Dark Souls Reviews

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Written by WorstUsernameEver on October 18th, 2011

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John said that Demon's Souls was almost impossible to score, and now I know what he was talking about. My scores and Editor's Choice award for Dark Souls are reflective of my own experience with the game, and not a glowing endorsement for everyone. I expect Dark Souls will sell more copies than its predecessor, but I'm sure many won't know what to make of this curious title. It harkens back to the days when our parents bought us a game and we played it all summer. We talked about it on the playground and obscure secrets came to the light and became general knowledge. Dark Souls is a window to a forgotten age with a modern spin based around connectivity and player involvement. You don't have to visit the playground to get the information; From Software built the playground into the game. Dark Souls shouldn't be used as a barometer for who's hardcore. In a way, it's a game about being human and making mistakes. What would you do if you were suddenly thrown into a nightmare world of death? You'd probably grab a weapon and shield, and then cautiously attempt to escape. Dark Souls reminds us of how fragile we are as mortal creatures. You're not a hero; you're just trying to survive.

Dark Souls is one of those rare titles where you truly feel like the master of your own destiny and realise that you need to up your game if you're going to get through it in one piece. The sixty hours I spent with Dark Souls during my first playthrough are some of the most memorable in all my years of gaming, and there are countless moments of greatness contained within it that I'll leave you to discover for yourself!

Dark Souls is a punishing game that only patient and hardcore gamers will find especially fun to play. For everyone else, the difficulty of the game is too great to make it an enjoyable experience. Not to mention Dark Souls lacks a decent storyline, or even a soundtrack. However, the fact that Dark Souls offers a huge environment to explore plus hours of gameplay makes it a game that offers something different from the plethora of RPG games released. If you feel up to the challenge, Dark Souls can be a very great game.

Dark Souls understands that I'm interested in more than just going through the motions of a carefully planned sequence of scripted events that all but eliminates the possibility of failure. Dark Souls understands that an invisible guiding hand that saves a reloadable checkpoint every left step is an insult to my intelligence. Dark Souls understands that I might want to imprint my own ideas on the playthrough...that I might want to engage this interactive medium in more cerebral, dynamic, and organic ways than a linear, canned, and one-dimensional romp through the tried-and-true has the capacity to offer.

I realize that Dark Souls may not be for everyone, but that's OK. I feel satisfied enough in the knowledge that it's for me.

Some partings words enjoying this game rides on gathering some momentum. There are setbacks and dying is not uncommon. You could soon realize, as I did, after repeated failures, that there are ways around the enemy that could lead you to the next level without battling that enemy which can be quite impossible to overcome. If you persevere enough, Dark Souls can sap you of your energies long enough to celebrate having played one of the best RPG games todate.

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