Most challenging modern game

[ReservoirAngel]

So games of the past have a fond memory nowadays of being hear-pullingly frustrating and insanely challenging. We all know this.

It's also a common complaint among gamers, I find, that modern games have been becoming easier and easier. The epitome of such a phenomena is games where it's impossible for your character to even die (yes I'm looking at you PETER!!!!) and thus most of the challenge is removed on account of no real penalty for your failure, no matter how massive or straight-jacket-worthy retarded said failure happens to be.

With this in mind, I think it's time for some appreciation of those modern games that aren't afraid to kick the shit out of us and be utterly unapologetic about it.

Obviously honorable mention goes immediately to Demon's Souls for it's nigh-on legendary difficulty and its crippling phobia of any handholding.

But following significant annoyance this morning, I would like to wager the game Saint's Row 2 in this category as well. But only if you play on Hardcore Mode. A handful of bullets seem to kill you, and given the game regularly pits you against masses of gun-weiling gang members and police officers who seem content to pummel you to death with nightsticks over the smallest driving offence, this gets annoying.

Add to that the civilians that charge their cars full-speed into whatever happens to be in front of them the moment they hear a gunshot and you're in for masses off annoyance. More than once I was close to getting away after a mission ended, almost dead under heavy fire from rival gangs when a civilian flipped their shit and tried to ram their sports car up my arse, resulting in a frustrating death despite having already finished the mission objective.

So, for discussion value: what modern games are the most challenging/frustrating that you've played?

 

[TriggerHappyAngel]

The Witcher 2 and Mass Effect were intense on Hard difficulty.

 

[Soxafloppin]

The new Mortal Kombat has certainly brought out some Nerd Rage in me.

 

[BlueberryMUNCH]

inb4 Demon's Souls.
Ooft<3.

 

[OakTable]

Demon's Souls, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. on hardest difficulty and/or with mods, competitive play in Starcraft 2, and some others that escape my mind right now.

 

[-Drifter-]

Fallout: New Vegas can be pretty unforgiving at times.

 

[Particulate]

inb4 Demon's Souls.
Ooft<3.

This

Demon's Souls was a nightmare, totally not what I expected when I first played it.

ARMA 2. I don't think that many people suggest that being a soldier is an easy job, and ARMA 2 seems ready to demonstrate that in several different ways.

Agreed.

The thing that got me with ARMA 2 and also to a degree Far Cry 2 wasn't that it's hard being a soldier or anything like that but the distance and time involved. There's a ton of shooters these days that'll throw you into a complex full of enemies and expect you to murder your way from one end to the other. And that's fine, it can be done very well. But there's very few that take the effort to dump you into a field in the middle of nowhere with a rifle, a compass, and a map and tell you simply "go over there and keep an eye out". Where in other games you'd simply need to find the hallway that wasn't full of blood and shell casings to figure out where you hadn't been in games like Operation Flashpoint, Stalker, and the other I mentioned you have to contend with pure, unadulterated distance. There might not be a huge number of bad guys a long the way but it really sucks to dodge and weave in the middle of a deep woods shootout and then get totally lost.

 

[Speakercone]

Unforgiving but fair: Spelunky. Super Meat Boy. Mass Effect 2 on Insanity. Plants vs. Zombies Stop laughing, I thought that too, but it gets seriously tough at later levels.

Unforgiving and often a bit of a dick about it: Dragon Age: Origins on Nightmare. Magicka single player.

 

[TrevHead]

Arcade games have always been some of the most difficult games imo, these games are still been made today and generally are more difficult and mentally complex while losing some of the bad quailties that plagued some old arcade games like cheap deaths or making it impossible to beat the game with just a single credit (in that i mean they are hard but fair)

Cave make some of the most hardcore bullet hell shmups there is.

Here is an infamous YT video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQZuidKexBQ

This isnt the hardest boss to beat there are others that are harder.

Here is whats imo the most difficult game there is. Dodonpachi Dai-ou-jou: DEATH LABEL which is a Boss rush mode thats included in the PS2 port. Basically you have to beat each of the bosses from the main game, 5 bosses then you fight them again but theyre twice as hard, then you get to fight the special secret end of game boss Hibachi who is insanly hard to beat. Only you must fight 2 of them at the same time. What makes this super difficult is the fact you only get a single life, 1 hit to the ships small hitbox and its game over. In the 7 years the game has been out only one person has managed this feat (about a year ago) the Japanese player MON.

Heres a vid showing the 2nd loop of bosses http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QE-4wnfVVZE&feature=related (Hibachi is 7 mins into the vid and has 3 forms)

Here is Hibachi in the lastest game in the Dodonpachi series (he is 5mins into the vid)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fouVSOAZ_c&feature=related

FYI while these games look impossibly unfair this is partly a missconception from noobs who dont know how to play these games. They are hard but Fair. Also for anone who might be scared away from the genre, these are examples of the most difficult shmups only for the best of the best players, most shmups are easier and can be beaten my most gamers if they know what they are doing. EG the Deathsmiles 1 & 2 on the 360 or Yotsubane's Crimson Clover for PC are good for noob players and fun to 1credit complete and play for score.

 

[Geo Da Sponge]

Halo 3 and Halo: Reach, once you start playing around with the skull effects.

Once you put on the mythic, thunderstorm and tilt skulls on in Halo: Reach the Elites become virtually unkillable, and that's only on 'heroic' difficulty. Doing SLASO/Mythic runs basically boils down to cheating your way past every fight in the game.

To give you an idea of what a Mythic run entails to those not in the know:
Hardest difficulty, obviously.

All enemies throw grenades more frequently and more accurately, they're better at dodging, dropped weapons contain about half normal ammo, you have no motion sensor, shields are more resilient to ballistic weapons and armour is tougher against plasma, they're all promoted meaning better weapons and defences and they all have twice as much health.

But all this pales in comparison to the big three: your health only regenerates when you melee attack an enemy (which is basically impossible here), if you die once you return to the beginning of the level and finally, you have no HUD display what-so-ever, including seeing which weapon you're currently holding.

Mythic runs are basically for masochists who don't feel they've achieved anything unless they've broken the game some how.

 

[EternalFacepalm]

Progress Quest; that game has a steep learning curve!

 

[Pearwood]

FYI while these games look impossibly unfair this is partly a missconception from noobs who dont know how to play these games. They are hard but Fair (unlike many other suposingly hard games)

Not really, I love games like that too but I have to admit they don't play fair. It's all trial and error and memorisation and multi tasking enough to be able to do damage and dodge.

From this generation I'd second Starcraft 2 and Demon's Souls, probably add Ninja Gaiden Sigma, Bayonetta and Etrian Odyssey.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

Vanquish on God Hard and Challenge 6 (I still haven't beat it)

Bayonetta is pretty tough on Non-stop Infinite Climax difficulty if you want to get a decent score. The unlimited continues makes it not-so-hard but playing through a level without dying is pretty tough. Lastly, the game is never cheap.

Metal Gear Online is the hardest online console shooter.

 

[TrevHead]

FYI while these games look impossibly unfair this is partly a missconception from noobs who dont know how to play these games. They are hard but Fair (unlike many other suposingly hard games)

Not really, I love games like that too but I have to admit they don't play fair. It's all trial and error and memorisation and multi tasking enough to be able to do damage and dodge.

It depends on what shmups you play. Older shmups are certainly unfair, especially Gradius type games which have power ups, speed ups and check points. Since if you die you lose all your power ups and find yourself totally underpowered and losing the rest of youre lives in quick sucsession. Also many of these old shmups had what are called cheap deaths where you wouldnt beable to get passed unless you had expereienced it beforehand.

Modern shmups genrally dont have these problems. You just need to know how to play these games and be skilled ofc. It is technically possible to beat these games the 1st time you play them. Although if you arnt skilled enough you will need to pratice or rely on memorisation to get passed the tricky parts.

However all hard games are based on learning and memorisation, so saying shmups are based on this is moot.

 

[Pearwood]

Modern shmups genrally dont have these problems. You just need to know how to play these games and be skilled ofc.

I guess, I heard Dodonpechi can be bought over PSN in Asia so I might buy myself an Asian PSN card and get a copy. The only shmup series I've been playing recently is Touhou, love the art style of those games.

 

[TrevHead]

I guess, I heard Dodonpechi can be bought over PSN in Asia so I might buy myself an Asian PSN card and get a copy.

Thats right Dodonpachi is available on PSN in japan. For shmups PS3 owners really are screwed the only new shmup (apart from the rockin andriod games on PSN) is a port of a 360 shmup called Mamoru-kun wa Norowarete Shimatta! made by Guilti & G.rev. Its Japan only but I recomend you import it since the game totally bombed saleswise and since import shmups are genrally collectors items you should make most your money back in years to come (and then some)if you keep it in good nick. Also Ive heard a rumour the Sky Witches on the 360 is getting a PS3 port.

The only shmup series I've been playing recently is Touhou, love the art style of those games.

360 is where 95% of new shmups are at. Although you can have a good time with your PC. Make sure you play Yotsubane's Crimson Clover is like a Cave shmup but gives out lots of bombs and lives like touhou does. Also set yourself up with the latest version of MAME or shmupMAME as alot of ps2 era CAVE STGs have been fully emulated. (TATE FTW) You can also play Dodonpachi there and its better the the PSN version as that is only the PS1 port.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_5bzXxqEdk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGqqCWMk36E

 

[Kurbz]

Gears of War 2 on insane. Either I suck at 3rd person shooters or its hard. And I'm not that bad >.>. *looks above cover to fire one shot* *random enemy kills me* or whats worse *NPC teammate runs into the middle of the enemy, dying in the process. Rest of team dies saving him. I feel obliged to heal them and end up dying.*