Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

 PlayStation 4
User Score
8.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5159 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4,327 out of 5159
  2. Mixed: 286 out of 5159
  3. Negative: 546 out of 5159
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  1. DanteTsuna
    Jul 20, 2020
    8
    What can I say. It's a fromsoft game. You hate it or love it! AND I LOVE IT!
  2. CopperVortex
    Jul 25, 2020
    8
    В игре лучшие битвы с боссами, которые когда либо были. Сложность на месте. И хотя по началу я не взлюбил эту игру, сейчас я с радостью вспоминаю каждую минуту проведённую в ней.
  3. ByMarcs
    Oct 22, 2020
    8
    Juego estilo Japonés demasiado bueno, que cuenta con una excelente jugabilidad, una buena IA, varios sets de movimiento muy variados, jefes memorables y una banda sonora estilo Japonés bastante buena. Lo único malo que tuve es que no sé porqué no lo disfruté tanto como Dark Souls III.
  4. Iuppiter_
    Dec 11, 2020
    8
    Speaking seriously for a moment, don't go in expecting a Souls game just because it's made by FromSoftware, this is a completely different game, even if it borrows some key elements from Souls.
  5. benprofessional
    May 29, 2023
    8
    As souls like enjoyer, this game taking first or second plays of best souls like games, at first playthrough i was angry like a tiger, almost drop my ps4 through the window, after i focused and beat this game like 5 or 6 times not in a row, but i very enjoyed this journey!
  6. MicStodd
    Feb 21, 2022
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Sekiro was a breath of fresh air in the soul-like. Where it has a lot of similarities, it's also very different. Personally for me, I found the game way harder than any other soul. I did the regular ending once and got to owl ( purification ending ) in new game +. The only reason why I rate it 8/10 is .. some boss were really disappointing and how hard it is to understand all the mechanics at the beginning .… Expand
  7. Jollyolfun
    Mar 16, 2022
    8
    Sekiro is a game full of skill checks and probably one of the hardest final bosses in all od gaming. Harsh but fair.
  8. zach_grech
    May 3, 2022
    8
    Sekiro is a flawed masterpiece. This game has the most consistent boss lineup of any game. Incredible locations and excellent combat that is challenging and hard to master. The replayability of the game is a flaw as there is no build variety. Enemies are too frequent in many locations making combat not fun.
  9. Solidsnake69
    Jul 29, 2022
    8
    The game is very good, but I do find it overrated. The souls games are incredibly fun and fair. This feels hard, but not for the right reason. The boss fights are basically a rhythm game.
  10. DALWAN
    Jan 21, 2023
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. من افضل العاب سولز صعوبة مو توزنه بي شكل جيدا اكثر شي عجبني ما فية نظام تطوير دروع و الاسلحة بس عندك يدك تبدلة و تطورة و العب سريع اهم شي في اللعبة التصدي هو نص اللعبة و البوسات كل واحد يقولك الزين عندي من تنوع… Expand
  11. hazukimio
    Jul 4, 2023
    8
    Sekiro: Shadow Die Twice is the least soul-like game FromSoftware had developed. Being different from other soul-like games based on defense, counterattack, and dodging enemy skills, Sekiro encourages players to be offensive. With the flawless art design and the pleasure when you collide your blades with enemies, Sekiro is FromSoftware's best interpretation of the charm of Japan's SengokuSekiro: Shadow Die Twice is the least soul-like game FromSoftware had developed. Being different from other soul-like games based on defense, counterattack, and dodging enemy skills, Sekiro encourages players to be offensive. With the flawless art design and the pleasure when you collide your blades with enemies, Sekiro is FromSoftware's best interpretation of the charm of Japan's Sengoku period.

    But at the same time, Sekiro doesn't have as much depth in the combat system like other soul-like game with a wider choice of weapons and genres, such as Dark Souls and Elden Ring. This, along with the overall slightly insufficient volume, is one of Sekiro's few drawbacks. However, I have to admit that these defects could be very personal. That is to say, Sekiro is a good game, but not a perfect one for me.    … Expand
  12. Harthik69
    Jul 9, 2023
    8
    Very Good game. Can spend some time to play and exeprience it again. Download and give it a try again in future
  13. majesty_x
    Jul 31, 2023
    8
    Graphics: 8/10; Storyline: 8/10; Gameplay: 10/10; Atmosphere: 8/10; Music: 8/10; Summary rating: 8/10
  14. MaxDBlack
    Apr 8, 2019
    7
    The game is awesome! New mechanic is finally really differs from what SoulsBourne had to offer. It is much more focused on skill and precision. Every hit, block, parry and counter has to be carefully executed. Mechanic is pure joy.

    Enemies and bosses are hard, but fair. Every main character death is a result of player mistake but not an unfair AI actions. The variety and amount of    The game is awesome! New mechanic is finally really differs from what SoulsBourne had to offer. It is much more focused on skill and precision. Every hit, block, parry and counter has to be carefully executed. Mechanic is pure joy.

    Enemies and bosses are hard, but fair. Every main character death is a result of player mistake but not an unfair AI actions. The variety and amount of bosses is tremendous, though some of them appear couple of times during playthrough.
    Game world is big and leveldesign on a big scale is magnificent! You can reach any point in the world that you can see and sometimes it is just fascinating to observe from a distant places you've visited half game ago.

    The plot is kinda simple. In oppose to SoulsBourne games deep multy-layerd LORE, in Sekiro we have a staright forward story with very few unexpected twists and no underlying lines whatsoever. The world itself is just something I personnaly not interested in. Middle age Japan is not my thing, so I have nothing to say about it.
    Visually game is ok, but nothing out of the ordinary. There are couple of beautiful locations, but in oppose to dark and mysterious Bloodbourne atmosphere Sekiro can't offer anything spectial.

    But in the first place the game is about mechanics and it works great.
    The thing they've left character stats and loadout out of the boat is totally ok with me. Game is much closer to slasher than to an action RPG now. Still there are quite some tricks and combat movements player can aquire during game and prosthetic arm improvements make Sekiro's arsenal even bigger.

    There are a lot of dispute around Sekiro's difficulty lately. The game is hard. It took me 77 hours to beat it and I had a lot of trouble with some bosses. But it's not unbeatable and it is certainly becomes quite easy once you master it. The easiest way to check how it works is get back to bosses, that troubled you some time ago and beat them once more. It'll be super easy, because knowing mechanics and boss movement basically everything you need to be good at. So people who ask for an easy mode, are just lazy and refuse to learn game rules. And what's the point in playing a game if you don't want to follow the rules?    … Expand
  15. Indrigis
    Mar 29, 2019
    7
    Let me start by saying that if you're a die hard fan of Dank Souls and I Wanna Be The Guy, Sekiro might be a 9 if not a 10 for you. I am not such a fan, so I grant it a 7. Generously.

    Sekiro looks gorgeous, that much is true. It just lacks free roam content that is there for viewing only. Everything is functional, sadly, so you don't get to just look in awe. However, gameplay-wise it    Let me start by saying that if you're a die hard fan of Dank Souls and I Wanna Be The Guy, Sekiro might be a 9 if not a 10 for you. I am not such a fan, so I grant it a 7. Generously.

    Sekiro looks gorgeous, that much is true. It just lacks free roam content that is there for viewing only. Everything is functional, sadly, so you don't get to just look in awe.

    However, gameplay-wise it feels like a DS game turned to 11. As if the designer listened to the fans chanting "hardcore, so hard, so fun, so elite, truly Dark Souls is the Dark Souls of gaming", shrugged and said "well, if that is the only thing you care about..." and then just pushed every other concern aside.

    Despite what was promised early on, the "Shinobi" part is pretty bleak. Stealth and subterfuge are not really Wolf's strong suit and most enemies are placed in such ways that killing them stealthily takes time and doesn't pay extra. Skipping entire groups of enemies means depriving yourself of experience, money and items. Besides that, many grapple points are placed just far enough apart that you won't be able to spiderman your way through, forcing you to crouch and creep around between grappling, breaking any tempo you might have had.

    Then there's the combat. It comes with a major problem - normal enemies are fast, come in groups and have no friendly fire whatsoever. You let go of the block button once and take a flaming arrow to the face, said arrow coming straight through three or four enemies. Annoying, isn't it? Also, nothing staggers, unlike you. So you can take an axe to the face with no warning or prior parry, just because the enemy decided to swing it and there's nothing you could do. Parry is the name of the game but it doesn't add depth, just width. You can only git gud mechanically, but not strategically, sadly.

    The worst offender is the camera. While it's nice of the developers to try and help the player ever so slightly, the target lock and camera reset are on the same button and target lock has a mind of its own and shifts around if you try to move the camera because... you guessed it. "Switch target" is on the same four buttons as "rotate camera". There's a setting for targeting aid when not locked on, but the game doesn't seem to aid me even slightly - without target lock enemies just sidestep while Wolf keeps moving forward even if I rotate the camera mid-combo.

    And while I am all for understanding that Sekiro is not a slasher like DmC V, I can't help noticing that Wolf moves so fast and jumps so high his physics are much more fit for an arcade rather than a "hardcore" swordfighting game.    … Expand
  16. Ormegasm
    Mar 23, 2019
    7
    It is trying to be too many things at once and doesn't do any of those things justice which sucks hopefully their next game refines what they have done here but this was worth a rental not my 100 bucks.
  17. Terium
    Apr 10, 2019
    7
    Daisukereds review sums up exactly my feelings on this game. I really want to like it more but it's a poorly balanced game and I don't mean just in terms of difficulty. The shinobi tools can be good (and even gamebreaking) on some fights but on the harder ones, they're pretty useless and the ones focused on dealing damage/posture damage are ridiculously underpowered even to the extent thatDaisukereds review sums up exactly my feelings on this game. I really want to like it more but it's a poorly balanced game and I don't mean just in terms of difficulty. The shinobi tools can be good (and even gamebreaking) on some fights but on the harder ones, they're pretty useless and the ones focused on dealing damage/posture damage are ridiculously underpowered even to the extent that it's likely better to just press R1. There's no builds, no armor, no weapons and the upgrades you get is pretty worthless except for some that should've been baseline anyway (Mikiri Counter). The environments are okay but they don't come close to the diversity of the other "soulsborne" games (hesitating to include Sekiro in this genre). The story is overall easier to understand but it somehow just takes away from what I love about the other games. Exploration can sometimes be rewarding but 99% of the time you only find some **** consumable that can be bought from the merchant for cheap anyway. The upgrade materials for your tools don't generate the same feeling that finding a blood shard or titanite chunk does since the upgrade won't do much anyway. Unlike all the other soulsborne games, I just can't wait to be done with this one and I probably won't be replaying it ever again once I'm done with all the trophies. I've seen a lot of people saying this game is even more satisfying than the other games but I never felt satisfied after beating a boss, I just felt annoyed and wanted to stop playing. I genuinely hope that people giving this 10/10 are just high on the fumes of hype. For me, it's WAY to repetitive and it's missing a lot of what makes the soulsborne games so good. I'll hold out hope for Bloodborne 2 since this game has left me with very mixed feelings. I do admit that I'm somewhat biased as this is a game made by From Software, I was expecting more and as a result my final score may be somewhat low compared to if this was made by another developer.… Expand
  18. Zidane_Mina
    Apr 1, 2019
    7
    A good game with interesitn combat mechanics. Unlike FromSoftware predecesors, Sekiro is build arround one single build: shinobi. Parry and counters are key to victory, and rolling out of attacks is not as a good move like it was in Bloodborne or the Souls Games, meaning here agresion and parry are the keys to achieve victory.

    The problem i have with this is that removes plenty of    A good game with interesitn combat mechanics. Unlike FromSoftware predecesors, Sekiro is build arround one single build: shinobi. Parry and counters are key to victory, and rolling out of attacks is not as a good move like it was in Bloodborne or the Souls Games, meaning here agresion and parry are the keys to achieve victory.

    The problem i have with this is that removes plenty of options for diferent playthoughs, since experimentation is way smaller than any other games, and it sometimes feels like the game cracked the dificulty dial way to high. Unlike the other games, whenever i defeated some bosses in Sekiro i did not felt accomplished, but more on the lines of "finally getting rid of that guy", insted of feeling victorious, i felt the pain finaly came to an end, which is the wrong kind of relief in my book.

    Most of the bosses felt uninspired, except for 3 grand ones that will stick in my memory for years to come: Divine Dragon, Lord Genishiro and "The Saint Sword", being the last one the greatest boss ever developed by FromSoftware.

    In the end, even tough i think this is a good game, i don't see myself returning to it in the near future, hence why i cant give it a higher score. I wanted to love this game, but i could not.    … Expand
  19. gamer39
    Aug 17, 2019
    7
    Ok, so the game is beautiful. I loved the game for a few days. Until I got up to about the Hirata Estates. I then realized that I hated it. Yes, Sekiro tried something new and I do not like the changes to the game. The prosthetic arm, for example, is underpowered. Many enemies are overpowered for no reason. And your reward for defeating them? Well, not much. I've read many reviewsOk, so the game is beautiful. I loved the game for a few days. Until I got up to about the Hirata Estates. I then realized that I hated it. Yes, Sekiro tried something new and I do not like the changes to the game. The prosthetic arm, for example, is underpowered. Many enemies are overpowered for no reason. And your reward for defeating them? Well, not much. I've read many reviews that sum up how I feel this game a lot better than anything I can say. It's too difficult and not fun. I don't enjoy this game like I did the SoulsBorne series of games. It is missing the RPG element of the game and it really takes something out of the game . Big step backwards for me. And why am I fighting giant roosters?

    Also, I think the rating system was hijacked to give this a 9. There is no way this game deserves a 9. Especially when one of the first boss battles is literally unwinnable and forces you to lose in order to progress the story. Ridiculous!

    Level design is repetitive and blocky. Get used to Japanese pagodas in every area. No upgrades, no armor, use the same sword the whole game! What? Ok, you get to eventually upgrade your prosthetics, but it isn't all that helpful.

    If you want to play a fun, Souls-like game, try God of War from 2018. Yes, this game really deserves a 9 or 10 out of 10. Unlike Suckiro. How is this even in the same league? FromSoftware and Cracktivision, take notes. This is how you make a fun yet challenging video game. You owe me $60 punks.    … Expand
  20. Vaxkang
    Apr 8, 2019
    7
    Great at times, tedious at times. After 45 hours or so I would have to admit this game is a step back from previous games. The game itself is punishing to start but you do get better, gamers will typically get to a point where it starts to feel tedious though.

    The combat is all about the timing and deflections and it is hard, very hard. That in itself is not a bad thing but the    Great at times, tedious at times. After 45 hours or so I would have to admit this game is a step back from previous games. The game itself is punishing to start but you do get better, gamers will typically get to a point where it starts to feel tedious though.

    The combat is all about the timing and deflections and it is hard, very hard. That in itself is not a bad thing but the payoff is very poorly done. You really get nothing for your hard work, all those deaths and trying over and over....no armour, no new weapons. The skill tree just eventually gets full, there is no real build to try.

    Most people will just look up cheese strats, so many online to choose from. The combat has some depth but there will be zero depth in replayability. I like the game, I do not love it like I have with other From Software games.    … Expand
  21. seburo
    Apr 30, 2019
    7
    For me its a 7 because two main reasons: the repetition of some stages and enemies and, and most important, the excess of exigency. I'm a Dark Souls veteran. I've played all 3, Dark Souls 1 blew my mind and I played it a lot. I completed Bloodborne because of my love towards FROM, didn't liked it because terror is not my genre, but appreciated it. Now I wanted to love Sekiro, I'm a big fanFor me its a 7 because two main reasons: the repetition of some stages and enemies and, and most important, the excess of exigency. I'm a Dark Souls veteran. I've played all 3, Dark Souls 1 blew my mind and I played it a lot. I completed Bloodborne because of my love towards FROM, didn't liked it because terror is not my genre, but appreciated it. Now I wanted to love Sekiro, I'm a big fan of japanese culture, and I really wanted to love it. But, after 3 runs, and having completed it once. I'm too tired. The parry system is too stressful, and I don't like to feel that vulnerable. Besides, the final boss is really unfair (in my opinion) because it is NECESSARY to complete the game. If it was an optional boss I wouldn't have a problem with its absurd exigency but since you need to beat him to complete the game, for me it was a wall, and I didn't enjoyed it, I endured it. When I finally beat it I felt relief, not joy. I think its time for FROM software to rethink the accessibility of their games. I think they don't need to make difficult games just because that's their brand. They have other qualities: great action, atmosphere, music and design. And there are a ton of masterpieces with difficulty selector. I hope they wanted their games to reach everybody.… Expand
  22. CraigEchols
    Mar 23, 2019
    7
    Not a bad game, just don't understand what the hype is about.

    Given all the hype that was surrounding this game, I was really looking forward to it, and in all honest I have enjoyed playing it. I just don't get what everyone is so up in arms with it about. For starters, the game's story is really good, honestly, with a character you can really sink your time into in Sekiro. It's    Not a bad game, just don't understand what the hype is about.

    Given all the hype that was surrounding this game, I was really looking forward to it, and in all honest I have enjoyed playing it. I just don't get what everyone is so up in arms with it about.

    For starters, the game's story is really good, honestly, with a character you can really sink your time into in Sekiro. It's FromSoftware's first protagonist that you can actually develop with in terms of character. Sekiro is a pure bad-ass for sure. While the grappling hook is a clear steal from a well known Nintendo franchise, it is used very well in this game in for the stealth aspect. The action overall action isn't bad either.

    Thank you for finally adding a freaking jump button. That may not seem like much of a concern to others, but a jump button really helps me manuaver through a battle better than simply rolling/dodging. That's just me. Also, I love the "no stamina" gauge idea. Personally, I always felt that games that featured a stamina gauge steered the advantage towards enemies/bosses because it always seemed like they had unlimited stamina (even if they had a gauge).

    So why the mediocre 7/10 score? To put it simply, this game doesn't really add anything new to the genre for me. Let's be real, if this wasn't a FromSoftware game, would you even care? Let's take off the rose-colored glasses for a second.

    First off, as mentioned by others, the only main weapon in this game is a katana (and some shuriken). While it may not seem like a big deal, it really is. It makes every battle the same. Either you stealth stab someone with your sword, or you rush an cut them with your sword. In ancient history, ninjas (shinobi included) used various weapons such as blowguns, caltrops, hook swords, chigiriki (flail), kusari-gama (chained-blade), polearms, and even some bows. So, why the lack of variety in this game? Even the most basic of action games gave the player a bit of variety in order to help them decide how to approach battles. Even the 8 bit Zelda games gave you a bow and a hammer.

    The graphics leave a bit to be desired (especially from a 2019), however, that doesn't bother me quite as much as others. As long as the game doesn't break, I'm OK with it.

    Going back to combat, it feels really weird that the game is based off of breaking enemy guard and parrying, and yet, there is no stamina. It sort of makes you sit back and say, "Well, what't the difference?" because, well, what is the difference? Isn't that a stamina thing? Fights are more fast-paced, but it given you essentially have to use the same patience as other FromSoftware titles, it can make harder battles (particularly boss battles) feel like "hurry up and wait" kind of strategy.

    Also, for a game that is getting such praise, I expected something...different. Pretty much every mechanic from this game has been used before in wide variety. The grappling hook, as mentioned, was used in the Zelda games, the parrying/guard-break mechanic was used in many games including previous FromSoftware titles, the cinematic death-dealing blows have been used by God of War since the beginning, reviving on the spot or at previous checkpoints has been used in pretty much every game, the ninja stealth mechanic was the basis of the entire Shinobido series (hell Sekiro even looks like Goh from that game), even the revenge story in this game is pretty copy and paste from various other revenge story games.

    I think that because this is a FromSoftware title, its getting quite a bit more accolade than it deserves. That's not to say this is a bad game because its not. In terms of action games, it should satisfy anyone who has an itch for it with FS's trademark difficulty. However, as far as anything special or new to the genre, I would argue that Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice is more original than Sekiro.

    TL;DR: Not a bad game, just over-hyped.    … Expand
  23. KnightimeX
    Mar 28, 2019
    7
    Fun game with balance issues.
    Posture gimmick defeats the purpose of a health bar. Build it up and watch 100% of their life drop to zero in a devastating death blow attack.
    You're going to need to get used to this as your sword is inferior to plastic knives in terms of damage. When it comes to dealing damage enemies might as well have lightsabers. You can do a 10 hit combo and if    Fun game with balance issues.
    Posture gimmick defeats the purpose of a health bar. Build it up and watch 100% of their life drop to zero in a devastating death blow attack.
    You're going to need to get used to this as your sword is inferior to plastic knives in terms of damage.
    When it comes to dealing damage enemies might as well have lightsabers.
    You can do a 10 hit combo and if you're lucky the enemy MIGHT notice a slight itch going on only to find you struggling to do any kind of damage.
    Why the player has a posture gauge is beyond me.
    Attack the enemy 50 times you'll get about 50% of the job done.
    Get hit once by the enemy and you'll slip into a small seizure party.

    If you're looking for a hardcore blocking simulator this game is for you.
    It's a fun game but hardly in the same league as Bloodborne or any other souls game for that matter.    … Expand
  24. Mats2468
    Mar 24, 2019
    7
    To be honest, I loved Sekiro's setting, but that is not enough to make me liking this game. I played this game in about 11 hours until I randomly stoped playing, why? The difficulty destroyd my enjoment, aswell my progression was lost all the time when I died. I hate that when you die in the game, it has a impact to the world around you. Is 90 hour game full of frustration really worth theTo be honest, I loved Sekiro's setting, but that is not enough to make me liking this game. I played this game in about 11 hours until I randomly stoped playing, why? The difficulty destroyd my enjoment, aswell my progression was lost all the time when I died. I hate that when you die in the game, it has a impact to the world around you. Is 90 hour game full of frustration really worth the money? I don't think so. This is the last time I buying from devolper (From Software).… Expand
  25. Acguydance
    Mar 23, 2019
    7
    WARNING: DO NOT EVEN TOUCH THIS GAME IF YOU CAN BARELY SOLO "BLOODBORNE" IN THE HARDEST DIFFICULTY.
    This game is awfully hard. Perhaps one of the hardest games of the decade. You need ALOT of dying and practicing and positioning to learn the pattern of the enemies, and it takes forever to bring down a foe while they can simply crush you like a poorly built sand castle. Accompanied by    WARNING: DO NOT EVEN TOUCH THIS GAME IF YOU CAN BARELY SOLO "BLOODBORNE" IN THE HARDEST DIFFICULTY.
    This game is awfully hard. Perhaps one of the hardest games of the decade. You need ALOT of dying and practicing and positioning to learn the pattern of the enemies, and it takes forever to bring down a foe while they can simply crush you like a poorly built sand castle. Accompanied by the speedy combat system, you are going to experience waves of stomach hurting and hair pulling situations. In exchange, the sense of accomplishment is immeasurable when you beat a boss.

    So is this game FUN? Generally, because of the punishing difficulty, NOT REALLY.
    BUT, the combat itself is superbly entertaining and you will find your self sweating your hands over hours after playing SEKIRO. If you are a die hard Action Gamer that like to play any game from the hardest difficulty, this IS your Game. Else, Just skip this for your own sake.    … Expand
  26. spaghetti-cop
    Mar 31, 2019
    7
    I've been all over the place with Sekiro. When I started it, I was hooked. The combat was interesting as were the story and characters; just what I've come to expect from Fromsoft. Then I hit a couple brick walls that made me wonder if the game was for me. Several bosses felt way overpowered while my own options were lacking. Make a couple mistakes and you die. I was very close the puttingI've been all over the place with Sekiro. When I started it, I was hooked. The combat was interesting as were the story and characters; just what I've come to expect from Fromsoft. Then I hit a couple brick walls that made me wonder if the game was for me. Several bosses felt way overpowered while my own options were lacking. Make a couple mistakes and you die. I was very close the putting the game down and chocking it up to it "not being for me."

    I decided I would trudge through, and I'm glad that I did. The game has some really special moments and the story does a great job at motivating you to see them all. My combat abilities were expanding as quickly as my shinobi arsenal, and I finally got into the groove. I'm glad I stuck it out because I started to have a lot of fun...but

    Then I hit a few more brick walls and the process began anew. Another ridiculously hard boss here or there that I eventually overcame after immense mental fatigue. Once I got through, the game gave me more areas to explore in its final act than what I'm used to in a Fromsoft game which was very cool. What wasn't very cool was fighting 4-5 of the sub/bosses again but either palette swapped or in greater numbers...lame. I really hate padding in my games and soulsborne games usually do a pretty good job of avoiding that..

    Once I worked my way to the end the hardest boss I've ever fought was in my way of seeing the credits roll. This guy killed me countless times and the game forces you to LIGHT SPOILERS fight each of its forms every time you retry. I was getting really exhausted by the end of it, and when I finally hit the killing blow and the credits rolled I thought to myself "Damn that was barely worth the effort"

    This is a solid, quality video game to be sure, but it's really held back by how ridiculously difficult it is. Better telegraphed unblockable moves, snappier inputs (sekiro sometimes just doesn't register button presses which is very irksome in a game that requires so much precision), a better battle camera, and a little trimming of the fat and this game would be a strong 9. As it stands now, I have to give it a 7.5. It just felt like the game didn't want me to enjoy it. It just wanted to dump on me at every opportunity.    … Expand
  27. AloyOfNora
    Mar 25, 2019
    7
    To provide some background, I have completely soloed every Dark Souls game and Bloodborne multiple times and have well over 500 hours combined in them.

    The artwork of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is absolutely incredible. Beautiful colors and designs are a treat. The vertical traversal with your arm prosthetic is also a delight, acting as a Hookshot from the Zelda series but with a    To provide some background, I have completely soloed every Dark Souls game and Bloodborne multiple times and have well over 500 hours combined in them.

    The artwork of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is absolutely incredible. Beautiful colors and designs are a treat. The vertical traversal with your arm prosthetic is also a delight, acting as a Hookshot from the Zelda series but with a delightful elegance and animation. Vertical exploration and traversal is great. Where this game falters is primarily with the poorly designed combat, which is built from the ground up around a Posture system...and the boss design.

    The Posture system is a mess, giving the combat a SPAM feel. It's essentially a glorified and fancy QTE system, with much less emphasis on precise dodging and more on mashing appropriate buttons at appropriate times (colored symbols are also flashed). The entire combat system feels like big regression from FromSoftware masterpieces in the past. Also gone are stat values and variety in weapons and armor, leading to shallow, linear and limited character progression.

    Boss design is also very disappointing and a tremendous step backwards from previous games. Bosses are nowhere near as fun to fight and feel less rewarding to defeat, despite all bosses being easier than the hardest Soulsborne bosses.

    Overall, Sekiro is a solid game with fun to be had, but it is easily the worst FromSoftware game in over a decade. Hopefully, FromSoftware will deliver a sequel to their masterpiece Bloodborne and learn from missteps made in Sekiro.    … Expand
  28. mrvertigo89
    Mar 24, 2019
    7
    FromSoft tends to be the only studio that I'll actually pre-order from, and I did with Sekiro. Long-time fan of the ridiculous difficulty, Demon Souls (closely followed by Bloodborne) is my favourite game of all time, and I love dark souls too.

    Sekiro is a bit of a different bag. It's a good game, the movement is fun, as are the ninja tools, and the stealth is well integrated into the    FromSoft tends to be the only studio that I'll actually pre-order from, and I did with Sekiro. Long-time fan of the ridiculous difficulty, Demon Souls (closely followed by Bloodborne) is my favourite game of all time, and I love dark souls too.

    Sekiro is a bit of a different bag. It's a good game, the movement is fun, as are the ninja tools, and the stealth is well integrated into the general gameplay - and particularly with minibosses. However, I think this will be the first FromSoft game I don't try to platinum. Mainly because I don't think I'll play through it more than once.

    The bosses are not so much difficult as long, everything has lots of health and the classic secret third phase is thrown into the mix too. Remember fighting those demons in DS3 expansion, when they morph into an even bigger demon when they die... well it's that. The frustration of Nameless King's second phase where it takes so long to get to it. None of this I'd mind on its own, except you don't get to build a character anymore.

    You can earn experience and unlock skills, but these don't really change your fighting prowess the way maxing a quality build would, or getting a new weapon. Upgrades (at least in terms of damage) are contingent on defeating bosses, so again sometimes you smash against a brick-wall of difficulty, but can't go off and build your character to come back stronger. You just hit it again and again. Obvs, with no co-op this also rules out that as a way to overcome a particularly **** boss (looking at you Fume Knight from DS2).

    The world is good, the story is much less subtle but I guess that's fine given there is an actual narrative, but with no new builds to try, and no desire to fight some of the bosses again, I think I'll be putting it down when I'm done and playing through one of the others again.

    Fingers crossed for Blooborne 2!    … Expand
  29. ghostlysun
    Jul 15, 2019
    7
    I thought that I was in for something incredible since this was the first From Software's game that looked and felt so polished and finished. But then I started to slowly realize that one of the main aspects that makes a souls-like game great, the different approaches you can have in combat are all gone, and you are left alone with a sword and parrying mechanics. So if you're not good atI thought that I was in for something incredible since this was the first From Software's game that looked and felt so polished and finished. But then I started to slowly realize that one of the main aspects that makes a souls-like game great, the different approaches you can have in combat are all gone, and you are left alone with a sword and parrying mechanics. So if you're not good at that, avoid this game if you don't want to get too frustrated. Otherwise, the game's really good in almost every aspect.… Expand
  30. nating51
    Apr 16, 2019
    7
    Nice game, great art direction, great combat system and all, but it lacks a lot from a replay value side. After you platinum'd the game, get all prosthetics, all skills and beat every boss, there's no real sense to play it again as the game experience will be the same over and over again. I like the action approach to this game, with no stats or classes, and I really appreciate the idea ofNice game, great art direction, great combat system and all, but it lacks a lot from a replay value side. After you platinum'd the game, get all prosthetics, all skills and beat every boss, there's no real sense to play it again as the game experience will be the same over and over again. I like the action approach to this game, with no stats or classes, and I really appreciate the idea of skill trees, but I would have preferred a game where you make your own "build" to accomplish the adventure, in order to make the game a lot more interesting (and creative to the player) in future playthrough. It would have increased the replay value to some extent.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Best PS4 Game of 2019
5
#5 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2019
5
#5 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 77 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 76 out of 77
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 77
  3. Negative: 1 out of 77
  1. RPGamer
    Dec 17, 2024
    90
    Overall, Sekiro is defined by its riveting, challenging, and ultimately highly rewarding gameplay. Stemming from simplicity but giving a wide variety of different combat options, few games come close to matching the exhilarating rush that Sekiro’s best moments provide. Exploring its atmospherically engrossing levels is a treat, from a visual, musical, and atmospheric standpoint. Even if exploration and character storylines are sometimes hampered by Dragonrot, repeatedly severing the immortality of bosses with brutal “Shinobi Executions” and discovering the ritual secrets of eternal life offers a captivating experience that stands out as one of FromSoftware’s best and most distinctive titles.
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  2. Gamers' Temple
    May 15, 2019
    90
    Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is an enjoyable, yet deeply challenging game. It's not really a Dark Souls with samurais game, but whether or not you enjoyed the difficulty level of the battles in Dark Souls will be a good benchmark in gauging how much you'll like Sekiro. If you're persistent, up for a challenge, and don't become frustrated easily, then Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is an easy game to recommend.
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  3. Daily Star
    Apr 28, 2019
    100
    Though Sekiro feels impossibly hard at times, the level of euphoria you experience when delivering a death blow to a tricky boss or when you finally clear a castle grounds of all enemies is almost unparalleled.
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