A high difficulty is not inherently good game design. Making a game more approachable through lower difficulty settings with additional checkpoints doesn't make it worse for people who like a challenge. It just makes it enjoyable to more people.

Claiming it's down to "artistic vision" just feels dishonest. You could claim Studio Ghibli movies should never be dubbed or subbed. You just have to learn Japanese to enjoy them, just don't watch them if that's not for you... but why? How is it a bad thing if more people can enjoy something?

Cup Head is a great example. It's a fantastic game with an art style that younger kids love. But it's too difficult for most kids, which doesn't make the game better, it just locks them out from a game they'd otherwise love.

yea, that's entirely valid. I love these games (Metroidvanias) because of the exploration and worldbuilding. The combat is a way to advance further into that world, but it's just a means to an end to me. Make it too tough, and you're preventing me from enjoying the parts I like.

I played a good 4 or 5 hours of Silksong so far and loving it. It's a little tough though, and I think it could use a nerf.

In this thread: people complaining who are apparently bad at game mechanics and can't or won't learn to improve.

Just beat Widow second attempt.

The run back has you start on one screen, traverse two screens, and done. I got as high as 12 Mississippi counting during it.

I haven't played this yet, so I don't know anything about what difficulty settings it may or may not have But in general, I see difficulty settings as an accessibility feature.

I liked the way that Ender Magnolia did it, where, at a save point, you could adjust several settings to customize the difficulty. I was able to temporarily make it slightly easier just for a few bosses that I lost my patience for.

A tale as old as time, the more things change the more they stay the same.