Dark Souls director pondering easier difficulty mode
Hidetaka Miyazaki wants Dark Souls to be "satisfying rather than difficult"
Dark Souls - like its spiritual predecessor Demon's Souls - has been loved by the hardcore gamer because its crazy difficulty harkens back to a more unforgiving era. In an interview with Metro UK, game director Hidetaka Miyazaki said he was saddened that the game's difficulty is keeping some players from even trying it.
"I personally want my games to be described as satisfying rather than difficult. As a matter of fact, I am aiming at giving players sense of accomplishment in the use of difficulty," said Miyazaki.
"Having said that, however, it is true that Dark Souls is rather difficult and a number of people may hesitate to play. This fact is really sad to me and I am thinking about whether I should prepare another difficulty that everyone can complete or carefully send all gamers the messages behind our difficult games. "
Miyazaki believes today's easier titles are the result of developers finding interesting game mechanics outside of sheer difficulty.
"If the number of easy games is increasing nowadays, I guess it is because difficulty is not related to interesting and worthwhile game elements in many games among players," he said.
"Interest and value in games and elements required to offer the interest and value are, I suppose, shifting by clashing between diverse and conventional moves. The change you mentioned toward skill-based games is also one of the moves and I do not think that is a dead rock, so the change would not be something to be avoided."
Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition was recently released for the PC due to a huge fan effort and petition.
Wasn`t he saying after Demon Souls that games should if anything get harder and not easier?
Some of those puzzles are part of the excitement of playing Dark Souls and I would not miss them. Some are just obtuse for no reason and all you need is a better manual.
But the combat is second to none and definitely not too difficult. Neither are the levels and the ability of bosses to totally fool you 50h into the game. Dark Souls is an expert at training you to behave along a set of rules only to change them.
Dark Souls has a image and manual problem, more than it has a difficulty problem.
An easy mode so I can actually experience the game and have fun playing it, without wasting hours replaying each level, would be much appreciated, and as long as it's just an option it doesn't need to interfere with existing fans' enjoyment of the game.
I suspect this angle is what the director really wants to fix. You should be able to finish a game solo no matter what and Dark Souls is a game that most people simply will not be able to do that way.