What difficulty level do you like playing?

[Steampunk]

Just curious what difficulty people like playing on video games. A lot of people like ball-busting hard. Personally, I am more recreational than competitive and enjoy a more easy-going approach. What's your poison, and why?

[Inactive Account404]

I don't like playing games on a really difficult level, but I do like a challenge. I usually play games on normal. If normal mode becomes insanely easy, I'll try a harder mode.

[Shin]

I'll normally go for one of the middle hard difficulties, or just hard mode. I guess I just like being mean to myself.

[Aizenberg]

always on easy

then if i play the same game again, i do it on the next difficulty

[Redwall]

Usually the hardest or second hardest if its in a genre with which I have a bit of experience (like, say, tactical RPGs). In other genres I'll tone it down a bit since, well, getting my ass constantly handed to me isn't all that fun.

Edited June 1, 2013 by Redwall

[Saint of Games]

What Aizenberg said. Though I have been taking harder difficulty levels lately.

[Mew]

normal (sometimes hard depending on the game) unless it kicks my butt repeatedly. I don't really mind playing on easy, but I don't like starting there

[mewyeon]

Normal :D Or Easy, if I'm just starting out. Definitely more of a recreational type, like the OP said.

[Thor Odinson]

Depending on how good I am at the game

for FE in particular I default to HM but will play the hardest mode at least once at some point

[PKLucas531]

Used to be Normal, but this gen has a habit of "Normal is the new Easy" so I default to Hard.

[Vestige]

Generally Normal, unless there's an "Extra-Hard" mode, in which case I jump to Hard.

[Shadow Mir]

Depends on the game in question.

[47948201]

I used to play on Easy. Always easy. But then this became a part of my normal thought process

And now I start on Normal or Hard, depending. Sometimes "Easy" is just renamed to "Normal", sooo yeah.

[Momentai~]

I start on the easiest difficulty and work my way up from there.

[shadykid]

always the hardest, I'm a pro

j/k, I normally go for the middle difficulty

[Scarlet]

Depends on the game, but I like challenges, so I usually go with the hardest difficulty available unless I'm playing for the first time or it just royally kicks my ass (Touhou Lunatic is a good example).

[LunaSaint]

Varies per game, but I generally go for a hard mode. Never the extra hard difficulty, but one that keeps me thinking without violating me.

[Green Poet]

Generally I'll start up a new game on the default normal difficulty, as I reason that that must be the level of challenge the developers intended most of the players to start with, and that they tailored the experience from that ground.

Then it's on to the hardest difficulties for the inevitable achievement-focused runs.

[Afterglimmer]

I always try to start on normal unless I feel that it's still too easy. In that case, I normally play on Hard.

[MacLovin]

Haaard

[Magical CC]

Normal first, as always. There's no point of killing yourself again, again and again just to kill a giant using a sword in Skyrim.

[Vorena]

Time to break the monotony of the same post subject over and over again.

I break games and turn them into easy mode. Well, certain ones where its possible. What fun is there in playing OoT anymore when you know all those fancy glitches to get around.

[Magical CC]

Eh, I dont think we should count glitches...

[Vorena]

I do not see why not. The topic is merely of the level of difficult you prefer to play in. The idea is your own choosing of the difficulty. The act of using glitches or not is a viable way to play the game and your own choice of difficulty depending upon the glitch.

Oh, and OoT stuff can get pretty difficult to perform depending upon what you are doing. Getting to the fishing pond by using the ISG along with the spider as a source of recoil on your shield.

[Esau of Isaac]

Depends on the genre. For most games I simply play easy, but on games that last awhile, mainly turn-based strategy games, I turn down the difficulty. In reflex-based games, fighters and such, I usually turn it up.