Furi Tips To Boost Your Chances of Survival
When a game comes out that is touted as being overly difficult or punishing, gamers tend to focus on that one aspect of the game. For certain people the challenge consumes them until the game is beaten or abandoned. I would like to offer a few points to alleviate the tension that comes with playing a punishing game, specifically Furi. I will be the first to admit I’m not the most skilled gamer out there; Furi took me awhile to slog through. But I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would when I kept some of these things in mind.
Take a Breather
In the age of internet rage and mountains of salt flowing from face cams, it would do well to remind many of us to take it down a notch and relax. I like a good challenge but once determination turns to frustration and further into rage, all the fun I was having just disappears. If I let a game get the better of me I no longer enjoy the experience and am less likely to be focused on playing well and more likely to curse the developers for making an unfair game. If it weren’t for the startled expressions from my pets or the stern looks from my fiancé I might not stay grounded as often as I should be. Once I take a deep breath or two I can refocus my energy on the game at hand.
While playing Furi I was reminded to stop and breathe often. You should have plenty of chances to at the Game Over screen seeing as how you’ll end up there often. Early on in my play through I would try to rush into a fight again right after dying. The thought was that I had the patterns fresh in my mind and I should be able to counter the boss easier. I found myself losing exponentially quicker each time. I was starting to take the losses personally and thinking less clearly. Once I started dying in the first phases I recognized what was going on and started to get up and walk around before attempting the fight again, especially if it was a particularly lengthy round.
I have no doubt that as you read this you’re thinking, “I don’t need this, I can do just fine fueled by the rage I’m exuding.” I will concede that this tip is not necessary to progress in Furi or similar types of games, but it will definitely help maximize the enjoyment from the game.
Parries Are Not Always the Answer
Once you master your Zen, it’s time to realize that maybe you just aren’t as good as that one guy who can flawless every boss and hit every parry. Once you take a slice of humble pie and realize you are a mere mortal living in the shadow of Mt. Olympus, you might come to the revelation that style isn’t necessary to win. Sure parries are more than just stylish; they’re a great way to negate incoming damage, they grant small health recovery, and a perfectly timed parry can give way to a nice combo. The rewards are so tempting but only because the risk is unassumingly high.
In most combat oriented action games a single hit from an enemy is not that bad; health regenerates in most modern games. But Furi takes a much more punishing approach. A missed parry will lead to a hit, often for a large chunk of health. As you progress through the bosses, you soon realize that one hit can lead to multiple hits. Sure you have a couple extra lives, but the boss regenerates health lost on his current phase completely after you consume an extra life. This can be an incredibly demoralizing occurrence, especially when you have the boss an inch from death when you miss three consecutive parries that you knew were coming but just fell out of rhythm this one time.
For this reason, there are some boss fight phases where I will not parry. The initial phase if just too tedious or annoying that I refuse to take the risk of getting hit. Dodging works perfectly well most of the time and comes with a much lower risk. If you find yourself dying frequently due to missed parries, consider dodging instead. It’s less flashy and far less satisfying but you’ll be able to actually progress the game and see what next horror awaits you.
Timing of Your Dodge
One of the great aspects of Furi is the fun level design. Some of the obstacles are just part of the terrain while others are generated by bosses themselves. Either way, it’s important to know just how long it takes to charge you dodge in relation to the various obstacles. I actually find the dodging obstacles to be the hardest part of the game. Often the waves of energy that can only be avoided by a dodge hit for the most damage. I felt they were more punishing than the melee attacks by the bosses because I could at least parry that. Those obstacles require quick thinking to charge a dodge just the right amount in a safe direction.
For some fights I ended up learning the exact count I needed to hold down the dodge button so I could miss the immediate attack yet stop just short of the subsequent wave of energy. This may have given me the most trouble because I feel like every other command in Furi is accurately responsive while the dodge feels sluggish and delayed. Practicing multiple chained dodges significantly increased my performance against later bosses so I cannot stress enough not to neglect perfecting the dodge.
When All Else Fails, Lower the Difficulty
Look, not everyone is going to innately possess or have the time to gain the skill necessary to beat Furi on the recommended difficulty, let alone the top difficulty. I understand the desire to play a game that has been touted as difficult and punishing; the sense of accomplishment from completing it is certainly satisfying. But I want to posit another great aspect of Furi: the battles are well designed and interesting enough without needing to be punishing are worth playing on a lower difficulty if need be. Let it be said here, there is no shame in lowering the difficulty setting.
What I really want to drive home is that if you lower the difficulty setting to progress, you aren’t compromising the essence of Furi. Sure you still get the story, but that’s not why you want to play Furi. Progressing allows you to experience the subsequent unique boss encounters with the puzzle-esque fight sequences. By taking some of the stress out of requiring faster reflexes, you can focus on decoding the weakness or quirk in each phase of each boss.
Ultimately, I hope these tips help you get more enjoyment out of a game that holds great potential and deserves a second chance if you’ve already sworn it off.