In general how difficult do you think the first mission or level in a game should be? (assuming the user has already done an optional game tutorial on how to play)
Ah mate, what game? Or is this a disscussion of first level difficulty in general? If so ... I think the first mission shoul show the controls, intro the story and what not. Doesnt have to be spectacular, just good.
Depends on the game. I don't want to sit through boring tutorial levels every time I start a new game, so maybe a separate tutorial option that's quite easy, then the main game can start a little more difficult.
The less important the content, the harder it should be to get there. That's my general philosophy. If your game tells a compelling story, it's probably best to make the difficulty an accessible one. Otherwise, ramp up the difficulty. If you can't say your ending is a real accomplishment, I'd like to be able to say earning it was a real accomplishment.
IMO too many games take too long to ramp up the challenge+fun...not like the days when i was a lad (must be gettin old)