Why the game industry needs more games like Dark Souls

"The question is, why games need to be more like Dark Souls for the gaming industry to be affected in a good way? Well, I did my homework and I’ll try to convince you too that the Souls way is in fact the right way. So let’s analyze every single detail that I love about this franchise, and what exactly I want to find in other IPs as well."

[60FramesPerSecond]

Actually i have Dark Souls 1 on my Xbox 360 hard drive. Havent played it yet, but i will! one day.

[globeofgamers]

You are missing on a great game

[Neixus]

okay guys let's disagree just because he haven't played it!

/s

Jesus, how childish can someone be?

[TheButtonMasher]

I won't say you're missing out, because you may not like it. But you should definitely give it a shot when you get a chance. I've put over 120 hours into it.

[Malphite]

I agree. Dark Souls games are great and very unique. Can't wait for Bloodborne (and Demon's Souls once PSNow is availiable in europe).

[admiralvic]

I'll probably get a bunch of disagrees for this but...

I love when sites say something like "hey we need more games like -insert popular game here," and then go on to list a bunch of things that are hardly unique to the game in question.

Huge amount of content? There are a lot of games with as much and in some cases more content than DS has.
DLC? This is more peachy about your feelings about DLC than anything DS did, but even then there are companies that have done more for less. For instance, Terraria got a bunch of extra content via free patches, God Eater 2 got side stories for free via patches, Soul Sacrifice added like 10+ bosses via free DLC.
Sense of accomplishment? This is going to vary from person to person and there are plenty of other games that offer challenging tasks that make you feel amazing for accomplishing.
Replay? This is another conceptual thing that will vary from person to person.
The last thing? This is just another preachy bit that would probably be better served as its own article than a reason why the industry needs to follow DS.

[Bimkoblerutso]

Personally, I just think that it emphasises everything that makes the medium unique.

The sense of adventure, the rewarding challenge, the way the story unfolds through discovery and exploration, etc.

It's just an experience that cannot be captured by any other medium and it exemplifies what makes video games great. I'm not saying that there aren't a TON of great games out there, but DS fans seem to show such devotion to the series because it is a video game, through and through.

[admiralvic]

Okay... what?

Not only does your comment have pretty much nothing to do with what I said besides explaining why sites mention X games name (They typically do it for views and search reasons), but most of what you said doesn't even hold true for the industry or the article in question.

"but DS fans seem to show such devotion to the series because it is a video game, through and through."

Fans are devoted to DS because it's tough but fair. A lot of people are of the belief that games are getting to be too easy (ample checkpoints, everything is spelt out for you, you must learn from your mistakes, everything has consequences, etc) and DS offers an experience devoid of all these elements, but also does so in a way where the game is far from impossible for the average user. This typically gives people the "sense of accomplishment" the author mentions, since the game can feel impossible at times, but if you buckle down, learn from your mistakes and move forward with confidence, you can eventually beat the game.

With this being said, most of the authors points are actually fairly vague and some of the reasons are more so comments on other aspects of the game industry than praise for DS. In a lot of ways you could remove unique multiplayer and the title could just as easily be any Monster Hunter genre game, Borderlands, Terraria or really any other number of games out there.

[Bimkoblerutso]

Whoa, whoa there fella. Calm the hell down. I had two reply boxes open by accident and I commented in the wrong box.

I still think the Souls series is much, much more to fans than just a good challenge, but I have no desire to argue with you about it.

[Dudebro90]

Dark Souls needs a proper combat system first.

[insomnium2]

Yeah you're rig...wait what!?

[Hellsvacancy]

What like Assassins Creed/Batman? "push square to counter" no thanks

The combat system for Dark Souls is fine, may need a little tweaking

[The Meerkat]

Well said.

And at no point do you feel like your on a par with the enemies. You are either able to swat them away like a fly or they are able to one hit you to death. There seems to be nothing in the middle.

The only way to progress at some points is to find glitchy angles where the enemies can't one hit you.

[Vegamyster]

The majority of enemies never 1 hit you nor could you one hit them unless you're leveled up and revisiting old areas or NG+.

[insomnium2]

Nah all you need to do is learn their weakness and movements/timing and you are done. I spent a good 5 hours stuck on Ornstein and Smough before finding their soft point. It's rewarding as hell. Finding the right shield was the key for me. If you can't take a double hit without them braking your guard you are effed.

There are some enemies that require trial and error type of luck even but most of the time it's your own fault if you die.

Never rush in these games! Never ever do that! Take one enemy at a time if possible. Use bow to lure them out one by one.

[Saints94]

That's the point.

For the last part, lrn2dodge

[KwietStorm_BLM]

"The only way to progress at some points is to find glitchy angles where the enemies can't one hit you."

LOL damn did you even try to learn the game?

[Einhert]

LOL it has the best combat for a 3rd person game I have seen in an age....

It actually requires tactics, timing, reading and skill to beat enemies.

Arkham and Assassins creed and all those clones who emulate their combat system allow you to clear rooms easily and beat enemies far to easily.

the combat systems are boring from a gameplay perspective.

[darren_poolies]

Agreed, it is especially the best combat in an RPG I think I've ever experienced. I can't play the Elder Scrolls games because I find the combat so bad.

[Einhert]

@Darren

THe only one that comes close is the Witcher 2, it is of the same vain as Dark Souls and enemies are difficult to beat and require use of signs and traps to overcome.

[darren_poolies]

I haven't played the Witcher 2 yet but I bought it in the steam sale and out finally got my PC built the other day so I'm looking forward to checking it out!

[Inception]

Warning: this game is not for people who can't learn from their mistakes or observe their surrounding!

[Jyndal]

Maybe I need to give Dark Souls another go. I played my way through the opening dungeon and decided that I didn't like the combat mechanics, so I just stopped playing.

[TheButtonMasher]

Never hurts to try again. The combat is meant to feel slow and brutal. It took a while to enjoy it, but now I love trying to figure out an enemy's attacks and when the perfect time to hit them is.

[calis]

I put in 40 hours into Dark Souls and just gave up. It defeated me.

[insomnium2]

Me thinks you didn't really tune your weapons all that much. Finding the embers and modding your swords and such is the key. Once you get one good weapon for every enemy type you are all set. The crystal enemies are pretty tough but I found the graet scythe with +5 flame mod pretty good against them. That or my enchanted zweihander. You can just crush smaller enemier and even knights with 2-3 consecutive blows since they fall flat on the ground due to the weight of that sword.

I'm taking a pause from DS atm. I'm on my first NG+ and about 100 hours in. One of the better games there is imo.

I was about to quit also by the time I had big problems with that wolf with a big sword (forgot his name). It's all about finding a good shield and getting your stamina up. If all you concentrate on is strength you are screwed.

[darren_poolies]

The wolf's name is Sif who I don't find particular difficult at all but you're right, it's all about have the right shield, enough stamina and the right timing.

[calis]

I had the Black Knight Sword at +5 and level 60 or 70.

I need to defeat two more - I can't remember the names but the one at the library and the one in the catacombs.

[darren_poolies]

40 hours? How far did you get?

[calis]

I have 2 major boss fights to go. The one in the Catacombs and the Crystal one (can't remember the name).

[Inception]

Some little advice:

Don't gave up yet. Take some fresh air, play other titles maybe like Motorstorm, CoD, or something that will make you relaxed. After you got the mood than play Dark Souls again.

I did this when i got stucked in Demon / Dark Souls and it worked. Maybe you can try this too.

[gamer7804]

I couldnt stand this game, not because of the difficulty butbecause of the drab world and clunky gameplay.

[darren_poolies]

The gameplay is anything but clunky and imo the world is one of the best and most interesting I have ever played. The lore is incredible but each to their own.

[gamer7804]

Its a pretty polarizing game, I have a friend who loves it too, to each his own.