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So, do we agree that masocore is the name of the Souls/Nioh/[Insert super hard game] genre?
- Thread starter Dreamboum
- Start date
Stop hyping these games up as some sort of distinguished exercise in self-flagellation. They're 3rd person action RPGs.
I don't like the idea of maso being the core of the word (haha pun). I don't suffer or feel frustrated when I play the games, even if I fail again and again.
Exactly.
Masocore describes games that are basically "memorize absolutely everything about the layout or you will die (like I Wanna Be The Guy like you said)". Souls games and the like are difficult games but require patience over memorization. Soulslike is fine by me, just like how Metroidvania is fine by me.
Yeah I mean they're like, challenging but I'd hardly say I'm suffering through them lol
I don't think Souls stuff is attempting to go for the frustration or unfair gameplay of IWBTG or similar stuff.
But I dunno
But I dunno
Yep, same.
Sounds incredibly dumb to sell the games based on something they're not. A director calling their own game that is more likely to turn me off from playing than make me thnk "Just like From Software! Can't wait!".
That said, if people start using it, then what can I do. Not gonna fight this, I'll just use whatever term everyone understands.
At the moment, that term is Soulslike.
Souls is not even close to the bullshittery of proper masocore.
And this.
And this.
Masocore sounds absolutely horrible, and I also think it completely not encapsulates that which makes the Souls-games appealling. Souls-likes are a rinse-repeat thing, but memorization is just part of it. Also building your character and your equipment while getting to know your environment at the same time is a huge part of the succes of Souls-likes.
Masocore is what you thought it was, anyone using it to refer to a Soulslike is using the word incorrectly.
Can someone break the word 'Masocore' down for me? I guess there's a 'masochism/ist' in there somewhere but where's the 'core' coming from?
This is gonna be like rougelike in that everyone try's to coin a new phrase for it but it never sticks.
OP
OP
i want it to stick because if a game sucks we'll call it a masobore
I'm all for it. Soulslike like is a terrible description when the vast majority of games labeled as such fall flat in areas that actually make Miyazaki's games so special: art direction, level design, sense of discovery, world-building/lore/ambient storytelling.
Masocore let's me know I'm in for punishing, stamina based combat and some sort of mechanic(s) around dying a lot. It doesn't needlessly get my hopes up.
Masocore let's me know I'm in for punishing, stamina based combat and some sort of mechanic(s) around dying a lot. It doesn't needlessly get my hopes up.
Does anyone else feel like Soulslike is a negative connotation whereas Metroidvania is more neutral? Lemme explain.
Metroidvania puts two brilliant games into one phrase, and instead of saying "Metroidvanialike" it's just the former. This assumes whatever game is a Metroidvania will be a sprawling map with many rooms to explore, and is usually praised by many fans of the genre.
On the otherhand, "Soulslike" games receive flak for being too similar to a Souls game's design. This is one game rather than two, and says the game is "like" Souls games instead of "being" a Souls game. Is it because Dark Souls is a much more modern addition whereas the others are older and thus it's okay for games to be Metroidvania?
It could just be me but this is the vibe I get.
Metroidvania puts two brilliant games into one phrase, and instead of saying "Metroidvanialike" it's just the former. This assumes whatever game is a Metroidvania will be a sprawling map with many rooms to explore, and is usually praised by many fans of the genre.
On the otherhand, "Soulslike" games receive flak for being too similar to a Souls game's design. This is one game rather than two, and says the game is "like" Souls games instead of "being" a Souls game. Is it because Dark Souls is a much more modern addition whereas the others are older and thus it's okay for games to be Metroidvania?
It could just be me but this is the vibe I get.
Masocore is a portmanteau of masochism and hardcore. It refers to a particular subset of platformers that require nearly pixel perfect execution, most famously 'i want to be the guy'. Think like what bullet hell is to shmup, masocore is to platformer.
Soulslike refers to games that closely follow the design of FROM software's souls series of games. They are usually third person action games with a checkpoint system, a resource cost associated with dying, a stamina system, a very purposeful set of animations, and some visual language for being able to observe or predict danger before it befalls you. Like 'Roguelike' before it, the term evolved (or devolved depending on who you ask) from referring to games using all similar systems into anything using one or more similar systems.
Soulslike refers to games that closely follow the design of FROM software's souls series of games. They are usually third person action games with a checkpoint system, a resource cost associated with dying, a stamina system, a very purposeful set of animations, and some visual language for being able to observe or predict danger before it befalls you. Like 'Roguelike' before it, the term evolved (or devolved depending on who you ask) from referring to games using all similar systems into anything using one or more similar systems.
Yeah I feel like the defining thing about Souls games is that they're punishing, not that they're unfair.
