I got the mikiri counter, I think it´s a must have though I haven´t gotten my timing right just yet, and unlike Souls and BB I find it very hard to face more than one enemy at once (can still get by with two but three at the same time is out of the question) so stealth is at least for me basically mandatory.

Is the optimal path, difficulty wise, to complete the memory of hirata estate before continuing past the chained ogre?

In the memory of the Hirata estate, did you get to fight a "common" enemy that´s standing on a roof after wall jumping to a hidden area? and he is one very, very tough mf...very fast, blocks your thrust attacks, powerful kicks....died way too many times and barely made a scratch on him.

Beat him and you'll get a cool prosthetic in the pagoda, his a really good practice buddy for fast moving enemies, keep at it, deflecting is key and do the Mikiri Counter when he does is unblockable thrust kick.

it´s all so fast I hadn´t even noticed his kick is a thrust move, my Souls muscle memory is working against me.

It´s not the spear mini boss, it´s an enemy in a hidden area after him, and now I think the spear mini boss is honestly a joke compared to him

Just try to focus as he has 2 unblockable moves(afaik), a swipe kick(just jump and do a kick counter aka double tap jump) then the thrust kick.

Btw, if you haven't bought it, get the firecracker(my fave tool lol), can help with the fight as well.

Yep. Slant blows. Just a little snippet from disqus on this topic...

This review reads like it was written by a person who did not finish the game, nor indeed, get very far into it at all. It is extremely vague and non-detailed and simply restates commonly known facts about the game in the most generic way possible. For example, the review says "the items are hardly inventive: axe, spear, flamethrower, shuriken", ignoring the plethora of interesting and unique prosthetics the player unlocks throughout the game, as if those very early items were the only one the reviewer unlocked (or learned about through previews and other reviews).

The notion that there is "little in Sekiro to make it stand out in a vast ocean of releases" is absurd; the game features plenty of gorgeous imagery, beautiful music, smooth responsive gameplay, challenging, dramatic, and epic boss fights, and lots of secrets to discover. It subverts classic Japanese mythology in intriguing ways and features unforgettable locations, enemy designs, and moments.

I challenge the reviewer to do better next time and finish the game they are reviewing, or at least get far enough into it to meet it on its own terms. This review does a disservice to From Software, fans of the series, and Slant as a publication.

P.S. It is a common practice when reviewing games to state whether or not the reviewer finished the game, how many hours they spent on it, etc. This helps readers understand whether the reviewer's knowledge of the game is comprehensive.

10/10 from VideoGamer

""The way that the studio builds worlds is not dissimilar to the ferocity of its fighting – blindsiding you with a visual assault before raising its guard to scrutiny, forcing you to wonder. Is this Miyazaki’s most enchanting world? You could argue that falling back on the natural beauty of Japan is cheating; then again, the landscape lends itself particularly well to Sekiro – the plated sweep of a temple roof that starts to resemble armour, and the canes of a bamboo forest, rattling like raised spears. No other developer makes places that feel like this, and you realise what FromSoftware must be to other studios around the world: a shadow that keeps coming back.""

https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/sekiro-review

Just started to run through it with a invisible to enemies trainer lol upto the bot near start a giant snake in caves