I have no convincing opinion either way on this matter, I believe the correct path depends on the individual.

I will say that anybody who thinks a CC transfer will be a cakewalk needs to do some thinking before they enroll, not when they're in tears during an exam.

I have taken courses part-time at Virginia Peninsula CC (formerly Thomas Nelson) and Central Virginia CC, and later went full time at New River CC before my transfer to Virginia Tech.

Engineering and math courses, especially at New River, differ dramatically from the GED programs and elective classes to the point where they feel like two different schools entirely. It is not easy. If it was easy, the credits wouldn't be equivalent and thus the transfer program wouldn't exist. I have personally witnessed chemistry and physics classes go from ~20 students to four by the end of a semester, with some of those left behind being active tech students.

The professors are very similar to those at Tech. In some case they literally are Tech professors, either former or current. There will be assignments every day, tests every two to four weeks, midterm and final exams as per usual. Most of the tests and exams allow either no notes at all, or a small notecard. No open book, and some math classes don't allow the usage of a calculator. This is no different than what you'd find at a 4-year. Hell, it's even the same expensive textbooks, same garbage Pearson online homework, same everything. You don't escape anything by going to CC, you just reduce some stressors and pay less money.

The primary benefit to community college is not GPA, it is class size and price. Classes are smaller and professors are always available and approachable. This adds some ease to your learning and could potentially improve performance if you were to take advantage of that. Per-semester tuition also typically tallies up to the $2k - $3k range, so you can worry less about finances for those two-three years that you're in CC.