This live-action Sekiro parody gets everything so right
Equal parts impressive and hilarious
It's always fun when fans express their love for a game with a well-made parody - and it's even better when the laugh-out-loud moments speak directly to your own experience. Such is the case with this pitch-perfect Sekiro parody created by Chinese YouTube channel Sonar and resurfaced on Reddit. If you know the struggle of fighting Sekiro's early bosses, these fan-film fight scenes are the definition of #relatable.
Right from the get-go, the parody nails the early moments of fiddling with the controls as you try to master Wolf's attacks and defense, with the UI overlay and in-game sound effects used to great effect throughout the video. I smirked when that group of guys joined arms to create a makeshift Sculptor's Idol waypoint, then outright guffawed when they channeled the vignettes of Sekiro's loading screens.
If you've visited the Hirata Estate memory and faced off against Lady Butterfly, you'll be cracking up at how accurately the filmmakers recreates the experience of facing this imposing biddy. I can certainly attest to the experience of repeatedly dying, then having to run past the ailing NPC Inosuke and insta-killing that nearby archer over and over. At one point in my repeated attempts, I would've welcomed a way to cheese the boss fight by playing hide-and-seek with Lady Butterfly then executing her when she trips on a ledge.
Next up is the battle against Gyoubu Masataka Oniwa on his horse (which is made of cardboard, in this case). The flashy fight takes place in a junkyard that somewhat resembles the corpse-laden battlefield if you squint, and even includes key moments like grappling to close the distance for a few quick strikes. And boy oh boy, do I know the pain of popping multiple sugar buffs, only to be killed instantly and effectively waste my precious candies. The video even ends with Wolf consuming Gyoubu's Battle Memory to boost his attack power, which you should always do after a boss fight. This parody is, in a word, brilliant, and I'd love to see more of Sekiro's boss fights remade in this style.
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Lucas Sullivan is the former US Managing Editor of 12DOVE. Lucas spent seven years working for GR, starting as an Associate Editor in 2012 before climbing the ranks. He left us in 2019 to pursue a career path on the other side of the fence, joining 2K Games as a Global Content Manager. Lucas doesn't get to write about games like Borderlands and Mafia anymore, but he does get to help make and market them.