Skip to content

Default difficulty should be the core rules.

IntoTheDarknessIntoTheDarkness Member Posts: 118

I don't get why Beamdog changed default difficulty to normal from core. It was core on both vanilla BG1/BG2.

Yes, I know one can change difficulty. However, people tend to play on 'default' difficulty when they are new to the game. Frankly while I think core is difficult, I would recommend core to newbies even if they later change it to normal or easy.

When I first played BGEE I didn't realize this upto the point I've already beaten 90% of the game. I was like, "Oh shit so I've been cheating all the way? I don't feel legit" then deleted my character to start over.

I know not everyone's like me, but setting normal as default just doesn't seem justified when vanilla BG1/BG2 had it on core. Most new players play on default in any games because many feel default is what gives player/ai neither penalty nor bonus, which makes them feel that their experience is more legit. What rationalization is there to change the default difficulty?

If newbies find the game hard, they will simply tone down difficulty instead of quitting the game; but most likely even if they find it easy they won't move away from default 'normal' difficulty which I personally think diminishes game's fun because it makes int less effective, plays unfair for AI, and each battle has reduced tension due to no perma death. So having it on core provides newbies broader range of experience and ways to play the game.

I've written this suggestion 2 years ago when EE was released but apparently devs decided to stick to the choice. Why, I wonder? It is trivial, yet default difficulty plays quite a role on determining what majority of new players will experience.

Post edited by IntoTheDarkness on
Gotural[Deleted User]Blackraven

Comments

  • joluvjoluv Member Posts: 2,137

    If newbies find the game hard, they will simply tone down difficulty instead of quitting the game; but most likely even if they find it easy they won't move away from default 'normal' difficulty

    I am not at all sure that this is true.

    I've written this suggestion 2 years ago when EE was released but apparently devs decided to stick to the choice.

    Apparently.
  • IntoTheDarknessIntoTheDarkness Member Posts: 118
    bengoshi said:

    BG1 was originally released with core rules as the default difficult.

    The same with BG2 too.

    Later releases, such as multipacks and the game of the year editions reduced it to normal, however.

    So, Beamdog just used the latest versions in this context.

    Ah, what a pity. Many blind LPs of EE on youtube are played on normal and I would rather see it on core; one more reason to support core as the default difficulty on top of the aforementioned reasons.
  • kingiuskingius Member Posts: 6
    I agree, core it should be.
    FinneousPJ
  • GreenWyvernGreenWyvern Member Posts: 247
    I remember reading in a Resident Evil 3 walkthrough when I was younger, and something that stuck with me was [And I'm paraphrasing] "It's recommended that you play on higher difficulties, so you learn how to play the game on hard, instead of learning how to play it on easy, and then re-learning it on a harder difficulty".

    That was back then, where if you had a hard game, you didn't have much else to turn to, so you persevered through, trying to complete the game to its fullest. Nowadays, if a game is too hard, a lot of people will just turn it off and move to something else, instead of taking the time to learn.

    It feels as though the enhanced edition is lowering the difficulty right off the bat for new players, so it's less intimidating. With so many sales and cheap games, people are looking for something they can dive into and feel comfortable with right away.

    Or at least, that's my theory.
    JuliusBorisovAyiekie
  • JidokwonJidokwon Member Posts: 395
    I think that the first time a new player fails scribing a spell or rolls one hit point for a fighter's level increase is to examine the difficulty settings more carefully. Bad design decisions of the Core+ difficulty settings had more to do with them changing the setting over it actually being harder. There have been a lot requests for more difficulty options, such as playing Core+ without the waste. It looks like Beamdog is making good for this, too, as the latest BG2EE and IWDEE patches include these things in the ini. I wouldn't be surprised to see more options in game in the next series of patches.
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
    Montresor_SPFinneousPJjackjack
  • deltagodeltago Member Posts: 7,811
    I agree and disagree at the same time.

    Having it start on normal difficulty results in the average player not having to reload the game for mundane things like:

    Rolling HP
    Scribing scrolls
    Perma Deaths

    All of these can detract from the enjoyment of the game for a casual newer player that is use to auto healing after battles, set HP per level and automatic skills in leveling up (think Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Pillars of Eternity etc).

    Majority of players would be hitting the quick load if they fail to write a spell they wanted, had a NPC they wanted to play get chunked, or rolled a 3 with their 16 con Fighter after rolling a 4 for their 9 con mage. This can break immersion from the game as the player is worrying about numbers instead of the story.

    If these were toggable, then I would agree the game should start on Core Rules.

    BlackravenjoluvJuliusBorisov
  • ArnaeusArnaeus Member Posts: 90

    Yeah but "max HP" is not the only alternative to "annoyingly random rolls for HP." Max HP very drastically changes the game's balance, it would be nice if there were a setting for average HP.

    My solution is to use the BG2 tweaks option to max HP of both the player and enemy npcs
    GoturalArdul
  • FinneousPJFinneousPJ Member Posts: 6,455
    @Arnaeus That's missing the point.
    [Deleted User]
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
Sign In or Register to comment.