About FromSoftware 2

FromSoftware's artistry can be felt in everything: the characters, weapons, armor, items, and stages. The visible parts are written with great delicacy and specificity.
However, only the visible parts. No matter how deep the stories or characters hidden within the scenery may be, some are not even vaguely visible.
The story itself is never written explicitly. In fact, there are characters about whom almost nothing is written anywhere.

Even if you manage to clear the game, almost no one can clearly understand what kind of story it is.
I, for one, cannot see it at all. I only see it faintly, vaguely.

This is because, for example, when describing a person, they do not depict their personality or face in a drawing, nor do they use expressions like 'kind,' 'scary,' or 'cowardly'.
When told to 'draw this,'
most people would start by drawing the outline with a black pen.
That is not the case here.
The method of expression in this game is to first draw the scenery, belongings, and scenes, and then bring the subject into relief. However, even if you realize that the thing brought into relief is, for example, a person, you have no idea if they are smiling or crying; their expression is completely unknown.
You have no choice but to read it from the scenery and background that have been drawn. You have to read between the lines.

For example, an expression like the one below.

These are paintings of The Last Supper and Joan of Arc, but this is an example of their method of expression.
The background is written in the descriptions of items you pick up or the souls of bosses. Only when you piece together the descriptions of items that seem casual can you finally catch a glimpse of that person's expression.

Because of this method, there are countless videos analyzing the stories and characters. However, FromSoftware never stamps them with an 'official' seal of approval.
These analysis videos are so interesting that my way of enjoying the game is to first clear it just so I can watch them.
According to analysis videos, the opera sung in an unknown language during boss battle BGM sometimes contains keywords to the story.
A stain on a wall might turn out to be a trace of a Christian-related painting.

Being good at the game alone won't solve the story. The fact that knowledge of the real world is also required transcends the world of the game.

What I found most interesting was the theory that 'Sekiro,' which looks like a game set in Japan's Sengoku period, is not actually the Sengoku period, but a parallel world—a period drama game with sci-fi elements. It is truly fascinating that the basis for such a theory is not at all off the mark.

Furthermore, all the people who appear are afflicted by extraordinary hell and suffering, and there are no happy endings. You cannot find a happy ending anywhere you look. 'Bloodborne,' for instance, is truly beyond salvation.
Even in a life where nothing is saved, if at the moment of death you can think,
'It was good this way,'
it is cruel to the level where that alone could be called a happy ending.

People who have experienced hell call it
'hellish days.' To those living ordinary lives, this sounds like a cliché expression, but from this side, no matter how much vocabulary you have, this is the ultimate expression for the highest level of suffering.

Every character in this game is a resident of hell, yet they never show it, never complain, never let their guard down, and continue to pursue their goals and beliefs.

For example,

The character used in the title of this article is 'Patches,' the most famous person from FromSoftware.
At first, he talks to you in a friendly manner, but he is a scoundrel who kicks you off a cliff and strips you of everything. However, he is a staple character you can't help but love. But when I watched a video analyzing Patches, I shed tears.

I listened to this video many times. It cleanses the soul.
If you didn't watch this video, he would just be a scoundrel character, but once you know him, there is no one more human, more pure, and more loving than him.

I also think the theme of FromSoftware's games is
'a story about saving people who have continued to slip through the palms of salvation.'
Even in hell, flowers bloom and light reaches.

FromSoftware's games are stories that make mediocre novels look like nothing in comparison.