There once was this simulation where you had to find famous shipwrecks,
the ocean was big, i had very view good clues but tons of tools like sonar,
which wasn't that easy to handle.
The crew had to be compiled and had to keep em happy etc, and the ship had to be navigated.
That thing was seriously hard, i must have been between 13 and 15,
so i guess it's ok, but back then i couldn't even make it with the right coordinates. xD
It's rubbish but somehow i have very fond memories, guess it's nostalgia.

Well, I tried Aurora ( which looks like a supply chain management software and seems as easy to play as an hybrid between the asset tracking and management module back at work and the command interface of a RMBK nuclear reactor ), then I saw they call aurora a "dwarven fortress in space". That made me less than confident about how I could deal with these dwarves.

Thus I went back to play "strawberry shortcake boredgame" (Uurgh ) with my 5 years old daughter...

My "Games of Grief" at the moment are

"Fate of the World", it's fun to play, but I don't get most of the game mechanics and regularly die in 2060, when the whole world collapses on me ...

"SpaceChem" serious business this game. I love it, but it is one of the only games, where I really have to sit down and concentrate for. I recommend you play the demo, as it is very rewarding, once you get the hang of it.

For the paradoy games: They seem overwhelming at the start, but once you're into them, they even get somewhat easy if you know what to do. Check the very good community wikis or the paradox forums for help. Forming the "Nation of God" with the Papal States was one of the most rewarding experiences I ever had.

Oh, and for Realms of Arkadia: Beginners mode is not easier, it even makes things worse, as you can't pick your stats while levelling. The actual rolls are not made easier...

oh yeah and independence War....

I bought The Fairy Tail Adventure at a flea market when I was 5 yrs old. I was way too stupid to play any RPG.

Years later I figured out you can actually pick stuff up, and I realized it actually was an awesome game, not the shit pile my 5 year old thought it was.

Have you tried posting in the I-War forums? There is actually a dev, Ravenger, who posts there. He worked on I-war Defiance and I-war2 and is a pretty good resource for both technical problems and gameplay hints.

Realms of Arkania II: Star Trail made me feel pretty stupid. Couldn't understand shit. I do however realize that it's all in the knowledge (and therefore learnable with time), as it is with most of these things... The topic title needs changing, I think.

thanks for the tip, Its a game that I love the concept of. My ability to plot a course and fire off a torpedo salvo while managing energy levels is lacking however.

Overlord on the NES. The enemy would always reach my planet and attack me before I could figure out how to get anything to fight back with.

Maybe it should be "confused" instead of "stupid"?

That would work. Not to just switch the words, though ("Anyone ever try a game that they were too confused to play"), but calling it something like "Has anyone ever been too confused by a game to play it?". "Anyone ever try a game that you make you feel stupid" would also work, and so would "Games that you feel like you're too stupid to play".

But I suppose it is fine as it is. I'm just really nit-picky. :)

Myst. Myst made me feel like my IQ dropped 100 points.

Ha! No I just looked at the title, myself and thought "Well that's a bit rude."

But it's more ironic and louder so I figured it would catch the eye easier.

Hahaha, alright mate!

Ooh, I think you are talking about Shuttle: The Space Flight Simulator. I had totally forgotten about that one, but your post brought back some good memories. I bought the game when I was like 12 years old, and needless to say, it was way over my head. In fact, I wouldn't even call it a game as it was more like an insanely detailed recreation of the Space Shuttle's controls. I think they simulated every single knob and switch from the real cockpit, and the manual was as thick as a book. Shuttle was not exactly fun, but I found it immensely fascinating. With assists turned on, I was able to launch into space and deploy a satellite or something, but I, too, was never able to land safely and would always blow up on re-entry. I'm afraid we'll never see Shuttle here on GOG, but I would instabuy it if I had the chance.