I played the first 3-4 hours as a kid (meaning 14 when it came out) and I didn’t find it difficult then (unless it gets harder) and I don’t find it difficult at all now. Back then I thought it was
supposed to be a soft warm blanket of a Square RPG coming off Chrono and FF and their pedigree. It seems to have retained that which I love.
Also I think any normal 10 year old would find it sorta tricky and maybe difficult at times if they aren’t used to any sort of physical timing based, turn based games.
We’re just approaching it from two different perspectives
You were a kid when you played it. A great deal of games are always hard when you’re a kid. I was an older, much more life experienced teenager who was getting off to Duke 3D online and LucasArts anything
That game, for the time I played it, was small potatoes.
Maybe it gets harder later on I dunno. I never even got Geno in my party.