits of an ageing demographic. In the 1980s and 1990s, publishers often focused their efforts on children and teenagers. According to the Entertainment Software Association, the average age of gamers in the US today is 34. This older generation of gamers, unlike teenagers, has disposable income that has helped the gaming industry reach record sales.
This ageing demographic, however, also faces the stark realities of adulthood: full-time jobs, raising children, and financial obligations. Time is at a premium for working adults. When faced with having to balance work and family obligations with the time needed to “git gud”, many ultimately have to choose their obligations. Developers should continue to seek ways to keep these individuals involved in the gaming community.
In the end, there are really two ways to get enjoyment from video games. Some gamers play for fun and relaxation, while others play for challenge or to prove they are better than others. Developers and publishers should make it a point to cater to BOTH types of gamers.
Include brutal difficulty for those players who enjoy that, but don’t mock or exclude gamers who do not. It is ultimately better for developers’ and publishers’ bottom line, since more gamers can buy into their games, and better for gaming culture.
The rise of the narrative difficulty setting bodes well for the future of the gaming industry. The gaming community is, after all, big enough for people of all skills levels.
Thank you for this article, I couldn’t agree more. It’s tragic that some measure their worth not only by how much faux punishment they choose to inflict upon themselves in a purely virtual, fictional challenge, but by their pointless mockery of folks who have actual meaning to attend to in their lives.
So when you see other people striving to see the top of the mountain, you choose to sit at the base. You didn’t want to exert yourself, or try to learn new things. You chose to be comfortable, but that wasn’t enough for you. You need to feel just as validated as the people at the top of the mountain, but rather than begin the climb, you declare that where you are right now is the new peak.
You specifically not doing something is what makes my victories taste all the more sweeter. My victories would be hollow if a weak willed coward like you were capable of them. Knowing that I did something that you specifically could not gives me strength. Thank you for languishing in your own ineptitude, and blaming me for your problems. It makes me more powerful.
blow it out your ass