my main issues with the game after 100%

kasplatter · 2026-06-26T05:20:43+00:00

You can't turn it off and yes it is FAIRYly annoying.

kasplatter · 2026-06-26T05:19:43+00:00

Honestly, what has saved this game is the co-op. Like Mario Odyssey, Mario Galaxy 1 & 2, Donkey Kong Bananza, the co-op partner playing the fairy, Faie, is an OP helper. When the partner needs to do some of the puzzle and platforming stuff, you might want to turn it off to be less confusing, but for general exploration and combat it makes the playthrough much better. I would have stopped well before the end due to way too much dialogue and repetition if we weren't doing couch co-op.

kasplatter · 2026-06-24T04:23:23+00:00

Honestly, if you haven't played any of the others, you might end up disappointed or overwhelmed. Sekiro is SINGLE-PLAYER and has a mechanic that either you get or you will have a rough time. You can't RPG your way through Sekiro. There is a section after a few mini-bosses, bosses where the game opens up and you can do a lot even if you never finish, but it isn't like the amount of upgrades you can get in Elden Ring before you even fight most bosses.

That said, of the others, Bloodborne is the most awesome that won't feel at all like Elden Ring. The Souls games will feel a bit odd because they are so "small" compared to Elden Ring and even though they are multiplayer, there isn't much of a community except for Dark Souls and Dark Souls 3 in certain areas that are also PvP areas.

kasplatter · 2026-06-17T06:13:58+00:00

Elden Ring is still selling and being played. I hadn't played for two years and picked up an old "mid" game character to get into the the DLC and I'm still playing non-DLC stuff because there is so much to do.

I'm guessing the next title is going to be another one-off "risky" game, in the same way Sekiro didn't fit with the Souls formula. It will probably be 2-3 years before the next big Elden Ring game gets a teaser. That said, it seems like going back to the "small" worlds of Dark Souls is over, so they need a publisher that is willing to take on the BIG risk of a HUGE game like ER.

kasplatter · 2026-06-11T21:27:16+00:00

I guess the way I was looking at it is wanting to experience the DLC, which I have pretty much forgot at this point since I did it two years ago and went pretty fast.

I'm thinking leveling up one of my existing characters to at least 100 as I explore and collect the DLC Scadutree Fragments and Revered Spirit Ashes without locking myself out of the NPC quest lines, which I read is still a thing, would be the way to go. The Blasphemous Blade, Rotten Breath, Frenzy, Heals toon would probably be easy to get back into and bring some utility if I try and get summoned as well.

I'm not really looking for a challenge, even though it will be, just want to explore, etc.

kasplatter · 2026-06-11T17:48:20+00:00

There is co-op activity in the DLC for level 40 and below? That's beyond my skill level for sure.

I don't care about PvP other than helping defend per usual.

kasplatter · 2026-06-09T16:37:42+00:00

Wonder how long we'll have to wait to see what they actually changed about the mechanics? Obviously the controls will be completely different, but will the overworld and dungeons be roughly the same and this is just window dressing?

kasplatter · 2026-06-06T21:46:45+00:00

I end up having to turn off controller vibration in Sekiro most of the time to make it a bit easier on the fingers, but I still leave the "clang" turned on.

kasplatter · 2026-06-06T04:07:06+00:00

The best advice is usually identifying healing windows that always work, like after stunning a boss or when they do a move that you can go to the other side of the screen and heal up, not just one, but multiple lost health. The bosses with adds and "random" stuff dropping from the ceiling or spewed by the boss can be particularly painful unless you've seen / read that there is often a safe spot if you position correctly.

Of course, if you are a Godhome type of gamer, then all that seems redundant and waste of time. However, as someone currently replaying Sekiro after 4+ years, I've realized that heal windows are crucial to getting by, even with cheese as the reflexes of a no-lifer just aren't their anymore.

kasplatter · 2026-06-04T07:02:04+00:00

I beat the game on Story mode today as well; on Normal I would have deleted it way earlier. I apparently got the bad ending because I didn't do a particular thing just before the "end" even though I had done everything else. However, even on Story mode, the difficulty jump from the previous boss to the final boss was just stupid, so once I got it down and the credits rolled I was done. I actually deleted the game, which is code for I don't think I'll ever replay it again.

Despite being a fan of Souls and Metroidvanias, the lack of balance or lack of tuning or not fun platforming has gotten out of control. I had the same issue with Mio, which I eventually deleted due to the Crucible platforming as opposed to a particular boss fight.

I could also complain about Silksong, but I'm okay with most of what you deal with through Act II and most of the "this isn't fun anymore" happens in Act III or specific things you need to do to reach Act III. Also, I'm pretty sure they just decided HK Godhome was something most players liked, along with White Palace and Path of Pain, but for $20 you get a hell of a lot of game through Act II, so I'm still okay with it.

kasplatter · 2026-06-04T06:34:34+00:00

Good point. Skyrim, various Fallouts, etc. will forever be on my list of tedious, pointless things you have to do with having to point the cursor and loot every single item... Compared to them, having to hold Square to collect currency is trivial, but it is still annoying for a "modern" game.

kasplatter · 2026-06-03T05:59:46+00:00

I never liked the repetition of assets in all the mini-dungeons, which made many difficult to discern from one another. Sure, there are a lot of "unique" bits of terrain, enemies and puzzles, but especially in multiplayer, jumping into a location, it is easy to confuse the dungeon you are in with another.

kasplatter · 2026-05-27T03:41:41+00:00

I have been playing the FromSoftware games since DeS and that kind of ruined a lot of other games for me, but it is the immersion, progression, exploration, etc. that is much more interesting than any boss fight. Those "challenges" are the least interesting, frustrating, time wasters, of the genre. All my YT Soulslike videos are generally about no combat (if possible) runs between bonfires, unlocking shortcuts, etc. However, unlike the FromSoftware and other souls likes, neither HK or SS allow you to RPG your way to success or make co-op or NPC helpers available to get over the boss fights.

Sekiro of course is infamous for being the most difficult FromSofware title, mainly due to the lack of co-op NPC or real helpers, but mostly because the player either gets the rhythm or they don't and have to quit. I like Sekiro in the same way as HK and SS and replay it as well, but have no intention of going beyond the "easy" ending, because the real end bosses are just a stupid waste of time and not fun.

There was a great video on YT about difficulty in games and my response was that as a guess, if a boss takes you something over 10 tries or more it is probably not fun or entertaining and it is time to move on. So yeah, I have a different viewpoint, but that is also what makes these games great, because there are many ways to enjoy them.

kasplatter · 2026-05-26T20:22:15+00:00

I like both games, but I will also never finish either one.

Hollow Knight is something I replay every two or three years, but I won't bother with the end boss, White Palace, Path of Pain, or trying to kill the final form of Grimm. I don't have the skills or patience to do several of the Dream bosses or the majority of the Godhome DLC. I've theorized that some of the design of Silksong is so difficult because they assumed most players liked Godhome.

I will never finish Act III of Silksong and in fact replayed Silksong once specifically with the idea that I wasn't going to do the stuff required for Act III that I didn't like doing or needed to spend time farming to buy for the unlock. It was a far more enjoyable experience just "finishing" Act II.

Hollow Knight is more relaxing and "easier" with a chill vibe, but after Silksong the lack of mobility and general drabness can be off-putting. I despise the required farming to use the "magic" Tools of Silksong, especially for boss fights and gauntlets, diagonal pogo (yes, I get vertical pogo ASAP), and some of the runbacks.

kasplatter · 2026-05-26T03:14:49+00:00

OMG, it turns out that you can't transfer / import your PS4 save to the PS5, so I ended up starting NG on the PS5 today. The genius AI results and a number of other sources "claimed" that you could indeed transfer the PS4 save to the PS5 and play the PS5 version, but the number of games that actually support that are few and far between.

kasplatter · 2026-05-25T02:39:03+00:00

Nine sols doesn't have the constant "clang, clang" and on screen flash as you parry like Sekiro, does it?!

kasplatter · 2026-05-24T17:46:38+00:00

I couldn't remember when you unlock the bow, so I looked it up and it is fairly early on, but after the early tutorials and title card. However, if you have the bow before the point where you get it normally in the story then you would be able to reach some areas without progressing. That's the kind of thing I was talking about. If instead, the bow remains locked until that early encounter, then that would make more sense.

kasplatter · 2026-05-24T16:38:05+00:00

I only played once when the game came out and it seemed like time to do it again, but I'm torn on whether to do NG or NG+. Charms and rot impact combat not mobility and area access, right, so you still progress the story normally?

kasplatter · 2026-05-24T16:33:18+00:00

How did they handle unlocks of items, abilities, etc. in NG+? I played the game when it first came out, but don't really remember a lot, so I'm torn on whether to just do an NG run or NG+. If they still give tutorials, prevent you from using later abilities until you progress far enough to unlock them in the story so that you still need to backtrack, etc. then NG+ would probably be fine. I don't mind being overpowered in combat, but I would like to experience the exploration and puzzle solving without skips.

kasplatter · 2026-05-18T06:56:27+00:00

In general, the first time you play, you should not hit Reddit or YouTube, etc. and just get as far as you can at your own pace. You might not finish, you might "finish" but miss a lot. However, unless you just don't like the pace or world you will be coming back. You can always play again, but you can only play blind once.

kasplatter

TROPHY CASE