Masahiro Sakurai discusses balancing difficulty in games

Masahiro Sakurai is back with another installment in his game development video series, and this one slots into the “Game Essence” category.

According to Sakurai, games are at their most exciting when you can just barely overcome their difficulty. However, not all players have the skill to beat every game. How should developers go about balancing difficulty in such cases?

Its true that a challenge in games can make victory feel that much sweeter, but sometimes you also want to have a smooth, relaxing ride. Since it’s the player spending their hard-earned money on a game, they no doubt want to see it through to the end. If a stumbling block becomes a barricade for further exploration, it can sometimes feel like money wasted.