Well, chances are it was all of those things combined, but the whole easy-mode thing probably stuck out the most. There’s a mass of games falling prey to this idea, theory, and concept that games need to be far more accessible to help penetrate the market more. Developers around the world are doing research groups in order to meet the demands of people who will never play their games anyway.

What spurned this sudden desire? Well, truth be told, it’s not that sudden. There’ve been varying difficulties in games since the very beginning, it’s only now–since the launch of the Wii–that Nintendo’s enforced upon the industry this concept of accessibility.

Is this good? For the Wii, it is. With the demographic consisting entirely of people who’ve never played games before and a lack of any games at all, any titles they do release have to be playable by quadriplegics.

What about the other systems, though? Are there games out there for people who’ve played video games since they were four? If they were the people buying the majority of titles, then perhaps there would be, but the market seems to suggest that it would like to exclude this “loyal” fanbase. This hasn’t stopped them from clamoring for more, though. At every instance possible, those of the hardcore demographic raid message and image boards and pollute the HTML code with cries of injustice. In this digital age, the developers are apparently listening.

Their solution, however, is not the most sound. For developers who want to attract all audiences, they’re incorporating this idea of “easy to pick up, tough to master,” which is perhaps only self-serving. When this new design philosophy is implemented, it often degenerates into half of the game being way to easy, and the other half either being not hard enough or simply too hard because the player just wasn’t prepared for it.

Do you remember when Super Mario Galaxy really picked up the pace? Me neither. I remember near the end of the game, some purple coin collecting taking me a fourth try, but that’s it. That was the most exciting part of the game, and the part most people take home with them. We all remember Luigi’s Purple coins.

Fighting games are probably the only genre that comes close to achieving this lofty goal of “anyone can play.” Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe did have a somewhat simple and satisfying battle system, and some brutally timing-specific “pro moves” that only dedicated players would be able to work into combos. Street Fighter IV is also touting an ease of accessibility with the inclusion of a “challenge mode” that’s supposed to let you learn the most basic attacks up to the best and most complicated combos in the game. The problem with both of these games is that if a person has never played a fighting game before, they’re going to be totally lost regardless. It takes some time and a little bit of skill to learn how to do “shoryuken” and super combo motions, and for some people those may not be things they’re willing to dedicate to a game where there are already thousands of players online just waiting to obliterate them twenty times over.

The problem is, nobody knows how to make these games fun for everybody anymore. Why can’t they just realize the answer’s been right in front of them the whole time:

Difficulty Settings

My God, it’s so simple! Change certain things about the game depending on a selection made at the beginning, or make difficulty options  interchangeable during the game that alter how hard the game plays and make it accessible to everyone! Brilliant!

I don’t understand why this is such a hard concept to understand. Metal Gear Solid 4 got it just right, and nobody noticed. “Professional” reviewers don’t even get it. The majority of those who reviewed the game knocked it for being far too easy. “What is the point of stealth when you can just shoot everybody?” How can you get paid big dollars to review things, without having played the whole game? Unless it’s a joke review, I see no reason for it. Anyone who’s played the game on anything but the first three settings knows the game considerably ramps up the difficulty, making it very difficult to simply shoot one’s way out of situations. The game is not perfect by any means, but to knock it for freedom of choice is just ridiculous. Hell, it even rewards you for playing the game without killing anyone. The whole review process has always been bizarre to me.

What spurned this angry discourse? One of my favorite developers has betrayed me: Criterion just announced what the details are for their free content update.

Click to watch.

Essentially, they make the cars at the beginning of the game much slower and harder to crash, give you more time to do a stunt run, and make every billboard, smash, and jump fluorescent and colorful. Why? I’d be fine with this if they’d included all of this as an optional selection on the menu. If they didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings, they could have called this new stuff “normal” and the old stuff “advanced.” Why hurt everyone?

Perhaps I’m overreacting, and I need to wait for the release, but I’m just really sick of having to deal with this. There are some games that are still pretty brutal: Dead Space and Super Street Fighter II Turbo: HD Remix, but they’re few and far between. I’m not asking to get maniacally raped in every game I play; that’s just frustrating. I just want the option to choose whether or not I get raped.

Is that so much to ask?

2008 is forever going to go down in history as one of the greatest years for the gaming industry. No matter which platform or genre you follow religiously, there was something for everyone. To the casual gamer to the hardcore, there is something that will appeal to you. This is just one person’s modest opinion of what stood out in 2008.

1) Dead Space (XBOX 360, PS3, PC)

You are Isaac Clarke, engineer and resident badass. Stepping onto the USG Ishimura you are dragged into the beautifully twisted, horrifying atmosphere from start to finish. In an industry plagued by sequels and rehashes EA decided to start a new IP, and they did everything right. From the first five seconds of the game you are pulled into the atmosphere, and you never know where a Necromorph is going to hop out, knock you over, slice your head off, and make you soil yourself.

2) Fallout 3 (XBOX 360, PS3, PC)

Bethesda took a chance, moved away from their running Elder Scrolls series, and brought players back to the post-apocalyptic world of Fallout. You take the role as a resident of Vault 101 who leaves after his father disappears, something that never happens in the Vault. You are thrown into a sprawling wasteland, interacting with other survivors and looking for the secrets it has to offer. You will lose hundreds of hours to the desolate world of Fallout 3.

3) Braid (XBOX 360)

Platforming and manipulation of time have been done before, but never in a way so artistic, so simple, and so beautifully before. You play the role of a man named Tim, searching for a princess. This is a game that has to be experienced to truly see the beauty that this game truly beholds. If you think games aren’t art, Braid would like to speak with you.

4) Little Big Planet (PS3)

Media Molecule decided to do something different in the platforming genre, and made a game that is fun, addictive, and you can always find something new. With Little Big Planets’ level editor you are bound to find something new from the community every week. This game is bound to entertain and grow in the future.

5) Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)

Metal Gear Solid 4 is a return to the series, ending the story of Solid Snake. The game gives you a rollercoaster ride throughout the final chapter of Snakes’ legacy. While a major complaint is that you spend more time watching the game unfold before you rather than playing it, it simply must be experiences. The writing, the characters, the world will draw you in from start to finish. You will find yourself going through a full set of emotions from start to finish.

6) Patapon (PSP)

Patapon is one of the few reasons that everyone should own a PS3. Featuring a mix of a rhythm-tactic-god game you will find yourself immediately addicted. You control a group of “Patapons” by using different rhythm combos to control their actions. This addictive, stylish game is a prime example that creative games still exist.

7) Castle Crashers (XBOX 360)

Castle Crashers is an XBOX Live arcade game developed by The Behemoth (same creators of Alien Hominid). The story is based on four knights as they chase down a wizard after his army steals a large magic crystal and four princesses from the palace. This stylized beat ‘em up will provide hours of entertainment as you and three friends run through mowing down anything in your path. If you miss games similar to Golden Axe you will want to give this game a shot.

For those of us who’ve been given the opportunity to see the last chapter of gaming icon’s life – i.e. Solid Snake’s last operation, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots for the Sony PlayStation 3 – you might have noticed something missing, amidst the stunning revelations, the awesome graphics and the word “nanomachines” being thrown about here and there.

It was a bit subtle, since they made sure we got so much new content that it was hard to keep track of everything, but it was there – or rather, it wasn’t there. Yes, I’m talking about the classic Metal Gear Solid theme, the one we would all hum to ourselves while we’re on a sneaking mission to the ol’ refridgerator at the kitchen, to grab some delicious rations before the parents found out you were staying up late to play Kojima’s goddamn epic. And yes, they left it out of MGS4. Why?

The answer is as simple (and as rage-inducing) as you might think. It seems that some russian composers have gotten wind of the MGS theme (composed by Tappi Iwase and not Harry Gregson-Williams) and have noticed its startling similarity to a piece written by composer Georgy Sviridov. Long story short, accusations of theft were thrown around, and after some legal brouhaha Kojima had to leave it out of the PS3 sequel. Here’s the exact quote:

The truth is, Konami [had legal problems with] Russian composers who said we stole their music. They didn’t [steal their music], actually. But Konami was too sensitive about the situation and just decided not to use that music in the game.

You’ve got to love people being overprotective of IPs when everyone’ s obviously taking creative cues and references from everyone these days.