I was quite disappointed to see that while the new hardcore mode strives to increase the challenge in the game, it does not remove the annoying slowdown on defense in combat.
This is one of the most annoying crutches of the combat system - it disrupts the flow of the combat, and breaks totally the immersion. Hardcore games (Dark Souls, Nioh, etc) do not need like that, and I strongly believe players would appreciate the option to turn these slowdowns off.