How hard are the Soulsborne games?

[CastletonSnob]

Are the Soulsborne games really hard, or do games today hold your hand so much that they just seem really hard by comparison?

Now, don't misunderstand. I'm not saying the games are easy, but I do think their difficulty is overstated. Once you learn a boss's patterns, they're not THAT hard.

What do you think?

 

[Philtard]

Which ever one it is you play first is the hardest. Getting used to the combat mechanics is the basic key to success in these games. Basically you will die a lot. But your reward is learning during the way. They are hard. Don't expect to go smashing things and winning. Enemies have unique movesets as do yiur own weapons. Getting used to then is the hard part.

So yea. I guess they are harder than most modern games with check points maps etc

 

[Plissken]

Some cheap mechanics (more so in early entries), save points further between them than most games, most of the difficulty is getting used to the fighting style(s) (movements are slower than most hack and slash combat games), as well as learning enemy patterns. Having a shit save point is probably the worst part, nowhere near as bad as playing an evil Mario Maker level with shit or no checkpoints. The timesuck of a bad checkpoint, slower combat, and learning patterns makes it seem worse than it is.

 

[God_Emperor_Of_Mankind]

I'm playing Bloodborne now and dying a lot, what sucks is that there's no save point. If you die all enemies respawn, if you exit the game, they respawn. Messed up. A single enemy can also kill you in 2-3 strikes and will charge suddenly out of nowhere.

 

[HereticBD]

They're hard. Very hard.

Once you get into a groove, and begin to understand how the mechanics work, and what approach to take, they get a little easier, but they're still pretty fuckin' hard. They're also cryptic as fuck. Have a guide ready, because you will get lost and stuck without one.

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

It’s hard by modern standards, but it’s not impossibly hard like some old school NES games. The fact that I’ve beaten the whole series to me is evidence that they’re not ungodly hard. I say that because I don’t consider myself particularly good at games. I beat Ninja Gaiden Black and II years ago so coming into Demons Souls about 7 years ago I did have some experience with very challenging games, but it’s not Battletoads hard or anything like that.

 

[ObsoleteSoul]

Pretty difficult, but manageable once you unlearn what modem games have instilled in you. Just got into them the past year, and they just do not let you get away with being complacent.

 

[Swing]

Are the Soulsborne games really hard, or do games today hold your hand so much that they just seem really hard by comparison?

Now, don't misunderstand. I'm not saying the games are easy, but I do think their difficulty is overstated. Once you learn a boss's patterns, they're not THAT hard.

What do you think?

Pretty much agree. I think they're mostly about being patient. There are always a couple of bosses that give me a very hard time, but the rest typically only take me one or maybe two tries. I think getting through the normal enemies is more challenging than the bosses.

 

[SeefourDC]

If you just beat the game it's not too horrible but there are challenge bosses in basically every one that can feel soul crushingly hard. If you beat certain bosses solo you are pretty damn good at the game and have my respect. I also highly recommend doing a challenge run on the original dark souls like the ENB class challenge. You will truly understand what difficult is and playing at a level where getting it wrong just doesn't cut it. One of my favorite gaming experiences ever for sure.

 

[Fraz]

Beat all of them, haven't died yet

 

[Seano]

Beat all of them, haven't died yet

 

[rob mafia]

they're not exactly easy, but i don't think they're anywhere near as hard as their reputation.

on a score of 1-10 with 10 being most difficult, they're probably in the 6-7 range.


edit: and yeah, agreed about games in general getting progressively easier

 

[tru3f4n]

It’s hard by modern standards, but it’s not impossibly hard like some old school NES games. The fact that I’ve beaten the whole series to me is evidence that they’re not ungodly hard. I say that because I don’t consider myself particularly good at games. I beat Ninja Gaiden Black and II years ago so coming into Demons Souls about 7 years ago I did have some experience with very challenging games, but it’s not Battletoads hard or anything like that.

how much new game++++ you go into comparing the souls games to nes and sega games isn't fair alot of those games was made hard to steal ppls quarters at arcades

 

[KidBaize]

Not really hard, just challenging. Old platformers are way worse.

 

[tru3f4n]

just started playing blood borne. beat the 2nd boss. its definitely hard at first. but if you grind and farm, it gets easier and incredibly fun. at first I died about 50 times and just quit. then after some farming, I got stronger. I really appreciate the whole required dodge timing. in the Witcher 3, it was really easy to dodge attacks. all you had to do was dodge at the right time, and the enemy would never hit you, while in blood borne you need to dodge not only at the right time, but in the right direction. my best advice would be to roll or dodge incredibly close to the opponent rather than dodging at a distance. almost touch the enemy as you dodge/roll, then strike.

The Witcher 3 is just a step up from hack and slash games like Skyrim and Bloodborne too me was a step up from the Souls games. I never realised how much I relied on sheilds in Dark Souls 2 until I played BB and didn't have one well a real one.

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

how much new game++++ you go into comparing the souls games to nes and sega games isn't fair alot of those games was made hard to steal ppls quarters at arcades

Admittedly I think I only beat NG+ for Dark Souls 1 and NG++ for Dark Souls 2 and only NG for Demon’s Souls and Bloodborne.

 

[tehdude]

They're hard if you play them like your regular hack and slash games.

 

[jojoRed]

I'm playing Bloodborne now and dying a lot, what sucks is that there's no save point. If you die all enemies respawn, if you exit the game, they respawn. Messed up. A single enemy can also kill you in 2-3 strikes and will charge suddenly out of nowhere.

Trust the process, you're clearly newer to the soulsborne series but imo you're playing the best of the bunch. Take everything slow, one enemy at a time, you'll get way better. Tip videos on youtube should help too. The first section of Bloodborne may be the hardest in the game especially if you;re new to the series.

 

[Lovestorm]

They're quite difficult. Bought Dark Souls 3 ages ago but only committed to playing it over the last week or so and have broken two controllers already.

It's my first Souls game, but i'm slowly getting better. Can take down the Lothric Knights a lot easier now than i could a few days ago.

 

[jojoRed]

grind and farm

No, just no. Its about learning patterns and mastering mechanics, you DO NOT need to grind and farm. Not in bloodborne.