Cemetery of Ash/Firelink-The opening area is quite nice. Its to the point if not as interesting as the Asylum. I offed the big crystal lizard first time. I do really like the "hub" on a visual level and its cool there is a bit more to it above but its also a little boring (I'm not really finding the NPC side of things really engaging in this* At least in BB I was able to vaguely follow the thoughts of talking doors and even in DS1 a lot seemed to happen organically)
Iudex Gundyr- Probably the hardest first boss in a Souls game I've played. I mean I think its the only one to ever kill me. I probably could have done it first time if I'd been a bit more in the swing of things with parrying etc. If I was a noob to the series I think I'd find the second half really rough going as its quite messy.
High Wall of Lothric- This was a strong opening area. The tar headed guys are dicks though. I just worked out killing them before they transformed was best. I need to go back and see what the Dragon might be blocking off
Vordt of the Bovril Valley- Think this is actually my fav fight so far. Didnt find it too tricky but needed a few goes. The icy floors did that Dark Souls thing where I'm certain I was getting hit by them before/after they were visible
Undead Settlement- Made me think of Resi 4 x Berg x that place in BB but in the daytime. Its great the way it loops back over itself and the Archer is a nice "puzzle". The fat lady enemies are fab. Both creepy and hilarious. Plus I love how the Onion Knight arrived
Rotting Wood with Sacks to pound- As far as massive bosses go I thought this was one of the best I've encountered in Souls. It just slow enough that not always being able to see what its doing isnt as much of a hindrance. The only boss I've beaten first time. Could have done without the minions spawning or at least making it clearer where they are coming from. Not fun suddenly being attacked in the back.
Road of Sacrifices- This was ok but thought it was a little on the long side. Would have trimmed a couple of bits off. The birds. OH THE BIRDS
Really didnt like the fights with the NPC like guys. The giant enemy crabs are cool but once I realised they get there health back once they bury themselves I just couldnt be arsed.
Big Hat Spammer Man- ERGH. Didnt like this at all. Not fun having to have eyes in the back of you head because your surrounded by things firing projectiles at you. Would have removed this from the whole section tbh. The run to the fight from the bonfire was a bit crap too. Its not far but one of those where its quite easy to still get hit by something on the way.
Cathedral of the Deep- This was a great area. The layout and shortcuts created that interconnectedness that 3 doesnt seem to have as much of and they were well placed. The bridge/walls were a cool feature and even the giants managed to not turn it into complete crap.
Paedophiles of the Deep- One of the more interesting horde based fights. Curse got me and I did need to rush my win when I realised it was just building over time without getting hit.
Farron Keep- Yay! A poison swamp!
It was ok tbh. I still wish they would do something to make not having to wait around for bars to go away less tedious. Like after a set period your poison level drops really quickly. Just makes it tedious. Would have like a little less deep water so I could actually fight some of the creatures rather then just avoid them all the time. I liked the torches idea and having the archer unexpectedly do his thing was very cool. Helped create the illusion of these areas being near each other.
Abyss Watchers- This was a really cool fight but after a really good first attempt I struggled. The fire
It was a good fight though. Could maybe have done without the friendly fire as it was messy when you attacked the same target at the same time.
Catacombs- This was ok. Less irritating then the original. But I think the combo of this and the next area was really quite a drag. The skeletons on the bridge
High Lord Wanker- This was a weird fight. Interesting. A great design (very metal) but it seemed to either be almost impossible or really easy depending on how it played out. If this is the Bed of Bollocks puzzle fight of the game its a million times better then that. It spawning skeletons was predictable and only served to irritate me. The death fog was ridiculous. I mean if he decided to crawl forward as you were attacking the bangles of doom you didnt stand much of a chance.
Oh look its not Lost Lava Land (but it is)- The lake part was alright. The Ballista was a bit underwhelming in the end. You just switch it off. So who the strawberry float was moving it around? And the area below was pretty dreadful. Felt like more of the Catacombs but with some fire gooseberry fool. Game also got really ganky here. Maybe they made this area a bit crap as a joke
It was quite nice to see the art/lore references but yeah. This with the Catacombs was all a drag. Not really fought the worm so might go back and do that at somepoint.
Demon King- I'd say this is the hardest fight I've had so far. Probably took about half a dozen goes. Whilst I'm sure its a tricky fight full stop (learning the patterns of the fire on the floor for example) I really struggled with the game itself here. The camare/lock on just didnt do a good job so I ended up revert back to old tactics where I just fight the camera and try and hit the enemy arse. It worked eventually
Christmas Card Land of the Bovril Valley- THIS IS FAB. So far I love this area and it feels refreshing. Minor nitpick but the ghosts dont seem to do anything interesting and I dont like the way they just pop out of existence.
Prison/Dungeon & The Swearing Capital- I really like this area but the guys with the laterns/branding stick can strawberry float the strawberry float off. Its like that frenzy bollocks all over again. I actually dont really even know why my health lowers because sometimes it doesnt and then sometimes it does. It doesnt seem to be tied to a move. I can go in the smoke they make fine. Its just poorly designed. At least give me something to work with FFS. Its a shame because the area is perfectly fine without it. Its a little ganky in places though. The Capital is pretty strawberry floated up. The hand things
Yhorm the Giant- Now I'm not sure how I feel about this one. Mainly because it took me a while to work it out and in the mad rush to get the item and not get hit I wasnt even sure what I'd picked up. So I think its a interesting idea but not done very well. Also so far I've basically been melee only and have not touched the FP stuff so to suddenly find I had to use it was rather jarring. My first attempt went on for ages. I think I was more likely to have my weapon break then kill him. More like Yawn the Giant!? It took a few goes to work out. I wasnt sure if it was like the High Lord and I needed to do something specific in the fight. So yeah.... not sure how to feel. But at the same time I really enjoyed the actual fight with the weapon and moves. Was very fun then.
and thats where I've got to.
* LOL at unlocking them and then they TELEPORT away