I like stealth games.... or I like the idea of stealth games. But more often than not I find them to be frustrating and trial and error ish. Clearly that's because I suck at them and isn't really the fault of the games.But still, they can be daunting.

So how do you play your stealth games? What difficulty do you play on and do you reload a save every time you mess up or do you just live with the consequences?

How can I improve my skills with stealth games like Dishonored, Hitman, Thief and Deus Ex and others? I own most of these stealth games.

I hate stealth mechanics for the most part. I find the concept intriguing and exciting, but I have to confess that I just avoid the genre and cry every time I come across a stealth level in any other kind of game.

Stealth comes in many forms. I think some games have "puzzle" type stealth where the trick is to find a hidden path that the level designer laid out for you. Sometimes the hidden path is an actual path in the spatial domain, but usually the puzzle involves temporal elements as well as switches/levers/traps/distractions and other such elements. Your job is to find that path, and once you see it, you just follow a sequence of steps to lay the pieces. Hitman Absolution has plenty of this, but some of the earlier Hitman games also have some levels with very formulaic solutions. The Splinter Cell games are very linear and formulaic too.

The other form is more sand-boxy where there's no obvious pre-planned route and you actually have to create one for yourself. The level designer may have prepared multiple viable angles of approach, but in the end you have to create the opening for yourself. This can mean actual sneaking around but you might as well have to take down enemies or create a distraction, use disguises or cloaking mechanisms, etc. I think Deus Ex falls more into this category. The first two hitman games also have somewhat open-ended sandboxy levels. If you want to play stealthy, Commandos and Desperados also have some very sandboxy levels.

Most stealth games feature levels that are a mixture of the two styles.

The former style requires trial and error unless you're smart or lucky enough to see the hidden path. Temporal elements tend to require trial and error unless you see exactly what's coming up (or can observe it ahead of time). Mixture of puzzle-stealth and open ended stealth requires the latter style's trial & error to punch through the bushes where no obvious path exists, until you find the prepared path again.

The latter style requires trial and error until you figure out the AI and your tools. If you want to create a path for yourself using the mechanisms given to you, you absolutely have to know how the mechanics work. Trial and error is how you learn.

I don't think there's a way around it.

All of these games (except for a few that absolutely require no alarms or unnecessary casualties, such as some levels in Splinter Cell) can also played as a shooter so the question about what to do when things go south is up to you. Do you actually want to play it as a stealth game? If you do, then reload the level again. But I think that e.g. Deus Ex is shootery enough that it's no fun forcing yourself to stealth. Hitman is different, since it rewards you for stealth. Play on hardest difficulty, restart the level (or load the latest save if the game granted you one).

Trial and error is how you get good. Don't just try sneaking, try going wild. That's a better way to find the "limits" of the AI, for example their reaction speed, field of view, vision range, hearing range, etc. The first level in Deus Ex is a good example of this. You can spend a lot of time crawling about in the dark, but right near the dock's entrance you have some terrorists that eventually walk alone out of anyone's sight. If you try running at them from behind while wielding a crowbar, you'll find out that they don't react fast enough to turn around and pull the trigger, so you can whack them in the face without really sneaking at all.

Once you develop a feel for the AI, you can confidently "sneak" through openings that would seem dangerous and that would have a high chance of getting you in trouble if you didn't know exactly what the limits of the AI were. Trying to sneak in that manner before you actually know the limits of the AI will get you into trial and error.. that's just how it is.

Before blaming yourself for sucking, just try to think of how difficult it would be to make a stealth game that isn't a walk in the park and yet doesn't involve trial and error.

Stealth games just require patience. In some of them you have to look for patterns and in other for opportunities.

You can be as careful as you want, but if you're playing a map for the first time, you're most likely to be surprised, so it's good to just go Rambo on the map just to see what's going on. After that, you can play it properly (exceptions are the Splinter Cell series, where you can easily wing it with all the gadgets you get).

It's usually best if you play at a fair difficulty, where the odds are evenly distributed. Exceptions include the Hitman games, where the odds are the same, but you just have more obstacles or more sensitive NPCs. They don't have superhuman abilities, though.

I specifically enjoy the Hitman series more, since you can make it considerably more difficult by playing totally stealthy (Silent Assassin ranking), suit only.

Commandos and Desperados are concerned more with finding the right path and timing everything perfectly, which is a feat in itself.

I love stealth games in general and consider reloading as part of the experience (check out last year's trailer for Desperados 3, for example).

Stealth games are on a league of their own. Whenever I encounter stealth in action games, it doesn't feel as fluid as in proper stealth games. It's more like a simplified version, not as challenging.

You can add most stealth sequences in non-stealth games to the exceptions here. In most Zelda games with stealth, if you get seen by a guard, you are kicked out and have to start the area all over; this is what ruined the Zelda series for me (though I do sometimes still replay the early titles), and is what turned me off to stealth in videogames in general.

Incidentally, Metroid: Zero Mission handled this situation better. During the stealth section, tripping an alarm or being seen isn't an instant failure; instead, the enemies will start chasing after, shooting at you (and doing heavy damage if you get hit), and you can at least stun them with your gun. You *do* need to let the alarm subside to get past certain points, but this situation is far better than the way Zelda games tend to handle this, and isn't a game ruiner.

(Incidentally, I still find Zelda: Majora's Mask to be bearable; the first stealth sequence is rather easy, and if you go at night you can actually see the guards' lines of sight, making it not feel as unfair; for the second, there is an item that (in toe original version; the 3DS version apparently moved it) can be obtained before even starting the sequence and makes it so that the guards can't see you, even if you are talking to one of them.

When possible i always try to do a Ghost/Pacifist Run first, dunno, i think its relaxing to progress slowly, scout the environment and find a path, dont mind if its trial and error as long as the game has a decent save system (as in Quicksave/free manual saves). Since most games that let the player decide wether to sneak or to fight are often way too easy I usually go for the highest difficulty for this playstyle, just makes it a bit more "realistic" (and actually punishing if you get spotted).

If i liked the game enough and if its a viable option i usually try the high chaos route then for another playthrough, i like it when the game world changes appropriately and you get to see the consequences.

EDIT:
As for hints: Guards in stealth games often suffer from distinct muscle weaknesses in their neck regions ;) Most are surprisingly blind if you're above them. Its also often very helpful to distract them with thrown objects for example (depends on the game of course), i often forget about that...

No living witnesses = perfect stealth.

Stealthy, of course...how else? ;) I tend to play on either normal or easy. Definitely not higher than normal - I'm an adult with very limited time nowadays.
I play games to get away from everyday's troubles in an entertaining way.
I don't want to spend my sparetime to "git gud"...I want to have uncomplicated fun in the time I spend on gaming.
I also have nothing to prove to anyone. And I have a massive backlog of games that want to get played someday...
Makes the decision to switch to easy much...well - easier. :) Depends.
Some games you can't properly proceed if you mess up - so reloading is not an option but a requirement.

In games where messing up in certain missions gives you just one of two (or more) possible outcomes, I decide on a case to case basis.
If I am actually unhappy with the outcome of a mission (and I know I can change that outcome to something more satisfying) - I'll reload and try to do better.

If the result of a messed up mission is acceptable for me, I just play on. Be patient. Take your time. Most stealth games don't have a timer clicking down, so learn the paths of your enemies. Learn where opportunities present themselves to act/proceed unseen.

That's the best advice, really - be patient.

If you don't like the usual stealth games (like me), I'd recommend the Styx games. I liked them a lot for some reason. Probably because I love the universe they are set in.

That's a great one.

Thanks guys for all the wonderful feedback. I will definitely use it when I play stealth games in the future.

I don't have the patience for real stealth, and definitely not for retrying failed stealth missions. So, I'll try to be as stealthy as I can, and then live with the consequences when I inevitably get spotted. I hate forced stealth missions with a passion.

loooool

Yeah. . . I'd have to go with the Night Mother on this one: why bother with all that sneaking and skulking around, when you can just kill them. . . lol.

But seriously, I always thought the THIEF series made stealth enjoyable. . . challenging. . . but rewarding; the stealth mechanics seemed really solid in that game. . . great story, art, and protagonist (Garrett). Stealth in THIEF didn't seem so. . hit and miss.

I see you have THIEF. Yeah, patience: in THIEF you have to be really aware of your surroundings. . . take your time. . . be really . . . 'thief-y'. I remember there were some missions that were very delicate took a long time. Also, in THIEF, don't be afraid to use those water, moss, and rope arrows when you need to. . makes things go much more smoothly. And use that black-jack. . . knocking them out keeps them from being a problem later on, since you'll often be traversing the same corridors/areas over and over. . . just be sure to hide the bodies.