I want to play Bloodborne because quite frankly it looks really cool. I’m told the game is going to be way too difficult for me. I usually play games on standard or easy difficulty. Should I even bother? Is this game even going to be playable to a noob like me?
Souls games are literally just rhythm games. 90% of boss fights are watching for when the enemy commits to moving forward and pressing the roll button, once they stop for a bit, give em a tickle. Repeat until god is dead.
In the sense of “do they require lightning fast reflexes or mastering a deep combat system”, no not at all. They mostly require paying attention and learning.
I don’t mind learning. I suppose it’s sort of like solving a puzzle. I’m used to horror games with puzzles so I’m used to thinking things through in games.
This isn’t to say it’s not a game that won’t challenge reflexes if you let it. I think it’s fair to say better reflexes in a souls like can serve to make a boss easier as you play more on the edge. Of course this takes having your game knowledge and pattern recognition on point.
The game is learning.
There’s some reaction element, but the core loop is learning how to be optimally positioned to use your weapon, how to optimally pace your attacks, when your attacks leave you vulnerable. Then once you get that, you do the same with enemies. You learn where they hit hardest, what you can avoid, what their tells are, and when they’re vulnerable.
If you’re willing to learn and approach the game with learning as a goal, and understanding that you’ll die as part of that learning process, they’re great, because they do a really good job of creating difficulty in a way that almost all damage is predictable and avoidable if you know what you’re looking at and approach it the right way.
If you just want to button mash you’re going to have a bad time.
They require a different mindset and approach than many other games. You can view it as a test of will: your victory is inevitable since every time you die, you respawn and have learned a little. The game tries to make you quit, not by being unfair but by punishing laziness and corner cutting. The rewarding feeling you get when you finally, initially through stubborness and eventually by skill beat a difficult boss is immense. The videos of people easily dodging attacks and showing restraint in their attacks beat difficult bosses - that will be you eventually. Just accept that dying and trying again is an integral part of the experience, it does not mean that you are bad at the game. There can not be a feeling of accomplishment and achievement if there is no resistance, no? Go and have fun! And remember, there is no “wrong way” to play - all the mechanics in the games are there for a reason, so use them!
No, they have a learning curve but that’s about it. They are not unfair or over difficult like some of those meme games that were popular a while ago
When I was a kid I played a flash game called World’s Hardest Game or something like that. It was a puzzle game where you move a red square through a maze with obstacles. Bloodborne looks like a walk in the park in comparison. I know it’s sort of random but the meme games reminded me of that.