Unique Hardest Difficulties
Ultimate difficulty options that do something more interesting than just raising enemy stats and lowering yours, or one hit runs. Taking suggestions! (Also please provide the difficulty's official name, bonus points if it's a unique one)
36 Games
18 Comments
OH YEAH, Bayonetta 1 removing Witch Time is like, my favorite hard mode ever haha
Off the top of my head:
- The Wonderful 101's 101% Hard removes slow-down whenever you use the Wonder Liner.
- Viewtiful Joe's Ultra V-Rated removes enemy attack indicators, forcing you to rely on their telegraphs & sound cues to work out what they're gonna hit you with. It also retains all the extra obstacles that V-Rated adds to each stage.
- Nioh 2's Dream of the Nioh gives enemies & bosses new attacks, changes which of their attacks can or can't be countered, alters rewards for every mission in the game, adds DLC enemies to base game missions, adds new armour set bonuses to existing equipment, and gives bosses a unique status effect which slightly heals them if they hit you. The first game's equivalent (Way of the Nioh) does most of this too.
- Dragon's Dogma's Hard Mode causes enemies to drop tons more gold. It also makes them three times as hard to knock over/stagger and causes them to give you much more xp/discipline points/rift crystals, but that probably falls under number tweaking.
- System Shock 2's Impossible difficulty makes cyber modules and buyable items much more expensive, as well as causing enemies to spawn more frequently and drop fewer items.
- Crysis' Delta difficulty causes enemies to speak Korean rather than English, among other things.
NEO TWEWY also probably deserves a mention for giving you better pins the more you bump up the difficulty.
- The Wonderful 101's 101% Hard removes slow-down whenever you use the Wonder Liner.
- Viewtiful Joe's Ultra V-Rated removes enemy attack indicators, forcing you to rely on their telegraphs & sound cues to work out what they're gonna hit you with. It also retains all the extra obstacles that V-Rated adds to each stage.
- Nioh 2's Dream of the Nioh gives enemies & bosses new attacks, changes which of their attacks can or can't be countered, alters rewards for every mission in the game, adds DLC enemies to base game missions, adds new armour set bonuses to existing equipment, and gives bosses a unique status effect which slightly heals them if they hit you. The first game's equivalent (Way of the Nioh) does most of this too.
- Dragon's Dogma's Hard Mode causes enemies to drop tons more gold. It also makes them three times as hard to knock over/stagger and causes them to give you much more xp/discipline points/rift crystals, but that probably falls under number tweaking.
- System Shock 2's Impossible difficulty makes cyber modules and buyable items much more expensive, as well as causing enemies to spawn more frequently and drop fewer items.
- Crysis' Delta difficulty causes enemies to speak Korean rather than English, among other things.
NEO TWEWY also probably deserves a mention for giving you better pins the more you bump up the difficulty.
Another Resident Evil one, the 2002 remake has Invisible Mode where you can't see any enemies outside of reflections and environmental effects.
And also New York Minute in Max Payne which gives you just 60 seconds to complete a level. Fail or die and you have to start again from the very beginning
And also New York Minute in Max Payne which gives you just 60 seconds to complete a level. Fail or die and you have to start again from the very beginning
Hard mode (Crazy hard in japan/europe) in Rocket Knight Adventures not only starts you out with 1 life and no continues (You can't get any more of the ladder) but you'll also die in one hit
The realistic mode in Deus Ex is a bit misleading, since it just makes you take more damage actually.
Doom (1993) definitely fits imo. Nightmare mode gives you double the ammo, but enemies are buffed to be more aggressive in a variety of ways. Some move faster, most attack faster, and projectiles move much faster. Enemy corpses also respawn after a random amount of time. I think Doom is commendable compared to other shooters for both Nightmare and Ultra-Violence (the much more played difficulty one below) not making enemies into bullet sponges but just changing the number of enemies in the level and health/ammo placements.
Megaman 10 (not X: 10) - The Robot Masters increase their moveset (and strength). Choosing a character like Proto Man makes it more difficult, but he has the ability yo reflect a lot of projectiles with his shield if you jump to intercede them. Risky but feels rewarding.
Castlevania 3: Hard difficulty is only implemented after a normal run and it can go four ways, starting all the way back but with a companion, or you alone again. There are new enemies, some are faster, and thanks to the companion, the level architecture can be molded by their abilities (Alucard files, Sypha freezes water/enemies...).
Ristar - When you Grab the device to launch yourself into the air, you can't change your direction. You look really like a shooting star I supose.
Undertale - The Genocide Run changes the story and is determined by your actions if you decide to kill every enemy. The bosses will be different and more difficult.
Metal Storm - The hard mode is one that makes you think every movement you make and it just changes your approach. Normal is too straightforward.
Castlevania 3: Hard difficulty is only implemented after a normal run and it can go four ways, starting all the way back but with a companion, or you alone again. There are new enemies, some are faster, and thanks to the companion, the level architecture can be molded by their abilities (Alucard files, Sypha freezes water/enemies...).
Ristar - When you Grab the device to launch yourself into the air, you can't change your direction. You look really like a shooting star I supose.
Undertale - The Genocide Run changes the story and is determined by your actions if you decide to kill every enemy. The bosses will be different and more difficult.
Metal Storm - The hard mode is one that makes you think every movement you make and it just changes your approach. Normal is too straightforward.
Megaman Zero 3- Hard Mode
you lose access to your three saber slash combo, instead you only swipe once
you lose access to your three saber slash combo, instead you only swipe once
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In Gunvolt 1, Hard mode disables leveling up (no increased max HP or new skills) and equipment crafting, doubles all damage you give and take, and increases kudos (score) gained. It also changes your outfit from blue to black.
In Luminous Avenger iX2, Hard mode disables your free healing, leveling up (no increased max HP), and upgrades, gives bosses harder patterns, makes you lose all kudos upon getting hit, and adds a lives system (you get booted out of the level when you run out).
In Valkyrie Profile, Hard mode excludes certain easy mode dungeons, and adds a couple harder, puzzle-focused dungeons, which better loot. All party members are also recruited at level 1.
In Luminous Avenger iX2, Hard mode disables your free healing, leveling up (no increased max HP), and upgrades, gives bosses harder patterns, makes you lose all kudos upon getting hit, and adds a lives system (you get booted out of the level when you run out).
In Valkyrie Profile, Hard mode excludes certain easy mode dungeons, and adds a couple harder, puzzle-focused dungeons, which better loot. All party members are also recruited at level 1.
Got some for ya
The Evil Within 1 and 2's AKUMU mode makes you die in one hit to everything; the DLC "The Assignment" and "The Consequence" for the first game have a KURAYAMI difficulty mode that has all enemies stay the same strength, but the entire environment is pitch black so you can only see via your flashlight/chemical lights.
Outlast 1 and 2 (and 1's Whistleblower DLC) have an Insane difficulty where dying at any point returns you to the start of the game.
The Last of Us 1 and 2 have Grounded difficulty where your magic seeing through walls listening mode ability is disabled. The HUD is turned off, there's very few supplies, enemy AI is improved, items you can pick up no longer flash. In the first game your revolver will now kill unarmoured uninfected in one hit though, which is unique to this difficulty.
After you beat the original Super Mario Bros you can play through it again in hard mode, where all goombas are turned into buzzy beetles, all floating platforms are made shorter, and some levels are changed to their harder variants.
And Wind Waker HD, Twilight Princess HD, and Skyward Sword have Hero Mode, where enemies deal double damage, hearts don't spawn and health can only be regained from sources like potions and stuff.
The Evil Within 1 and 2's AKUMU mode makes you die in one hit to everything; the DLC "The Assignment" and "The Consequence" for the first game have a KURAYAMI difficulty mode that has all enemies stay the same strength, but the entire environment is pitch black so you can only see via your flashlight/chemical lights.
Outlast 1 and 2 (and 1's Whistleblower DLC) have an Insane difficulty where dying at any point returns you to the start of the game.
The Last of Us 1 and 2 have Grounded difficulty where your magic seeing through walls listening mode ability is disabled. The HUD is turned off, there's very few supplies, enemy AI is improved, items you can pick up no longer flash. In the first game your revolver will now kill unarmoured uninfected in one hit though, which is unique to this difficulty.
After you beat the original Super Mario Bros you can play through it again in hard mode, where all goombas are turned into buzzy beetles, all floating platforms are made shorter, and some levels are changed to their harder variants.
And Wind Waker HD, Twilight Princess HD, and Skyward Sword have Hero Mode, where enemies deal double damage, hearts don't spawn and health can only be regained from sources like potions and stuff.
@MisterAtlas_
I don't know if I'd include all of the Hero modes, but you bringing that up did remind me of how Twilight Princess HD handled it
I don't know if I'd include all of the Hero modes, but you bringing that up did remind me of how Twilight Princess HD handled it
Fire Emblem: New Mystery of the Emblem
Reverse Lunatic
No matter what the enemy always attacks first. This is in contrast to where it depends on if it's player phase or enemy phase. It's a simple change but I think nearly everyone considers it to change the entire way you approach the game.
Fire Emblem Awakening's Lunatic Plus mode is a candidate, it's the same as the regular Lunatic mode except it randomly adds a bunch of bullshit skills to enemies all over of the maps. Idk if it pushes the criteria or not. It doesn't raise/lower stats it's more to do with enemies gaining qualitiative unique skills, though alike the typical raise/lower stat difficulty it's still basically a big "fuck you" slot machine to the player (though some hardcore fans of the difficulty might disagree)
Reverse Lunatic
No matter what the enemy always attacks first. This is in contrast to where it depends on if it's player phase or enemy phase. It's a simple change but I think nearly everyone considers it to change the entire way you approach the game.
Fire Emblem Awakening's Lunatic Plus mode is a candidate, it's the same as the regular Lunatic mode except it randomly adds a bunch of bullshit skills to enemies all over of the maps. Idk if it pushes the criteria or not. It doesn't raise/lower stats it's more to do with enemies gaining qualitiative unique skills, though alike the typical raise/lower stat difficulty it's still basically a big "fuck you" slot machine to the player (though some hardcore fans of the difficulty might disagree)
I think Lunatic+ does slightly push the criteria, but I think it'll still work for this
Lunatic Reverse sounds really interesting though, I never thought of an FE difficulty doing something like that
Lunatic Reverse sounds really interesting though, I never thought of an FE difficulty doing something like that
Not to say that stat increases can't be present, but it has to do something different to stand out
Vanquish speeds up your meter use by a bit over 2x speed, and enemies prioritize the AI teammates less alongside doing way more damage: you'll get decked extremely quickly if you don't play smart.
Oops forgot the name, but Vanquish's highest difficulty is "God Hard"
LukeGirard
2 years ago