If more games were like Dark Souls and From games I'd understand the many many posts about how From games need to be easier, but since there aren't that many already I don't really see the merit in so many complaints about how a single piece of entertainment media isn't "accessible" for everyone. It doesn't mean they've slighted anyone or hurt anyone. As most people who would defend easy mode not affecting other people's enjoyment would say, "It's just a game."
If they want to put an easy mode in? Sure fine.
On the other hand given people's normal inclination to take a path of least resistance, and the fact that anyone could argue anything is "too hard" or "bad for the game" (the example I always bring up is like BOTW's Durability and people believing it should be "patched") still becomes a circular argument. Too hard for anyone can be too easy for anyone and vice versa. He thinks that people won't be tempted by easy modes, but even in Souls people find the way to break the game or builds to make some encounters easier or get weapons before they're supposed to. Like with BOTW, if there was an unbreakable sword in the game people would go to it because there's no reason "not to" take the most efficient path. I think part of the brilliance of game design and interactive media is making you go out of your way or take on challenges you otherwise wouldn't.
In the end I'll never understand why so many people are so upset about difficulty and video game content to begin with. "Hardcore" gamers should leave people alone who want easy modes, and Easy mode people should (in my opinion) stop thinking that everyone who likes challenging content and likes being catered to in their niche as gatekeeping. I understand that's the point of a forum but I saw people even before I had an account go on many post long rebuttals with people when most people aren't going to change their minds on these things to begin with.
There's plenty of examples (even on this forum) of people being jerkish gatekeepers, sure, but there's clearly an audience for it and they enjoy being catered to, just like weebs like me enjoy anime aesthetics in gaming. I don't really consider it elitist to enjoy something catered to them (like "why are all these anime games anime), but that's a whole different can of worms.
Furi put in an easy mode, and while the game imo is best experienced on difficult I have no reason to shit on the devs for wanting to provide more people a means of experiencing the game. I think at this point people have more of a problem with the conversations surrounding the difficulty/mechanics than the actual question of easy mode itself. I see most the conversations devoted to labeling each other and name calling and I have to wonder how many more threads on this topic will be needed.
I don't like that the video makes it about anyone liking difficult games that are actually catering to their niche audience as "gatekeeping" or "Hoarding" games when there's SO FEW that actually try to cater to this group without bloated numbers and Damage sponges in "hard modes" in other games. I normally agree with everything Jim has to say, but I think there's a ton of nuance being missed in this video, just like it usually is when having a conversation about these topics.
Then the conversation of "this is why monetization" seems really farfetched as well. I'd argue that the Homegenization of a lot of game difficulties and tying everything to "RPG systems" of bloated numbers is why games like Sekiro and From games are so appealing to people, because while yes they have numbers, it's not avatar based difficulty that most games are taking so that you just "Grind" and/or pay money to get more strength. I say this as a huge fan of JRPGs, but shoving numbers into everything for arbitrary gates is some of the weakest game design I've seen, and yet it's becoming even more standard across the industry.
"If you like something you should want to share it" makes for a great bumper sticker, but some people just want to be able to have something "For them" at the end of the day and some media catering to that niche being told that "They need to change because other people don't like it" will naturally set everyone on the defensive. It's just like Jim said, it's a cycle that will continue so long as FromSoft Develops games and hard games have the audacity to be hard, but isn't helped by people reducing both sides of the argument to caricatures of themselves.
Quoted for truth, we all have to do our part to not reduce reasonable people talking 'bout it to "The Other."
These are video games, people. They matter when they matter, and they don't when they don't. Just stop with the Strawmen and discuss difficulty and accessibility like adults.
