A pretty good starting point for a new take on the franchise. I really enjoyed the difficulty and the many quality-of-life changes. I also thought the story was pretty solid, and the final battle is probably one of my favourites in the series. However, the game starts to feel pretty repetitive and empty after a certain point, and basically, none of the side content interested me other than completing the Pokedex. The side-quests in particular need to be a lot more interesting in future entries. It would also be nice if the world was less empty. For this game's context, it makes sense, but it still starts to feel bland after a little bit. Still a fun experience nonetheless.

Honestly, this is probably my favourite pokemon game. I really did not think I would enjoy it as much as I did, but I just had so much fun playing it. I put around 75 hours in, which is by far the most I've put into a 3ds Pokemon game. The game is honestly pretty well balanced, with me wiping at least once every major story battle (I stopped using heals about half way through the story). Having every legendary available in the post game is also super nice.

very solid, underappreciated game. Definitely something that I would dislike a lot more on replay though (just like any pokemon game).

This game took me about 4 months to finish. Primarily because I had to force myself a lot of the time to play it.

Phantom Hourglass has excellent dungeons, fantastic bosses (probably the best in the series don't @ me), and tons of charm and character.

Unfortunately, every other part of this game is tedious and a slog. I hated going through the sea. It takes so long to get anywhere. All the enemies are so basic and boring, with practically no incentive to fight them. The combat is nothing but tapping on your screen as fast as you can (unless you're fighting one of the aforementioned bosses). You explore the same temple like 7 times, and it only has one checkpoint and if you die it takes 15 minutes to get back to where you were. This game is just slow. The only reason I was able to finish this game was because I knew that the next dungeon, at the very least, would be pretty good

I didn't hate it, but I sure didn't love it either.

Dark Souls is such a fascinating game, both design-wise and to play.

On my first trip through the world of Lordran, I finally experienced the world I had seen so many people talk about. I experienced its suffering, creatures, Lords, and above all...its flaws.

The first half of this game was absolutely brilliant. The atmosphere, enemies, NPCs, were all so wonderfully designed. In terms of presentation, this game is absolutely magnificent. The dimly lit hallways, filled with nothing but the sounds of your own footsteps. The low growls of the enemies on the other side of the wall. The bonfire, at the end of the path, fills you with a sense of hope. Every little detail helps the world of Dark Souls feel just that much more alive, just that much more real. It completely engulfs you in its jaws, and you willingly choose to stay in it.

The sheer amount of stuff in this game can be overwhelming, especially at the beginning. There are tons of weapons, armour, consumables, stats, spells, summons, enemies, NPCs, paths to go through, the list goes on and on. Unfortunately, this can be to the game's detriment. I found myself using a walkthrough every now and then simply because I was so overwhelmed by my choices and had no idea where to even begin. Or, in other instances, there was an extremely specific item required to do something, located in a completely different area. The game tries to provide subtle hints on where to use these items, but due to the sheer amount of stuff in this game, it is extremely easy to forget what the hints were even mentioning. Metroidvanias are my absolute favourite genre, so I thought I would enjoy these small elements. Unfortunately, it seems that they just did not work for me. However, I still believe that the sheer amount of options and areas are, in most regards, a positive.

Now, in terms of difficulty, obviously, this game is hard. I died a lot. I'm pretty sure the first 2 real areas in this game took me roughly 10 hours to beat. I constantly died, but I had expected that since the beginning and was able to persevere through it. Even after that, I died a lot. But every single one of my deaths was fair. Every single "YOU DIED" felt like my fault. The best part about dying in Dark Souls is how there is no real consequence. You do not lose your weapons, your armour, or anything other than your "souls" and "humanity" (both of which are easy to come by, especially the former). Death still leaves you feeling defeated yes, but it does not come with the feeling that you wasted your time. Each death is a lesson learnt, and its price is minimal. This is perhaps the single best design choice in this game. Death does not take anything away from you, it teaches you. Above all, it gives you hope. Each time you get a little bit closer to getting past that one enemy, you are assured that victory is possible.

Unfortunately, this sentiment does not hold true for the second half of this game. Although death still does not cause a direct loss, it does cause a new, absolutely infuriating one. Your time. So many bosses in the second half of this game are located an absolutely ludicrous distance away from a bonfire. It is genuinely fascinating to see how a game that masters the art of making death feel punishing yet fair forgets all of that the moment you reach the second half of this game. Each death to a boss feels like an absolute waste of your time. The long, winding paths back to the boss are filled with easy, yet tedious enemies that make it an absolute chore to return to your original killer. It can completely kill the pacing of an otherwise excellent game.

I was also somewhat disappointed by the bosses in the second half of the game. The first half has some absolutely brutal, suberbly designed bosses. Unfortunately, many of the bosses in the latter half feel half-baked and inferior. Perhaps it was just me getting better, but I found most of them to be a little bit too easy for my liking. The most obvious case of this to me is the final boss. After such a dramatic build-up, I was ready for a real challenge. One that would take me, at the bare minimum, a couple of hours to triumph over. That was not the case. The final boss in this game is an absolute joke, and I killed it in 4 ripostes. Barring that, the bosses that DO shine in the latter half are absolutely amazing. Fights like The Four Kings and Knight Artorias come to mind, although the former's runback is quite tedious.

My first crusade through Lordran has definitely left me feeling conflicted. Dark Souls: Remasted is almost a masterpiece. In fact, for about half my playtime, I thought it was. Unfortunately, the game starts losing steam in the second half, and resorts to tedious and poor game design to fill it in. As a remaster, this game could have definitely improved on the original in quite a few ways, although I guess that would have left the purists a bit disappointed. I mean, even with its flaws, the second half is not absolutely awful or anything. It is just a very stark contrast compared to the first half.

4/5

Is the level design basic and uninspired?

Yea.

Is the music the most cliche, unoriginal mario music ever?

Yea.

Does the game not do anything to stand out from its predecessors or successors?

Yea.

Did I still have a decent amount of fun?

Yea.