Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is the latest game released by Fromsoft, the studio that made its name producing legendary games such as the Dark Souls trilogy and Bloodborne, to massive international acclaim. Sekiro was no slouch in this department either, handily claiming numerous GOTY awards for itself upon its release, further proving that there is still a market for incredibly challenging games. While Sekiro isn’t for everyone, and it does have its problems, it is a completely unique experience in the heavily saturated Triple-A gaming world, and very well may be worth your time and money.

Sekiro, unlike its Fromsoft predecessors, is really a game about having a good defense, rather than a balanced mix of offense and defense. A subject of note in the community is that Sekiro will often punish players entering it with a Souls mindset, because it just doesn’t work. While it may be made by the same studio, it is an entirely different creature from their previous works, and its important to remember that.

Sekiro’s core gameplay focuses on two aspects: countering an opponent’s moves, and taking advantage of your Shinobi training to gain an unfair stealth advantage whenever possible. The protagonist of the story, Wolf, is not an honorable samurai, or a tanky berserker, he is a Shinobi, a ninja, designed to use subterfuge and dishonorable tactics to get the job done. With little armor and an average blade, he stands no chance in a straight fight; you need to learn to use his tools properly in order to progress. This could mean stabbing an enemy in the back, throwing ash in their face, lighting them on fire, the list goes on and on.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2366274173

The most essential mechanics in the game are the use of deflecting and grappling. By pressing block just before an attack connects, you throw an enemy’s posture off and avoid taking damage from their attacks. Damage their posture enough, and they leave themselves open for a Deathblow to instantly kill them, or in the case of more skilled opponents, heavily damage them. Deathblows can also be performed from stealth, which is aided through the universal grappling hook stored in Wolf’s prosthetic arm. Grappling around the world and using the height + mobility it affords you is essential to engaging large groups of enemies, or escaping from a fight gone poorly. Grappling doesn’t take much skill to master, but a player unskilled at deflecting will find themselves having a very hard time fighting even the most common of enemies early in the game. Taking steps to become more accustomed to deflecting and practicing it is mandatory to the game experience. This means Sekiro isn’t a good choice for players that get frustrated easily; it WILL frustrate you.

Truthfully, Sekiro is a very complicated game, despite its rather simple premise. It will challenge you in ways not even Dark Souls or Bloodborne will, and the immense variety in enemy attacks will pressure you to come up with new ways to deal with the situation. For every attack they attempt, you must have an answer, or face death. Perilous attacks, a type of move that cannot be blocked, must be recognized and countered within a single second. Thrusts cannot be blocked, but Wolf can stomp on the blade. Sweeps cannot be blocked or deflected, but jumping on top of an enemy renders them useless. Grabs cannot be countered in any way, and must be evaded. The deep movepools of opponents will keep you on your toes the entire playthrough, which can cause no end of fury, but can also give satisfactory victories like no other game can.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2366275938

I genuinely can’t fit enough gameplay analysis in a review limited to only 8,000 characters, but if Sekiro interests you, I highly encourage you to do some research beforehand, and go into the experience with a willing mind. It will brutalize you, but eventually you’ll come to love it.

Sekiro follows the story of Wolf, a run-down Shinobi, in his journey to save his master Kuro from being exploited for his unique gifts. It is a simple concept, but one that leads to all sorts of unique and amazing locations, with their own challenges and enemies to overcome. The story of the world is rich, with items telling more of the lore through descriptions, a Fromsoft classic.

Still, as interesting as the world and the enemies are, they are merely just good, and not anything excellent. Similarly to Dark Souls, the world is rich, but the actual story being told isn’t anything particularly astounding or groundbreaking. The real appeal of Sekiro is definitely in the visuals and gameplay, not the story, but at least it's not bad.

Sekiro is placed firmly in the culture of Sengoku Japan, and this is apparent in nearly every tiny detail of the game. For those of you interested in Japanese culture, this game does not disappoint. It is also a very beautiful game, with lush trees, grand views, armor-adorned enemies, and more descriptive examples that I can’t even list.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2366309553

The style of enemies are also of real note. Generals are adorned in decorative armor indicative of their rank, whereas other secretive shinobi are clad in robes suitable to their station. Monkeys leap around like a real ape would, swords are swung with conviction and purpose, and the bosses of superior skill move with grace and intent to show their stature. The animations and movement of the opponents is a real treat, and thankfully so considering how essential reading their movements is to gameplay. A master of the blade should certainly move like he is one, and Sekiro does not disappoint.

Sekiro has crisp audio quality and stellar design. Sword clashes ring clear with metallic sheen, and the environment hums to its own melody just as it would in real life. A game with great audio shouldn’t need a long analysis, and this won’t.

The English voice acting is stellar as well. Enemies don’t remain unflinchingly stoic throughout the game, and can very often be heard. Their voice actors gave some real conviction to their lines, with Gyoubu Oniwa's English VA in particular becoming famous for nearly shredding his own throat with his screaming. Sekiro can be played in both Japanese or English, with each style suiting its audience more. The Japanese are forceful but collected, whereas the Americans are loud and aggressive. You can choose either language and have a fantastic experience.

GeForce RTX 2060 6GB | AMD Ryzen 9 | 16GB | Windows 10

Sekiro ran flawlessly at 60fps for me, but I know this isn’t the case for everyone. This game is immensely demanding on a technical level, and sub-par or dated computers will either struggle, or completely fail to run Sekiro at a good resolution and framerate.

Sekiro is also capped at 60fps. This is not changeable without invasive modding, due to the annoying practice of tying the game speed to the framerate. I wish Fromsoft would STOP DOING THIS.


Sekiro is a game like no other, for better and for worse. It requires dedication to improve, and has little replay value due to its lack of variability in approach. If you don’t obey the rules of Sekiro, it will kill you for your transgression. It will go out of its way to beat you into submission, and unapologetically weed out those unworthy of completing it, but if you can withstand the onslaught, it will reward you with an adrenaline-pumping experience like no other.

Follow our curator page, OCG-Curations, if you like and want to see more reviews like this one.

https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2440570879

[h1][u]A Brief Introduction[/u][/h1] [u]Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice[/u] is the latest game released by Fromsoft, the studio that made its name producing legendary games such as the Dark Souls trilogy and Bloodborne, to massive international acclaim. Sekiro was no slouch in this department either, handily claiming numerous GOTY awards for itself upon its release, further proving that there is still a market for incredibly challenging games. While Sekiro isn’t for everyone, and it does have its problems, it is a completely unique experience in the heavily saturated Triple-A gaming world, and very well may be worth your time and money. [h1][u]In-Depth Analysis[/u][/h1] [h1]Gameplay[/h1] Sekiro, unlike its Fromsoft predecessors, is really a game about having a good defense, rather than a balanced mix of offense and defense. A subject of note in the community is that Sekiro will often punish players entering it with a Souls mindset, because it just doesn’t work. While it may be made by the same studio, it is an entirely different creature from their previous works, and its important to remember that. Sekiro’s core gameplay focuses on two aspects: countering an opponent’s moves, and taking advantage of your Shinobi training to gain an unfair stealth advantage whenever possible. The protagonist of the story, Wolf, is not an honorable samurai, or a tanky berserker, he is a Shinobi, a ninja, designed to use subterfuge and dishonorable tactics to get the job done. With little armor and an average blade, he stands no chance in a straight fight; you need to learn to use his tools properly in order to progress. This could mean stabbing an enemy in the back, throwing ash in their face, lighting them on fire, the list goes on and on. https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2366274173 The most essential mechanics in the game are the use of deflecting and grappling. By pressing block just before an attack connects, you throw an enemy’s posture off and avoid taking damage from their attacks. Damage their posture enough, and they leave themselves open for a Deathblow to instantly kill them, or in the case of more skilled opponents, heavily damage them. Deathblows can also be performed from stealth, which is aided through the universal grappling hook stored in Wolf’s prosthetic arm. Grappling around the world and using the height + mobility it affords you is essential to engaging large groups of enemies, or escaping from a fight gone poorly. Grappling doesn’t take much skill to master, but a player unskilled at deflecting will find themselves having a very hard time fighting even the most common of enemies early in the game. Taking steps to become more accustomed to deflecting and practicing it is mandatory to the game experience. This means Sekiro isn’t a good choice for players that get frustrated easily; it WILL frustrate you. Truthfully, Sekiro is a very complicated game, despite its rather simple premise. It will challenge you in ways not even Dark Souls or Bloodborne will, and the immense variety in enemy attacks will pressure you to come up with new ways to deal with the situation. For every attack they attempt, you must have an answer, or face death. Perilous attacks, a type of move that cannot be blocked, must be recognized and countered within a single second. Thrusts cannot be blocked, but Wolf can stomp on the blade. Sweeps cannot be blocked or deflected, but jumping on top of an enemy renders them useless. Grabs cannot be countered in any way, and must be evaded. The deep movepools of opponents will keep you on your toes the entire playthrough, which can cause no end of fury, but can also give satisfactory victories like no other game can. https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2366275938 I genuinely can’t fit enough gameplay analysis in a review limited to only 8,000 characters, but if Sekiro interests you, I highly encourage you to do some research beforehand, and go into the experience with a willing mind. It will brutalize you, but eventually you’ll come to love it. [h1]Story[/h1] Sekiro follows the story of Wolf, a run-down Shinobi, in his journey to save his master Kuro from being exploited for his unique gifts. It is a simple concept, but one that leads to all sorts of unique and amazing locations, with their own challenges and enemies to overcome. The story of the world is rich, with items telling more of the lore through descriptions, a Fromsoft classic. Still, as interesting as the world and the enemies are, they are merely just good, and not anything excellent. Similarly to Dark Souls, the world is rich, but the actual story being told isn’t anything particularly astounding or groundbreaking. The real appeal of Sekiro is definitely in the visuals and gameplay, not the story, but at least it's not bad. [h1]Visuals[/h1] Sekiro is placed firmly in the culture of Sengoku Japan, and this is apparent in nearly every tiny detail of the game. For those of you interested in Japanese culture, this game does not disappoint. It is also a very beautiful game, with lush trees, grand views, armor-adorned enemies, and more descriptive examples that I can’t even list. https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2366309553 The style of enemies are also of real note. Generals are adorned in decorative armor indicative of their rank, whereas other secretive shinobi are clad in robes suitable to their station. Monkeys leap around like a real ape would, swords are swung with conviction and purpose, and the bosses of superior skill move with grace and intent to show their stature. The animations and movement of the opponents is a real treat, and thankfully so considering how essential reading their movements is to gameplay. A master of the blade should certainly move like he is one, and Sekiro does not disappoint. [h1]Audio[/h1] Sekiro has crisp audio quality and stellar design. Sword clashes ring clear with metallic sheen, and the environment hums to its own melody just as it would in real life. A game with great audio shouldn’t need a long analysis, and this won’t. The English voice acting is stellar as well. Enemies don’t remain unflinchingly stoic throughout the game, and can very often be heard. Their voice actors gave some real conviction to their lines, with Gyoubu Oniwa's English VA in particular becoming famous for nearly shredding his own throat with his screaming. Sekiro can be played in both Japanese or English, with each style suiting its audience more. The Japanese are forceful but collected, whereas the Americans are loud and aggressive. You can choose either language and have a fantastic experience. [h1]Technical[/h1] [u]GeForce RTX 2060 6GB | AMD Ryzen 9 | 16GB | Windows 10 [/u] Sekiro ran flawlessly at 60fps for me, but I know this isn’t the case for everyone. This game is immensely demanding on a technical level, and sub-par or dated computers will either struggle, or completely fail to run Sekiro at a good resolution and framerate. Sekiro is also capped at 60fps. This is not changeable without invasive modding, due to the annoying practice of tying the game speed to the framerate. I wish Fromsoft would STOP DOING THIS. [h1]Conclusion[/h1] [h1][u]Very Highly Recommended[/u][/h1] Sekiro is a game like no other, for better and for worse. It requires dedication to improve, and has little replay value due to its lack of variability in approach. If you don’t obey the rules of Sekiro, it will kill you for your transgression. It will go out of its way to beat you into submission, and unapologetically weed out those unworthy of completing it, but if you can withstand the onslaught, it will reward you with an adrenaline-pumping experience like no other. [quote][url=https://steamproxy.net/steamstore/curator/7871885/]Follow our curator page,[b] OCG-Curations[/b], if you like and want to see more reviews like this one.[/url][/quote] https://steamproxy.net/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2440570879