When I think of Dark Souls, I think of two things. One, getting my ass handed to me over
and over and over again. And two, how easy the game makes it look to roll around in a
full suit of armor. But is it that easy in real life… probably not.
The Souls games are one of my favorite series of the last couple console generations. They’re
tough, they’re deep and it’s safe to say that Dark Souls 3 is the best of the lot.
Once again, you’re unleashed upon a nightmarish new land. As you look out at the beautiful,
yet sinister settings, all you want to do is explore, and push forward to that next
safe haven bonfire. Every corner hides something new and there is nothing quite as satisfying
in this game, as finding a shortcut, so that you can skip out an area you’ve had to deal
with for the last two hours.
The combat is as good as ever. It’s faster than before, taking a leaf out of Bloodborne’s
book. There are a tonne of weapons and they can all be held in one hand or two, with a special
move being available if you hold it with two. This special uses a bit of your magic, or
FP, so even a brute force smashy-smashy kind of character has some use for his little blue
bar.
And speaking of Bloodborne, the bosses here now also transform mid-way through a fight.
As you soon as you’ve got em figured out- they through you a curve ball as if to say-
you didn’t think it would be that easy, did you? They’re like Pokémon that evolve
half way through a fight.
The bosses in Bloodborne all looked like they were scooped out of an operating theater's
recycling bin, whereas here there’s a little more variety, both in looks and mechanics. Even
if they do feel a little bit easier than normal.
Once again, you start by creating your character to an insane amount of detail. All entirely
pointless seeing as how you’re wrapped up in armor most of the game, and to be honest
you’ll probably end up looking like a charred zombie anyway. And who really cares what a
zombie looks like. Not me.
You’ve got two flasks, one to heal your health and one to heal your magic. These both
get refilled at every bonfire and what’s cool is, you can set your own ratio of one
to the other, suiting whatever play-style you have.
The only downside here is that there
isn’t a specific quick button to heal with, so you have to switch to your flask- often
becoming a pain in the ass in the middle of a fight.
Another complaint I’ve got is with the shops. Why can’t you compare what you’ve got
equipped to the stock? It means you have to leave, check your items, remember their numbers
and then check the shop again. It seems such a simple thing to have missed out.
As far as glitches go, the game's been pretty good so far. A boss called Vordt decided to not
turn up once, but hey, even a killer giant ice dog deserves a break every now and then!
I’ve played quite a few games now with this ‘soul’ mechanic, and I feel like I’ve
explained it a million times before. I should just make a card with it all on, to hold up
in these kinda situations.
But essentially it boils everything down to one decision; do I head back to level up,
refill my flasks, but have all the enemies respawn, or do I risk pushing forward, potentially
dying and losing all my XP, not to mention all my time and effort.
I’ve been thinking- I don’t like this decision.
Take a game like Mega Man, for example. In that, no matter how tough things get, it’s
always about moving forward. As Rocky would say “It ain’t about how hard you hit,
it’s about how hard you GET hit, and keep moving forward.” Imagine here if I was like-
no, no, that’s enough- I’m pushing my luck here. Time to head back. Woah- actually
bad idea. Keep moving forward Mega Man, keep moving forward.
Now don’t get me wrong- I love the tension that the soul system creates, when you have
a large stash, but are miles away from a bonfire. Or the dilemma you get when you have to choose
whether to abandon a dropped soul load, simply because it would be too risky to recover it.
And I would never, ever complain that it makes the game too difficult because I love the
challenge in Dark Souls. As they say; Get gud son! If at first you don’t succeed,
then try something different or think of a new tactic. But it’s just something about
turning back in a game, that doesn’t quite sit right with me.
But, regardless of that, this is Dark Souls at its all-time best, and to be honest,
I wouldn’t want it any other way. It creates paranoia- you know that something bad is waiting
for you and you are genuinely worried about dying. It’s a survival horror game. Hell,
it’s a Castlevania game!
Sure, it’s difficult- but it’s also always possible. It’s always fair, by practicing
eventually you will win, and you will be rewarded. This is the type of game that it’s fun to
compare notes with friends about. Have you been here yet? Did you find that secret door?
Try using this weapon on that bad guy- that should help you out.
So what are your thoughts on the game, and what do you think of the series in general?
What are your highlights maybe? As always, I’d love to read the comments in the section
below and thanks for watching.
And for more video game reviews, be sure to check out A’s GAMING moments.