Which Difficulty Mode Do You prefer?

[Pumpkin]

So the really nice games that let you choose the difficulty to suit your needs, what do you pick?

I'll be in the minority here, but easy

[Mirage]

I always start on normal. I only change it if I'm getting my hand assed to me, or if there is no challenge at all. That's assuming the game lets me change it after I've started.

On second playthroughs, I almost always pick one difficulty level higher.

[Pike]

Usually normal, although if it's something I'm particularly good at (like the Civ series) or if it's a game that I think works best when it's challenging (like the Deus Ex series), I'll pick a higher difficulty level.

[Madame Adequate]

Like Pike, it depends on the game. I'll usually change the difficulty partway through as well, as I learn what it is about the game I'm enjoying. Some games work best, in my eyes, under certain conditions, so I pretty much always play X-Com and stuff on Ironman for example.

[Psychotic]

Usually Normal. I have bumped it up to the hardest difficulties on the likes of MGS, Gears of War, Halo and Dynasty Warriors for the sake of loot/achievements. On FIFA I usually put it up to the hardest as it's not really a challenge for me otherwise and I just win 10-0 which gets boring. I am not averse to easy mode on many games though. Bethesda RPGs in particular are nice because of their sliding and adjustable difficulty scale. If I start to get a bit bored and just want to explore or do missions for the story aspect rather than the fighting I'll crank it down and just straight up liquify my enemies.

[Vermachtnis]

I just leave it on the Normal/default setting. Only going higher or lower for achievables and whatnot.

[Shlup]

I leave most games on normal, though I find that on adventure games (like Skyrim) I usually just want to dick around so I may just put it on easy. I'll play an RTS game on as hard as I can manage; for those games it's good to have a challenge.

[Spooniest]

I always start at the easiest setting and move up. I never stop in the middle of a playthrough to change difficulties.

I noticed, quite a while ago, that games tend to throw things at you that you wouldn't expect at each new difficulty level...it's often not as simple a progression as just "on Difficult you do less/take more damage." I'm always surprised by some little thing that the game manages to pull out of nowhere.

[Ayen]

Easy. I get my ass handed to me in games enough, I don't need the extra help.

[I Took the Red Pill]

I find most modern single-player games to be a bit too easy on Normal Difficulty, so I usually start on Hard. It's good fun, but some games have a hard mode which is just insanity. In recent years, Max Payne 3 with free aim on comes to mind.

[Dat Matt]

I used to start games on the highest difficult setting in order to get the best achieveables. Since the remake of Bionic Commando though, and nearly killing myself playing it on hard I tend to play games on Normal now. I run though most games on normal now to get the experience.

I've yet to drop down to easy and just sail through a game though.

[Aulayna]

Depends on the game really, a lot of the time I'll leave it on Normal, but if it's something I'm playing purely for story I'll put it on Easy.

I've never really cared for Hard/Ultra difficulty mode achievements.

[Mirage]

That's what's been keeping me from bothering with the MGS2 trophies. I'm not sure how much frustration "extreme" would lead to.

[Vyk]

It completely depends on the game for me. I generally play it on Normal, under the presumption that setting is what the developers intended, and they actively tweeked the other difficulties, so they may end up being too extreme in one direction or the other, and I don't want to ruin an experience by being too easy or too hard. But there are games that are known for being hard that I may play on easy, because even then, its not really a cake walk

Persona 4, my first playthrough (which I had to end prematurely due to a dead PS2) I started on easy, because Megami Tensei games are known for being difficult. Now that I'm playing Golden, and I've played a few other Megami Tensei games, I am playing on Normal. Though I don't see a whole lot of difference. I feel like I got more gold before. And there were a bunch of items for instant revival in a battle you lost at. But that's about it. The game itself doesn't seem harder. Its just progression is a fraction slower

Then there are the games that are just too damn easy. Dynasty Warriors was mentioned, and its a good example. Those games are a cake walk so I always play them on harder difficulty when I play them

[Shiny]

Normal almost always except for Stealth Action games. I watched my boyfriend play Last of Us on Hard and it was the most annoying thing ever to watch and according to him, to play. If it's too hard that you keep dying and losing hairs, it's not worth it to me. Sometimes I'll go back and play missions on harder just to see how different it is, or if I really enjoyed the game and want to play through it again.