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Three Games So Hard You’ll Love to Hate Them!

Three Games So Hard You’ll Love to Hate Them!

You know, as much as I love Dark Souls , I have to admit that the difficulty is a little played up. It’s like how people from the north talk about how cold it is in conversations with anyone from the south. Likewise, when I lived in Nashville, I’d joke with tourists during the summer about the heat; I’d warn any kids travelling for baseball that their fastball would be significantly retarded by the humidity (it’s not that bad). But anyone who has experienced exotically harsh winters or the heat of the desert knows that the majority of the U.S. is perfectly comfortable, even in its extremes.

In the same way, anyone who grew up playing Contra, Super Ghouls and Ghosts, or that last dang boss fight in Kirby’s Adventure on the NES can take the difficulty of even the grittiest modern games in their stride. Dark Souls is one of the best games I’ve ever played, but it’s definitely not one of the most difficult. Come to think of it, some of the most challenging games in modernity have a fittingly retro vibe to them, and you should know that a few of them are extremely affordable right now. If you’re old-school like I am and you’re craving that classic challenge that makes you want to strangle your controller, prepare your body and check out one of the following games:

Metal Slug

Metal Slug 3 is widely hailed as the best in the series, and as one of the most punishing games of all time. On one hand, you can’t help but love the unexcelled pixel art and imaginative gameplay, but the game is also absolutely brutal. If you owned Metal Slug 3 when it came out on the PS2 (you would have lived in Japan or Europe), you could revive as many times as you needed to at the point where you died. When the game came out for the Xbox here in the U.S., the difficulty was cranked up to 11 and players were forced to restart levels over from the beginning if they ran out of lives. If you’ve ever attempted the final stage in Metal Slug 3, you’ll understand why only a select handful have the honor of saying that they’ve beaten the game. This game goes on sale often, so put it on a wishlist. You can find it at a great discount on the PlayStation Store right now.

OlliOlli

OlliOlli is my kind of game. A smooth, trip-hop soundtrack, simple but gratifying trick animations, easy-to-learn control scheme, and soul-crushing difficulty have made this a cult hit that you’ll be eager to show to your friends. Playing this game on the PS Vita will absolutely wear your thumbs raw; I haven’t experienced thumb or hand fatigue like this since the original Mario Party days.  Levels start over almost instantly, kind of like Super Meat Boy , so you’ll find yourself retrying more difficult levels literally dozens of times in a row. Somehow, though, the game never struck me as unfair or arbitrarily difficult. The learning curve ramps up very naturally, and the grooves keep you at ease. Check this one out on Humble’s weekly bundle where you can pay whatever the heck you want for it.

Three Games So Hard You’ll Love to Hate Them!

Shovel Knight

I’ll never stop singing the praises of Shovel Knight . Not while Yacht Club Games is doing such fine work. That studio has been hustling, and you can tell that the people there truly appreciate their fans. Shovel Knight, from beginning to end, oozes with personality and charm. The 8-bit styling and unforgettable chiptunes are a serious blast from the past, and even on my third playthrough there are moments that make me smile and laugh out loud. If you’ve never played Shovel Knight , don’t write it off. You really should play this game, but be prepared to fall; be prepared to love and hate each boss fight; be prepared to use every item in your inventory and exhaust your magic to complete pretty much every stage. Shovel Knight is about $15 right now, and the physical version has gone down to $20 from $25. The physical version comes with a wonderful , old-school, full-color instruction manual (it even has the blank pages in the back to take notes and write down cheat codes).  The cherry on top? All of the DLC is, and will continue to be, free.

There you have it, you tenacious try-hards. If you feel like you haven’t had a true challenge since the NES controller left your hands, you owe it to yourself to check these games out. All three of these games are treasures by any standard, but if you’re out specifically for something tough and retro, these are my heartfelt recommendations. By the way, sound off in the comments if you’ve ever beaten Metal Slug 3, and bring proof.

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