Early reviews definitely put me off. I am a very (very, very) casual gamer. The idea that I'd keep dying and have to back and retread the same steps over and over again made me realise that I wasn't going to spend 30+ quid on something that would frustrate me.
I understand that the game has now been patched to have a fcktard level for the likes of me that has regular save points.
Don't get me wrong - I understand for the dedicated gamer, the challenge is all part of the atmosphere of the game and makes it an even more immersive experience. But if I had bought it hot off the shelves, I would have got bored in a few hours and binned it. Simply because there's a very thin line between "challenging" and "frustrating." It might be an age thing - I turned 44 last week and I just don't want to waste a vast amount of time on a game. Not when there's free porn out there.
I like "Easy" levels - really, for people that don't play games very often, "Easy" is challenging enough. I now play A:CM on (I think) Soldier. Or Hardened. I can't remember which, but that's only cos I play it loads.