Many people look back fondly at old games like Pac-Man or Super Mario Bros. and think of how they enjoyed playing them as kids. A lot of those people are now adults, playing video games well into their 30s, 40s and beyond. But there’s one thing that these people keep forgetting about those games: most of them were extremely difficult to play!
The golden rule of game design is that a game should be simple to learn, but difficult to master. And that’s exactly what the early video games did. Arcade games like Pac-Man or Donkey Kong were extremely easy to pick up and start playing. But as the levels went up, the game became harder and harder, which was necessary, because Arcade games were designed to make the player pay for each play session. If the game was too easy, one player could end up playing the entire day, leaving other customers waiting impatiently for their turn. Of course, even the most difficult games eventually became easy, because kids had a lot of time to practice, and became extremely good at the games. More details in the video!
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