With God of War: Ragnarök winning accolades for its huge range of accessibility options, it's a reminder that gaming is something everyone should be able to enjoy regardless of skill level or time constraints. However, for those that do want a challenge, the game's "Give Me God Of War" difficulty provides the best kind of step up in difficulty.
For making the player feel like Kratos himself, it's arguably one of many games where it's actually better to play with the harder difficulty. Along with games where the Normal difficulty might be a little too straightforward for some like Horizon Forbidden West and games where content is locked behind a higher difficulty mode like Undertale, there are some games where Hard mode is almost a must.
Titanfall 2's Hard Mode Has The Right Amount Of Challenge
Titanfall 2 deserves credit for creating one of the most fun FPS campaigns the genre has seen in many years but one problem some may have found is that the Normal difficulty doesn't provide much of a challenge. Given the higher difficulty options on FPS games often make things way too hard too quickly, it's easy to shy away from Titanfall 2's hard mode as well.
However, the game's slightly higher difficulty option is actually perfectly balanced, making enemies stronger and levels require a slightly more sensible approach compared to always running in with guns blazing. Naturally, the player is likely to die more compared to normal mode but none of the harder version's challenges feel unreasonable.
Curse Of The Moon's Hard Mode Unlocks The True Ending
As the former series producer for the Castlevania games, Koji Igarashi is no stranger to high-difficulty experiences but his 2018 retro-styled title Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon shouldn't be too much of a challenge to Metroidvania players. At least, that's the case until Nightmare difficulty is unlocked.
Nightmare difficulty steps things and makes the game a challenge more worthy of some of the unforgiving earlier Castlevania titles, where lives suddenly become a lot more precious. What really makes Nightmare a must-play, however, is that it comes with a new final boss and a new story ending that has to be seen.
The Alien: Isolation Hard Mode Only Adds To The Scares
For some, the normal difficulty of Alien: Isolation may be more than scary enough, with the terrifying xenomorph providing a constantly looming threat that even adapts to how the player approaches dealing with it. For horror game fans that love that feeling of suspense though, the aptly named "Nightmare" mode is perfect.
Taking away the HUD and the map as well as making supplies appear fewer and further between, the harder mode gives an even more scarily realistic experience of what it would be like dealing with the xenomorph. The monster itself only seems to get smarter, making it a test of skill as well as nerve.
God Of War: Ragnarök's Hard Mode Is A Badge Of Honor
Along with its 2018 predecessor, God of War: Ragnarök comes with a top difficulty with the intimidating title "Give Me God Of War" for players that demand a challenge. Whilst it might be better to play through it on normal mode first to get the full cinematic experience, Give Me God Of War is the best way to play the game.
Not only are enemies stronger, but they also have a high chance to turn into intimidating Elites after a couple of hits. Kratos might be slightly weaker in this difficulty mode but completing it is a great way to feel powerful, truly earning Kratos' title as the God of War.
Undertale Demands A Genocide Run For The Full Experience
Although it's unlocked by playing the game a certain way, killing all of the enemies within each area, it's fair to call the Genocide route of Undertale a hard difficulty because of how much more of a challenge it presents compared to the neutral and pacifist modes. It might be hard after getting attached to the characters, but a Genocide run is a must.
That's because it unlocks so much extra content compared to the other ways of playing and that includes iconic moments like the battles against Sans and Undyne. On top of that, it adds a ton of extra context to the story. Beating the Genocide route also comes with bragging rights that few other indie RPGs can bestow.
F1 22 Provides A Realistic Racing Experience On Hard
Compared to more casual racing games, the Formula 1 titles from Codemasters are considered to be some of the more demanding and realistic driving games out there, reflecting the pinnacle of high-speed motorsport. Rather than a straightforward hard mode, the full extent of its difficulty is determined by a number of factors.
By turning up the AI difficulty and adjusting factors like car damage and fuel to make them less forgiving, F1 2022 can make for a ruthlessly realistic experience. Though it might be hard to make much progress towards a championship title, the harder difficulty is worth playing for the respect it will give the player for real drivers.
Doom (2016) Is Worth Beating On Nightmare Difficulty
At their best, hard modes can provide the kind of intense test of gaming skills that leave the player with a newfound sense of power and achievement and that's exactly why Doom's top difficulty is often a must-play. The "Hurt Me Plenty" difficulty is a good way to get a sense of the game whilst still facing a decent challenge from enemies.
However, the Doom series is notorious for its Nightmare difficulties and the 2016 edition shows exactly why, with enemies getting smarter, more creative, and dealing more damage while keeping resources up becomes a much more intense process. It might be incredibly hard but taking on the forces of hell has never been more satisfying.
Arkham Knight's Knightmare Mode Means More Intense Action
Arkham Knight already provides plenty of brutal melee combat for the player to sink their teeth into, but it's fair to say the "Knightmare" difficulty unlocked after beating the game takes things to a new level. Rather than simply making enemies stronger and Batman weaker, the Arkham series makes its New Game+ modes harder in a creative way.
Primarily, they do it by removing counter indicators that appear during combat so the player is forced to rely on their instincts as well as subtler clues to work out when to counter. This makes for a much more grounded gameplay experience that feels like far more of a test of skill than an ordinary playthrough.
The Last Of Us Part 1 Makes A Stealthy Approach A Must
It's a testament to the cinematic experience provided by the first The Last of Us game that it is soon to become a massive HBO series in 2023, but sometimes it doesn't feel like the gameplay quite lives up. With enemies pretty poor at detecting the player and Joel able to absorb a good amount of damage and shake it off, it can be hard to reconcile the gameplay with the realism of the story at times.
That's why the harder difficulties are arguably a must, making Joel a lot squishier and the enemies significantly better at detecting the player. It also means resources are more limited, reflecting a world that isn't kind to Joel and Ellie. There's a reason why the hardest difficulty is called Grounded, as it transforms the game into a much more realistic reflection of the story.
Horizon Forbidden West's Hard Mode Rewards Intelligence
Whilst Horizon Forbidden West's Normal difficulty provides a decent challenge compared to the relatively laidback experience of the first game, what really makes it interesting is how strategy plays a part in that extra difficulty. With enemy movements more erratic and elemental weaknesses less effective, players are forced to play much smarter.
That's even more true on the harder difficulties, which force the player to change their play style to deal with ridiculously powerful foes that pack a big punch. The game is enjoyable on the more casual modes but Horizon Forbidden West ups the difficulty in a way that's unique and interesting.