Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

I can't believe I enjoy dying in this game. The combat is so engaging and entertaining, once the Death screen is on I am keen on going back and trying it again.

It isn't even about defeating your opponent, it's much more about learning to master the shinobi techniques and pulling them off with the required timing.

Another nice addition to From's formula here is stealth. Crowd control has apparently always been a good idea in games like these, so incorporating stealth gameplay makes perfect sense and since I'm all about stealth - I enjoy picking off enemies one by one. I'd sometimes go back to an area and clear it out, not to grind, but just cause I feel like doing it again, maybe even solve the puzzle once more, but with a better arsenal.

As for difficulty - I really can't tell if it's hard. I would struggle so hard on a fight and then when I win, I would completely forget that I was having a hard time.

The atmosphere is also amazing. FromSoftware fan or not, please check it out.

Okay, I'm not going to sugar coat it, this game is astronomically hard. In fact, it should be illegal to make a game this hard and not include an "easy mode." However, this is also one of the reasons why this game so dang satisfying to beat. So many people think that giving players more freedom and power makes a great game, and in many cases, this is true, but not with this game. When I played through this game my first time, I couldn't believe how difficult it was. I'd consider myself a pretty cool-headed fellow, but there were countless times where this game made my blood boil. However, once I finally beat the game and started it over, I couldn't believe that I was playing the same game. I was beating enemies significantly faster, and I was dying significantly less. It was as if an "easy mode" had been turned on, but it wasn't because of the game, it was all because of me; because of MY skill, MY finesse. Now THAT'S power to the player; THAT'S freedom of play.

P.S. Pro-tip, if you're playing this game like dark souls and bloodborne, you're doing it wrong.

Being honest it's the most beautiful game with epic battles, incredible music, with incredible combat system...but it's not perfect and sadly it's level design it's not that great in my opinión compares with other Miyazaki games.

I would start by saying that this game changed my perspective about gaming altogether. I was always a shooter and RPG fan. Some would call Sekiro an RPG game, but I would beg to disagree. I would put this game more in the category of a rhythm game, something which I was not aware about before playing Metal Hellsinger and now Sekiro. But wait there is more to it - both Good and Bad!

Yes, I beat the game, yesterday night and felt compelled to write a few words about this INSANELY difficult sword, rhythm game. Believe me when I say the word INSANE (I have bet Elden Ring twice). I could not beat the Sekiro Final Boss on my first playthrough. Spent hours on learning skills (waste of time). Gave up and uninstalled Sekiro. Came back and tried to device a winning strategy and finally succeeded in my 2nd playthrough (NG) after acquiring all items needed to implement the strategy. Yes, so building a 'strategy' against each boss (even mini bosses) helps, even if your parrying skills suck as mine!! And that's why I don't hate the game so much any more compared to when I started and saw that it's all about parrying, no matter how many confetti, sugars you consume and skills you acquire through endless grinding. Get your 'strategy' right and you will be able to beat Sekiro.

Some parting thoughts on the general build of the game, apart from the brilliant combat style, which is a basically the major cause of a love hate relationship with the game.

• Great graphics, sound track.

• Mediocre storyline. Did not make any sense/difference to me, really.

• Most explorable items are useless (except a few really good ones). And From Software is notorious for not helping/guiding the gamer on that front. The same applies to Skill Trees.

• Too much emphasis on just ONE fighting style - parrying.

• No levelling up of payer in terms of weapon or armor choices.

Love or Hate the game, but definitely worth buying and giving it a try!

This game is pretty cool

I'm not good at it but it's pretty cool