For a first playthrough, i'd suggest starting with moderate difficulty, which nicely balances the intended survival experience (this is actually how the developers designed the core gameplay loop). The game does this interesting thing where resources become scarce enough to make you think carefully, but not so rare that you'll get stuck. Something worth mentioning - very light or light difficulties are perfectly valid choices if you're more interested in experiencing the story, since they reduce enemy aggression and give you more crafting materials to work with.

Here's why moderate works so well for newcomers: you'll get that authentic tension the game is known for, while still having enough breathing room to learn the mechanics (and believe me, you'll want that time to practice stealth and combat). Hard mode might be tempting, but i'd save that for a second playthrough when you're more familiar with the enemy patterns and resource management. Good to know - you can always adjust the difficulty settings mid-game if things feel too intense or too easy, which is really helpful while you're finding your comfort zone.

Those higher difficulties like survivor and grounded? They're fascinating challenges that strip away parts of the hud and make resources incredibly sparse, but they're best appreciated after you've got a solid grasp of the base game (trust me, you'll want to know all the mechanics inside and out before tackling those).