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Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice proves that From Software can always make harder games than "soulsborne", but at the same time offers a lot less compared to what the fans are used to from these developers. A very flawed gem.

👍 The good parts:
+Extremely challenging.
+When not dealing with frustrating mini-bosses, the combat is fantastic, fluid, and overall well done as you'd expect.
+The option to stealth.
+The joy of overcoming a frustrating boss or mini-boss.

👎The bad parts:
-Extremely challenging.
-Boring atmosphere and level design.
-Weak story and/or lore.

Not much good can be said about Sekiro's main story, it's pretty much: go do some tasks and then lift a "curse" with alternate paths leading to either a bad, a normal or a good ending depending on how many things you have done through the game. Even if you get the best possible ending, it still feels very anti-climactic. I really did not find any interesting character in the game nor was I attached that much to whom you're supposed to help.

That being said, everyone knows From Software games never truly shine at their core story but what does shine is their lore but unfortunately, Sekiro feels very weak in that regard as well. Lore can be said through items, world objects, characters, level design, and even items and those things helped a lot in making Souls games and Bloodborne's lore shine. Sekiro lacks most of these things especially the environmental aspect of storytelling. There are details around the world but it mostly feels generic at least compared to what we're used to and I felt no need or desire to get involved in its lore though some players may feel different.

Story rating: 6/10

The gameplay is split into normal action combat you know and expect from these developers, some stealth mechanics, and a lot more platforming than their previous games thanks to the grappling hook.

If Souls games were focused a lot on dodging and blocking this time around the main aspect is deflecting. It's critical to master the deflecting mechanic else the game will literally destroy your will and you might even quit completely. Mini-bosses and most bosses are unforgiving and your skills to deflect will be tested severely. Once you defeat a boss or a mini-boss you'll feel great and happy to have finally been able to overcome such a challenge, especially if you do not cheese your way against them such as hit and run tactics non stop. The game was clearly meant to be played with the deflection at its core. If you're having issues with the game here's an important tip: get Mikiri Counter, master it, and be patient, let the enemies attack first then deflect.

You can acquire a number of skills and prosthetic tools throughout the game that might help you survive a little bit more. Personally, I found most tools and skills absolutely useless so do not feel discouraged if you are unable to find all the upgrades nor gather enough skill points to upgrade your skills.

While combat is most certainly the majority of the time mandatory, especially versus bosses, there is also a stealth mechanic which can ease your exploration and even help a lot against mini-bosses. It's not a perfect mechanic, and the AI is utterly dumb but it is necessary to use it at times and feels quite nice to deathblow someone from behind, just like a shinobi.

The platforming aspect of Sekiro is really fun and well made. You'll be able to grapple certain points and climb trees or rooftops to surprise or evade your enemies easily. It adds a lot to the game's verticality.

Gameplay rating: 8.5/10

The overall audio design of Sekiro is perfectly fine. Japanese voice acting was well done, sound effects are pretty much as you'd expect, and the soundtrack is quite good though sadly not as great and terrifying as Dark Souls game or Bloodborne boss songs.

I have not tested the English dub if there is any, so I won't be able to comment on whether they did a good job regarding the voice acting. It felt more natural to leave it to Japanese and the game even recommends it at the start of the game.

Audio rating: 8/10

The first thing I expected when I bought Sekiro besides the challenge was the level design and atmosphere to be terrifying and overwhelming. Anyone who played Bloodborne knows how fantastic the atmosphere and level design were. Sadly Sekiro seems to be looking a bit worse and offers a lot less regarding these aspects. Sure there are some good looking vistas like Senpou Mountains or Fountainhead but once you go through them it feels rather underwhelming. Some forests, a small dungeon, a lot of backtracking and returning to the same rooftops, and many other things that just lack in detail.

You'd expect from Sekiro, especially if you're coming from Souls or Bloodborne, to have huge overwhelming puzzle like interiors but sadly that is not the case. It's mostly exterior and even there it's not that complex.

The technical aspect of the game also suffers a bit. While the game does run incredibly great visually it's not that impressive. I have not encountered any major or even minor bugs in my 50 hours so that's a huge positive.

Graphics, performance and tech analysis score: 7.5/10

While not the best in story-telling, Sekiro does give us a frustratingly fun and challenging game, something to feel proud once you beat the game without the use of third party software which is common these days, and while not the most interesting looking From Software game, it's still a decent purchase overall, though I'd still advise waiting for a sale.

[i][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/35145066/] Feel free to follow my review page![/url][/i] [h1]The gist of it:[/h1] Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice proves that From Software can always make harder games than "soulsborne", but at the same time offers a lot less compared to what the fans are used to from these developers. A very flawed gem. 👍 [u]The good parts:[/u] +Extremely challenging. +When not dealing with frustrating mini-bosses, the combat is fantastic, fluid, and overall well done as you'd expect. +The option to stealth. +The joy of overcoming a frustrating boss or mini-boss. 👎[u]The bad parts:[/u] -Extremely challenging. -Boring atmosphere and level design. -Weak story and/or lore. [h1]Story[/h1] Not much good can be said about Sekiro's main story, it's pretty much: go do some tasks and then lift a "curse" with alternate paths leading to either a bad, a normal or a good ending depending on how many things you have done through the game. Even if you get the best possible ending, it still feels very anti-climactic. I really did not find any interesting character in the game nor was I attached that much to whom you're supposed to help. That being said, everyone knows From Software games never truly shine at their core story but what does shine is their lore but unfortunately, Sekiro feels very weak in that regard as well. Lore can be said through items, world objects, characters, level design, and even items and those things helped a lot in making Souls games and Bloodborne's lore shine. Sekiro lacks most of these things especially the environmental aspect of storytelling. There are details around the world but it mostly feels generic at least compared to what we're used to and I felt no need or desire to get involved in its lore though some players may feel different. Story rating: 6/10 [h1]Gameplay[/h1] The gameplay is split into normal action combat you know and expect from these developers, some stealth mechanics, and a lot more platforming than their previous games thanks to the grappling hook. If Souls games were focused a lot on dodging and blocking this time around the main aspect is deflecting. It's critical to master the deflecting mechanic else the game will literally destroy your will and you might even quit completely. Mini-bosses and most bosses are unforgiving and your skills to deflect will be tested severely. Once you defeat a boss or a mini-boss you'll feel great and happy to have finally been able to overcome such a challenge, especially if you do not cheese your way against them such as hit and run tactics non stop. The game was clearly meant to be played with the deflection at its core. If you're having issues with the game here's an important tip: get Mikiri Counter, master it, and be patient, let the enemies attack first then deflect. You can acquire a number of skills and prosthetic tools throughout the game that might help you survive a little bit more. Personally, I found most tools and skills absolutely useless so do not feel discouraged if you are unable to find all the upgrades nor gather enough skill points to upgrade your skills. While combat is most certainly the majority of the time mandatory, especially versus bosses, there is also a stealth mechanic which can ease your exploration and even help a lot against mini-bosses. It's not a perfect mechanic, and the AI is utterly dumb but it is necessary to use it at times and feels quite nice to deathblow someone from behind, just like a shinobi. The platforming aspect of Sekiro is really fun and well made. You'll be able to grapple certain points and climb trees or rooftops to surprise or evade your enemies easily. It adds a lot to the game's verticality. Gameplay rating: 8.5/10 [h1]Audio[/h1] The overall audio design of Sekiro is perfectly fine. Japanese voice acting was well done, sound effects are pretty much as you'd expect, and the soundtrack is quite good though sadly not as great and terrifying as Dark Souls game or Bloodborne boss songs. I have not tested the English dub if there is any, so I won't be able to comment on whether they did a good job regarding the voice acting. It felt more natural to leave it to Japanese and the game even recommends it at the start of the game. Audio rating: 8/10 [h1]Graphics, performance and tech analysis[/h1] The first thing I expected when I bought Sekiro besides the challenge was the level design and atmosphere to be terrifying and overwhelming. Anyone who played Bloodborne knows how fantastic the atmosphere and level design were. Sadly Sekiro seems to be looking a bit worse and offers a lot less regarding these aspects. Sure there are some good looking vistas like Senpou Mountains or Fountainhead but once you go through them it feels rather underwhelming. Some forests, a small dungeon, a lot of backtracking and returning to the same rooftops, and many other things that just lack in detail. You'd expect from Sekiro, especially if you're coming from Souls or Bloodborne, to have huge overwhelming puzzle like interiors but sadly that is not the case. It's mostly exterior and even there it's not that complex. The technical aspect of the game also suffers a bit. While the game does run incredibly great visually it's not that impressive. I have not encountered any major or even minor bugs in my 50 hours so that's a huge positive. Graphics, performance and tech analysis score: 7.5/10 [h1]Conclusion[/h1] While not the best in story-telling, Sekiro does give us a frustratingly fun and challenging game, something to feel proud once you beat the game without the use of third party software which is common these days, and while not the most interesting looking From Software game, it's still a decent purchase overall, though I'd still advise waiting for a sale. [h1]Final score: 7.5/10[/h1]