I Genuinely Hate Dark Souls, But I Don't Want To 

I just remembered I had this video ready to go and with the Elden Ring expansion having just recently released, I figured I should post it [this video was made ages ago]

Elden Ring actually created Stakes of Marika, which are checkpoints usually connected outside of a boss arena, so everytime you die you can choose to go respawn there instead of the last grace you touched (graces are Elden Ring's bonfires). There are only 3 main bosses that don't have stakes and, even then, the run backs are definitely not as bad as any of the Dark Souls ones (except for maybe the Placidusax run back, which is really annoying but you can consistently not get hit there)

Ok, I am so glad I'm not the only one who feels this way. I got like 10 hours in before I just set it down and never picked it up again. But I thought i was the crazy one because everyone loves it so much.

As a busy "adult" who completed Dark Souls for the first time at around age 40, and love the whole franchise, I know you weren't talking to me, so here goes.🙂As with your video, these are just my humble opinions. [Minor edits for clarity and flow.] In some ways I think you got dealt dirty by the wider gaming community and your own expectations about the game. Combat is NOT the main focus. Difficulty is not the point. Dark Souls is just as much about world/level design and exploration as it is about combat and difficulty. "Not enough hours in the day": I am NOT a gifted gamer. Capra took me way more tries than it did for you. I see estimates of "this game will take you X hours" and in my brain just go "X*2" or even 3. And still I don't believe it took me much time to "git gud" at Dark Souls (and I do hate that phrase with a passion. lol), and it was COMPLETELY different from anything I'd ever played. I certainly started having fun almost immediately; long before I got "good", if you can call what I do "good". But if you are trying to complete a game on an arbitrary deadline with expectations that aren't a great fit with reality (including YOUR reality of what you need to get out of a game to feel satisfied), and aren't willing to get some mechanical help in the form of a quick guide or two, or advice from your friend, I could see how you'd have a less than stellar experience. Usually when I'm introducing friends to Dark Souls, I avoid pointing them to WHAT they should do or where they should go unless they're extremely desperate and about to go hollow (Souls slang for "put the game disc through a blender"), as those tend to be the most fun discoveries in a blind playthrough, but I will (if they are OK with it) offer tips on mechanics and soft skills like "roll into attacks, wait 'till they attack, then swing or swig [your Estus]", usually after they've had a go and are asking for a little advice. The boss runbacks, yes, some of them are a bit much in DkS1. Usually when one is WAY too much (like your experience in Lower Burg), it's a sign that you might have missed a shortcut somewhere, which I've long thought of as something Capra is there to teach. Had they put a bonfire right nearby (or let you retry immediately, as lots of games do), I think bosses would feel even MORE like roadblocks that you have to get past. I can't tell you how many times I've been half a dozen of attempts in on a boss that just isn't budging, and thought to myself, "is this even where I should BE right now?" -- that runback gives me time to think, time to process, time to learn the boss fight (my brain tends to process better when I'm doing unrelated things), time to get stronger, and time to re-evaluate my life choices and go do something else for a bit. I would easily burn out if I played Souls games as a boss A, then boss B, then boss C, seeing the beautiful level design as a means to an end rather than the bosses simply unlocking more awesome avenues to explore. It's also a game where a little mechanical knowledge goes a LONG way, and while I fully admit it does a crap job at teaching you that knowledge, my experience in the Souls community is that most people don't just try to muscle through that aspect without getting informed advice, watching a video, or taking a peek at the wiki. *Should* you have to do any of these things? I don't know. Probably not. But it's certainly not the only "classic" game that suffers from this, and damn near every critique in your video could have been favorably addressed with a little bit of game knowledge, and a little less bias going in. To an earlier point, I think the "Dark Souls is so hard" expectation has people go in thinking doing 1-pixel worth of damage to a boss health bar is how it's SUPPOSED to be, so it may be you didn't think anything was WRONG, and that people like this for some reason. (There are a few who do "challenge runs" who get off on this sort of masochism, but most of us do not. Although they can be fun to watch, that's sadism. lol) Would you have liked the game then? Who knows! Dark Souls certainly isn't everyone's cuppa, and that's quite alright. It absolutely isn't perfect, and many of your criticisms have good merits. And you're planning on playing Dark Souls 2? May I ask why? Some people really like it, but I don't think it's controversial that it's the least popular, and many of the things you disliked are even WORSE in DkS2! I'd say just jump straight to Elden Ring, or give Dark Souls 3 a try. There is no real story continuity, aside from a few obscure references, so you're not missing anything important. The combat speeds up, the runbacks get easier, among many other quality of life improvements. Anyway, wherever your adventures may take you, I love the vids!

Elden Ring IMO corrects a lot of what makes Dark Souls annoying. Not everything. But I think you might enjoy it, given a fair shot.

your friend did a terrible job at guiding you :P I assume he was trying to be hands off by not telling you about mechanics. I loved playing magic since demon's souls and it is easier. your weapons can be upgraded to scale damage with your intelligence (your friend didnt explain). There are many chances to cast spells inbetween attacks. and the boss which you hated because it kills you as soon as you enter was optional (your friend didnt tell you) and during the tutorial you clearly missed some messages because you didnt lock on or know how to roll (your friend didnt tell you) and lastly, running to the boss is player choice, the game tries to encourage you to farm by putting enemies between you and the boss. there is also the multiplayer factor which is huge; I remember early on when i face a new area or boss, I would play as another player's summon and help them as much as i can while also not losing any experience I gained (both knowledge and souls)

Despite many… many… attempts, I have never been able to enjoy any of the darksouls games😢

What I really love about this game are its lore and World design. The mechanics are a product of their time and the circumstances in which the game was made, leading many of them to be clunky or outdated by today's standards. It's been many years since I first beat the game, but I remember getting so mad at every part of it when I started out, from the camera controls to the long locked-in animations. However, the game really does force you to "get good", not by improving your individual skill necessarily, but by adapting your approach. There's so much to explore, and the interconnected nature of the World means that you can tackle many of the fights with better gear or simply in a different order than the "intended" route. My first playthrough was a pure Dex build with a katana and no armour, which really forced me to learn mechanics such as roll i-frames and parrying. I think you'll find you have a very different experience replaying it with a different build and the knowledge accumulated from a previous play through.

Capra Demon and Bed of Chaos are two of the most hated bosses in the series, even the creator hates BoC and considers it the worst he’s ever made. You mentioned a lot that the slowness of the game bothered you a lot. If you’re willing to give Fromsoft another shot, every game since Bloodborne is was faster than this. I suggest trying out Bloodborne, the creator’s favorite game, first if you want to give this another go.

i think there is a point to be said about treating dark souls like an exploration game, when i got into bloodborne that's immediately how i treated it and exploring often shortens routes or leads you to items that can help with bosses, and speaking as someone who had a 9-5 when elden ring dropped i could only sink in an hour or 2 a weekday but i still massively enjoyed that game possible because i had friends at work that i could talk to (and make annoyed by me killing bosses they really struggled with). but from experience if dark souls isn't up your ally other "Souls-likes" will typically be a more fun experience (think the Jedi Fallen Order series)

A common story with Dark Souls is to try it, be crushed by some boss (Capra Demon being a good point) and then abandon the game... Just to pick it again months later, choose another class, find out that *the game is not so much about your ability with the sword/magic but about gaining knowledge*, and have a blast with it. Paradoxically, not allowing yourself to give up and restart at a later date might have hindered your enjoyment of the game. Whenever you have the chance, create another character with a different class and see how far your knowledge takes you. You'll be surprised.

Please dont play Dark Souls 2, Many of the issues you had with the game are much worse in Dark Souls 2 with delays after actions, boss run backs and bosses that swarm you like the Capra Demon. Insted play the Demon Souls remake as it has a larger focus on exploration and bosses similar to Priscilla. The biggest reason Dark Souls players don't like that game as much is because the game dose not focus on combat nearly as much which could be a positive. Or if your looking for something more focused on combat you could play Dark Souls 3 or Elden Ring.Dark Souls 3 is the most refined version of Dark Souls there is, While Elden Ring puts an open world spin on the Dark Souls experience.

You can separate your personal enjoyment of a game's design vs your critique of the game as a game. As you said, you recognize the merits of the world design, pattern recognition, challenge, it just simply isn't for you. Some mix of the pacing, options given, or expectations didn't add up for you. It's not a bad game, it's just not for you.

These criticisms seem fair and right, the boss runs and some other mechanics are ROUGH. But these points are for Dark Souls 1, not the franchise and it’s other games from the creator. Fromsoftware usually learns from the previous entries and the next game is much better. Dark Souls 1 is near the start where a lot of things are not fleshed out.

This is why I enjoy the soulsborne series of games: I like how the combat feels, I like how every movement has to be intentional and methodical. I like how simple it is at the start but how difficult it is to master. I like learning enemy attack patterns and being able to counter them effectively after learning them. Feeling like you are getting better after learning how an enemy works is so satisfying to me. Also I like the setting and the world. I like being able to experience a classic medieval dark fantasy adventure, living through my character on a journey only previously told through storybooks. I like slowly unraveling the complex lore of the world. I love exploring the world, finding shortcuts and finding beautiful locations. I didn't pick this series up until I was 18. I heard that Hollow Knight was quite similar to it, and since Hollow Knight is my favorite game of all time, I absolute had to try it out. And I think it's true. I like Hollow Knight and the souls games for the same reasons. I think one of the main reasons you didn't enjoy the experience was because of you picking mage and not knowing how to actually do a playthrough of a mage. And just in general not knowing and missing some things. (Your "guide" was really no help tbh) It looks like you where doing a lot less damage to enemies than you should have been doing at each stage of progression. Maybe you were investing skill points into the wrong stats? Did you not upgrade your weapons (enough)? Also Dark Souls (the first one) is very slow. But the later games like Bloodborne, Dark Souls 3 and Elden Ring are much faster paced. Granted, I think that makes those games more difficult. It still uses the same combat system just that everything is faster. Also many of your complaints are shared by hardcore fans of the series. No one likes the Capra Demon's tiny arena, dogs and the run back. No one like the Bed of Chaos. Run backs in the first and second game are notoriously long. But these are all faults of the older games. Fromsoft learned a lot from the first game and didn't repeat most of their mistakes in future games like, Bloodborne, Dark Souls 3 and especially Elden Ring. (They still keep adding poison swamps though ;-;) (Fun fact, you did miss a whole big area. It's the DLC that comes included with the remastered version of the game. But I don't blame you for missing it because it is very well hidden.) I don't recommend you play Dark Souls 2. It has a lot of the same problems this game has and even some worse ones. I think Bloodborne or Elden Ring would be a better idea. A new IP with some different mechanics seems like the best choice imo.

I often wonder if there’s something wrong with the reward system in my brain but I rarely, if ever feel any sense of accomplishment after beating something hard not only in games but also irl. I never played the actual Dark Souls games but I have friends and even a sibling who’re all obsessed with these games and also Elden Ring, Bloodborne etc, both of which I actually have played at least a little but never got far in either. When I played Bloodborne, I didn’t hate it, I was pressured into giving it a shot by my brother and while the normal combat wasn’t so bad, the moment I bumped into the first boss, I quickly realised that I most likely wouldn’t truly be able to figure out how to beat the damn thing, like normal enemies no big deal, but figuring out even the first boss seemed beyond my skill ceiling. Elden Ring I dropped before I got to the actual first boss, (ignoring the optional tutorial boss that people meme on) simply because the reputation of these games intimidated me. It’s worth stressing that I generally play games on easy and genuinely do suck at most games, hell, I’ve got chronic pain that flares up when I’m stressed or struggling, and so I doubt that I’ll go back. There were many other games I quit for similar reasons and to be frank, I don’t feel like I’m missing out

I am saddened that the public perception of the community's "face" has become "GIT GUD." I cannot speak for everyone, but the meaning behind these words, to me, has always a form of "harsh encouragement," not meant to mock someone struggling with gameplay (though I have certainly seen it used in bad faith in such ways; I'm speaking broadly here). There's nothing wrong with choosing to get help against bosses. I think it can be really fun, and I say this as an extremely hardcore fan of souls-likes in general, as well as the works of FromSoftware. It's in the game! You should play it how you want to play it! With that said, to your confusion about the difficulty of run-backs to bosses, I at least do not consider the boss itself to be the entirety of its challenge. The difficulty in getting back to fight the boss is also a part of the boss. Everything I do contributes to the resources I have remaining to fight the boss, so every action I take is in some way work toward defeating the boss I'm working on. If I get back to the boss door without enough resources to even feel like I have a decent chance, sometimes I don't even attempt to fight it; I choose to bank my souls, upgrade, and learn the route better. Perhaps I might try to rethink a better route. Would it have been more satisfying if you had discovered the alternate pathway to the Capra Demon yourself? The impression I get is that you would never find it, especially based on your comments about exploration at the end. At its core, the greatest beauty of Dark Souls is in the exploration and the lore of the world. The intricate, tiny details in the game that tell complex stories and require careful observation and consideration to understand are why we are here. It might be strange to say it, but Dark Souls is, in a sense, a "simulation" rather than a game about "combat." The adversity and enemies before you are there because...that's where they are, not because they are trying to explicitly stop you. In many cases, the player character is the arbitrary aggressor, and the enemies are natural parts of the environment that would never act aggressively. There is a profound sadness in discovering this that laces every corner of the world. This is what Dark Souls is about. Consider, for example, the success of VaatiVidya's channel and the Prepare to Cry series. This is the real meat of Dark Souls. While the games are difficult, they are usually not difficult in ways that actually require intense execution; some of the most laudable qualities about them are the ability of even inexperienced or terrible players to eventually find ways to triumph by choosing new strategies or approaches when previous ones failed. Everything is a way to seek power to overcome your obstacle (even summoning allies!) so that, too, should be considered a triumph! I think it's unfortunate that you didn't feel that. I wish you the best in your continued gaming, wherever it takes you.

Capra Demon and Bed of Chaos are two of the most hated bosses in the series, even the creator hates BoC and considers it the worst he’s ever made. You mentioned a lot that the slowness of the game bothered you a lot. If you’re willing to give Fromsoft another shot, every game since Bloodborne is was faster than this. I suggest trying out Bloodborne, the creator’s favorite game, first if you want to give this another go. (Also, I know for a fact that your DS2 play through is going to be a nightmare unless you’re doing it purely co-op. It has the slowest combat and some terrible boss run ups.)

I'm not a dark souls hater but i'm a huge mf critic especially of the first half. but i'm with you i adored sens fortress as well, it felt so fun it's my favorite area for sure

i really understand your opinion on the game. ive played Elden ring and dark souls i really hate some of the dark souls mechanics, butelden ring is a whole different game, its more forgiving, more accesable, has cooler weapons and you can level up as much as you want due to its open world before taking on the har dbosses, and there are almost no runbacks. Dark souls is good if you want to git gud or suffer, and can be fun, but its really a dick. i hope you dont get discouraged from trying games like this, becaouse many souls games can be really fun, even on a more casual basis level. And ignore those dumb "git gud" people. I like getting good at bosses, but most dark souls 1 bosses are really jank and at least im not gatekeeping p´layers from having fun. Id be really interested in seeing you play Elden ring.

this is the type of guy who beats dark souls because he thinks "he has to". dude if you do not enjoy the game stop playing. you said you wanted to quit after the first hour. then do it, this game is not for everyone. you either love it or you hate it. no in between

You mention never having a window big enough to actually cast a spell... Shortly after a clip where you spend a good ten seconds or so on Quelaag's flank, while she was stuck in a long animation and couldn't attack you back. That was your window. It's all about perspective, and learning to make the opportunity for success. Except the Bed of Chaos. That boss sucks, and that's why it doesn't reset whenever you make progress and die.

there's four things researchers say people play video games for, and genres perfect for, and focused on each niche; social (MMOs like WoW), problem solving (puzzles like Portal), exploration (RPGs lik Skyrim and Fallout) and mastery (soulslikes like Dark Souls). Most games have these 4 in different amounts or only hit one or 2, how they do that can even depend on your individual playstyle (even Stardew Valley can be played for mastery, it has a vibrant speedrunning community)

I love Dark Souls, but am so completely terrible at the game. I never beat it, but i love the lore. I love how entirely indifferent the world is to you, the player. The level design, the oppressive atmosphere, and the one thought of keep going. Just keep going for as long as you can. But you're right, there are skill caps and mine pretty low. I never got past Ornstein and Smough. Thats as far as my undead could go.

After seeing your miserable experience with this game, I wish I could guide you through this game instead of your friend. I think you could enjoy it more by getting tips from someone who loves playing as mages in any game they can, and who hates playing soulslike games with melee weapons (you never need to touch even one). There are tips I could give you at the start. Like for example: After leaving Undead Asylum, I'd show you location of the NPC (0 enemies between you and that NPC) that sells Soul Arrow, so you could buy it, instead of getting some lvl ups for souls from Asylum Demon. So, you'd start with double the casts of the spell. Having 60 instead of just 30 helps a lot and lets you kill enemies between bonfires without using melee weapons at all. And also you'd have enough casts for early bosses. 2nd tip for a spell caster. Remove as much armor as you need to light roll (don't even wear a melee weapon, and until one point int he game, a shield). This is what I learned hard way when entering DLC. Until that point, I was medium rolling, and that made some bosses harder than they should be. And I wasn't able to beat Sanctuary Guardian. But... after removing all my armor, I was able to dodge almost anything with a fast roll and I beat it on 2nd try. 3rd important thing that would also help a lot. After getting to the Darkroot Garden, I'd guide you to the location of the Grass Crest Shield, that greatly improves stamina regen, so you could dodge more often, making a game easier. And 4th, most important tip for a spell caster, TAKE IT SLOW. As a spell caster, you can kill normal enemies with 1-2 casts. You should take it slow and aggro enemies one by one (or as few as possible at once) until you are comfortable with more (or just running from the bonfire to the boss, but with a lot of casts, you can clear the way every time) And also, I'd explain some of the NPC quests, so you could get more powerful spells. Like for example, there is no way of knowing that you need to buy every item from one NPC to progress the quest allowing you to get more powerful spell from them later. And also better catalysts to cast them with. In this video I didn't see you use Soul Spear (or Crystal Soul Spear), so I assume you didn't have it. And this, alongside of the spells like Homing Soulmass (with a crystal version) and Dark Bead (at least you had that one, and it can one shot bosses) would make many bosses trivial. Sorcerer is really the "easy mode" of Dark Souls. But the huge problem with it, is how hidden are some spells and catalysts, behind the NPC quests, that without the guide or tips, you'd have hard time getting. And my guess is that your friends played DS with a melee weapon, and didn't care for spells, so their guidance for a spellcaster playthrough wasn't... good. I love playing souls games as a pure spellcaster, and I'd never play it if I had to play with a melee weapon. And... really, before playing DS2 or DS3, I'd really suggest to play Elden Ring. Maybe even with a Seamless Coop mod with a friend. And when you need it, you can always lookup guides how to get things like spells and spellcasting tools. (for example in ER there is one staff that you can go get at the start of the game, that would help you deal way more damage, but it can't be upgraded, so it's only useful in early game)

My brain just doesn't appreciate overcoming something tough the same way Dark Souls players do. When I finished the first brute chieftan in Halo Infinite, the one by the giant mining laser, I thought "Thank goodness that's over. I never want to do that again." I wasn't proud or felt accomplished, I was glad the frustrating thing was done being frustrating, and I could get back to the gameplay I liked. Some people's brains just don't get that same dopamine rush from beating tough challenges. My brain sees most super-tough challenges as something that gets in the way of the fun I would rather be having. I generally prefer The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, and Skyrim for my fantasy action and exploration dopamine. The wandering around and seeing the beautiful nature scenery, mysterious old ruins and twisted hellscapes. And even though the combat is far more simplistic, I just like the feedback in combat of swinging swords and casting spells. I like games with generous margins for error, where it doesn't severely punish you for making a mistake, and instead lets you learn and turn things around in the same fight. A completely different style of fun for different preferences. And that's fine.

comments here are gonna be hell because you dared to have an opinion on a souls game

Thank you for your video, your feelings about Dark Souls are exactly like mine as well. I am in my 30s, I work fulltime, I don't have the time, soul, perseverance or spirit to do the same thing over and over again, without any reward or progress. The same feeling is what made me quit Hades as well. I wanted to love these games so much, but I couldn't. The "skill ceiling" you mention is what I feel very much, "get gud" means more playing when playing isn't fun, and the "sense of achievement" after finishing a boss feel null to me. Surprisingly, Bloodborne works well for me, for being snappy and responsive, and a focus on shooting and dodging. There is nothing of the "slowness" of Dark Souls that you ran into as well. So I think many aspects go into it, and you are not alone. Many thanks, I feel understood and seen too. :]

Perseverance is the name of the tango, man. That's why many of us enjoy the game, to overcome unsurmountable odds, and although the issues that you mention are infamous even in the community, they are from the fact that DS 1 is an old ass game, perhaps not that vintage, but still with the quirks of it's predecessor with the long boss runs and slow game style that the most recent games of the company have corrected, perhaps not in DSII, but certainly. And even if the term 'git gud' came from mostly basement dwellers, I truly believe that comes from the fact that everyone has that 'skill ceiling ' and that we can eventually break it, through that perseverance, most are quick to it, some are slower paced, even some to be guided, but that's the perseverance that comes with the game, that everyone can beat Dark Souls, that everyone can overcome unsurmountable odds. Some people love that game because of the massages and the lore, such as myself, those messages that can be interpolated with depression or to live another day through repetition, through tyranny or through ourselves.

You should do something like this for Elden Ring or Armoured Core 6! ER was my first Fromsoft game and AC6 was my second. They both completely blew me away. Maybe do AC6 first as a sort of palette cleanser, as it has a more conventionally told story and explains a lot more.

Not surprised you hated the experience, it's a try hard's wet dream, a challenge lovers fantasy, and generally okay for people who run the middle ground. But sadly casual's will suffer because it requires a lot of dedication, memorization, and deep minmaxing. Not a bad thing per-say, just bad for your breed of gamer, and for the record there's nothing wrong with being a casual, we sweaty types might be 'better' at some games, but we're also uptight jackassses that can't relax and just have fun loosing

Just wondering if you would ever make a video on Dead space? (Specifically the remake) It's one of my personal favourite games of all time and it's such a great time from beginning to end.

I want to enjoy this genre. Everything about it from the dark fantasy setting to the combat is appealing to me. And that's why I HATE the soulslike genre! I'm a casual gamer and I want to enjoy my games. NOT get pissed off and frustrated at every single corner because of the set difficulty! I want more games like this, but NOT hard games! Why is that such an impossible task?

Okay, so... Souls-like enjoyer here and I'd like to give you some general feedback on your.. disappointments. Firstly - I do understand you. I, myself, feel like the first Dark Souls is so loved and praised mostly for the sentiment of it being the original Dark Souls. But the truth is, that it is difficult to approach, even for a souls game, it's old, and it lacks some features we are used to by now. It was a marvel when it came out, and since Souls-like genre became more or less it's own Faith, no one really questions it now. I wouldn't ever recommend someone wanting to try to get into souls games to start with DS1, because I would fully expect them to feel just as you felt. It is still a great game, but I think that there is no point for anyone to begin their journey through this genre here, but rather visit this game later on, if and after they found the genre to be for them and managed to understand it enough. That said - do yourself a favor and skip DS2. It's easily the worst game in the whole series for many reasons, and that is general truth recognized by both the community and the devs. Is it a bad game? No. But it is not in any way improving on the first one, and it lacks lot's of touches thanks to Miyazaki's absence during the development. It only makes sense for you to try DS2 if you find your way to this genre, otherwise it might definitely ruin your willingness to ever play anything DS related ever again. So... what do you play if not the next game in order? It depends. If you want to see more modern approach but still the same core mechanics, I would recommend going through DS3. It has Miyazaki's touch back after he was gone working on Bloodborne for Sony, and it's really easy to see how that altered this game. It's faster and snappier, level design is more understandable and altogether I would mark this iteration as the great starting point for anyone, who wants to start with souls-like games and wants "the original" kind of the game. If you want something bit different, way faster, really snappy and satisfying, with different core mechanics but same souls-like concept, go with Sekiro - It's easily one of the best games ever made. It's polished, gripping, well made, with interesting, fresh mechanics and modern, satisfying level design, and most importantly, it's the most easily approachable game this genre offers. If someone want's to start somewhere and then get into more "original" souls games, I would always recommend Sekiro. Also, it feels way less cryptic in terms of "what to do and where", since you actually have scripted character, who talks and properly interacts with NPCs. Lots of people will recommend Elden Ring as a starting point, but I disagree - Elden Ring is an awesome, maybe even legendary game that probably already has put itself in the history books of game development - but it's vastness (more so if you have a dayjob) will either make you miss metric ton of content, if you ever want to finish it in some acceptable time, or you just stop playing after some time. Elden Ring is a masterpiece of a game, but I see it as an ideal game you will best enjoy after you know what FromSoftware's games are like, decided that you enjoy them, and know that you understood them - then, the inovations and sheer volume of Elden Ring will make you feel like you are playing Souls-like genre for the first time again (in a good way) ----------------- Now for some of your points. - The way from bonfire to the boss / the exploration There are generally few types of bosses. 1. Bosses that have are difficult/long to approach - these are usually gimmick bosses, or bosses that are (by devs) considered easier, so the approach itself should drain a bit of your Estus and resources, to even the odds 2. Bosses that are easy to approach - these are usually the more difficult ones, or even main/lord bosses of the games 3. Bosses that are difficult to approach, but there's a shortcut which makes it easy - These might be anything in terms of difficulty, but you are rewarded for your exploration. In addition, anytime you feel like you are doing too low of a damage, you should think about the following: - Is it possible that this boss has a gimmick? (Like the bed of chaos - you are not expected to fight the boss, but to solve some gimmick/riddle, which defeats it) - Is it possible there is some other route which I should take, and return here stronger? (Not every part of Souls games is linear - there are number of possible orders you might want to kill things in, which might depend on the design of the game, but also on your preferences and skills. Maybe you prefer fighting some enemy early, dealing less damage, because you know their moveset better and are able to dodge. That will make you do more damage to enemies in different parts, which you are worse at dodging to.) So as you said in the end, exploration should be nontrivial part of gameplay and Souls games usually are designed in such a way it itself is entertaining. Most of souls games are the same part about the path you walk, as they are about the foes you face.

If you don't like the game, maybe it's just not for you. _Some_ of your criticisms are valid, but they are a drop in the sea of great things about DS.

It's weird to me that a game taking time means that the game isn't good. This is a game aboit taking it slow and looking around and thinking, it is not a quick game and everyone knows that before getting into it at this point. If that isnt your kind of game then fine, but the long boss run-backs lend a massive amount to the atmosphere and they're there to give you moments of reflection, to help you learn the levels, to give you time to consider alternative strategies for the boss. The very fact you called it mindless shows how it clearly isnt for you. Your first DS1 playthrough should be slow, it should take like 100+ hours to really enjoy it. If you really take your time and travel the land you find that most bosses have an abusable weakness, you find other places to explore etc. The long breaks in the game are a part of what makes the game so brilliantly designed. It's just a shame that people who dont havr enough time to play the game properly try playing the game and saying it's bad when it just isnt a game for them. 4 hours a week just is nowhere near right for this. Not every game is for everyone and Dark Souls is very niche. It was never meant for a mass market audience that cant dedicate time to it. It's a hardcore JRPG for lords sake 😂

Something i wanna say about dark souls 2 is i played it super patiently and did pushups every time as an external motivation (half punishment half reward for dying) i found i enjoyed that game a ton more (after the start because the start is pretty universally agreed to be miserable, since you have to farm ADP a bit) the game is arguably more jank in terms of controls but the game felt like sens fortress to me, just puzzling out traps all the time and playing super cautious was a blast imo

i will be the first to admit. i dont like ds1. i think it's 6/10 game. having played it multiple times and gotten pretty decent at it, i just think it's an outdated game. even dark souls 2 is alot better.

You've echoed every complaint I've ever had with the Souls games. I absolutely hate them despite being a very avid gamer. I know people adore this franchise but it feels like such a waste of time with its redundancy. I know it all comes down to taste. If I wanted to "get good" at something, I would much rather it be Doom Eternal on Nightmare difficulty.

Demon Souls Remake would be my recommendation as a starting point, but it's obviously subjective. The bosses don't exactly exist in comparison to each other in that game. With challenging video games, the "GIT GUD crowd" should consider a comparison to Sports... or Call of Duty Pro-level Competitive Gameplay. To properly enjoy yourself and continue to improve, the path to becoming a pro requires a lot of patience. You must be met with the appropriate level of challenge. You might improve "faster" by facing extremely tough opponents, but you will be demoralized to the point where you simply don't play anymore. FromSoft titles have "good" difficulty pacing, but not "perfect." When it comes to build variety, it's all over the place.

You have many very W takes I’d like to add nuance to. In short, Dark souls is just _jank_ - a half-finished work of passion forced out the door by its publisher. * Dark Souls is egregiously slow. I believe the developers were trying instead for _deliberate_ , which it _is_ despite being mired in lethargy. Everything feels like moving through molasses. From Soft will realize “deliberateness” better and better with each following game. * Whatever From Soft intended with the Bed of Chaos, they get an F for execution. * Capybara is the laziest shit ever (copy paste 3 mobs, put it in an unfair location, slap a health bar on it). * Boss run-backs are a contentious topic. Some see the run-back as kind of “part of the boss”, and so mastering a boss entails mastering the run-up _to_ the boss. Were the bosses any more mechanically complex, this would not work at all. In subsequent titles, run-backs become shorter and shorter, and usually scale inversely to the difficulty or complexity of the boss. By Elden Ring, run-backs go on the endangered list. * I’m betting you one-shot the Four Kings, because otherwise you would have felt compelled to mention the closest bonfire is fucking _Firelink Shrine_. Like yeah, there’s an obvious diegetic reason for there to be no bonfires, but come _on_…

I like dark souls because if you want to put the time in to "get gud" (just going to pause here and mention that a portion of the community is really toxic, and I am speaking to make fun of them. You know the whole one bad apple thing...) you will be rewarded greatly. It's a game about going insane as you die right in front of your goals over and over and over again, and at least for me, the feeling of screaming NO, I won't go crazy, I'm stronger than that. You won't defeat me. You may destroy my body, but not my spirit... and so on. I notice that you used a longsword for most of the game, and that's a pretty good weapon. Were you upgrading it? Cause I swear I remember it doing a lot more damage. The game being slow is very much just a part of the game, and if it's not your thing, I'd recommend Dark Souls 3, or Bloodborne (I've heard good things about Elden Ring, but I haven't played it myself, so I can't truly suggest it. I'm sure it's a great game though.), and if one of those pulls you into the genre, then come back, The experience is completely different. They're better for people who prefer faster games. I played the game while I was in high school, and I agreed with you, I hated it, I didn't fall in love with the game until I saw a couple videos about the game. The community surrounding the game, and the can-do attitude, I'll get through it eventually mentality. It really drew me in, and when I came back, sure I had spoiled a bunch of the content for myself, but the journey is so worth if you want to take it. If being good at something is what makes you happy, like it is for me, then winning doesn't matter, nor does losing, the only thing that matters is progress. My final thing to say is, I really have to disagree on the skill cap thing. Becoming an expert takes more than just having 10,000 hours. It needs to be dedicated practice. Playing a game can make you better, but progress will be slow. Sincerely a relatively new souls-fan. Not everyone will like DS1/DSR, but I do think at the very least there is a souls-like for everyone. Even if it ends up being Blasphemous (nothing against the game, I love it myself, it's just sorta weird if you compare it to other souls-likes. Which... fair, it's 2d afterall).

... What do you mean Capra Demon was your first boss. ... What do you mean Bed of Chaos was your second one. Those two bosses are some of the most annoying ones. For any swinging attack sent to you by a big thing, if the attack will hit you from the right side, you dodge right, into it. And that makes the attack not land. This is incredibly consistent throughout the game. Dare I say, intentionally designed that way. Somehow. If you are human, you can summon people and entities to fight bosses with you. There's a summon near most doors. The puny damage you were making with weapons is because you first: Didn't upgrade them. Second: Didn't look at their base stats to determine what would hit best. Third: Bosses have weak elements, like in Pokemon, and some, like the vagina maw dragon, have weak points, like its head in this case. Fighting as a warrior with a huge dragon tooth is more fulfilling and simpler than fighting with magic. I don't know why everybody says magic is easier. The joy of beating the boss after a gauntlet of enemies is the same as the joy of reaching Bowser and then kicking his ass in the original Mario games. What people like about Souls games is that, it doesn't hold your hand, but it's not downright cruel either. It respects your intelligence as a player. Except maybe for the pinwheels. Most things people fall for, you can tell by first: Bloodstains on the floor, reminding you you're not the only one suffering. Checking messages people left, which are sometimes encouragement, funny shit, or trolling. Just looking around you. The bridge outside of Sen's Fortress is an excellent example. If you just look at the floor, you see burn marks. So you go Why burn marks? Then you see the big ogre with a boulder ready. I'm going to have to say it, but this was definitely a git gud moment. Keep in mind some people enjoy the philosophy that is birthed from what they learn in dealing with themselves through this game, like with Getting Over It with Bennet Foddy. End note: Dark Souls 2 is not fantastic. 3 is good though.

I would've recommended Dark Souls 2, mechanically, it's the most polished form of Dark Souls 1 gameplay. Because DS3 is basically Bloodborne with a dark souls sticker on top and Dark Souls is... woof, oh boy, it's showing it's age as both it being as old as it is and being the second in its series.

I'm with you with all your points, yes I love the soul series I have played multiple 1000 of hours in the different games, but all you say is true. When there released the DS1 remake, I was hyped to be able to play it on my pc. I bought it, played it and finished it once and then never batted it up again. Since DS1, Souls Games (including Elden Rind/Bloodborne) have changed drastically. It's not that the old games were bad games, but more that there are bad games today because of how gaming has changed. I think anyone that's wants to try out Souls games should go with the newest release from From Software. I hope that this bad experience isn't stopping you from checking out the newer games. The beauty this game had when it released was, that it was a game that wasn't holding your hand. There were games in that time, that would ask if you want to automatically finish a level because you died 4 or 5 times. The feeling of really accomplishing something because you struggled and at one point succeeded was not there in other games. Since then, gaming has found a good middle ground that didn't exist back then. With that change in games, the soul games have changed and are amazing games because of the love that gets put into it. Not just being a cash grab for the company, but something there can be proud of. i would never recommend someone starting with DS1 its old its clunky and unpolished. Sadly you got put into that game, because of a freinds nostalgia, i think you should just pick up elden ring or DS3 never touch DS1 or even DS2. And dont listen to this git gud people.

Honestly, despite what every fanboys will tell you, I really don't think DS1 is the best way to get into souls likes DS3 and Elden Ring are much more polished while DS1 is pure jank Hell, even simpler games could be a great way to get into it, like Star Wars Fallen order or Remnant from the Ashes Anyway, don't sweat it, it's ok to dislike something no matter what these assholes will say Ps: during the voiceovers your mic seems to be peaking quite a lot

As someone who loves dark souls, I can tell you, that I didn't finish the first one either. If you're still willing to give it a chance, I would recommend trying Dark souls 3, as the mechanics feel much more fluid, and the combat is slightly more fast paced, which seemed like you would prefer. Dark souls 3 was the first DS game I played, and had zero prior experience with these types of games, but I was still able to complete it in just a few dozen hours, taking it reaaally slowly.

Your criticisms of the long ass run backs for bosses are 100% true and almost every SoulsBorne fan would agree with that. Also your criticism about The Bed of Chaos is also 100% fair and everyone would agree Bed of Chaos is THE if not one of the worst boss fights in SoulsBorne history hell even video game history. To answer your question why people love Dark Souls so much and why it started it's whole own genre that has become such a massive phenomenon... there was just absolutely nothing like it in 2011. The way the world inter connects and flows so amazingly makes it so fun to explore and discover and is done in such a way that had never really been seen before the way that every area links back to Firelink Shrine is just masterful game and level design I think anyone can see that even someone who hates the game. The other reason Dark Souls took off from my point of view is clearly the boss fights. I'm sorry but after playing every Souls game I've come to the realization that boss fights in other games just suck in comparison. Dark Souls redefined how to design a boss fight even some of the 'worst' fights makes boss fights in other games look like nothing and simple in comparison even as early as Dark Souls 1 the 2nd ever SoulsBorne game and the fights just get better and better over time as FromSoft perfect the boss fight formula. But the level design is what makes Dark Souls specifically unique though. All that being said you don't have to like everything that everyone else does we all have different tastes and that's okay if everyone agreed on everything and liked the same things life would be pretty boring. Great video!

Some people really enjoy the challenge, or just dropping their balls into a meat grinder. It's not for everybody, and that's okay. I came into Elden Ring from Monster Hunter, never touched a souls game before, and it is beating my entire ass inverted, but I keep coming back every few days because 1) kinda hate myself a little bit, and 2) I hate that runebear that came outta nowhere and wrecked me more, so now I gotta keep going until I can kill it But for real, might be worth giving monster hunter a try, the combat is still the slower combat style, but it's... faster? more responsive? It's kinda unfair to compare the games beyond that, but it can give you that sense of accomplishment of beating a difficult enemy without all the slogging through minions

As a "ok" DS1 player I really think that the lack of time was the issue. DS1 gets easier, the more you experiment and explore. There is no challenge if you combine all aviable options. I honestly think that good players have a bad influence on newcomers. Furthermore I agree with the statement, that DS1 is more of an adventure game or even a metroidvenia. I would not recommend anyone to speedrun a soulslike game. That you didn´t find the shortcut to the capra demon yourself speaks volumes about how linear you approach this style of games. The "how long to beat" website tells a average of about 60h for a first and full playthrough. I was not the best player and back then it took me more than 70h over like half a year

I really get where you are coming from, because a good chunk of me really also hated the game early on and still get very, very salty playing every installment up to elden ring. I continued to play it out of spite, and suddenly was stockholm syndromed my way into enjoying them. Still, sometimes you really have to take some breaks and pauses, because they can make you incredibly salty. And I get the "having enough time to play it" point, because if I wasn't on vacation, with lots of free time when I first picked up soulsborne, I really don't know if I would have really been sequestred by it like I was. Having put the time though, and once you got the "hang" of it , even if you are not the 0.1% of pro-players of folks that enojy even doing challange runs for a living, there are parts of the game that really can hook you up. I really enjoy the level design, the bosses themselves and the world that you play in. And that all being said though, I get where you come from in the sense of making the mistake of picking sorcerer as the first class. I firmly belive that magic is "easy" for you if you already know the game, for a second of third playthrough, so you know which stats to invest, what items to get and where to get the stronger spells. For a first or second run, I really recommend being a turtle with a halberd (that you can get early on) to poke, you can withstand much more damage from the bosses, learn their patters to dodge, and give reliable damage constantly without counting on the limited spells and so forth. Once you know more of the game, where to get the stronger spells and so forth though, picking magic user really feels different, beign able even to one-shot some bosses, it is an "easy" mode for those that aleady are familiar with the game in general. That being said though, if the game made you hate it and not wanting to continue, there is no reason to scourge yourself through it again, but maybe some other time your mood may change and you can give it another shot, or give the other entries a chance as well, perhaps some of the others might be more of your cup of tea (for instance, DS1 is the only one I really HATE entire areas like blightown and tomb of the giants), and elden ring, despite having much more aggressive and difficult bosses, have more tools for you to practice and learn the game, from spirit ashes to stakes of marika (that act like bonfires before the bosses so you don't waste time on the runbacks).

Magic can trivialize Dark souls, but for that to be the case you need to know what you are doing. And i do not mean putting hours into the game and "git gud", i mean knowing how scaling works, what rings work(i.e. bellowing dragoncrest ring) or knowing that, although it is a miracle power within is very useful whatever your build is. But that also implies knowing how to get it so not really feasible on the first playthrough without someone telling you, or you having combed through blight town which every noobie hate with a passion. Same thing with weapon infusion(making your weapon scale with your preferred stat), or the fact that dusk crown boost all spell/miracle dmg, not even considering that the spells which can trivialize the game are very few, mainly dark bead in the dlc or the spells big hat logan gives you at the end of his quest(again not feasible without someone telling you how to). Imo you would have had a better time getting the sweihander that is next to the skeletons just below firelink or any other melee weapon. You would have had to git gud(not like you didn't have to using magic), but that does not mean having great reflexes or great skills, it means use your head, do not give in to frustration, learning how to dodge takes precedence over dealing damage in boss fights(beside capra demon or bed of chaos) and worst case scenario wear the heaviest armor you have and poise trade through the game. The low damage would not have been a problem with just a single weapon to upgrade, with normal titanite, without having to worry about magic infusion, which also brings split dmg to the table, which is another mess. TLDR the person that told you that magic makes the game easier either did not know you were a noob or they didn't know what they're talking about That being said, nobody likes boss runs, especially the bed of chaos' one. And while it is kind of obvious that DS is not for everyone, i do not believe you need great skills or time investment to make it not that frustrating. You just need to learn the many secret handshakes of fromsoftware, and tbf i believe you did learn them and if you ever come back to it you'll have a better time, and by a lot. Now good luck with ds2(i assume you have the "scholar of the first sin" edition). I bet my left nut you'll enjoy that gank fest even less, go play one of the good ones mate, be it bloodborne, ds3, sekiro or elden ring, but if you are already struggling liking the game, ds2 is the worst choice you can make imo.

Hello, Im a kinda new player to this series that loved the game, but I think I understand why you didn't like it. First of all, people need to understand is not a game for everyone, and that + the game was rushed, gives it some flaws I will get into soon. First thing I noticed, was the damage... It shouldn't be that low. For example, in sen's, when I arrived in my first play, the snalkes died in 2 and even 1 hit, and not with a slow and strong weapon, but a pretty early game one, not so many. I think this made the experience worse, because seeing the dmage you dealt to some bosses, if that was the intended, I would had quit the game. I totally agree with the runbacks problem, even thought I don't think every boss needs to be respawnable just outside the arena, there are some runbcaks that are just evil: bed of caos, capra, 4 kings, Ornstein & smought and seath. About bosses, a lot of them are good and fair, bur theres some like you noticed that are just bad and you don't feel nothing after beating them: bed of caos sucks, 4 kings is often praised but I think is hot trash, a dps battle where you have to tank all and kill them fast or you will be cornered by them... And the fight there is actually more than 4 kings. The astlum copypastes are just a big no, and centipede demon is definetely the boss ever. Abour capra, ye, its meh, but it could had been so easily fixed. If they decreased the damage of the slam attack, gave capra another attack, but deleted the dogs, and for example, made a adjacent arena that is bigger, but entering activates the dogs, it would had been a much more fair fight. About the areas, some are amazing, but theres some that I don't want to see, this one is subjective, people hate tomb of the gigants, I love it but I hate with my soul crystal caves And last, the hitboxes, you probably didn't noticed, but some of them are terrible, for example, one of the... Tentacles? Of ceaseless hitbox is almost the double of it. In short, dark souls is a great game, but has flaws, some very big, and is not for everyone, its a bit sad you didn't liked it, but we can't force someone to like something they don't like.

Congratulations on beating Dark Souls! I’m sorry it doesn’t feel like an accomplishment, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t one! Dark Souls has no easy mode. It has tools to overcome its challenges, e.g, Spells, Co-op, and if someone refuses to use the tools the game gives them, put there very deliberately for the purpose of overcoming its challenges, then that player is doing a _challenge run_ - notably: not the intended experience.

Dark Souls combat is just quick time events where the game doesn't tell you what buttons to press when. I hated it, no nuance, no strategy, no tactics, no innovation, no consistency. Just do it they way they want you to or die, but they waste your time by not telling you the way they want you to do it. There are so many better games than Dark Souls to spend your time on, it just isn't worth it. I really enjoyed The Surge, similar style game but it respected its players, it had difficulty settings so you could enjoy it no matter how good you were, and more importantly the combat was actually interesting and fun, you had different ways of doing things based on what you wanted to do so it didn't get anywhere near as monotonous and repetitive as Dark Souls, and you could make educated guesses about how to deal with an enemy and it would usually pay off so you didn't have to bash your head against a brick wall until you find out that a particular action inexplicably makes you immune to damage from a particular attack when similar attacks from other enemies would kill you for the same actions. I hear Elden Ring is better, but Dark Souls was such a shit show of a game that I don't think From Software would ever be capable of making something actually enjoyable so I wont be wasting my money on it.

I truly don't understand some of the points you made in this video. How can you spend two minutes complaining about being "forced" to fight all the enemies leading up to the capra demon when there's an alternative path to the boss with none of those enemies which you even used yourself to beat it? The path leading to the shortcut is literally right next to the boss door, if you continually missed it for 3,5 hours that's not the game's fault, that's just you not being aware of your surroundings. I'm also going to dismiss all your criticisms about bosses not allowing time for you to pop off spells because that's just plainly false, even if we only go by the footage you yourself provide in this video. You had a ton of opportunities against that Queelag fight you just didn't take them. That said Bed of Chaos just sucks and everything bad ever said about it is true.

Dark Souls is a rock solid foundation with a somewhat shaky final build. I don't think you did yourself any favours picking a starting class that didn't work for your playstyle, and it doesn't do new players any favours by being as punishing as it is. There's a point at which all the mechanics finally click into place, whether it be the bosses movepool or the statistics, and this is where most souls fans derive their pleasure. Is about running into that brick wall and realising a hammer is better than a saw, not necessarily getting through the wall with a butt er knife. I love the concept of Dark Souls more than I love the game itself, but I do still consider it a flawed masterpiece, and if you give in and play by its very precise rules, it can be a very rewarding experience. For me, the peak of the series is still Bloodbourne. Its a lot more snappy and leans a lot more into my play style than Dark Souls does. I still need to play Sekiro, but it's a Fromsoft game. I need to find a suitable month to dedicate to it. From the footage and your commentary, I think these might be more up your street. Same punishment, different tools to overcome it

If you want to try a more souls like game, I would recommend Nine Sols, which works as a mix between Sekiro and Hollow Knight. I'm also very curious now if you'd like the game Rain World, a very unique and challenging game.

my first time playing dark souls was a few months before 2 came out, i got through the tutorial,. explored firelink for like an hour, somehow completely missed the path to the burg, wandered into the graveyard and got slaughtered by skeletons, because this was at the height of the "prepare to die" level marketing i just assumed that was the base difficulty i was meant to be dealing with (plus most games have skeletons as relatively weak early enemies) so i just kept banging my head against the wall till i gave up. didn't try souls again until bloodborne, which i loved and ended up getting the platinum trophy on

i have been writing and re-writing this comment a lot. i wanted to give a lot of pointers and express my opinions on a lot of things that i think soured your experience a lot. that being said i realised i can do something better. i can try to give you an opinion on why souls games took off, because i realise that yes, from an outside perpective that seems insane. i will also try to be as succint as possible, pardon me if if i fail. dark souls is in my opinion an exploration game. and not just of the map. the fun is in trying new weapons, learning how the stats affect your controls, and figuring ways not to beat a speciffic boss, but to make your battles overall easier. experimenting with the game, as you would with a sandbox is kind if the fun. of course, the game itself doesn't really make you want to do that. it is punishing in a way that scares people off from trying new things. case and point, you being stuck as a mage. there's a lot of rewarding secrets that you can find by goofing around in the game, taking it slow and enjoying your ride through. also, finding ways to skip long walks or to cheese bosses is very cathartic. it also helps with combat to be a bit more slow and methodical. i too enjoy fast paced responsive combat, but getting in the flow with this more slow zen-like combat is fun in a way i cannot really explain. but i think the most important thing is, like you said, time. you were rushing trough it, worried that you need to put out a video on it. always frustrated that you didn't make much progress, forcing yourself to bang your head agains a wall until the wall gave in, instead of finding a way around it. and i will admit, the first game is rough around the edges and requires some head-wall banging, but i think having the responsability to show progress did make your experience worse. this game isn't really meant to be played and finished, but more...experienced. you have to be in the right headspace for it. and for some people, that is a lightining in a bottle type of deal. but a lot of people persevered, tried again and again, had that momment where it all clicks and got addicted to this formula. there's also the artistic appeal to the game. it's lore, although hard to absorb due to vague and hard to find crumbs of information, is quite addicting, tragically beautifull and i think most importantly, woven completly into the base concepts of the game. its is a game and story about hope. giving up or persevering. harship. pain, and dealing with it. in the end, i think my ramblings might not convey the beauty of this old rough and messy game as much as the latter, more pollished entries in the franchise might, but the truth is, dark souls isn't for everyone. it is a plot point even in game, how the undead eventually go hollow. you giving up on the game would have been a fine way to finish it. not as an undead who rekindled the flame, but one who didn't see the point and decided to forgo the pointless journey and just go hollow. git good has become a mean meme, but it's the best advice for this game. there's no secret to beating it and enjoying it. you just have to try again and get better. not necesarly through skill, but through knowladge. and while i don't think having to pull up a wiki is good game design, there's no shame in looking up things online when the game gets too tough. i kinda believe playing dark souls 2 will make you think i'm insane for saying things like this, since that game can be even more frustrating at times, but i hope you persevere in spite of that. there's no guarantee you'll ever enjoy dark souls. but if you give up on playing, then it's a guarantee you never will.

Dark souls is way better (for me) if you take it as a exploring experience, its a world to discover and explore, a place to take some time alone and to reflect on what everything should or could mean. I think that this "chalenge hard ass game" isn't realy what Dark souls is about. The hole game is a metaphor or like a poetry if your are not found of lore, mitology and foreingn culture Dark souls becamo only a hard chalenge.... and it is not that, not only that.

Hello Throarbin, fan of both the channels and soulsborne series, I had a few thoughts that you might find interesting... GIT GUD jokes aside, I do have a few pointers, tips and comments, first I notices at one point you're fat rolling, which tend to happen which you have too heavy of armor and gear on, I think for most games the number you want to shoot for to have a medium roll is under 70 Second, two of the bosses that you complained about (capra demon and bed of chaos) are also hated by most souls fans, so youre not alone with your thoughts Third, how scaling works is that you'll look at the values the weapons have and what letters they have, for example if a claymore has B str scaling, and a greatsword has S scaling, the greatsword will get more damage from scaling (think of it lile how tier list are made, S being the highest, D being the lowest) Third, the feeling of being underpowered could have come from two things One, your weapons at times weren't upgraded well enough Or two, what I'm betting happened, is that you were underleveled, and your damage output and encumberance suffered because of it, if you play throught the game again, farm for a bit if you feel like your damage is lacking (btw the best place to farm for souls is in the painted world, where all the phalaxes are) Your point about the runs back to bosses I kinda agree with. While I have come to love such stuff in these games,I do think it's a worse desing philosophy, and things like markia's statues and remnant's small world stone checkpoint are better. So, two things I would recommend doing. One, try replaying through ds1 with a guide, as it is a lot more enjoyable (fightingcowboy is a great source for souls guides) Two, play ds3, and maybe even elden ring and bloodborne before ds2, while many may disagree with me, I think ds2 is fun. With that being said, it is very janky, with questionable design choices and buggy and confusing moments, stuff like the powerstancing and other neat thing makes me love ds2 If I were you, I would play ds3 next, as it's a lot smoother and quicker than ds1, and a lot of the bosses are amazing (especially the dlc bosses), and the run backs aren't nearly as brutal (one thing of note though, the first boss is challenging, but good) But yeah, sorry for the five page paper, I just had some thoughts after watching your video, but seriously, don't play ds2 next, it's like playing the drunk world on terraria, very janky and strange, play ds3 or elden ring next(if you want bosses, ds3, want exploration, elden ring) Great video, made me think

I think you might enjoy Sekiro, given it has a lot less runback before bosses (usually like a minute or two max) and is a lot more fast paced and snappy, as you put it. Elden Ring also fixes many of your frustrations, but it was still a bit slow for my taste.

I fully understand your way of thinking here. I think because of all the points you've made Death's Door could really be in your domain :)

yea the "run backs" are infamous personally i have never played a dark souls, the only soulslike games i have played was Elden ring plus its DLC, and i enjoyed that cause for the main bosses there would almost always be a bonfire or site of grace as they are called in that game right outside the bosss room, so only rarely would i have to run back to a boss after dying, and even when i did they were not that horrible, what i enjoyed about the game was more of the character building and like which strat i would use, if i were gonna use magic or physical or faith, if it was gonna be bleed or stagger, what kind of weapon like big freaking hammer, to small daggers to swords or scythes that shot out a magic protectile or just spells or incantations, there are so many different possibilities for a "build" in that game, so that was what i really enjoyed and have completed the main game of Elden ring about 7 times now and the DLC once so far

Bro plays terraria but can't FATHOM the idea of dark souls 👁👄👁 I am confusion 😮

Your criticisms are fair and justified but i believe these frustrations come from playing the first Dark Souls lol. This game is OLD and was kinda made without the guidelines later games were made with (yeah demon souls came first but that game has... issues.) You mentioned not having too much trouble with Sen's Fortress which gives me the impression that its necessarily just that you're having trouble with the games difficulty. Sen's Fortress beat me to a pulp even after I had beaten Elden Ring, and I still haven't beaten Dark Souls 1. I don’t want you to walk away from this game misunderstanding Souls-likes, so I beg you, play Elden Ring. It's a much bigger game yes, but I think you'll enjoy it a lot more. There's wayyy more exploration aspect and a lot of the time if you're hung up on a challenge, you can always go somewhere else to gain resources or get stronger. On top of that, the "Boss Runs" (run backs to the boss after dying that you justifiably complained about) are super toned down. Most boss fights have a psuedo checkpoint outside them, and I think overall the bosses are better designed. The game will still be extremely difficult, but its a better example of Souls-difficulty that people enjoyed and what caused people to love the genre as much as they have. It's not the unfair difficulty that turned you off of the first game, it's a challenge that actually feels highly rewarding and will give you the means necessary to practice and overcome said challenge.

Try ds3 or er they are definitely more forgiving and would be better for a new player iv played since like 2015 2016 and from my experience with all souls games they just take time patience and willingness to learn alot of mechanics on the fly it's not for everyone I learned that it's not a game you just suggest to others and for me y I love it I just love seeing the designs the music weapons armor and all the other cool stuff they put into the game these games have some of the best boss music you will hear go listen to ghale the slave knights boss music

Dark souls is treated like its some grand trial to becoming a hardcore gamer. Its definitely no test of skill, its more like how much BS does it take to break your spirit.

You should play bloodborne if you have a ps4/5. It’s different from the others and more fast paced. Also my favorite game of all time.

not saying its a perfect game. but i see mostly skill issue and logic issue. you can beat most bosses easily with magic if you time your shots good and have some distance. but yeah there are these special bosses like capra that suck as mage. but the game gives you a lot of tools to overcome these enemys. min maxing stats and gear (try stronger armor with less roll speed or less armor more movement speed), spells, pyromancys, items or just pure overleveling. Also you can even call Backup if youre online. bed of chaos tho, complete shit show. agree on that one defenetly. every souls fan agrees on that.

you should really play outer wilds, it's a cool space game that I consider one of if not the best game ever made. it is my top 1 and I know how much you like space and theories so I think outer wilds would be the perfect game for you.

The game rewards exploration 80% of the time, there is a shortcut to the boss that cuts down the boss run significantly.

Love to see some new people to try out this game. I personally love it and have about 500h in it. I am sorry you didnt like it and i dont mean that as mean as it can sound. I personally wouldnt say it is bad game design but it is more that there are just different people with different preferences and i feel like you didnt like the game speed because you are used to faster games which made you impatient. I love this game for the speed and long walkes to the bosses which let me learn the patterns and timings for different actions and for its open world. I still hope you could lean something from it let it be even that you now know those games arent for you or that you wont play mage again. Either way i hope you have a great day and thanks again for trying out this game 😁

Ok, so... the mage class is easy mode IF you already have some idea of how the times and hit boxes of the game works. Also once you discover that locking your camera is kind of a trap the game gets a lot more easy

I have he exact same feeling about ds1 as you have. I played until blighttown but then i quit. I loved most of the bosses until that point (except capra demon, i hate him with a passion xD), but i just couldnt run through the same hallway again just to get ambushed by a shitty mob, getting hit off the bridge and having to run all the way back. I have a friend who absolutely loves souls games and didnt have a problem with this, until he played elden ring. after that even he told me that he gets now how frustrating and meaningless that running back is. Since i told him i loved the hard boss fights he told me about the game "furi" and i instantly fell in love. its a boss rush game with hard bosses but virtually no downtime between attempts, no upgrade mechanic where you have to grind and snappy and fast paced gameplay. if you havent played that game i can highly recommend it.

game recommendation just because I think it would be funny to mention on a dark souls video of all things: kingdom hearts

Great video! I understand your criticisms of the game and think that I can agree at least on some aspects, though I have to admit that I did greatly enjoy the game considerably more than you. Glad to have been able to go through the journey with you and Fury, the person who started us both on this game series.

you NEED to try Elden Ring, its like open world, acessanble dark souls

I think every souls fan hates run backs for bosses 🤣 Also i agree that ds1 have movement issues that are fixed in later itterations!

I love Dark Souls, but this one is the only one I've beaten. I guess I'm like ok at the game, not gooood, but I still love it. I think that while I nearly got tired several times, I managed to like it despite all that annoying stuff because I just enjoyed the gameplay enough to make up for nearly all its shortcomings.

There's nothing wrong with disliking the features you've mentioned. The problem with your "blind reviews" is that they seem more like just an excuse for you to ramble for the sake of rambling. You very clearly don't know what you're talking about and don't do any research on your assumptions. The problem is this: What is your goal with this video? If you had only slightly researched the topic you were talking about you'd know that literally everyone agrees with you and that this has already been fixed with future games. Nobody likes bed of chaos; it's an unfinished, janky mess. Nobody likes run-backs; they have been slowly on the decline in every souls game since DS2 and they were pretty much removed in Elden Ring and Sekiro. The game is slow; which is why every other game following DS1 made the gameplay snappier and quicker. Right now, your thesis is essentially: "This game has bad features that they fixed in later games." for twenty-four whole minutes. As you guessed, the appeal of DS1 is not the bosses. If you looked this up for even a second you would know this too. The appeal is the exploration and world-building. The feeling of discovering a sprawling new area by complete accident. The eureka moment when you notice you've looped back to firelink shrine and connect the dots of where you went. It's literally a meme that people's favourite moment in DS1 is pushing down a ladder rather than focusing on the giant dragon attacking them. I generally like the idea of your video series. The problem is the execution. If you truly don't want ANY spoilers for the games you play, you wouldn't be reading and replying to these comments talking about games later in the series like Elden Ring. You wouldn't be talking to a friend giving you tips. It moreso just seems like you're too lazy to search up anything you're saying before posting it. One last thing; If you intend to continue this series I *strongly* advise you do not play DS2 next. It's pretty much universally agreed to be the worst one in the series by a landslide, mostly because of the exact reasons you mention in this video. The runbacks are horrendus. The controls are janky and slow. The bosses are unfinished and outright bad.

After I saw a few videos try to diminish the quality of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom by comparing it to Elden Ring, I decided to give it a shot to similarly try and understand why people loved this series. I've gotta say, I'm in total agreement with you in every way. The "difficulty" was never because the game was inherently challenging but because it was unapologetically unfair and tendious. I get that some people can find fun in that, but theres nothing fun about that to me. Every victory brought a sense of relief rather than joy and I felt punished for not looking up guides or tutorials.

I think the boss with the ''shields'' is pretty disliked. I could be wrong though

I have like, almost four hundred hours poured into this game, and over one hundred in two, three, elden ring, and at least three hundred in prepare to die edition

i suggest darksouls 3, feels very snappy compared to the first one.

Resident Evil. RESIDENT Evil. RESIDENT EVIL!!!!

this was also quite possibly the worst 'introduction' game you could have picked for the genre... the OG dark souls is NOT player friendly, it did not age well, it has the least quality of life, and is rather brutal at times... would have suggested dark souls 3 as your first

first mistake your friend did was make you play the first dark souls and not dark souls 3. Dark Souls 3 is a lot better gameplay wise and honestly a good starting point for souls like games. The first game is just, baaaaad. It's an unfinished product and you literally see that at the halfway point of the game where there are just areas so large with nothing in them. The only people who like it are people who are afraid to admit that not everything was as good as you once thought it was. Please give dark souls 3 a shot, it's so beginner friendly, or if you have a ps4/ps5, play bloodborne! Those 2 games will give you a new perspective on the genre I guarantee it

I'm sure a lot of people in the souls community would crucify me for even thinking something along like this, but at this point I really feel like Dark Souls 1 is probably one of the worst entry points for anyone new to the series. I wouldn't necessarily say any of the others are easier, but I feel like every other souls game besides Demon's Souls is at least more approachable.

I'm a huge souls fan and yes the run back has always sucked, yes the capra demon fight and the bed of chaos fights are poorly designed, you are entirely fair in these opinions. I will tell you what I think you are missing, it's not that you need to get good you just lack the appropriate amount of masochism, we enjoy the pain, the struggle, and the sadness. We revel in the struggle and the fight almost more so then the victory. Dark souls helped me through tough times in my life because our real life struggles will never be as hopeless and meaningless in real life as they are in the game, because we can change things in real life but in dark souls, we are truly doomed, no matter how we struggle the quests we do or the people we save it all ends the same and I at least enjoy that struggle regardless of the futility of it all.

Comment 1 of asking for Outer Wilds every video from now on

Some games are just not for everyone. And that's fine.

The worst part of dark souls is the mainstream culture that makes everyone think that DS is a hard as fucking rageing indulging game😢

I've expressed my dislike oof from software games too my friends in many occasions, but wihle I usually only talk about what I dislike in the technical aspect of the games, from the bonkers control scheme for mouse and keyboard, the pathetic excuse of a "multiplayer", it being locked to 60 fps (sue me), and overall feeling like a shitty console port (on pc, obviously); the reality is that the games have an awfull balancing and i just dont find it fun when: it takes 100 hits to kill a boss; it takes 3 hits for me to die; taking 1 hit means taking the entire combo (and die). And thats talking only about the bosses, the regular enemies are no better, appearing in (sometimes) huge number, on a game thats has clearly been designed for 1 on 1-3 fights, from everything i know about games and game desing this is clearly an "artificial dificulty", intead of making bosses with harder moves that are an actual threat, the difficulty is trying to not get hit once and only doing something when you are sure its safe, there is no reward for "experimenting", no hitting inbetween attacks, even with fast weapons; Everything leaves you open, even if you hit it, so unless the enemy/boss has a huge recovery time, you are just playing the waiting game, and they keep attacking, meaning more chances of getting hit and just dieing. I've come to the conclusion that i dont like anythig from From software nor anything thats trying to imitate them, I don't like thier game design and what entails. I still try some new and fun looking souls like, but so far, none has stuck with me. The idea seem so cool and it appeals to me, but noone, so far, has executed in a way that i liked.

Id love to see you try out FNaF

It took me a LONG time to get into Souls types, and my relationship is still very hot and cold. I played through DS1 Asylum a decade ago when it was free on XBox gold and didn't touch it for years until I bought 2 and 3 on sale on Steam. Very briefly played, couldn't really make progress, cheated a little to try to find some fun in the mechanics, and left it. Bought Elden Ring for the hype, got mad at the horse guy, refunded, and decided it was time to get good. Finally played through all of DS2, burned out at the end of DS3 and never ended up playing Elden Ring again. But I still get the itch now, sometimes. I recently bought Sekiro on sale, got through the first couple bosses, a number of mini bosses, and then got skill filtered by Genichiro. I'm taking my time with it. I'll probably come back to it eventually, because I yearn for this gameplay. There's nothing like it. When you figure it out, it is what gaming is meant to be. But part of me hates every minute of it.

I started with Dark Souls 3. I feel like I like souls-likes, but I've had no interest in playing Dark Souls 1...

My first and only dark souls (and souls like game) has been dark souls 3, and that's only because i watched the gamegrumps youtube channel in 2015 do their playthrough of it, and it so happens to be one of my favorite playthroughs on their channel. I decided to give it a shot myself some years ago, and basically i've played the game on and off for years now and still havent beat it. Like you, i have a job (a stressful one at that) and definitely don't feel like playing a stressful difficult game in my free time. What i ended up doing was a bunch of research and deciding on a build, and using a walkthrough for the game. I'm the kind of person who hates puzzles and hates figuring things out, I like to know the answer and improve upon the most efficient way to do something. As I replayed the game over and over again I made a little more progress each time and started to enjoy my method. Eventually I fell off of the game and moved onto something else and havent really returned since, but if i got back to where i was and continued I probably would have beat it. Dark souls is really what you make of it, I wouldn't count beating it as the main objective but since you were kind of forced to play it i understand the frustration.

i finished bloodborne and i decided to play more soulsborne games so i picked ds1 and i tried gaslighting myself into liking it but i just... didnt. i couldnt bring myself to be motivated to play it the combat system is so stale and stiff it makes me so mad the enemies are nothing but annoying and unfairly unforgiving and even winning doesnt feel enough to reward the hardships you have had until that point. i just- dont like how the game moves i cant explain it. i had like 12 hours on it but uninstalled it lately and i do not plan on picking it up again in the nearest future.