As a connoisseur of both traditional soulslikes and parry-based ones, I have watched, mournfully, as my fellow FromSoftware enjoyers hit Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice—a game with some of FromSoftware's best boss battles ever, no competition—and bounced off it like a rubber blade. I've often gone on record to defend parrying on this site, despite the haters: Done well, these games are awesome. Parry fatigue? Bah, I say!
I get that seeing a parry in every action RPG is getting a smidge wearisome, but if a game's built around timed blocking, rather than just using it as an excuse to ignore balance? It can become a delicious game of rock, paper, scissors that sees you riding a knife's edge between victory and death. Redirecting lightning at the top of Ashina Castle is utterly imprinted onto my memory, nothing else can compare.
