Again im not familiar with the game so i cant speak spefically about it, but they way you describe it makes me agree with your assestment.

Im glad you said the monopoly as a example as it is a game infamous for people playing it with homemade rules and make it last forever. A perfect example how players thinking they are making the game better, make it worse without even knowing it. That is the reason why gameplay loops are important. The game is designed around it. Devs have made the game for specific audiense and they are trying to make it as fun as possible for that audience. If there is a way to by accident deviate from that loop it means the audience they are targeting might accidently make the experience worse for themself. If you dont enjoy the basic design the game is build around, then it is not the game for you and you would most likelly be happier playing something else. You cant just expect the devs compromising their target audiences fun just so they cater the game to the people outside of that audience.

But you are absolutelly right. Games should be enjoyed by the players and i adore games like Rimworld, Project Zomboid and Minecraft with its creative mode. Those games really let the player mold the experience to their liking. And things like speed running the game or doing challenge runs are just wonderfull ways people can enjoy their game even more. And i truly think that if modding dark soul to be easier feels more fun for somebody, nobody should try to stop it. But that way you are not getting the intented experience. You will loose some moments devs have designed for the player to feel and in the end they are the ones who are trying to curate the best experience for the player they are targeting the game for.

I noticed that you bring Souls games up a lot and you have said that the souls games means they are unfair.

I just want to bring up that while the souls games are hard, but they are not unfair. In some games, like Binding of Isaac you just might get unfair room at the start of the game, or have run where you dont get good items.

In souls games enemy positions are always the same. Every attack they do is telegraphed. Bonfire is always safe to approach, killing a boss gives you always souls, bosses dont drop random loot so you get the same things every playtrough. Enemies respawn only when you rest. You never loose anything by dying that you cant get back. And even if the game is hard, there are suprisingly few thing that one shot you without warning.

About the roadblocks. You make it sound like people making games just want to prolong the game up to tedium. The level gates or roadblocks are meant fie completelly opposite thing. They are meant to pace the player. It should take average player this many tries i.e. this much time to level up enough to win this boss. Now is a good time to indroduce a new biome to them. They have spend enough time in the earlier one that it will start to get bland so new biome will feel fresh.

Or the player has now learned enough of this mechanic and we can indroduce a new one to them without them feeling overwhelmed.

Or even the player can now defeat the troll guarding the shortcut. It means they have been trough the long way enough times so there is nothing new or challenging in there, so lets not force them to go that way again.

My point is still the same. Not every game needs to be for everyone. Same like not every movie should be made to please everyone or every music genre or art piece.