Poll: Can Games have lasting entertainment without any challenge?

[Onyx Oblivion]

It's possible, but I find those games to have significantly less replay value.

 

[Zhukov]

Yes, of course.

Not every game has to be based on challenge.

 

[BreakfastMan]

Yes, or course they can (at least for me). Let us look at one of my favorite games of all time, Kingdom Hearts 2. Now this game is easy. Really, really easy. Even on the hardest difficulty, the game is still pretty much a cakewalk. Yet, I have played and beat the game at lest 4 times. The reason? I was not looking for a challenge. I was looking for fun, and this game has it in spades. The combat is great fun, the story is great, and the graphics are pretty. When I play the game, it makes me feel like a God, crushing entire armies beneath my key-blade. It was (and still is) fun to feel empowered.

Personally, I have never understood how hard games are better myself. I just do not see it. I would rather have an easy game than a hard game. That is not to say that hard games are bad, I just tend to prefer easy games.

 

[dancinginfernal]

In some cases, yes. For the most part, to me at least, no.

 

[Paksenarrion]

I actually like it (sometimes)when I'm completely overpowered and can kill anything that looks at me wrong.

For me, it's possible.

Pokemon for example, is very well known for it's single player being piss easy.

Because it is. And I still love it.

So, yeah.

While there can be entertainment had from a lack of challenge, I don't think that entertainment could be sustained.

For example, let's take a look at Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II. Once I got to the end of the game, I was an absurdly powerful Jedi Weapon Master who effortlessly plowed through goddamn Sith Lords. And is was fucking righteous.

However, the game was only like that for the last hour or so. If it was like that for the entire game, it wouldn't be anywhere near as fun and those moments of casually destroying the Dark Side's finest wouldn't have anywhere near the impact it did had I not struggled a little on the journey there.

Thank goodness I'm not the only one who likes to:

 

[Sticky Squid]

For me, yes, Psychonauts is my favourite game and it is not hard at all besides the ridiculous last levels.
If the game has some other entertainment value then it can still be great.

 

[CaptainKoala]

Spoiler: Evidence:

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Yes, games can be fun with no challenge.

 

[MuroKhan]

It ultimately results in the type of game you are playing. When I play Left 4 Dead, I crank that sucker all the way up to see how far I can make it with just a Desert Eagle or a cricket bat. But when it comes to something like an RPG, I'll try to keep the difficult up to give myself a better challenge, but at the end of the day I want to see the story those games are giving me far more than the action, and really that's all the entertainment I need.

 

[JasonKaotic]

It depends. If it's a sandbox game where you can run around doing stuff (especially games like Prototype (if it was better) and I'm guessing InFamous but I haven't played it) then it would be fun, but a puzzle game without challenge wouldn't be fun at all.

 

[Palademon]

I like challenges, but not over the top ones. The ability to change difficulty easily helps people play the game differently. I think it can be fun without challenge, like if a puzzle game is considered more of a thought provoking thing than a challenging thing.

The last time I found that increasing difficulty actual made the game more fun, rather than just harder, was with War For Cybertron when I went on Hard Mode for the achievements. I started focusing on headshots and saving ammo. Haven't completed the Autobot campaign though.

And the kind of thing you talk about, OP, isn't that the easy mode that you have earned through the challenging parts? You've gone through the game and because of it you have been rewarded with the otherwise game breaking abiltiy to piss about.

 

[IvoryTowerGamer]

Games don't need a challenge to be fun, and some games are even hurt by challenge.

 

[Psycho Cat Industries]

It depends how its done.You can't have work that would be a challenge,rather stuff so simple that it appeals to your younger nature then your older.

 

[Zeekar]

Yes, but I think having no challenge ruins the replay value, for whatever it's worth.

Okami for example; Easy as hell game, amazing as hell game. Can't really bring myself to play it again for anything.

Edit: After looking at the title again, I realize I might have placed the wrong vote. Can a game be considered to have "lasting" entertainment with no replay value? I guess I could stick with "yes" since I only personally require a game to "last" to the end of the single player mode to be good.

Suddenly this question is more complex than I originally anticipated...

 

[ReaperzXIII]

I was raised with nintendo so I find that something with no challenge can't keep my attention for so long, one of the most fun things in life is to overcome challenges which is why I like to sometimes go back to weak areas and just destroy everything. If I have built my hero to be a badass cthulu punching warrior which is the fun then I usually have fun testing his might on anything that has the nerve to be highlighted red in front of me.

 

[icyneesan]

Yes.

Portal 1 (For me at least) was not a challenge at all, but I still enjoyed it quite a lot.

Mount & Blade Warband is not challenging after you earn some money. Even if you just want to dick around killing dudes its still pretty easy to make enough money to buy some reasonable gear.

The Civilization games, unless you play on a higher difficulty are pretty easy on the standard difficulties.

The Sims, depending on how you play, also presents very little challenge.

 

[=HCFS=Discoman]

a game doesn't need to be challenging to be fun.
some very well designed games are a blast to play, but aren't exactly hard or anything.
but, some games that do a good job of teaching you and then giving you something hard that isnt really are fun, but the challenge doesn't seem to be there.

portal is a good example. it isn't an execution challenge-it's a mental challenge. you gotta think, plan out your actions. but it introduces you to the game concepts slowly over time, so that even the chambers that seems impossible are actually easy if you just think back on what you learned.

then again, that's probably the bets way-yes, the game is hard looking at it, but if you think about everything you have had to do until this point, then think of how to apply that knowledge, then it becomes quite easy.

 

[meece]

Challenge or plot. Either is good both is great.

 

[inFAMOUSCowZ]

Animal Crossing, and Viva Pinata fun, and not challenging. Also the new kirby game was hell fun.

 

[GeorgW]

Challenge is important to me, I've stopped playing games cuz they were too easy, I rarely stop playing games cuz they're too hard.

However, considering how games these days are getting easier and easier, and I still like games the same as always, yes. For example, I think Portal 2 is the epiphany of game design and it was easy as hell.

 

[nuba km]

As long as there are things to do yes! I enjoy games which make me feel badass, this can either be done by making me a god amongst men slaying all or by providing me with a though challenge to over come. In fact some games do both, though not many, an example is shadow of the colossus.