@IGN: Is F-Zero GX really too hard?
F-Zero GX was released this week and one of the main reactions to the gorgeous and exceedingly fast racer is that it is too hard. I agree that F-Zero is challenging, but too hard? I have wrestled mightily with F-Zero. On day one I placed first in the easiest grand prix level but was completely stymied by the now-infamous story mode level three. But a day later, I passed the level and moved on to story level four, only to be stuck again with a level that took me yet another day to conquer. If a game presents a challenge that flummoxes me one day, but which I overcome the next, I don't think I can say it's too difficult.
Gamers' skills, and the difficulty of games themselves seems to vary quite widely these days. Recently GameCube players have experienced surprisingly hard games like Super Mario Sunshine and shockingly easy ones like Wario World. Some people couldn't clear half the levels in Rogue Leader, and some people thought Metroid Prime was insultingly easy. "Too easy." "Too hard." Are we all just a bunch of gaming Goldilockses now who find too few games just right? The many reviews that have criticized the difficulty level of F-Zero got me thinking about what makes games difficult and how designers figure out how and why to make a particular level or an entire game tough. It also got me wondering what the perfect difficulty level for the perfect video game would be. I think I have an answer, so read on.
All of this brings me back to F-Zero and the question of how well the designers implemented the level of difficulty. I actually think the designers handled things quite well. There are generally two reflexes (besides smashing the controller) that occur when a player finds a level of any game difficult. Either you want to try the level again right away or you want to try something else to give yourself a break. The F-Zero team accommodate both reflexes by allowing you to restart those terribly tough story-mode levels a split second after you've fail to clear them, and by offering enough other modes and levels to give you something else to try when you get sick of failing to finish first on Mute City.
The developers also seem to have created a challenging but surprisingly rewarding learning curve. As I said above, just as I began to think a level was impossible, I'd find a way to get past it. I've come to think of F-Zero as the dad who tells you to ride the bike without letting the training wheels hit the ground. It seemed undoable at first, but eventually you realize you had it in you to succeed all along.
As hard as F-Zero is, and despite the fact that I gradually am getting better at the game, there's a good chance I'll never be skilled enough to unlock the last few levels. And since we all pay good money for these games and surrender enough of our lives just trying to complete them, it would be comforting to know that, say, after the game has logged play sessions on 50 or even 100 different days, that all of the game's hidden features would become unlocked. Isn't that a fair concession for a developer to make for players who try hard but just aren't skilled enough?
Bij dit spel moet je gewoon goed oefenen om verder te komen, wat opzich wel leuk is.
maar wat komt er na "read on" ?
Tja, er komt dan een hele boel onzin over hoe moeilijk andere spellen wel niet zijn etc. etc.
[edit]Ik heb effe de belangrijkste stukjes eruit geplukt, anders moeten jullie zoveel lezen
[
Voor 47% gewijzigd door
Elroy op 29-08-2003 12:30
]