Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is the biggest outlier in FromSoftware’s post-Demon’s Souls era. While it retains many of the familiar elements that characterize a Soulslike, it is very much not a trad Souls game.

There’s no variety in character builds, nor can you grind for experience to over-level your stats for the game’s many punishing encounters. There’s no additional equipment to find, save for a few alternative prosthetics for Wolf. Hell, you can’t even call up an NPC or online friend to help you with any of the boss fights.

These differences make Sekiro a brick wall for some veteran Souls players. The game demands a more aggressive playstyle when compared to other games in the genre, and that can be jarring for folks conditioned to the slower, more methodical approach that something like Dark Souls or Elden Ring necessitates. Some have referred to Sekiro as the perfect ninja game, which is apt (a position it arguably shares with Ninja Gaiden).

However, we’re not ranking ninja games here, and in terms of Souls games, Sekiro is the most difficult and off-putting of the bunch. It’s the only game that wants you to play it strictly the way that FromSoft designed it, with little to no breathing room, no way to fumble and grind your way to victory, no room to really experiment with different builds and tactics. It’s a great game to be sure, especially if you’re into the shinobi mythos and can master its complex-yet-satisfying combat, but it’s not a great entry point to the Souls genre.

– Levi Winslow, staff writer