I'm in the process of playing through it for the first time right now. I've rung two bells, just finished the Duke's Archives/Crystal Cave, and am a level 71 currently in the Giants Tomb. Personally, I don't think the game is quite has difficult as some people make it out to be. I think that most people are just used to games where you almost never die and/or aren't forced to repeat large areas of a level. The game seemed hard at first, but after a while I've found that it's not really so bad. I sort of stopped viewing death as such a big deal and find that it doesn't usually take me [i]that[/i] long to reach the next area. I would describe it more as "not easy" than "hard." Sometimes a particular spot will hang me up for a while or a boss will really tear me up (though I think most boss fights are actually too easy given the difficulty of the rest of the game), but I eventually discover what to do (or turn around and try going somewhere else) and then I can move forward without so much difficulty. With that said, I would [i]hate[/i] to see the game made easier. What makes this game great is it doesn't hold your hand in any way and doesn't care if the player has to fail several times in order to progress. Many games I play these days I complete without ever feeling challenge or pressure (or even failing/dying at any point). It's nice that a few developers out there are trying to do the opposite.