Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice Review. A stunning game that manages to keep things feeling fresh

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be a ninja, perfectly combining stealth and fierce swordplay, this brilliant game is for you.

If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to be a ninja, perfectly combining stealth and fierce swordplay, then Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is the perfect game for you.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice sees you play as a shinobi ninja called Sekiro (or Wolf) in an attempt to rescue his master and exact revenge on his enemies after being left for dead.

Published by Activision, Sekiro builds on the foundation laid by developers From Software in Dark Souls and Bloodborne, keeping some old elements but also introducing radically new mechanics that make this game both unique and amazing.

The biggest change is the style of combat, with a huge focus on stealth for quick take-downs, while parrying or deflecting enemy blows is also extremely important.

While in Dark Souls or Bloodborne you could block or dodge and pick your moments to strike, Sekiro is much more aggressive and fast paced, and will require you to be up in your enemies face.

If you approach Sekiro like any other From Software game, you will struggle and die. A lot. Which I have learned the hard way!

Enemies now have a posture bar alongside their health, which is filled by attacking or deflecting enemy attacks, and when full, will allow you to perform a Shinobi Deathblow, to finish them off. Or you can be stealthy and get an instant kill on unsuspecting enemies.

This leads on to the next biggest change, which is the introduction of the Shinobi prosthetic arm, which gives players access to a wide arsenal of tools, including a grappling hook, shuriken (ninja stars), an axe and more.

There are more ways than ever to dispatch of your enemies.

These tools really give players more options when dealing with certain enemies, give you amazing freedom of movement and make it feel like you are really are a ninja. Speaking of freedom of movement, players can also now jump and swim at will, something not possible in previous From Software games.

Death has always been a vital part of From Software games as a learning experience, and it is no different in Sekiro, as you will often need to fail multiple times in order to succeed.

But the death mechanic has changed, with players now able to tactically resurrect upon death for an extra life. But death does come at a price, as you may permanently lose some progress, and NPC’s become infected by a disease the more times you die.

Sekiro also strips a lot of the RPG aspects from the game, replacing with a skill tree level up system, and removes much of the grind out of the game.

It’s not a game for the faint of heart.

From Software games have gained a cult following for being notoriously difficult but fair, and this is still the case in Sekiro, with players needing excellent reaction time to defend against attacks.

One thing that remains crucially unchanged is the difficulty of the enemies and bosses. You will find the main bosses, and even sub-bosses will really test your skills and will probably take multiple attempts to learn their movement and attack patterns.

Sekiro is set in the late 16th century Japan, at the end of the bloody Sengoku era, a time of constant war and death. The scenery and backdrop of mountains, forests and cherry blossoms is completely stunning, with an amazing attention to detail. Every now and then you will just want to sit back and take it all in.

Given the skill level required, new players may struggle at first, but will be forced to adapt (or ‘git gud’ as Dark Souls players would say) pretty quickly. But some new players may even find the gameplay easier to adjust to than some seasoned From Software fans, who are used to different game mechanics.

As a long time player myself, Sekiro definitely took some getting used to, as you will probably be able to tell from my extremely mediocre gameplay footage below.

Overall, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is a stunning game, that’s is true to the From Software formula, while still making enough changes to make gameplay fresh, so you want to keep coming back for more.

While it is still early days, this title is looking like it will be an early contender at the 2019 Game Awards, so why not unleash your inner ninja, and become Sekiro.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is out today, March 22, on PlayStation 4, Xbox one and PC.

Regular retail price for Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice will be around $99.95, but you will be able to get it cheaper on release day for $62 at Amazon Australia or $64 at JB Hi-Fi. So you’ll want to grab your copy of the game early to get the best price!

Wilson Smith is a games writer for news.com.au. Continue the conversation with him on twitter at @wilson_smithDT

Originally published as Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice Review. A stunning game that manages to keep things feeling fresh