One of the most useful terms in gaming vernacular I’ve heard in recent years was “comfort food”; it can be a genre of game that is so familiar to a player that it is what they default to in order to relax and unwind with. It was terminology I found helpful for understanding the gaming habits of friends who would keep playing a new Ubisoft Sandbox title every year, when I previously didn’t get the appeal. The familiar mechanics and gameplay loops certain games share can be soothing to return to again and again.

For me, Souls games are my comfort food.

I’m worried that statement will come off as a humblebrag, as if I’m flexing that I play Dark Souls to relax, but I’m not! These games scratch an itch for me like no other, and it’s not that they’re difficult experiences, the appeal is that they’re just so much more than that. There is nothing quite like exploring an area, eking out progress inch-by-inch, and the revelation when you unlock a shortcut back to the bonfire. These games have wonderful, intricate level design and there’s nothing quite like the feeling when the labyrinthine geometry clicks into place in your mind, like you’ve solved a meticulous puzzlebox you’re solving from the inside out as you explore.

Whether it’s a FromSoft title, the Souls-inspired games like Nioh or The Surge, or indie titles that wear their inspiration on their sleeve like Hollow Knight, it’s a loop that has me captivated and voraciously consuming these games. They live and die on their level design for me. There was a moment early on in The Surge, where a route brought me back to the medbay (this game’s version of bonfires) and revealed a shortcut that had been right there the entire time, hidden away in the environment completely unbeknownst to me.

It might not be the best example of the subgenre, but The Surge absolutely nailed what I found so engaging about the Souls formulae; that it lends itself so well to making incremental progress feel rewarding. I find that without waypoints and lists of objectives, Souls games leave you setting your own short term goals instead; unlock the next shortcut, find out where this door leads to, reach the next bonfire, farm enemies for certain items, etc. Sometimes, what I find most relaxing can be just trying to get a particular armor set, and these small, incremental goals add up to make for such a rewarding experience. Something I keep coming back for again and again.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice has brought up the heated debate about difficulty options and accessibility once again. I’m enjoying the game quite a lot myself, it’s certainly been one I was very eagerly anticipating, and while I don’t have any trouble with the difficulty so far, I have to ask… is difficulty really the only thing Sekiro has going for it to some? Not the setting, worldbuilding, lore, atmosphere, level design, gameplay mechanics, or any other aspect? Because if I’m being honest, you’re doing a disservice to the game. Sekiro is indeed a challenging game, but it’s a lot more than that too.

And the thing is, we’re not just talking about difficulty modes, but accessibility as well. While I can’t speak to having issues with Sekiro, I relate because there are certain game features that are hard roadblocks for me, namely button-mashing quicktime events. I have a repetitive strain injury in my right hand, and while it doesn’t impede most of my gaming, if I come up against moments that requires I mash the X button for example? It hurts like hell just to attempt it! It’s been a problem for me when attempting certain minigames in Yakuza 0, most notably the women’s wrestling section that requires you to “cheer” for your fighter by pressing a button repeatedly. Not only did it hurt, but I wasn’t able to do it fast enough to successfully cheer and win. Thankfully it was an optional minigame, because had that been a required part of the main story, that wouldn’t have been a challenge; it would have been a brick wall.

I don’t know what accessibility options might look like for Sekiro, but I do know that I’m enjoying the game. You can feel like an absolute badass ninja flying from rooftops and diving down to drive your sword through someone, it’s great! And if there’s people who’ve had some sort of similar impediment who would like to enjoy that feeling too, or even if the game itself is too tough for them, why wouldn’t I want them to enjoy the game too? And if folks who had those difficulty and accessibility options aren’t enjoying the game in the exact same way I’m enjoying it, what skin off my nose is it? Remember when I said that one of the biggest draws to Souls games for me is the exploration and discovery of the game world? Well…

There’s no shortage of wikis and walkthrough for these games! It could be argued that people turning to these maps and guides are robbing themselves of the experience I derive so much enjoyment out of, but you’ll hardly hear me complaining about their existence, or deriding anyone who has used them. The very idea of gatekeeping the “real” experience of playing games — any game for that matter — is somewhat absurd to me. Maybe players relying on maps have reasons to do so I haven’t thought about, or maybe they just don’t want to miss out on anything, but either way it never bothered me.

And I do like tough, challenging experiences, so I get the appeal. But I’m going to let you in on a little secret here. Dark Souls isn’t even that hard. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a wonderfully cleverly designed game that makes you think it’s hard, but the impetus baked into the game is to dust yourself off and try again, get back in there and give it another go! That boss that blindsided you initially? The next time around you see the clearly telegraphed attacks and obvious weak spots, and it doesn’t seem so insurmountable after all. “Git gud” simply doesn’t do this design justice, it’s not so difficult to be overly punishing, it’s difficult enough to make you feel delighted for having puzzled out exactly how to beat that boss, and that’s a distinction worth making.

Souls games had summons, it had bloodstains that let you know where other players died that hinted at danger, and it had messages that could be left for others to point them in the right (or wrong) direction. It was a brutal and unforgiving world, but with a little jolly cooperation you could overcome anything. That’s Dark Souls. And I think it’s a shame if people are put off by the “git gud” mentality that paints them to be nothing but difficult and frustrating slogs. They’re more than that, and more people should get to experience and enjoy them. I don’t know exactly what difficulty options in Sekiro might look like, it’s certainly a different beast lacking the online cooperative components, but it’s got an extra life mechanic baked in. Just saying, maybe that’s somewhere to start? But regardless, these kinds of games have so much more going for them than sheer difficulty.