Direct answer
Pick Intended for your first playthrough: it is the developer-recommended balanced mode. Choose Novice if you want a story-first run with reduced combat friction and no gadget cooldowns. Save Purist for a replay or if you want a punishing stealth-action challenge where enemies hit harder and resources are scarce. Difficulty does not affect trophies, collectibles, or story progress.
| Mode | Combat | Stealth | Gadgets & resources | Best for | Check status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Novice | Enemies deal less damage and are easier to kill; Bond's attacks hit harder. | Enemies take longer to detect you, giving more room to recover from mistakes. | Gadgets and abilities have no cooldown; you can use them repeatedly after replenishing. | Story-first players or anyone who finds early combat timing frustrating. | Cross-checked |
| Intended | Balanced damage in and out; enemies are fine-tuned to flank and provide a steady challenge. | Standard detection rates and patrol behavior; mistakes are costly but recoverable. | Gadgets have cooldowns and require items to regenerate; resource management matters. | First-time players; IO Interactive recommends this as the default first playthrough. | Official plus guide cross-check |
| Purist | Enemies hit harder and faster; your health is extremely low and direct combat is dangerous. | Unforgiving detection; one mistake can force a checkpoint restart. | Resources are harder to find and more are needed to regenerate gadgets. | Experienced players on a second playthrough or seasoned stealth-action fans. | Cross-checked |
How to choose in 30 seconds
Start on Intended unless you already know you want a relaxed story run, in which case pick Novice. Do not start on Purist just because you are good at other action games; the stealth detection and resource scarcity are tuned for players who already know the layouts and systems. You can change difficulty at any time from the main menu or when retrying a failed objective, so the choice is not permanent.
Does difficulty affect trophies or collectibles
Current guide sources agree that difficulty does not affect trophies, achievements, or collectible progress. You can earn the Platinum trophy or 100% achievements on Novice if you prefer. This means the difficulty choice is purely about your preferred combat and stealth friction, not about locking content.
When to change difficulty
Change difficulty if a specific encounter is blocking your progress or if you want to speed through a section you have already cleared. The two methods are: choose a new difficulty when you fail an objective and retry, or go to Story > Select Chapter > choose a checkpoint > adjust difficulty from the main menu. You do not need to restart the campaign.
Common mistake: starting on Purist
Purist is available from the start, which tempts experienced players to select it immediately. The mode is designed as a second-playthrough challenge because it assumes you understand parry timing, gadget cooldowns, patrol routes, and resource scarcity. If you start on Purist and find yourself replaying the same checkpoint repeatedly, drop to Intended without guilt; it does not cost you any trophies or story progress.
How this was checked
The three difficulty names and the broad mechanical differences are confirmed by official IO Interactive communications and cross-checked against Beebom, Gfinity, and NeonLightsMedia guides. The exact numerical values for detection timers, damage multipliers, and resource spawn rates are not published by IOI, so this guide sticks to the source-backed qualitative differences.
| Topic | Recommended wording | Other wording | Check status | What to use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Developer recommendation | IO Interactive recommends Intended for everyone's first playthrough. | Some players assume Purist is the intended way to play because it is available from the start and named after the classic Bond ideal. | Official plus guide cross-check | State clearly that Intended is the recommended first-playthrough mode and explain Purist as a replay/second-run challenge. |
| Changing difficulty mid-game | You can change difficulty when retrying a failed objective or from the chapter-select menu. | Some players worry that picking the wrong difficulty locks them into the whole campaign. | Cross-checked | Reassure players that the choice is reversible and does not affect trophies or collectibles. |
Next steps