For Shame
Plenty of video games let you pick your difficulty, making them accessible for players of any level. But it turns out there are plenty of games out there that aren’t afraid to make you feel terrible for choosing the easy way out. From stopping your progress to straight-up calling you a loser, here are 20 games to watch out for.
1. Twisted Metal 2
After releasing in 1996, Twisted Metal 2 decided to up the ante by limiting the gameplay in easy mode. If you choose the simplest setting, you’ll be stuck after beating the first boss. Instead, there will be a stop sign ahead saying that “no losers are allowed beyond this point.”
2. Doom (1993)
Doom is a classic FPS that has you battling and slaying hordes of demonic monsters on a different planet. Doom teases its players by giving the easier modes a silly name, with one later iteration having the simplest level titled “I’m A Wimp.”
3. Monkey Island 2: LeChuck’s Revenge
Monkey Island is another fun and oftentimes light game with memorable art and fun stories to play through. For those that choose easy mode, the description reads, “I’ve never played an adventure game before. I’m scared.” To add to the insult, the game states that the easy mode was designed for beginners and reviewers, which is just another slight at reviewers.
4. Wolfenstein
Wolfenstein is another game that isn’t afraid to tell you how it feels and has some harsh names for the difficulty settings that might have you thinking twice. For instance, the easiest levels are called “Don’t Hurt Me” and “Can I Play, Daddy?” To make matters worse, the modes are accompanied by an image of the protagonist with a pacifier. Ouch.
5. Civilization
Civilization is a fan-favorite game that has you playing through strategy-based turns in an attempt to grow your civilization and lead them toward innovation. Throughout the game, you’ll get a corresponding score depending on your performance, but if you choose the easier modes, you’ll never get any of the higher accolades.
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6. Earthworm Jim: Special Edition
Earthworm Jim is a wacky game that’s quite reminiscent of the original Sega and PC games. While the animation may leave you wanting more, the game isn’t afraid to tell you exactly what it thinks. When you beat the final boss, instead of getting the default cutscene, you instead get a scene ridiculing you for playing on easy mode.
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7. Furi
Furi is a fun hack-and-slash game that really wants players to accept and adapt to challenges, which is why if you choose easy mode, the game will consistently ask you why you’d choose to ruin the combat.
8. Metal Gear Solid V: Phantom Pain
The Metal Gear Solid line of games is very popular and is known to be quite difficult at times. If sneaking through enemy bases is just too much for you, you can choose easy mode—so long as you don’t mind wearing a chicken hat.
9. Tales of Destiny
A popular Japanese role-playing game is Tales of Destiny, which takes players through an eventful and exhilarating storyline. However, if you choose simple settings, a bunch of optional bosses are removed, limiting your gameplay.
10. Bayonetta
Bayonetta takes accessibility to a whole other level, essentially taking you out of the game as the main protagonist does all the work herself. You don’t even need both hands, but you will miss out on special unlocks and characters.
11. Arms
While Nintendo has been criticized for its overtly easy games, it decides to do things a bit differently with Arms. While it may seem simple enough on the surface, it turns out you have to play on difficulties above four to have even a shot at their big boss.
12. Myth: The Fallen Lords
A predecessor of sorts to games like Destiny and Halo, Myth has you playing as a hero trying to reclaim a magical land. In this game, the easiest setting is called “Timid,” and the game outright warns you of how boring and tasteless your success will be if you choose it.
13. Resident Evil 4
Resident Evil 4 is another game that likes to restrict access depending on your difficulty setting. Also, it makes the entire game way too easy, as you start with a much better weapon and frequent saves that make the gameplay dull.
14. Streets of Rage 3
When Sega released Streets of Rage for Western players, they decided to amp up the difficulty. Not only was the Western normal mode harder than Japan’s hard mode, but if you decided to play on easy mode, you could only get through two levels before it ends.
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15. Contra III
Contra III is well known to be impossibly difficult, which is why many players are itching for the easiest settings. However, the game seems to love causing its players to suffer, because if you do choose the easiest setting, it will lock 50% of the campaign away.
16. Ninja Gaiden
The Ninja Gaiden games are known to be brutally tough, but after all, that’s what you’re signing up for. If you do try to take the easy way out, the developers let you know exactly how they feel by titling it “Ninja Dog” mode, and to make matters worse, it only becomes available after you’ve already failed the game three times.
17. Kingdom Hearts
When playing through Kingdom Hearts, there are numerous endings a player can unlock. However, some endings, such as the secret ones, are only accessible if the player plays on a higher difficulty setting.
18. Castle of Illusion
In this Disney game, you play as Mickey Mouse as he traverses different levels and solves platformer puzzles. You would never expect Disney to punish you, but it turns out if you do choose an easy setting, you can only get through three levels before it encourages you to pick something harder.
19. Splatoon
Splatoon is a pretty recent game where Nintendo once again attempts to amp up the difficulty. They essentially offered a tool or cheat that allows players to skip levels if they just want to focus on the story. However, if you do this, you miss out on all the collectibles.
20. Uncharted: A Thief’s End
This game received critical acclaim for its storytelling and gameplay, but to truly experience it, you should avoid the easy settings. You can skip a lot of combat if you choose a simple mode, but be warned—you won’t ever see a single trophy.
