Tucky90 said:Probably the main thing I disagree with is that this is a stealth game. For sure it has stealth elements and yes they do help in certain parts. But there are no substantial consequences for getting detected.
I would look at something like Styx as a stealth game. Where if you get detected, you will typically die 9/10.
Suppose there is a discussion in there somewhere as to what truly makes a game a stealth game.
I've said, in a number of places that the stealth conventions are not as well established as they are in hard-core stealth games like the
Deus Ex Series, the
Metal Gear Series, &
THIEF. TA categorizes
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice - GOTY Edition as both action-adventure and stealth. I agree with that. Action-adventure is just a catch-all. If we were to apply a more meaningful classification, stealth is the obvious choice.
Stealth games trace their lineage to three games:
Tenchu: Stealth Assassins,
Metal Gear Solid, &
Thief: The Dark Project released in that order all in the same year (1998). The three games were developed at the same time. There was significant collaboration between the three developers who were deliberately definitizing stealth conventions.
Tenchu: Stealth Assassins & its sequels were developed by Acquire and published (outside JP) by Activision. In 2004, From Software bought the rights to Tenchu. A few years ago, From Software started pitching the concept for a Tenchu sequel. Activision, being the original publisher, was very enthusiastic. Although the game morphed from being a Tenchu sequel, Activision stayed on board. That's why it is Activision--rather than From's usual publisher Bandai Namco--that published Sekiro.
The point I'm making though is that the DNA of the very first hard-core stealth game is in Sekiro.
But, as we both agree, Sekiro did not end up as a hard-core stealth game. From Software decided to develop an original IP rather than a Tenchu sequel. But Sekiro still has enough stealth conventions to qualify. All enemies have an alertness indicator that transitions from clear to white to amber to red as the enemy becomes aware of Sekiro's presence. The gauge responds to both sight (being in the field of vision) & sound. Terrain features & tall grass obscure Sekiro who can stealth kill around corners or by hanging from ledges in addition to sneak attacks & drop assassinations.
The important thing, unlike traditional action games where a sneak attack results in a preemptive attack that gives the player-character some advantage, Sekiro's stealth attack results in an instant kill or, in the case of sub-bosses & bosses, the loss of a life. This is consistent with a hard-core game like
THIEF. Garrett, the player-character, can defeat enemies in one hit from stealth, regardless of the game's difficulty setting. But, regardless of the game's difficulty settings, he must work hard to defeat an enemy in a face to face confrontation. To do so, he must parry and dodge before being able to land an effective strike in the same way that Sekiro relies on deflections & side-steps.
To me, there are enough stealth conventions to qualify the game as stealth if we want to do more than stick an action-adventure tag on the game. Genres are blurring nowadays. There is a lot of cross-pollination. Take
Assassin's Creed, for example--clearly, a stealth game. Fast forward a decade to
Assassin's Creed Origins. Now, one can approach the game with a wide variety of play styles. The franchise has borrowed from non-stealth action-adventure games and RPGs. But, it's still a stealth game. It's just that it is not only a stealth game but other things as well. The same is true for Sekiro.