Dark Souls III

The Dark Souls series is one of the most iconic video game series ever developed. With three entries (four if you count Demon Souls) this trilogy never fails to amaze me when I decide to plug in my controller and lose myself in the immense amount of gameplay and lore. Each game has almost infinite replayability, and one character can absord weeks of ones life. The brutal yet fair combat and death system has even created its own "souls-like" genre. And many games have tried (and failed) to create something similar to this masterpeice. But the only master of "souls-like" will always be FromSoftware.

My first encounter with Dark Souls was the second game, and because of that, my opinion may be a bit biased, but Dark Souls II is the best, come at me bro. Afterwards I began, but never finished, the original Dark Souls. I played it till I beat Ornstein and Smough (thanks to a lucky glitch, where Ornstein fell through the window) but the outdated graphics, combined with the hard to use controls, led me to abandon the game shortly afterwords. There was a period of time when I moved on to other games, looking forward to BloodBorne. When BloodBorne was released I played it through to the end, I was pleased, but it was no Dark Souls.

It wasn't long after till I found myself ordering the collectors edition of Dark Souls III, and counting the days to it's release on the PS4. At that time I had: Dark Souls II, Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin, Dark Souls: Prepare to Die, Bloodborne, and lords of the fallen (more like lords of the crestfallen). Now that last isnt FromSoftware, but I had hoped it would scratch that Dark Souls itch.... All of those games I hoped would be my next favorite (Dark Souls II still holds that spot)

So now I finally had Dark Souls III, and I soon found myself once again in that world of FromSoftware's creation.


[ Actual Review ] [May Contain Spoilers]

My first impressions on the world were the similarities, not between Dark Souls II and III, but the similarities between Bloodborne and Dark Souls III. Obviously FromSoftware drew inspiration from their recent hit, and decided to incorporate that into their new game. What does that mean? It means that there were strong cello and large bell sounds in the music and general ambiance, instead of harp from the previous games. It means that the Lords of Cinder were going through a dark gothic phase for their city and castle designs, instead of a more classic medievil. It means that the denizens, good and bad, had horrible skin and hair, with no telling how many diseases they carried (with one notable exception). It really means that the whole atmosphere had a strong sense of macabre, with plenty of corpses and rotting piles of something or another decorating the streets, one can only imagine the smell.... This didnt impress me, while the graphics were certainly top notch, I cared more for the decayed beauty of the previous games, instead of the decayed decay of this one. Now dont get me wrong, Im not forgetting about Harvest Valley in Dark Souls II, nor am I neglecting both previous games undead-underground frame killing locations which I wont name here, its just that the other two games had more natural beauty interspersed in the decay, whilst this game has few of those locations.

I did enjoy the faster combat, not BloodBorne fast, but quicker than the others. This also means that your enemies are faster as well, rip. I also thought the maps were less linear than both BloodBorne and Dark Souls II, while they were more linear than Dark Souls I. I believe that the weapons and armour in this game seems a bit more balanced, and the rings in this game are fantastic. The enemies you fight can be a bit repetitive, even when going to new areas, yet it seems that more powerful single enemies are more common than in the other games. The bosses fight well, if not with similar dash/attack move sets and wide sweeping blows.
The lore in this game is better than most games, however, I feel that the best peices are reserved for the endgame, or the Ringed City DLC. This is fine, as there is more lore for the common enemies you face than in the previous games. The secrets in this game tend to be bigger, therefore more wellknown, than in the other games, and small secrets are easier to stumble upon than in the other games aswell.
The covenant system in this game is better in some ways, and worse in others in comparison to Dark Souls I and II. The endgame rewards for PvP and the means for getting them are better, whilst I wish it was more difficult to be detached from a covenant than it is now, that wouldnt bother me, I am loyal to only one covenant \[T]/ .
The story can be done multiple ways, with several different endings, however, I would recomend a guide, as the requirments are finnicky, and a single mistake can change the otucome in the end. However, unlike the previous Dark Souls games, your choices matter strongly in here, and they can have huge consequences.
The NPC missions are more plentiful, and more interesting than the other games, yet once again, I recomend a guide if you are trying to achieve a certain mission, as skipping one step can be very easy, and dissastrous.
[Possible Spoilers] The Ashes of Ariendel DLC is just ok in my opinion, it has one good boss, and thats about it, the only other thing going for it is the fact that it may remind some of the Painted World in Dark Souls I. Other than that, your time will be spent killing difficult enimies, and respawning at bonfires too far away, which tends to result in just running away from hordes of enemies, hoping you dont get hit, and trying to reach that next bonfire or shortcut.
[Possible Spoilers] The Ringed City DLC is much better, as I mentioned earlier, it contains plenty of lore, most of which spans across all three games, and ties them together fittingly. The atmosphere is better to me than most of the base game, and the enemies are also imaginative, with a few recognizable to those who have played the previous games. The final fight is intense and enjoyable, yet some may find it hard to get help for it.
The endgame consist of PvP, which is more fun, and more accesible, than in the other games. I enjoyed using the DragonSlayer greataxe in PvP, where a well-timed hit could end your enemy in one blow. And this also shows that each weapon can be used effectively, instead of there being a single, extremely overpowered weapon that everyone uses. The PvP is tied to covenants, as this tends to be the primary rewards system for the endgame.


By now Ive purchased Dark Souls II three times, Dark Souls: Prepare to Die, Dark Souls: Remastered (which I finished), Dark Souls III twice (one collecters edition), Bloodborne, and I hope to add Sekiro to this list soon. So I dont think I need any more proof as to who is my favorite game developer, nor my favorite game series. And one I will continue to enjoy for a long time yet.


TLDR:
I enjoyed Dark Souls III, with its many pros and cons, however, it dosnt top the list for me, yet its nearly there. The Ringed City DLC is essential, and the PvP is enjoyable. If you like a dark Gothic world Similar to BloodBorne but with medievil weapons, than this game is for you.


My FromSofware Rating list:

Least Favorite| BloodBorne 6/10 < Sekiro Maybe? < Dark Souls I 7.5/10 < Dark Souls III 8/10 < Dark Souls II 10/10 |Favorite