Light spoilers for the game after the fourth mission (including the intro): The game is split up into regions, reached the second region where all my kodama progress is reset, so you're back to starting off with 3 elixirs and no kodama blessings. It wasn't a huge deal, 3+whatever drops was fine for that area, but it was mildly frustrating since I took time to get all the kodama for max elixirs in the first region only to have my progress reset in the second.
Yeah, that's not a great mechanic. I knew it was coming though so I wasn't surprised, ha. I really like using magic and stuff in this game. I've found myself using buffs and status spells way more than I ever have in a souls game.
I had no idea so I was just a little surprised. A main mission and a few side missions later and I'm already over it, just a weird decision. Yeah, buffs and spells have been really fun to use, I always wanted to try a magic build out in Souls but never did. I've been finding myself experimenting with all my combat options here, using different sorts of projectiles and status effects and buffs.
Honestly then maybe I should save some points for magic use. As of right now I'm going for a straight medium armor/dual swords/spear/high stamina build.
How is Nioh's story/atmosphere/design though? The problem with all these Dark Souls "clones" is they think Dark Souls is about difficulty, when they should spend their time building an interesting world and creating dope environments. I tolerate the difficulty in Dark Souls, because the real strength is the world Miyazaki builds.
It's no where near the same level. Nioh is definitely more of a combat based game. There's a pretty simple story told in a pretty ridiculous over the top but fun way, the level/boss/enemy design is all pretty great for the most part although still definitely a level below souls and the enemy variety is one of the games worst aspects. I still think it's a great game but I wouldn't put it on par with any Souls game. Maybe Demon's Souls but I don't think that's aged all that well.
Nioh's strengths are definitely the dynamic combat system and robust loot system and the bosses good mechanically as well even if I haven't quite seen anything, design-wise, I like as much as a lot of the Souls bosses. The level design is fine, and there are plenty of moments where you get wrapped around or find a great shortcut but it's nothing incredible. I love the look of the game, the Japanese folklore aesthetic is really appealing to me even if the enemy variety has been a bit lacking. It's been a big surprise for me, I wrote it off entirely after not enjoying the time I spent with the betas they put out.
Alright we got knight/medieval based soulsborne, horror/steampunk based soulsborne, and now samurai based soulsborne. Now I want pirate based soulsborne
Na I've been waiting for space soulsborne Just imagine laser swords, and giant space demon/alien bosses.
Sci-Fi Soulsborne is and has been definitely my #1 wish, preferably from From themselves, but Pirate Soulsborne sounds amazing too.
Yeah scifi would be really cool. I think a big issue some other souls clones forget is that the Soulsborne series has a really fascinating world with interesting rules and a rich history. It's not just a difficult brutal experience, it's got an atmosphere and a mythology all its own that's very compelling. Nioh actually got this right, albeit it's not quite as good as soulsborne but still it's nice that they put interesting little details and characters in it.
I still haven't played Nioh but I did play a good bit of Lords of the Fallen and kind of fell out of it just because it ultimately just wasn't as interesting as From's games. Miyazaki's team really is that inimitable when it comes to worldbuilding.
Replayed through Bloodborne in my free time of not progressing into heroic raiding in WoW. I think I can possibly give Bloodborne the title of my favorite video game. The combat and the mechanics and the graphics and all of that gameplay jazz is astounding and fluid and engaging and all that good stuff. But its the story, the atmosphere, the world that it builds that gives all of that gameplay purpose. The small but fascinating cast of characters we meet and are given insight (hah) into, the small glimpses of what the world used to be like before the Healing Church rose to power with the use of healing blood, the taste of Lovecraftian horror we get with the Great Ones and their vague but interesting lore. Its all just so rich and extremely unique, all set in this horror steam-punk gothic setting. Its a game I continually think about even after beating it, a game I theorize about and spend quite a lot of time just gushing about in my own head. Yharnam produces more blood and alcohol, because the former is more intoxicating. Now, I'm off to buy Nioh and get lost for a couple weeks :D
It's pretty much a flawless game. My local stores don't have Nioh :( guess I'll just buy it through PS store
Nioh is dope. Bloodborne is just on such another level for me though. I might rebuy the complete addition just to beat it with the DLC and fuck around with some root dungeons
It's a flawless game! haha Yeah, apparently Nioh's been selling out everywhere. I've almost finished it, got one more main mission left I think.
The the world/atmosphere change at the halfway point of Bloodborne is one of the most mind blowing, exciting things I've experienced in a game ever. I wish I could go back and play it brand new again. It's probably my favorite as well, but I'm still so nostalgic for Demons/Dark Souls 1.
I think it's great. I don't like it quite as much as any Dark Souls or Bloodborne because it doesn't really reach the heights of those games in anything other than maybe combat. The level design and enemy variety are probably my two biggest complaints with the game, the levels are mostly decent in terms of layout but there's a lot of very similar locations and you see almost every enemy in the game within the first real mission. I also think a lot of the submissions can get kind of boring when you're just replaying a level you've already played, fighting the same enemies over and over. Also not a huge fan of the way loot is done compared to Souls but I know a lot of people really like the way this game does it. The bosses are pretty great for the most part though and there's a lot of different things you can do in combat to keep things interesting. I'd probably give it like an 8.5 compared to the Soulsborne games which range from 9.5-10.
Saying that, it's glitched on me and I've spent the last half an hour running around trying to find out what to do.