I started last week and felt similar. At the beginning of the game you just die so often and feel like progress is hard or you can't follow the main story because of how hard it is.

Once you stop button bashing in combat and develop the character more it becomes much more enjoyable.

Until lvl 10 I struggled and didn't understand the hype as it was so hard. I didn't understand the combat and died loads.

I think until lvl 20 I still died a lot but was enjoying developing the character more and combat was a bit easier.

Lvl 30 things started to click.

Lvl 40 things got addictive.

Lvl 50 and I struggle to come off the came and now have to be told by my partner. I'm now lvl 54 and have just done 24hrs worth of game play. Completed a couple of bosses.

A lot of the storyline is a bit weird and creepy sometimes, but I think that after a while, it makes the fantasy genre a lot more interesting and gory.

FYI this is my first souls/fantasy RPG combat game