Should games be hard or easy?
 

So I recently played through Bayonetta which I thought was an awesomely fun game but I found that it suffered because of the extreme extent of normal difficulty...
So I'm wondering whether you guys prefer to play easy games or harder games and whether it can have a real impact on gameplay and the experience or whether overall it doesn't really matter...
Thoughts below ;)

Depends on the game.
Super Meat boy sells because of its difficulty. Where as if some kid were to play Sponge Bob and get a challange, it wouldnt be that good for them.

Depends what your market is. I don't have time to play through a game for more than about 2-3 days tops, at full speed. Maybe a week when I'm going slower. My emphasis in a game is story with fun gameplay that's not too difficult.

I just don't have time for anything that takes too much time. Between moving onto my Ph.D program, working at the university and my writing for various outlets, I like to know I can come home, put in about 2 hours and be done within the week.

When I was an undergrad I could commit hours and hours a day, but especially as I move into a realm where I'm thinking about marriage, I want games that I can finish in a week and move onto the next.

I like harder games. Of the games I own, the ones I go back and play over and over again are the ones that were difficult to beat the first time. This is because I like a challenge and I want to see if I've improved any since the last time I played the game or I want to try out new strategies to see if I can pass a certain bit faster. I also suppose that the time commitment for harder games also makes me remember them a bit more, either fondly or with not a little frustration.

Accessable but offers many additional challenges down the line.
Mario games and Tetris get it right, so does in some ways Portal.

Additional difficulty levels are a nice bonus, so long as the difficulty is not just less life, extra damage (as thats pretty cheap and usually get boring fast).

where is the option for having a well developed difficulty curve that is just right between enjoyment and frustration?

So you hate Meat Boy then?
Considering the difficulty curve is the game gets impossible like hell after the tutorials are out of the way.

Depends on the game. If a game has a compelling story, I don't mind at all if it's easy gameplay because it's still entertaining. If a game doesn't have much of a story, it's definitely better to have challenging gameplay that makes up for it.

For instance, I don't mind that the BTTF games are so easy because I'm enjoying the story so much that I don't really want to get stuck on a puzzle, I want to find out what happens next. People can say it's nothing but an interactive movie and I say, "what's wrong with that?" It's a good price for a 10-12 hour interactive movie.

But it is a rare and special game that can find the perfect balance of the two.

Depends on the game.

This, shove your point blank answers up your hole etc etc.

Personally I don't think it matters, as long as the game is fun to play.

Hard. Porblem?

Neither, a game shouldn't feel like it's easy or hard. If a game is made right, these concepts shouldn't matter. Need an example, would you classify Tetris as an easy game or a hard game? What about MYST? What's easy or hard to you may not be to someone else. I also find it frustrating when it feels like things are added to artificially make the game more difficult, like enemies getting one hit kills (especially in JRPGs).

I have more fun if I am being challenged. I don't think games 'should' be hard or easy though, it all depends on the game.

I like to have a challenge, but at the same time I play games to have fun, so if it is too challenging then I usually just end up frustrated and play something else. This is just in general though. It definitely depends on what the game is.

It really depends on the game.

Super Meat Boy is hard as crap, but that's the appeal. But at the same time, if Super Meat Boy had a totally epic storyline that I was dying to see the end of and was still just as hard, it would be a lot more frustrating.

I choose harder games, because I'd really like to be challenged! Anything to give my brain and/or reflexes a workout!

What's the point of a game if it's easy? Where's the challenge? Saying as if "Click 'A' Twice, then jump, and you beat level 2/3...

Mindless fun to occupy an hour of my time.

It should be easier than picking your nose, but harder than setting a wild hippopotamus on fire.