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I'm sorry to hear about your affliction, I do however feel if you try enough you WILL be able to retain your previous skill. Personally I sit down with Contra every now and then just to grind through that and attempt to beat it without losing a life. Generally I can make it to the last boss before I die, which is in accomplishment in itself.
I urge you to sit down, with a Nintendo, and load up the original castlevania. Or perhaps find your old gameboy and sit down with the first castlevania that was released for that and compare difficulties.
I never did beat those games. Looks like I have work to do today.
Remember Leigh, you CAN do it.
P.S. I'm generally upset/angry at how easy games are nowadays. Probably why I love Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry 3 so much.
I urge you to sit down, with a Nintendo, and load up the original castlevania. Or perhaps find your old gameboy and sit down with the first castlevania that was released for that and compare difficulties.
I never did beat those games. Looks like I have work to do today.
Remember Leigh, you CAN do it.
P.S. I'm generally upset/angry at how easy games are nowadays. Probably why I love Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry 3 so much.
I hooked my NES up this weekend for some Ninja Gaiden...and wow...I couldn't even clear the first level.
I need to hone my skill for handling frustration with some Strider tonight methinks.
I need to hone my skill for handling frustration with some Strider tonight methinks.
I've gone back and played some NES games, and found that I'm far worse at them than I used to be. I used to could blow through Megaman 4 in one or two lives as a 9 year old; now I'm reduced to gratuitous use of save states just to beat the first 8 'bots.
I think a lot of it does actually have to do with the reduced difficulty of games today. Without that practice, my skills have deteriorated and it leaves me wondering how I can be so much worse as a 22 year old adult at NES games than as an 8 year old.
I think a lot of it does actually have to do with the reduced difficulty of games today. Without that practice, my skills have deteriorated and it leaves me wondering how I can be so much worse as a 22 year old adult at NES games than as an 8 year old.
I didn't get the chance to read through the whole article, so please excuse me if I missed anything critical, but when I played this game at E For All, you need to get as many hearts as you can and just throw the axe weapon at the enemy. It goes down much easier.
Of course, studying the enemy's cycles of movement will let you easily beat any enemy in mostly any game.
Of course, studying the enemy's cycles of movement will let you easily beat any enemy in mostly any game.
Yeah, part of the fun of old games is overcoming that challenge. Alternatively, Bomberman Live reminded me that I used to be good at Bomberman, and now I am definitely not, and no amount of playing so far has resulted in advancing my skills.
@ TheMartino
The first Castlevania on Game Boy was an affliction on mankind. Do not ever, ever play The Castlevania Adventure.
@ TheMartino
The first Castlevania on Game Boy was an affliction on mankind. Do not ever, ever play The Castlevania Adventure.
All you need is a copy of eye of the tiger and a well edited training montage. 2 minutes later you are good to go. Movies provide the answer to all of life's problems.
Am I the only person who isn't having issues beating bosses in Castlevania? I mean it's memorization. You're suppose to lose a life or two here and there. I'm sure if you just keep at it, you won't have such a hard time. It pays off in the end.
I love Castlevania Dracula X? It's great game, and the reason why I love it so much is that it is challenging unlike most other recent releases.
I was going to start playing Phantom Hourglass, but then I started reading how easy the game was, and that immediately made me decide that it wasn't worth my time. Games to me are only fun if there is some sort of challenge is presented.
The bosses in Castlevania aren't particularly tough. I think the biggest thing you have to keep in mind is that for most games today you can simply rush into a boss and start pounding the attack button with little strategy. For old-school games you need to learn the boss's attack pattern, how you are going to avoid their attacks, and then an effective way to attack without getting hit. It's great video gaming!
I was going to start playing Phantom Hourglass, but then I started reading how easy the game was, and that immediately made me decide that it wasn't worth my time. Games to me are only fun if there is some sort of challenge is presented.
The bosses in Castlevania aren't particularly tough. I think the biggest thing you have to keep in mind is that for most games today you can simply rush into a boss and start pounding the attack button with little strategy. For old-school games you need to learn the boss's attack pattern, how you are going to avoid their attacks, and then an effective way to attack without getting hit. It's great video gaming!
I had an experience somewhat similar to this when I picked up the Mega Man collection on the Gamecube. I just remembered all those early MM games to be so much easier. I guess it was because when I was little and played a game I'd just keep trying over and over and over again until I got past whatever obstacle was giving me trouble. Maybe my patience has just deteriorated somewhat in my "old age".
I only really died during the battles of attrition, ie: where you beat 3 or 4 bosses (or phases) in a row.
Each one would ding me slightly, and then the last phase/boss would hit a lucky punch in.
I'm actually struggling with some of castlevania 3's bosses atm, because I keep on expecting to be able to out maneuver them, but I simply don't move fast enough/jump high enough. Jamming on the turbo button seems to work best.
Each one would ding me slightly, and then the last phase/boss would hit a lucky punch in.
I'm actually struggling with some of castlevania 3's bosses atm, because I keep on expecting to be able to out maneuver them, but I simply don't move fast enough/jump high enough. Jamming on the turbo button seems to work best.
If you can't beat the first boss I think you need to have your video game journalism license revoked. sorry.
I noticed the same problems with sucking when I put in Gunstar Heroes a couple weeks back.
I've beaten that game several times, but I only made it a couple levels in that day.
I guess I need to go pro-up on Gradius or something to make up for it.
I've beaten that game several times, but I only made it a couple levels in that day.
I guess I need to go pro-up on Gradius or something to make up for it.
Games aren't easier, they're just different, and thus require a different set of skills. Do you really think your child self could handle a game like Devil May Cry or Halo 3? There's a lot going on in those games, they require a certain mastery of complex controls and understanding of 3D space that most young children can't quite grasp. Wait another twenty years, games will be as different then as they are now compared to the 8-bit era. Games have evolved, and with the push to 3D ala Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, our abilities in 2D games have dulled. Wait until games are virtual, do you think it might be a tad difficult to go back to pushing buttons on a controller after several years of not having to use one?
That, and games today are better designed. In the days of the video arcade, home console games still had lives and high scored attached to them. Arcades are dead, and it makes no sense for home games to have a finite number of lives for which the player to beat the game in. I can't insert another quarter to continue, so let me start from the beginning of the current area, as gimped in powerups as deemed suitable by the developers. Also, we couldn't really save back in the NES days; Super Nintendo changed that a bit, and now you can save in almost any game, sometimes wherever you want. How much less frustrating are games today now that you don't have to start all over from the beginning because one section midway through had you completely stumped and you died in that area over and over and over again?
I should make a blog post about this. Games are harder? Poppycock, games are _better_. Don't let nostalgia fool you, as if Xbox Live Arcade and Virtual Console haven't taught us that yet.
That, and games today are better designed. In the days of the video arcade, home console games still had lives and high scored attached to them. Arcades are dead, and it makes no sense for home games to have a finite number of lives for which the player to beat the game in. I can't insert another quarter to continue, so let me start from the beginning of the current area, as gimped in powerups as deemed suitable by the developers. Also, we couldn't really save back in the NES days; Super Nintendo changed that a bit, and now you can save in almost any game, sometimes wherever you want. How much less frustrating are games today now that you don't have to start all over from the beginning because one section midway through had you completely stumped and you died in that area over and over and over again?
I should make a blog post about this. Games are harder? Poppycock, games are _better_. Don't let nostalgia fool you, as if Xbox Live Arcade and Virtual Console haven't taught us that yet.
I too suck at old games. Really, I think that the new Ninja Gaiden games are the gold standard I hold videogame difficulty to. Ninja Gaiden didn't hand me anything on a golden platter, and what I already had grasped it would constantly try to take away. It was hard. That said, the game rewarded skill (not memorization, hence not like arcades), so I can sit down with the thing and beat it (on normal) without much trouble, because I'm good at the game.
Conversely, I sat down recently with the original Castlevania, and I can't cut it for this reason: I just can't remember the ridiculously precise pattern to jump across those platforms without getting killed by those GOD-DAMNED medusa heads. I love old games and the challenge (that I am, admittedly, no longer up to) that they provide, but I will take a hard game that rewards skill over one that rewards memorization any day.
Conversely, I sat down recently with the original Castlevania, and I can't cut it for this reason: I just can't remember the ridiculously precise pattern to jump across those platforms without getting killed by those GOD-DAMNED medusa heads. I love old games and the challenge (that I am, admittedly, no longer up to) that they provide, but I will take a hard game that rewards skill over one that rewards memorization any day.
Rondo only gets harder from there. Pattern recognition and twitch reaction times are hard things to re-learn.
However, once you do learn to kill the bosses of Rond, it's quite a blast.
Unlock Maria on stage 2 and you'll have a much easier time of it. You can beat the first boss with her in about 8 seconds.
However, once you do learn to kill the bosses of Rond, it's quite a blast.
Unlock Maria on stage 2 and you'll have a much easier time of it. You can beat the first boss with her in about 8 seconds.
i hooked up my nes recently for Castlevania 1 and for the first time in ten years i actually conquered that game.
and all that was in preparation for this (i am currently at stage 4)
and all that was in preparation for this (i am currently at stage 4)
There is no doubt that games today are much easier than they used to. Too easy though? I don’t know about that. That makes it sound like a bad thing. Like Sean says many gamers simply do not finish their games. I hate it when it is due to a very high difficulty factor like in God Hand or DMC3. And playing a big game like Zelda you are investing a lot of time already without getting stuck at a particular section or because you can not save.
As I have grown older I do not have the need to prove my skills in games. I just want to enjoy them. And I enjoy a game more when I complete it.
We definitely need to be challenged but I prefer a too easy game which I actually get to play all the way through (assuming I like it) to a too hard game of which I only get to see the first couple of levels and then give up in frustration.
As I have grown older I do not have the need to prove my skills in games. I just want to enjoy them. And I enjoy a game more when I complete it.
We definitely need to be challenged but I prefer a too easy game which I actually get to play all the way through (assuming I like it) to a too hard game of which I only get to see the first couple of levels and then give up in frustration.
Yeah, this is definitely true. I bought Mortal Kombat II earlier this year when it was released on the PSN way back in April for $4.99, assuming I’d kick ass instantly with Scorpion (“GET OVER HERE!”). Boy, was I wrong.
I couldn’t even get past the first fight without failing at least five times, and after realizing I wasn’t going to get much further than the third opponent, I gave up. Of course, it probably would’ve helped if I had remembered any of the moves, but even when I looked them up on GameFAQs, I couldn’t pull them off (not even the Fatalities/Babalities/Friendships).
Obviously, games are easier nowadays, and, not to open an old can of worms, but the culprit is almost certainly the casual gamer. As others have mentioned, in their efforts to make games accessible to a wider audience, developers have dumbed them down. I just started playing through Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, but from what I’ve heard, it’s a ridiculously easy game, especially once you start to upgrade your weapons — and I’m sure it will be. The only reason I died in the demo was because I accidentally fell off a path.
But it makes it that much more special when a game comes around that is both awesome and hard — and these games are great because of, not in spite of, their difficulty. I’m talking about these games (not an all-inclusive list, of course): the God of War series; the Metal Gear Solid series; the Ninja Gaiden series; and the Devil May Cry series (except for the second game).
Ideally, we old-school gamers would always get the best of both worlds. You’d think that a choice of difficulty level would ensure that, but it’s not always the case. Still, it’s awesome when you have a game like Guitar Hero, where your non-gamer friends can plod along on Easy and Medium while you shred on Expert. God, I love Guitar Hero...
I couldn’t even get past the first fight without failing at least five times, and after realizing I wasn’t going to get much further than the third opponent, I gave up. Of course, it probably would’ve helped if I had remembered any of the moves, but even when I looked them up on GameFAQs, I couldn’t pull them off (not even the Fatalities/Babalities/Friendships).
Obviously, games are easier nowadays, and, not to open an old can of worms, but the culprit is almost certainly the casual gamer. As others have mentioned, in their efforts to make games accessible to a wider audience, developers have dumbed them down. I just started playing through Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, but from what I’ve heard, it’s a ridiculously easy game, especially once you start to upgrade your weapons — and I’m sure it will be. The only reason I died in the demo was because I accidentally fell off a path.
But it makes it that much more special when a game comes around that is both awesome and hard — and these games are great because of, not in spite of, their difficulty. I’m talking about these games (not an all-inclusive list, of course): the God of War series; the Metal Gear Solid series; the Ninja Gaiden series; and the Devil May Cry series (except for the second game).
Ideally, we old-school gamers would always get the best of both worlds. You’d think that a choice of difficulty level would ensure that, but it’s not always the case. Still, it’s awesome when you have a game like Guitar Hero, where your non-gamer friends can plod along on Easy and Medium while you shred on Expert. God, I love Guitar Hero...
i find the difficulty of both ninja gaiden and dmc 3 to be overrated i didnt find neither of those games particularly hard.
I think the difference between old-school challenge and new-school challenge is how dynamic the approaches have become. Back in the Castlevania hey-day, there was ONE solution, and every jump, every whip-snap, every powerup was gathered the same way every time. It was skill-by-repetition. So it is/was with Rondo of Blood.
Today, new challenge comes from dynamic appraoches. Look at how many options you have in Ninja Gaiden? That game is still punishingly difficult (and hella fun!). Or Half-Life's grunt battles.
Or even look at Ikaruga. Just the little additon of polarity makes you have to play two games at once, but though the bullet-maze never changes, the solutions can still be dymanic AS WELL as static. I think that's the difference between what was and what is: Inventing at least parts of your own approach.
Today, new challenge comes from dynamic appraoches. Look at how many options you have in Ninja Gaiden? That game is still punishingly difficult (and hella fun!). Or Half-Life's grunt battles.
Or even look at Ikaruga. Just the little additon of polarity makes you have to play two games at once, but though the bullet-maze never changes, the solutions can still be dymanic AS WELL as static. I think that's the difference between what was and what is: Inventing at least parts of your own approach.
On a nod about Castlevania, since Dracula X RoB, its become way too simplified. Looking onward with Symphony, and ending near Portrait, they all feel the same. With Rondo, I remember hearing it was the toughest PCEngine games to date. I only had a chance to play it on a friends console, and surprisingly it was solid, difficulty, and controls. *i wound up saving all of the kind hearted jailbirds, and axed the prince.
Its been so long since I've played it, and I would probably go into a fetal position if I tried again. Even Megaman makes me roll up in a ball and cry (ok save sake.. most of the series after 1-3) X just made me feel worse, it mocks you for sucking.
Let alone playing fighting games, i took a retro trip with SF2, and it beat me (after 10+ plus tries against M. Bison / Vega). Not to mention KOF, if i transcend myself from early entries, and then 2k3 (it goes way too damn fast.. and i still cant get the hang of tag team cancel supers, and the hdsms.. )
In addition, Panzer Dragoon Orta and GunValkyrie also made me look deep down inside. "Gotta try again.." next time. I dunno whats with some of my gaming library, either im losing touch, or its actually showing its true self. Games are meant to be fun, but Ikaruga will make any gamer cry.
*on that note, im definitely going to work an article about gaming difficulty "then & now". Gotta admit, maybe we do have it too easy lately.
Its been so long since I've played it, and I would probably go into a fetal position if I tried again. Even Megaman makes me roll up in a ball and cry (ok save sake.. most of the series after 1-3) X just made me feel worse, it mocks you for sucking.
Let alone playing fighting games, i took a retro trip with SF2, and it beat me (after 10+ plus tries against M. Bison / Vega). Not to mention KOF, if i transcend myself from early entries, and then 2k3 (it goes way too damn fast.. and i still cant get the hang of tag team cancel supers, and the hdsms.. )
In addition, Panzer Dragoon Orta and GunValkyrie also made me look deep down inside. "Gotta try again.." next time. I dunno whats with some of my gaming library, either im losing touch, or its actually showing its true self. Games are meant to be fun, but Ikaruga will make any gamer cry.
*on that note, im definitely going to work an article about gaming difficulty "then & now". Gotta admit, maybe we do have it too easy lately.
I've also noticed modern games becoming easier and easier and I also support making modern video games harder.
Being a huge fan of the old Megaman games I am always up for a challenge. There is a huge sense of accomplishment when you finally manage to achieve your goal.
However, I would also like to point out the emphasis on multiplayer gaming lately. Instead of receiving a challenge from the game itself, you are getting your challenge from other players. So in a way modern games can derive their difficulty from the multiplayer component.
But I'd would still like to see some tough single player games.
Being a huge fan of the old Megaman games I am always up for a challenge. There is a huge sense of accomplishment when you finally manage to achieve your goal.
However, I would also like to point out the emphasis on multiplayer gaming lately. Instead of receiving a challenge from the game itself, you are getting your challenge from other players. So in a way modern games can derive their difficulty from the multiplayer component.
But I'd would still like to see some tough single player games.
I haven't played Dracula X, but I've played enough of the Castlevania games on the GBA and DS to know what to expect in terms of difficulty.
I still get murdered way too much by Castlvania bosses. I know I just need to learn the pattern and use the right secondary weapon or soul or magic spell or whatever, but I rarely succeed in an admirable manner. If I end up winning I will only have about 50 HP remaining - and that makes me hurry to the nearest save room.
Great writeup!
I still get murdered way too much by Castlvania bosses. I know I just need to learn the pattern and use the right secondary weapon or soul or magic spell or whatever, but I rarely succeed in an admirable manner. If I end up winning I will only have about 50 HP remaining - and that makes me hurry to the nearest save room.
Great writeup!
I suffer some of that "sucking" every now and then when playing VC games, but in general I don't think I've gotten worse on the games I played a lot when I was a kid (Megamans for example).
I do have great curiosity on how I would do in Battletoads now, I used to pwn that game as a kid and didn't consider it difficult until I started reading everywhere about how difficult it was.
I do have great curiosity on how I would do in Battletoads now, I used to pwn that game as a kid and didn't consider it difficult until I started reading everywhere about how difficult it was.
BahamutZero
(# 13) on 11/05/2007 11:19
If you can't beat the first boss I think you need to have your video game journalism license revoked. sorry.
I agree, most people who I have met who write about games can't even play them. WTF!?!?! Also Rondo is not hard but if you wanna get your twitch back up, play some Touhou shooters from Japan or some ol' fashion Quake 3 Arena. Or just sit down and tell yourself "i can't use the toilet till Ninja Gaiden 1,2,3 are beaten"
(# 13) on 11/05/2007 11:19
If you can't beat the first boss I think you need to have your video game journalism license revoked. sorry.
I agree, most people who I have met who write about games can't even play them. WTF!?!?! Also Rondo is not hard but if you wanna get your twitch back up, play some Touhou shooters from Japan or some ol' fashion Quake 3 Arena. Or just sit down and tell yourself "i can't use the toilet till Ninja Gaiden 1,2,3 are beaten"
The Easening of games has deteriorated my skills all around. I can still blast through a basic Mario or Sonic, but anything much harder and I get spanked. Ninja Gaiden Xbox I couldn't even beat the first boss, which I could at least do on the NES game.
Also, In games such as Sega Genesis collection or Mario All Stars where they more or less have save states, I cant help myself from using them. I have no willpower, and it's deriding any skills I have left.
Though after 2 years I'm finally making progress on playing Guitar Hero with 5 buttons!
Also, In games such as Sega Genesis collection or Mario All Stars where they more or less have save states, I cant help myself from using them. I have no willpower, and it's deriding any skills I have left.
Though after 2 years I'm finally making progress on playing Guitar Hero with 5 buttons!
I am in a similar boat but find that if I just turn off the thought process and go back to a purely reactionary state I find that I do much better with old games. Some friends and I have a weekly console night where we revisit old games on the original systems and once the controller gets comfortable again and I have enough drinks to really kill the higher level brain functions the new games require I seem to do a lot better... but the first night we jumped into some TMNT on the NES it was all pain and crying... and really who wants to watch a 250 pound Marine cry while grasping a NES controller? Wait... I do... muahahaha.
@Variable Gear:
The GBA and DS versions of Castlevania are a joke compared to Dracula X and the older Castlevania games, difficulty wise.
The GBA and DS versions of Castlevania are a joke compared to Dracula X and the older Castlevania games, difficulty wise.
I'm completely with you on this one, Leigh. Old games are hard, and I kind of miss that (I still play R-Type and I STILL can't beat it), but I'm also kind of glad. It's a slippery slope, or something like that.
I know exactly how you feel. I'm gonna be 35 in two weeks. I remember I had more fun gaming in those days, not that it isn't fun now, but back then there was something magical about getting into a game. I could play 15hrs straight. Now I'm lucky if I play 2hrs. I'm hoping Galaxy will cure me this heartache though.
But I feel the anxiety of a warrior in peacetime, and I find myself missing that sense of perverse satisfaction I achieved when I finally conquered a challenging title, mastered an impossible control scheme, discovered a secret room so obscurely hidden, so well-cached that I couldn't be sure it wasn't a bug.
Well said!
@Variable Gear if you only played the ds/gba castlevanias and considered them hard then you should stay clear of this because those are laughable easy compared to this (yes even the bosses)
First, Lord_Satorious is absolutely right... most gamers have just been playing a different kind of game for so long that going back is incredibly difficult. For those of us who are avid GBA/DS players, I find going back to NES games to be relatively simple; hell, I bet if any of you worked the Megaman Zero games back into your gaming cycle, you'd be able to play almost anything.
Except Ecco... I was never good at Ecco. God damn.
Except Ecco... I was never good at Ecco. God damn.
I'm old and my gaming skills have sadly declined as a result. I eventually can get through more difficult games, but I've never been able to recapture the level of ability I was at when I was a kid.
Games have become easier because they have become popular. With all mainstream media you get a dilution of the integrity of the product after the public starts to take an interest. That's what games are: products. It was the hardest thing for me to realise going into the industry; that you could have the greatest vision for a game, give it fantastic graphics, sound and gameplay, only to find that it doesn't sell at all, which makes it a failure.
So like books, films and art, we now have games that cater for the masses. It's the reason that the Wii is so popular: it allows even the lowest common denominator to be good at a game with no real knowledge of a control system. Yes, sometimes we get a game that is hard, really hard, and the gamers who remember when they were all that punishing can put their worn skills to the test once again... and lose.
Whereupon we realise how soft we've become, playing the mainstream games (watching the Hollywood blockbusters, reading Dan Brown). How many of us would rather pick up a copy of the latest graphic novel, Iain M Banks book or even just surf the net, rather than trying to work our way through the Divine Comedy, the Iliad or some Chaucer?
We used to be Spartans but we have become fat and Greek.
So like books, films and art, we now have games that cater for the masses. It's the reason that the Wii is so popular: it allows even the lowest common denominator to be good at a game with no real knowledge of a control system. Yes, sometimes we get a game that is hard, really hard, and the gamers who remember when they were all that punishing can put their worn skills to the test once again... and lose.
Whereupon we realise how soft we've become, playing the mainstream games (watching the Hollywood blockbusters, reading Dan Brown). How many of us would rather pick up a copy of the latest graphic novel, Iain M Banks book or even just surf the net, rather than trying to work our way through the Divine Comedy, the Iliad or some Chaucer?
We used to be Spartans but we have become fat and Greek.
p.s. Please please please keep the wonderfully written articles coming. I've actually started to read your Sexy Videogameland blog (etc) because you write such good stuff! BUT I DEMAND MOAR!!
MOAR!!!
;)
MOAR!!!
;)
Well, I was going to beat your pretty little face too a mushy pulp for not being able to beat the werewolf but, eh, you beat me to the punch.
=P
Congratulations miss, you are hardcore again! Shout it from the rooftops!! You're a winrar!! =D
Do you reckon you can beat the game though...
=P
Congratulations miss, you are hardcore again! Shout it from the rooftops!! You're a winrar!! =D
Do you reckon you can beat the game though...
Dracula X is just so good. I find it refreshing to actually be challenged by a game. Certain games with annoying difficulty are frustrating and un-fun. Dracula X though is fun even when you are getting your ass kicked.
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