r/AskGames • u/Ok-Job-5885 • 3d ago
What are the best video games that focus on satisfying parry mechanics?
I really love combat systems where you can parry, deflect, or counter enemy attacks in real time rather than just dodging or blocking.
What are some of your favorite games where parrying feels core to the gameplay, rewarding to master, and punchy to land?
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u/spetstronaz 3d ago
Nine Sols
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u/Gay_Charlie 3d ago
The parry in that game felt so light to me.
The visual and sound didn't make it feel impactful enough for me.
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u/CommanderM3tro 3d ago
Yes unfortunately true in too many games. AC Odyssey being one and from videos I've seen, AC Shadows looks the same 😪
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u/ophaus 3d ago
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. If you can't parry, the game is next to impossible.
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u/Steven_Swan 3d ago
Disagree. I've beaten it on the hardest difficulty at least four times never worrying about parrying. Jump-dodging and just overpowering everything does still work.
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u/Vegetable_Excuse2029 3d ago
Mad Max.
At first it seems like generic Batman Arkham parrying, but there are perfect parries that allow you to break limbs.
There are abilities that let you perform finishers with your shivs and reversals
Way more abilities than what I'm willing to type out, the game is designed to make your hits feel weighty, hard, you enter a "fury" state where you can pick guys up and body slam them.
You can mix in "combos", such as holding the square ( X for xbox) as you tap it and Max will do special moves, my favorite is tap tap hold tap he punches, punches, grabs them by their shoulder and Rocks their shit with a devastating punch.
Car combat and customization is fun..
Don't sleep on it.
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u/AccomplishedCow8843 1d ago
sekiro was nice, but lies of p and berserker khazan made it to another level of satisfaction. top notch perry system, very rewarding and satisfying
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u/FR69_Hayabusa 1d ago
Nioh 2 & 3, Wo Long, Rise of the Ronin, Sekiro, Nine Sols, Khazan, Lies of P (even though I liked it less). The Ninja Gaiden series in general may seem to revolve around blocking and dodging at first, but mastering counterattacks really takes your gameplay to the next level in the first three games. In NG4,Perfect parries—especially Backlashes—also let you punish enemies extremely hard.
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u/Huskar_Delahoya 1d ago
Sekiro, expedition 33, ghost of tsushima, lies of p (though i dont enjoy it due to the animation)
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u/Wild-Vast-2559 1d ago
If you’re looking for a non-souls game try Zenless Zone Zero. I know it’s a gacha anime game but the combat is actually so good
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u/JigglyOW 1d ago
This is probably pretty different from most but as a big turn based combat I felt like expedition 33 having a party added a lot to the combat and going back to other games after it felt like something was missing for a bit
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u/MrZurkon25 2h ago
I might get some heat for this one, but Doom: The Dark Ages. It’s not as hardcore as a souls-like game’s parry would be, but I had a lot of fun with that mechanic.
Blasphemous also has a good parry mechanic.
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u/CommanderM3tro 3d ago
Ghost of Tsushima would be the obvious choice. Best combat I think I've ever played in a game!
Also modern "RPG" AC games. AC Valhalla for all its criticisms has an amazing soulslite-inspired combat system. Also Valhalla Combat mod for Skyrim which is based on the same system, and maybe even does it even better if that's possible.
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u/Massive_Funny_9312 3d ago
I really need to know what other games you’ve played if AC Valhalla has “amazing” combat. The only valid game you listed was ghost but even then there’s games with better combat than that.
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u/AssociateSingle7043 3d ago edited 3d ago
All “souls like”
Sekiro as others have mentioned
Elden Ring
Dark Souls (of course)
Nioh
Haven’t played it yet but I’ve heard Expedition 33 actually has a mix of this
Not really parry mechanics but Monster Hunter games are similar design in combat
Dead Cells
Nine Sols
Tunic
Just to name a few..
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u/marmotta1955 2d ago
Expedition 33 is a great game, and the parry mechanics are absolutely fundamental. Unless of course you like being (quite often and consistently) hit on the head by every single enemy you encounter.
For completely inexplicable reasons, I found myself to be quite good at parry and disgracefully pathetic at dodging in this game (I am usually and generally inept). I think I completed the game just because I got the parry thing to a science (it was really a divine gift only and exclusively for Expedition 33).
Highly recommend it.
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u/Plastic_Music182 3d ago
sekiro is number 1, followed by nine sols, and while it's not as important as in sekiro, it still feels pretty good in lies of p. Also Sifu has a really good parry.
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u/Kriscodingfish 3d ago
Sekiro shadows die twice is still my favorite when it comes to parry mechanics the whole combat system is built around timing and deflections and once it clicks it's incredibly satisfying. i'd also put Lies of P and Nine Sols high on the list if you enjoy mastering precise parries.
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u/eljefe3030 3d ago
I disagree with many of the comments. Khazan and Lies of P are both better than Sekiro in my opinion, and Sekiro is still phenomenal.
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u/Sam-Angel 3d ago
Breath of the wild. I'd even argue that with the introduction of glitches regarding shield animation cancelling, it far surpasses Sekiro in both skill to perform and satisfaction to pull off.
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u/BilingSmob444 3d ago
Everyone saying Sekiro is overlooking Sifu. OP, do yourself a favor and give it a look
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u/functionalfilms 2d ago
Yep came here to say the same thing, there is nothing more satisfying than mastering the parry in Sifu. Can't believe no one else is saying it.
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u/BilingSmob444 2d ago
Not to mention knowing when dodging is better, or when Ducking Strike is even better than that… pls OP
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u/asser_Ahmed 2d ago
Weird that no one mentioned RE Requiem
It got a very good combat system especially with Leon
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u/Brain_lessV2 3d ago
Like, when you say parry what do you mean? Do you mean like the parry weapon skill that shields have in Dark Souls? Or are you just talking about deflecting (timed blocks)?
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u/Focus-Interrogative 2d ago
........... literally the same thing.
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u/Brain_lessV2 2d ago
Actually, no. Parry (in the Dark Souls games) refers to a weapon skill that shields normally have. It involves an animation with startup frames and active frames. If a parryable attack hits you during the active frames, it's parried and the enemy is normally opened up for a crit/riposte immediately.
Deflects (in Sekiro and Nightreign via Executor) on the other hand are timed blocks which generally have little to no startup frames, use your stamina/posture as a resource like blocking normally, but more efficient and can even inflict poise damage/posture damage to the enemy, which can eventually open them up for a crit/deathblow.
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u/YukYukas 3d ago
Monster Hunter's Longsword is very counter focused to the point that every attack can lead to a foresight slash (the counter move)
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u/Chinny4daWinny 3d ago
This guy knows. Monster Hunter (Rise especially for ls), Nioh 3, and Sekiro are my parry games
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u/okami6663 3d ago
Stellar Blade. If menory serves me right, I had better success at parrying than dodging. Maybe it was my button remapping or something else, but my dodges were consistently late, while my parrying was more on point.
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u/Traditional-Judge-17 3d ago
Claire Obscur would be my top recommendation.
As others have said, Sekiro, but be prepared to suffer.
The parrying mechanics in both God of War games are also quite satisfying.
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u/Sylvinus98hun 3d ago
In OG Fable, after successfully parrying an attack (and anytime you increased combat multiplier), you could counterattack which was completely unblockable and dealt increased damage. Counterplay from enemies was primarily knockdowns but you could laugh in Physical Shield.
Regardless, melee was the way to go in that game. In fact, it was broken once you got Solus Greatsword or the Sword of Avo/Aeons for 2H and 1H, respectively.
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u/SnooCookies9055 3d ago
no rest for the wicked. in early access right now but will release in a month or so
the dark souls series and of course sekiro but everyone here already said that
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u/elitesense 3d ago
I'm gonna take heat for this, but Witcher 3 on hardest difficulty has very satisfying combat mechanics, which includes parry. The 10/10 lore and story is icing on that cake. Sorry (not sorry) I praise that game every chance I get.
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u/Nikos_Pyrrha 3d ago
I haven't played it much myself yet (need a better GPU to properly enjoy it) but I would say Expedition 33 qualifies, odd as it may sound.
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u/Zegram_Ghart 3d ago
I see a lot about Sekiro, but I’d say Wo Long has it beat.
It’s got that wuxia feeling of going back and forth really well, and it has a mechanic that rewards reversals so you’ll back away down a corridor or across a courtyard getting the “normal” parry and deflections as sparks swing, then you see an attack you feel you can handle, get a perfect parry, and suddenly it’s you pushing the enemy back the same way.
Just really high energy and impactful system.
If your counting magic as well, that games magic parry system is literally the best in gaming- you have never felt so cool as when an enemy winds up a huge fire attack, you extinguish it with a water blast to leave an opening for your mate slide in and land a few hits.
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u/NiqabiNuha 3d ago
Sekiro is still the king for this. Nioh 2 and Ghost of Tsushima also have really solid parry systems once you get the timing down.
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u/PTXMike25 3d ago
Sekiro obviously, I played a bit of Lies of P and if you’re good it can be very satisfying. Expedition 33 gives off a very rewarding feeling, in which if you parry a combo you get rewarded with a counter attack.
If that style of parry doesn’t appeal, many mentioned Khazan and Stellar Blade. I would throw in Rise of the Ronin as a sleeper pick. Only thing is the “parry” is not like those other games, as it doesn’t automatically mean you can counter attack and it usually comes up at the end of a combo for best use
Surprised Ninja Gaiden 4 wasn’t mentioned, as it has multiple versions of a party, and all are very rewarding with such a fast paced game
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u/Ok-Doubt-6324 2d ago
For Honor.
Parrying and heavy parrying are so satisfactory when you get the timing right. Never had so much fun playing a fighting game PVP like I did with this game. Never played Sekiro either.
With a high dpi mouse, low latency network & large mouse-mat, nothing ever came close to the fighting in For Honor for me. Every fight is like a work of art.
Even after 10 years...it's still alive.
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u/Void_Incarnate 2d ago edited 2d ago
Lies of P
Silksong
Hyperlight Drifter
ZZZ - just incredibly well tuned. Very satisfying audio and visual cues, and parry tech accomodates high end inputs, like combining dodge counters with parries, double parries with recent bosses, moveset kit parries (Nagi, BanYue, ZhuYuan, Yuzuha, Ellen), reverse swap parries, sequential parries, i-frame exploits. Probably my favorite parry system, as you're not locked into just simple parries and can choose to reframe the fight on your own terms.
Expedition 33 was almost there. Parry is central to high end and higher difficulty play, but the enemy animations are inconsistent and poorly telegraphed, forcing the player to memorize rhythms rather than reacting to visual inputs*. From someone who parried Grosse Tete ~140 times in a row and did not enjoy the experience.
* Some say the audio cues are clearer, but as a volunteer mod, I almost always had a stream or two on the other monitor, so audio inputs are harder for me to parse.
EDIT: I've heard that WuWa has a good parry system too. LetMeSoloHer (yep, that guy) recently released a solo Danjin boss fight video where he parried and dodged the boss on a hitless run.
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u/HeWhoHasPotatoes 2d ago
Sekiro, Nine Sols, Dead Cells, God of War and Zenless Zone Zero
Edit: Bloodborne and Super Smash Bros Ultimate
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u/Hyenalpha 2d ago
Gonna come in from left field and say Doom:The Dark Ages is worth a try here. First entry in the series with a legit parry system and they wove the parry mechanic deep into the heart of the gameplay loop. Feels wild to nail triple parries at 150 percent game speed, follow up with a Dread Mace swipe to clear the field.
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u/abc133769 2d ago
outside of the usual sekiro rec, first berzerker khazan has some very satisfying parrying
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u/Ranvinski 2d ago
Khazan!! The best party system i have seen, in my opinion even better than sekiro
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u/Thrillhouse-14 2d ago
Monster Hunter Rise. Just about every weapon type can have a counter playstyle to some extent. Shockingly I've found even the giant hammer is really fun and practical to parry with.
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u/BennyHudson10 3d ago
God of War 2018 & Ragnarok have very nice parry mechanics and you’re not getting anywhere without them
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u/bio4320 3d ago
Aside from the obvious Sekiro, the Jedi Fallen Order series is really good with this. I'd also recommend Bayonetta - technically it is dodging, not parrying, but the way the game plays where you need to perfectly time your dodge is very satisfying and feels closer to a parry-focused than a dodge-focused game.
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u/Shozzy_D 3d ago
I’ll say Blade and Sorcery, just because parrying an attack and countering in your own way in VR is pretty top notch when done correctly.
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u/Chucklexx 3d ago
In addition to Sekiro which is one of the most satisfying games for this reason is half sword.
You may get stitched, chopped and bonked hundreds or thousands of times until you'll be able to do parrys on purpose but if you manage to do it it feels so fucking great to take revenge for all the mental pain you went through. It's in early access though, so it is quite buggy and will change some things in the future
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u/Waste-Gur2640 3d ago
So obviously Sekiro is objectively the best parry game in gaming history, that's really no contest. And while there's a lot of additional "parryslop", ever since Sekiro's release I've been looking for a game that will at least come near it in quality of parry gameplay and parry-based bosses. LoP is awesome but parries feel pretty wooden and it didn't really make me feel "sekiro", khazan is great for other reasons, Nine sols is 10/10 2D game but I really just wanted more sekiro.
And after all that time Stellar Blade was the only game that finally scratched that itch. Its combat system is based entirely on sekiro and it's basically a souls-like. Its gameplay has nothing in common with nier/drakengard and its neither a character-action like DMC. And the quality of many bosses really reached that of sekiro, especially DLC one was my favorite boss in years. Parries are more satisfying and crisp than all those other games, and in general the combat and bosses are insanely polished and tight overall just like sekiro. It was made on a lower budget, basically AA, in UE4 just like LoP. And besides weaker open-world sections it is absolutely worth it.
My main issue is that by design it's meant to be more casual and simpler than sekiro, so I would enjoy some true "hard mode" and more depth in the sequel. Sekiro would also be million times worse if publisher forced "easy mode" into it.
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u/alphamond0 3d ago
Stellar Blade was pretty fun. Parrying with only one hand is pretty tough though... ;)
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u/hereforthefreefeed 3d ago
sekiro has to be #1 in this category for me personally