NG+ too hard

Hey! So i decided to go back to ZD and do a NG+. Im a casual player and i enjoy the story so I decided to play on easy. However, the machines are absolutely ruthless and the good gear I have isn't enough. I had a 15 minute battle with a frostclaw and I barely made a dent in its life bar even though it caught on fire twice and I shot some parts off. Am I just all of a sudden a really poor player or did they up the difficulty so much?

Thanks!

Edit: I started yet another NG+, and the issue does not persist, maybe that playthrough was bugged or something