It wasn't all smooth sailing. I even took a month break thinking I might not come back to it, but boy I'm glad I did.
I'm new to souls like, only having played Elden Ring before this (which was amazing). Sekiro was a game that I picked up afterwards, and struggled with early on. It felt like a departure to everything I'd learned in gaming to this point. You don't want to dodge, you want to deflect. Holding block helps you recover. Parrying will beat a boss quicker than trying to drive down their health. Once these things start to click, defeating bosses feels like a true accomplishment.
Fighting the end game bosses had my heart rate going like no other boss battles I can remember. Elden Ring had some memorable and awe inspiring bosses, but the feeling in Sekiro when you're about to break the posture of a boss for a final deathblow was indescribable.
If there's anyone left who hasn't given Sekiro a go, do yourself a favour. It takes some time for it to click, but when it does, it's something special.
The Demon's Souls remake may just be the best-looking game on the PS5 right now. Silky smooth framerate, superb use of colours. The sound design is amazing too.
I feel you a lot. It was the second soulslike I've tried after playing through Bloodborne, and I got my ass handed to me a lot. It's just really different muscle memory and play patterns you need to familiarise yourself with before it clicks with you.
Oh that's a tough one. A lot of the end game bosses were great because of the rush when you finally get them.
Demon of Hatred, albeit one of the hardest, just felt great when you got into the flow and inched closer each try. Probably the most rewarding. Because you really have to learn his moves, you can't just cheese through it (at least I don't think).
I got into such a rythym taking on Isshin Ashina that it felt like a dance in the end.
It was also great getting to Seven Ashina Spears mini boss near the end and being able to parry and mikiri counter him with barely a scratch, after struggling against one of those spear mini bosses early in the game.
There is actually a cheese method if you're ever fed up with the fight. It's a little tricky but ultimately not super difficult to pull off: link
It is a difficult question, indeed. In terms of gameplay, I'd probably go with Sword Saint Isshin (a little different from regular Isshin) because of the shear absurdity and over-the-topness of the fight. He really tests every single mechanic you learn in the game in a brilliant way.
A close second would probably be regular Genichiro or his Inner variant. It's just a super good fight and good early representation of what the game has in store for players. It's super challenging at first but is quite simple once you get the hang of it.
Regular Owl and Owl Father are amazing fights too. I've heard people calling the Owl Father fight in particular the best one in FromSoft's entire history. I feel that for sure. Probably the 3rd spot for me.