Unleashing Lady Butterfly: Mastering the Harmonious Dance of Sekiro

Highlights

Mastering Sekiro's difficulty requires tuning into the unique rhythm of every boss, including the parry-based combat itself.

Lady Butterfly, as a boss, presents players with the choice to engage in combat with her or postpone the encounter. However, she is ultimately indispensable for advancing in the game. Confronting Lady Butterfly at an early stage can be regarded as a valuable opportunity to grasp the game's rhythm, resulting in advantages that extend beyond this particular battle.

The mastery of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice lies in finding the unique rhythm of each boss and the parry-based combat. This challenge is evident from the initial defeat against Genichiro and intensifies when facing Lady Butterfly in Hirata Estate.

Lady Butterfly distinguishes herself from other bosses in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice by allowing players the choice to fight her or postpone the encounter. This grants players the opportunity to delay adapting to the game's difficulty until it becomes imperative, while also rewarding those who grasp Sekiro's pacing from the beginning.

An Early Bar of Sekiro's Rhythm

Sekiro's gameplay has been described in various ways by the Soulsborne community. Some see it as the most challenging installment in the series, while others feel that it limits the potential for different play styles. However, one prevailing comparison among fans is that Sekiro is like a rhythm game, with the clash of swords taking the place of music. Understanding the rhythm of the game's toughest bosses is as satisfying as mastering a challenging song in a game like Clone Hero.

This unique rhythm is also why fans of other FromSoftware games might initially struggle with Sekiro. Adjusting to the game's tempo is a new concept for those familiar with the Soulsborne series. Thankfully, new players are provided with a helpful tutorial in the form of Lady Butterfly. Found in the Hirata Estate flashback level, Lady Butterfly starts as an optional boss but quickly proves to be one of FromSoftware's most difficult encounters due to her relentless aggression.

Facing Lady Butterfly Early, or Saving for Later

Boss aggression in Sekiro not only adds difficulty but also presents opportunities for players to master attack patterns, allowing them to counter with posture damage. Lady Butterfly, in particular, unleashes relentless strings of attacks that players can turn to their advantage. As there are no other bosses in the game that exhibit such aggressive and rapid assault until players reach Hirata Estate, she becomes the ultimate challenge, setting the bar for the tough obstacles that lie ahead in Sekiro.

It is important to acknowledge that while Lady Butterfly does not pose an immediate barrier to progress, she eventually becomes a crucial part of the mid to late game. Her difficulty level is intentionally balanced around this timing. When encountering Lady Butterfly for the first time, players are presented with two options: to face the most challenging boss battle at this stage or to defer the encounter until later, after obtaining additional prayer beads, gourd seeds, and memories. Nevertheless, considering Sekiro's limited range of character builds compared to other Soulsborne combat systems, it might be more beneficial to view this as a valuable learning experience that can be overcome with scarce resources rather than something to be saved for later.

While putting off this challenging battle may seem like a viable option at this stage, investing time to adapt to Lady Butterfly's swift combat style could prove to be worthwhile. It is an inevitable obstacle that players will need to conquer while exploring the unforgiving and stunning world of Sekiro. Addressing this challenge earlier rather than later is recommended. Mastering the rhythm of Sekiro's toughest confrontations early on will greatly benefit players throughout their entire playthrough, ensuring a smoother journey until the game's conclusion.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is currently available for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.