General Gaming What’s the boards take on Dark Souls?

[Paperclyp]

I’ve never been able to beat ornstein and Smaug or whatever they are solo. It’s my great shame. 

[skillzdadirecta]

2 hours ago, Paperclyp said:

I’ve never been able to beat ornstein and Smaug or whatever they are solo. It’s my great shame. 

Does beating them with an A.I. Summons count? I mean he died within seconds of joining the battle but he kept one of them busy long enough for me to whittle down the other one 

[Bloodporne]

9 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Does beating them with an A.I. Summons count? I mean he died within seconds of joining the battle but he kept one of them busy long enough for me to whittle down the other one 

This was my strategy until I even failed at that several times and ran out of humanities. This was the peak of all git gud moments. 

 

Also, Ornstein & Smaug sounds like injury attorneys from Brooklyn 

[johnny]

Bloodborne is the only gameplay I enjoyed with it being faster paced. I find a lot of these are super well made but I don’t like that I need to be “on” all the time. It’s a great challenge but I don’t think I like to be challenged in a video game this way. I understand that these games are great but don’t think they’re for me. 
 

i think my biggest problem is I also dread losing a ton of progress in games so it gives me stress lol. Getting far and dying to something you’re trying to figure out multiple times is soul crushing to me and I’ll just put down the controller. I don’t really enjoy repeating an area several times in any game. 

[Rick2101]

I personally did not like the series. I’ve tried them all, demon souls, blood borne, sekiro. And even though I like the art used in the games... like really liked the art, I just find the difficulty to be too much and also dislike the way from Software tells the story... I think the game has a plot.. I’m just not sure what it is.

[Paperclyp]

4 hours ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Does beating them with an A.I. Summons count? I mean he died within seconds of joining the battle but he kept one of them busy long enough for me to whittle down the other one 

I think I beat them with AI once or twice? I honestly don’t remember. I just know I have never succeeded solo, despite hundreds of attempts im sure. 
 

I beat that dude on the dragon that everyone says is one of the toughest in the series in 3 on the first try, but O+S slays me every time, I don’t think I’ve ever really even come that close. 

[maddux4163]

14 hours ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Dark Souls is kinda fair. There are some bosses that are pretty cheap early on... (Capra Demon) but he's optional. The thing with Dark Souls is that as long as you take your time and have a pretty good idea of what kind of build you want to develop, the game is fair for the most part. Sekiro on the other hand...

You can cheese Capra pretty bad though lol

[maddux4163]

14 hours ago, SimpleG said:

Great game and great series but

 

Its your game but theres a chance  you will regret this,your first run should always be a blind run

No doubt. That was always my intent. Keep in mind, I bought Dark Souls at launch on 360

 

I own them for PC

 

Always booted it up and got straight spooked by intimidation 

 

So it’s kinda “spoiled” so to speak. However, I’m excited to finally beat the game for myself 

[maddux4163]

8 hours ago, Dodger said:

I love the series. I hope the Demons Souls remake rumors are true because I played that game like a bitch and want to go back and play it right. Playing Dark Souls for the first time is still my favorite moment in gaming.  Also would love to go through Bloodborne again, hopefully it gets a PS5 update because that on a SSD and improved FPS would be magic. 

 

I'm not that great at video games and even I can beat all the souls games. Well except the 3 hard DS3 DLC bosses. I haven't beaten Friede, Midir, or Gael Solo. I can beat Nameless King solo, but it usually takes me a few tries. Most every other boss I can cake walk though. 

Seriously can’t understand how that game is strictly PS3 only. Makes no sense. Not even a PC port. Yikes. 

[Moa]

As the screen fades to black for the 700th time, resigned eyes stare back at me. I turn the game off for the night, never to return. 

 

Dark Souls II, 27 hours, Last Played 4/20/2016.

[maddux4163]

1 minute ago, Moa said:

As the screen fades to black for the 700th time, resigned eyes stare back at me. I turn the game off for the night, never to return. 

 

Dark Souls II, 27 hours, Last Played 4/20/2016.

DS2 was always the black sheep of the series. I assume because it’s such a departure from the original in terms of having an interconnected world maybe?

[Keyser_Soze]

6 minutes ago, maddux4163 said:

Seriously can’t understand how that game is strictly PS3 only. Makes no sense. Not even a PC port. Yikes. 

 

It was published by Sony, that's why.

 

 

2 minutes ago, maddux4163 said:

DS2 was always the black sheep of the series. I assume because it’s such a departure from the original in terms of having an interconnected world maybe?

 

It was because it looked like butt.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

I tried Demon's Souls years ago. These games aren't for me.

[maddux4163]

1 minute ago, Keyser_Soze said:

 

It was published by Sony, that's why.

 

 

 

It was because it looked like butt.

If I recall, the creator of the series wasn’t on this game eh? Maybe that’s why too

[Phaseknox]

On ‎5‎/‎29‎/‎2020 at 2:24 PM, johnny said:

I find a lot of these are super well made but I don’t like that I need to be “on” all the time. It’s a great challenge but I don’t think I like to be challenged in a video game this way. I understand that these games are great but don’t think they’re for me. 
 

i think my biggest problem is I also dread losing a ton of progress in games so it gives me stress lol. Getting far and dying to something you’re trying to figure out multiple times is soul crushing to me and I’ll just put down the controller. I don’t really enjoy repeating an area several times in any game. 

This is basically how I feel about the From Software Soulsborne games, they're essentially always on challenges with the only real goal of overcoming one challenge after the other without much else on offer. I like more from games than strictly overcoming a continuous set of challenges, I like entertaining stories, interesting characters, some occasional downtime and an incentive to keep pushing forward to see what's going to happen next in them beyond just seeing more of the world, enemies and bosses.

[SimpleG]

46 minutes ago, Phaseknox said:

I like entertaining stories, interesting characters, some occasional downtime and an incentive to keep pushing forward to see what's going to happen next in them beyond just seeing more of the world, enemies and bosses.

All of that is there, its just not handed out on a silver platter. From allows the players to run thru it for just the challenge or if one chooses to put in the effort they can decipher the story. It often requires one to do weird shit like read item descriptions and pay attention to environment details instead of watching cut scenes.

A good example of this fighting a black knight in Dark Souls 2, they can drop a halberd that the player can use. A player can pick it up , check the stats and equip it and move on, but if you take the time to read the description it gives you more insight to the knights and the world. 

 

"Halberd wielded by knights who served the lord of light in a long-forgotten age."
"Even after their flesh was charred by flame, they remained as strong as ever, and stood watch, challenging visitors to their land."

 

From knows your used to mowing down npc after npc without a care in the world ignoring all but the most important characters and they prey on those that continue to do that and reward those that dont. 

 

Most tomb prospectors, members of the Healing Church chosen to explore the old labyrinth, are unable to withstand the weight of the old knowledge, and go mad. This attire is worn by those lost souls. 
Truth oft resembles madness, inaccessible to the dull of mind.

Those who go mad are merely thoughtful souls who failed to reach any conclusions. The appendages draped across them are said to be a kind of protective charm, or at least, that is what these lost souls believe with all their hearts.

[Phaseknox]

11 hours ago, SimpleG said:

All of that is there, its just not handed out on a silver platter. From allows the players to run thru it for just the challenge or if one chooses to put in the effort they can decipher the story. It often requires one to do weird shit like read item descriptions and pay attention to environment details instead of watching cut scenes.

A good example of this fighting a black knight in Dark Souls 2, they can drop a halberd that the player can use. A player can pick it up , check the stats and equip it and move on, but if you take the time to read the description it gives you more insight to the knights and the world. 

 

"Halberd wielded by knights who served the lord of light in a long-forgotten age."
"Even after their flesh was charred by flame, they remained as strong as ever, and stood watch, challenging visitors to their land."

I realize that From Software Soulsborne games offer stories in them that can be deciphered the way that you described, but that's not my preferred way of storytelling. I personally find it somewhat dull, and often confusing. I know that some people like that form of storytelling and that's perfectly fine, it's just not really my thing.

[Moa]

Dark Souls games appear to have interesting lore but barely even have a narrative. 

[heydude93]

They're ok, I have the first Souls game and enjoy it.  It's a hack and slash RPG that curates challenges for the player to help evoke a sense of accomplishment.  But Sekiro is my favorite Fromsoft game because it does all of that but adds stylish action game mechanics which makes the challenge more fun. I'm not nearly as skilled at playing either as I'd like to be though.

[maddux4163]

I killed the gargoyles first try and feel BAD 

 

I snagged the Zweihander sword from the cemetery and put gold pison on it

 

Fight was over in seconds 

[Mercury33]

I beat O+S with no help but good god did it take me a long time. Probably a week or so? Log on, try 10 or so times. Log off and try again the next day. The feeling of finally beating bosses in this game was like a drug. Only boss that took me longer was the wolf with the sword in its mouth. 

[Bloodporne]

On 5/31/2020 at 3:35 AM, Phaseknox said:

This is basically how I feel about the From Software Soulsborne games, they're essentially always on challenges with the only real goal of overcoming one challenge after the other without much else on offer. I like more from games than strictly overcoming a continuous set of challenges, I like entertaining stories, interesting characters, some occasional downtime and an incentive to keep pushing forward to see what's going to happen next in them beyond just seeing more of the world, enemies and bosses.

They're not at all. I get it's not your cup of tea but those games are anything but simply some sort of challenge simulators. The amount of effort they put into environmental storytelling, atmosphere, deliberate pacing, rich-as-fuck lore and characters and everything in a game like Dark Souls or Bloodborne is staggering.

 

I agree that it's a very particular and even niche approach and I'm honestly surprised From's output is even as relatively popular as it is though overall.

[Phaseknox]

16 hours ago, Bloodporne said:

I get it's not your cup of tea but those games are anything but simply some sort of challenge simulators. The amount of effort they put into environmental storytelling, atmosphere, deliberate pacing, rich-as-fuck lore and characters and everything in a game like Dark Souls or Bloodborne is staggering.

The From Software Soulsborne games (especially Bloodborne) are somewhat my cup of tea due to their gorgeous environments oozing with dark, disturbing and unsettling atmospheres, solid combat and incentive to explore. However, they lack narratives beyond obtuse sprinklings here and there which is not my preferred way of storytelling, and I'm also not much for going out of my way to discover backstory and lore in games.

 

I personally do feel that they're primarily about overcoming the challenges that they present the player with every step of the way throughout them. If they weren't so punishingly difficult (especially the bosses) and require so much trial-and-error, I would find them more fun and less daunting.

[Bloodporne]

7 hours ago, Phaseknox said:

The From Software Soulsborne games (especially Bloodborne) are somewhat my cup of tea due to their gorgeous environments oozing with dark, disturbing and unsettling atmospheres, solid combat and incentive to explore. However, they lack narratives beyond obtuse sprinklings here and there which is not my preferred way of storytelling, and I'm also not much for going out of my way to discover backstory and lore in games.

 

I personally do feel that they're primarily about overcoming the challenges that they present the player with every step of the way throughout them. If they weren't so punishingly difficult (especially the bosses) and require so much trial-and-error, I would find them more fun and less daunting.

No I get your beef with the games and like I said, I do agree they are very niche even as an enormous fan. I also can't stand it when people act like these games are 'actually so easy' because they've played the fucking thing for 200 hours. I mean yeah, I think Dark Souls is relatively easy now but I've also beaten it three times and have worked out strategies.

 

I hadn't actively played video games for several years, probably between 2005 and 2010 or so, when a friend of mine basically forced me to buy Dark Souls. The fact it did, at least based on what I was playing, re-introduce patience, thought, real challenges, real exploration and was unapologetically old school was exactly what I needed to get me interested in games again. It also somewhat reminded me of, and slightly redefined, what I loved about the video games I grew up with and elevated it to new heights. I still remember to this day how outraged I was by many of its design decisions and I even returned it to the store after the first day but it somehow sank its claws into me to the point I went and rebought it, wasting more money, two days later because I couldn't shake it. I love how immersive the game feels in its seemingly complete disregard of the player. It makes you an archaeologist and sometimes you find things that fuck you up and sometimes you find a way forward. If someone asked me to pick one game that distills and bottles the essence of video games, I'd pick the first Dark Souls. I don't think it's perfect, some of it is quite flawed, but I think it somehow manages to combine everything I thought was 'magical' about video games as a kid and repackages it as a version that feels like those old games aged along with me and this is the outcome.

 

I don't think that had anything to do with your post anymore by the end but that's my perspective on your second paragraph

[Phaseknox]

19 hours ago, Bloodporne said:

I love how immersive the game feels in its seemingly complete disregard of the player. It makes you an archaeologist and sometimes you find things that fuck you up and sometimes you find a way forward. If someone asked me to pick one game that distills and bottles the essence of video games, I'd pick the first Dark Souls. I don't think it's perfect, some of it is quite flawed, but I think it somehow manages to combine everything I thought was 'magical' about video games as a kid and repackages it as a version that feels like those old games aged along with me and this is the outcome.

I totally get the appeal of the From Software Soulsborne games which is why I've given them all (except Demon's Souls) a good go, but after several hours into them despite wanting to push on my patience runs out and I have to quit playing them because I become enraged. I just don't have the tolerance for really difficult games that require a lot of trial-and-error now like I did when I was younger.