Director Guillermo del Toro, known for his work on films such as Pan's Labyrinth and Hellboy, has voiced a desire for more accommodating difficulty options in video games, particularly for what he terms "elderly players." The 61-year-old filmmaker, a known enthusiast of titles like Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding, recently shared his experience with the roguelike Metroidvania, Dead Cells. While he praised the game's world design and overall concept, del Toro found its punishing respawn mechanic to be a significant deterrent.
"Dead Cells was really interesting to me, I just hate respawning," del Toro stated in a recent interview. "You get 35 levels in, and then you start again…you get faster, but please, please do a version without respawning for the older, for the elderly players. I’m available. You can contact me and send it to me. Please, I beg you. Because I like the world, great design."
This sentiment touches upon a long-standing debate within the gaming community regarding the implementation of optional difficulty settings. Such discussions frequently resurface with the release of challenging games, often in the Soulslike genre, and have been amplified by titles offering extensive modifier systems, like Yacht Club Games' Mina the Hollower, which allows players to tailor the game's challenge. Interestingly, Dead Cells itself includes an Assist Mode, introduced in 2022, which offers several gameplay modifiers. The same update also added a "Continue Mode," permitting players to respawn from their last save point rather than restarting an entire run, a feature that could address del Toro's specific concerns.