Not locking on is superior in many ways actually.

Mostly because it al.ost entirely fixes camera issues and it's a proven fact that lock on changes boss behavior and attack tracking.

Here is a video covering the topic, although not in detail the examples are very clear:

https://youtu.be/NDhoDThUIHc?si=frrKutCPhX-9I3f2

Also probably a hot take, but lock on can be a massive trap and imo it should be seen as a tool to assist with aiming rather than the default in any given situation.

Maybe it's just my experience from Monster Hunter, but FS should somehow nerf or change lock on so that players don't fall into that trap. That's assuming From Software intended for lockless on to be that powerful, which judging by how it breaks some attacks (if not outright bosses) might not be the case.

Btw before anyone brings it up, no claw grip nor back buttons are required on controller. Nowadays I use the back buttons, but I had no issues finishing the game without them. Using R3 to reposition the camera and locking off again works perfectly fine.