Games Inbox: Favourite Soulsborne game, Devil May Cry 5 love, and Final Fantasy VII remake

As a fan of the Soulsborne series – a series which I loved and hated in equal measure, depending on how stuck I was – the decision to purchase Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice was a simple one.

I’m currently a few days into it now, much of it is very familiar in basic gameplay though my initial observations are the combat has become slightly easier and perhaps more intuitive. Despite that, getting older is clearly and noticeably impacting on my reaction times regarding computer games. I’m making more rapid progress in Sekiro than in previous FromSoftware titles.

That’s not to say the game is easy, far from it – it still ruthlessly punishes you if you attempt to take liberties – I wonder how much of the harsh punishment for death, as noted by others, is a trade-off to make the combat a little more accessible.

What I’m really grateful for is the game allows us to pause. Perhaps purists may disagree but I’ve never been sure of the reason for a lack of a pause option in previous Soulsborne games. As a middle-aged man with family commitments this made the games unnecessarily far more difficult (if that was possible). Invariably, an unwelcome domestic attraction would occur right in the middle of a boss fight which I couldn’t pause. Frustration doesn’t even begin to describe it.

Overall though Sekiro is a great game, and alongside the wonderful Resident Evil 2 it’s a possible contender for game of the year. Fans of the series will feel right at home.
Paul Williams

RE: Rich and trying a FromSoftware game. I’d go for Dark Souls Remastered or Bloodborne, with the DLC for both. Both games are classics.

Bloodborne is faster paced and centres around parrying, dodging and attacking. You regain health if you hit your opponent soon after they hit you.

Soulsborne games are hard because there’s a high price to pay for death and no hand-holding. In terms of reflexes and raw skill they aren’t that taxing.

Sekiro plays differently, requiring sharper reflexes and timing with a wider moveset and abilities.

Soulsborne games for me are always toughest at the start. So my advice would be to return to a lamp or bonfire and level up the moment you have the souls or echoes. Also choose your build, say strength, and put all your souls/echoes into that stat while it’s cheap to upgrade it to a high level. Then do the stuff you do for all builds like health and stamina.

You’ll either love it or hate. But it’s well worth finding out which one it’ll be.
Simundo Jones

I can empathise with Rich in this morning’s Inbox. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is the first From game since Demon’s Souls I haven’t pre-ordered or rushed out and bought on day one, because the more I saw of it before release the more I realised it wasn’t for me. I liked the stealth element and the grapple hook thing, but I instinctively knew that it would be too hard – especially as there is no co-op or summoning which, apart from saving my bacon more than once in the other games, added so much in terms of fun and ‘jolly co-operation’.

I admit I feel a bit left out though. Most of my friends in the Facebook groups I belong to are playing it but I’m content to read about their experiences and watch their videos of the action for the moment.
Gill C.

After admittedly not being that impressed by the demo I bought a copy of Devil May Cry 5 today and have to say that I am pleasantly surprised by how good it is, which makes me question why they put out such a dull demo in the first place. Surely it would have been better to have had a playable section using V?

I know that the fall of the demo was due to people not actually buying the full versions of games, but lately we have seen something of a resurgence and in my personal experience I can think of more demos that encouraged me to buy a game than put me off. And if they put me off I wonder if it is a case of the demo not being a good representation of the final game, like in this case?

Maybe this is an area where something like Stadia will come in really handy if, after watching a trailer on YouTube, it gave you say 5-10 minutes or longer to play a game before deciding whether to buy the full version without having to download anything or wait more than a few minutes to play it. I think we are a way off of average broadband speeds matching the tech, but I am really excited about Stadia and think it is really going to shake up the games industry in a big way.
Rickandrolla (PSN ID)

There has been some mention of Final Fantasy VII not having aged all that well. I agree that it does not look good now but wasn’t there supposed to be a remake for PlayStation 4?

I’m not sure if this is something I’ve imagined or if I’ve mistaken a remake for a remaster but I’m sure GC will be able to say one way or another.

I’ve recently been playing World Of Final Fantasy Maxima on Switch and I’ve been enjoying it so far. It has depth to it, belied by the cutesy visuals, so I’d be more than interested in a Final Fantasy VII remake for the current gen of consoles.
Mitchell

GC: A full remake was announced way back in 2015 but very little has been seen of it since. It has no release date and it seems reasonable to imagine it might not make it out until the next generation.

I’m a little late for the greatest achievement Hot topic but have some thoughts about Nintendo’s philosophy (of not using them).

I’m quite a fan of some achievements: they’ve often pushed me to get more from games, go further than I might have, and offer a nice reward token/badge of honour for those you’ve gone the extra mile on. Looking back over them later is like a fond reminisce over a gaming scrapbook. I’m glad they’re there, even if some can tend to devolve into carrots for collectathons or become tokenistic.

I once wrote a feature about completing The Endless Setlist in Rock Band, but I wouldn’t maintain it was my greatest achievement. Recently, I’ve re-completed Overcooked 2 with my partner, achieving the fourth star on every level in the main game campaign. There were some speculations online about whether these were even possible… it’s been the Dark Souls of co-op.

We’ve done it, and there’s no trophy; but it’s definitely some of the most fun I’ve (we’ve) ever had in gaming. We’ll be moving onto the seasonal/bonus content for pudding…
Squinty McGee
Currently playing: Overcooked 2 and Devil May Cry 5 (PS4), and Trials Rising (NS)

I have to admit I’m pretty sceptical of Streets Of Rage 4. I mean, it looks like a good time but the graphical style does not suit it in my opion, and seems more fitting for a remake of the horribly underrated Comix Zone.

Apparently, the reason they went with that graphical style is because they wanted Streets Of Rage 4 to be its own thing and not just pander to the older fans – which is commendable – but Streets Of Rage is a franchise that is begging for a Sonic Mania ‘modern retro’ make over and I just feel like the new game is a missed opportunity.
Breakfast Boy

RE: Gizmo and Mortal Kombat 11. I for one am extremely excited about it, it has a reasonable chance of being the best fighter this generation. It does feel like I am the only dedicated fighting game fan that writes in to the Inbox at times, just because it doesn’t get mentioned here doesn’t mean that nobody is interested.

I fail to understand why a time travel narrative is desperate. Huh? When did that stop being fun? By the looks of the most recent trailer, young heroes squaring off against their older selves, or even worse – their kids, looks like it will be a great laugh.

Though, yes – the level of violence is… well, it’s really something, huh? I saw one Fatality where Cassie Cage kicked Kano so hard in his crotch that – no, I don’t want to finish that sentence. I must be on a dozen watch lists as is. Yet, I could come up with much worse. Real tame compared to my worst nightmares, Mr Boon. Call me.

The open beta will be out this week, which I’ll be able to access – I’ll share my thoughts on that if GC will have them. Other than that, there’s nothing really to talk about until it’s here, right?

Naturally, this is not a game you should play with young children. That should go without saying.
DMR

Ah, I knew I could rely on such a wonderful community to put me out of my misery! A massive thank you to all who answered my call of need, as it was indeed WEC Le Mans 24 that had eluded my aging memory.
WonkiestAnt

RE: WonkiestAnt. My first thought was also Power Drift, but the possibility of it being in the 90s and it having pretty graphics makes me think that it could be SCUD Race. It came out in 96, so may be too late, but it’s definitely a good machine to spend time in.
Tron

The subject for this weekend’s Inbox was suggested by reader Onibee, who asks what is your favourite portable game ever?

With the 3DS’s lifetime coming to an end what handheld video game have you enjoyed the most? It can be from any format, including dedicated portables such as the Game Boy Advance and PS Vita, as well as smartphone games, and Switch titles (assuming you played the game in handheld mode the majority of the time).

How much do you enjoy portable games compared to home console and PC titles and how would you describe the difference? Are you worried that if portable-only consoles disappear a certain style of video game may disappear forever?

E-mail your comments to: gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk