Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice' Review

Hesitation is defeat

The prophecy has spoken. FromSoftware released Elden Ring which means that I had to, given the curse of being a guy always one game behind the times, rock up to Sekiro at some point; the only Souls game within the franchise to take a unique fundamentally story centric approach to the formula of the Souls-like whilst still keeping the core gameplay loop we've come to love with this franchise. Coming into it, I was expecting to get more of an experience akin to Ninja Gaiden, and ultimately I do think the game was kind of a mass-up collaboration between several conceptuals to deliver a Souls game both very familiar yet still distinct from what we've come to know. And in terms of Souls games having the reputation of being some of the 'hardest games to complete'- Sekiro is sometimes considered the single hardest because of it's distinctions. I have some thoughts on that I'll touch on at the end.

The composite of a Souls-like game is becoming quite whittled down given the rise in similar style games recently, as such we can define the subgenre thusly: A game wherein death is tied to some sort of punishment mechanic, which is usually recoverable. Yeah, that's pretty much the most we can nail these style of games down to at this point. Although if we're to compare with the grandfather's of 'Dark Souls' and 'Demon Souls', Sekiro naturally has a lot more in common them than mere happenstance of a single shared idea. Sekiro borrows the limited healing items idea from Demon Souls, Bloodbourne and Dark Souls 2, but intermingles that with the more static 'improvable and refillable healing items' concept from Dark Souls 1 and 3. Sekiro also features a non-linear world that is defined by routes, although given the new and unique traversal methods of Sekiro, jumping, climbing and the grapple hook, you'll find the lines of those routes softer than they've been in any other Souls-like up until now. Also, boss design is one of the key-most pillars of design and still the vast highlight of the gameplay experience; although the players relationship with those fights is fundamentally altered, again, within the peculiarities that only Sekiro boasts.

To start, Sekiro is the first Souls like game to really introduce itself in formal terms, not just with an esoteric intro cinematic designed to lay out the basics of the world in as vague terms as possible (Thank you, Dark Souls franchise for setting that precedent). For Sekiro we instead have an entire prologue intro section presented to explicitly lay out the important figures of the world of Ashina, the stakes at play with the dangers for Sekiro and the motivation of protecting the Divine Heir. Of course this is standard for a typical narrative, but very atypical for FromSoftware's previous games like Dark Souls. Previously FromSoftware revelled in titles where the exploration of the player's very surroundings is at the heart of the narrative experience, even if that isn't always mechanically obvious. (Which is why a lot of people barrel through those games with no idea what the main plotline even was) But by heading on a more traditional path, Sekiro makes it's story much more accessible to the casual observer.

This approach extends to Sekiro's genre-unique but industry-traditional approach to adventure game action. You no longer play a custom created RPG pawn built to the fighting standards of your whims or a list of archetypes. There is no 'spending 5 hours re-specing your desiccated hero to use magic because The Nameless King just won't die' there is the relatively static character of the Wolf and later the player-dictated set of tools he picks up and uses in his journey. Of course, narratively that does mean the man, later crowned 'Sekiro', has some more immediately noticeable stakes in the unfolding events in and around Ashina- but don't mistake this for a character driven protagonist focused drama plot: at it's heart you're still playing a Souls game, just one with marginally clearly and laid out plot parameters, which some might like. Personally, I'm a fan of exploring with a fine-tooth comb through an intricately laid out procession of in-universe clues uncovering the reality of the explored area, but then Sekiro's approach to it's world and characters were designed with enough 'uniqueness' to draw my care and immersion anyway, I suppose.

Because everyone who plays Sekiro adopts the same shoes as the One-Armed-Wolf, that means every player is going to have to get intimately familiar with the new sword combat which is the spine of all combat in Sekiro. This is fortuitous given that this combat is perhaps one of the most masterfully designed that FromSoftware, or any sword-focused game for that matter, has ever come up with. The key to Sekiro swordplay is speed and relentlessness wherein "Hesitation is death", to quoth the great Lord Isshin: Glock Saint. When striking, the player and enemy are beholden to two bars, their health and posture. Health is pretty self explanatory with the only change-up being the inclusion of 'deathblows' which act as additional health bars (and switch-up points for Boss attack Stages in the later game) but 'Posture' is where the genius lies. Acting like Stamina, posture builds up whenever an attack is deflected and releases slowly when not attacking or quickly when the guard is dropped altogether. If the posture bar should ever fill entirely, either the player loses their guard entirely for several crucial seconds, or the enemy is rendered vulnerable to a 'deathblow' attack that instantly drains the current health bar no matter where it is currently at; so you can see the appeal to deplete posture bars.

As such, Sekiro is designed around the types of encounters where the player needs to be attacking the enemy constantly, meeting each attack with a counter instead of backing off, in order to pile up that posture bar and hit a deathblow. As even enemy deflections add to the posture meter, no landed attack feels wasted and the advantage needs to always be pressed in a tense dance of 'question' and 'response' speed striking. But the health bar is no silent partner to this dance. Just as one might imagine from real injuries, the amount of health that either fighter has left in their current bar is directly correlated to the speed at which posture regenerates, meaning that if you've pressed the advantage and managed to sneak in a few nicks and cuts here and there, you actually can back off for a bit without watching your posture-bar progress vanish entirely. Of course; the same will happen to you, so keep on top of that health bar!

However what makes Sekiro a Souls game isn't just it's combat. (In that regard Sekiro actually lacks a traditional stamina bar system, which is godsend for sprinting about as much as you want and whacking like a lunatic.) It's the death system, and as the title might imply; Sekiro has some... interesting ideas here. As I explained with the 'deathblow' mechanic, although Sekiro can't be one-hit killed by any attack specifically, he does technically own multiple health bars thanks to the 'die twice' mechanic. Everytime you die, the player has the option to expend a 'deathblow' counter on a revive so they can get back up, with half their health, in about a 30 second grace period. (Wait any longer and you die for good and have to respawn at an idol.) This really works out as more of a 'last gasp' mechanic more than anything else, because you can't really surprise this AI by getting back up and slashing them from behind, aggro lasts too long for that.

Also Deathblow counters vary from valuable to frivolous, the basic type of counter is refilled everytime you rest at a shrine, the secondary counter is only refilled after you've slain a crazy amount of enemies. And even then, after you die for the first time you need to unlock the right to use a second token by either killing an enemy or hitting a deathblow on a boss; making it not just three extra health bars you can call on to win any fight. I was slightly worried the 'DieTwice' mechanic would turn out to be an 'auto win' button like Nioh's ultimate states (in the early game) but of course FromSoftware are characteristically discerning with their design. Ultimately, these death counters allow the player to experiment with getting killed checking out some minibosses moveset whilst not robbing the actual life-or-death stakes of reviving for the second time at a crucial moment in a climatic boss fight. But what about if you actually do let yourself die for good? What are the consequences from here in order to fully fulfil the 'Souls-like' mandate?

Well there's actually a gameplay consequence and a narrative consequence this time around. As it turns out, fully dying and coming back has the potential to inflict NPCs with a 'Dragonrot' plague that renders them into fits of coughing and can actually pause some questlines. No one can actually die from this Dragonrot, however, so you don't need to fret about how many times Lady Butterfly is turning you into a pin cushion. Within gameplay, however, death is a bit more brutal. In Sekiro you can expect to lose half of all your money and XP perk point progress with every death, which is about as eye-watering as it sounds. There are ways around this, filling an XP bar grants a perk point which is essentially 'banked' and cannot be taken away, and you can buy money pouches and bags to 'store' your gold away in the event of death. But sooner or later you're going to stumble into a surprise fog gate arena against a boss you weren't ready for and thus end up losing something valuable. Unless the game's 'Unseen Aid' random percentage save chance procs; but don't worry about that: It never procs when you need it to. (30% rate, my ass...)

Ah, but we briefly touched on Perk points, did we not? Another new concept for the Souls-like team. Perk Points work in your typical RPG tree of skills only with many of the unlockable abilities being slot-able special abilities (Arts), some of which have some devastating punishment potential in combat. These slot alongside the 'Prosthetic arm' upgrade mechanic, more money and material based, which slots special 'shinobi tools' that Sekiro can deploy. A few of which, when used correctly, have the potential to totally trivialise the right fights. So there's your 'magic path' for those who say that Sekiro has no combat or gameplay options, which is what makes it so unrelentingly difficult. It absolutely does, you just need to pay more attention to the tools it gives you. Of course, there are consumables on top of that- and new to FromSoftware are mini bosses designed to be nearly invulnerable unless attacked whilst under the effect of  a rare consumable item. (Imagine Dark Souls 1 Phantoms, but as the bosses of their area.) This is perhaps the one design decision I think is actual bunk by FromSoftware and was regularly upset by. (At least make Divine Confetti drop more often if you're going to do that!)

Speaking of 'options' did I mention the game has stealth? It's not the greatest stealth system you've ever encountered, but it does permit for a single Deathblow from a stealth attack- even on bosses if you can get around them unseen! This opens up some unique approach concepts with some of the more difficult bosses, wherein you can zip around the battlefield before alerting the big boss, taking out their trash mobs, opening up the chance to start the fight with a major blow instantly eliminating one of the boss' health bars. Juzou the Drunkard is a great example of a mini-boss where you can take this approach, which can end up turning a painful slog into something akin to a puzzle stealth hybrid gameplay moment. Although these alternative routes are only possible in certain free-form locations- FromSoftware would never so much as consider giving you the chance to cheapshot one of their carefully crafted major bosses.

Which brings us around to the sparkling jewel of any Souls game; the boss battles. FromSoftware are largely considered the kings of boss fights and it's no idle crown that they bear, Sekiro's bosses feature some of the most interesting and creative designs that their studio have ever produced, and I think that is because of FromSoftware's approach to a largely set-in-stone protagonist. Unlike with other Souls games where FromSoftware gives you the mould to make a protagonist in whatever image you so choose, requiring the gameplay design team to create bosses that can theoretically be taken down by any playstyle with enough dedication and elbow grease- Sekiro's bosses are tailor-made to challenge the player's specific selection of abilities, opening up the team to focus on creatively stretching mechanics and pure unbridled spectacle. 

Battling Lady Butterfly in a burning temple which gradually catches more fire as the fight grows more intense is a sublime image, as is the dreamy cloud-top duel with a literal Chinese Dragon later on. But some of the most memorable fights can be those that don't even play out as you'd expect, such as the Horse mounted soldier who plays more like a classic Souls boss simply because of his sweeping attacks and movement patterns that just don't provide enough substantive windows of opportunity to wail on his posture bar. Or even the Armoured Knight who is impervious to all damage, which leaves you having to figure out how to overcome his challenge by paying attention to how your attacks actually do affect him. And if we're talking pure amazing set-pieces, does it get any more grand than the pale albino snake who stalks you throughout the game in several moments of 'cat and mouse' before you can finally get your own back?

Of course, there are some hang-ups in the boss department. For me, the repetition of some bosses really started to grate, specially the more challenging ones. The Guardian Ape makes for a spectacular, and frustrating, display during the first fight, but proceeding battles take place in less apt and cramped arenas. Even though he was a miniboss, the Shichimen Warrior fights were mostly utterly asinine in their placements, with the boss often being placed in odd location arenas where you're inevitably going to suffer from an attack made through a solid piece of environment. And the less said about the Headless the better. Screw the Headless. Still, then you get a breath-taking battle like the Demon of Hate and all the annoying points so seem to fade away and you're right back in the heat of an amazing Souls-style showdown. Being the David to a giant, burning, Goliath wondering how in the hell you're going to slingshot this one!

The world of Sekiro is itself another wonder of FromSoftware design, a Sengoku period fort set in the snowy hills that unfurls out into a lavish mountainous valley in one direction, a poisonous swamp in another (of course) and even the tops of the heavens nearer to the end. Of all the worlds we've seen From depict, Ashina has to be one of the least decrepit and dying, as rather than picking through the rotted corpse of a kingdom past it's glory you're traversing a fort teetering on the edge of an explosive collapse that you will be there to see. And of course, this world is populated with a mixture of period-themed humanoids sometimes with twisted and elongated proportions and straight fantastical creatures dotting the higher paths. Actually, I think Sekiro might have the most human swathe of enemies that the Souls franchise has ever seen up until now.

If there's one disappointment I have with the world, it's the severly underserved plot device of memory exploration. Once again we have a Souls game where one section is mired in a deeply unclear method of time travel or memory recovery (See Dark Souls III and II and the DLC for I) only this time I felt a bit cheated by the potential. My belief was that this was going to serve a neat way to explore the history of the various founders of Ashina, but as it turns out the entire section I witnessed was merely a one-off optional area purely for the benefit of Sekiro and his inexplicably spotty memory of the night where everything started going wrong. I understand you get to go back there under some very specific circumstances for the late game, but I just wish there was a little more done with that plot device.

Other than that I found the narrative of Sekiro surprising conventional and straight-forward for a FromSoftware game, albeit peppered with curious elements of world building here and there, and not all of it I can say I properly absorbed. I figured out some of the secrets hidden in backstories, but beyond that some of the more obvious story elements, such as who the Ministry even are, eluded me. The only point at which the game did a typical Miyazaki and left me feeling utterly bewildered was the final encounter. Firstly chucking a brand new McGuffin in the final encounter is a bit cheap; (I know it was referenced in one throw-away side document, but for the significance it played in the ending, that final 'tool' could have done with a bit more explanation) and what is done with that McGuffin is... I'll be honest I think it makes no sense whatsoever. The very reason for the final boss (of the normal ending) being the final boss makes no sense to me. I've read countless superstitions and fan theories, but the base game didn't do it's job in justifying that story move, which is kind of a strange note to end your narrative on if you ask me.

Finally, and though it's not relevant to understand for this review so much, I want to talk about the final boss. (Of every route apart from the bad ending. Because this game actually features consequential ending selection, surprise surprise!) I cannot, in good conscience, sanction a finale in which you are forced to fight a preliminary boss before the final boss every time you die. I understand the intention of reinforcing mastery, but dammit I need to learn move patterns. Move patterns make up the entire rhythm of a Souls game, especially for Sekiro; but as if to attack that specific subset of players Miyasaki decided "No- give them a pre-boss to trip them up." That final encounter wouldn't have been nearly as frustrating if I was focusing on the actual final villain.

Summary

Sekiro is considered the hardest Souls game for a few reasons, the manner in which it side-steps a lot of the core rules and movement lessons taught by the franchise and the fact that you can't just go off and grind to 'out level' the problem. There's one route to increased strength, and it's the critical path. But I actually find that tailor built balance to be the reinforcement I needed to stick out any challenge in the game. I was never left feeling totally helpless, because I knew I was supposed to be able to beat whatever foe I had wherever I was. Which of course meant I had to put my trust in the designing talents over at FromSoftware; but if one video game company has earnt the benefit of the doubt, it's them. And even when the game was at it's most tough, the fun of throwing about that robust and masterful combat system made even the most bitter failures fun.

In it's length Sekiro seems to expend every clever idea you could picture with the toolset available, leaving no ability under served or untested as you topple one creative obstacle after another. I think the world was very solid in it's Japanese fantasy whilst remaining staunchly grounded in that dour world-at-the-precipice style that Miyazaki loves, and the story which spurs us through that world is entirely serviceable. And after finishing the game, once again, I was left breathless in the glory of a game which equals up to another firm masterpiece under the belt of the FromSoftware team. In fact, I would consider this perhaps one of the most accessible FromSoftware games for it's relative sub-genre peculiarities, which makes it an easy recommend even for people just curious about Souls-likes trying to get into the spirit of the genre. It won't be an easy play, but it won't leave you feeling isolated or lost either. Which means that I'm going to come around to a pretty solid A+ Grade on my arbitrary grading system, brought just short of a legendary rank by my own personal hold ups with certain decisions made. Although I wouldn't at all be surprised if others consider it their best in the franchise, because as a robust game Sekiro really is just that good. Honestly, I came away slightly bummed out there was never any post-launch-DLC; guess I've got to wait for another 10 years until FromSoftware come back around to sequel this spectacular game.