Chapter 681: Compromise? No Way! (Requesting Subscriptions, Monthly Passes)

Seeing the combat system design before them, everyone in the meeting room was a little bewildered.

Qin Yi, Meng Zuo, Yang Xin, Ruan Ningxue, and the other veterans exchanged glances.

They saw it, they saw it!

What's with this ninja and samurai background, this Jidaigeki film style, this Divine Dragon and the power of immortality—none of that is important!

The truly crucial element, damn it, this is a pure Souls-like game!

Thinking back to what Chen Xu said at the start of the meeting, everyone was speechless.

“Mr. Chen, after the BioShock series, bringing out a Sekiro, we feel players might not be able to handle it!” Meng Zuo couldn't help but say.

Chen Xu smiled, “How could that be? Haven't you noticed that this game is very different from previous Souls-like games? Previously, players in Souls-like games only had one life, but in Sekiro, they have two lives, and can even revive with half health once after dying.”

Listening to your nonsense!

Yang Xin, Ruan Ningxue, and the others were all speechless.

“Don't look at me like that, everyone. You don't need to worry about the difficulty; I'll adjust it as appropriate later,” Chen Xu told them.

If the difficulty is too high, it will be lowered. Of course, if the difficulty doesn't meet Chen Xu's expectations, it definitely needs to be raised.

After all these years, bringing another Souls game to players, he couldn't let them be disappointed.

“And next, I'll talk to you about the map content. This time, Sekiro's map will also be a bit different from before. You'll understand why I said the difficulty actually looks relatively low once I'm done,” Chen Xu smiled, continuing to speak to the crowd.

Dark Souls and Bloodborne are also renowned for their level design, which goes beyond just the malicious intent of enemies within the levels.

It's more about controlling player actions, planning, and pacing.

For example, mechanisms, monsters, and shortcuts.

It can be said that Souls-like games lean more towards exploration, which also benefits from excellent level design.

However, in Sekiro, the map design is a little different.

The biggest feature is that Sekiro, the protagonist, can jump, and it's a double jump, in addition to the grappling hook mechanic.

This makes Sekiro's maps three-dimensional, and after giving players greater mobility, it comes with even higher freedom.

Just like in Dark Souls Prequel, where players start at Firelink Shrine, the central hub, and can go to New Londo Ruins, Catacombs, or Undead Burg.

In Sekiro, it goes a step further. After players arrive at Ashina Castle according to the story, they can head to three different locations: Fountainhead Palace, Senpou Temple, and Mibu Village.

But where to go is a choice players can make here.

Sekiro also has a rather clever aspect: resource utilization.

Taking Ashina Castle as an example: from Sekiro climbing out of the valley at night with Kuro to escape, then going to Ashina Castle to find Kuro after Genichiro severed his left arm, to the Interior Ministry invading Ashina Castle and it being engulfed in war, and Ashina Castle's fall after Isshin Ashina's death.

In different time periods, even though it's still Ashina Castle, the distribution of enemies and monsters encountered, as well as the routes, will undergo subtle changes.

Although it's the same map, the environment changes differently, and new monsters won't make players feel much repetition; instead, it will deepen their understanding of the map.

Furthermore, the addition of the double jump in the game also grants players greater freedom. As long as they are proficient with the map, they can reach places normally inaccessible, or perform parkour more effectively.

Of course, besides these, the monster designs in the game are also excellent.

Unlike the monsters in Dark Souls and Bloodborne, which are mostly feral and deranged.

Most of the monsters in Sekiro are humanoid, which means they can call for backup.

At this point, confronting them head-on becomes quite difficult. Players need to use their wits to survey the surrounding terrain, employ Shinobi Execution skills like Puppeteer Ninjutsu or Bloodsmoke Ninjutsu, or use auxiliary items like Gachiin's Sugar to stealthily assassinate mobs one by one, and then finally take on the BOSS.

One of the most classic examples is the large, fat bandit Juzou the Drunkard, whom players encounter in front of Hirata Estate three years prior.

If you recklessly charge straight in, two shield-wielding soldiers, aided by archers and torch-bearers, will definitely teach you a lesson.

However, if you stealthily assassinate, you can even secretly chip away one health bar from an elite monster, significantly reducing the combat difficulty.

..................

Listening to Chen Xu's words, everyone showed surprised expressions.

Because from the introduction, it seemed that this Souls game, Sekiro, was truly quite friendly to players.

It had two lives, most monsters could be cheesed, and there was even an assassination feature.

Could Mr. Chen really have compromised on difficulty?

Chen Xu, sitting in his seat, couldn't help but smile slightly at the expressions on everyone's faces.

Compromise?

No way!

It's full of ways to cheese, and the map design is incredibly user-friendly.

But don't overlook one crucial point.

That is, Sekiro's combat system is completely different from Bloodborne and Dark Souls.

After the concept of the Posture Bar was introduced, the combat system underwent a revolutionary change.

It can be said that in Sekiro's combat, fighting BOSSes is no longer about slowly chipping away at their health bar with each strike, but about finding ways to fill the enemy's Posture Bar.

Of course, it's not impossible to chip away health, but in Sekiro, doing so actually makes it harder, akin to fighting a BOSS in Bloodborne with a broken wooden shield.

So in Sekiro, the simplest way for players to defeat a BOSS is to learn how to use dodge steps and block/sword clash.

Also, unlike Dark Souls and Bloodborne where if you couldn't beat a BOSS, you could get help from fellow players, or grind souls to upgrade your stats, or worst-case scenario, create a well-rounded character build.

In Sekiro, there's no online multiplayer function, so fellow players like Solaire of Astora naturally don't exist.

Moreover, while you can learn skills in the game, they are not critical.

As for health, the Healing Gourd for healing, and Attack Power upgrades for increasing damage.

Aside from a small amount that can be collected from various corners of the map, most are obtained by defeating BOSSes and elite monsters.

So if players constantly cheese and don't fight some elite monsters they encounter, they will fall into a death loop.

No Healing Gourd and no health.

Additionally, in the game's main story, players will encounter two teachers.

One is Lady Butterfly, a more lenient teacher who turns a blind eye once you master dodge steps.

The other is Genichiro, a stricter teacher: dodge steps, Mikiri Counter, reading enemy attacks, blocking—if you fail any one of these, don't even think about passing; you'll definitely be held back.

(End of Chapter) <>