Dark Souls Has Ruined Videogames

[Xeogred]

25 does sound very questionable. One of my friends had about 50 hours just hitting the sewers. I thought that was crazy since I think I had like 10-20 at most there. I'm pretty sure I had like 40 at least where I left off. Still gotta get back to my game... which I fear is impossible, being a game you cannot easily "jump" back into where you left off. lol, maybe though.

Anyways the Souls game hit a note that I wish more modern games did. The game design is just utterly subtle to the core and it straight up feels like it has the same exact philosophy, learning process, experience, etc, as older NES/SNES era games did as well. It's up to you to figure out how to play, how you like to play, when to attack and what works best, where secrets are, what to do next and where to go.

It's up to you... to play the game. It feels personal, and it knows it's a game while not trying to be anything else.

It's so simple yet so dense at the same time. That balance is nearly impossible to find in most of the entire medium. It's trial and error done right, because everything is possible and very rewarding when you conquer things. One of the only newer games I've played that I'd compare such an experience too would probably be Skyward Sword. So maybe I'm just biased and prefer traditional Japanese game design, but yeah, I want more stuff like this. Nier fits a bit too. But Souls definitely takes it to the next level and feels like the perfect realization of NES styled games or something to me.

[Dylan]

25 hours with no knowledge of the game? I'm not calling you a liar or anything, but I do find that hard to believe. After I posted that I thought "well... maybe 40ish", but 25 on the first try? You must have sprinted through it and been very lucky with guessing where to go next to progress quickly, not to mention skipped most of the optional stuff. If you did get through it that quickly somehow, kudos, but I can say from experience as I played it at launch with others, that 25 hours was not the normal first run time.

Maybe my gauge isn't as accurate as I think it is, I never did a speedrun with Dark Souls and I spent dozens of hours messing around online and doing completion stuff.

Yeah, I'm realizing that something like 40 hours is a much more realistic time frame for what it took me (I've just gotten so used to blasting through the game on successive playthroughs that I forgot how tough certain sections were). I didn't play it at launch though, and I did have a couple of friends who had already played through it.

[Retronomy]

Now if only From Software would take what they've learned from their souls series and make a true King's Field sequel. I kind of prefer Demon's Souls over Dark Souls because it has so much of that old King's Field vibe. Dark Souls kind of ditched a lot of that and focused on all the new ideas.

But that isn't a bad thing, at all. I'm just overly nostalgiac about From Software. Regardless, I'm pumped for DS2.

[Forlorn Drifter]

I do like where the article is going.

However, I feel certain elements of Dark Souls should have had at least some explanation, such as enchanting. Other than grabbing good weapons when you can, enchanting is a huge part of really breaking into the game.

And I still like Demon's Souls better, from what I've played.

[noiseredux]

How do the games differ?

[Forlorn Drifter]

How do the games differ?

Mostly little things. The magic system is a bit different, where Demon's has mana while Dark has a certain amount of casts per spell.

Demon's has a bit better introduction to things, gets you rolling a bit better.

Multiplayer, in my experience, works better in Demon's, along with invasions and co-op being more common. (May not be the case now, this late in the game's life.)

The major difference is that Dark is a connected world, while Demon's is separated into level like areas that must be completed all at once.

[brunoafh]

How do the games differ?

Demon's Souls is level/area based. It's like Mega Man. You pick a stage, get through it, fight the boss, and then get their "weapon" (this varies from equipment to spells). Dark Souls is more of an open world that you slowly unlock. As a result it feels less guided and it's easier to get lost. Demon's Souls is centered around a hub that becomes populated with merchants, spell teachers, and other NPCs used for stuff. Dark Souls goes by a checkpoint system with random NPCs scattered all over for the most part.

Dark Souls is more heavy on multiplayer, although it is not required for either game. I think the US servers for Demon's Souls are down too.

Gameplay wise they are basically the same. There are differences of course, but there is nothing noteworthy to point out to someone completely new to them. Both are extremely punishing and nerve wracking, but like others I mostly agree that it is taxing rather than difficult. With patience anyone can get through it. Narrative is the same in both games as well, being very sparing and entirely dependent on the player to piece things together if they wish to.

[MrEco]

I agree that Dark Souls is a really fun and challenging game, but I honestly think it's a bit over hyped.

I mean, sure, it's easily one of my favorite games this whole generation. Even of all time. But there are plenty of design decisions/mechanics/story elements which have nothing to do with the difficulty, and yet I could easily see someone not liking the game because of them.

And really, it's challenging, but it's not that hard. You just need to think a little and most things are barely a problem to contend with.

[Central Scrutinizer]

I agree that Dark Souls is a really fun and challenging game, but I honestly think it's a bit over hyped.

I mean, sure, it's easily one of my favorite games this whole generation. Even of all time. But there are plenty of design decisions/mechanics/story elements which have nothing to do with the difficulty, and yet I could easily see someone not liking the game because of them.

And really, it's challenging, but it's not that hard. You just need to think a little and most things are barely a problem to contend with.

Yeah, I agree with you. The presentation of the lore is amazing but the game isn't without its flaws. The combat is just nerve racking sometimes in other ways besides difficulty. Parrying a dark knight 5 times to kill eventually becomes zero challenge and just boring.

The guy in the article is being a bit dramatic but I see what he means. I can barely play games for plot anymore, but I don't know if DaS is to blame.

In the DeS v. DaS argument I have to side with DeS. DeS is much more difficult and fun in my opinion.

[noiseredux]

is there any reason to start with one vs the other?