The 10 HARDEST Video Game Genres To Get Into

10 Hardest Video Game Genres to Get Into

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today, we’re getting about 100 angry comments as we look at the 10 Hardest Video Game Genres to Get Into. Everybody has their preference, myself included, but from time to time it’s nice to step outside of what you’re good at, or what you like, to try a different genre of video-game. Some are easy to pick up and play at a base level, like an RPG, and some are like having your heart and soul ripped out of your body as the game tells you “is this too hard? Too confusing? Are you a widdle baby? Go play Peppa Pig you widdle baby” .. these are the genres we’ll talk about today. Let’s go!

Souls-Like

There’s not really much explaining that needs to happen here right? Souls-Like games are freaking hard! Gaming has become far more accessible today than it was even 10 years ago. With difficulty and accessibility options, very casual gamers can step through entire series’ without once getting frustrated at the difficulty level. Souls-Like games however require a little more from the player, and require that the player understand within the core of who they are as people, how to handle a video-game character, there’s no looking at the controller to work out which one is the triangle button, it’s go time. With no difficulty options and a good amount of trial and error, the difficulty curve of the Souls-Like genre is often too much for your average gamer.

Music/Rhythm

Any skills can be learnt, any ability mastered, but have you ever met someone who’s done deaf and thought, not you babe, you’ll forever be a terrible singer. Well, some human beings are just born without rhythm, and when it comes to the music/rhythm genre of video games, some people are just never going to be able to wrap their uncoordinated heads around it. With hits like Guitar Hero, SingStar, and Rock Band, this genre became a genre of game that included players who didn’t touch any other video game, some players dedicating their entire gaming experience to one Guitar Hero game, it’s difficult to get into for some, and impossible to master for most, Guitar Hero, more like Guitar Z-you suck and nobody will ever love you … That joke was a stretch, I’m sorry.

Simulation

Simulation games require a real decent amount from the player in order for them to be enjoyable. First off they require a good amount of skill and time to actually learn how to do the task being simulated, and, they require you to give a f*** about whatever it is, and to be totally honest, I’ve never been interested in driving a tram. Some simulator games make it a bit easy on the player, but on the whole, they are near perfect depictions of the true task at hand, whether it's a job,train,farm, or even lawn mowing. Oddly satisfying? Sometimes. Almost always mind numbing? From time to time.

Virtual Reality

Most genres are hard to get into because of the gameplay being either difficult, or requiring a new style of approach that isn’t found in more mainstream genres, for Virtual Reality, it comes down to the price. With console VR, admittedly it is a little easier to access VR, but you still have to purchase another console priced accessory, and you are limited in your choice of games and VR gameplay. For a full and proper VR setup, including the necessary gear as well as a PC powerful enough to run VR without too much issue, you’re looking at at least $1500 USD. You need equipment, space, and time to really enjoy virtual reality at its fullest.

Fighting

It’s not particularly difficult to pick up a controller, and jump into a fighting game, anyone can do it, button mash to your heart's extent. But when you’re facing experienced players in the genre, you can’t button mash your way to any kind of victory. What’s difficult about fighting games, is to play efficiently in almost all of them, it ISN’T pick-up and play, it requires an extensive knowledge of the move sets (which aren’t just handed to you when you turn the game on), and a photographic memory to remember them. Tekken, Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter, it doesn’t matter, getting good in these games requires more than just time, it requires skills that extend beyond the controller.

JRPG’s

RPG's are a LOT of fun, they're easy to follow, with generally good guidance and stories to match. JRPG's often fight against what feels standard and normal, sometimes even creating gameplay experiences that feel a little mishmashy, a little over the top, and can sometimes have a tone that feels off-putting for western players. Non anime fans may struggle to lock into a game like Persona for instance, as it features a game system that doesn’t follow the skeleton set out in RPG’s with western inspiration. Dialogue, and characters can feel a little cheesy and childish, and players who don’t have a love for Japanese inspired media may not connect with it. Final Fantasy isn’t everyone's bag, and it can be difficult to get into if you just don’t care.

Card Games

There are very few casual players in card games. Just like with real life card games, jumping in and playing requires you to sit down with a manual and learn the intricacies of the rules, or have them confusingly explained to you by a friend while your eyes drunkenly cross with confusion. Jumping into an online card game match of ANY version will result in an immediate loss, as the genre is inundated with players who have assigned a SOLID amount of time to mastering their chosen game, and you are going to suffer a LOT of loses, before you even smell the hint of a win.

MMORPG’s

World of Warcraft, Runescape, Guild Wars, the MMORPG genre is a genre most casual gamers haven't even touched, and there’s good reason why. It's a time sink for progression, do excel, you need to be ready to sit down and grind, and the joy is often out of the grind, so if you don’t have a love FOR the grind, then you are not going to have a good time, and quite frankly, most people don't have the time for the grind. I don’t know how many times I just said grind, but I apologise. Most MMORPG’s are PC exclusives, leaving casual gamers in their dust, and most casual gamers don’t find gratification from a few hours where nothing happens except one level up, and a couple pieces of bronze.

Sports

Gamers, and sports fans, not a venn diagram with MUCH crossover, it's almost like two totally different worlds. And when it comes to sports games, it does seem like there are sports games fans, and gamers, and that they are not the same thing. It's undeniable that 80% of gamers have never played FIFA, and 80% of FIFA players have never played another game, don't quote me on that maths, because it is hyperbolic, because I’m trying to make a point. The matches are brutal and competitive, and the playerbase is borderline toxic. You will be demolished upon entry, and your mother will be called fat, that’s the long and short of it, enjoy.

Strategy/RTS

Throw even a seasoned gamer who's never played a game of AOE II into a match without any practice or tutorial, and watch them drown. Strategy is not an easy genre to pick up blind, it requires a good amount of practice and time in order to fully understand the battlefield/world, and the approaches an enemy might take, especially when in most strategy games you can’t see what they’re doing. I think in terms of games that you can’t just pick up and play, strategy would be an easy contender for top of that list, the one that will be the most confusing when analyzing the HUD and the gameplay itself, which is why it sits comfortably at the end of this list.