It's Elden Ring and The Shadow of the Erdtree time and with it comes the predictable discussion about difficulty in games. I guess it makes sense that a game about making looping runs through a punishing world gets people fired up, but I still think it's hilarious that people seem to be surprised at how hard these games continue to be. And thanks to a new interview with Hidetaka Miyazaki, we can be certain that this difficulty is not only intentional, but also pursued out of respect to players. This week, we dissect some of his comments and consider the long-term legacy of his design sensibilities.