Sony On H1Z1's Insane Difficulty: "We Think Dark Souls Is For Wimps", May Have Playable Zombies

T1 - Sony devs have once again taken to Reddit to answer questions on upcoming zombie survival sandbox game, H1Z1, boldly stating they want the game to be very challenging and think "Dark Souls is for wimps". Also discusses item degradation and playable zombies.

[ArchangelMike]

Yeah keep the hype train running on full steam, just dont forget to deliver, if not you can be sure the zombie hordes will turn on you.

[Army_of_Darkness]

I bet you they are trying very hard to make the game difficult not because of dark souls, but because it will eventually force you to make a microtransaction! And that is bullshit.

[cfc78]

Thats 1 idea or maybe they just want to give you the best survival horror experience possible.

[uncharted56]

Dude if you don't know about something then you should keep your mouth shut otherwise it makes you look stupid. Remember half knowledge is dangerous. They have already stated that they don't plan to sell items like guns, food, or any other kind of boosters which might dis balance the gameplay. Rather they will sell stuff like clothes and stuff for your character and are exploring other options for monetization so the game can stay from the model of pay to win.

[Lord_Sloth]

Oh give it a rest! They've already said the transactions aren't for weapons. It's for cosmetics like coats and such.

[Army_of_Darkness]

@uncharted56, my assumption wasn't stupid if you factor in the present trend of pay to win with the typical free to play games, so relax with that shit... But if what you're saying is true in regards of just charging extra for costumes and such then that's cool with me...

@lordsloth, give what a rest?? my once in a blue moon questioning of Sony's motives with their free to play game?? LOL! when was the last time I talked shit about Sony in order for you to tell me to give it a rest?? you need to take it easy bro.

[minimur12]

So well be dying every half am hour?

Well that sucks.

[assdan]

Yeah. This game looks like it could be great, but I'm still cautious.

[theDivision]

Agreed. Excited but cautious is also how I feel towards the game. It has phenomenal potential I just hope they can deliver.

[Mankey]

Oh man. They aren't screwing around.

[GortJester]

That's great... don't say *Dark Souls is hard but we are making our game even harder*, instead make fun of the Dark Souls Fanbase. Stay Classy.

[Lord_Sloth]

1st off... HUZZAH FOR SEVENFOLD!
2nd the Souls fanbase does a pretty solid job of making fun of itself. I love the game but it has some of the most ornery people playing it. It's like a fighting game community. XXXD

[Patrick_pk44]

This. The Dark Souls fan base is one of the most laughable and hated around boards.

OT: Dark Souls isn't difficult, and it is more artificial. Put bonfires so far apart and make the enemies difficult at the start of the game. Once geared everything become easy.

[Bengaroo]

Have to agree. And the two nerdlings hosting that gameplay stream couldn't have been less likeable either.

Great PR start...

[frostypants]

Pretty sure they were being tongue-in-cheek. They chose to mention Dark Souls because they clearly respect it.

[Christopher]

I think missing is the context in which it is said. It could have been said in a joking way. No one knows. And, it's not like the person doing the interview can't make a choice in which lines to show and which not to show. This could have been said after a paragraph of him extolling the virtues of Dark Souls.

Seriously, gotta brush some of this stuff off. Even I need to be reminded of that from time to time. The game journos print stuff that gets hits, not stuff that tells the full story.

[FanboyKilla]

Sony has no class. They always talking bout others. Meanwhile, im looking for something to do with this ps4 instead of it just takeing up space. I mean seriously, it just sits there. My son wont even touch it. Smh. I feel like an arse. Sony stop talking start walking, you insecure, overrated, underachievers.

[jkendrick]

@fanboys

Man, can we read one article without trolls?

[assdan]

I'm pretty sure the devs stated that microstransactions won't involve weapons.

[S2Killinit]

it would definitely make it scarier if some of the damn zombies were played by people. Lurking around corners, sneaking into forts, attacking wen survivors least expect it. Damn, goosebumps

[ScareFactor]

"dark souls is for wimps"

Lol that is funny, definitely the hardest series I have ever played (that I didn't have to change the difficulty)

[Saints94]

Dark Souls was alright. Dark Souls 2 is very easy.

[azure1990]

Says the guy making a generic game

[MysticStrummer]

There aren't nearly enough games like this to use the word generic about it.

[Dubaman]

DayZ, Rust, 7 days to die, Nether, The Dead Linger. They're the ones iv played, im sure there are more, but i can say that H1Z1 looks like a mash up of Rust and DayZ, in a sparser world. A main issue i noticed with this game was the draw distance. The fog sets in too soon and the detail fades too quickly. Try using a sniper rifle in a realistic survival game when the hills in the distance haven't even completely rendered; it completely kills the immersion. Then you have to run closer, making yourself exposed, just to let the details and other players load.

I'll give this game a shot until DayZ SA gets closer to where the mod is. You look around though and the only special thing about this game is that its on a console.

[MysticStrummer]

@Dubaman - I agree, H1Z1 is a combination of some existing games. That's just not what generic means.

[Panthers]

The thing about this is that its one of the first games of its kind with a large developer/producer behind it.

Most of the other titles are indie titles made by a few people. And while they are fun, they are crawling with glaring issues.

[aragon]

Without even reading the article im gonna say they need to becareful of what they say, dark souls is for wimps? really sony? really? really classy. Fact is they shouldnt have said that i dont care what anyone else thinks how can u not call them out for such a classy statement

[MysticStrummer]

"i dont care what anyone else thinks"

That's cool, just don't expect anyone to care what you think either.

Dark Souls is harder than the average game, but not as hard as some people say. I found Demon's Souls to be harder, personally. Still haven't played Dark Souls 2 though.

That said, I'd rather they let the game speak for itself. Let feature lists, videos, and screenshots do the talking.

[aragon]

so theres nothing wrong with them saying dark souls 2 is for wimps? dark souls? dark souls and dark souls 2 is good so is demon souls, but u dont find nothing wrong with how they choose to advertise their product? saying the game is for wimps? what if nintendo or ms said that would it be ok? as ive told a person around here with lots of bubbles like your self before, been gaming since the 80s got teenagers so im not that young, there is nothing right about that kinda statement they could have said they have a good game without picking on dark souls, i love souls, demon souls and dark souls

[MysticStrummer]

I said I'd rather let the game speak for itself so no I don't think it's ok, I just think it's meaningless PR talk. It's just business, and there are many classless things about big business. That includes Sony, MS, Nintendo, and just about any other big company you care to name.

I've been gaming since console gaming got started. I had a Magnavox Odyssey back in the day, which is considered to be the first home console, so I saw the beginning of the "console wars" when Mattel would directly attack Atari in their TV commercials. This kind of attack the competition mentality has been going on to some extent ever since.

I don't think Dark Souls is for wimps, mainly because I don't consider playing any game to be indicative in any way of a person's toughness. To be insulted about it is silly.

Like I said, it's just PR speak. I don't think it's cool when any company does it, but I also don't see any reason to take it to heart one way or the other.

What I said about not caring what people think was just directed at that part of your comment, but you have to understand that the way you responded to my comment shows that you do care what other people think.

[Sideras]

Dark Souls might be known for it's difficulty but it goes far beyond that. The very design is near perfect.

[MysticStrummer]

@ Sideras

Yeah Demon's and Dark Souls are my first and second favorite games of last generation, so I agree with you about the design.

[thejigisup]

I'm sure he was joking when he says that dark souls is for wimps. The game is going to be difficult, that's all he was trying to say

[raWfodog]

I think that he was just trying to be funny with that statement. He obviously doesn't want to alienate some gamers before his game even comes out.

[jkendrick]

@Aragon

When did gamers become so touchy? I call it competition!

[Nerdmaster]

I hope H1Z1 is hard for the right reasons, not like Dark Souls that is hard for things like bad colision detection, "cheating" enemies whose attacks go through walls but ours don't, and things like that.

[Psychotica]

Yeah that boss in Iron Keep was driving me nuts with his attacks that were going through a wall. I swear I die most often because my guy won't take his Estus flask fast enough, he does it so slow like there is no care in the world.

[nix]

Hahaha... The slowest moment of our lives. I've cried during those moments. I've hated myself more for deciding to drink just at a time when I thought I have enough space n time between the enemies n me only find out my character is still drinking n I can see the huge sword being swung at me. Horrible times. Horrible times.

[Ashunderfire86]

"We think Dark Soul is for wimps." Yeah try to beat the Ancient Dragon, even with 2 summon soul players.

[bloodybutcher]

Hehe, i tried to fight with him only once for now, as a ''helpful'' phantom.while the host and the other phantom ran towards the dragon,i tried to lightning spear his arse...not only his hp was barely moving, he burned me to crisp after 15 seconds or sth.yeah,i was soooo helpful. i'm kinda affraid to have a go at him in my world now xD

[Saints94]

Easy, keep attacking his front feet when he does a fire attack and when he jumps into the air, run as far as you can. Rinse and repeat. Not that hard.

[DoctorJones]

It's not easy at all, not with your method either which is probably the worst way to try. Fighting him at that position is a terrible idea, which makes me think you're trying hard to make the game out to be easy.

Not only does attacking him from his front feet leave you at a serious disadvantage when he does his fire attack, it also opens you much more up to his other attacks.

Attacking his back legs is the way to go, but even then it is hard as nails to get away in time when he does fly up.

I think you're talking bs.

[Saints94]

That's fine DoctorJones. You can already see this option done on YouTube. I don't care that you think that I'm talking BS since I've already killed him easily with this stupid method ;)

[DoctorJones]

What's your psn? Maybe I could summon you and you could show me how it's done? By all means show me how YOU can do it.

[Veneno]

With the ancient dragon I truly think from software is trolling the players because that boss fight is actually more difficult with more players.

[Master-H]

The Ancient Dragon is brutal, it requires a lot of patience. The best strategy for me was to not summon players, dodge his stomp attacks, and attack him a lil after he gets down from the air , and everytime he gets up in the air i make sire i have about half of my stamina and i aim for his tail and run straight towards it, you have to be wary of your stamina management though, if you deplete your whole bar attacking him then he flys you won't be able to run until your stamina bar fills back up to 100%, and the fire will kill you, also sometimes he flys in the air when he's very close to the edge of the arena making it impossible for you to run towards his tail but that doesn't happen very often.

[goldwyncq]

"Dark Souls is for wimps" is a great name for the highest difficulty option.

[Aleithian]

That is so true.

[TitanUp]

they shouldnt have used the term wimp that doesnt make this development team look good at all.

[T2]

They are obviously kidding, it's good pr all around. Also I agree that would at least make great trophy name

[aLiEnViSiToR]

"We want to make a hard game. We think Dark Souls is for wimps."

http://cf.chucklesnetwork.c...

[Aleithian]

Wow, so many people getting pissy about Sony joking around with Dark Souls. Chill out! It's a joke! This thing that people do! Learn about it some time!

[T2]

No doubt some people are so sensitive it's sad.. They are obviously giving a nod to a game they are fans of

[Aleithian]

That's pretty much how I interpreted it.

[Moe-Gunz]

I think this is a joke and people are overly sensitive.

[T1Publishing]

Didn't expect this response in the comments when I wrote the article. I'm 99% certain Smedley was just referencing Dark Souls because it's currently considered the yardstick for tough games, and he was using it to prove a point that H1Z1 will be difficult.

It's the same as somebody growing a new chilli pepper and saying "Try this, Naga's are for wimps" - nobody REALLY thinks a Naga chilli is for wimps, but it would sure help you make your point about your new chilli.

N.B. I love chilli

[frostypants]

Well said.

And chili is awesome.

[cfc78]

Fans will be fans start to worry when they get their handbags out.

[DarXyde]

Hard to interpret what Smedley is trying to say. Dark Souls can be a pain, but it's a very fair game. Death is pretty much always player error. Is he suggesting that H1Z1 is UNfair and players will be victims to circumstances outside of their control?

[DigitalAnalog]

Or it could be just as fair but the learning curve is extremely deep.

[Master-H]

Dark Souls is mostly fair, not always though. I wouldn't call enemy attacks clipping through walls "fair", and that's coming from a big time Souls series fan.

[BassMan125]

Why did they compared it to Dark Souls?
I mean, their contenders are clearly games like DayZ.

[cfc78]

Because dark souls is know for being a tough game to beat,they're just saying theirs will be even harder.

[Smitty2020]

I can't wait for this game I love zombie open worlds

[Predaking77]

More difficult than Dark Souls would make the game almost impossible.

Right now I'm trying to kill a boss in Dark Souls (king vedrik) that kills me with just 1 unavoidable miserable hit.

:(

[frostypants]

Just roll, man.

Or just summon. He's one of the easiest bosses in the game to co-op.

[frostypants]

D'oh...I was confusing Vendrick with Velstadt (the boss in the prior room). I don't think you can summon for Vendrick.

Vendrick's overhead swings are easy to dodge, and his swings can be dodged or blocked. But yeah, even with 4 souls he takes a long time to kill. I died a few times simply due to impatience.

Also, don't forget: he's optional. Killing him doesn't get you much.

[Predaking77]

Can't summon anyone :( although he is optional, I want to kill that SOAB.

[DoctorJones]

You can block his attacks if you have a lot of points in stamina, but more than one is usually a death sentence for most players.

I beat him, after many tries, by sticking to his back leg and swiping a couple of times after he attacked. The trick is getting behind him again when he jumps back. Many times I was a couple of swipes away from finishing him only for him to jump back to the very edge of the area and slaughter me in the next second.

It just takes patience though, and a bit of luck.

[Saints94]

Roll to the right with his vertical swings, keep going for his back, and make sure you have at least 4 giant souls.

[Predaking77]

Thank you. I have 5 giant souls. Do I have to roll to my right or his right?

[Saints94]

If You still have not beaten him... Your right.

[Ch1d0r1]

Some people say, "not another zombie game!"

But yesterday i realized my 8 year old sister and her friends don't even play tag any more. Instead the play zombies. It's almost the same but you run with your hands raised to the front (if your it). It's just amazing to see how all of the zombie themed games and tv or any other kind of content has changed their childhood. Zombies to them is just like how military shooters were to us. I remember we used to say not another war shooter! Hahaha

[TXIDarkAvenger]

I hope they live up to what they're saying. If they are, this game is going to be amazing.

[thricetold]

The only people insulted at that statement are the weirdos that play the souls series for a sense of life achievement. The game is artificially hard in the first place and none of them are actually hard to begin with. All of them are fun and some of my favorite, but a segment of the fanbase is just ruining the series for their own personal shortcomings.

[McScroggz]

Dark Souls and Demon's Souls are tough, but most importantly fair. I think the kind of people who love Day Z and the others like it will enjoy a difficult game so long as it's fair to them. Sony has a difficult task with H1Z1, but I'm interested in how it turns out - I just hope it's not undercooked like every other game in the genre just to cash in.

[finito82]

another zombie game lol

[Mankey]

haha game on

[Azzanation]

I am sorry, lost all respect when you said Dark Souls is for Whimps.

[sadfeet]

I'm sorry. I lost all respect when you took this comment seriously.

[Azzanation]

Dark Souls is hard yes but anyone can make a hard game. But not many can make a hard game fun. This guy looks at Dark Souls like its all about the difficultly. He could easily worded it a lot better then using the word Whimp.

I doubt his game will be half as good as Dark Souls.

[KillrateOmega]

[Insert yet another butthurt comment because they said "Dark Souls is for wimps."]

The sensitivity here is ridiculous. All over a harmless comment that was obviously said as a lighthearted means of hyping up this game by comparing it to a well-known franchise.

You are all taking this way too seriously...

[DefenderOfDoom2]

Yes, bring on the challenge! That is what i want to hear ! To me if you are not dying too much in FPS game , then the becomes a shooting , walking simulator, which is boring! So bring on the pain!!!