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[Shtof]

Ever notice how the first time a boss wipes the floor with you, the instinct is to drop the difficulty slider—only to discover later there's an entire stance system, a hidden parry window, and three ammo types you never touched? I keep doing this dance: blame the numbers, then realize I was swinging a pool noodle while the game had quietly handed me a lightsaber.

I'm convinced the issue isn't that modern games are too hard; it's that they gush every mechanic in the opening hour, slap "optional" on the tutorials, and bury critical tips in tiny corner pop-ups. By the time I actually need those tools, the info's long gone from memory. What I wish developers would do instead is weave new moves into the story bit by bit, let me practice them in a pressure-free space, and—when I die to the same attack five times—flash a short clip that shows the counter rather than another cryptic tooltip. Even better when an NPC just shouts the hint in-world; it feels like coaching, not nagging.

Tell me: have any of you played a game that taught its deeper systems naturally, without feeling like homework?
And devs—where do you draw the line between helpful nudge and annoying hand-hold?

 

[diffusionx]

Yea, From games are good at this. Especially Sekiro.

 

[Notorious_Roy]

It happens sometimes in jrpg's where the whole main game is pretty simple and then the final boss is handing me my ass back to me. Games like Octopath, Golden Sun, and even Lost Odyssey did this to me. I accepted my ninja dog fate though and just continue onto the next game.

 

[kremiso]

Resident Evil Revelations is the last i have encountered
i started the game choosing EASY, and for a couple of hours the gameplay was imo perfect, then i reached a bossfight, imo way too much hard for that setting

i think some parts are just running in a default mode, unrelated to the difficulty level choosed;
of course if i choose easy i would like that from start to the end

 

[Dacvak]

If you want a game that has perfect pacing in rolling out new mechanics without the need for overt tutorials, implementing them in creative and satisfying ways, check out Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo. That game does it as good as most Nintendo games, and constantly makes you feel smart for figuring things out on your own, without you ever really getting stuck.

 

[Trunx81]

Had this in Baten Kaitos, didn´t realize that you have to level up in the church until I met Giacomo. Nearly defeated him, then I found out about leveling up and he became a piece of cake.
But did you know you can shoot the walls in Metroid Dread!?

 

[Reizo Ryuu]

Ever notice how the first time a boss wipes the floor with you, the instinct is to drop the difficulty slider

Not even once

 

[ChazAshley]

 

[Lunnarre]

Only time this ever happened to me was in Elden Ring. I missed the grace where you talk to Melina and unlock level ups. Was fighting Margit thinking maybe it unlocks after beating him, felt like such a dumbass when I finally unlocked it lmao.

 

[Sooner]

Part of the reason why Samus tragically loses all her abilities at the start of every new adventure.

 

[Saber]

Probably From games.
No one actually teach me so little and let me learn so much by getting beaten and think for myself.

 

[poppabk]

Happened recently in Clair Obscur to me with the Luminas. I blame the menus for that - I think they sort of explained the mechanic in game but the menus obscured how to actually apply it.
Most games nowadays are so mechanically dense that they require significant time investment to really understand all your options - and it makes it very hard to come back to a game if you take a break.
I miss the days of quake or half-life where you just needed to know 8 weapons, and honestly you didnt really even need to know them that well. All the complexity was in the actual control of your character.

 

[LakeOf9]

And on the other side there is this

 

[Lunnarre]

And on the other side there is this

Loved the game but the handholding was offensive and obnoxious.

 

[TintoConCasera]

And on the other side there is this

There should be another tooltip near the boss health bar, saying "Tips on how to play are located at the top of the screen".

 

[PeteBull]

Is This Boss Too Hard…or Did I Skip the Tutorial?

Thats amazing title for manga/text novel :>

 

[LakeOf9]

Loved the game but the handholding was offensive and obnoxious.

It was the start of Sony games having awful handholding, but people who criticized it for that back then were shouted down by the hordes of fans claiming the game was perfect in every way with nothing worth criticizing

And that brings us to the tutorial inanity in God of War Ragnarok

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

It was the start of Sony games having awful handholding, but people who criticized it for that back then were shouted down by the hordes of fans claiming the game was perfect in every way with nothing worth criticizing

And that brings us to the tutorial inanity in God of War Ragnarok

"Accessibility"

That's the latest way to ddflect any criticism of AAA gaming's increasing obsession with treating players like fucking morons.

It's baffling to me that it isn't brought up more in this context but Alan Wake II has to be one of the most comically ridiculous examples of this. The game has so many patronizing, absurd levels of handholding that it manages to trip over itself regularly. As in you'll "discover" in a note that you need a key item with a location hint, it literally pops up on your fucking map with the exact location AND then Saga will reiterate out loud "I BETTER FIND THIS KEY" like you're an absolute moron. Then to top it all, it may be too early in the brilliant fucking story to actually need said key so you can't interact with it yet when you get there and need to move the story along. At that point she tells you AGAIN.

For all its bullshit Twin Peaks & True Detective paper-thin veneer, it's an almost hilariously focus-tested example of Modern Game. It literally trusts the player with nothing. Even the combat feels like you're eternally in second gear tutorial mode.

I mean if players really need that shit, fine, but at least make it an option to opt out of Dumbass Mode that turns all that shit off.

 

[LakeOf9]

"Accessibility"

That's the latest way to ddflect any criticism of AAA gaming's increasing obsession with treating players like fucking morons.

It's baffling to me that it isn't brought up more in this context but Alan Wake II has to be one of the most comically ridiculous examples of this. The game has so many patronizing, absurd levels of handholding that it manages to trip over itself regularly. As in you'll "discover" in a note that you need a key item with a location hint, it literally pops up on your fucking map with the exact location AND then Saga will reiterate out loud "I BETTER FIND THIS KEY" like you're an absolute moron. Then to top it all, it may be too early in the brilliant fucking story to actually need said key so you can't interact with it yet when you get there and need to move the story along. At that point she tells you AGAIN.

For all its bullshit Twin Peaks & True Detective paper-thin veneer, it's an almost hilariously focus-tested example of Modern Game. It literally trusts the player with nothing. Even the combat feels like you're eternally in second gear tutorial mode.

I mean if players really need that shit, fine, but at least make it an option to opt out of Dumbass Mode that turns all that shit off.

I have not played Alan Wake II yet but this isnt making me want to change that lol

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

I have not played Alan Wake II yet but this isnt making me want to change that lol

Plenty of people think it's amazing so don't take my disgruntled word for it alone please! I just replayed it on Hard hoping to change my mind so my frustration with it is fresh as hell. It had the potential to be cool as fuck but it's a wildly frustrating game imo because it treats you like a total tard.

 

[AeonGaidenRaiden]

Happened to me with MGS Rising back in the day. I might be remembering it wrong but I dont recall there ever being a tutorial on parrying, maybe they just said once, oh you can parry too. Literally without the parry system you cant even get past the second level. Its all about timing and parying the enemies slash.

 

[Hashassin]

I usually think "seems like I haven't got the mechanics quite under control yet".

 

[Kacho]

The save killer.

 

[TerribleAtThisGame]

I usually think "seems like I haven't got the mechanics quite under control yet".

Same. I usually assume I'm missing something or getting hung up on a bad approach rather than the game being too hard.

 

[bender]

Yea, From games are good at this. Especially Sekiro.

Everything wrecks my shit in that game.