Gryphos
Auror
Man, I just played Dark Souls again, and remembered that it's one of my favourite games of all time, for a variety of reasons.
First off, I love the combat system. The simple idea of giving individual weapons set movesets adds a huge amount of variety into play. In other games like Skyrim, every weapon falls into a category, that category having its own (rather unimaginative) moveset. This, I feel, linearises(?) the progression, as there will almost always be a linear hierarchy of weapons' strengths compared to others. But in Dark Souls one greatsword, as well as having different stats from another greatsword, can have a completely different moveset, meaning that no weapon completely overshadows another, as if it has better stats, the player might prefer the moveset of the other. Excellent design.
The game design in general is really good. The bonfire checkpoint system leads to risk-reward gameplay as the player has to choose between resting at a bonfire and getting their supplies back, but having all the enemies respawn; or carrying on with reduced supplies. The boss fights are also unique and imaginative (though I still chuckle whenever I fight 'Ceaseless Discharge' [yes, that is actually the name of a boss]).
But what I absolutely love more than anything about Dark Souls is the story and lore. A lot of people who play through the game may not realise there even is a story, but there certainly is. The thing Dark Souls does differently is that it keeps the story... I wouldn't say hidden, but... it doesn't tell you it like most other games do. In the game you're given some brief backstory at the start of the game and then dropped into a post-apocalyptic kingdom, and you're then left to work out on your own what the hell went on. You do this in several ways. Item descriptions, for example, reveal most of the world's lore, and if you really pay attention to the NPCs rather cryptic dialogue you might be able to piece some more of it together. Dark Souls is a game that tells a story in a way only a game can, through atmosphere and self-fueled investigation. Sure you can just kill the big, stone armour-wearing knight in the tower and be on your way, but you can also ask yourself "Hold on, why was this guy locked in here?" at which point you read his ring's item description and learn some intriguing lore. And I do love the lore, which spawned such great and fascinating characters like Gwyn, Artorias the Abysswalker and Seath the Scaleless. The story more than anything is a testament to games' ability to tell intriguing stories in a unique and amazing way.
So how many people here have played Dark Souls? If you have, how familiar are you with the lore?
First off, I love the combat system. The simple idea of giving individual weapons set movesets adds a huge amount of variety into play. In other games like Skyrim, every weapon falls into a category, that category having its own (rather unimaginative) moveset. This, I feel, linearises(?) the progression, as there will almost always be a linear hierarchy of weapons' strengths compared to others. But in Dark Souls one greatsword, as well as having different stats from another greatsword, can have a completely different moveset, meaning that no weapon completely overshadows another, as if it has better stats, the player might prefer the moveset of the other. Excellent design.
The game design in general is really good. The bonfire checkpoint system leads to risk-reward gameplay as the player has to choose between resting at a bonfire and getting their supplies back, but having all the enemies respawn; or carrying on with reduced supplies. The boss fights are also unique and imaginative (though I still chuckle whenever I fight 'Ceaseless Discharge' [yes, that is actually the name of a boss]).
But what I absolutely love more than anything about Dark Souls is the story and lore. A lot of people who play through the game may not realise there even is a story, but there certainly is. The thing Dark Souls does differently is that it keeps the story... I wouldn't say hidden, but... it doesn't tell you it like most other games do. In the game you're given some brief backstory at the start of the game and then dropped into a post-apocalyptic kingdom, and you're then left to work out on your own what the hell went on. You do this in several ways. Item descriptions, for example, reveal most of the world's lore, and if you really pay attention to the NPCs rather cryptic dialogue you might be able to piece some more of it together. Dark Souls is a game that tells a story in a way only a game can, through atmosphere and self-fueled investigation. Sure you can just kill the big, stone armour-wearing knight in the tower and be on your way, but you can also ask yourself "Hold on, why was this guy locked in here?" at which point you read his ring's item description and learn some intriguing lore. And I do love the lore, which spawned such great and fascinating characters like Gwyn, Artorias the Abysswalker and Seath the Scaleless. The story more than anything is a testament to games' ability to tell intriguing stories in a unique and amazing way.
So how many people here have played Dark Souls? If you have, how familiar are you with the lore?
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