[Dr. Boogie]

If you want to turn off the ghosts and warnings and such, you can play in offline mode, but you can't switch from one mode to another while in the middle of playing. And other players' deaths can be revealing, but they don't always show you how to avoid something, particularly if they blunder into a strong foe.

It doesn't have too much in common with an MMO. You can interact in very small ways with other players, but the highest number of players in a single game is 4 (you, plus two other players you summon to help, and one other player who's coming to kill you). Also, the pace is nowhere near as excruciating as it is in an MMO.

It is a difficult game, but a lot of it boils down to recognizing traps, and enemy attack patterns. Once you get a good grip on those, the game becomes a lot more rewarding, although it is still a pain to lose a bunch of unspent souls because of a cheap death.