Disciple of MSSP
Gold Member
This thread is special to me because I completed my New years resolution on the last day of 2025. Praise the sun.
I've done my spiel many times on this forum about how my purpose of gaming changed in 2020, but this thread is a good example of that change. I had never done this, but decided to play God of war (2018) on hard mode. I considered myself a pretty average skilled gamer, so it was not an easy task for me. I ended up beathing it, and it gave me a satisfaction that would change why I play games - challenge.
Later that year, the Series X came out and I heard Dark Souls 3 had a patch with better fps rate. I had the game, but could never get into it, because I couldn't understand how the systems worked or how to parry. Still, I booted it up and fell in love once I watched some guides on how everything worked. I persevered and beat the game. The highs and lows it brought were like nothing else I had experiencednin gaming. I have fond memories of shouting at my TV for hours when I couldn't figure out Lothric and Lorian. And then the sigh of relief after beating Soul of Cinder. I went on to beat DS1 and ER.
That brings me to 2025. My hurdle for this year was finally completing games I never have. I have always been very ADD when it comes to gaming and I would move onto the newest shiny thing when it catches my eye. However, this year Kingdom Come Deliverance changed that for me. I played the first, knowing that KCD2 was coming out. Both those stories and worlds were awesome, and I realized I needed to not miss out on seeing these experiences all the way through. And that idea brought me back to:
|SEKIRO|
Much like Dark Souls 3, I didn't grasp Sekiro very well. The deflecting and posture bar made no sense to me. It was just too much. I played in 2019 and got to Genichiro in Ashina Castle and could never move forward. But, for me, this was the magnum opus of gaming challenges. I had to beat the game and I couldn't be stopped. Gotta say, big shout-out to FightinCowboy and Tyrannicon for making the navigation easier. So here's some highlights:
|GENICHIRO|
This battle helped me understand the mechanics much more. Somehow, during the years I held off playing Sekiro, I started to get better at the more frequent deflect mechanic. I guess years of practicing parrying in DS3 and ER just indirectly helped me get better. I gotta say that jump lightning mechanic is cool as hell. And watching him fry when I threw it back to him (pause) was like no other.
|Guardian Ape|
Not much to say besides I hated your fight and I struggled with you the longest. I can't stand this damn dirty ape. I hate you and loved killing you and your bitch ass girlfriend in the end. Burn in hell.
|Genichiro & Isshin|
I knew what was coming before I began this playthrough. As someone that engaged with a lot of gaming content on YouTube, it's hard to find a "Most Challenging Boss Fights" video without Sekiro being mentioned. What I DIDN'T remember was that this fight has 4 phases. I thought, "Bro, there's no way I can do this." And I couldn't.. for probably about 100 times.
One small slip up in this fight can quickly ruin the run imo. I was also at a disadvantage, as I was locked out of getting the third resurrection node, and I only had 8 healing gourds (and I know many others have done this with less).
It was very challenging, but also a fair fight. I screamed a big FUCK YOU at Isshen, but that's the first boss fight where it felt oddly respectable. It is truly a 10/10 fight and it brought me back to that old feeling of when I played Dark Souls 3. Another big sigh of relief. I truly can't believe I beat the game.
Some people find it easy to point at games as a waste of time. And that's fine. But having this much fulfillment in overcoming obstacles in this way feels really special. Thanks for reading. Oh and one more thing...
Guess 2026's new goal to beat is clear...
HAPPY NEW YEAR GAF
I've done my spiel many times on this forum about how my purpose of gaming changed in 2020, but this thread is a good example of that change. I had never done this, but decided to play God of war (2018) on hard mode. I considered myself a pretty average skilled gamer, so it was not an easy task for me. I ended up beathing it, and it gave me a satisfaction that would change why I play games - challenge.
Later that year, the Series X came out and I heard Dark Souls 3 had a patch with better fps rate. I had the game, but could never get into it, because I couldn't understand how the systems worked or how to parry. Still, I booted it up and fell in love once I watched some guides on how everything worked. I persevered and beat the game. The highs and lows it brought were like nothing else I had experiencednin gaming. I have fond memories of shouting at my TV for hours when I couldn't figure out Lothric and Lorian. And then the sigh of relief after beating Soul of Cinder. I went on to beat DS1 and ER.
That brings me to 2025. My hurdle for this year was finally completing games I never have. I have always been very ADD when it comes to gaming and I would move onto the newest shiny thing when it catches my eye. However, this year Kingdom Come Deliverance changed that for me. I played the first, knowing that KCD2 was coming out. Both those stories and worlds were awesome, and I realized I needed to not miss out on seeing these experiences all the way through. And that idea brought me back to:
|SEKIRO|
Much like Dark Souls 3, I didn't grasp Sekiro very well. The deflecting and posture bar made no sense to me. It was just too much. I played in 2019 and got to Genichiro in Ashina Castle and could never move forward. But, for me, this was the magnum opus of gaming challenges. I had to beat the game and I couldn't be stopped. Gotta say, big shout-out to FightinCowboy and Tyrannicon for making the navigation easier. So here's some highlights:
|GENICHIRO|
This battle helped me understand the mechanics much more. Somehow, during the years I held off playing Sekiro, I started to get better at the more frequent deflect mechanic. I guess years of practicing parrying in DS3 and ER just indirectly helped me get better. I gotta say that jump lightning mechanic is cool as hell. And watching him fry when I threw it back to him (pause) was like no other.
|Guardian Ape|
Not much to say besides I hated your fight and I struggled with you the longest. I can't stand this damn dirty ape. I hate you and loved killing you and your bitch ass girlfriend in the end. Burn in hell.
|Genichiro & Isshin|
I knew what was coming before I began this playthrough. As someone that engaged with a lot of gaming content on YouTube, it's hard to find a "Most Challenging Boss Fights" video without Sekiro being mentioned. What I DIDN'T remember was that this fight has 4 phases. I thought, "Bro, there's no way I can do this." And I couldn't.. for probably about 100 times.
One small slip up in this fight can quickly ruin the run imo. I was also at a disadvantage, as I was locked out of getting the third resurrection node, and I only had 8 healing gourds (and I know many others have done this with less).
It was very challenging, but also a fair fight. I screamed a big FUCK YOU at Isshen, but that's the first boss fight where it felt oddly respectable. It is truly a 10/10 fight and it brought me back to that old feeling of when I played Dark Souls 3. Another big sigh of relief. I truly can't believe I beat the game.
Some people find it easy to point at games as a waste of time. And that's fine. But having this much fulfillment in overcoming obstacles in this way feels really special. Thanks for reading. Oh and one more thing...
Guess 2026's new goal to beat is clear...
HAPPY NEW YEAR GAF
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