Most people want to play video games to sit back and relax for hours, but many people are actually just looking for a good game. challenge It will test their skills as much as possible. Needless to say, the desire for difficulty isn't something you're born with. Because there are many titles (both old and new) that are so difficult, in fact, that they've changed the way gamers approach everything else.
The 10 most difficult RPGs according to Square Enix
With so many RPGs under its belt, it's no surprise that Square Enix has created many titles that are very challenging even on the default difficulty.
After all, that's the beauty of challenging video games. Because whether or not the difficulty curve is well designed, it can really help someone hone their gaming skills. While many video games have had a huge impact on those who have experienced them throughout the industry's long history, the following eight games are by far the most infamous examples of this particular phenomenon.
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Battle Toad
Merciless NES Classic
If you go back to previous console generations, many titles had to be difficult. Otherwise, players would have completed it in just a few hours, as technical limitations of time prevented developers from creating lengthy games. The NES was home to challenging exclusives. Battle Toad This is the most infamous one in the entire catalogue.
At first glance, Battle Toad It may seem like a run-of-the-mill fight, but once players reach Stage 2, it becomes immediately clear that it's actually a merciless and unforgiving experience. Each level is filled with enemies that can kill the player character with a single attack. Most of them have some kind of annoying and unpredictable special effect and have few checkpoints. Fortunately, the most difficult step is Battle ToadTurbo Tunnel is also the third, so for those who can complete it, the rest of the game will feel easy.
Touhou Project series
Popularized the “bullet hell” subgenre.
Shooting games have been popular for as long as the medium has existed, but a separate subgenre known as “bullet hell” gained enormous popularity in the late '90s and early 2000s. Touhou Project series.
The series is so confusingly long that it's nearly impossible to pick just one entry to represent it in its entirety. The most important thing to know is that everything east This game perfectly reflects its title “Bullet Hell”. All feature enemies that quickly fill the entire screen with thousands of projectiles that only players with the sharpest reflexes can dodge in time. Amazingly, the series helped inspire other beloved classics, including: Ikaruga and Undertale.
Kingdom Hearts
The original PS2 version didn't even have Easy mode.
At first glance, Kingdom Hearts It should be a cakewalk. Ultimately, this is just a colorful action RPG with an ambitious narrative and a collection of levels based on classic Disney movies. But it's precisely this mentality that makes this game so surprising to so many gamers, especially those who haven't played it.final mix PlayStation 2 version.
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From brutal platformers to merciless RPGs, these games are much more difficult than Elden Ring. Do you have what it takes to conquer them?
text Kingdom Hearts The PS2 only had two difficulty settings, Normal and Expert, so there was no Easy Mode. Those intrigued by the unique premise had to play through a very challenging campaign filled with powerful enemies and punishing boss fights, and things were made even worse by the fact that there was no option to skip cutscenes after losing a particularly difficult section. Fortunately the follow-up Kingdom Hearts The port added a beginner mode and the option to skip cutscenes, but those who completed it on the original hardware have never been the same since.
Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening
The North American version was much more difficult than the Japanese version.
Hack and slash games were already very popular at the time. Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening came out (In fact, the original Devil May Cry This game basically popularized the genre years ago. But the game is still so infamous for its difficulty that it's often said that it taught an entire generation of gamers how to perfect the ability to perform stylish combos against powerful opponents.
of course, Devil May Cry 3 Although it boasts complex mechanics, a variety of melee and ranged weapons, and a collection of challenging enemies and bosses, the main reason the game feels difficult (especially for Western gamers) is because the difficulty settings were strangely changed during localization. For the North American release, basically everything was bumped up by one. In other words, Easy mode was Normal mode in the Japanese release. Normal mode was Japanese hard mode and so on. of the game special edition Eventually everything returned to normal, but those who played the original version had already improved their hack-and-slash skills by that point.
super meat boy
A perfect example of how difficult indie games can be.
The advent of the Internet in the mid-2000s led to the rapid rise of flash games and indie games. That's because independent developers have enjoyed creating extremely difficult experiences (many of which are inspired by the NES exclusive games of our childhood) that only the most patient and skilled gamers can overcome. In a sea of infamous indie titles such as cave story or i want to be that guyEdmund Macmillan super meat boy This was the most notable thing.
In this 2D platform game, players must increase their speed to avoid all obstacles. This is easier said than done, especially in some of the later levels. super meat boy Whether you like it or not, it's a constant game of trial and error that will eventually improve the reflexes of anyone brave enough to complete it. Needless to say, this bizarre platformer was hugely influential and inspired a number of famous indie games in recent years, including: Ori and the Blind Forest or celeste.
dark soul
One of the “founders” of the Soulslike genre
devil's soulThis is a PS3 exclusive product that was notorious for its overwhelming difficulty. However, not many people were playing the game and it still needed some improvement in some areas. This is why the studio perfected the formula when creating the game. dark soul Just a few years later. It certainly didn't start the Soulslike genre, but everyone can agree that this game single-handedly popularized it.
7 of the most difficult open-world RPGs from Japanese developers
While not impossible to beat, these RPGs are some of the most difficult games in their genre. The fact that it's an open world only amplifies the difficulty.
In the late 2000s and early 2010s, AAA games were often criticized for being too easy. dark soul It came out at the perfect time. Players couldn't just smash through hordes of enemies. This is because each enemy was a major threat that had to be properly assessed if the player was to be able to defeat them using a limited number of dodges and attacks. Plus, the bosses were particularly tricky and took multiple attempts to defeat them all, so it was very satisfying when I did. dark soul redefined the action RPG genre, and many of the popular games today wouldn't exist if FromSoftware hadn't taken risks.
Bloodborne
It takes the Soullike genre in a whole new direction.
explosive popularity of dark soul FromSoftware took inspiration and created even more Soulslike titles, many of which were direct sequels. However, in 2015, the studio once again joined hands with Sony. Bloodborne It was released for the PlayStation 4 and is now considered one of the best games in the entire genre. At first it seems like just another traditional Soulslike, but players quickly realize that the moment-to-moment gameplay is a lot different than they expected.
Bloodborne's combat is fast-paced and focuses more on shooting and parrying, as opposed to the dodge-roll-heavy formula. dark soul stratagem. Soulslike fans had to forget everything they knew if they wanted to master this innovative combat system and defeat the game's terrifying and merciless bosses. Bloodborne It marked a major turning point for both FromSoftware and the genre the studio helped create. Sekiro: Shadow Die Twice and P's lie.
cuphead
Anyone who played this game for the animation was shocked by the unpredictable boss battles.
cuphead
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September 29, 2017
When Studio MDHR was revealed and promotions began cupheadAudiences were mesmerized by the handcrafted 2D animation reminiscent of the classic Rubber Hose cartoon. So when it came out, many people wanted to give it a try to experience what was essentially a playable cartoon, but most people were immediately intimidated by its overwhelming difficulty.
cuphead is a run-and-gun game focused on bosses, all of which have unpredictable attack patterns that make excellent use of the game's amazing animations. Most people who tried this game ended up giving up on it because of the art style, but those who found it empowering were able to beat one of the hardest yet most satisfying boss fights in gaming history. After completion cuphead (and its DLC), all other run and gun games are ridiculously easy in comparison.
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