Real men don't use online crutches.
JK, it is just a completely different game with a helper along for the ride. Completely trivializes a lot of the mechanics that make the bosses "hard." Aldrich arrow rain mechanic is pretty rough solo, as you have to actively run away from it and usually away from the boss. Two players? One wails on Aldrich while the other jogs, cutting the fight length in half or more. Yhorm with 2 Stormbinders is not even a boss fight.
I pushed him off a ledge and took the sword, but man Uchigatana seems really hard to use in this game, not like the first at all. I'm also concerned about stacking my stats for bleed if it's ineffective late game. I might just go straight sword + shield for this first playthrough.
I also used Uchi for half of the game, and it was pretty bad. Mediocre damage, low range, and I had difficulty doing a 2-hit combo without doing a 3rd hit. That got me killed quite a few times.
Astora Greatsword, and UGS in general, is much easier to use for both PvE and PvP.
Alright so I've killed the deacons and abyss watchers, but Siegward has never shown up in the well, and Patches is MIA - I may have just decided to run off the ledge instead of talking to him through the door first. But I got the tower key very early on, so I can't remember. Am I fucked, or is it recoverable?
Did you try going back into the tower?
Yep. I'll check if Patches is still at the church, but Siegward is definitely not in the well.
The Demon's Souls servers were shut off tonight. It's an end of an era. Hopefully a remastered version comes out for that game.