Read Mixed User Reviews for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice on PlayStation 4

mrvertigo89

Mar 24, 2019

7

FromSoft tends to be the only studio that I'll actually pre-order from, and I did with Sekiro. Long-time fan of the ridiculous difficulty, Demon Souls (closely followed by Bloodborne) is my favourite game of all time, and I love dark souls too.

Sekiro is a bit of a different bag. It's a good game, the movement is fun, as are the ninja tools, and the stealth is well integrated into theFromSoft tends to be the only studio that I'll actually pre-order from, and I did with Sekiro. Long-time fan of the ridiculous difficulty, Demon Souls (closely followed by Bloodborne) is my favourite game of all time, and I love dark souls too.

Sekiro is a bit of a different bag. It's a good game, the movement is fun, as are the ninja tools, and the stealth is well integrated into the general gameplay - and particularly with minibosses. However, I think this will be the first FromSoft game I don't try to platinum. Mainly because I don't think I'll play through it more than once.

The bosses are not so much difficult as long, everything has lots of health and the classic secret third phase is thrown into the mix too. Remember fighting those demons in DS3 expansion, when they morph into an even bigger demon when they die... well it's that. The frustration of Nameless King's second phase where it takes so long to get to it. None of this I'd mind on its own, except you don't get to build a character anymore.

You can earn experience and unlock skills, but these don't really change your fighting prowess the way maxing a quality build would, or getting a new weapon. Upgrades (at least in terms of damage) are contingent on defeating bosses, so again sometimes you smash against a brick-wall of difficulty, but can't go off and build your character to come back stronger. You just hit it again and again. Obvs, with no co-op this also rules out that as a way to overcome a particularly **** boss (looking at you Fume Knight from DS2).

The world is good, the story is much less subtle but I guess that's fine given there is an actual narrative, but with no new builds to try, and no desire to fight some of the bosses again, I think I'll be putting it down when I'm done and playing through one of the others again.

Fingers crossed for Blooborne 2!… Expand

StrangeAeons

Mar 25, 2019

5

I wanted to like Sekiro, I REALLY did. I love the Souls-Borne series of games, and I think that was my first mistake when jumping headfirst into Sekiro. First and foremost, Sekiro is not a souls game.

Sekiro shares many similarities with the Souls games, but Sekiro is a whole new beast. Gone are the days of leaving messages for other players. Gone are the days of other players forI wanted to like Sekiro, I REALLY did. I love the Souls-Borne series of games, and I think that was my first mistake when jumping headfirst into Sekiro. First and foremost, Sekiro is not a souls game.

Sekiro shares many similarities with the Souls games, but Sekiro is a whole new beast. Gone are the days of leaving messages for other players. Gone are the days of other players for that matter, as Sekiro is only a solo experience. That aspect does not bother me so much as I prefer single player experiences anyways.

In the Souls-Borne series if I ran into a frustrating situation there was always an option of going back and doing some grinding to help level up in an effort to conquer the roadblock in my way. After finally getting past those roadblocks there was an immense feeling of accomplishment. I find the bosses in Sekiro are so frustrating that I leave feeling defeated and have no drive to continue. And with no leveling up of your character, and no gear to swap out and try, there is no motivation to continue bashing my head against the wall.

Sekiro is a beautiful game aesthetically speaking, but the frustration outweighs the beauty. It feels like FromSoft took the difficulty aspect of the Souls-Borne series and cranked it to 11 just for the sake of making it difficult. Sneaking around like a ninja and picking off the "trash" mobs feels like that is what the game was supposed to be. Realizing that the bosses needed to be challenging it feels like FromSoft overcompensated and crossed that line which separates difficult-fun and difficult-frustrating.

There is good to be found here, do not get me wrong. Sekiro is a beautiful game with tight controls. The frustration found in the game overshadow everything Sekiro does well. The one thing a game should always be is fun. For me, this is where Sekiro fails, it becomes so frustrating that it is no longer fun.

There are going to be plenty who do not agree with me. And that is ok. This is just my honest opinion, my honest review. I really, REALLY, wanted to like Sekiro. The only other game I am looking forward to as much as Sekiro is Cyberpunk 2077, and it saddens me to think how disappointed I am with Sekiro.

If you go into Sekiro expecting a souls-like experience, you will be sorely disappointed.… Expand

Flypaper

Mar 25, 2019

6

Beware the overrating from Critics. Try before you buy is my advice. I'm a long time lover of the souls and bloodborne series. I beat them all (except demonsouls - but I will if they ever remaster it) so I'm not bad at them. Unfortunately it was like Fromsoft decided to stick it to us long time players and reverse everything you learned from dying over the years. This game takes fastBeware the overrating from Critics. Try before you buy is my advice. I'm a long time lover of the souls and bloodborne series. I beat them all (except demonsouls - but I will if they ever remaster it) so I'm not bad at them. Unfortunately it was like Fromsoft decided to stick it to us long time players and reverse everything you learned from dying over the years. This game takes fast reflexes and a lot of motivation to push through the many, many deaths before you unlearn and relearn what you need to survive. It is punishingly difficult with lightning reflexes and perfect timing required (no mistakes or your dead). The world and story are not really doing anything for me, which is what I always loved about the past games. They always had you guessing what the next level/world would be. This one is all Feudal Japan all the time and I do not care about Japanese history. I didn't in college and I still don't. So the verticality of the game that everyone is praising is overrated. The grappling hook mechanics work okay, but only in the spots the game lets you use it. The jump and grab ledge mechanic is so slow and terribly inconsistent (needs fixing badly). While hanging from a ledge my natural instinct is to hit the jump to jump up, but no you have to push grab button again (why?). If you are new to Fromsoft games, you actually might be better equipped than longtime players, but you will likely lose interest after the 50th death to the same early bosses. If you are determined you will persevere or have a lucky run (even the blind hog finds an acorn except with a lot of skill needed even to get lucky). This game is super frustrating without the fun and mystery of previous Fromsoft games to keep me going. Not sure why everyone is going on about this game. Gluttons for punishment apparently.… Expand

TheVJ

Mar 22, 2019

6

It's a good game, but not as good as the proper Souls games. Just lacks the atmosphere and its combat is a bit too mashy as well.

mikepatyaev

Apr 30, 2019

6

Worse Dark Souls, not interesting to explore the location, in fact there is no loot and pumping. DMC at maximum speed

Inhanzt

Apr 21, 2019

6

Has a nice elegant series of attacks, dodges, and blocks, and then interjects grab attacks with no counter. A major failing the game's part.

seburo

Apr 30, 2019

7

For me its a 7 because two main reasons: the repetition of some stages and enemies and, and most important, the excess of exigency. I'm a Dark Souls veteran. I've played all 3, Dark Souls 1 blew my mind and I played it a lot. I completed Bloodborne because of my love towards FROM, didn't liked it because terror is not my genre, but appreciated it. Now I wanted to love Sekiro, I'm a big fanFor me its a 7 because two main reasons: the repetition of some stages and enemies and, and most important, the excess of exigency. I'm a Dark Souls veteran. I've played all 3, Dark Souls 1 blew my mind and I played it a lot. I completed Bloodborne because of my love towards FROM, didn't liked it because terror is not my genre, but appreciated it. Now I wanted to love Sekiro, I'm a big fan of japanese culture, and I really wanted to love it. But, after 3 runs, and having completed it once. I'm too tired. The parry system is too stressful, and I don't like to feel that vulnerable. Besides, the final boss is really unfair (in my opinion) because it is NECESSARY to complete the game. If it was an optional boss I wouldn't have a problem with its absurd exigency but since you need to beat him to complete the game, for me it was a wall, and I didn't enjoyed it, I endured it. When I finally beat it I felt relief, not joy. I think its time for FROM software to rethink the accessibility of their games. I think they don't need to make difficult games just because that's their brand. They have other qualities: great action, atmosphere, music and design. And there are a ton of masterpieces with difficulty selector. I hope they wanted their games to reach everybody.… Expand

Descending23

Apr 14, 2019

5

The games graphics and music are masterfully crafted, dare I say beautiful at times. Definitely a fresh breath of air from FromSoftware. Intriguing story, authentic swordplay, fun traversal, and unique progression system. I’ve been a fan since Demon’s Souls for the PS3 all the way to Bloodborne and all the Dark Souls in between.
Which is why this truly hurts me that I had to sell the gameThe games graphics and music are masterfully crafted, dare I say beautiful at times. Definitely a fresh breath of air from FromSoftware. Intriguing story, authentic swordplay, fun traversal, and unique progression system. I’ve been a fan since Demon’s Souls for the PS3 all the way to Bloodborne and all the Dark Souls in between.
Which is why this truly hurts me that I had to sell the game because I simply wasn’t having fun with it anymore due to the extreme difficulty. I got all the way up to the old monk and then I finally quit. My passion my enjoyment and and my will gave out. Instead of having an awesome time with this game I was instead looking up on YouTube finding ways to cheese these bosses and having no gratification with the end result, and when I thought the combat finally clicked here I was stuck with another impossible task. Every boss felt like a chore and not a “Mount Everest” to climb...
If this game had a mode that made it a little simpler I would re-buy it in a heartbeat. (Theres no online, so who would it really hurt besides egos?) And this is coming from somebody who has the platinum trophy for Bloodborne and put 250 hours into that game alone. So I hope somebody from FromSoftware reads this post and takes into consideration the next time they release a game that they don’t have to make it as difficult as possible for the game to sell to the point where it alienates most players. I still recognize the beauty of the game but I cannot except the difficulty.… Expand

MaxDBlack

Apr 8, 2019

7

The game is awesome! New mechanic is finally really differs from what SoulsBourne had to offer. It is much more focused on skill and precision. Every hit, block, parry and counter has to be carefully executed. Mechanic is pure joy.

Enemies and bosses are hard, but fair. Every main character death is a result of player mistake but not an unfair AI actions. The variety and amount ofThe game is awesome! New mechanic is finally really differs from what SoulsBourne had to offer. It is much more focused on skill and precision. Every hit, block, parry and counter has to be carefully executed. Mechanic is pure joy.

Enemies and bosses are hard, but fair. Every main character death is a result of player mistake but not an unfair AI actions. The variety and amount of bosses is tremendous, though some of them appear couple of times during playthrough.
Game world is big and leveldesign on a big scale is magnificent! You can reach any point in the world that you can see and sometimes it is just fascinating to observe from a distant places you've visited half game ago.

The plot is kinda simple. In oppose to SoulsBourne games deep multy-layerd LORE, in Sekiro we have a staright forward story with very few unexpected twists and no underlying lines whatsoever. The world itself is just something I personnaly not interested in. Middle age Japan is not my thing, so I have nothing to say about it.
Visually game is ok, but nothing out of the ordinary. There are couple of beautiful locations, but in oppose to dark and mysterious Bloodbourne atmosphere Sekiro can't offer anything spectial.

But in the first place the game is about mechanics and it works great.
The thing they've left character stats and loadout out of the boat is totally ok with me. Game is much closer to slasher than to an action RPG now. Still there are quite some tricks and combat movements player can aquire during game and prosthetic arm improvements make Sekiro's arsenal even bigger.

There are a lot of dispute around Sekiro's difficulty lately. The game is hard. It took me 77 hours to beat it and I had a lot of trouble with some bosses. But it's not unbeatable and it is certainly becomes quite easy once you master it. The easiest way to check how it works is get back to bosses, that troubled you some time ago and beat them once more. It'll be super easy, because knowing mechanics and boss movement basically everything you need to be good at. So people who ask for an easy mode, are just lazy and refuse to learn game rules. And what's the point in playing a game if you don't want to follow the rules?… Expand

Sssuper

Apr 29, 2019

6

Нормальная игра.Но очень много багов,честное слово боевка не понравилась,те же прохожденцы на время быстро проходят игру багами и прыжка-крюком.Сделали бы как Dark Souls но по японски,а то главный перс не живой какой то а терменатор,летает крючком,прыгает и бегает очень быстро.Да игра у меня тянет,прошел с багами за 4 часа,маловато и скучно.Крч твердая 6Нормальная игра.Но очень много багов,честное слово боевка не понравилась,те же прохожденцы на время быстро проходят игру багами и прыжка-крюком.Сделали бы как Dark Souls но по японски,а то главный перс не живой какой то а терменатор,летает крючком,прыгает и бегает очень быстро.Да игра у меня тянет,прошел с багами за 4 часа,маловато и скучно.Крч твердая 6

disturbed1264

Apr 21, 2019

7

Sekiro is a good game, certainly not a great game. A huge step back from dark souls and bloodborne. The lack of effort in this creation is very evident, disgraceful when you start replaying areas on the first
playthrough.

Terium

Apr 10, 2019

7

Daisukereds review sums up exactly my feelings on this game. I really want to like it more but it's a poorly balanced game and I don't mean just in terms of difficulty. The shinobi tools can be good (and even gamebreaking) on some fights but on the harder ones, they're pretty useless and the ones focused on dealing damage/posture damage are ridiculously underpowered even to the extent thatDaisukereds review sums up exactly my feelings on this game. I really want to like it more but it's a poorly balanced game and I don't mean just in terms of difficulty. The shinobi tools can be good (and even gamebreaking) on some fights but on the harder ones, they're pretty useless and the ones focused on dealing damage/posture damage are ridiculously underpowered even to the extent that it's likely better to just press R1. There's no builds, no armor, no weapons and the upgrades you get is pretty worthless except for some that should've been baseline anyway (Mikiri Counter). The environments are okay but they don't come close to the diversity of the other "soulsborne" games (hesitating to include Sekiro in this genre). The story is overall easier to understand but it somehow just takes away from what I love about the other games. Exploration can sometimes be rewarding but 99% of the time you only find some **** consumable that can be bought from the merchant for cheap anyway. The upgrade materials for your tools don't generate the same feeling that finding a blood shard or titanite chunk does since the upgrade won't do much anyway. Unlike all the other soulsborne games, I just can't wait to be done with this one and I probably won't be replaying it ever again once I'm done with all the trophies. I've seen a lot of people saying this game is even more satisfying than the other games but I never felt satisfied after beating a boss, I just felt annoyed and wanted to stop playing. I genuinely hope that people giving this 10/10 are just high on the fumes of hype. For me, it's WAY to repetitive and it's missing a lot of what makes the soulsborne games so good. I'll hold out hope for Bloodborne 2 since this game has left me with very mixed feelings. I do admit that I'm somewhat biased as this is a game made by From Software, I was expecting more and as a result my final score may be somewhat low compared to if this was made by another developer.… Expand

2slavuta

Apr 21, 2019

5

Weak, very weak in comparison to number of mechanics and game play styles in Dark Souls. Few sword attacks, few tools that can be used rarely and a LOT of useless skills that make you feel stupid because of your decision and amount of time you spent to get them. All the time I felt that my time is not respected, hours of game play to become stronger, but no... you are not so strong andWeak, very weak in comparison to number of mechanics and game play styles in Dark Souls. Few sword attacks, few tools that can be used rarely and a LOT of useless skills that make you feel stupid because of your decision and amount of time you spent to get them. All the time I felt that my time is not respected, hours of game play to become stronger, but no... you are not so strong and never will be.
Weak, very weak art in comparison to BloodBorne. There was a few nice, but not breath-taking places, there were only several memorable but painful bosses.
I didn't feel the presence of magic like in other Miyazaki games, nothing except concentration and feeling tired from the game already on the third hour. I've finished the game because I've waited for something that has never arrived.
Bosses, oh these bosses. Too often, too alike, some are unreasonably strong - you rarely will be able to play the game, all the time you will just run for another attempt to defeat a boss. Some times even the same re-skinned boss, and here I mean many these "some times". It is obvious for me that the development time spent on game was not enough, so it was artificially enlarged.
There are few things that I liked: Ashina Castle, Senpou temple, and few bosses, first fight and secret of win. But this game did not bring me the joy, this game did not become center of my relaxation time as it was before with Dark Souls.… Expand

nating51

Apr 16, 2019

7

Nice game, great art direction, great combat system and all, but it lacks a lot from a replay value side. After you platinum'd the game, get all prosthetics, all skills and beat every boss, there's no real sense to play it again as the game experience will be the same over and over again. I like the action approach to this game, with no stats or classes, and I really appreciate the idea ofNice game, great art direction, great combat system and all, but it lacks a lot from a replay value side. After you platinum'd the game, get all prosthetics, all skills and beat every boss, there's no real sense to play it again as the game experience will be the same over and over again. I like the action approach to this game, with no stats or classes, and I really appreciate the idea of skill trees, but I would have preferred a game where you make your own "build" to accomplish the adventure, in order to make the game a lot more interesting (and creative to the player) in future playthrough. It would have increased the replay value to some extent.… Expand

volkermuller55

Mar 30, 2019

6

Say goodbye to armor, primary weapons, varied and complex builds, emotes and any other roleplaying elements, coop, and pvp. This is not a soulsborne game and fans of the soulsborne franchises should not be misled into believing that the gameplay is similar. Virtually every system has been overhauled, for better or worse.
In some ways this title is more friendly to new players thanSay goodbye to armor, primary weapons, varied and complex builds, emotes and any other roleplaying elements, coop, and pvp. This is not a soulsborne game and fans of the soulsborne franchises should not be misled into believing that the gameplay is similar. Virtually every system has been overhauled, for better or worse.
In some ways this title is more friendly to new players than previous ones because you'll never have to look at wall of stats that you'd have to dig around online to make sense of and you won't have the training scars from playing earlier titles. But in another way, it's much more hostile to new players because the difficulty scaling is unprecedented even for a From Software game.
Grinding is mostly ineffectual as the only reward you get for grinding is Sen (the primary currency, which can be used to purchase consumables and in some cases prosthetic attachments) and Skill Points, which are used to purchase new acrobatic abilities for your character (only one of which can be slotted at a time). You cannot increase your HP pool or Posture by grinding and you cannot summon friendly NPCs to assist you in boss fights, meaning that when you get stuck on a boss your only option is to continue slamming your head against that wall until you win or quit the game.
Many returning FromSoft fans that are hostile to new players, casuals, and the notion of accessibility in game design will see these changes as improvements, however I generally see them as a step backwards. I don't think it's good game design for the basic narrative elements to be inaccessible to many players (even some who are willing to spend countless hours trying to 'git gud').
My single biggest complaint with the game is the reductive nature of the new combat system. Many players seem to feel that the combat system is more complex than ever, but I disagree and I will enumerate my reasons why: Poise has been all but removed from the game, weapon arts have been replaced by acrobatic skills, stamina management was replaced by posture, spirit emblems effectively replaced FP, the prosthetic replaced spell attunement, and the jump mechanic replaced the kick. The vast array of sorceries, miracles, and pyromancies (96 total in dark souls 3) have been replaced by 11 prosthetic attachments. In Dark Souls or Bloodborne there are a wide variety of different play styles and approaches that are equally viable for completing the PVE content. You can be a strong dude with heavy armor, a giant, slow weapon, and tons of poise that just knocks bosses on their asses and manages damage trades. You can use spellcasting as your primary strategy for virtually every boss in the game. You can use a dex character with high mobility and fast weapons that inflict status effects like bleed on enemies. They all do the job, and this fantastic variety makes for excellent replay value (even for the players that aren't interested in challenge runs).
That's just not the case in Sekiro. You have one weapon, one basic play style, and bosses only have one or sometimes two different basic strategies that are viable to beat them. To make things worse, many of the acrobatic skills that can be acquired that are supposed to make the player feel like they're making progress and getting deeper gameplay are completely nullified by certain bosses. For example, unblockable thrust weapon attacks and some kicks can be countered with a skill called the mikiri counter and unblockable sweep attacks can be jumped over, followed by a swift kick to the face that deals a lot of posture damage. Certain bosses, like Genichiro Ashina (a required boss for story progression), for example, can completely nullify these abilities and punish the player for trying to take advantage of them. This removes depth from the combat and this tactic the developers use to increase the difficulty of the game is equally artificial as tactics like making a boss' attacks deal so much damage they're all one-shot kills or tripling the HP pool of the boss to make it harder.
It certainly feels like the central principal of this game's design was to make it extremely difficult without regard for making the gameplay feel fair, varied, or balanced.
These drawbacks are such an intrusive impediment to enjoying the game that they overshadow many pleasant qualities in the game. I like that they tried to challenge returning hardcore players by removing I-frames from dodges. I like the new grappling mechanic and how this frees up the artists who designed the maps to add an entirely new dimension to the areas you play in. The visuals and voice acting are superb, and there appears to be just as much effort put into developing the lore of this game universe as previous titles. There are tons of different boss fights to be had in this game with 15 bosses and 29 Mini-bosses, although some of them are effectively just re-skins. I love FromSoft and their games, but I think this one was simply a step in the wrong direction. 6/10… Expand

SnowProblemo

Apr 8, 2019

7

Honest opinion from a FromSoftware geek. I love Dark Souls and Bloodborne. At first glance this is very similar. After putting 50+ hours and finishing the game I feel this game has very limited replayability. I was actually relieved when I was finished because the last parts were mostly frustrating boss battles and reused areas. Don't get me wrong, I love FromSoftware bosses, but I alsoHonest opinion from a FromSoftware geek. I love Dark Souls and Bloodborne. At first glance this is very similar. After putting 50+ hours and finishing the game I feel this game has very limited replayability. I was actually relieved when I was finished because the last parts were mostly frustrating boss battles and reused areas. Don't get me wrong, I love FromSoftware bosses, but I also enjoy the exploration and lore, which is scant in comparison to other Soulsborne games. Also, the absence of co-op play is a letdown and the frequent use of recycled areas, mini-bosses and even main bosses made me a bit weary. I gave a 7 because, although it's a good game, I feel it's below FromSoftware standards and after a few days of play the joy ran out, something that didn't happened so quick with their other titles.… Expand

Vaxkang

Apr 8, 2019

7

Great at times, tedious at times. After 45 hours or so I would have to admit this game is a step back from previous games. The game itself is punishing to start but you do get better, gamers will typically get to a point where it starts to feel tedious though.

The combat is all about the timing and deflections and it is hard, very hard. That in itself is not a bad thing but theGreat at times, tedious at times. After 45 hours or so I would have to admit this game is a step back from previous games. The game itself is punishing to start but you do get better, gamers will typically get to a point where it starts to feel tedious though.

The combat is all about the timing and deflections and it is hard, very hard. That in itself is not a bad thing but the payoff is very poorly done. You really get nothing for your hard work, all those deaths and trying over and over....no armour, no new weapons. The skill tree just eventually gets full, there is no real build to try.

Most people will just look up cheese strats, so many online to choose from. The combat has some depth but there will be zero depth in replayability. I like the game, I do not love it like I have with other From Software games.… Expand

Guttenor

Apr 11, 2019

7

In this game, you will be fighting bosses for most of the time - I've reached the final boss by the way. So, what about the combat? Well, you are pretty much glued face to face with your opponent for 80% of the time. Sekiro is a fighting game (with some light stealth segments).
There are two genres of games I don't like and never have: sport games and fighting games.
Also, there is zeroIn this game, you will be fighting bosses for most of the time - I've reached the final boss by the way. So, what about the combat? Well, you are pretty much glued face to face with your opponent for 80% of the time. Sekiro is a fighting game (with some light stealth segments).
There are two genres of games I don't like and never have: sport games and fighting games.
Also, there is zero weapon variety which makes the combat even more lackluster.
What a pity.
Oh well, I'm sure FROM will be back with a great action RPG after this little misstep.

On the positive side, the atmosphere is really nice and almost have the same qualities as the souls games and Bb.… Expand

KyoshiLoneheart

Apr 2, 2019

5

Sekiro is a game I wanted to love. Being a huge Dark Souls fan, I was looking forward to From Software trying something new with their expertise. Instead, we get a game that has an identity crisis and so many design blunders that is is depressingly astounding.

The combat itself is visceral, fast and when it is all flowing together, it feels like a dream. It can be incredibly fun inSekiro is a game I wanted to love. Being a huge Dark Souls fan, I was looking forward to From Software trying something new with their expertise. Instead, we get a game that has an identity crisis and so many design blunders that is is depressingly astounding.

The combat itself is visceral, fast and when it is all flowing together, it feels like a dream. It can be incredibly fun in those moments. However, there is a clear as day lack of variety in the game overall. Weapon variety is at an absolute minimum, with the only new things you acquire being prosthetic tools and new moves. This simply doesn't hold a candle to From's past games where variety was one of the strongest aspects.

The game has a focus on stealth that also can be fun when you are taking enemies down one by one in rapid succession without being noticed, but this too suffers from immense simplicity in its execution. The stealth system boils down to 'enemy has a cone over their head, hide for a bit, they forget you ever existed.' and it is hilarious how easily exploitable this is. The stealth can be fun, but it is nothing revolutionary in the slightest.

Then comes some of the game's biggest issues. The bosses for one. Almost none of them are memorable. The game is filled to the brim with sub-bosses, to the point of over-saturation. Many of these are so strong that it always verges on being cheap. The main reason is that many of them don't make sense. A samurai general in armor with a huge sword taking hits and dealing big damage? That makes sense. A ragtag woman wearing cloth and straw that uses a metal rod with a dinky blade attached to it doing the same thing? Makes zero sense. This boss in particular can kill you in two hits and yet she absorbs sword blows like they are nothing. Unlike the Souls games, it holds no consistency in its design.

Continuing further with the bosses, the amount of 100% recycled bosses here is laughable and honestly quite pathetic. Unlike Dark Souls 1 where they reused something like the Asylum demon but perhaps changed the moveset a bit or his appearance, in Sekiro, several bosses are literally copied and pasted 100%, sometimes more than once. Absolutely nothing is different about them except for the name. Eventually I started laughing whenever I would see a clone of a boss I already killed. Like it was a twin sibling or something. It is lazy and deserves no praise, especially when the bosses themselves are already not memorable in the first place.

The pacing can also be a total nightmare. Unlike in Dark Souls where each new boss encounter usually felt grand and important because of the pacing, Sekiro instead goes for a pace that doesn't know what to do. Sometimes you will go at least 30 minutes without a boss, giving you ample time to explore your surroundings and take in the atmosphere, other times you will have *3* sub bosses in the span of 5 minutes, and considering some of these can absolutely wreck your world even after the slightest mistake, it becomes draining and tiring. Combine this with locations that are not memorable, it eventually makes each new area not worth any excitement.

Another massive issue I have is the story. Maybe I am missing something entirely, in fact I HOPE I am missing something, because the story as I see it is barebones and shallow. Whereas in Dark Souls the story is fed to you in increments and through item descriptions. here it is like that, but somehow even less informative. Characters often don't have anything interesting to say and the main character himself hardly says anything worthwhile, often just repeating what an NPC just said only in question form (basically Solid Snake the entire time) or he grunts in response to things. He is hardly fleshed out even after many hours into the game. The basic premise of the game isn't special. It is about as generic as you can get for Japanese storytelling. A generic kid who happens to be a 'divine heir' has a special power in his blood and bad guys want that power to do bad guy things. That is your ENTIRE motivation. It is boring and holds absolutely no weight compared to Dark Souls.

As you can tell, I have a lot of issues with this game, but I don't hate it. There are times where I am having a ton of fun, but that fun is often interrupted by bad design, terrible pacing and a snooze-worthy story. The game also lacks most customization from past FromSoft games, so the replayability is also very low. I wanted to love this game, but instead I find it to be painfully average in most regards. It in no way deserves the current 90 critic score it has. It lacks focus and finesse. It is often too punishing for too little reward and it doesn't have anything to truly hook you like a Dark Souls title. I have compared this game to Dark Souls a lot for good reason, because I know from those games that From Software is capable of so much more. For now, I can only hope they take lessons from this game and do better.… Expand

Sunykamey

Mar 31, 2019

5

Sekiro is hard and for all the wrong reasons. Yes this is a from software game but what DS & BB did was give you a feeling of achievement and progress when overcoming those obstacles which is missing totally in this game. It feels like they deliberately made this game hard, punishing and not fulfilling. It just baffles me as to why they took this route when their other games where -Sekiro is hard and for all the wrong reasons. Yes this is a from software game but what DS & BB did was give you a feeling of achievement and progress when overcoming those obstacles which is missing totally in this game. It feels like they deliberately made this game hard, punishing and not fulfilling. It just baffles me as to why they took this route when their other games where - despite the difficulty - well received and loved whereas this game will/is not. Yes there are people enjoying it and I'm happy for them. I've played easily over 800h in from's worlds and the games never felt undeserved except in defined areas/locals. This game however has a convoluted gameplay system, very hard to master/even grasp mechanics and enemies that just are not fun to play against. Yes you can master it but to what end? Just for the sake of it?
There is no reason to play through it again unless you want to platinum or show others how (get) "good" you are. No different builds but only different "prostetics".
I'm just disappointed in the final product because they could have made a(-nother) masterpiece yet focused too hard on difficulty than fun/feeling of overcoming obstacles.
In my opinion a game isn't good because it is hard. A game has to have some traits that define it other than the difficulty and overall has to be fun to be played. This game doesn't give me satisfaction (in killing enemies, bosses, progressing), it just drags on. Not worth it for me hope you like it.… Expand

Ventrus

Apr 1, 2019

7

In Sekiro, From Software boils down the combat of Dark Souls and Bloodborne to it’s most brutal and intimate – where constant engagement with the enemy is required to succeed. However, much of the variety and satisfaction that is typical of From’s other Souls- like games has also be been boiled away. Partly due to the setting and theme of the game, but I fear it is also because FromIn Sekiro, From Software boils down the combat of Dark Souls and Bloodborne to it’s most brutal and intimate – where constant engagement with the enemy is required to succeed. However, much of the variety and satisfaction that is typical of From’s other Souls- like games has also be been boiled away. Partly due to the setting and theme of the game, but I fear it is also because From Software are starting to believe their own hype.

The commitment to sword fighting certainly gives Sekiro it’s own flavour and soul. You defeat enemies through strict attacks, parries and deflection usually when the enemy telegraphs a specific move. ‘Hanging Back’ or Shield/Tanking will get you murdered fast. Some encounters have large arenas but ‘giving yourself room’ will only just prolong your very certain death. Most fights require you to waltz in uncomfortably close proximity to very intimidating people – a waltz you instinctually fight against.

Your agency as a player becomes limited once you are close enough to fight, as responses need to be very specific. This translates to reduced satisfaction – I didn’t ‘beat’ bosses so much as I responded in the required way to their actions – never really feeling like I had overcome the enemy – but was only allowed pass the area after following the enemies orders.

At times it seems that the game is trying to be frustrating for the sake of its own rep (as opposed to increased satisfaction of victory).

Specifically with bosses whose attack telegraphing is so subtle that it’s incredibly difficult to figure out what attack is coming in the 1 second you have to react. You need to be very active and get toe to toe with the boss, but you absolutely cannot trade blows either because your health bar is some sort of prank for those gullible enough to think it makes any difference to your survivability.

Most boss hits will either knock off 90 percent of your entire bar, our just outright kill you. Any hit you survive will require 2 seconds to heal, an action which some bosses are programmed to leap across the arena in that very moment and immediately remove that health you just got back.

Sekiro bloody knows this too. There is a resurrection mechanic whereby you resurrect where you died (sometimes resurrecting twice is possible depending on progress) to continue the fight. Which tells me that the developers knew how cheap death could be and added the respawn mechanic after developing the main combat to help balance things.

I can already hear the response that this was due to the plot thread of immortality and resurrection – but that would work anyway from the fact that you can revive at a bonfire (called buddha ‘Idols’’) like other Souls-like games. The resurrection mechanic feels like a development patch.

Sekiro seems to be heading towards another critical point of Souls-like in the form of ‘shared knowledge’ – where much of the content is discovered through communities/wikis. I found this to be much less appropriate in Sekiro because it is definitely a single player game – there’s no co-op or invasions. I’m also pretty sure I would still be stuck on some of the bosses now if I hadn’t looked up solutions.

I thought about a time when I was playing games before I had the internet, and if I was playing Sekiro then there would be no way I’d have figured this out. And it’s not optional stuff either – its critical path main story progress.

This is not a bad game, in fact it has many of the good quality for Froms other souls like. Great areas to explore, will designed characters and and interesting story - But it's pushing too far in the name of its own rep. The builds, magic, dodge rolling of other games is gone but not replaced with anything as substantial. The prosthetic tools are surprizingly useless as you ultimately need to play guitar hero with each encounter. There is no creativeness in success. Just tap in line with how the developers demand, to be allowed continue.

I have not enough space to flash out specifics, but a more in dept and more or less spoiler-free review can be found on my site:

theboilingpot dot net

I was able to play to the end but I took so little away when comparing to Froms other games. Each encounter victory did not leave me with a quickened heart rate but with a feeling of jumping through hoops at the whim of developers who felt they needed to reach a saltiness quota.

Sekiro is a game with alot of quality yet is never reached the impact as it otherwise may have.… Expand

Hobobo

Mar 25, 2019

5

Not as good as I was expecting. I've played all the Souls games and Bloodborne is my second favorite game of all time. Sekiro though... it doesn't hold up as well as those other titles. Some of my main gripes are as follows;

- No Armor? Wow, I can't believe I'm actually typing that, but Sekiro has no armor/loot system. That's one of the most fun aspects of Souls games in my opinion. INot as good as I was expecting. I've played all the Souls games and Bloodborne is my second favorite game of all time. Sekiro though... it doesn't hold up as well as those other titles. Some of my main gripes are as follows;

- No Armor? Wow, I can't believe I'm actually typing that, but Sekiro has no armor/loot system. That's one of the most fun aspects of Souls games in my opinion. I loved grinding enemies for different loot/weapons. Not sure why they scrapped such a cool aspect of their games.

- Guard system is pointless and broken. I just run around and poke bosses to death or find other means to cheese them because the combat is so broken. There's no poise or shields in this game. Instead FromSoft wants players to block with a little sword? What??? Most enemies will destroy your guard and instakill you if you try to block.

- Dodge frames have been nerfed. The dodging in this game is terrible and has almost no invincible frames like past games. It's practically impossible to dodge boss ultimate attacks, you'll have to pop some food buffs and just pray your vitality can tank the hit because dodging is very unsafe. This mixed in with the bad guard system makes things an all around mess.

- Weak boss line up. Most bosses/ mini bosses are just dudes with swords/lances/guns. It gets pretty uninteresting half way through the game. Granted there are like 4 boss fights that are cool, but you gotta grit through all the boring stuff to get to them.

I could keep going, but I really don't want to waste much more time on this game. Sekiro is pretty mediocre and that's unfortunate for Souls fans because now we're left waiting for the next installment to those good games. Luckily, if you're looking for a good samurai souls game to play in the meantime, I highly recommend checking out Nioh. It's a much better attempt at this genre than Sekiro is in my opinion and the DLC is some of the hardest/funnest stuff I've played. It also has an amazing loot system to boot.… Expand

AloyOfNora

Mar 25, 2019

7

To provide some background, I have completely soloed every Dark Souls game and Bloodborne multiple times and have well over 500 hours combined in them.

The artwork of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is absolutely incredible. Beautiful colors and designs are a treat. The vertical traversal with your arm prosthetic is also a delight, acting as a Hookshot from the Zelda series but with aTo provide some background, I have completely soloed every Dark Souls game and Bloodborne multiple times and have well over 500 hours combined in them.

The artwork of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is absolutely incredible. Beautiful colors and designs are a treat. The vertical traversal with your arm prosthetic is also a delight, acting as a Hookshot from the Zelda series but with a delightful elegance and animation. Vertical exploration and traversal is great. Where this game falters is primarily with the poorly designed combat, which is built from the ground up around a Posture system...and the boss design.

The Posture system is a mess, giving the combat a SPAM feel. It's essentially a glorified and fancy QTE system, with much less emphasis on precise dodging and more on mashing appropriate buttons at appropriate times (colored symbols are also flashed). The entire combat system feels like big regression from FromSoftware masterpieces in the past. Also gone are stat values and variety in weapons and armor, leading to shallow, linear and limited character progression.

Boss design is also very disappointing and a tremendous step backwards from previous games. Bosses are nowhere near as fun to fight and feel less rewarding to defeat, despite all bosses being easier than the hardest Soulsborne bosses.

Overall, Sekiro is a solid game with fun to be had, but it is easily the worst FromSoftware game in over a decade. Hopefully, FromSoftware will deliver a sequel to their masterpiece Bloodborne and learn from missteps made in Sekiro.… Expand

kuronami

Apr 26, 2019

7

Rice girl a best.
It's really frustrating that the whole game is so one-sided and focused on parrying. A bit of a step back from soulsborne with all its variety.
DO IT FOR HER

Grandmaster7

Mar 29, 2019

5

this is not the kind of game from FS that we would like to see, it's a curve slasher that you get tired of, removed the old mechanics by adding slasher elements...

Zidane_Mina

Apr 1, 2019

7

A good game with interesitn combat mechanics. Unlike FromSoftware predecesors, Sekiro is build arround one single build: shinobi. Parry and counters are key to victory, and rolling out of attacks is not as a good move like it was in Bloodborne or the Souls Games, meaning here agresion and parry are the keys to achieve victory.

The problem i have with this is that removes plenty ofA good game with interesitn combat mechanics. Unlike FromSoftware predecesors, Sekiro is build arround one single build: shinobi. Parry and counters are key to victory, and rolling out of attacks is not as a good move like it was in Bloodborne or the Souls Games, meaning here agresion and parry are the keys to achieve victory.

The problem i have with this is that removes plenty of options for diferent playthoughs, since experimentation is way smaller than any other games, and it sometimes feels like the game cracked the dificulty dial way to high. Unlike the other games, whenever i defeated some bosses in Sekiro i did not felt accomplished, but more on the lines of "finally getting rid of that guy", insted of feeling victorious, i felt the pain finaly came to an end, which is the wrong kind of relief in my book.

Most of the bosses felt uninspired, except for 3 grand ones that will stick in my memory for years to come: Divine Dragon, Lord Genishiro and "The Saint Sword", being the last one the greatest boss ever developed by FromSoftware.

In the end, even tough i think this is a good game, i don't see myself returning to it in the near future, hence why i cant give it a higher score. I wanted to love this game, but i could not.… Expand

KnightimeX

Mar 28, 2019

7

Fun game with balance issues.
Posture gimmick defeats the purpose of a health bar. Build it up and watch 100% of their life drop to zero in a devastating death blow attack.
You're going to need to get used to this as your sword is inferior to plastic knives in terms of damage. When it comes to dealing damage enemies might as well have lightsabers. You can do a 10 hit combo and ifFun game with balance issues.
Posture gimmick defeats the purpose of a health bar. Build it up and watch 100% of their life drop to zero in a devastating death blow attack.
You're going to need to get used to this as your sword is inferior to plastic knives in terms of damage.
When it comes to dealing damage enemies might as well have lightsabers.
You can do a 10 hit combo and if you're lucky the enemy MIGHT notice a slight itch going on only to find you struggling to do any kind of damage.
Why the player has a posture gauge is beyond me.
Attack the enemy 50 times you'll get about 50% of the job done.
Get hit once by the enemy and you'll slip into a small seizure party.

If you're looking for a hardcore blocking simulator this game is for you.
It's a fun game but hardly in the same league as Bloodborne or any other souls game for that matter.… Expand

cottandy

Apr 9, 2019

7

The most annoying game, I have ever played. And the controls are most uncomfortable.
And at the same time, it's good.
But return my nerves.

MrFlankster

Apr 10, 2019

5

It was great until Genechiro Ashina. I fought him 103 times. I can't get past him. I consider myself great at Demon/Dark Souls, Bloodbourne, and Nioh. This has gotten obonixious.

The great thing about FromSoftware is that they have always made their games EXTREMELY challenge, but never punished the player. There was always a feeling of accomplishment what FS games when you finallyIt was great until Genechiro Ashina. I fought him 103 times. I can't get past him. I consider myself great at Demon/Dark Souls, Bloodbourne, and Nioh. This has gotten obonixious.

The great thing about FromSoftware is that they have always made their games EXTREMELY challenge, but never punished the player. There was always a feeling of accomplishment what FS games when you finally beat that boss you really had to work toward beating. THAT HAS CHANGED. If you get better and defending, you get punished. They speed up the patterns. You learn that, and they give a delay in your reaction times when buttons are pressed. I thought this was all in my head. Apparently, I'm not the only one that has figured this out.

I'm severely disappointed in this one. I feel like its a giant MIDDLE finger to devoted fans. There is so much potential, but please don't punish devoted fans. I love FS games of past because they break up the monotony of the same ol' same ol', but come on.

The only reason I give it a 5 and not lower is because there are moments of greatness, but they need to balance out some of the boss battles.… Expand

Indrigis

Mar 29, 2019

7

Let me start by saying that if you're a die hard fan of Dank Souls and I Wanna Be The Guy, Sekiro might be a 9 if not a 10 for you. I am not such a fan, so I grant it a 7. Generously.

Sekiro looks gorgeous, that much is true. It just lacks free roam content that is there for viewing only. Everything is functional, sadly, so you don't get to just look in awe. However, gameplay-wise itLet me start by saying that if you're a die hard fan of Dank Souls and I Wanna Be The Guy, Sekiro might be a 9 if not a 10 for you. I am not such a fan, so I grant it a 7. Generously.

Sekiro looks gorgeous, that much is true. It just lacks free roam content that is there for viewing only. Everything is functional, sadly, so you don't get to just look in awe.

However, gameplay-wise it feels like a DS game turned to 11. As if the designer listened to the fans chanting "hardcore, so hard, so fun, so elite, truly Dark Souls is the Dark Souls of gaming", shrugged and said "well, if that is the only thing you care about..." and then just pushed every other concern aside.

Despite what was promised early on, the "Shinobi" part is pretty bleak. Stealth and subterfuge are not really Wolf's strong suit and most enemies are placed in such ways that killing them stealthily takes time and doesn't pay extra. Skipping entire groups of enemies means depriving yourself of experience, money and items. Besides that, many grapple points are placed just far enough apart that you won't be able to spiderman your way through, forcing you to crouch and creep around between grappling, breaking any tempo you might have had.

Then there's the combat. It comes with a major problem - normal enemies are fast, come in groups and have no friendly fire whatsoever. You let go of the block button once and take a flaming arrow to the face, said arrow coming straight through three or four enemies. Annoying, isn't it? Also, nothing staggers, unlike you. So you can take an axe to the face with no warning or prior parry, just because the enemy decided to swing it and there's nothing you could do. Parry is the name of the game but it doesn't add depth, just width. You can only git gud mechanically, but not strategically, sadly.

The worst offender is the camera. While it's nice of the developers to try and help the player ever so slightly, the target lock and camera reset are on the same button and target lock has a mind of its own and shifts around if you try to move the camera because... you guessed it. "Switch target" is on the same four buttons as "rotate camera". There's a setting for targeting aid when not locked on, but the game doesn't seem to aid me even slightly - without target lock enemies just sidestep while Wolf keeps moving forward even if I rotate the camera mid-combo.

And while I am all for understanding that Sekiro is not a slasher like DmC V, I can't help noticing that Wolf moves so fast and jumps so high his physics are much more fit for an arcade rather than a "hardcore" swordfighting game.… Expand

GreyFox_7

Mar 29, 2019

5

For their sake I hope they don't do another game like this as the next round won't have the sales to go with it if user response is any indication and they have a loyal and good fanbase from Soulsborne and I didn't think anything could make Bloodborne look even better than it is but this game does just that. The combat and systems in Soulsbourne are deliberate and Bloodborne has theFor their sake I hope they don't do another game like this as the next round won't have the sales to go with it if user response is any indication and they have a loyal and good fanbase from Soulsborne and I didn't think anything could make Bloodborne look even better than it is but this game does just that. The combat and systems in Soulsbourne are deliberate and Bloodborne has the perfect mixture of SP, co op, PVP, story, combat, etc. That's the formula they should stick to and as long as they do those these one offs shouldn't be a big deal but it's going to get the review it deserves regardless of past games.… Expand

setuis

Mar 28, 2019

6

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. From Software has downgraded "player choice" (a sword , an axe , a flame thing and useless shurikens and i can't progress orge keeps throwing me over cliff as circle block doesn't work properly sometimes) , Downgraded " Customisation " the lack of no characterisation and the slow grinding need to acquire a very limited skill tree (currenty 2 the starting one and unlockable prothetis one) added mechanics that a player cannot 100% rely on e.g you can't do the game purely with hit run and escape to stealth mechanics as bosses/mini bosses such as chain orge heal. This is punishing , devoid of fun and my absolute worst purchase of 2019 so far considering devil may cry 5 is better as is the first nioh game. Why show off stealth mechanics if they don't work for bigger enemies and the death mechanic to revive to take down enemies doesn't work either so there is no dying and killing like i saw else where its basically false advertising . Jumping is nice accept when trying to grab ledge as it won't always register your trying to grab ledge. Grappling hook is nice but has no use in combat even through i took the grappling hook skill. Orge kills me with grab again turns back walks 5-10 steps but yet some how knows i have revived???. wtf is this?. The story is better than dark souls/demon souls but i cannot progress in any form due to shobi items costing in game currency, they don't even give you a set amount for free. The lack of stat system means no gaining health, no gaining attack power that's all done with items now and beating mini bosses by trying to beat poorly designed crap for hours on end, the souls games where doable for disabled people this garbage isn't. The posture system is load of bull to its basically there to justify boss armor or artifical health. Considering that videos i saw showed players dying then combing back to life to do stealth hit i feel i was lied too by promotional materials.… Expand

Edgard86

Apr 26, 2019

7

Fico triste em dar uma nota 7 para um jogo da From, porém é o maximo que o Sekiro merece de mim...Zerei o game..Esse jogo foi bem frustante. Esperava algo épico como um darksouls ou Blood, porém o jogo se resume em você ser o Rei do Parry. Me desanimou, ou vc mata os chefes sendo o Rei do parry ou não tem outra opção... Se você gosta de ficar dando parrys todo tempo, vá em frente, agora seFico triste em dar uma nota 7 para um jogo da From, porém é o maximo que o Sekiro merece de mim...Zerei o game..Esse jogo foi bem frustante. Esperava algo épico como um darksouls ou Blood, porém o jogo se resume em você ser o Rei do Parry. Me desanimou, ou vc mata os chefes sendo o Rei do parry ou não tem outra opção... Se você gosta de ficar dando parrys todo tempo, vá em frente, agora se espera algo equilibrado como jogos Souls, esqueça, Sekiro será bem frustante, o jogo se resume em dar parrys perfeitos seguidos na velocidade da luz.. Frustrante, com sérios problemas na camera, desequilibrado, injusto e punitivo, prazer isso é Sekiro.. o ultimo chefe tem 4 fases, algo irritante e injusto, surreal, estressante.. vc perderá hrs nels, ou talvez dias.. Sou amante da franquia SoulsBorne, Demons...mas nao serei de Sekiro. PSN do Game play: Edgard_ 1986… Expand

PhillusMaximus

Apr 2, 2019

7

So, quick information bout me to classify my review:
- played other From Games before (started with Bloodborne, DarkSouls 2, DarkSolus 1, DarkSouls 3) and enjoyed them all
- about 1-2 hours of time for video games under the week Review: I really hoped to get teased for a Bloodborne2, so I was slightly disappointed when I heard about a game Shadows Die Twice instead. Nevertheless ISo, quick information bout me to classify my review:
- played other From Games before (started with Bloodborne, DarkSouls 2, DarkSolus 1, DarkSouls 3) and enjoyed them all
- about 1-2 hours of time for video games under the week

Review:
I really hoped to get teased for a Bloodborne2, so I was slightly disappointed when I heard about a game Shadows Die Twice instead. Nevertheless I was hyped for Sekiro and tried to spoil me as less as I can bout the game. After buying it together with my mates, I found out about the biggest disappointment so far: nur Coop / PVP.
Two of my mates directly sold the game, I thought that I still would want to try it.

Now, about 40 hours in the game, I am happy that I did not sell it but I have to admit that I don't quite enjoy it as it did with SoulsBorne. The game is good, graphic + story + scenery + bosses + difficulty, but you always feel like you are doing the same thing as everybody else.. No individual skilling-options, no individual stats to higher, no armory, no weapons..
So yeah, your hyped like in the games before, to finally beat a boss after hours of trying and learning their movesets. But at the same time it is disappointing because the game forces you to beat it that one way, no options to create your own unique style of playing, beating the bosses or just dressing your character.

I know now, that it was never meant to be a game like the Souls series, but importing so much stuff from the other games and than taking away so much from it feels weird.

Don't get me wrong, I like playing it and I would buy it again, but other than the Souls games, I will probably not play NG+ / NG++ / ... / NG+49 because it would be the exact same over and over again...

I like the try and I hope this gave From Studios a good increase in their player-base, but I hope that they will get back to their original concept.… Expand

makarparshin

Apr 24, 2019

7

The game is good, beautiful truth, bagannaya bit.

But this does not negate the fact that it is very atmospheric. And hardcore is only deeper, plunges into the world of the game. This is something else between Dark Souls and the bloodborne. Very fit! But for now I’ll give her a grade of 7/10 because I didn’t play it but I’ll play soon, I assure you. Well, do not forget that thisThe game is good, beautiful truth, bagannaya bit.

But this does not negate the fact that it is very atmospheric.
And hardcore is only deeper, plunges into the world of the game.

This is something else between Dark Souls and the bloodborne. Very fit!
But for now I’ll give her a grade of 7/10 because I didn’t play it but I’ll play soon, I assure you.

Well, do not forget that this is an example.
And so the game can be at all 10/10
Believe me!!!… Expand

CraigEchols

Mar 23, 2019

7

Not a bad game, just don't understand what the hype is about.

Given all the hype that was surrounding this game, I was really looking forward to it, and in all honest I have enjoyed playing it. I just don't get what everyone is so up in arms with it about. For starters, the game's story is really good, honestly, with a character you can really sink your time into in Sekiro. It'sNot a bad game, just don't understand what the hype is about.

Given all the hype that was surrounding this game, I was really looking forward to it, and in all honest I have enjoyed playing it. I just don't get what everyone is so up in arms with it about.

For starters, the game's story is really good, honestly, with a character you can really sink your time into in Sekiro. It's FromSoftware's first protagonist that you can actually develop with in terms of character. Sekiro is a pure bad-ass for sure. While the grappling hook is a clear steal from a well known Nintendo franchise, it is used very well in this game in for the stealth aspect. The action overall action isn't bad either.

Thank you for finally adding a freaking jump button. That may not seem like much of a concern to others, but a jump button really helps me manuaver through a battle better than simply rolling/dodging. That's just me. Also, I love the "no stamina" gauge idea. Personally, I always felt that games that featured a stamina gauge steered the advantage towards enemies/bosses because it always seemed like they had unlimited stamina (even if they had a gauge).

So why the mediocre 7/10 score? To put it simply, this game doesn't really add anything new to the genre for me. Let's be real, if this wasn't a FromSoftware game, would you even care? Let's take off the rose-colored glasses for a second.

First off, as mentioned by others, the only main weapon in this game is a katana (and some shuriken). While it may not seem like a big deal, it really is. It makes every battle the same. Either you stealth stab someone with your sword, or you rush an cut them with your sword. In ancient history, ninjas (shinobi included) used various weapons such as blowguns, caltrops, hook swords, chigiriki (flail), kusari-gama (chained-blade), polearms, and even some bows. So, why the lack of variety in this game? Even the most basic of action games gave the player a bit of variety in order to help them decide how to approach battles. Even the 8 bit Zelda games gave you a bow and a hammer.

The graphics leave a bit to be desired (especially from a 2019), however, that doesn't bother me quite as much as others. As long as the game doesn't break, I'm OK with it.

Going back to combat, it feels really weird that the game is based off of breaking enemy guard and parrying, and yet, there is no stamina. It sort of makes you sit back and say, "Well, what't the difference?" because, well, what is the difference? Isn't that a stamina thing? Fights are more fast-paced, but it given you essentially have to use the same patience as other FromSoftware titles, it can make harder battles (particularly boss battles) feel like "hurry up and wait" kind of strategy.

Also, for a game that is getting such praise, I expected something...different. Pretty much every mechanic from this game has been used before in wide variety. The grappling hook, as mentioned, was used in the Zelda games, the parrying/guard-break mechanic was used in many games including previous FromSoftware titles, the cinematic death-dealing blows have been used by God of War since the beginning, reviving on the spot or at previous checkpoints has been used in pretty much every game, the ninja stealth mechanic was the basis of the entire Shinobido series (hell Sekiro even looks like Goh from that game), even the revenge story in this game is pretty copy and paste from various other revenge story games.

I think that because this is a FromSoftware title, its getting quite a bit more accolade than it deserves. That's not to say this is a bad game because its not. In terms of action games, it should satisfy anyone who has an itch for it with FS's trademark difficulty. However, as far as anything special or new to the genre, I would argue that Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice is more original than Sekiro.

TL;DR: Not a bad game, just over-hyped.… Expand

wollathet

Mar 31, 2019

6

As a long time fan of FromSoftware games I was really looking forward to this, especially given everything that Bloodborne brought to the series which was a welcome change, Sekiro has disappointed me. The game is hard, yes, but it’s made harder through the new levelling system where you collect prayer beads for vitality increase and memories for attack from bosses and mini-bosses. ThatAs a long time fan of FromSoftware games I was really looking forward to this, especially given everything that Bloodborne brought to the series which was a welcome change, Sekiro has disappointed me. The game is hard, yes, but it’s made harder through the new levelling system where you collect prayer beads for vitality increase and memories for attack from bosses and mini-bosses. That means there’s no longer the ability to farm xp and develop a build to suit the players style and work to have a balance to deal with everything the game throws at you. Instead there is a skill tree, which is pretty decent, but without getting to invest into attack, healthy, stamina, or defence, you still have the same attack power and health until the bosses are dealt with. Rather than take chances, there is a tendency to play with caution and not use the abilities in the same manner you would in other games. Unfortunately the enemy design is pretty bland, meaning you will encounter the same enemies time and time again and use the same technique of block, parry, counter with a deathblow, instead of relying on the skills learned.

Sekiro introduces a new stealth mechanic but it’s underwhelming. Facing multiple enemies head on is sure to get you killed, so instead you’re to watch, wait and take enemies out silently. The problem is in the takedowns; they aren’t very stealthy and will alert nearby enemies in a second. Leaping from above will yield the same results, and the is no option to drop down silently. Instead, you have to pick a direction and leap forward. It’s clunky, and feels thrown on at the end as it doesn’t differ from the DSBB drop attacks and backstabs. Obviously it’s a problem on the ground too with not being able to silently move from cover to cover of traverse objects. It’s only truly effective when moving in tall grass. Cheesing enemies is possibly but it means that you stealth one, run and hide and repeat.

I wish I could like this a lot more, but sadly I’m not enjoying my time with it and I rarely play for more than 90 minutes and I start getting tired of it. The boss fights are different and you have to pay attention. It’s required to take some time and defend to learn the attacks and each is refreshing but the key is always parry and counter. Unfortunately after dealing with much of the enemies in the same was there is a loss of excitement when makes moments fall a bit flat; the ending fight (I think I got worst ending) is really anti-climactic

I cant see myself coming back to it again. It’s a shame, as I really wanted to like this, but at times it felt like an effort to preserve when the same type of enemies are ahead. Yes, people will say that if you don’t like it you’re a causal and don’t deserve the game, but that’s not a tight argument, and I don’t believe the game should have an easy mode. The problems with Sekiro are towards the mechanics and the game design which relies too heavily on repetition. If you enjoy this, and like your games to be Sisyphean then you will probably get something here, but if not, you may find it to be an uneventful slog… Expand

spaghetti-cop

Mar 31, 2019

7

I've been all over the place with Sekiro. When I started it, I was hooked. The combat was interesting as were the story and characters; just what I've come to expect from Fromsoft. Then I hit a couple brick walls that made me wonder if the game was for me. Several bosses felt way overpowered while my own options were lacking. Make a couple mistakes and you die. I was very close the puttingI've been all over the place with Sekiro. When I started it, I was hooked. The combat was interesting as were the story and characters; just what I've come to expect from Fromsoft. Then I hit a couple brick walls that made me wonder if the game was for me. Several bosses felt way overpowered while my own options were lacking. Make a couple mistakes and you die. I was very close the putting the game down and chocking it up to it "not being for me."

I decided I would trudge through, and I'm glad that I did. The game has some really special moments and the story does a great job at motivating you to see them all. My combat abilities were expanding as quickly as my shinobi arsenal, and I finally got into the groove. I'm glad I stuck it out because I started to have a lot of fun...but

Then I hit a few more brick walls and the process began anew. Another ridiculously hard boss here or there that I eventually overcame after immense mental fatigue. Once I got through, the game gave me more areas to explore in its final act than what I'm used to in a Fromsoft game which was very cool. What wasn't very cool was fighting 4-5 of the sub/bosses again but either palette swapped or in greater numbers...lame. I really hate padding in my games and soulsborne games usually do a pretty good job of avoiding that..

Once I worked my way to the end the hardest boss I've ever fought was in my way of seeing the credits roll. This guy killed me countless times and the game forces you to LIGHT SPOILERS fight each of its forms every time you retry. I was getting really exhausted by the end of it, and when I finally hit the killing blow and the credits rolled I thought to myself "Damn that was barely worth the effort"

This is a solid, quality video game to be sure, but it's really held back by how ridiculously difficult it is. Better telegraphed unblockable moves, snappier inputs (sekiro sometimes just doesn't register button presses which is very irksome in a game that requires so much precision), a better battle camera, and a little trimming of the fat and this game would be a strong 9. As it stands now, I have to give it a 7.5. It just felt like the game didn't want me to enjoy it. It just wanted to dump on me at every opportunity.… Expand

roastbird

Mar 23, 2019

5

3 a.m. here and i am giving up.

First impression: Nioh in a DS shell. Story is ok. Then the game system. I won't say it is difficult or something, I survived until lady butterfly. The real problem is, The game is hard is not because of trap/skill or anything the same in Dark soul series. The game is hard because you have 0 skills(Deflect and Attack with a sword to the end), 33 a.m. here and i am giving up.

First impression: Nioh in a DS shell.
Story is ok.
Then the game system.

I won't say it is difficult or something, I survived until lady butterfly.
The real problem is,
The game is hard is not because of trap/skill or anything the same in Dark soul series.
The game is hard because you have
0 skills(Deflect and Attack with a sword to the end),
3 HP(any enemy can kill you in two hit)
And your enemies, "supernatural", "space-magic", etc

I will say it is super fun at the beginning,
soon you will found everything is same,
and you are not getting strong when you win a boss fight or anything
and you don't really care about the story....
And nothing to explore or discover...

Luckily I bought game stop pre-order return service....
Yeah, I want my money back… Expand

THE_COCONUT_MAN

Mar 24, 2019

5

I really love the atmosphere and setting, it feels like it could of been a next gen Tenchu game, which would of been awesome.

Overall it's Dark Souls-esque without the RPG elements or any sense of variety. If you're a fan of Nioh or Bloodborne, this game is for you, because the combat borrows elements from both. I feel like the game would of benefited from adopting a similar vein toI really love the atmosphere and setting, it feels like it could of been a next gen Tenchu game, which would of been awesome.

Overall it's Dark Souls-esque without the RPG elements or any sense of variety. If you're a fan of Nioh or Bloodborne, this game is for you, because the combat borrows elements from both.

I feel like the game would of benefited from adopting a similar vein to early FROM games such as Otogi or Tenchu - i.e levels rather than a pseudo-open world that you teleport around in.

I can see why people like it and it's great to have some more single player games on the market - but I personally couldn't get into the game due it's parrying/combat mechanics (something that turned me off the likes of Bloodborne and Nioh), lack of variety or levelling system and the fact that bosses get all their health back after you kill them.… Expand

zht09

Mar 24, 2019

6

Normally I wouldn't bother leaving a review on a game but the fact that Sekiro is currently scored higher than Demon's, Dark Souls, and Dark Souls III is just a factually wrong statement. You can see plenty of evidence for this if you just look at the userscores to be honest. Demon's, DS 1 & 3, and Bloodborne are all 8.8-8.9 on userscore which is accurate. They're great games but they'reNormally I wouldn't bother leaving a review on a game but the fact that Sekiro is currently scored higher than Demon's, Dark Souls, and Dark Souls III is just a factually wrong statement. You can see plenty of evidence for this if you just look at the userscores to be honest. Demon's, DS 1 & 3, and Bloodborne are all 8.8-8.9 on userscore which is accurate. They're great games but they're by no means flawless. Meanwhile Sekiro and DS II are barely floating over an 8 on userscores so clearly there's a significant number of people that disagree with the critic scores. Gonna be honest, I'm not a reviewer so don't expect me to give some amazing review just enjoy the thoughts of a Soulsborne fan that was severely disappointed with Sekiro.

Anyways, the game itself is fine. The combat can be fun and enjoyable but for a game that's supposed to not be a Souls game it is too similar to a Souls game without retaining the same things that make a Souls game fun. To name a few of the removed things weapon and armor variety as well as being able to create any kind of character you want. Instead you're given a singular weapon and what is more or less just a normal Souls item in the form of the Shinobi Arm. At the very least the first couple are just a throwing knife and the Souls kick that breaks the guard of enemies using a shield. The axe is more permanent as it actually breaks the shield but it still does the same job of breaking their guard and opening them up to a Riposte/Deathblow which are basically the same thing as they typically kill the enemy using the shield unless they're special in some way.

The same Bonfire/Enemy Respawn mechanic is back again and you still have an Estus Flask albeit with a different name. The only real difference here is the grappling hook and ability to jump and crouch. Some would say Stealth as well but you can stealth Souls games to some degree and I wouldn't exactly call Sekiro that different. Sure it works great sometimes but sometimes the enemies are just placed in a way that you can't just stealth the area much like normal Soulsborne.

The last and biggest complaint I have here is ironically about the same thing that From is known for doing well which are the bosses in the game. Soulsborne bosses have always been somewhat grand encounters which stand out significantly from the rest of the gameplay. In Sekiro, they've literally just been normal people that just don't die and can kill you in 2 hits regardless. I was honestly questioning if what I was calling bosses were even bosses as they're just laid out in the level like normal enemies just with multiple health bars so your instakill move doesn't instakill them. They're not especially memorable either and of the first 6 I know at least 2 are basically identical samurais with big katanas. The difficulty is all over the place but an average person has basically no chance of legitimately beating a boss without a lot of deaths which is only further dampened by the fact that the game penalizes you for dying too much. As for what that penalty does exactly, I don't know. I got tired of the game and quit playing after around 6 bosses so I never found out. Not that it really mattered to me anyways as I didn't care about the characters in the game as they're not especially interesting.

I honestly wish I could say the game was better but it's just not that great. It's not a bad game exactly but it's basically crippled in my eyes due to its standing as a From Software game much like DS II. I'd honestly recommend Nioh over it as Nioh at least has a lot of combat and enemy variety.… Expand

lgndsgn

Apr 9, 2019

6

I don't think Sekiro is bad, I just beat the game, but... I can't give it anything past a 6 simply because it's.... well, mediocre (for FromSoft). As much as I wanted to fall in love with this game I have to admit that Bloodborne is better in almost every way. The story was extremely predictable though I won't explain exactly why b/c I don't want to spoil it for you. It's basically theI don't think Sekiro is bad, I just beat the game, but... I can't give it anything past a 6 simply because it's.... well, mediocre (for FromSoft). As much as I wanted to fall in love with this game I have to admit that Bloodborne is better in almost every way. The story was extremely predictable though I won't explain exactly why b/c I don't want to spoil it for you. It's basically the equivalent of mario trying to save/protect the princess. The game just didn't captivate me... like at all. I never had a sense of wonder and excitement or FEAR in seeing what's next like I did with BB. The fear is artificial. It's "oh great, another tedious battle". I remember when people were speculating that the game would have a crazy horror twist and that got me excited, unfortunately the game has none of this. Only 1 enemy in the whole game was a little creepy. The combat, while fun for a while, becomes boring. You're given ONE play style for the entire game. You get prosthetic tools but, honestly... you DON'T REALLY USE THEM. Parrying is what you'll be doing 99% of the time. I almost never used prosthetics or items the entire game.

As far as the difficulty goes, a lot of it just comes from learning how to block/parry and timing. If you suck at reflexes this game you will struggle. But you WILL get better (if you want to progress). In fact I found the game to be in general EASIER than BB or DS. The ONLY area that is harder are certain bosses which took me more tries than some BB or DS bosses. Regular enemies and mini-bosses become trivial once you learn how to parry, block and respond to perilous attacks. There were a lot of poorly designed bosses... really glaring ways to cheese but also repetitive in nature. You will fight the same type of "boss" multiple times throughout the game. Also, Mini-bosses get in the way of the suspense and build up to a big boss. A lot of times you fight a mini-boss RIGHT BEFORE a big boss. But it just feels like 2 boss fights in a row. And all the bosses have a lot of health, which just FEELS tedious, but again... the game really isn't that hard, just reflex-intensive. So you will be doing constant parrying and attacking along with quicktime-like events for perilous attacks.

Sekiro overall feels uninspired. Like it was lacking the soul that DS and BB have. Part of the reason for this is they reused so many elements from BB and DS that nothing seemed new. The only new aspect was the combat. Many enemies and locations are direct re-skins of previous enemies/locations in other FromSoft games. The story reuses certain plot-lines and styles.

What bugs me the most is that very little is "memorable". The NPCs and their quests, the boss fights, the locations, or the atmosphere. It's all just mediocre, feels too safe. And I hate saying this b/c the game is automatically better than most games, b/c it is a FromSoft game afterall. But don't we want something that will blow us away like Bloodborne? BB was a perfect example of how to keep the Dark Souls formula but mix it up with genius storytelling and exciting gameplay in a new dark/mysterious universe. Unfortunately, Sekiro just doesn't match this "leap" as well.

OK so what do I think they could have done to improve this? Allow us to loot weapons/armor. Add more RPG elements. Give us the ability to change how or character looks, what they wear. Adding multiplayer or something chalice dungeons to help replay-ability. Give us REAL reason to use prosthetics and weapon arts. The weapon arts and prosthetics are rarely used aside from early on in the game on rare enemies. Create a story that is more subtle/interesting/creative/unique. Make the story darker, more gritty; improve the atmosphere. That said, i don't think it's awful. It's still better than a TON of games out there. But it really doesn't meet the quality that Bloodborne put out there. And that's the big problem in a nutshell.… Expand

sufflaminandus

Mar 29, 2019

7

Pre-release promotion material and official change of genre somehow enwrapped me into believing that Sekiro might indeed be something different from Souls series. Thankfully it was an illusion: like predecessors, Sekiro is all about combat and exploration. Though not in classical ratio.

The genre is ‘action-adventure’ now but there are some important remnants of RPGs. ‘Souls’ are nowPre-release promotion material and official change of genre somehow enwrapped me into believing that Sekiro might indeed be something different from Souls series. Thankfully it was an illusion: like predecessors, Sekiro is all about combat and exploration. Though not in classical ratio.

The genre is ‘action-adventure’ now but there are some important remnants of RPGs. ‘Souls’ are now experience and money. Half of the both exp and money is irreversibly lost upon death. Exp goes into skill points needed to buy abilities: passive, conditional and active. Money is needed to trade and to upgrade prosthetic arm. Prosthetic arm is fitted with multiple tools that have numerous upgrades costing randomly dropped materials, so we can label prosthetic arm as a loose imitation of equipment progression. Character development simplified into two stats: vitalily, upgradeable by Prayer Beads found in the world, and attack power, increased upon defeating bosses. The last part is ‘healing gourd’ aka estus flask, serving and upgradeable in absolutely same manner as in DS2 and DS3. As you can see, aside from lacking of character builds, Sekiro is as RPG as DSs were RPGs (can DSs be called RPGs is another question), especially given the fact that Sekiro is still about that “think up the story yourself”, weird oddities and hidden pseudo quests.

The problem is that the journey of taciturn shinobi Wolf in service of young lord Kuro, whose blood can bestow immortality, is plainly *less* that of any soulsborne game. It comes from two objective factors. First, and more crucial one, is limitation of the setting. It is totally understandable but still regrettable that feudal Japan, XVI age, cannot provide the same grandiose and contrast locations that purely fictional world can. I mean, typical Japanese castle filled with typical japanese houses? Snowy mountains leading to them? Grass fields? Sakuras? Too *plain*, especially compared to DS1. The only two locations that surprised me were Sunken Valley and Ashina Depths. And not because it was something unseen before, but because it was unexpected. The second factor is above mention lack of material gain in exploration. Prayer beads, gourd seeds, 8-9 tools and occasional story item is comprehensive list of worth finds. How much shorter is it compared to predecessors? (Well, note for the new players - it’s still better than countless generic text/audio logs or coins/vases/masks/ships/cups/..., which is somehow predominant gameplay device nowadays). But still, the world is seamless, big and beautiful, all in good old traditions. The ability to fall from high heights and hook oneself to distant cliffs is breathtaking. From Software was afraid to fail vertical level design but they managed it well. So is it worth exploring? Yes. Is it good? Yes. Is it the best? Not at all.

Now for the funny part: combat. Let’s lay bare few bitter truths first: combat arts are useless, prosthetic tools are useless, stealth is a joke. By useless I mean low percentage of useful tools/arts, and complete unnecessity to use them. Stealth is helpful (especially as a first strike to mini-bosses) but secondary: if they removed it, no one would have noticed. It all comes down to deflections. You and your opponent have posture bars that is filled upon taking damage, guarding (blocking) or when your opponent timely guard your attack aka deflect. When enemy’s bar fills up shinobi is allowed to execute deathblow which instantly decacipate opponent (bosses requires several deathblows). When shinobi’s bar fills up he is stunned briefly. You still have your dodges but they will do you much less good than in DSs. Well, actually dodges is essential part of hit’n’run tactics to kill things (which is, by the way, the only path to success on higher difficulties) but my point is that deflections are the bliss. Miyazaki stated his intention was to capture the feel of "swords clashing" and it’s right here, just as he said. You attack and you deflect. Yes, it’s reflexes, yes, it’s QTE, like many player already drew comparison, but damn it’s beautiful. The feel is here and it's awesome. The mobility of Sekiro is awesome too. The great three (attack, deflect, dodge) creates a real martial flow.

And yet we cannot toss this sad fact about Sekiro aside: most of the bosses are a reflex trainers. There are no strategic approaches, no use of head brains (unless you’re a hit'n’runner). From Software clearly intended to create a “difficult” game and wasn’t really creative about it. Some bosses are pumped with ridiculously high amount of posture/health and design of some of the others is outrightly horrible (hello, Long-arm Centipede Giraffe). The percent of useless mechanics in the game is unbecoming.

Sekiro is “git gud” game. Exploration is still fun but locked behind reflex combat. Don’t try to be a Shadow unless it is exactly what you are looking for.… Expand

Dredd731

Apr 5, 2019

6

Frustratingly difficult, even for soulsbourne vets. Fairly bland world without much variation. No gear drops, no way to change appearance. Why am I playing this? Oh yeah, gourd and bead drops. Maybe it's time to reconsider.

epicalyx

Apr 14, 2019

7

The best parts of this game are when you are exploring environments, dealing with regular enemies.

The worst parts are the innumerable mini bosses with multiple health bars that you barely do any damage to and can take you out in two hits. In fact, I find these mini bosses to be so overwhelming that I instantly look online for a strategy. I've never felt so little about cheesing a gameThe best parts of this game are when you are exploring environments, dealing with regular enemies.

The worst parts are the innumerable mini bosses with multiple health bars that you barely do any damage to and can take you out in two hits. In fact, I find these mini bosses to be so overwhelming that I instantly look online for a strategy. I've never felt so little about cheesing a game as I have for Sekiro, because Sekiro is just too much! These mini bosses are brutally unfair - spamming with damn near unavoidable moves. Each time I see one my heart sinks as I anticipate the coming war with this damn thing.

From software makes technically poor games. Their design and premise is good, but they're rife with technical flaws that have been with us since Demon's Souls and really should have been fixed by now. Input lag, bad lock-on, superfluous loading, attacks through walls, poor AI pathing, misleading conversation prompts, bad inventory management and so on. The point is, that if the design and balance isn't good then the game comes out very poor.

It's all about balance. Whilst not a souls game, Sekiro clearly uses a modified version of the same engine behind bloodborne and DS3, and as such retains a lot of "soulsborne" feel whilst dropping a lot of the RPG mechanics of prior games - leaving the combat as the main focus of the game. This leaves you with only one way to "do" things - the way from intended - if you try your own strategy against a boss then you're just going to be punished. You have to deflect this guy or counter that guy, but you cannot dodge or run around as they have moves to punish that. So the entire game ends up being a parry fest, and you eat death after death until you find out the pattern for this boss and then do it all over again half an hour later.

Excuse me for finding this infuriating.… Expand

Arikv2

Mar 24, 2019

7

Parts of the combat system are very unreliable, and it seems they needed more refinement on their new system. This is too bad because the exploration is excellent.

DoctorPC

Mar 26, 2019

5

Ojo no es para todos !!! no comprar sin jugar antes

Es un juego complejo ,profundo sin apenas instrucciones o guias y de elevada dificultad . Si eres un jugador casual que busca divertirse sin mas , este no es tu juego , no vas a encontrar graficos punteros , es mas parece de Ps3 . Yo tras unas 15 horas lo he abandonado porque requiere de muchas horas y esfuerzo que no tengo ni tampocoOjo no es para todos !!! no comprar sin jugar antes

Es un juego complejo ,profundo sin apenas instrucciones o guias y de elevada dificultad . Si eres un jugador casual que busca divertirse sin mas , este no es tu juego , no vas a encontrar graficos punteros , es mas parece de Ps3 . Yo tras unas 15 horas lo he abandonado porque requiere de muchas horas y esfuerzo que no tengo ni tampoco ganas la verdad porque al Red Dead Redeption 2 le he didicado mas de 100 horas y sigo cabalgando ...... pero es que RDR2 es espectacular solo verlo , este no lo es , asi de simple . Advertido quedas , juega antes de comprarlo o puede que malgastes tu dinero .… Expand

OutlawTX

Mar 23, 2019

5

As someone who has achieved platinum trophies in every Souls and Soulslike(Nioh,The Surge,etc), it tears me apart to have to post this score but in the games current state, it’s absolutely infuriating to play...and not in the good “Souls” way. With the game relying so heavily on the timing of blocks, counters and dodges I would think that From Software would want to have the mechanicsAs someone who has achieved platinum trophies in every Souls and Soulslike(Nioh,The Surge,etc), it tears me apart to have to post this score but in the games current state, it’s absolutely infuriating to play...and not in the good “Souls” way. With the game relying so heavily on the timing of blocks, counters and dodges I would think that From Software would want to have the mechanics dialed in at release. I can’t tell you how many f’ing times I’ve dodged a grab, just to watch the enemy animation lock on to me mid-dodge. The same with other combat mechanics. This screwed up timing has also happened when the red deathblow prompt appears. I go to finish off an enemy, hit the attack button and nothing happens. This kind of garbage happens WAY too often for a game that’s combat relies completely on timing. It makes for way too many deaths that have happened because I’ve been killed by the games poor mechanics and not having to “git good”. My hype and excitement for this game have gone down the toilet. As it stands, I’m going to stop playing and hope that they fine tune the mechanics in future patches. I’ll come back and update my score if it gets fixed.… Expand

Zisis151

Mar 25, 2019

6

I don't see what Sekiro does better or unique compared to other action games or even From's own franchises. The game reminds me of Nioh but nowhere close to being as fun.. Why? Because it's not as deep mechanically as Nioh, has no gear/weapons to get throughout the game and my biggest issue of all, it forces you to play with a certain style.

If you don't force yourself into learning howI don't see what Sekiro does better or unique compared to other action games or even From's own franchises. The game reminds me of Nioh but nowhere close to being as fun.. Why? Because it's not as deep mechanically as Nioh, has no gear/weapons to get throughout the game and my biggest issue of all, it forces you to play with a certain style.

If you don't force yourself into learning how to parry, then you're not gonna have a healthy experience with the game. Dodging isn't as safe as it felt in other FromSoftware games and blocking is just a waste of time since 9/10 enemies will continue to swing their weapons relentlessly until they brake your guard. Same applies for your prosthetic tools.. There will be many times where you NEED to use them otherwise the game will screw you hard. Lastly, stealth is pretty much mandatory for the majority of the game. It's a good addition....when it works. I can't count how many times I've died because I jumped into an enemy and the assassination mark didn't trigger.

Moving into visuals and performance... Again, not impressed. I don't pay attention to graphics much, but I do value framerate. It's 2019, FromSoft is a company that bathes in gold from the sales of SoulsBorne games and you're telling me they can't provide a proper fps boost on PS4 pro? The framerate is uncapped but almost never goes above 40. Reminder that GoW 2018 was a much prettier game, with the same semi-linear structure and had a respectable 45-60fps experience.

Closing this review with a personal statement.. This "hard but fair" debacle needs to go away IMO. The game is as fair as a fight between me and a Sumo wrestler. When the enemy needs 25hits to take down while I die in 1-2, is not fair, especially in Sekiro where most of your hits end up being blocked. It's a hardcore game yes, but not "fair".

Overall the game is a big meh, doesn't do anything better than previous SoulsBorne games or Nioh and the fact that it forces you into a certain playstyle is a big turn off for me.… Expand

inquisitor1009

Mar 24, 2019

5

Fast enemies + slow controller signal (for such a game) = hours of pain and suffering. I think this game is not for PS4. I hardly jump, not to say about the fight with the bull.

But the game is good.

Neotis

Mar 31, 2019

5

Hitboxes in this masterpiece pathetic. I expected a little more From the Software, everything is in accordance with the classics of dark souls, I'm just tired of running with one sword, of course, there is an additional weapon, but it is still a small variety.

SkaerKrow

Apr 11, 2019

7

The most frustrating part about Sekiro isn’t the tedious combat or the numerous missed opportunities for greatness, it’s the fact that this is an unlikable game that most people will desperately WANT to enjoy. FromSoftware has delivered some amazing action RPGs in the past, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice resembles those games enough to evoke an immediate affinity. You’ll want to like thisThe most frustrating part about Sekiro isn’t the tedious combat or the numerous missed opportunities for greatness, it’s the fact that this is an unlikable game that most people will desperately WANT to enjoy. FromSoftware has delivered some amazing action RPGs in the past, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice resembles those games enough to evoke an immediate affinity. You’ll want to like this game, you’ll tell yourself that you’re having fun. Even as you slog through the mediocre, tedious gameplay, you’ll try to convince yourself that this game is just as good as (if not better than) From’s other Soulsborne games. For some people this will true, but for many the game’s numerous shortcomings and regressive elements, combined with some truly punishing difficulty, will make for a singularly unenjoyable experience that no amount of FromSoftware magic can overcome. Sekiro is a frustrating game, not because it’s hard, but because it’s a mediocre game surrounded by elements of a great game. Like wax fruit, pretty to look at, but don’t try to consume it.… Expand

Ormegasm

Mar 23, 2019

7

It is trying to be too many things at once and doesn't do any of those things justice which sucks hopefully their next game refines what they have done here but this was worth a rental not my 100 bucks.

PraiseDunBun

Mar 22, 2019

6

Ok so first of all, the game I guess looks great but I cant really say anything on that matter cause my pc is trash and only get 30 fps on low so whatever.

Second, this game is really made by the developers of Darksouls and BloodBorn? Beacouse It looks like it was made by someone who looked at them make it and said: yap, Im a soulBorne Developer now. The game it's challenging but notOk so first of all, the game I guess looks great but I cant really say anything on that matter cause my pc is trash and only get 30 fps on low so whatever.

Second, this game is really made by the developers of Darksouls and BloodBorn? Beacouse It looks like it was made by someone who looked at them make it and said: yap, Im a soulBorne Developer now.

The game it's challenging but not in a satisfactory way, same loose currency mechanics but without recovery chance, so if you loose it, you loose it all and does it take a lot more to farm than in darksouls.

The mechanics aren't new either, same counter concept from darksouls and the usefullness of BloodBorne, you need to use it to progress and, honestly, its a mess. The game tells you that you 'can' counter attacks which would be nice if it tould you to when, how and which attacks.

In darksouls weapon wielding enemies have only heavy and light attacks which can be distinguished and in bloodborne the counter just serves as a health mechanic to regain damage and retaliate enemies, well, here its a inbred of the two, you use it to counter but its just like a normal attack toward the enemy 'balance bar', the thing is, if the enemies did not have a unbrekable guard that makes them near impossible to slash trough, the mechanic of counter would be unnecesarie, and forget about using it in collosal enemies, roll arround like in darksouls but without invicibility frames or a decent distance, basically just a placebo to make your enemy in mid air somehow turn in an angle of 180 grades towards you, like a plane, a **** plane.

But huh boi it is not the thing that ticks me of the most. The thing I hate the most its : The. ****. Looting. Button.
Who the **** thought this was a good idea? You **** mix everything from the soulbournes except the auto loot? Just expect someone in focus having to deal with 4 enemies, 2 projectiles and a low health bar and then remember to press a **** button for 1 second to loot everything in a mid-short distance, which is silly beacouse, you know, this game has platforming and that means that usually you go long distances in a matter of seconds, and having made it half way trought the level and remember you forgot to loot your enemies, its not a good feeling.

This game has made me angry, but **** deperate, every single thing, to the enemies that require certain modifications to made them psychologicaly posible to pass, the stupid looting system and the explanations that are **** **** I had to figure on my own how to **** dash, evade the uncounterable attacks and even had to **** look up the button for looting on internet.

I would give it a **** 4, but the artwork and scenarios are so pretty that I would feel asahmed to not acknowledge these people that did their job correctly… Expand

albertoBG

Mar 24, 2019

5

es una mierda no me lo puedo pasar, podria haber sido un buen juego si hubieran puesto la opcion de elegir la dificultad porque no todo el mundo es buenisimo jugando videojuegos y este juego es muy dificil, una pena porque me gusta la jugabilidad, pero la dificultad no me gusta nada y eso le quita muchos puntos - it's crap I can not pass it, it could have been a good game if they had putes una mierda no me lo puedo pasar, podria haber sido un buen juego si hubieran puesto la opcion de elegir la dificultad porque no todo el mundo es buenisimo jugando videojuegos y este juego es muy dificil, una pena porque me gusta la jugabilidad, pero la dificultad no me gusta nada y eso le quita muchos puntos - it's crap I can not pass it, it could have been a good game if they had put the option to choose the difficulty because not everyone is great playing video games and this game is very difficult, a pity because I like the gameplay, but the difficulty I do not like anything and that takes away many points… Expand

Acguydance

Mar 23, 2019

7

WARNING: DO NOT EVEN TOUCH THIS GAME IF YOU CAN BARELY SOLO "BLOODBORNE" IN THE HARDEST DIFFICULTY.
This game is awfully hard. Perhaps one of the hardest games of the decade. You need ALOT of dying and practicing and positioning to learn the pattern of the enemies, and it takes forever to bring down a foe while they can simply crush you like a poorly built sand castle. Accompanied byWARNING: DO NOT EVEN TOUCH THIS GAME IF YOU CAN BARELY SOLO "BLOODBORNE" IN THE HARDEST DIFFICULTY.
This game is awfully hard. Perhaps one of the hardest games of the decade. You need ALOT of dying and practicing and positioning to learn the pattern of the enemies, and it takes forever to bring down a foe while they can simply crush you like a poorly built sand castle. Accompanied by the speedy combat system, you are going to experience waves of stomach hurting and hair pulling situations. In exchange, the sense of accomplishment is immeasurable when you beat a boss.

So is this game FUN? Generally, because of the punishing difficulty, NOT REALLY.
BUT, the combat itself is superbly entertaining and you will find your self sweating your hands over hours after playing SEKIRO. If you are a die hard Action Gamer that like to play any game from the hardest difficulty, this IS your Game. Else, Just skip this for your own sake.… Expand

MrKid

Mar 24, 2019

6

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. i was amped for this game. Never played dark souls or bloodborne, but saw the preview at E3 and wanted to get into it.

What the first fight was a terrible glimpse into what became the complete opposite of what i wanted and thought the game was. Going into the first boss fight, I had the combat down and most of the timings. Im about 15% through the game and I really dont want to spend to much time on it as its just.....Repetitive (to much for a open world game).
Forget the fact if you die, you lose half you gold and whatever else (it's pretty meaningless) but if you go rest after a tough fight, enemies respawn (besides bosses). Why developers did that is a question I guess is a continuation from past games.

The game looks good (Graphics are a bit poorer than i expected) but it is a open world game and the story is somewhat worth following. I wish they had a bit more "lead me to my next goal" type of thing and more weapons to choose from (Maybe i'm too early to change mu Katina) but its not a bad game.… Expand

Teerhand

Mar 23, 2019

7

So my review is to be seen from the standpoint of somebody who sunk well over a thousand hours into dark souls and still gets chills when he hears the opening music of dark souls 3.
Here i am in the prologue scene of sekiro and everything looks butt ugly, and i already have to reason with myself that this has to be a good game somewhere, it´s from software we are talking about after all.So my review is to be seen from the standpoint of somebody who sunk well over a thousand hours into dark souls and still gets chills when he hears the opening music of dark souls 3.
Here i am in the prologue scene of sekiro and everything looks butt ugly, and i already have to reason with myself that this has to be a good game somewhere, it´s from software we are talking about after all.
fast forward to the first couple of fights and i really don´t like the fight mechanics. remember that a parrying in dark souls is something very rewarding and takes very good timing and enemy observing, and is always a kind of a risky maneuver. this seems to be dumbed down to suit a faster combat style, but for me this got old very soon.
verticality in this game was very promising, but works far worse than the grapling hook in the batman franchise. often times you simply won´t find a spot to graple out of danger, and even if you know where the spot is supposed to be, you sometimes can´t hit it properly.
it´s a good game i guess, but it has nothing in common with the things i love about dark souls. the prosthetic arm is boring so far, i´m sick of the swords moveset already, and the lore doesn´t interest me so far.
i remember when i played dark souls 1 and i was intrigued by everything, and oh man ds3 was the pinnacle. everything is so friggin mysterious, i don´t know where to start.
sekiro on the other hand is so goddamn generic,
you have your liege, he is some kind of dragonborn...i don´t care, been there done that man...next.

to put this in perspective again, this is an allright game. but everybody who´s hyping it seems kinda silly to me.… Expand

henryyifan

Mar 22, 2019

6

Poor graphics, poor performance, normal game-play. Boring fight same as dark-souls. Still turn round combat, it’s not an acting game. It’s not difficult, it just need you to adjust the game itself, then it’s easy. The level-design was still on top level, but the fight/combat? Who can explain why they make game in 16G not 40G or 50G? Only 30+FPS on PS4 pro /1080p with such poor graphics. IPoor graphics, poor performance, normal game-play. Boring fight same as dark-souls. Still turn round combat, it’s not an acting game. It’s not difficult, it just need you to adjust the game itself, then it’s easy. The level-design was still on top level, but the fight/combat? Who can explain why they make game in 16G not 40G or 50G? Only 30+FPS on PS4 pro /1080p with such poor graphics. I have played rune classic 2 months ago, it looks very poor graphics on today, but the game is amazing. I mean I don’t care about the graphics, but I can’t accept poor performance with this graphics today.… Expand

Den2099

Apr 26, 2019

5

Sekiro shadows die twice it's very bad game.Because it's very hard and yes I kasual.

Scwarf

May 18, 2019

6

I love the souls games and bloodborne is possibly my favourite ps4 game but this just seems over the top grinding and not alot of fun was really looking forward to it aswell but oh well time to trade it in.

hochas

May 21, 2019

6

This is the first game i play from From Software. The aesthetic and the setting of this game drew me to it so i decided to give a shot.

Unfortunately, i lost interest in the game after about 15 hours. It felt like the game boiled down to simply memorizing attack patterns for bosses. Once you understand the parry system and that almost ANYTHING can be parried no matter the size of enemy.This is the first game i play from From Software. The aesthetic and the setting of this game drew me to it so i decided to give a shot.

Unfortunately, i lost interest in the game after about 15 hours. It felt like the game boiled down to simply memorizing attack patterns for bosses. Once you understand the parry system and that almost ANYTHING can be parried no matter the size of enemy. Trash mobs become a joke. Bosses mostly felt like a chore. If you're like me and have a very limited amount of time to play video games, you will likely not want to spend hours on a single boss and then you will cheese the encounter just to repeat the pattern. Due to the extreme difficulty though, it felt pretty good to beat the bosses.

The progression doesn't feel worth it. You get some new attacks, but your mostly good with your first spinning attack combat art that you unlock. Many skills are just passives that make you deal more posture damage or the ability to carry more spirit emblems. It just doesn't feel worth it. Don't get me wrong, they're super useful, it's just boring. Of the skills you do get that alter the way you play, only mikiri counter and chasing slice. Honestly I am tired to death of the sound effect for executions without even completing the game.

The threat of losing XP and money wasn't even tangible when I played, since you can just farm an area until you get a skill point, buy stuff for your hard earned money and then carry on without losing anything if you die. And there's the supposed "punishment" for dying which will lower your unseen aid. You will never have a use for unseen aid even if you keep your dragon rot at bay.

The prosthetic tools are fun, but the "loaded" upgrades you get are simply not useful because you will very rarely get the breathing room to use them. The game also tells you very little about what uses many of the tools have and you will simply have to try them out while you die over and over. Some prosthetic tools do massive posture damage to bosses when you have the right upgrade, but good luck finding out how to do it. I'm amazed by how some players first though of some of the things, it's just convoluted.

The different areas are varying, but the level design is not impressive. It is extremely linear with some verticality and often there are not many more ways to approach a situation than head on.

Story wise, it is pretty amazing, which makes me sad to abandon it. I will probably just watch a recap.… Expand

Spidor

May 26, 2019

5

First things' first - do not let anyone fool you - Sekiro is a mechanically streamlined Soulsborne game, with unforgiving difficulty. That's not inherently a bad thing; it just so happens that in this case - it is. It looks, moves and plays like a Soulsborne game, but lacks in every single departments when stacked against its superior brethren.

Combat focuses on deflection more thanFirst things' first - do not let anyone fool you - Sekiro is a mechanically streamlined Soulsborne game, with unforgiving difficulty. That's not inherently a bad thing; it just so happens that in this case - it is. It looks, moves and plays like a Soulsborne game, but lacks in every single departments when stacked against its superior brethren.

Combat focuses on deflection more than even Bloodborne did, and where Posture used to diminish a Stamina bar that also managed strikes and running, Posture is now the only game in town. This means that managing your own Posture is extremely easy, whilst breaking the enemy's is extremely effective, significantly diminishing threats to your person if you are prepared. That, in turn, removes a lot of the excitement of meeting new foes - they will rarely surprise you, and often, their dull moveset will only vary in timing.

Structurally, Sekiro does a lot less than Soulsborne games. By removing the outrageous fantasy settings of its older, wiser siblings, Sekiro is now a game of very few visual themes - everything is a goddamn Pagoda in a forest, be it dark, well lit, partially underwater or covered in Sakura blossom. It's all the same design. Gone are the fantastic sprawls, the magnificent views, the disjointed hellscapes - it's all Pagodas, making exploration dull and uninspiring. What's jarring is that this is still a fantasy game, but with barely a smidgen of imagination and complex design of other Soulsborne games. 90% of the time, you are in or on a pagoda. 75% of the enemies are a human with a sword. All caves are caves, all ravines are ravines - maybe toss in a Buddha statue to give it some diversity. In Sekiro there is nothing quite imaginative, twisted or whimsical - like Dark Souls 2's fixation on castles and knights were somewhat overbearing, Sekiro crushes overbearing by cranking up pagodas, bland ravines and samurais to 11.

What Sekiro lacks in twisted dark and macabre level design, it tries to make up with Spider-Man style swinging. Given how clunky movement is in these games, it's surprisingly functional, and makes traversal a breeze... but is that a good thing? I remember how, when the truly fantastic Enslaved: Odyssey to the West came out, it was panned for the climbing sections being on-rails and sticky, unlike other games with climbing mechanics at the time (Uncharted, Tomb Raider etc.), removing a sense of urgency and risk. I think this critique applies equally to Sekiro - traversal is no longer a challenge, no longer engaging the player, with hook points popping up on the HUD to prompt a button press to zoom out to the next area. It does give a sense of verticality, but that does not make for good or challenging level design. Players just zoom around until the next action segment without a second thought to their unimpactful environment, which played such a massive role in previous games.

There isn't much to say about steath. It often feels like cheating by how much easier it makes certain segments, but is another point to make towards calling Sekiro a Soulsborne game - the AI is so absurdly Soulsborne by how awful and plain it is in its very core, that stealth segments are a bit of a joke, and simply a mechanic that does not work.

Finally - the paper thin plot is again, that of breaking immortality. I don't mind hearing this story told over and over in Soulsborne games, where the world is rich and the details are oozing from everything - but the more Sekiro tries to tell its bland story, the more it becomes a cringy, lightweight retread.

And finally - the bosses and minibosses in Sekiro are just awful. Prepare to fight each mini-boss three times or more, and some major bosses, too. Huge life bars make for annoying, boring trial-and-error driven combat that provides no breaks to players. Combine that with a lack of flexibility, lack of leveling-up, lack of robust abilities, lack of multiplayer, and that leaves you with simply beating these highly specific and incredibly boring skill-checks that are there to prevent you from breezing through the easy main game by challenging you to memorize their moveset, rather than improvise, adapt and beat them by using raw skill, luck, overall preparedness or a well-rounded character. If you do not rehearse Sekiro's battles, you will fail - full stop. That's not fun, that's just repetition.

I ended up beating Sekiro twice, and enjoying my second playthrough more once I got over all that disappointment. It is not a particularly bad game. But it looks, plays and has the same pedigree as truly great games, which is why Sekiro being so medicore in every single aspect brings such shame upon it. Am I angry Sekiro is "Not a Soulsborne game"? No - I would love to see From try their hand at other games. But Sekiro IS a Soulsborne game - a bland, uneven, uninspired, unimaginative, slightly boring, frustrating, repetitive and downgraded Soulsborne game with an automatic hookshot. And that just sucks.… Expand

dontjimmymejulz

May 23, 2019

5

Oh dear From Software, you made a bit of a boring and repetitive game didn't you? What a shame you didn't double down and actually make a different style of game altogether - whereas in reality, it's pretty much a watered down Dark Souls experience.
Sure, you stripped out the online fun and the character-creator and the in depth RPG mechanics and various upgrade systems and numerous waysOh dear From Software, you made a bit of a boring and repetitive game didn't you? What a shame you didn't double down and actually make a different style of game altogether - whereas in reality, it's pretty much a watered down Dark Souls experience.
Sure, you stripped out the online fun and the character-creator and the in depth RPG mechanics and various upgrade systems and numerous ways to fight and explore the world.
And sadly replaced it with a dull protagonist, and even duller story and lots and lots of interchangeable bosses that you can parry and counter to death.
Well done From Software, well the f@*k done.… Expand

sosuss

May 3, 2019

6

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. ı buyed bloodborn once and there is nearly same.ı cant see emotions(yeah they get anger,smile or else but)ı cant feel it because the story is horrible.Trying to save a useless f****ing kid.story is THIS.so ı think its just a sword fight game.Go and play SEGA SHİNOBİ same game almostly… Expand

dgibbs

May 15, 2019

7

As someone that is not a Souls-Borne veteran (but wants to try them eventually).. I came into this game knowing it would be difficult and defeating - but OH MAN.. I've played plenty of games that left me scratching my head and admitting defeat but this game was different.. At a certain point its just not that much fun to replay the same boss that many times and the payoff when you finallyAs someone that is not a Souls-Borne veteran (but wants to try them eventually).. I came into this game knowing it would be difficult and defeating - but OH MAN.. I've played plenty of games that left me scratching my head and admitting defeat but this game was different.. At a certain point its just not that much fun to replay the same boss that many times and the payoff when you finally do is short-lived since there are 4 more in the next area.
Overall, I had fun.. the story is interesting, the environments are cool, and the game play is rewarding for people that spend the time to learn it.. but I'm never going to look back at this game and say.. "Ya, i'm going to replay this game because I enjoyed screaming at the top of my lungs every few minutes while waking up my son in the middle of the night.. "
Good game for hardcore gamers that like the challenge but probably not for people with high blood pressure that just want to be a damn ninja.… Expand

UnTh

May 24, 2019

7

Однообразные мобы. Незапоминающиеся боссы.. Отсутствие вещей и оружие.Дибильный протез,вернее задумка интересная, но по большому счёту кроме крюка, практической пользы мало. Как любителю соулс серии игра не зашла.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

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3	#3 Best PS4 Game of 2019
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5	#5 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2019