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The Reunited [Souls] Thread
Fleur de Alys
BiohackerRegistered User regular
BiohackerRegistered User regular
Welcome to the Souls thread!
It's the reunited Souls thread! This thread is for discussion about Demon's Souls and Dark Souls (all three of them!). Bloodborne has its own thread, which you can find over here. But it'll probably merge in here one day.
Previous Dark Souls 3 thread is here.
Previous Demon's Souls / Dark Souls / Dark Souls 2 thread is here and currently still going if you want to avoid any DS3 talk for some reason!
Rules
- Do not discuss the merits of PvP invasions. This just leads to pages of uselessness and hurt feelings.
- Be considerate and use spoiler tags. DS1 is getting a remaster, and DS3 still has lots of new players jumping in with every sale.
What are these games?
You've heard of Souls games by now. So instead of wasting forum space with a paragraph about the basic idea, let's talk a bit about the four games this thread is for. If you haven't played them, that might give you an idea of where you can jump in. What follows includes a healthy influx of mah personal opinions mixed in, which you probably will disagree with in part or entirely!
DEMON'S SOULS
The one that started it all! Well, sort of, because it's really just another iteration of old PS2 games tha- Ow, I'm sorry! Okay, I'll stop. Demon's Souls is the one that started it all! It's a PS3 exclusive, so that's pretty much the only way you can play it today (maybe PS Now if you use that for some reason). The online services were closed in February 2018, so you can only play this one in offline mode today. Fortunately, that happens to be the best way to enjoy Demon's Souls by far.
The game is super atmospheric and nigh-impenetrable. It's as hard as any of the games in the series, though a bit less because of the enemies and stage design and more because it's hella obscure and impenetrable. I loved this game when it first came out, but honestly I'm not sure it really holds up quite so well today. It's still a good romp from a retrospective angle, but if you're new to the series, probably don't start here.
DARK SOULS
The one that started it all for most people! This game begins the Dark Souls trilogy. With the Remastered version at the edge of release upon creating this thread, that's probably a really good choice for a jumping-in point in these games. The gameplay is a bit more clunky than the titles that followed, but the area design is superb. And if you want to dig into the lore, you pretty much have to start here for much of anything to make sense at all. Dark Souls was released on PS3, X-Box 360, and PC; the remaster is coming out on the Nintendo Switch and probably other systems later.
DARK SOULS II
The red-headed step-child of the series, Dark Souls II had a lot of backlash upon initial release, much of it fair. The game does not share directors with all the other games in the series, which is one of the reasons it feels a bit different. It's more of a side-story that's barely acknowledged in the third game. However, reception has warmed substantially toward this game as time has passed thanks to some notable steps forward in areas such as weapon options and quality-of-life. Personally I love this game, but if your main love for the original was its inventive bosses and sleek interconnected world design, this one's going to disappoint. Since it's a side story, it's actually not a bad entry point into the series if you want to try it out on the cheap and are mostly curious about the style of play. The Scholar of the First Sin version regularly goes on sale on the PS4 for $10, which is a steal. Presumably it gets similar deals on other platforms.
DARK SOULS III
The latest entry in the series and presumably the final game, Dark Souls III features the most updated design and by far the greatest sum of content. Released on PS4, X-Box One, and PC, it continues to enjoy a notable playerbase thanks in part to frequent sales, but also just how replayable this one is. Seriously, the number of ways you can construct and kit out your character is staggering. Quality of life is high, the visuals are easily the best in the series thanks to this one being the only true "current-gen" entry (Bloodborne notwithstanding), and boss design is excellent. Combat is faster-paced than previous entries (while slower than Bloodborne), which is a boon to some and a turn-off to others. The story completes, though really you need both DLC packs (Ashes of Ariandel and The Ringed City) to see it to the full conclusion. Fortunately both DLCs are excellent, and the complete version goes on regular sales. Personally I think it's the most accessible title in the series in terms of the play experience, but if you choose to start here, you'll have to accept that you won't really have a clue what's going on, and you'll miss a lot of the easter eggs and nods to the rich series history.
FASHION SOULS
The real Dark Souls starts here...
So, come share your battle tales! Regale us with your hilarious boss failures, your vexing invasion stories, and your clever build ideas. Souls fans love hearing a play-by-play of newcomers to the series, so let us hear how the experience goes for you.
And remember:
Triptycho: A card-and-dice tabletop indie RPG currently in development and playtesting
Echo on
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Posts
I'm starting my first real playthrough of DS2 since I've really only played 3. Just about to leave Majula. Whee!
the remaster is also looking like one of those kinda half-assed ones so ehhhh
a lot of the new and improved stuff also looks out of place and inconsistent
i'm still reserving my judgement atm but i'm less confident that i'll actually get it
Come to think of it, I never did the DLC...
Everyone be quiet...turn out the porchlight!
The video I saw the other day of some guy playing the game (he went straight to Queelag after arriving at firelink) looked no different than the PC version.
right, but he did that to see if the performance of the area was improved over the original version, which it was
calling this a remaster is a poor choice, because that language is drawing people to think it's something more than a re-release with some small changes under the hood and a different lighting engine and less jank
Probably was a PC with the Switch controllers hooked up to it.
The updated lighting engine leaves areas far brighter than they were ever intended to be seen, and in turn leads to both a lot of washed-out colors. It also shows off the game's lacking texture-work that was obfuscated by the hard shadows and dim, atmospheric lighting. The fact that the textures seemingly aren't retouched beyond being blown up to 4k in resolution doesn't help much either.
- The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (2017, colorized)
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Well done everyone
Twitch: KoopahTroopah - Steam: Koopah
I'm not even that scared off by the supposedly really high difficulty (just a little scared off), but mostly I'm wondering if the game can sustain its dark fantasy atmosphere throughout of if that atmosphere gets lost a bit while you're fighting a bunch of dudes on your way to the next bonfire.
It took me two years to appreciate Dark Souls. Which involved hacking, turning online play off and being glued to wikis and guides. Then later completing DS2 and coming back to DS1 without the need to hack.
Hacking is not an option this time around, but if the wikis and youtubes on how to play a Dark Souls game help, do that.
EDIT - They didn't even bother prettying up the HUD. For shame.
That's why there's joy-cons, so only they get thrown :rotate:
She's looking forward to big poise for big boys in DS1 though. She wants to experience stone armor and greatshield brick walling things. Who can blame her, it's fun for what it is, and it's never been the same since DS1.
Its world design is absolutely marvellous, but the design of individual levels is atrocious in a lot of places.
I remember way more environments from DS 1 than 2 or 3
It's because of the no/limited fast travel, forcing you to actually go back through these areas multiple times to get to the various npcs and merchants scattered around. 2/Bloodborne/3 you only have to clear each area once.
I don't think i'd want to go back to that kind of design but it was amazing at the time.
PSN: theIceBurner, IceBurnerEU, IceBurner-JP | X-Link Kai: TheIceBurner
Dragon's Dogma: 192 Warrior Linty | 80 Strider Alicia | 32 Mage Terra
Ringed City's probably the hardest (and coolest) area in the game. It gives you those sweet sweet +3 rings even on regular NG though, so there's that.
Yeah i had no idea that this area even existed until a drake chased me into the ruined tower and i discovered the elevator going up.
Ringed City wins just by virtue of not being any of that.
I will happily take six Friedes before a Midir.
"Hey, you know what'd be fun? If we made a boss that has a gorillion HP, is heavily resistant to most non-pure-physical damage to hose magic-users even harder, boring attack patterns that kill you in one hit if you miss the dodge, and is big enough that the camera can't show its tells half the time while you're attacking it!".
Ugh. That was easily the most annoying fight I remember in a Souls game. And yes, I'm including Bed of Chaos here. At least there was a way to go "screw this" and cheese Bed of Chaos.