I posted before, I know, but this is an interesting topic indeed!
I'm all for options, yes I am, but the latest Thief was a disappointment. The Thief I remember didn't focus as much on loot(yes, I said it) and loot finding as it did with story, exploration, avoiding or fighting adversaries, no killing of servants(guards were fine) or anyone at all(blackjacking was fine). The hardest difficulty required you to find much of a levels loot, yes, but it never became tedious. The latest Thief became tedious.
I can give credit to the devs for making a game that have you scouring the floorboards and ceiling for loot, as much as I can criticise them for making a rail-sneaker. Yes, the entire game is on rails, don't try convincing me otherwise. It does not allow you to jump, climb or scale walls unless your in the exact correct position to do so. That is called being on a rail. Standing in a room where you know is a quest item only to discover you couldn't find it because the item was behind a set of furniture the game didn't allow you to climb (because your position wasn't entirely like the game requires for the climb to be executed) well...made me miss the good old days.
But enough of my rant, and to the point: if it's options and choices this is about, fine.
Let's have 'em, go player choice
victory: )!
But if this is about proving that you're an old school gamer that not only can do without the handholding of games today, but also even write your own journal and hell, why not throw in an game instability option, that boots you from the game and erases your saves while at it....just for the fun of it? Not interested. And I am an old school gamer saying this.
Why this fascination of old games and linking it to almost unbearable difficulty? They weren't that hard, true they didn't hold hands, but they weren't excruciatingly hard either.
In Witcher 1 you had the choice to turn feedback texts off as well as the help when fighting(waves), but I wouldn't call this hardcore mode, or even immersion. It's not hardcore for me to learn what to watch out or listen for. It's called learning curve, I learned how to play the game, so I didn't need any feedback texts helping me.
I know I'm contradicting myself somewhat, as I'd love a hardcore mode and immersion game with high difficulty, but just as long as I find it all enjoyable and challenging, not impossible or tedious. Since when does a game option telling me that a journal has been updated or not have to do with difficulty? Once again, if this is about options let's have them, but in Witcher 3 you will be in a massive open world, and not a miniature city with all kinds of nooks and crannies hiding loot (oh how I miss the open Thief games of good old days). I'd love a journal that updates itself, and for me to get a notice about it.
I love managing, but only up to a point. Feedback, fine, but removing all indications from the HUD? I'm currently playing Baldur's Gate 2...a good old game from good old days, where difficulty and immersion has nothing to do with the journal updating itself and telling you about it each and every time it does. It isn't in the way of my immersion and I'm actually grateful for it's existence and usefulness. You may also write your own journal, and make map notes on the side. It is a choice that is excellently built into the game!
I know this is hard to discuss or separate, but I don't consider a 1999 or 'Classic' mode the same as Hardcore mode. Baldur's Gate is as classic as it gets, and difficulty of game shouldn't have anything to do with what's dispayed on the HUD. That's about preference, not how much damage you dish out or can take, and not about aligning difficulty with immersion like a Hardcore mode(think Fallout NV). Witcher 2 has already established Dark and Insane difficulty, and they should be enough for most gamers wanting an extra challenge, and I hope they will bring this to Witcher 3.
I know I will go with Hardcore mode if that is to be in there, but not Insane, as I don't want anyone messing with my saves or my choice of loading them. To me checkpoint system and autosave only(like many games of today) is not only handholding, it's restricting and the worst belittling feature of games today.
In the good old days we could actually save games whenever we wanted and weren't forced to restart from the last checkpoint you managed to pass.
Oh well....I could go on and on about this as you can see. :