My thoughts on DS3

[SikoBuster]

Sorry, this is much longer than I anticipated. I guess I had a lot to say.
If it wasn't for Dark Souls 1, I probably would've quit gaming. Around the time DS 1 came out the gaming world was in a descent into mediocre trash. Gaming companies were trying to approach the widest possible audience by making games more 'approachable' (easy) and they sucked. Studios felt more confident in making their games more challenging. Dark Souls almost single handedly changed the gaming industry for the better.
DS 2 came around and although it made some improvements it was an overall disappointment. It seemed like only Miyazaki could do Dark Souls properly and that seemed especially true Bloodbourne then came out and it was an amazing game. So when I heard that Miyazaki was coming back to DS, I was super hyped. Unfortunately it took me up to now to actually be able to play the game, but now that I've given it a good play through... I am vastly underwhelmed. This game is woefully dull and I'm sad to say it.
One of the main challenges the DS series faces is inherent in It's design, It's an action RPG with a customizable stat system while having the combat and lock on/camera of a 1v1 fighter. The worst parts of the DS games is when these elements clash. Fighting against other players can often times feel unbalanced and Fighting against multiple enemies at a time is typically awkward as your also fighting against the game’s interface. In DS 1 you’re typically given more room to move but the issue still presents itself from time to time. This game has exacerbated this issue through level and enemy design, there are more narrow passages and objects in the way for your weapons to cling on, all while your enemies attacks clip right through everything. DS 3’s approach to difficulty is to just put more monsters in awkward locations and have them deal out more damage, put someone waiting around every corner of each room, typically to the left and plunge attacks, those obnoxious thralls littered throughout the whole world. It’s difficult sure, but gimmicky and man is this game gimmicky. Giant arrows that attack you seemingly out of nowhere - three times they used this gimmick, a boss which you can only do real damage with a certain sword, a wyvern that takes forever to kill unless you use a plunge attack, which you have to leave the ‘boss fight’ to find the ledge to jump off of. Most bosses are also paired up, now you fight to bosses at once and sometimes even more, because It’s harder I suppose. There’s lot’s of attempts at trying to recreate previous boss fights, but they lack the presence and impact of the original. Overcoming these gimmicks didn’t give me a sense of accomplishment instead I was left unamused like, “that was it?”.
I heard that Miyazaki didn’t want to do this game and it looks that way.
I could go on, but this is too much already. All in all this game left me hollow (pun slightly intended)
Thanks if you read this, just me airing out my thoughts. What do you guys think?

[Shadowdrake]

Yeah each game has an advantage over the other, DKS1 - world and pve, DKS2 - variety and slow pace, DKS3 - player base lol.

Personally its my least favorite of the three, but I do think there are a couple good things about it. Dks2 is my personal favorite, SotFS ofc

[Shadowdrake]

Also Dark Souls 1's online was atrocious

[SikoBuster]

I like the PvP here better. I think they focussed more on PvP for this game.

[Shadowdrake]

Publicado originalmente por gomez_s_e:

I like the PvP here better. I think they focussed more on PvP for this game.

Meh, invasions are completely unfair towards the invader, think I've died to more Thralls than random invaders. Dark Souls 1 and 2 had a lot more variety in what weapons you see as well as movesets too. But Dark souls 1 progressively got worst til all you saw was bandits knife, while Dks2 got progressively better as everything got nerfed into oblivion and finally become semi balanced lol.

Dks3 I see 2 different straight swords, the claymore, the greatsword and a few random other UGS like astora, Ledo's Great Hammer, and Yhorms and DSGA, and then Ringed Knight Spear, and then pontiff curved sword.

Pretty much every pvp weapon you see on 4 out of 5 reds. Also I'm not sure if you mentioned this in your post but every damn Dark souls 3 area looks the exact fkn same except for Irithyll (wow, much variation here, everythings blue!) and archdragon (now everythings tan!). Besides that everywhere is just a gross greyish reddish disgusting washed out color scheme, which really gets to me sometimes.


The reason I like DKS2 is because after a long series of nerfs I believe its the most balanced, theres a counter to every weapon pretty much. Also fashion souls >:D. Its only my personal opinion though, I know from a critic's point of view Dark Souls (3)2 is probably the worst souls game unfortunately :(

[Shadowdrake]

Btw, this is mostly me agreeing with a lot of what you said about Dks3 along with adding my thoughts on aswell.

[𝓡𝓮𝓽𝓻𝓸𝓒𝓪𝓽]

My thoughts on DS3 as a whole: The enemies and most of the level design felt bland and uninspired. The past entries certainly did have better enemies and better areas, especially DS1. It had a magical feeling that DS3 failed to capture and couldn't recreate. But DS3 did a lot right over its predecessors.

While the normal enemies may be forgettable, DS3 has some of the best bosses in the entire series. Granted, there are some gimmicky bosses like Yhorm the Giant and the Ancient Wyvern that you can cheese. But that's just two out of twenty-five bosses. The DLC bosses, in particular, are some of the hardest bosses in the entire soul series.

Now the meat and potatoes a.k.a, why I continue to play DS3: the combat. DS3 has the most fluid combat in the entire series that makes it easy for newcomers and veterans alike to get into. This is a debatable topic however and some will be inclined to disagree. All in all, it's the PVP that keeps me coming back. When I recommend this game to a friend they also eventually return for the very same reason, the PVP portion of the game is that addicting.

[Shadowdrake]

Publicado originalmente por Alucard:

My thoughts on DS3 as a whole: The enemies and most of the level design felt bland and uninspired. The past entries certainly did have better enemies and better areas, especially DS1. It had a magical feeling that DS3 failed to capture and couldn't recreate. But DS3 did a lot right over its predecessors.

While the normal enemies may be forgettable, DS3 has some of the best bosses in the entire series. Granted, there are some gimmicky bosses like Yhorm the Giant and the Ancient Wyvern that you can cheese. But that's just two out of twenty-five bosses. The DLC bosses, in particular, are some of the hardest bosses in the entire soul series.

Now the meat and potatoes a.k.a, why I continue to play DS3: the combat. DS3 has the most fluid combat in the entire series that makes it easy for newcomers and veterans alike to get into. This is a debatable topic however and some will be inclined to disagree. All in all, it's the PVP that keeps me coming back. When I recommend this game to a friend they also eventually return for the very same reason, the PVP portion of the game is that addicting.

Alright, you got me there. Soul of Cinder and Nameless King and Gael were amazing. Friede and Midir just felt like a health race to me. "Who runs out of hp first, you or the boss? Lets find out!" But the others aforementioned were epic

[SikoBuster]

I think some of the boss fights could've been amazing, but they just sort of ran out off creativity and just said ♥♥♥♥ it, just add an extra boss in there.
I did enjoy the First and third part of the Friede fight though. Gael was a great fight too. These fights are bitter sweet because they show what the game could've been.

[Scuzz]

Paragraphs dude, they are a good thing.

[I'mCasper]

three things:
Theres only like 5-6 bosses that are "paired" the abyss watchers, the deacons of the deep, the nameless king even though your technically just fighting one at a time (the wyvern then nameless), the lothric princes, the demon prince, and sister friede for her second phase. out of the about 21-22 bosses in the game. and theres 2 others that have enemies that they can bring about that can attack you and thats the cursed tree and high lord wolnir. and yeah i think it does increase difficulty.

I found that there were a lot of open areas in the game. only a couple i would say were tight or cramped and one of them that comes to mind is smouldering lake in the halls, irithyll dungeon possibly, and the castle areas. but for the most part areas were open and rooms werent too small. i will say that enemies clippping through stuff is aggravating though but im pretty sure thats always been in souls games.

I didnt think enemy placement was that bad. I've played bloodborne there would literally be enemies hiding around a corner waiting to jump you, not very many of those in this game. the little hollow slave dudes that jump down/climb up from walls though yeah.

idk i thought this game was pretty good and improved upon aspects of all the others. graphics. mechanics. pvp. its faster paced and doesnt feel sluggish. soundtrack is nice. the final boss feels nastalgic. the bosses werent too bad, some were obviously better than others. i dont know about the ending to the story cause thats subjective. most of the enemies for the most part didnt feel unfair (except a few). the camera can be wonky at times (gotten killed from because of it sometimes though) but you can get used to it, the lock on isnt too bad as long as there isnt too many enemies in the room but even then you should be able to lock on to one at a time or if theyre bunched together just not lock on at all.

[Scaryowl]

muh ds1 best game :(((( why ds3 kinda like ds1 but not ds1?!?!?
Miyazaki bloodborne roll spam gank r1 linear!!!!!
poise endurance test get gud?
Ds2 ok, but ds1 better.

[your worryingly hot sister]

I personally like ds3 the best. Ds1, though an amazing game, is not flawless and is overrated. It's level design is still pretty lines, it's just the way that everything connects that makes it great. I really enjoyed the first half of ds1, but the second half (after Anor Londo) was bland and boring. And Blight town, I hated that place.

Now ds3 didn't have the same feeling is that first part of ds1. It kinda went away when crucifixion woods came along, a lot earlier than when ds1 started to lose me.

I will admit that enemy placement is a bit better in ds1, but ds3 isn't awful with it. It has its ambushes, but ds2 was so much worse with that, where basically every enemy is an ambush.

Ds3 is faster than ds1, so enemies that are faster and do more damage make sense, as you are now more capable of dodging them. Ds1 relied more on shields.

Ds3 really shines in the pvp aspect and the bosses. I've never had too many problems with pvp. I know that Invaders are against all odds, but I win more than half of them, and they're great fights. As for the bosses, theyre much more exciting. Ds1 had some good bosses, but most of them were just uninteresting and predictable.

I really didn't find ds3 gimmicky, though I do see where you're coming from. It was really only those two bosses and one or two dungeons (optional ones) for me.

I think one of the biggest things that makes these opinions in nostalgia. I like ds3 the most because it was my first ds game, and a lot of people that played ds1 first like that the most. My friend started with ds2, and that's his favorite.

[Sabaithal]

Publicado originalmente por Scaryowl:

muh ds1 best game :(((( why ds3 kinda like ds1 but not ds1?!?!?
Miyazaki bloodborne roll spam gank r1 linear!!!!!
poise endurance test get gud?
Ds2 ok, but ds1 better.

You did that slightly wrong. In order to be accurate you cannot give any praise to Ds2 despite its merits and contributions to the series. You have to say its trash and possibly declare it non-canon even though that clearly isn't true. Here I'll demonstrate:

'Ds2 trash slow horrible contols gfx sux not canon no lagstab pvp sux not gud git gut skrub gud'

[MadCre8tor]

I started out playing Dark Souls 2 first exactly when it came out - my first souls game. So, yes, it does have a special place in my heart. However, i didn't return to play the DLC content. I didn't consider myself a veteran and hadn't really gotten into the PvP side of the game.

When I picked up Dark Souls 1 later on I immediately could tell that all the movements, player and enemie animation felt somehow off, very sluggish and slow. Instead of having weapons with clear weaknesses there have been clearly overpowered ones. I just feel like the first Dark Souls is much more an Adventure, a Journey that puts more emphasis on world building than the engaging combat system that was properly refined in the later titles. So, sadly I couldn't bring myself to finish it to this day.

Now about Dark Souls 3 - It took me a while to pick it up because at launch there had been some technical difficulties with the game until they got patched. So first I forgot about it for a while, and then the game kinda just caught dust in my library. Like once with Dark Souls 2 it was friends telling me to pick it up, I had other games I wanted to play (shame on me because I missed out on the great pvp times back then).
I only really started playing Dark Souls 3 late 2018 and honestly, it's an upgrade to Dark Souls 2 in every way imaginable (other than pvp I can't comment on that because all I remember is that I hated getting invaded in DS2).

The controls are smoother, animation is of way higher quality, less ♥♥♥♥♥♥ hitbox nonsense, all things that really annoyed the crap out of me with Dark Souls 2.
The ember mechanic is what I would prefer any day over humanity in the previous games.
Weapons seem to have very varied strength's and weaknesses, noting is outright stronger - this includes magic and weapon arts.
FP and ashen estus instead of set number of casts. I hated that system back then.

Some worthy criticism I would mention is how:
I would've preferred to limit the player to say 10 estus max and 5 ashen estus max.
Chugging in this game is way too strong. Healing per estus could also have been decreased.
Because there is so much healing available the game has to compensate with higher damage meaning you only really die to ridiculous burst instead of repeated mistakes in the later stages.
It also devalues actual healing spells, which I think is really sad.

The things OP adresses I can't really agree with. I got stuck with my weapon on walls more times in 10 hours of Dark Souls 1 than in 1000hours of Dark souls 3, or that's how it feels.
Areas in Dark Souls 3 are actually very open and give you a lot of breathing room compared to Dark Souls 1. The game is A LOT less cheesy than Dark Souls 2. God that game was so ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ cheesy. I remember having to pick up a bow regularly because of very very annoying enemy placement in Dark souls 2. That never happened in DS3 for me.
About having to fight multiple bosses at once, I think Dark Souls 2 again is the biggest slap in the face throwing three of the same boss enemies into the same arena (and reusing them later on as normal mobs, what ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ joke).
Like, I dunno, I disagree with pretty much everything you mention. Or maybe my memory of Dark Souls 2 is somehow scuffed even though it is the first one I played and I had a blast playing it - yet somehow I can tell that Dark Souls 3 is an improvement in so many ways where Dark Souls 2 fell flat on its face (for a reason it is often referred to as the worst title in the souls series). It's still a good game, but it does pale.

My favorite area in the base game are the grand archives, just very creative layout and unique feel to it.
Also, ALL the DLC environments in DS3 blew my ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ mind, and I'm generally someone who is very busy paying attention to the gameplay and rarely if ever takes the time to look at pretty things, so maybe that means something.

Even though I've completed the game more times than I cant count, I don't see myself stopping anytime soon since DS3 PvP is still very fun.
There's so many more builds I want to try, and I'm still getting my ass whooped by some of the crazy pvpers out there.

[Xengre]

Dark Souls didn't change anything in the industry. While many do enjoy it the series is still relatively obscure/niche and has had little actual impact due to this on the industry. Games like Ninja Gaiden, Devil May Cry 3 & 4 (3 was actually re-released because it was to hard if that tells you anything), Super Meat Boy, and countless 2D classics had much larger audiences and global impact on the industry.

DS3 isn't gimmicky. Plunge attacks and them jumping at you from the side are actually quite rare. It happens in Cathedral a number of times, and a few other rare spots like Archdragon Peak, Irrithyl Dungeon, etc. and all of those times it is super manageable and not very punishing even if you did get caught.

I recall clinging my sword on walls earlier on during my first run but it quickly became non-issue. Even if your weapon hits the wall as long as you are a good enough distance away from the terrain it will clip through the wall. The only area in the game with tight enough areas to prove an issue for this would be parts of Smouldering Ruins. No where else.

The giants arrows are fine. You get informed at the first place it can occur that it is this giant in a distant tower (which you can reach and talk to for an item that makes him no longer hurt you and instead his arrows hurt enemies only) and will only fire on targets near the white birch trees (3 of which exist in the game).

No boss can really only die from a certain sword. What are you even talking about??? O.o

The Wyrven boss is gimmicky and lame, agreed, and the only time this issue presents itself. It would be more accurate to think of it not as a standard boss fight but closer to something like Indiana Jones running from a trap/boulder. You are fleeing from the dragon to try and escape in a tense somewhat linear route and can't hesitate cause dragon will crisp you (not really tho tbh) with other dangers along the way to ramp up the intensity. It basically fails tho, but the concept isn't entirely bad.

Almost no bosses are paired up. Friede phase 2, Demon Princes (amazing co-op boss, poor solo design boss), Gravetender, Spear of Church (arguable since you can instantly kill the summons), Deacons (are we really counting this as a boss????), Abyss Watchers (not really, u can actually make it virtually 1vs1 by staying away until each time the 3rd one appears to fight one of the enemies for u... in fact if you really wanted you could literally run the entire first phase while the phantom boss keeps being summoned until it beats the first form for you...).

Dragonslayer Armor you can ignore the wyrven largely in the distance and you never actually fight it, it is just an environmental threat (ludicrously negligible one at that), Twin Princes (just one target really, doesn't count as two at all as they never act simulteanously... and if you are using a large weapon and even most other decent weapons you can hit both brothers at the same time with each swing making it even more singular in this aspect), Crystal Sages (literally ignore the other clones and go straight for the purple one, they shouldn't ever hit you tbh).

Personally, I don't consider Dark Souls as "hard" or "challenging" games. They are niche, just slightly above casual in terms of difficulty. They aren't very polished but offer a limited experience not many other games do in terms of action, dungeon crawling, lore, etc. mixed together. Shame devs never really put some real quality work into these games as they could have really been so much more.