Never give in, never surrender.
Dark Souls III is in fact From Software's fifth game in this particular style (Demon's Souls and Bloodborne being the odd two out) and they really have pretty much perfected the design of these games at this point. Dark Souls III doesn't add much new to the formula, but feels like a tribute to everything they have done in the series as a send off for the final game of the series and it's simply brilliant.
For those unfamiliar with the games, Dark Souls III is an action RPG with a heavy focus on exploration and tactical combat. That's not to say there is a lack of story, in fact, there is plenty, however it's through lore found throughout the game from talking to characters, examining item descriptions and essentially piecing the bits together rather than presented to you on a plate. The exploration isn't just in the physical levels but feels like you're really exploring a whole world. The level design to Dark Souls III is superb, after picking your appearance and class and being dropped in the game you will travel through castles, undead villages, swamps, unlocking various shortcuts and hidden items as you explore.
Combat in the Dark Souls games isn't your normal game, if you just try and hack your way through the game you will die. Dark Souls is a game that rewards patience, looking for gaps in an enemies attack to counter attack, luring them away from the pack, hitting them with traps etc. I have heard a lot of people describe these games as hard, they aren't that bad, punishing for mistakes yes and not very forgiving, but I have always found them fair. Normally when I died it's because I over extended at a time I knew it was dangerous to do so rather than roll away or hide behind my shield and suffered the (painful and often efficient) consequences. Despite being a Souls veteran I still died a decent amount and sometimes had to re-evaluate my tactics or equipment to pass certain enemies, it's one of the things I love so much about the series.
The great combat, lore and excellent level designs aren't actually my favorite part of the series however, it's the unique online component. There are three ways to interact with other players in Dark Souls III. The first is to leave messages on the floor using a mixture of word and phrase options such as "danger ahead" or "hidden item". These messages are not always helpful as people will constantly try to get you to jump off cliffs and look for hidden rooms where there aren't any but messages can be rated for their quality and are genuinely helpful and sometimes funny.
The second way is to summon other people to your game to help you fight in an area up to and including the next boss. I quite often joined other peoples games and helped them beat the next boss as a way of scouting ahead in my world. For the most part when playing co-op there is no headset communication just gestures like waving and bowing which has led to a surprisingly polite community even in the last way of playing.
The third option is that you can invade or be invaded by other players who will try and kill you. This will often happen at the worst times, when playing as an invader enemies will ignore you so the invaders will often use them to their advantage. It can lead to some big battles including yourself, summoned co-op partners etc. I remember being in a brawl with four characters versus two invaders and a load of tough enemies, it was tremendous fun.
(There is an option to play offline if none of this appeals to you however.)
Presentation wise Dark Souls III has an epic soundtrack, very dark orchestral pieces that work extremely well with the action, they are largely played during boss fights making them feel pretty epic. On the performance side it's pretty solid. Load times are quick (unlike Bloodborne) and it looks great if not the most detailed or impressive textures on PS4. It does however suffer from frame drops here and there especially if you sprint through an area or there is a lot happening at once. It's perfectly playable in every way, just not 100% smooth. Where From Software really excel though is in their art design. The environments, characters, armour, and enemy designs are all amazing and stand out.
My first playthrough beating every boss and seeing as much as I could lasted just over 60 hours, this is a surprisingly long game and it's easy to miss characters little story scenarios as well as weapons, spells and even some areas and bosses are completely missable. Throw in the multiple endings it has pretty good replay value, especially playing through on new game+ keeping your weapons and current level while going through again.
I can't recommend this game enough. It isn't going to be for everyone, I can appreciate some people will get frustrated by it or find it too hard but if you can invest in the game and learn it's systems it is an amazingly designed and engrossing experience I have yet to find anywhere else.
+ Combat is excellent.
+ Exploring the world is marvelous.
+ Stand out online components.
+ Great soundtrack.
+ Gorgeous art design.
- Occasional frame drops here and there.
Dark Souls III is in fact From Software's fifth game in this particular style (Demon's Souls and Bloodborne being the odd two out) and they really have pretty much perfected the design of these games at this point. Dark Souls III doesn't add much new to the formula, but feels like a tribute to everything they have done in the series as a send off for the final game of the series and it's simply brilliant.
For those unfamiliar with the games, Dark Souls III is an action RPG with a heavy focus on exploration and tactical combat. That's not to say there is a lack of story, in fact, there is plenty, however it's through lore found throughout the game from talking to characters, examining item descriptions and essentially piecing the bits together rather than presented to you on a plate. The exploration isn't just in the physical levels but feels like you're really exploring a whole world. The level design to Dark Souls III is superb, after picking your appearance and class and being dropped in the game you will travel through castles, undead villages, swamps, unlocking various shortcuts and hidden items as you explore.
Combat in the Dark Souls games isn't your normal game, if you just try and hack your way through the game you will die. Dark Souls is a game that rewards patience, looking for gaps in an enemies attack to counter attack, luring them away from the pack, hitting them with traps etc. I have heard a lot of people describe these games as hard, they aren't that bad, punishing for mistakes yes and not very forgiving, but I have always found them fair. Normally when I died it's because I over extended at a time I knew it was dangerous to do so rather than roll away or hide behind my shield and suffered the (painful and often efficient) consequences. Despite being a Souls veteran I still died a decent amount and sometimes had to re-evaluate my tactics or equipment to pass certain enemies, it's one of the things I love so much about the series.
The great combat, lore and excellent level designs aren't actually my favorite part of the series however, it's the unique online component. There are three ways to interact with other players in Dark Souls III. The first is to leave messages on the floor using a mixture of word and phrase options such as "danger ahead" or "hidden item". These messages are not always helpful as people will constantly try to get you to jump off cliffs and look for hidden rooms where there aren't any but messages can be rated for their quality and are genuinely helpful and sometimes funny.
The second way is to summon other people to your game to help you fight in an area up to and including the next boss. I quite often joined other peoples games and helped them beat the next boss as a way of scouting ahead in my world. For the most part when playing co-op there is no headset communication just gestures like waving and bowing which has led to a surprisingly polite community even in the last way of playing.
The third option is that you can invade or be invaded by other players who will try and kill you. This will often happen at the worst times, when playing as an invader enemies will ignore you so the invaders will often use them to their advantage. It can lead to some big battles including yourself, summoned co-op partners etc. I remember being in a brawl with four characters versus two invaders and a load of tough enemies, it was tremendous fun.
(There is an option to play offline if none of this appeals to you however.)
Presentation wise Dark Souls III has an epic soundtrack, very dark orchestral pieces that work extremely well with the action, they are largely played during boss fights making them feel pretty epic. On the performance side it's pretty solid. Load times are quick (unlike Bloodborne) and it looks great if not the most detailed or impressive textures on PS4. It does however suffer from frame drops here and there especially if you sprint through an area or there is a lot happening at once. It's perfectly playable in every way, just not 100% smooth. Where From Software really excel though is in their art design. The environments, characters, armour, and enemy designs are all amazing and stand out.
My first playthrough beating every boss and seeing as much as I could lasted just over 60 hours, this is a surprisingly long game and it's easy to miss characters little story scenarios as well as weapons, spells and even some areas and bosses are completely missable. Throw in the multiple endings it has pretty good replay value, especially playing through on new game+ keeping your weapons and current level while going through again.
I can't recommend this game enough. It isn't going to be for everyone, I can appreciate some people will get frustrated by it or find it too hard but if you can invest in the game and learn it's systems it is an amazingly designed and engrossing experience I have yet to find anywhere else.
+ Combat is excellent.
+ Exploring the world is marvelous.
+ Stand out online components.
+ Great soundtrack.
+ Gorgeous art design.
- Occasional frame drops here and there.