To be clear: This game is not for everyone. It requires a different mindset when facing it.
I do not mean it in the elitist way of "you're not good enough" or "only for true gamers".

I pirated this game years ago, and I rage-uninstalled it. I re-downloaded it again, played with my partner, and the same thing happened. We both ended up so frustrated that I uninstalled it again.
A few months ago, I actually bought it as a way of forcing myself to give it a try, this time solo.

And for the first 8 hours or so... I've suffered. I have restarted countless times, died more than I have died playing any Dark Souls game, uninstalled and reinstalled it twice. It IS a hard game, THAT is why it requires a change of mindset:

1. Deaths are NOT deaths. You can not die in this game, you're always knocked out and then... "Something" happens. Bandits find you and enslave you, wild beasts drag you to their lair, a friendly hunter finds you and brings you to heaven, or even the good old deus ex machina of feeling a goddess' call and feeling reinvigorated. You WILL lose stuff, I have lost over 800 silver coins to bandits once!
Deaths are not a punishment per-se, they're just small pauses in whatever you were doing, and you might even be closer to that location, or find some cool loot while trying to escape, or earn some money in prison as the most efficient slave until they release you for it. You will die, it will be unfair for some time, but do not give up. Everything you can lose (bandits take your armor or your money) can be fixed by either taking those items back from a stash or not carrying your money in the wildlands, but leaving it at a safe spot.

2. The combat is clunky, slow and deadly. I do not recommend playing defensive, nor I recommend magic for a first playthrough. But this is not Bloodborne, Sekiro or Elden Ring. Stop, block and dodge your enemies' attacks. Learn their patterns, when you can punish, and learn to attract enemies one by one to not get overwhelmed. Use fences, abuse the AI to confuse it and deal with the combats slowly. Managing your stamina is crucial, so don't be afraid to lock-off the camera from the enemy and walk away while recovering stamina slowly.

3. The consumables are important. Of course, save the potions and powerful stuff for when you're deep inside a dungeon, or for a boss, but use whatever you have to make your life easier. Traps, items that infuse your weapon, the environment will also give you what you need in certain parts of the game like Dark Souls 1 does with the temporary curses to attack the ghosts. Something like that. Learn what recipes and ingredients give you health regeneration (or look it up on the internet as I did because I got frustrated) and craft a hell lot of bandages, meat, vegetables... This is Breath of The Wild now, enjoy.

4. Leveling. There's no leveling. Your character can learn skills from NPCs that train you, as long as you have money, and you can get stuff like some more health, stamina, magicka and some special moves, but there is not experience nor levelling system.

5. Weapons. This is how you will know you're ready for bigger tasks. Weapons can have different effects, but I focused more on just bonking hard and damaging the enemies' "posture" more than their health. Check how much impact a weapon has on the enemy's posture and abuse the stun system. If you learn their patterns and can stun them frequently, you can take down any enemy even with a low-damage weapon.

6. Armors. There are two kind of stats for armors: Elemental resistance (pretty self explanatory) and Protection. What you're gonna need to go for is Protection. Most armors do NOT have a Protection value, only elemental resistance, so you'll be getting three hitted easily by small enemies. My tip is follow the mission that the blacksmith gives you at the initial town and get the Blue Sand armor set. It will let you start fighting and exchanging hits even with some minor bosses, survive longer and, therefore, earn more money and get the stuff going.

This has been my experience summarized. Right now, I am enjoying and exploring the world. It is true it's a bit empty, but that's only when you kind of... Already did everything a region has to offer. Once I changed the way I was going through this game and started acting cautious and smart like the game requires from you, it is a really enjoyable ARPG with survival elements.

A thoroughly enjoyable, classic, hardcore survival RPG. Certain mechanics, such as combat, can feel a little janky at times - although combat is overall quite satisfying. The game exudes charm; feeling like a hybrid between Morrowind and Kenshi, filling me with a sense of nostalgia for a game that never existed, and which I never got to play.

been seeing this game on and off for a long time but finally came to the bottom of the barrel and decided to pick it up, especially since it was under $5. turns out to be a pretty damn fun game! the combat is kinda clunky, but the world building, looting, bosses, and questlines were actually pretty fire. the game looks really good too in certain areas and i like how they made a meme out of some things in the story and even on the UI. there are definitely some things i would say could be changed but if you were a fan of elden ring and are looking to scratch the same open world itch with challenging combat that is similar to souls, you will probably enjoy this one. like i said, the game can be clunky but it seems to focus more on exploration then combat heavily and that's not always a bad thing. the first part of the game is probably the most challenging but once you start exploring more, leveling, and finding gear you get the hang of it. recommending this to survival/open world fans who want a challenging but fun experience!!!