Thread by @mossmouth

A fundamental problem with difficulty options in games is that there are many players between obvious skill levels. This means:

1. Players have to immediately make an important decision without adequate knowledge.

2. Players will continue to question that decision during play.

Players know that difficulty levels are often tacked on, regardless of the game's budget, exacerbating the anxiety of whether they chose the "right" one.

This breaks immersion pretty hard. Gentle reminders about easier difficulty settings after Game Over don't help.

In many ways, interactivity (audience control) and art (creator's vision) simply don't mix well, and game designers have become very creative about band-aiding the bad parts. We've gotten used to tutorials and difficulty settings and such even though they're less than ideal.

Regarding From Software games specifically, I think most solutions would be too blunt and would cause many "in-between" players to miss the point of the games. They would feel empty at the end and wonder why the games are so highly regarded.

Speaking for myself, I'd love for as many people to experience the Sekisoulsborne (lol) games as possible. But Miyazaki has likened them to a stew, slowly cooking. If you're impatient about beating them, you will be disappointed. It really is about the journey.

The other thing that fans love about FromSoft games is their interconnectedness. Not only in terms of the level design, but also the way death/rebirth and multiplayer are built into the game world. So it feels like any kind of Easy Mode would need to be built into it, as well.