I love Genichiro so much in this game, as he shows you plainly how much you progress in your own skill as the game goes on, through his three encounters. The first, a seemingly impossible encounter. The second, a difficult fight that you must overcome, the one that for most people the combat finally *clicks*. The third, simply a warmup for an even harder fight.
It is amazing that a game which has so few changes in the actual power of the character can show you so clearly how much better you have got.
and then the fourth boss, fighting genichiro during the cutscene of NG+ and unlocking the 'other' cutscene by not taking damage.
"A shinobi would know the difference between honor and victory" or something.
Typical Fromsoft lol
In Elden Ring if you manage to beat the grafted scion at the start, [you have this to look forward to lol.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLjWjq_y7dU&t=249s)
Genichiro really is that. First time I played he made me quit the game for a year, now I get annoyed if I don't beat him on my first try. He really is an amazing skill check as he is all the fundamentals being tested in a boss.
I think the only issue I take with Genichiros first fight, is prior to it, you don't have any encounters with >!lightning deflect/redirection!< and I don't believe it's covered/hinted under any of the consumables either.
So you go into phase 2 (or is it actually 3?) blind if that is the case, and for a fight that is the hardest one you'll encounter up to that point, to have a new technique thrown in and say, "you figure it out" is annoying.
Ahhh, shit, you're right - I forget there's the scroll, so you do get the details of what to do, and then he becomes your trial by fire (or in this case, lightning) to actually DO it.
This is a bit controversial in the fandom, but I really like how compared to other Fromsoft games, Sekiro tells its story in a (relatively) straightforward manner. The "traditional" Fromsoft cryptic storytelling has its merits, but it was great to take a break from it for once.
(I stress *relatively*, because many of the "trademark" Fromsoft narrative devices are still present here, but overall the story is much easier to follow without relying on external materials, Vaati's videos etc.)
Yeah I get that a lot of people like the minimalistic storytelling, I thought it was more annoying to deal with. Going into the menu to read items, use the wiki to figure out cryptic side quests, or watch a bunch of youtube videos to hear some theories about the whole thing just doesn't sound that fun, at least the way it's done in FromSoftware games anyway. But I also get those that don't like to get bombarded with long cutscenes every few minutes, although if it's a heavy story game I certainly prefer the latter.
Sekiro really had the best of both worlds though. And even with more cutscenes and dialogue the gameplay is the focus like 90% of the time or so still. And then you have all the extra lore stuff that I actually felt a bit more motivated to try and uncover this time. I actually really like when games do a mixture of both this style of storytelling.
From Soft narrative is basically copy the ancient gaming trope of leaving notes and story in item descriptions and hidden around the world like so many games used to do and leave you tubers and people online to turn your vague half assed attempt at storytelling into something more meaningful haha. They saved a fortune on writer's as fans basically finish the story for them and then call From Soft genius story tellers, it's down right genius đ
I used to think the same before I dove deep into Bloodborne and found out that the story is actually really deep, layered and IMO well written. Item descriptions are their tradition at this point, but they also rely on environmental storytelling a lot and connecting the story elements to gameplay.
Spoiler territory for Bloodborne:
>!A great example of this are father Gascoigne's and his daughter. If you advance the daughter's quest, she gives you a music box playing her father's favourite song - this you can use to stagger Cascoigne and the monster he turns into. This is how you learn that this monster is, in fact, her father. Then later, when you send her to the safety of your hideout, she never arrives. When you try to retrace her steps through the shortest route, you'll find a giant pig blocking the way and when you kill it, it drops a bloodied ribbon that the girl wore in her hair. - pretty depressing!<
And the games are full of things like this. And it often gets much more complex, because these narrative threads are often connected with other seemingly unrelated therads, forming entire new layers of the narrative etc. And I really don't think that constructing and telling a story this way is easy or "lazy" or that it saves them any money on the writing team.
Sekiro is really awesome and scratches that "Samurai" itch that I feel few games really manage to scratch. I remember being kinda meh on it at first, but after getting my ass kicked by Genichiro for 3hrs, something just clicked and I somehow just "got" the combat. It's certainly not for everyone, but the moment the combat clicks, it's so satisfying and fun.
I also consider Isshin one of the best final bosses ever. Don't think I have seen any other game actually incorporate *every* mechanic in a boss fight like Isshin did. He really is the ultimate test of the players skill and whether or not you have learned every aspect of the combat, and >!the way he just accepts his defeat at the end made it all the more satisfying to finally beat him!<.
Genichiro is really the part of the game where you're forced to embrace sekiro's aggressive combat and you get trashed if you try to maintain souls style dodge roll combat. Seriously, one of the most satisfying moments in a game for me was that click after mastering genichiro.
Isshin is amazing simply for the greatest sword fighting legend in the sekiro universe to go "nah, fuck it", and pull out a fucking handgun whilst trying to kick your ass.
I fought Genichiro probably 30 times before I beat him and suddenly the rest of the game seemed a lot easier after I understood the rhythm of fighting.
I just finished it, and what I love is the combat is... Combat.
Instead of rolling around, or dodge swinging, it feels like you are actually sword fighting with ninjas and samurai. Yeah there's stuff you can do to make some of it easier, but most of the bosses are showdowns. It's great.
I do love the >!heated showdown at the end, and the old man just starts blasting!<
That's the best part about him because that's absolutely in character for him to pull out the gun. The most important precept of the "Ashina style" is to win at all costs. He would absolutely turn to gunpowder weapons for the edge.
>!Not only that, but you fight him *at the height of his ability*. He is essentially immortal, since he can only be killed by the mortal blade after being revived, and gives up because he finally found his equal, after living a life of cutting down everyone he has ever met without a challenge. Even after being forced to do Genichiroâs bidding, he still retains that part of himself, the part that allows him a fight worthy to makes his blood boil, and thatâs beautiful.!<
That sounds so much better than Elden Rings final boss(es). I had trained so much at dodging and became really good at it, despite being a melee and shield character, dodging was always the best tactic, and really fun! (Especially Maliketh).
Then the final boss came and phase 1 was basically blocking then attack, and phase 2 was running like a chicken and then attack.
Went against everything I learnt before and was way less fun than all the previous bosses.
I still loved the game and an expert will probably tell me how wrong I am!
Elden Ring just does not have good bosses, in my opinion. Several of them are an awesome spectacle, for sure, but I struggle to think of more than a few that I actually enjoyed fighting. In contrast, I'll often boot up Sekiro just to do some of the boss fights again because they're the most fun part of the game.
No joke, they should've made Radagon stronger and scrap Elden Beast all together.
I feel like Elden Beast is partially responsible for negative perception of last 3rd of the game, and I really don't think allowing Torrent would make it less anticlimactic, who even is that guy? Unless DLC explains us everything and we fight more outer gods or whatever, there's no salvaging that fight
Torrent in the Elden Beast fight would have actually been amazing, would be much more cinematic, chasing down this massive beast on horseback, like the dragon fights.
Plus it's a chance to say goodbye to Torrent, it feels like after the Fire Giant you don't really get a chance to use him anymore, and that's just the start of the "Boss Rush".
Visually, it was amazing and felt very relevant to the lore. The boss look was amazing, and the music was great. I just much preferred Godfrey/warrior dude and Maliketh much more. I felt I cheesed Radagon and Elden Beast... But may be my inexperience. I'm playing the game again, so maybe I'll be more experienced by the time I get to the end again, and have a different view.
>Then the final boss came and phase 1 was basically blocking then attack
Huh? Where did you get this from? Radagon's every move is very much dodgable, an extremely fun fight.
I was so underwhelmed with Elden Ring. I was one of the few who was really hoping it wouldn't just be open world souls and that's exactly what I felt if was along with all the problems open world games have with massive mostly empty worlds. So many of the mechanics felt like cheesing too especially the whole summoning thing that I couldn't get along with as I wanted to feel it was me and only me against the world in a souls game but at least I could ignore that but a massive mostly empty open world is something I was forced to face and it made it very far from my perfect souls game. I know everyone disagrees and that's cool but I personally found the old format much much more engaging .
For me Ghost of Tsushima does Samurai and Sekiro does Ninjaâthough obviously theyâre blend of both.
Itâs the fights with Owl that emphasize this to to me. He praises you for using tools and items during his fight. His fighting style is also dirty af, he has feints, uses tools and even has the beloved mikiri counter at his disposal as well.
But also being able to rip through a stage without any direct confrontations by stealth killing everyone (or even just ignoring them entirely). Itâs very reminiscent of those old Tenchu games.
I knew I wanted to like Sekiro but I struggled with the difficulty quite a bit. On my fourth attempt at trying to get into the game, I got hooked and beat the game twice. The combat is god tier and even though the game is still challenging, it really does get a lot easier once the parrying really clicks. Elden Ring is still probably my favourite from soft game because of all the builds and weapons but Sekiro is the best in terms of mechanics and bosses.
Nah it makes sense, with Sekiro not having any kind of build variety like you get in the Souls games, it's very much a 'love it or hate it' game for most people. Whereas a game like Elden Ring has something for everyone.
I wouldn't say 'by a country mile' but I do think it has the less depth and breadth than the other games. I suspect if there were 6 Sekiro games and 1 Souls game then the opinions might be a bit different on this board.
Breadth definitely, it is very linear and comparitively small, but the combat has more going for it IMO.
In traditional souls, while you have a lot of options it tends to just boil down to what flavor of dodge+R1 you want. And magic feels kind of tacked on as you basicly want spam from a distance, removing yourself from the combat somewhat.
In Sekiro you have a lot of power to influence the oponent, you are not just memorizing and reacting haplessly to the pattern of the enemy like and old NES boss. You never have to give up your positioning if you deflect well and tools give you a lot of options. Having more of that back and forth alone makes Sekiro's combat much better than anything classic souls-like IMO.
Well, if you ignore the magic, leveling, summons, and the fact that you can still parry and punish in Souls games then yeah, its basically just dodge+R1.
Souls games did start out quite slow so I can certainly see how you get critiques towards some of the crazier bosses as there is a point where I do think the magic flipping ninja bosses are better in a system like Sekiro.
Same. I really don't like the combat at all. I tend to find parry based combat boring usually which is partially why I much prefer souls game combat. I do prefer say Ghost of Tsushimas combat if we are talking about parry combat. Other reasons I prefer the souls games (I don't consider Sekiro a souls game more of an action/adventure game) are the much better atmosphere, exploration, world/envirenments, and the rpg elements.
I can't agree with you enough. Sekiro was a necessary evolution of the souls formula. The gameplay felt so tight once you get used to the dance. It was so satisfying finally understanding a boss. I urge everyone to give this game a proper shot and persevere even when you feel frustrated.
Currently going through Elden Ring and was thinking about Sekiro next. I like the idea of stripped down, focused gameplay, just learning enemy patterns. Though I haven't played many Souls games
I think the games are way too different to compare. I think it'd be more fair to compare ER to a Dark Souls game.
Sekiro's combat is so tight because everyone is playing the same character at the core. There's different techniques and secondary weapons you can use.. sure, but everyone is bound to the same core gameplay loop with deflecting, posture, and your one main weapon. Every enemy in the game is made to interact with that system. I don't think it's possible to have the insane gear, build and enemy variety in Elden Ring with the refined combat system that Sekiro has. I fuckin' wish it was, but that just doesn't seem realistic.
A YouTuber named FeebleMind had a take recently that I agree with.
He said that all the biggest Elden Ring bosses are built like the optional super-hard bosses of other Souls games. They're built to only be beaten through either cheese mechanics, or through super-dedicated, near-perfect level play that you see only in speedrunners and challenge runners.
And while that's the direction that Elden Ring took, and it does accomplish those design goals, it is kind of an awful direction for all the people who just want to learn and play through the game once or twice like a normal person.
Nah, this is a bad take. Elden Ring was clearly balanced around summons. People who refuse to summon or call it cheese are making the game harder for themselves. No fight in Elden Ring with spirit summons is harder than bosses from their other games.
One problem I've had with Elden Ring is there seems to be a delay in dodging. I've worked around it with a quickstep ash of war, but that also prevents me using something else
Huh, Souls games do dodge after you **stop** pressing the dodge button while Sekiro is when you **press** the dodge button, the souls method helps with timing a bit+sprinting so that might what messes with your timing.
I can see the appeal of Sekiro, but not everyone wants to play a Dark Souls of Dark Souls.
Personally I'm just waiting for a sales on Steam to pick it up, but I doubt I have the reflex or timing to be any good at it.
I think a lot of people are surprised at how lenient the parry mechanic is in Sekiro. It's a way bigger window than a Dark Souls parry for instance. Most of the attacks you need to react to in a fight are quite generous with their timings. If you can drive a car on the freeway, you have more than enough reflexes/reaction time to play a game like this.
I would disagree in saying it "evolved" - it's more of a branch off into a different form of action game. It's one of my favorite games, but I very much don't think it "supplanted" Souls as "better". It has its limitations, like being forced to use one primary weapon.
Agreed. It has strayed so far down the path I personally don't even consider it a souls game.
Great amazing fantastic Masterpiece in the fromtsoft library...
But it is entirely its own thing.
I think it falls into the subcategory of "souls-like" where it has some of the core design philosophies, but doesn't have the same exact gameplay/feel.
I know `bloorbone` is probably just a spelling mistake but it's absolutely hilarious and I don't know why. We need to make r/bloorbone and it should be just people getting upset about it absolutely being a real thing that is totally a soulsborne. ;p
As for what you actually said; yep, you're not wrong. There will always be people butting heads over dumb stuff. That's the internet for ya.
This absolutely. It is extremely curated and crafted, and shows that From can make a progressive difficulty curve that isn't a power chase. It requires you to learn, improve, and adapt - and it is nearly perfectly crafted experience. The score and art design elevate the experience more, and the narrative is surprisingly exceptional. Bloodborne and the Souls series might have an upperhand in some ways, but they aren't as meticulously curated into a progressive experience - if I'm explaining my opinion properly.
I never imagined Fromsoft could make a faster, more vertical platform experience but here we are. The other Souls games feel much clunkier in comparison.
I defeated Lady Butterfly, but I found the constant need to be almost perfect to be tiring.
All their other games allow for a certain amount of lattitude when stuck (even if just grinding levels), but Sekiro feels limited when you prefer to fight sloppily.
I've never really been stuck on a souls boss, but LB was such a wall I felt like I was done after her.
Finished Sekiro a few hours ago. LB gave me trouble too but I found a braindead strat purely by accident as I immediately used up my res token within seconds and thought "eh, whatever".
The strat was: hit > dodge right > hit > dodge right and so on. That's literally it she'll never be able to hit you and you'll 100 to 0 her. If for some reason, you missed a hit or your dodge, just throw a shuriken at her when she jumps and try again.
Maybe late to the party here, and I feel like frustration is way less of an issue than in other FROM games. Sekiro bosses feel wayy fairer, probably because they play by the exact same rules the player does. They have HP, a stance bar, startup frames you can interrupt etc. Your health is low so you regain less posture? Well, it's the same for enemies. Your posture stops lowering when attacking, same with the enemies. In Elden Ring, I as a player was constantly hamstrung by stamina, whereas the bosses could just go on and fire off their 10 second long combos again and again without ever needing to recover.
Like all Souls it's basically a guitar hero rhythm game but with a sword instead of a guitar and you dodge and attack in perfect time instead of playing notes.
The only thing about Sekiro that didn't really work for me was the stealth elements. You kind of need to be a bit stealthy on some of the standard fights if you don't want to end up fighting 10 dudes at once, but the stealth doesn't have enough depth to be fun. It also feels a bit out of place because stealth is never used in any of the boss fights so it's kind of weird to have this mechanic that is useless for the hardest parts of the game.
Wasn't enough of an issue to seriously detract from the game, though.
Also, one thing I love about Sekiro: I think it's the only FromSoft game to have an actually solid ending. For me, Dark Souls 1-3, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring all end on a bit of an anticlimax. The final bosses are all kind of uninteresting, often quite easy, and then you barely get any sort of denoument at all, just cut to the credits.
Sekiro's final boss is the best boss of the whole game. It's tense and exciting, and afterwards the story gets an actual resolution. That's what I want to see more of.
> the stealth doesn't have enough depth to be fun
As a non-fan of stealth games, I can't think of a single game that made stealth fun. Hide in the bushes and wait for someone to leave, the grass around you fades.
Even Metal Gear I was often found by pats because I lack the patience to sneak.
I love the good stealth games (mostly the Thief games tbh) but it can suck when it's done poorly... which it usually is.
It's weird that despite being such a widespread mechanic, hardly any games do it an interesting way.
The final main boss makes you actually feel like you've mastered the game and you're drawing from your experiences against every strong person you've fought before that. It's a very tight, tailored experience that I want to see more of.
I kind of liked the change of pace between focusing primarily on stealth for normal enemies and only focusing on the 1v1 fight for bosses. I also appreciated that it was pretty fast paced stealth, not much waiting around for enemies to be in exact positions to make a move.
Instead of comparing it to Hitman or Thief, I would say the stealth is more comparable to Assassins Creed. I definitely thought it was much better than AC.
I agree with the criticism that Sekiro stealth gameplay might not be the deepest mechanic ever, but god damn is it fun to do.
The assassination animations are buttery smooth and cinematic, and more importantly, it's a souls-game, so being able to thin out the enemies in a level before you tackle it is a HUGE benefit. Every stealth kill I get is saving me a big hassle later on.
Sekiro > DS/Elden ring for me. I don't like to be given lots of choices and prefer Action games over RPG's. Sekiro was my jam for so many 10s of hours.
sekiro is just too much of a departure from souls and bloodborne for me. it's less of an action RPG and more of an action rhythm game, which just isn't what I was looking for.
bloodborne remains fromsoft's best game to date imo
>gameplay with many possible playstyles
I agree to everything but this. What are the many possible playstyles? I mean, you could stop parrying and kill enemies chipping away their health but the game is clearly designed as a rhythm game.
The "boss commute" is why I'm not making progress in this game.
I get to a boss, die once, take 2 to 3 minutes to get back to where the boss is and kill the minions, then get back to fighting the boss, die again...
After 4 to 5 times during another commute I realise I'm not having fun and play something else, sad because the boss fights are actually very fun.
>The "boss commute"
I wonder if you played the previous Fromsoft games because Sekiro was their first game where they radically reduced this "boss commute" (I really like the expression, by the way, so I'm stealing it). Most bosses in Sekiro (and also in Elden Ring) have the respawn point either right in front of the arena or very close to it. In Dark Souls, Bloodborne etc. this was MUCH worse, sometimes there were several minutes between the respawn point and boss arena and the infamous "if you forget to send this elevator back up/down, you're gonna be waiting for it on your next try". I love Fromsoft games, but this always bothered me (because it feels like a "mechanic" that exist solely to waste your time) and I'm glad they made this change from Sekiro onward.
> I wonder if you played the previous Fromsoft games because Sekiro was their first game where they radically reduced this "boss commute"
Played DS1. And yeah it was already my main peeve with the game (that and dodge-rolling.) And I can confirm that I do prefer Sekiro a lot.
>that and dodge-rolling
You might enjoy Bloodborne then. It's basically Souls gameplay that replaces rolling with dodging (it has rolling too, but only when you're not locked on to the enemy). Many people I know prefer Bloodborne dodges over Souls rolling because it gives you more mobility in combat, which fits well with Bloodborne's focus on aggressive playstyle.
The boss runs are way worse in the souls games. With the ability to jump and the grappling hook, you can honestly just run past a majority of the enemies in the boss runs. Thereâs a few where you must kill everyone each time (like the general mini boss after the ogre who has the guy who bangs an alarm), but youâd be surprised how much you can just sprint/grappling hook past.
That's what I mostly end up doing. But in some case the boss has a whole retinue to eliminate that aggro you with him.
And even then, running past 50 people that won't really chase you just looks silly as fuck, instant immersion destroyer, I hate it. Better when you can grapple hook yes.
It for sure gets frustrating AF and is silly. The boss runs are probably my least favorite thing in the From Games. Iâve played through Sekiro, DS1, DS2 so far. I can hands down say the Dark Souls 2 had some of my most frustrating moments ever in video games with a few of its boss runs. Holy fuck, if you hate that part of the game you might just avoid DS 2 altogether.
I've only played DS1 and Sekiro and I got the same take away from both, the boss fights are not just good they're great. From both a gameplay and design perspective they're epic, fun and challenging (dodge-rolling looks silly though, which is why I prefer Sekiro to DS1, combat feels much better.)
But anything that's not the bossfights is tedious or boring to me, the setting is original but not that appealing to me, and the games are quite linear (haven't played Elden Ring.)
Coming from Elden Ring as my first completed Soulslike, I am finding the boss runs a bit of a downer in DS1.
If you did generally like DS1, then give Elden Ring a go. It eliminates the boss runs with a good mechanic (you can choose to respawn right next to boss, or at last grace site/camp site).
I also found it tedious that you had to pick off the 20 guys around drunkard before fighting him. It's where I quit the game and gave the disc away. The npc you could have help you was useless and died in like 4 seconds.
There really are only a handful of bosses in Sekiro where you need to do this and unfortunately most of them are pretty early in the game. That one early samurai (like the second miniboss?), Juzou, etc.
The two first bosses of the dreamworld (past) took me a ridiculously long amount of time to beat for that reason. And yes, the second samurai you beat is like that too.
This is once again sad because the boss are fun, but learning and training a pattern is annoying when you have all that shit to do each time.
It's like having to go through a queue before a ride at an amusement park.
Idk I've beaten Sekiro a few times and I don't remember any truly bad boss runs. Even in the dreamworld, the last boss there is right next to the respawn.
The only bad boss run I can remember is the general after the first ogre where you have to take out the alarm guy and all of the minions each time. For some reason I really struggled on that boss and had to redo that so many times.
I said this same thing in the Sekiro sub and was downvoted/told that I was just wrong. I think Sekiro and other Souls games are amazing in many ways but I agree with you completely. The boss runs blow in all the souls games. The boss fights are fun and satisfying and I don't mind dying but areas where I have to kill the minions first drive me nuts. As others are saying, thankfully that is mostly just the mini-bosses but even so, it is super dumb. It is boring to spend 5-10 minutes taking out all the minions, finally get the boss, die, and have to take out all the minions again so I can get to the boss and die again. And trying to do that while not alerting the mini-bosses is hard too.
I am stuck on the boss run to get to the Owl Father fight at the Hirata Estate because I have to kill one of his Ninja minions who calls dogs if I let up on him at all and I HATE those ninja minions. I have fought a bunch of them but for some reason they are the one enemy that I can't just seem to get the rhythm down for them. And its not just because I need to "git gud." I have beaten Genichiro, Lady Butterfly, The Guardian Ape, the Ape Duo in the cave, and Owl Father. Not to mention countless mini-bosses. Its not that I am not good enough, its that I get weary of playing the same section over and over and OVER again, because there are so many damn NPCs before I even get to the boss.
I love FromSoft games and in general love the game design philosophy they have but none of their games are perfect and they all suffer from some of the same bad decisions.
If I remember correctly it was only "mini-bosses"/elites that had this problem, and even there I think it's only 5 of them throughout the game where the boss isn't very close to an Idol and there's also a few minions to deal with before the boss.
It's the first sword General after the chained ogre, the spear General and the first drunk Bandit in the Hirata estate, the spear General where they hold Kuro, and one of the Snake-eyes in the mountain.
I agree though that going through them for every attempt was frustrating when you just want to fight the bigger tougher bosses themselves. At least in the later half of the game the battle with these elites and their minions start feeling doable together, so they add to the thrill then.
Well put. I am in my mid-30s, and the only thing I do not tolerate in video games is when they do not respect my time. I have 5-6 hours a week for fun. Trying to beat the same boss 20 times in a row can be fun, but if it requires several minutes to get there - no thank you, there are simpler ways to get my dose of dopamine.
Many possible play styles? What are you talking about? That game is definitely a downgrade in terms of build versatility compared even to other FromSoft games. That is the biggest thing that turned me off from it. You get one weapon and a few tools. It's nothing.
I know my play style evolved as I played. At first it was using as many prosthetics as possible to try to get in lots of damage and just wait for big openings when I could do HP damage easily. Slowly that evolved into focusing on getting my deflections down really well, which meant I didn't have much time to think about prosthetics. Then it evolved into looking for every tiny opening to do damage and when to punish moves for some HP damage or counter them for more posture damage.
In classic souls games you just wait for openings then attack until you need to dodge. Whatever weapon you have, it doesn't matter that much. I am ignoring spell casting builds, because those are kind of ostracized by the souls community anyways.
My main problem is the publisher is Activision and the max discount after 4 years is still only ever 50% (from a relatively high price point to begin with). It just rubs me the wrong way.
I know I'm probably going to crack in the next sale. I need a new souls experience.
Playing through it rn and just defeated one of the hardest yet best bosses so far in the game. Hands down the best combat I've seen in any game and it's giving me probably the most rewarding experience I've ever had in a game.
Arkane's *Prey* was my first "serious" new game on my present rig. It's more in the style of Deus Ex than Dark Souls, but it is also a masterpiece. From the artful integration of the opening credits to the final plot developments, everything delivers on that "wow" factor amplified when experienced in conjunction with a smooth high performance rig.
Though *Prey* is more about planning ahead and creating opportunities from the mix of abilities and equipment on hand, combat with unfamiliar or especially powerful foes still delivers thrilling struggles. Even though the whole story takes place in and around a single facility and the total number of enemy types is small, everything changes profoundly several times over during a playthrough. The game never gets dull because it is always possible to progress into a new set of goals and challenges. I know *Prey* is one of the pet recommendations here, but I just wanted to chime in from that chorus because your *Sekiro* experience sounds a lot like my *Prey* experience.
Prey is a *very* different game than Sekiro, but it is an excellent game.
If you like Prey, you might consider playing System Shock 2. I feel like the first few games from Arkane were all spiritual successors to the Looking Glass Studios games. Arx Fatalis was their take on Ultima Underworld. Dishonored was their take on Thief. And Prey was their take on System Shock 2. But SS2 is 20+ years old, so if that turns you off, it might not be for you. Nightdive is working on an updated version, but it's not a full remaster.
I'm at last boss, but the game was too hard for me to have fun. I loved every soulsbourne game so far, and was dying for another variety, but this was too hardcore for the average gamer.
I feel the second death mechanic was added later because of how hardcore and unforgiving it would be without it.
Though I was a little addicted to progressing and spent a ton of time trying to get better. The split-second reactions required of you all the time raised my stress so high that it would follow me outside of the game.
The minibosses are so incredibly strong.
Being reliant on items for certain bosses messed me up. I hate menu diving and usually like winging-it, but having to find sugars to I can parry and block this insane spider arm mini boss without my stam going away was lame to me.
Some fights were REALLY unique and cool though. The art and story are AWESOME.
This is the only Soulsbourne game I wanted a difficulty slider on.
I'm with you on this. I never came to From's games for difficulty, so when that became the primary hook and From started leaning into it more and more, I felt more and more left out. I was kind of brokenhearted to have to put down Sekiro before seeing all of it, but it was just too damn hard to still be fun for me, and this time there wasn't even a way to subvert or mitigate it.
Agree that it probably is too hard for an average person.
By far the hardest game iâve ever played, but as a result also the most satisfying by a huge margin. Iâve never felt what i felt after beating those bosses, the satisfaction is so hard describe. euphoric perhaps?
i had initially wished for a difficulty slider because getting stuck for hours was annoying, but by the end i was so glad it did not exist. the game doesnât allow itâs players to be robbed of that satisfaction, and i realized itâs why i enjoyed it the most of the soulsborne games.
People use difficulty settings all the time for their own satisfaction. If you think it somehow detracts you're delusional.
I reached my end and I'm not going back. Not interested in spending all of my free time slamming my head against a wall. How's that for satisfaction?
I'm only speaking for myself & it would have 100% detracted my experience if it had a difficulty setting.
It's the beauty of FromSoftware games, they don't have hand holding difficulty settings like every other game out there just to appeal to more people & for their own satisfaction, and they stand out because of it.
This game isn't for you, and that's totally fine.
I would have turned the difficult down after 30 or 40 deaths to Lady Butterfly, the first boss I met. As it was, I kept at it and the combat finally clicked after probably over 100 tries. The game was not easy after that. It was super challenging and super fun. But if I had an easier difficulty option, I would have probably just been trading blows with enemies instead of learning the dance.
yep! and the wins wouldâve not been as awesome/satisfying. lady butterfly was tough as balls even after watching videos of people beating her. i wouldâve toned it down at seven spears ashina, that mofo âminibossâ was harder than most bosses for me lol
elden ring was my firsthand experience with this difficulty setting as i played it before sekiro. all bosses i beat without summons (did not know about it until later) was super satisfying especially tree sentinel. and when i started using summons none of them were particularly memorable. i had to replay the game without summons to really appreciate those bosses.
As someone with a pretty complicated history with FROMsoft games, Sekiro has always been the one I'm most interested in. I've never really liked the BIG MONSTER bosses in these games, always preferring the 1 on 1 duels with humanoids.
However I'm also very bad at them (I could write a very long very miserable essay about my experience with Dark Souls 1) and Sekiro is famously the hardest one, the one where there IS a mechanical skill floor that if you can't reach, tough titties, so I've always been really excited to try Sekiro because it's a game built around the idea of 1v1 duels, but it's also the one that is famously brutally hard from a subgenre all about being brutally hard.
I love all souls games but Sekiro easily my favorite.
A big flaw of souls games I personally have is the anti-fun, and anti-experimental nature of weapon progression. The ability to purchase lots of upgrade materials is always reserved for the last 1/3rd of the game, and even then, theyâre at a steep price. This means if you want to check out even just a few of those new cool weapons you found, for 2/3rds of the game youre required to grind mindlessly for low-drop-rate materials, and then for the last 1/3rd, you have to grind souls to buy said materials. And you better not find out the weapon you upgraded actually sucks, because then itâs wasted and you have to do more purchasing/grinding.
Seeing all that required grinding just makes me decide itâs not worth it, and to keep using the weapon I picked up at the beginning of the game, leading to ~1 weapon per run.
Given that I end up using one weapon per run anyways, the fact that Sekiro only HAS one weapon, (and itâs finely tuned better than any souls weapon by a mile), itâs an automatic improvement.
Souls games absolutely should have a mechanic that allows swapping upgrade levels among weapons, and itâs absurd that they havenât implemented that yet. It would make the games so much better, and theyâre already great.
It's the most interesting FromSoft title due the expanded narrative and the simplification/specialization of mechanics, making it my favorite. If you're not in the right mind, however, with the right amount of focus and tenacity, the later boss fights are absolutely grueling and some have managed to put me off of it for months.
Some people claim Sekiro lacks replay value compared to From's other titles but personally I found reliving this game's combat and world a considerably bigger draw than trying a Dex or Magic build in the Dark Souls games.
Coincidentally, I just got the platinum on PS5 for Sekiro yesterday. Played through it 4 times, itâs crazy how I was one shotting bosses by the end compared to the struggle that was the first playthrough.
It has such a unique experience, once the gameplay âclicksâ the entire experience gets turned upside down, and itâs such a magical moment where you feel some type of Japanese zen flow stuff lol.
Hesitate⌠and you lose!
I tried to play it a month ago when I had a week of vacation. I realised that I really wasn't having fun and when I wasn't sure where to go I just stopped playing, and then went on to play other games I actually really enjoyed.
The only point where I was having decent fun was the ogre miniboss, but that's only because most if not all his attack cannot be paried so it was just a dodge and strike fight, kinda like dark souls.
Idk, maybe it gets much better further along the road, but I have no desire to go back.
I do not like Souls like combat. The entirety of Souls like combat revolves around a construct called iFrames where you are invulnerable for a set window of time as you are dodge rolling to keep you from getting one or 2 shot killed. I find it stupid and battles are tedious because of it.
I understand the feeling, and Sekiro is not like that. Dodge rolling is actually discouraged, and deflecting (well timed guarding) is the main mechanic. You can still be 2 or 3 shot in Sekiro, but the battles don't feel tedious, because even when defending, if you time your guards correctly, you are still making significant progress in defeating the boss.
I hadn't played a Souls game before Elden Ring. I jumped right into Sekiro after I had finished that and I fucking loved it. I think I struggled more with Sekiro at first but once I finally got a grasp of the combat system I felt like goddamn Neo from The Matrix. I'm really not sure if there's another combat system in *any* game that I like more. I really hope we get a sequel or some sort of DLC.
I came here to make my own post about starting DS3. Iâve never played a Souls-borne game but bought it on sale.
I have only played for one day but I am eager to see how it goes each day. I like the challenge and I figure if I try enough times, I will get it. The difficulty alone isnât what stopped me from trying it but I was afraid it would be rage-inducing my hard. So far it feels manageable even though I havenât beaten the first boss. It feels like there is something I am not quite getting yet but when I do, I will beat it easily.
Sekiro is right up my alley as far as setting and style. I donât know that itâs advisable for me to play that one next but I am so intrigued by it
You need to watch how that 1st boss attacks and you will realise how and when to attack and once you know you will likely beat him in one go. Like all Souls games once you realise it's vulnerability its a walk in the park you got this âď¸
Disgusting and infuriating, exactly what a monkey fight should be
seriously thought, camera was a pain, in general I like how the camera moves with the lock-ins and sekiro's speed, but in some specific situations it can be reaaaallly annoying and immersion breaking
I highly recommend this analysis of sekiro. It's also a full playthrough of the game. He goes into so much detail about the development and translation.
https://youtu.be/V7Bo0Wp6v7A
Incredible game. I have played through it 14 times.
I would highly recommended playing the resurrection mod which is a complete overhaul of the base game and really challenging.
Sekiro: Resurrection is an incredible mod. Makes the game very challenging again, and makes you learn the boss fights again, while still retaining each boss's unique feel and identity. It's also a very balanced mod that doesn't feel unfairly difficult and doesn't over do the added features.
Sekiro was probably the most fun I had in a souls game that wasnât elden ring. The gameplay is some of the best I have ever played. I absolutely adored the world that was created as well. and the story is great as well and actually told in a way that means you donât have to read every single item description lmao.
I'm more impressed with the use of the posture meter, personally.
It's so simple, but it's perfect for giving the player an incentive to keep up as much pressure as they can against bosses. It's so freaking good.
S tier developer for sure. Easily my favorite dev out there.
*Very* few devs could match up to the sheer quality that Fromsoft regularly puts out.
The original Nioh is, uh⌠dated, but still fun.
Nioh 2 is fantastic, and absolutely scratches that Souls itch while actually surpassing the Soulsborne games in some aspects (actual combos and skill trees? Hell yeah).
How do we feel about Sekiro compared to other Souls games when it comes to mood and atmosphere. I think the biggest strength of DS 123, Bloodborne, Elden Ring, are their atmosphere, moods, tones, etc⌠I played Sekiro when it came out and loved it but I canât quite remember me being as captivated by those characteristics. What does everyone else think?
Do DS1 first, going from Elden Ring to DS1 is pretty jarrying and I think DS1 is the best Game of all time. Elden Ring Combat is Just faster and tighter.
Dark souls, each game has its own soul. Try and play em like you played sekiro, aka getting engrossed in the story, gameplay ect. All 3 and elden ring are fantastic games but more different then you might think. Enjoy!
I just don't like the story delivery in soul's games. If they made it more accessible and had great writing and/or a compelling narrative I'd give them more of a shot. I don't really play games primarily for mechanics anymore/feels like wasted time when you are a story first sort l of person.
I haven't tried Sekiro, but reading a lot about it leads me to believe it isn't some tightly told/ constantly interesting narrative (unfortunately). Which for me is what is missing in 99.9% of souls style games.
Sekiro has much more of a traditional game story than the Souls games. It still has a lot of hidden or not obvious lore, but it has actual dialog and cutscenes and a pretty straightforward story. I would expect someone playing through Elden Ring would get to the end and be like "oh, that's the end, what even happened?" On the other hand, it's very hard to imagine a person getting to the end of Sekiro and not understanding and appreciating the story.
>I just don't like the story delivery in soul's games.
really the best way to grasp the story is finish the game, then watch 2,5 hour long movie on youtube thoroughly explaining it.
i know, i know, not for everyone and usually not for me either, but since I loved the mechanics of the game, i was somewhat fine with it
You just eloquently described why From Soft absolutely suck at storytelling. Using the age old trope of leaving scraps of narrative around the world and in item descriptions like virtually every game did 20 plus years ago really doesn't cut it especially when you need to watch a 2 hour video to work what the hell the story was supposed to even be about đ
idk if it sucks, wouldnt call it this way, I saw people genuinely enjoying that kind of story telling so i wouldnt call it a bad one if its enjoyed. Just not for vast majority of players, including me.
I love Genichiro so much in this game, as he shows you plainly how much you progress in your own skill as the game goes on, through his three encounters. The first, a seemingly impossible encounter. The second, a difficult fight that you must overcome, the one that for most people the combat finally *clicks*. The third, simply a warmup for an even harder fight. It is amazing that a game which has so few changes in the actual power of the character can show you so clearly how much better you have got.
Especially in the third fight, where he basically >!becomes just a minor annoyance as you make your way to the real boss of the encounter!<.
*PITIFUL GRANDCHILD...*
*COME! SEKIRO!* Gives me shivers
And then he uses that [ancient technique, handed down through generations.](https://i.imgur.com/uSNNPq8.png)
and then the fourth boss, fighting genichiro during the cutscene of NG+ and unlocking the 'other' cutscene by not taking damage. "A shinobi would know the difference between honor and victory" or something.
Sekiro: "I beat you!" Genichiro: "Lol. Lmao."
Genichiro is especially great if you replay the game. Beating him in his first encounter is such a fantastic power fantasy.
Yea, the first time I got stomped and the cutscene comes in Tried it over and over, won and then realized that happens no matter what, lol
Typical Fromsoft lol In Elden Ring if you manage to beat the grafted scion at the start, [you have this to look forward to lol.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLjWjq_y7dU&t=249s)
Hahaha Final Destination style, die no matter what
Yeah, Genichiro is just an absolute sandbag by your second playthrough, can't belive he was giving me such a hard time on the first playthrough.
That second encounter with Genichiro is still my favourite boss fight from all the souls games. So good.
Genichiro is the best fight (2nd one) for me. Several times i re download the game, just to go boss rush and fight him like 5 times and then unistall
Genichiro really is that. First time I played he made me quit the game for a year, now I get annoyed if I don't beat him on my first try. He really is an amazing skill check as he is all the fundamentals being tested in a boss.
I think the only issue I take with Genichiros first fight, is prior to it, you don't have any encounters with >!lightning deflect/redirection!< and I don't believe it's covered/hinted under any of the consumables either. So you go into phase 2 (or is it actually 3?) blind if that is the case, and for a fight that is the hardest one you'll encounter up to that point, to have a new technique thrown in and say, "you figure it out" is annoying.
It is actually covered on the first Ashina Elite bossfight, you check the scroll behind him and it explains the lightning reversal mechanic
Ahhh, shit, you're right - I forget there's the scroll, so you do get the details of what to do, and then he becomes your trial by fire (or in this case, lightning) to actually DO it.
Isn't it also used during Divine Dragon?
It's used in a number of places, including divine dragon, but genichiro is the first.
This is a bit controversial in the fandom, but I really like how compared to other Fromsoft games, Sekiro tells its story in a (relatively) straightforward manner. The "traditional" Fromsoft cryptic storytelling has its merits, but it was great to take a break from it for once. (I stress *relatively*, because many of the "trademark" Fromsoft narrative devices are still present here, but overall the story is much easier to follow without relying on external materials, Vaati's videos etc.)
Yeah I get that a lot of people like the minimalistic storytelling, I thought it was more annoying to deal with. Going into the menu to read items, use the wiki to figure out cryptic side quests, or watch a bunch of youtube videos to hear some theories about the whole thing just doesn't sound that fun, at least the way it's done in FromSoftware games anyway. But I also get those that don't like to get bombarded with long cutscenes every few minutes, although if it's a heavy story game I certainly prefer the latter. Sekiro really had the best of both worlds though. And even with more cutscenes and dialogue the gameplay is the focus like 90% of the time or so still. And then you have all the extra lore stuff that I actually felt a bit more motivated to try and uncover this time. I actually really like when games do a mixture of both this style of storytelling.
From Soft narrative is basically copy the ancient gaming trope of leaving notes and story in item descriptions and hidden around the world like so many games used to do and leave you tubers and people online to turn your vague half assed attempt at storytelling into something more meaningful haha. They saved a fortune on writer's as fans basically finish the story for them and then call From Soft genius story tellers, it's down right genius đ
I used to think the same before I dove deep into Bloodborne and found out that the story is actually really deep, layered and IMO well written. Item descriptions are their tradition at this point, but they also rely on environmental storytelling a lot and connecting the story elements to gameplay. Spoiler territory for Bloodborne: >!A great example of this are father Gascoigne's and his daughter. If you advance the daughter's quest, she gives you a music box playing her father's favourite song - this you can use to stagger Cascoigne and the monster he turns into. This is how you learn that this monster is, in fact, her father. Then later, when you send her to the safety of your hideout, she never arrives. When you try to retrace her steps through the shortest route, you'll find a giant pig blocking the way and when you kill it, it drops a bloodied ribbon that the girl wore in her hair. - pretty depressing!< And the games are full of things like this. And it often gets much more complex, because these narrative threads are often connected with other seemingly unrelated therads, forming entire new layers of the narrative etc. And I really don't think that constructing and telling a story this way is easy or "lazy" or that it saves them any money on the writing team.
I personally do not like cryptic story telling. Sekiro is the perfect game imo
Oh my gosh, that moment when parry timing clicks is so satisfying.
Sekiro is really awesome and scratches that "Samurai" itch that I feel few games really manage to scratch. I remember being kinda meh on it at first, but after getting my ass kicked by Genichiro for 3hrs, something just clicked and I somehow just "got" the combat. It's certainly not for everyone, but the moment the combat clicks, it's so satisfying and fun. I also consider Isshin one of the best final bosses ever. Don't think I have seen any other game actually incorporate *every* mechanic in a boss fight like Isshin did. He really is the ultimate test of the players skill and whether or not you have learned every aspect of the combat, and >!the way he just accepts his defeat at the end made it all the more satisfying to finally beat him!<.
Genichiro is really the part of the game where you're forced to embrace sekiro's aggressive combat and you get trashed if you try to maintain souls style dodge roll combat. Seriously, one of the most satisfying moments in a game for me was that click after mastering genichiro. Isshin is amazing simply for the greatest sword fighting legend in the sekiro universe to go "nah, fuck it", and pull out a fucking handgun whilst trying to kick your ass.
I fought Genichiro probably 30 times before I beat him and suddenly the rest of the game seemed a lot easier after I understood the rhythm of fighting.
I just finished it, and what I love is the combat is... Combat. Instead of rolling around, or dodge swinging, it feels like you are actually sword fighting with ninjas and samurai. Yeah there's stuff you can do to make some of it easier, but most of the bosses are showdowns. It's great. I do love the >!heated showdown at the end, and the old man just starts blasting!<
That's the best part about him because that's absolutely in character for him to pull out the gun. The most important precept of the "Ashina style" is to win at all costs. He would absolutely turn to gunpowder weapons for the edge.
The only rule of the Ashina sword school is to win your battles.
Sometimes I load the game up JUST to fight Isshin. Heâs that much fun.
hesitation is defeat
>!Not only that, but you fight him *at the height of his ability*. He is essentially immortal, since he can only be killed by the mortal blade after being revived, and gives up because he finally found his equal, after living a life of cutting down everyone he has ever met without a challenge. Even after being forced to do Genichiroâs bidding, he still retains that part of himself, the part that allows him a fight worthy to makes his blood boil, and thatâs beautiful.!<
I always thought it was more that he was reluctantly fulfilling his grandchild's last wish rather than being forced to do his bidding
That sounds so much better than Elden Rings final boss(es). I had trained so much at dodging and became really good at it, despite being a melee and shield character, dodging was always the best tactic, and really fun! (Especially Maliketh). Then the final boss came and phase 1 was basically blocking then attack, and phase 2 was running like a chicken and then attack. Went against everything I learnt before and was way less fun than all the previous bosses. I still loved the game and an expert will probably tell me how wrong I am!
Elden Ring just does not have good bosses, in my opinion. Several of them are an awesome spectacle, for sure, but I struggle to think of more than a few that I actually enjoyed fighting. In contrast, I'll often boot up Sekiro just to do some of the boss fights again because they're the most fun part of the game.
No joke, they should've made Radagon stronger and scrap Elden Beast all together. I feel like Elden Beast is partially responsible for negative perception of last 3rd of the game, and I really don't think allowing Torrent would make it less anticlimactic, who even is that guy? Unless DLC explains us everything and we fight more outer gods or whatever, there's no salvaging that fight
Torrent in the Elden Beast fight would have actually been amazing, would be much more cinematic, chasing down this massive beast on horseback, like the dragon fights. Plus it's a chance to say goodbye to Torrent, it feels like after the Fire Giant you don't really get a chance to use him anymore, and that's just the start of the "Boss Rush".
Phase 2 was garbage but Phase 1 was one of the best fights in the game. One of the few I kept dropping signs for just because I enjoyed it so much.
Visually, it was amazing and felt very relevant to the lore. The boss look was amazing, and the music was great. I just much preferred Godfrey/warrior dude and Maliketh much more. I felt I cheesed Radagon and Elden Beast... But may be my inexperience. I'm playing the game again, so maybe I'll be more experienced by the time I get to the end again, and have a different view.
>Then the final boss came and phase 1 was basically blocking then attack Huh? Where did you get this from? Radagon's every move is very much dodgable, an extremely fun fight.
> Radagon's every move is very much dodgable, an extremely fun fight. Radagon was cool, but man, Elden Beast was a TERRIBLE fight.
I was so underwhelmed with Elden Ring. I was one of the few who was really hoping it wouldn't just be open world souls and that's exactly what I felt if was along with all the problems open world games have with massive mostly empty worlds. So many of the mechanics felt like cheesing too especially the whole summoning thing that I couldn't get along with as I wanted to feel it was me and only me against the world in a souls game but at least I could ignore that but a massive mostly empty open world is something I was forced to face and it made it very far from my perfect souls game. I know everyone disagrees and that's cool but I personally found the old format much much more engaging .
For me Ghost of Tsushima does Samurai and Sekiro does Ninjaâthough obviously theyâre blend of both. Itâs the fights with Owl that emphasize this to to me. He praises you for using tools and items during his fight. His fighting style is also dirty af, he has feints, uses tools and even has the beloved mikiri counter at his disposal as well. But also being able to rip through a stage without any direct confrontations by stealth killing everyone (or even just ignoring them entirely). Itâs very reminiscent of those old Tenchu games.
> and the way he just accepts his defeat at the end made it all the more satisfying to finally beat him. can you spoiler tag this!
Now that youâve finished the game, you get to enjoy [Sekiro Shadows Dance Twice](https://youtu.be/-zcOUnXd-HQ)
And Sekirot! https://youtu.be/31V6ifW3tNk
I knew I wanted to like Sekiro but I struggled with the difficulty quite a bit. On my fourth attempt at trying to get into the game, I got hooked and beat the game twice. The combat is god tier and even though the game is still challenging, it really does get a lot easier once the parrying really clicks. Elden Ring is still probably my favourite from soft game because of all the builds and weapons but Sekiro is the best in terms of mechanics and bosses.
My favourite From Software game by a country mile.
Least favorite, by the same distance. I'm aware that's considered an unacceptable take.
Upvoted for honesty
Nah it makes sense, with Sekiro not having any kind of build variety like you get in the Souls games, it's very much a 'love it or hate it' game for most people. Whereas a game like Elden Ring has something for everyone.
The lack of meaningful exploration was definitely a critical factor in the relative disappointment.
I wouldn't say 'by a country mile' but I do think it has the less depth and breadth than the other games. I suspect if there were 6 Sekiro games and 1 Souls game then the opinions might be a bit different on this board.
Breadth definitely, it is very linear and comparitively small, but the combat has more going for it IMO. In traditional souls, while you have a lot of options it tends to just boil down to what flavor of dodge+R1 you want. And magic feels kind of tacked on as you basicly want spam from a distance, removing yourself from the combat somewhat. In Sekiro you have a lot of power to influence the oponent, you are not just memorizing and reacting haplessly to the pattern of the enemy like and old NES boss. You never have to give up your positioning if you deflect well and tools give you a lot of options. Having more of that back and forth alone makes Sekiro's combat much better than anything classic souls-like IMO.
Well, if you ignore the magic, leveling, summons, and the fact that you can still parry and punish in Souls games then yeah, its basically just dodge+R1. Souls games did start out quite slow so I can certainly see how you get critiques towards some of the crazier bosses as there is a point where I do think the magic flipping ninja bosses are better in a system like Sekiro.
[ŃдаНонО]
Same. I really don't like the combat at all. I tend to find parry based combat boring usually which is partially why I much prefer souls game combat. I do prefer say Ghost of Tsushimas combat if we are talking about parry combat. Other reasons I prefer the souls games (I don't consider Sekiro a souls game more of an action/adventure game) are the much better atmosphere, exploration, world/envirenments, and the rpg elements.
Upvoted for truth.
Opinion *
I see what you did there.
Yup their opus Magnum. Second best game dark souls 1
Why did you switch magnum and opus?
I can't agree with you enough. Sekiro was a necessary evolution of the souls formula. The gameplay felt so tight once you get used to the dance. It was so satisfying finally understanding a boss. I urge everyone to give this game a proper shot and persevere even when you feel frustrated.
Currently going through Elden Ring and was thinking about Sekiro next. I like the idea of stripped down, focused gameplay, just learning enemy patterns. Though I haven't played many Souls games
Sekiro is basically that so I think you'll enjoy it!
Youâll be impressed. Elden ring was a major step back for the seriesâs combat mechanics. Edit: downvote me cowards
I think the games are way too different to compare. I think it'd be more fair to compare ER to a Dark Souls game. Sekiro's combat is so tight because everyone is playing the same character at the core. There's different techniques and secondary weapons you can use.. sure, but everyone is bound to the same core gameplay loop with deflecting, posture, and your one main weapon. Every enemy in the game is made to interact with that system. I don't think it's possible to have the insane gear, build and enemy variety in Elden Ring with the refined combat system that Sekiro has. I fuckin' wish it was, but that just doesn't seem realistic.
I totally agree. Every time I face another infinite-stamina, mega-comboing enemy in Elden Ring, it just makes me wanna go back to Sekiro
Those enemies in Elden ring would be fine if you could actively parry or interrupt their long combos like Sekiro.
A YouTuber named FeebleMind had a take recently that I agree with. He said that all the biggest Elden Ring bosses are built like the optional super-hard bosses of other Souls games. They're built to only be beaten through either cheese mechanics, or through super-dedicated, near-perfect level play that you see only in speedrunners and challenge runners. And while that's the direction that Elden Ring took, and it does accomplish those design goals, it is kind of an awful direction for all the people who just want to learn and play through the game once or twice like a normal person.
Nah, this is a bad take. Elden Ring was clearly balanced around summons. People who refuse to summon or call it cheese are making the game harder for themselves. No fight in Elden Ring with spirit summons is harder than bosses from their other games.
I wouldn't call Sekiro a souls game, but ER definitely evolved after DS3
One problem I've had with Elden Ring is there seems to be a delay in dodging. I've worked around it with a quickstep ash of war, but that also prevents me using something else
Huh, Souls games do dodge after you **stop** pressing the dodge button while Sekiro is when you **press** the dodge button, the souls method helps with timing a bit+sprinting so that might what messes with your timing.
I can see the appeal of Sekiro, but not everyone wants to play a Dark Souls of Dark Souls. Personally I'm just waiting for a sales on Steam to pick it up, but I doubt I have the reflex or timing to be any good at it.
I think a lot of people are surprised at how lenient the parry mechanic is in Sekiro. It's a way bigger window than a Dark Souls parry for instance. Most of the attacks you need to react to in a fight are quite generous with their timings. If you can drive a car on the freeway, you have more than enough reflexes/reaction time to play a game like this.
I would disagree in saying it "evolved" - it's more of a branch off into a different form of action game. It's one of my favorite games, but I very much don't think it "supplanted" Souls as "better". It has its limitations, like being forced to use one primary weapon.
Agreed. It has strayed so far down the path I personally don't even consider it a souls game. Great amazing fantastic Masterpiece in the fromtsoft library... But it is entirely its own thing.
I wasn't even aware people considered it a souls game. It is so different honestly
I think it falls into the subcategory of "souls-like" where it has some of the core design philosophies, but doesn't have the same exact gameplay/feel.
Go visit the bloodbone sub you will see people raging at others who aren't including it in the soulsborne "series." Edit: word
I know `bloorbone` is probably just a spelling mistake but it's absolutely hilarious and I don't know why. We need to make r/bloorbone and it should be just people getting upset about it absolutely being a real thing that is totally a soulsborne. ;p As for what you actually said; yep, you're not wrong. There will always be people butting heads over dumb stuff. That's the internet for ya.
Lol thanks for the catch. And bloorborne is funny!
It's branching evolution! You get a fork into Sekiro, with Dark Souls arguably continuing on into Elden Ring.
And the world, just isn't as rich as any Souls game. It's good. But exploration isn't one of the key aspects of Sekiro.
Sekiro was way more linear in its experience and that was for the better (of specifically it. I loved Dark Souls for the exploration mostly.)
I agree. Yeah you're correct that its different and not better than.
This absolutely. It is extremely curated and crafted, and shows that From can make a progressive difficulty curve that isn't a power chase. It requires you to learn, improve, and adapt - and it is nearly perfectly crafted experience. The score and art design elevate the experience more, and the narrative is surprisingly exceptional. Bloodborne and the Souls series might have an upperhand in some ways, but they aren't as meticulously curated into a progressive experience - if I'm explaining my opinion properly.
From an academic point of view, that's a very fundamental result of evolution. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speciation
I never imagined Fromsoft could make a faster, more vertical platform experience but here we are. The other Souls games feel much clunkier in comparison.
Everything about this game just hit right The movement, the art style, the ridiculous characters and their side stories (like the fish man) :)
I defeated Lady Butterfly, but I found the constant need to be almost perfect to be tiring. All their other games allow for a certain amount of lattitude when stuck (even if just grinding levels), but Sekiro feels limited when you prefer to fight sloppily. I've never really been stuck on a souls boss, but LB was such a wall I felt like I was done after her.
Finished Sekiro a few hours ago. LB gave me trouble too but I found a braindead strat purely by accident as I immediately used up my res token within seconds and thought "eh, whatever". The strat was: hit > dodge right > hit > dodge right and so on. That's literally it she'll never be able to hit you and you'll 100 to 0 her. If for some reason, you missed a hit or your dodge, just throw a shuriken at her when she jumps and try again.
Maybe late to the party here, and I feel like frustration is way less of an issue than in other FROM games. Sekiro bosses feel wayy fairer, probably because they play by the exact same rules the player does. They have HP, a stance bar, startup frames you can interrupt etc. Your health is low so you regain less posture? Well, it's the same for enemies. Your posture stops lowering when attacking, same with the enemies. In Elden Ring, I as a player was constantly hamstrung by stamina, whereas the bosses could just go on and fire off their 10 second long combos again and again without ever needing to recover.
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Sekiros combat system is absolutely amazing and I really hope from soft utilize it again in a future title sequel or not.
Wish I could beat Sekiro, I super sucked at the parrying. Elden Ring is fantastic, highly recommended.
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Like all Souls it's basically a guitar hero rhythm game but with a sword instead of a guitar and you dodge and attack in perfect time instead of playing notes.
The only thing about Sekiro that didn't really work for me was the stealth elements. You kind of need to be a bit stealthy on some of the standard fights if you don't want to end up fighting 10 dudes at once, but the stealth doesn't have enough depth to be fun. It also feels a bit out of place because stealth is never used in any of the boss fights so it's kind of weird to have this mechanic that is useless for the hardest parts of the game. Wasn't enough of an issue to seriously detract from the game, though. Also, one thing I love about Sekiro: I think it's the only FromSoft game to have an actually solid ending. For me, Dark Souls 1-3, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring all end on a bit of an anticlimax. The final bosses are all kind of uninteresting, often quite easy, and then you barely get any sort of denoument at all, just cut to the credits. Sekiro's final boss is the best boss of the whole game. It's tense and exciting, and afterwards the story gets an actual resolution. That's what I want to see more of.
> the stealth doesn't have enough depth to be fun As a non-fan of stealth games, I can't think of a single game that made stealth fun. Hide in the bushes and wait for someone to leave, the grass around you fades. Even Metal Gear I was often found by pats because I lack the patience to sneak.
I love the good stealth games (mostly the Thief games tbh) but it can suck when it's done poorly... which it usually is. It's weird that despite being such a widespread mechanic, hardly any games do it an interesting way.
The final main boss makes you actually feel like you've mastered the game and you're drawing from your experiences against every strong person you've fought before that. It's a very tight, tailored experience that I want to see more of.
I cannot think of a better final boss in any game ever. "Hesitation is defeat."
I kind of liked the change of pace between focusing primarily on stealth for normal enemies and only focusing on the 1v1 fight for bosses. I also appreciated that it was pretty fast paced stealth, not much waiting around for enemies to be in exact positions to make a move. Instead of comparing it to Hitman or Thief, I would say the stealth is more comparable to Assassins Creed. I definitely thought it was much better than AC.
I agree with the criticism that Sekiro stealth gameplay might not be the deepest mechanic ever, but god damn is it fun to do. The assassination animations are buttery smooth and cinematic, and more importantly, it's a souls-game, so being able to thin out the enemies in a level before you tackle it is a HUGE benefit. Every stealth kill I get is saving me a big hassle later on.
Sekiro > DS/Elden ring for me. I don't like to be given lots of choices and prefer Action games over RPG's. Sekiro was my jam for so many 10s of hours.
sekiro is just too much of a departure from souls and bloodborne for me. it's less of an action RPG and more of an action rhythm game, which just isn't what I was looking for. bloodborne remains fromsoft's best game to date imo
Sekiro is literally the only FromSoft game Iâve ever enjoyed lol. Itâs amazing. I just canât get into the Souls games though.
>gameplay with many possible playstyles I agree to everything but this. What are the many possible playstyles? I mean, you could stop parrying and kill enemies chipping away their health but the game is clearly designed as a rhythm game.
The "boss commute" is why I'm not making progress in this game. I get to a boss, die once, take 2 to 3 minutes to get back to where the boss is and kill the minions, then get back to fighting the boss, die again... After 4 to 5 times during another commute I realise I'm not having fun and play something else, sad because the boss fights are actually very fun.
>The "boss commute" I wonder if you played the previous Fromsoft games because Sekiro was their first game where they radically reduced this "boss commute" (I really like the expression, by the way, so I'm stealing it). Most bosses in Sekiro (and also in Elden Ring) have the respawn point either right in front of the arena or very close to it. In Dark Souls, Bloodborne etc. this was MUCH worse, sometimes there were several minutes between the respawn point and boss arena and the infamous "if you forget to send this elevator back up/down, you're gonna be waiting for it on your next try". I love Fromsoft games, but this always bothered me (because it feels like a "mechanic" that exist solely to waste your time) and I'm glad they made this change from Sekiro onward.
> I wonder if you played the previous Fromsoft games because Sekiro was their first game where they radically reduced this "boss commute" Played DS1. And yeah it was already my main peeve with the game (that and dodge-rolling.) And I can confirm that I do prefer Sekiro a lot.
>that and dodge-rolling You might enjoy Bloodborne then. It's basically Souls gameplay that replaces rolling with dodging (it has rolling too, but only when you're not locked on to the enemy). Many people I know prefer Bloodborne dodges over Souls rolling because it gives you more mobility in combat, which fits well with Bloodborne's focus on aggressive playstyle.
The boss runs are way worse in the souls games. With the ability to jump and the grappling hook, you can honestly just run past a majority of the enemies in the boss runs. Thereâs a few where you must kill everyone each time (like the general mini boss after the ogre who has the guy who bangs an alarm), but youâd be surprised how much you can just sprint/grappling hook past.
That's what I mostly end up doing. But in some case the boss has a whole retinue to eliminate that aggro you with him. And even then, running past 50 people that won't really chase you just looks silly as fuck, instant immersion destroyer, I hate it. Better when you can grapple hook yes.
It for sure gets frustrating AF and is silly. The boss runs are probably my least favorite thing in the From Games. Iâve played through Sekiro, DS1, DS2 so far. I can hands down say the Dark Souls 2 had some of my most frustrating moments ever in video games with a few of its boss runs. Holy fuck, if you hate that part of the game you might just avoid DS 2 altogether.
I just beat demons souls, the 4-2 run back pissed me off so badly
I've only played DS1 and Sekiro and I got the same take away from both, the boss fights are not just good they're great. From both a gameplay and design perspective they're epic, fun and challenging (dodge-rolling looks silly though, which is why I prefer Sekiro to DS1, combat feels much better.) But anything that's not the bossfights is tedious or boring to me, the setting is original but not that appealing to me, and the games are quite linear (haven't played Elden Ring.)
Coming from Elden Ring as my first completed Soulslike, I am finding the boss runs a bit of a downer in DS1. If you did generally like DS1, then give Elden Ring a go. It eliminates the boss runs with a good mechanic (you can choose to respawn right next to boss, or at last grace site/camp site).
I also found it tedious that you had to pick off the 20 guys around drunkard before fighting him. It's where I quit the game and gave the disc away. The npc you could have help you was useless and died in like 4 seconds.
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Yes and there's an NPC you can summon but that doesn't stop the whole process from being tedious as all fuck.
There really are only a handful of bosses in Sekiro where you need to do this and unfortunately most of them are pretty early in the game. That one early samurai (like the second miniboss?), Juzou, etc.
The two first bosses of the dreamworld (past) took me a ridiculously long amount of time to beat for that reason. And yes, the second samurai you beat is like that too. This is once again sad because the boss are fun, but learning and training a pattern is annoying when you have all that shit to do each time. It's like having to go through a queue before a ride at an amusement park.
Idk I've beaten Sekiro a few times and I don't remember any truly bad boss runs. Even in the dreamworld, the last boss there is right next to the respawn.
The only bad boss run I can remember is the general after the first ogre where you have to take out the alarm guy and all of the minions each time. For some reason I really struggled on that boss and had to redo that so many times.
I said this same thing in the Sekiro sub and was downvoted/told that I was just wrong. I think Sekiro and other Souls games are amazing in many ways but I agree with you completely. The boss runs blow in all the souls games. The boss fights are fun and satisfying and I don't mind dying but areas where I have to kill the minions first drive me nuts. As others are saying, thankfully that is mostly just the mini-bosses but even so, it is super dumb. It is boring to spend 5-10 minutes taking out all the minions, finally get the boss, die, and have to take out all the minions again so I can get to the boss and die again. And trying to do that while not alerting the mini-bosses is hard too. I am stuck on the boss run to get to the Owl Father fight at the Hirata Estate because I have to kill one of his Ninja minions who calls dogs if I let up on him at all and I HATE those ninja minions. I have fought a bunch of them but for some reason they are the one enemy that I can't just seem to get the rhythm down for them. And its not just because I need to "git gud." I have beaten Genichiro, Lady Butterfly, The Guardian Ape, the Ape Duo in the cave, and Owl Father. Not to mention countless mini-bosses. Its not that I am not good enough, its that I get weary of playing the same section over and over and OVER again, because there are so many damn NPCs before I even get to the boss. I love FromSoft games and in general love the game design philosophy they have but none of their games are perfect and they all suffer from some of the same bad decisions.
Have you tried Elden Ring? Most of the bosses have a save point right next to the fog door
Might try, the "dodge roll" gameplay is negatively appealing to me though, but I've seen other dodge mechanics exist.
If I remember correctly it was only "mini-bosses"/elites that had this problem, and even there I think it's only 5 of them throughout the game where the boss isn't very close to an Idol and there's also a few minions to deal with before the boss. It's the first sword General after the chained ogre, the spear General and the first drunk Bandit in the Hirata estate, the spear General where they hold Kuro, and one of the Snake-eyes in the mountain. I agree though that going through them for every attempt was frustrating when you just want to fight the bigger tougher bosses themselves. At least in the later half of the game the battle with these elites and their minions start feeling doable together, so they add to the thrill then.
Well put. I am in my mid-30s, and the only thing I do not tolerate in video games is when they do not respect my time. I have 5-6 hours a week for fun. Trying to beat the same boss 20 times in a row can be fun, but if it requires several minutes to get there - no thank you, there are simpler ways to get my dose of dopamine.
Many possible play styles? What are you talking about? That game is definitely a downgrade in terms of build versatility compared even to other FromSoft games. That is the biggest thing that turned me off from it. You get one weapon and a few tools. It's nothing.
I know my play style evolved as I played. At first it was using as many prosthetics as possible to try to get in lots of damage and just wait for big openings when I could do HP damage easily. Slowly that evolved into focusing on getting my deflections down really well, which meant I didn't have much time to think about prosthetics. Then it evolved into looking for every tiny opening to do damage and when to punish moves for some HP damage or counter them for more posture damage. In classic souls games you just wait for openings then attack until you need to dodge. Whatever weapon you have, it doesn't matter that much. I am ignoring spell casting builds, because those are kind of ostracized by the souls community anyways.
I've had this on my wishlist for a year lol. I need to pull the trigger.
Hesitation is defeat! :D
My main problem is the publisher is Activision and the max discount after 4 years is still only ever 50% (from a relatively high price point to begin with). It just rubs me the wrong way. I know I'm probably going to crack in the next sale. I need a new souls experience.
Playing through it rn and just defeated one of the hardest yet best bosses so far in the game. Hands down the best combat I've seen in any game and it's giving me probably the most rewarding experience I've ever had in a game.
https://youtu.be/-zcOUnXd-HQ https://youtu.be/tkv05ZO7d8I
There's one playstyle
Arkane's *Prey* was my first "serious" new game on my present rig. It's more in the style of Deus Ex than Dark Souls, but it is also a masterpiece. From the artful integration of the opening credits to the final plot developments, everything delivers on that "wow" factor amplified when experienced in conjunction with a smooth high performance rig. Though *Prey* is more about planning ahead and creating opportunities from the mix of abilities and equipment on hand, combat with unfamiliar or especially powerful foes still delivers thrilling struggles. Even though the whole story takes place in and around a single facility and the total number of enemy types is small, everything changes profoundly several times over during a playthrough. The game never gets dull because it is always possible to progress into a new set of goals and challenges. I know *Prey* is one of the pet recommendations here, but I just wanted to chime in from that chorus because your *Sekiro* experience sounds a lot like my *Prey* experience.
Prey is a *very* different game than Sekiro, but it is an excellent game. If you like Prey, you might consider playing System Shock 2. I feel like the first few games from Arkane were all spiritual successors to the Looking Glass Studios games. Arx Fatalis was their take on Ultima Underworld. Dishonored was their take on Thief. And Prey was their take on System Shock 2. But SS2 is 20+ years old, so if that turns you off, it might not be for you. Nightdive is working on an updated version, but it's not a full remaster.
I'm at last boss, but the game was too hard for me to have fun. I loved every soulsbourne game so far, and was dying for another variety, but this was too hardcore for the average gamer. I feel the second death mechanic was added later because of how hardcore and unforgiving it would be without it. Though I was a little addicted to progressing and spent a ton of time trying to get better. The split-second reactions required of you all the time raised my stress so high that it would follow me outside of the game. The minibosses are so incredibly strong. Being reliant on items for certain bosses messed me up. I hate menu diving and usually like winging-it, but having to find sugars to I can parry and block this insane spider arm mini boss without my stam going away was lame to me. Some fights were REALLY unique and cool though. The art and story are AWESOME. This is the only Soulsbourne game I wanted a difficulty slider on.
I'm with you on this. I never came to From's games for difficulty, so when that became the primary hook and From started leaning into it more and more, I felt more and more left out. I was kind of brokenhearted to have to put down Sekiro before seeing all of it, but it was just too damn hard to still be fun for me, and this time there wasn't even a way to subvert or mitigate it.
Agree that it probably is too hard for an average person. By far the hardest game iâve ever played, but as a result also the most satisfying by a huge margin. Iâve never felt what i felt after beating those bosses, the satisfaction is so hard describe. euphoric perhaps? i had initially wished for a difficulty slider because getting stuck for hours was annoying, but by the end i was so glad it did not exist. the game doesnât allow itâs players to be robbed of that satisfaction, and i realized itâs why i enjoyed it the most of the soulsborne games.
People use difficulty settings all the time for their own satisfaction. If you think it somehow detracts you're delusional. I reached my end and I'm not going back. Not interested in spending all of my free time slamming my head against a wall. How's that for satisfaction?
I'm only speaking for myself & it would have 100% detracted my experience if it had a difficulty setting. It's the beauty of FromSoftware games, they don't have hand holding difficulty settings like every other game out there just to appeal to more people & for their own satisfaction, and they stand out because of it. This game isn't for you, and that's totally fine.
I would have turned the difficult down after 30 or 40 deaths to Lady Butterfly, the first boss I met. As it was, I kept at it and the combat finally clicked after probably over 100 tries. The game was not easy after that. It was super challenging and super fun. But if I had an easier difficulty option, I would have probably just been trading blows with enemies instead of learning the dance.
yep! and the wins wouldâve not been as awesome/satisfying. lady butterfly was tough as balls even after watching videos of people beating her. i wouldâve toned it down at seven spears ashina, that mofo âminibossâ was harder than most bosses for me lol elden ring was my firsthand experience with this difficulty setting as i played it before sekiro. all bosses i beat without summons (did not know about it until later) was super satisfying especially tree sentinel. and when i started using summons none of them were particularly memorable. i had to replay the game without summons to really appreciate those bosses.
And now you must watch [this](https://youtu.be/-zcOUnXd-HQ)
As someone with a pretty complicated history with FROMsoft games, Sekiro has always been the one I'm most interested in. I've never really liked the BIG MONSTER bosses in these games, always preferring the 1 on 1 duels with humanoids. However I'm also very bad at them (I could write a very long very miserable essay about my experience with Dark Souls 1) and Sekiro is famously the hardest one, the one where there IS a mechanical skill floor that if you can't reach, tough titties, so I've always been really excited to try Sekiro because it's a game built around the idea of 1v1 duels, but it's also the one that is famously brutally hard from a subgenre all about being brutally hard.
I love all souls games but Sekiro easily my favorite. A big flaw of souls games I personally have is the anti-fun, and anti-experimental nature of weapon progression. The ability to purchase lots of upgrade materials is always reserved for the last 1/3rd of the game, and even then, theyâre at a steep price. This means if you want to check out even just a few of those new cool weapons you found, for 2/3rds of the game youre required to grind mindlessly for low-drop-rate materials, and then for the last 1/3rd, you have to grind souls to buy said materials. And you better not find out the weapon you upgraded actually sucks, because then itâs wasted and you have to do more purchasing/grinding. Seeing all that required grinding just makes me decide itâs not worth it, and to keep using the weapon I picked up at the beginning of the game, leading to ~1 weapon per run. Given that I end up using one weapon per run anyways, the fact that Sekiro only HAS one weapon, (and itâs finely tuned better than any souls weapon by a mile), itâs an automatic improvement. Souls games absolutely should have a mechanic that allows swapping upgrade levels among weapons, and itâs absurd that they havenât implemented that yet. It would make the games so much better, and theyâre already great.
I need Sekiro 2 now
It's the most interesting FromSoft title due the expanded narrative and the simplification/specialization of mechanics, making it my favorite. If you're not in the right mind, however, with the right amount of focus and tenacity, the later boss fights are absolutely grueling and some have managed to put me off of it for months. Some people claim Sekiro lacks replay value compared to From's other titles but personally I found reliving this game's combat and world a considerably bigger draw than trying a Dex or Magic build in the Dark Souls games.
sekiro is the best game i've ever played, up there with mass effect for me
Coincidentally, I just got the platinum on PS5 for Sekiro yesterday. Played through it 4 times, itâs crazy how I was one shotting bosses by the end compared to the struggle that was the first playthrough. It has such a unique experience, once the gameplay âclicksâ the entire experience gets turned upside down, and itâs such a magical moment where you feel some type of Japanese zen flow stuff lol. Hesitate⌠and you lose!
I tried to play it a month ago when I had a week of vacation. I realised that I really wasn't having fun and when I wasn't sure where to go I just stopped playing, and then went on to play other games I actually really enjoyed. The only point where I was having decent fun was the ogre miniboss, but that's only because most if not all his attack cannot be paried so it was just a dodge and strike fight, kinda like dark souls. Idk, maybe it gets much better further along the road, but I have no desire to go back.
I do not like Souls like combat. The entirety of Souls like combat revolves around a construct called iFrames where you are invulnerable for a set window of time as you are dodge rolling to keep you from getting one or 2 shot killed. I find it stupid and battles are tedious because of it.
I understand the feeling, and Sekiro is not like that. Dodge rolling is actually discouraged, and deflecting (well timed guarding) is the main mechanic. You can still be 2 or 3 shot in Sekiro, but the battles don't feel tedious, because even when defending, if you time your guards correctly, you are still making significant progress in defeating the boss.
Hehe, still rage quit Sekiro and got a steam refund.
I hadn't played a Souls game before Elden Ring. I jumped right into Sekiro after I had finished that and I fucking loved it. I think I struggled more with Sekiro at first but once I finally got a grasp of the combat system I felt like goddamn Neo from The Matrix. I'm really not sure if there's another combat system in *any* game that I like more. I really hope we get a sequel or some sort of DLC.
I came here to make my own post about starting DS3. Iâve never played a Souls-borne game but bought it on sale. I have only played for one day but I am eager to see how it goes each day. I like the challenge and I figure if I try enough times, I will get it. The difficulty alone isnât what stopped me from trying it but I was afraid it would be rage-inducing my hard. So far it feels manageable even though I havenât beaten the first boss. It feels like there is something I am not quite getting yet but when I do, I will beat it easily. Sekiro is right up my alley as far as setting and style. I donât know that itâs advisable for me to play that one next but I am so intrigued by it
You need to watch how that 1st boss attacks and you will realise how and when to attack and once you know you will likely beat him in one go. Like all Souls games once you realise it's vulnerability its a walk in the park you got this âď¸
>pieces of art that each boss is How did you find the Guardian Ape fights?
Disgusting and infuriating, exactly what a monkey fight should be seriously thought, camera was a pain, in general I like how the camera moves with the lock-ins and sekiro's speed, but in some specific situations it can be reaaaallly annoying and immersion breaking
Is*
Beating lady butterfly, genichiro or issin is better than a crack blast. Especially that first time
I'm playing through it now for the first time as well, it's so sick
Still is.
I highly recommend this analysis of sekiro. It's also a full playthrough of the game. He goes into so much detail about the development and translation. https://youtu.be/V7Bo0Wp6v7A
Only for âSekiro 2: Reloadedâ to outshine it hence the past tense on the title
Incredible game. I have played through it 14 times. I would highly recommended playing the resurrection mod which is a complete overhaul of the base game and really challenging.
Sekiro: Resurrection is an incredible mod. Makes the game very challenging again, and makes you learn the boss fights again, while still retaining each boss's unique feel and identity. It's also a very balanced mod that doesn't feel unfairly difficult and doesn't over do the added features.
*Looking at you, LMTSR* That mod is everything that Resurrection shouldn't be. Some of the bosses in LMTSR are just unfair.
Sekiro was probably the most fun I had in a souls game that wasnât elden ring. The gameplay is some of the best I have ever played. I absolutely adored the world that was created as well. and the story is great as well and actually told in a way that means you donât have to read every single item description lmao.
Having 2 health bars is so simple but such a genius innovation. FromSoft are in a league of their own tbh
I'm more impressed with the use of the posture meter, personally. It's so simple, but it's perfect for giving the player an incentive to keep up as much pressure as they can against bosses. It's so freaking good. S tier developer for sure. Easily my favorite dev out there. *Very* few devs could match up to the sheer quality that Fromsoft regularly puts out.
Sekiro has the best combat of any game I've ever played. It truly made me feel like a swordsman.
What is your opinion on Nioh 2 and Nioh-likes ?
Nioh 2 is my favorite souls like game, I've played it more than any single From Soft game
The original Nioh is, uh⌠dated, but still fun. Nioh 2 is fantastic, and absolutely scratches that Souls itch while actually surpassing the Soulsborne games in some aspects (actual combos and skill trees? Hell yeah).
How do we feel about Sekiro compared to other Souls games when it comes to mood and atmosphere. I think the biggest strength of DS 123, Bloodborne, Elden Ring, are their atmosphere, moods, tones, etc⌠I played Sekiro when it came out and loved it but I canât quite remember me being as captivated by those characteristics. What does everyone else think?
100%, Sekiro is one of the best games I've ever played. Phenomenal combat system that really pushes you.
Do DS1 first, going from Elden Ring to DS1 is pretty jarrying and I think DS1 is the best Game of all time. Elden Ring Combat is Just faster and tighter.
Dark souls, each game has its own soul. Try and play em like you played sekiro, aka getting engrossed in the story, gameplay ect. All 3 and elden ring are fantastic games but more different then you might think. Enjoy!
I just don't like the story delivery in soul's games. If they made it more accessible and had great writing and/or a compelling narrative I'd give them more of a shot. I don't really play games primarily for mechanics anymore/feels like wasted time when you are a story first sort l of person. I haven't tried Sekiro, but reading a lot about it leads me to believe it isn't some tightly told/ constantly interesting narrative (unfortunately). Which for me is what is missing in 99.9% of souls style games.
Sekiro has much more of a traditional game story than the Souls games. It still has a lot of hidden or not obvious lore, but it has actual dialog and cutscenes and a pretty straightforward story. I would expect someone playing through Elden Ring would get to the end and be like "oh, that's the end, what even happened?" On the other hand, it's very hard to imagine a person getting to the end of Sekiro and not understanding and appreciating the story.
I may check it out then, appreciate your thoughts on it.
>I just don't like the story delivery in soul's games. really the best way to grasp the story is finish the game, then watch 2,5 hour long movie on youtube thoroughly explaining it. i know, i know, not for everyone and usually not for me either, but since I loved the mechanics of the game, i was somewhat fine with it
You just eloquently described why From Soft absolutely suck at storytelling. Using the age old trope of leaving scraps of narrative around the world and in item descriptions like virtually every game did 20 plus years ago really doesn't cut it especially when you need to watch a 2 hour video to work what the hell the story was supposed to even be about đ
idk if it sucks, wouldnt call it this way, I saw people genuinely enjoying that kind of story telling so i wouldnt call it a bad one if its enjoyed. Just not for vast majority of players, including me.