***Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice***

[Amatsubu]

"Yes, indeed" It was inevitable I assume, like me, you did not play the previous installments - DS,DS1,DS2? To DS veterans DS3 was a rehash, but to us freshmen, it's an epiphany. Which area/part of the game was the tipping point for you?
To me, on my second try (after having platinumed Sekiro), the tipping point was the Firelink Shrine - just the incredible attention to detail with crooked stairway slabs, and seemingly not a single straight edge/copy-paste in architecture... the music, the voiceover, the characters. The passion of game creators was oozing from every pixel. I knew then that this game is "once in a decade"/GOAT candidate etc. I still rate Sekiro higher, but that is no knock on DS3.

Indeed, I haven't played any of the previous games, only Bloodborne, then Sekiro and finally DS3.

The atmosphere of the Firelink Shrine was indeed great, gave me a similar feeling as when I woke up in Hunter's Dream in Bloodborne and talked with the Doll.

I started getting into it more when exploring the Undead Settlement and now I'm fully invested at Cathedral of the Deep.

I rate both BB and Sekiro higher so far but this game is absolutely worth going through.

Now, if we only got Demon's Souls Remake, Bloodborne and Elden Ring and I'm set for the entire next year

 

[Borsch]

Elden Ring

I have hopes, but I can't help but think that one cannot sustain this exceptionally high level. Hidetaka Miyazaki is due a screw up

 

[Amatsubu]

I have hopes, but I can't help but think that one cannot sustain this exceptionally high level. Hidetaka Miyazaki is due a screw up

According to many, he already did with DS2 so we're safe

I think it'll be at least good, can't imagine a From title being straight up bad. I had my doubts about Sekiro initially and that turned out pretty damn well

From the trailer, Elden Ring looks like a crossover between Sekiro and DS so if they manage to combine the best of both games, for example, movement options and some combat mechanics from Sekiro with BB/DS level of lore/exploration/build flexibility, I think we'll have a winner.

 

[Rhaos]

Indeed, I haven't played any of the previous games, only Bloodborne, then Sekiro and finally DS3.

The atmosphere of the Firelink Shrine was indeed great, gave me a similar feeling as when I woke up in Hunter's Dream in Bloodborne and talked with the Doll.

I started getting into it more when exploring the Undead Settlement and now I'm fully invested at Cathedral of the Deep.

I rate both BB and Sekiro higher so far but this game is absolutely worth going through.

Now, if we only got Demon's Souls Remake, Bloodborne and Elden Ring and I'm set for the entire next year

I started my "Souls games" experience playing Dark Souls 3, completed it and the DLC and have moved on to Sekiro with a view to playing Blood Bourne in the very near future (hopefully it makes its way to PC)

Whilst I love Sekiro, I find Dark Souls 3 a better game overall. This may change the further I get in to Sekiro, but Dark Souls 3 has definitely made it into my top 10 games of all time.

I'd love to play Demon Souls so hoping that too eventually makes its way to PC

 

[Amatsubu]

I started my "Souls games" experience playing Dark Souls 3, completed it and the DLC and have moved on to Sekiro with a view to playing Blood Bourne in the very near future (hopefully it makes its way to PC)

Whilst I love Sekiro, I find Dark Souls 3 a better game overall. This may change the further I get in to Sekiro, but Dark Souls 3 has definitely made it into my top 10 games of all time.

I'd love to play Demon Souls so hoping that too eventually makes its way to PC

Yeah, we all have our preferences, Sekiro does it for me when it comes to the combat. Dark Souls 3 has better designed, more complex levels and lore and is more of an RPG but the combat, while good, doesn't feel as satisfying. It's basically a methodical rolling simulator, I don't feel as "in the fight" as in Sekiro where I'm clashing swords with the enemy, sparks flying all around, and you feel the impact of each hit and parried attack.

Bloodborne still comes out on top for me, it combines the best of both worlds because it has even better lore, atmosphere (crazy good and cryptic) and level design while encouraging you to be more aggressive than in DS3 so you don't feel like a little rolling ***** against bosses even though you're still rolling around quite a lot It's do or die, basically.

Having said that, I'm really enjoying DS3 and hope it gets even better.

 

[Amatsubu]

Abyss Watchers first try

This is slowly turning into "rediscovering DS3" thread but I guess all of us platinumed Sekiro already and the DS3 thread is dead so might as well report on my progress here

What a boss, reminded me of Maria of the Astral Clocktower, pooped my pants a little when I saw the second phase

Wish I had more time to play, barely touched the game the last few days.

 

[strumpusplunket]

Abyss Watchers first try

This is slowly turning into "rediscovering DS3" thread but I guess all of us platinumed Sekiro already and the DS3 thread is dead so might as well report on my progress here

What a boss, reminded me of Maria of the Astral Clocktower, pooped my pants a little when I saw the second phase

Wish I had more time to play, barely touched the game the last few days.

That's good going. For me the Watchers were my first speed bump and took me four attempts to beat - and then only by the very skin of my teeth. They mopped the floor with me on my first couple of tries. For me there was only one other boss harder than those guys in the base game (now the DLC is a whole other story... )

Having just finished Code Vein (a fine game in many ways I guess) I have to say it only makes me appreciate the combat in Sekiro even more. Needing a break from Souls-likes now, though as those two have kind of burnt me out for the time being.

 

[Amatsubu]

That's good going. For me the Watchers were my first speed bump and took me four attempts to beat - and then only by the very skin of my teeth. They mopped the floor with me on my first couple of tries. For me there was only one other boss harder than those guys in the base game (now the DLC is a whole other story... )

Having just finished Code Vein (a fine game in many ways I guess) I have to say it only makes me appreciate the combat in Sekiro even more. Needing a break from Souls-likes now, though as those two have kind of burnt me out for the time being.

Yeah, the DLC seems like it'll be close to Old Hunters DLC in difficulty, if not equally difficult. I only have Ashes of Ariandel but I'm going to grab Ringed City soon.

I've also been playing quite a lot of Souls-like metroidvania stuff lately, Blasphemous, Hollow Knigbt etc. and also feel somewhat burned out, HK was fun but got really tedious later on.

Was meaning to give Code Vein a try but I guess I'll focus on DS3 for now and then switch genres for a while.

 

[bakes0310]

On offer for £32.43 on steam, best price ive seen for it despite it being out for a few years. I do want to get it but im hoping for a better price than that.

 

[Borsch]

This is slowly turning into "rediscovering DS3" thread but I guess all of us platinumed Sekiro already and the DS3 thread is dead so might as well report on my progress here

It's Sekiro Fan Club thread now - which is cool with me personally

Having just finished Code Vein (a fine game in many ways I guess) I have to say it only makes me appreciate the combat in Sekiro even more

On my side, I've tried Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order and given up after about an hour due to the sloppy and unsatisfying (compared to Sekiro of course) light sabre combat mechanics. It could have been amazing, but ended up average at best, and I just don't have the time or the drive to play average games nowadays

On offer for £32.43 on steam, best price ive seen for it despite it being out for a few years. I do want to get it but im hoping for a better price than that.

It's the way FromSoftware always price their games. Even their oldest 2010 titles are still near full price. I can only offer you platitudes like "real art is not cheap", "it's worth every penny" etc

 

[Amatsubu]

On offer for £32.43 on steam, best price ive seen for it despite it being out for a few years. I do want to get it but im hoping for a better price than that.

Look at it this way, it's one of the best games in the last few years with four endings that'll take you 60+ hours to platinum and will offer a great combat experience with some good challenge.

Doesn't seem that steep to me compared to many mediocre games, you can always refund if you feel it's not for you.

 

[Amatsubu]

Ooof, four tries for Sulyvahn (I think, maybe five, lost count), what a *******....
By the skin of my teeth literally, felt more like luck than skill. Incredible jump in difficulty.

I was dodging so well on my last try and then one slip up and everything went to hell, ended up with no estus and a quarter of my health.

Weird design TBH, all the bosses up to Sulyvahn are practically pushovers and then he comes along.

He definitely teleported from Sekiro

 

[Borsch]

Weird design TBH, all the bosses up to Sulyvahn are practically pushovers and then he comes along.

I think its down to subjective difficulty again, to me the Crystal Sage (!) and the Abyss Watchers were both harder than Sulyvahn. The latter can be parried for huge amounts of damage and did not cause me too many problems.
Did you find the hidden twin crocodiles/rats/wolves boss in the Boreal Valley ? They're behind an illusory wall near a staircase in a building after the seeping giants, after Sulyvahn.

 

[Amatsubu]

I think its down to subjective difficulty again, to me the Crystal Sage (!) and the Abyss Watchers were both harder than Sulyvahn. The latter can be parried for huge amounts of damage and did not cause me too many problems.
Did you find the hidden twin crocodiles/rats/wolves boss in the Boreal Valley ? They're behind an illusory wall near a staircase in a building after the seeping giants, after Sulyvahn.

I know he's weak to parrying but I doubt someone who goes fresh into the fight will effectively parry him, I did it twice and the rest of the fight was just timing rolls and getting 1-2 hits in, I'm too much of a noob But I guess it is subjective difficulty.
Wish there was an option to replay bosses for practice, I could use that.

I haven't progressed beyond Sully, so no but I'll check the boss out, thanks

 

[strumpusplunket]

Like @Borsch, I didn't struggle with Sulyvahn either, but I did with the Abyss Watchers. Suly got me with that first leap, but then I soon found I could circle around him (I want to say anti-clockwise, but I can't remember 100%) and avoid almost all his attacks barely having to roll. He also doesn't have many HP in NG and so goes down quite quickly once you can get a few good hits in. Circling around bosses in one direction or the other is something that often works in Souls games - less so in 3 I think, but having played 1 and 2 it was just a natural thing to try.

There was one boss still to come that took me 10-12 tries, though, and really had me pulling my hair out. I knew what I had to, knew all the moves, kept getting close, but there were too many moves that messed me up.

And yeah, those double Boreal beast things were horrendous!

 

[Amatsubu]

Well, half the fun for me is getting down roll timings on the combos so I tried to go for that, that's probably why it was harder, though four tries isn't really struggling compared to Owl Father and Orphan of Kos back in the days You can indeed strafe him out if you stick to his face.

I found Abyss Watchers infinitely easier to avoid with timed rolls TBH, to the point that I could observe the second phase for quite to make sure I got the openings. I thought I was going to die many times over when stepping into the arena but it was over first try.

 

[Amatsubu]

Finally got some time to launch DS yesterday, those twin rats were easy AF because if you walk you only aggro one and their attacks have predictable timings, suppose it's possible to take on two but I'll take it

Aldrich took three tries and seemed a bit rng.

I think this is around halfway through the base game but I'm still not enjoying it as much as Sekiro, even though it's good overall. The areas are uneven and only two bosses have been interesting so far. Camerawork can also be horrendous at times.

 

[Borsch]

twin rats were easy AF because if you walk you only aggro one and their attacks have predictable timings, suppose it's possible to take on two but I'll take it

I think they were patched at some point as in some youtube vids they always aggro together, but in my case I also dealt with them one by one.

but I'm still not enjoying it as much as Sekiro, even though it's good overall.

I feel the same, but still have very warm memories of the DS3 journey. I wonder if Sekiro is also so subjectively dear to me as it was my first Miyazaki's game. The gorgeous atmosphere, design and autistic level of deail, the radically different way the game treated me as a player to what i was used to with the lack of spoon feeding and nannying... DS3 was my second and thus was doomed to be second from the start. But I also do think that Sekiro is objectively better on most counts (except level expansiveness).

two bosses have been interesting so far

THe Abyss Watchers and Suly? I also liked the crazy tree boss, it took me by surprise.

 

[Borsch]

Camerawork can also be horrendous at times.

I thought I liked that "feature" , being a Bloodborne fan

 

[Amatsubu]

I thought I liked that "feature" , being a Bloodborne fan

BB camerawork is also pretty bad at times but it wasn't as annoying as some stuff that happened to me in DS3, also the locations were too good and creepy to pay attention

And I agree about Sekiro, better on most counts except level complexity and size. Still, I'm glad I finally gave it a try because it's a good game with some solid moments.