Sekiro: A Strange, Solo Reflection of Dark Souls

Sekiro:

Sekiro: FromSoftware's Shadowy Shinobi

Sekiro: Equipped With A Flexible Prosthetic For Boss Battles and Exploration

Sekiro: A Strange, Solo Reflection of Dark Souls

Sekiro's almost open world style complicates the player's progress. I can't remember the locations of shops, nor what they sell (tip – at the end of every session, or before a boss, buy Coin Purses – these protect your cash when you die). Because of Wolf's maneuverability, Sekiro removes the satisfying achievement of opening doors to connect areas (In Dark Souls the player comes across doors that “Can't Be Opened From This Side” After an extended exploration of a different path they circle back to unlock the door from the other side, creating a shortcut). Wolf maneuvers over many locked gates that remain forever locked, even though they have beams that invite the player to take them down. The world sometimes has strange obstructions in the flow of exploration. The player can't travel from the Ashina Gate idol through to the Ashina Castle idol after they beat the boss (the Blazing Bull) the first time. Later in the game Wolf learns to swim. This forces the player to revisit every water area and waste time exploring them. It's a boring mechanic that isn't needed and doesn't compare to the complexities of climbing. Still, it's better than the swimming sections of Fallen Order, which are no better than cinematics.

Fallen Order pretended to combine combat and exploration. But the exploration was always forced upon the player. There was always one direction to go, one perfectly indicated wall to run along, or highlighted cliff to climb. There was no challenge to explore. Exploration was a cinematic that required the player to press their joystick forward. Sekiro has true exploration. There are many paths, none of them lit by a director's spot light. No climb is without danger, and the player can never drop their guard against threats. It's distressing that both games released in 2019. Star Wars received significantly more attention, despite it being an inferior game in combat, character, story, scenes, and exploration.

Sekiro includes simple, obligatory, stealth mechanics. Stealth makes sense since Wolf is a shinobi. Crouching activates stealth mode. Hiding in bushes makes him invisible. Being a level up or down in elevation makes Wolf more difficult for his enemies to see, but it doesn't prevent detection. An indicator above enemies shows whether they are unconcerned, looking, or altered to Wolf's presence. If an enemy thinks they see or hear something, the indicator starts to fill up with yellow. When fully yellow they search for Wolf. If they see evidence of Wolf, the indicator changes to red. When one enemy reaches red, they will alert the others to your presence. Enemies notice kills as they are occurring, but they aren't concerned by dead bodies. Wolf makes stealth difficult by executing flashy stealth kills. These alert the enemy with flashing sword and unnecessary noise. Enemies seem too alert, considering they are regular soldiers and Wolf is a shinobi. Enemies remain doubly alert once they've seen Wolf, even if they lose sight of him and abandon the search. Even when they've given up they still seem to know Wolf's location. If the player approaches they jump to attention instantly. Different enemies seem to have different levels of awareness, meaning new enemies surprise the player in their preparedness. The player also needs to beware. Wolf interacts with small items just by moving against them, like kicking baskets or knocking over lamps. This creates a noise nearby enemies hear. Stealth doesn't win the game, because the player needs to fight most of their obstacles. But, it makes the areas easier, by eliminating some enemies to avoid engaging larger groups. And most early bosses (enemies with two or more deathblows) can easily be ambushed. The player should employ stealth to deliver a deathblow from behind before the battle even begins.

The Dark Souls series has always delivered a strong story with only a handful of intimations, some background designs, and item descriptions. It maintains a shroud of mystery and ambiguity. Sekiro continues this tradition, but with slightly more exposition. After failing to protect Kuro and falling to Genichiro in the first battle, Wolf redeems himself at Ashina Castle. It's here that the political conflict involving Ashina vs Kuro vs the Interior Ministry, is complicated by religious conflict. Wolf is immortal because of Kuro's gift of the Dragon Heritage. Since Kuro won't bestow the same gift on Genichiro, Genichiro seeks out a substitute, the Rejuvenating Waters. Some characters search for immortality, regarding it as a great good. Kuro, with his gift, sees it as a curse, a cause of conflict. He asks Wolf for severance, a method of destroying the Dragon Heritage. The player's choices determine which of the four endings they achieve. The first ending (very bad) requires Wolf to reject Kuro's request. The other three (bad), (good), and (confusing? - but presumably very good), involve following Kuro's request. Each ending is connected to the next. If the player wants the bad ending, they have to do everything in the very bad ending, and the bad ending. If they want the very good ending, then they need to do everything in the very bad, bad, and good ending. Each improved ending has more gameplay, up to and including visiting the divine realm and defeating the Divine Dragon itself.

During this quest, From Software implements a wicked idea never attempted in the Dark Soul series. After Wolf clears an area, they reset, but altered in foe and terrain. Three times the region of Ashina castle is invested with different enemies. First it is defended against Wolf by Genichiro and his men. But after Wolf claims it, two different contingents of enemies invade. Both times the enemies change, some elements of the terrain change, and the idols are reset.

In conclusion, From Software draws heavily from their Dark Souls series to craft Sekiro, but it is an oddity. It must be compared to its predecessor. Its story is clearer than Dark Souls, but the Japanese mythology, and its vague historical connections, lend it an exotic strangeness. The Dragon Heritage, and Wolf's repeated resurrections, are similar to the Cursed Undead mechanic, which explains the protagonist's repeated rise from the grave. Death is not as debilitating to Wolf as it is to The Ashen One of Dark Souls III. After the opening, after the first few bosses teach the player the mechanics, Sekiro is an easier game. The combat feels like an upside down reflection of Dark Souls. It is just as masterfully designed, but with slightly less variety, and a few too many restrictions. It has a tiny bit more stealth. The mobility provided by the grappling hook (and the ability to jump) adds to this. But what the hook really does is open up the world. Though Elden Ring (which I'm playing currently) will exceed Sekiro, Sekiro builds out an area that trumps everything that came before, whether it was Dark Souls, Star Wars, or Nioh.

I enjoyed Sekiro so much, I briefly tried New Game+. I have never bothered to even consider this for the Dark Souls series. I didn't last long, but can report that the player retains their items and skills, but not prosthetics. While I had enough skills to defeat the game, New Game+ is the only way to acquire all the skills.

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