I played Nethack. I was overwhelmed by my anxiety and depression. I realised I was not good at video games. So I quit playing Nethack and swore to get good at video games before returning. Been, what, at least 15 years? I’ve gotten better I guess. Should I return? Soon, maybe.
(Seriously, though, roguelikes are still a genre I struggle with, so I do need practice!)
I completed TMNT as a kid… on Commodore 64. That version is admittedly a little bit easier than the NES version (some mechanics were missing, and an entire level is gone, as I recall). Still, I have no idea why people complain about the second level (river), it’s actually pretty fun. Compared to what’s to come later in the game.
To me, the definitive “hard” game is Metroid Prime 2: Echoes on GameCube. Dark Souls just makes me say “eeeeeehhhh this is probably doable, I’ll play this after I’m done with MP2E.”
(When I first played MP2E, I only got through the second to last boss. Then my MadCatz memory card died. Played through the game again, with the fury of million suns. 99% complete. Because I missed one optional scan. …One of these days I replay this bastard.)
There was this little RPG company, BioWare, that made this little known game called… uh… Baldur’s Gate or something. Then they made Baldur’s Gate II. And all was fine. And then they said “you know what, we should do something really cool and innovative and creative!” …And they did! They made Neverwinter Nights. And Wizards of the Coast/Hasbro was a real drag in the process, wanting them so many compliance meetings regarding the content and canon and game mechanics. So Bioware was like “OK this is the absolute last time we work with this kind of nitpickers, we’ll create our own fantasy RPG setting and system.” …and that’s how Dragon Age came about.
WotC/Hasbro isn’t any easier to work with these days, that’s for sure. Except this time, even the tabletop fans know that.
Hopefully Larian gets to eventually make the epicest dream game they can and, uh, not get bought out by EA or something.
That was what I really loved about Halo back in the day. You had a clear division of social playlists (serious), ranked (competitive) and the various more-or-less wacky modes (Infection, Grifball, Fiesta, whatever). Also, Slayer and objective types were kept separate. Something for everyone!
These things still exist in modern Halo but it’s not as well communicated in my opinion.