The hardest game you've ever played?

[Crescent Cat]

I love challenging video games. Nowadays it seems like the market is saturated with games that are too easy and have non-skippable tutorials that teach you how to move left and right. With so many games babying the player it's nice to run into something that wants to kick your ass. And kick your ass it does! Over and over again until you're ready to throw your controller or keyboard across the room in frustration.

Sadly you can only find this kind of difficulty in older games, but there are a few newer ones that deliver. The most recent one that I know of is Serious Sam 3: BFE. While not as hard as the previous titles (FE and SE) this game is not afraid to kick you in the crotch. It has been a long time since a boss in a video game has scared the crap out of me and I don't mean a cheap jump out of nowhere scare. I knew where this bastard was the entire time and that just made it scarier because he could kill the ever loving fuck out of me much faster than I could land a few shots on him. This game made me a fan of the series.

Another more recent one is Super Meat Boy though I don't exactly know when that came out (could google but too lazy). I love this thing. Anything that's not afraid to brutally punish me for poor timing and reflexes is okay by me.

For something a little more "old school" (not really sure if you could call it old school yet) there's DKC: Diddy's Kong Quest. The normal stages aren't that hard but if you want to get the true ending in the lost world . . . all I can say is . . .

Animal Antics

Fucking Animal Antics!

Holy crap! I honestly don't remember how long it took me to beat that level but I do remember how badly my hands were shaking when I finally did. I saved the crap out of that file immediately afterward! At least three times just to be sure.

So what are some of your favorite challenging games and what would you recommend to others?

[TheSHAD0W]

QWOP?

http://www.foddy.net/Athletics.html

[MaggieTheCat]

For oldschool, there's the original Ninja Gaiden for for the NES (and the American version of Ninja Gaiden III, which I haven't actually played much of but it's supposed to be harder than the original.)

For newer generation, there's Catherine (on hard mode) for the PS3/360.

[Miss Maple Leaf]

One word, folks: Battletoads.

[jedimaster91]

I've heard horrible, horrible things about Dark Souls. I'm pretty sure even the box says to expect to die. A lot.

[Salted Grump]

You mean Wonderful things about Dark Souls. Amusingly, it's arguably easier than its PS3 predecessor, Demon's Souls, which has a few more cheapshots, and a lot less checkpoints. (In Dark Souls, bonfires act as checkpoints if you use it. In Demon's Souls, a checkpoint only appears after you kill the local boss)

[Chanlin]

Dark Souls is only hard until you get used to your enemies tactics and figure out what hurts what. Admittedly that takes more time than usual. The game can still be punishingly brutal if you're not careful, but I will say it has been a long time since I have played a game where I did not mind dying all the time.

[fireheart]

Final Fantasy X.

There, I said it.

It took me absolutely F@#$ing forever to get past Evrae (before you hit Bevelle) where I could figure out the magical combination (IIRC it was something like "haste", "Move away", "wakkas ball" etc, combined with dark attack).

And now I'm up at the point where I have to defeat the BODY of Sin before I can get inside. (thanks to my late cousin however, I know what happens once you get inside ) and you onyl get sixteen shots at it.
SIXTEEN SHOTS to inflict six-figure damage.

FUCK.

[taurinejunkie]

Ninja Senki is simple but hard.

[Dasota]

There's a reason that there's a term called "Nintendo Hard."

I suck at pretty much all video games. I stick with Animal Crossing or button mashing arcade style fighty games like Soul Caliber.

[Andara Bledin]

I don't like hard games.

Life is hard enough; I play games to chill.

Not to say that I don't like challenge; there's just a difference between being challenging and satisfying and being difficult and frustrating.

^-.-^

[jedimaster91]

I don't like hard games.

Life is hard enough; I play games to chill.

Not to say that I don't like challenge; there's just a difference between being challenging and satisfying and being difficult and frustrating.

^-.-^

So much this. I usually play RPG and action type games because I like the stories. I don't mind puzzles, but I hate tying my brain in knots trying to figure out how to open a door (I'm looking at you, LoZ).

[Andara Bledin]

I'd have to say that the hardest game I've ever played was Riven.

I may have played games that were harder, but not fun enough for me to bother continuing or remembering. Braid, for example, just annoyed the crap out of me to the point where I've spent a grand total of 10 minutes in the game.

^-.-^

[Kristev]

My, I'm rather bad at games in general. My brother, on the other hand, is a gaming master.

[Salted Grump]

XCOM. Impossible Difficulty. Ironman. Not even the Developers were able to beat the game on that setting.