Was thinking about putting this in the Elden Ring thread, but figured I'd not start a Dark Souls tangent on that thread. As someone who puts Bloodborne as a top 3 game on my list (beaten at least 5 times), and absolutely loves Elden Ring , Dark Souls 3, and Sekiro (beaten Elden Ring, Sekiro and DS3 all twice), I had never played Dark Souls. That is, if you don't count the 10 minutes or so I tried it about a year after it came out, and rage quit after getting rocked by the skeletons near Firelink Shrine.

I finally decided to give it a go, and just beat the main game and DLC. For those that love this particular game, I'm curious why that is. Is it just the interconnectivity of the world? Is it nostalgia because it was the first one of the Fromsoft games you played?

I can honestly say I will never play that game again. It was extremely clunky and aggravating in its clunkiness. The bosses were all bland and very easy. I think the most deaths I had on a boss was 3, to a few of them. Many of the bosses I one shot, having no knowledge prior to walking through the fog wall. Most of my grief simply came from platforming, or the lack of ability to roll any direction while targeting (which I included in the clunkiness). The navigating through the world and trash mobs killed me more than I've ever died to the same in the later games.

Again, just curious if lovers of the series truly think DS1 is a great game, or simply accept it as an early entry for a developer finding their footing to eventually release some iconic games.

Seems like you knew most of the mechanics before starting, but if DS1 is your first go of that type of game (it was for me), then the challenge was a whole new animal. Inching along in your exploration, not wanting to lose your souls but are low on estus, do you keep going and risk it all, or head back to the bonfire and slough back through the same area? It was fairly ground-breaking in its difficulty back in the day. I actually hated it at first, and quit for a few months, then decided to give it a go again and was hooked.

I mean, the original Halo feels a lot different (and worse) than Halo 2 & 3. It's also very clunky and basic compared to what the game has become since 4, 5, & Infinite have released. I replay it for nostalgia, but pretty much every sequel, IMO, is a more fun game to play today.

The Souls series is another all time great because it was really good at the start... but they've made it better. So yeah, the original is probably going to feel a bit rough and out of date compared to the other.

I'm also curious... did you play the Remastered version of Dark Souls or the original? Have you played Demon's Souls?

I've beaten all of the Souls games and also a few "Souls like" games such as Lies of P. I've never gone back and played any of them... once was enough for me. I wouldn't mind playing the Dark & Demon's Souls remasters, they look very well done. But I bet playing the originals would be a bit rough. Especially Demon's Souls, a lot has changed since that one came out.

I played the DS remastered version. I still need to play demon souls, but slogging through another game with old mechanics and long run backs is keeping me from booting it up. Add that to the healing resource being non replenishable and it's hard to get myself to play it.

For me, the replayability of Bloodborne, DS3, Sekiro, and Elden Ring are all extremely high. I love going back and playing those games again. My total play time for Bloodborne and Elden Ring is kind of ridiculous.

I started with Demon Souls. Dark Souls was the nerfed version to make it more accessible to other gamers. I could never finish Demon Souls, so Dark Souls was the first one I played all the way through.

This question, to me, is like asking why people like classic cars. Yeah, if you go buy a 2024 car you can get power steering, power locks, power windows, etc, but there is still something about the older versions that appeal to people, even if they're more difficult to drive or not as comfortable.

I tried playing the Demon Souls remake for PS5 and just couldn't get into it. Similar to your feelings on DS1. The game just felt clunky compared to Sekiro and Elden Ring.

I also don't like that in Demon Souls you have to buy healing items, you don't have a refilling flask.

This question is like asking why people liked Madden 2002 when you started with Madden 2024 and it is clearly better than the older version. Of course the sequels developed years after the original are going to feel "better" in a lot of ways. That doesn't take away from the fact that the older game was transformational.

I started playing soulslike with Elden Ring and Sekiro. When I played DS1 for the first time, it did feel clunky but ended up really enjoying it. What was surprising was DS2 felt clunky again but I didn't enjoy it for a while until I really got into the game. DS3 was just great though!

How would you guys rank the Souls-like games? Been seeing some people playing Elden Ring lately and it's made me interested in it and maybe DS3.

Fenrir said:

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How would you guys rank the Souls-like games? Been seeing some people playing Elden Ring lately and it's made me interested in it and maybe DS3.

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When you say "Souls-like", that generally refers to games like From games but released by a different studio. Are you referring to the actual Fromsoft games or the Souls-like games out there?

As for From games, I have not played DS2 or Demon souls. Of the ones I"ve played, I rate them:

Bloodborne, Elden Ring, Dark Souls 3, and then Sekiro.

The difference in ranking or quality between Bloodborne and Sekiro (as far as how I personally rank them) is so miniscule. All four of those games are absolutely fantastic. Really, my ranking just comes down to which atmosphere and/or combat style I prefer.

As for "Souls-like", I've only played Lies of P. It was fun, but there was just something missing when compared to the atmosphere and level design of the Fromsoft games.

If you've never played a Souls-like, I would recommend starting with Elden Ring. Here is a great review video from Raxx, an ARPG streamer I go to for Diablo vids. He streamed his entire playthrough and released this about 30 hours or so into Elden Ring. His feelings didn't change after finishing the game

I said Souls-like more so to include ER and Bloodbourne since they aren't straight Souls titles. I'm less interested in non FromSoftware games to be honest and Sekiro looks to be too hard for my old ass.

Fenrir said:

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I said Souls-like more so to include ER and Bloodbourne since they aren't straight Souls titles. I'm less interested in non FromSoftware games to be honest and Sekiro looks to be too hard for my old ass.

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Elden Ring and Bloodborne are far and away the best. If you only play two, play these.

Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, and Dark Souls 2, as you can see by this thread, suffer from the clunkiness that comes with being older titles. If you want to play those, I'd recommend tackling first (and doing the remake in particular for Demon's Souls), because they will be tough to return to after Elden Ring especially.

Dark Souls 3 plays better than those 3, but in terms of story and environment, I feel it doesn't quite hit as well as Demon's Souls and Dark Souls in particular.

Sekiro is unique in a lot of ways from the other soulsborne games. I'd say it's worth making an attempt...the learning curve is high, but once you get parrying down, it gets a lot smoother, and it has a super neat story that blends historical Japan with mythology.

Agree with bluefire579, but wanted to add that Sekiro's combat is the most rewarding, imo. Yes, it is the hardest game from the developer. But once you finally get the combat, it is the most satisfying combat across all their games.

But I would never recommend starting with Sekiro unless you are determined not to rage quit.

DallasTeleAg said:

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Agree with bluefire579, but wanted to add that Sekiro's combat is the most rewarding, imo. Yes, it is the hardest game from the developer. But once you finally get the combat, it is the most satisfying combat across all their games.

But I would never recommend starting with Sekiro unless you are determined not to rage quit.

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yeah I agree. It's worth a shot to see if you can get the hang of the combat. I would say stick with it longer than you think you would normally do because it is so worth the investment.

That final battle took me several days but when I got it, wow, probably the biggest and most satisfying accomplishment in my video game life.


As for other non-FromSoftware soulslikes, Lies of P was surprisingly very very good. Wo Long was a good diversion. If you want a change of pace, Remnant 2 is also very good combining soulslike with a shooter. It's also super fun in co-op.

Lol... i called it Life of Pi. Wrong thing

DallasTeleAg said:

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Lol... i called it Life of Pi. Wrong thing

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I've always thought it was an unfortunately named game. Doesn't really roll of the tongue all that well!

And yes: final boss of Sekiro is the hardest boss in all Fromsoft games.

I would rather have to kill Malenia 3 times in a row than have to fight him again.

Sekiro is probably one of my all time favorite games. So rewarding to play and the combat is so crisp and precise. It's set such a high standard for that style of combat that it almost ruins other games for me.

Apparently I already own Bloodbourne so went ahead and installed it and gonna give it a shot.

Fenrir said:

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Apparently I already own Bloodbourne so went ahead and installed it and gonna give it a shot.

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Fair warning: I think Bloodborne has one of the hardest beginnings to a Fromsoft game for newcomers.

Getting to the first shortcut takes a long time, and there are a lot of enemies between you and that shortcut. Also, it is not a straight shot to it, so you have to find your way around Yarnham to find that shortcut.

Just... try not to rage quit in Yarnham. Push through. make it to that shortcut.

A couple other pieces of advice:

• Play offline. When you play online, you see notes left my other players all over the place, as well as shadows of other players. It's very distracting and pulls you out of the experience. Not to mention, people love leaving notes that lead you to do the wrong thing.
• Read the tooltips at the beginning. The first time you go to the main hub area, there are several tool tips on the ground. Read them. Understand them. There aren't a huge number of mechanics, but the ones that exist are there for a reason. Do not neglect them.
• If you want to learn about the lore, the world, and the story, you need to read item descriptions of everything. Fromsoft games tell their stories through the environment and items. Even still, you will need a Vaatividya video to understand everything, if you beat the game.
• Buy the Old Hunters DLC. If you don't have that, be sure to download it before you get to far so you don't get locked out of it. The DLC is fantastic and has the best bosses.

After beating Elden Ring for the first time, I'm attempting to beat Sekiro for the first time now. Last time I played was two years ago and I rage quit at the double apes, so I'm just starting over from scratch to get back in the groove. After beating Elden ring, I do feel like the game is much easier than when I was playing last go around.

And I'm past double guardian apes.

Gratz!

It's crazy, the last time I played through the game I was dreading the fight. I ended up one-shotting him.

It really is a game that gets so much easier once you get the mechanics down. That is, until the final boss. **** that guy.

I actually found beating the final boss in the Shura ending to be tougher than the version in the main ending. Then again, in these games, I feel like I tend to have the reverse in terms of what a lot of people see as easy/hard bosses. Like in Dark Souls 2, I beat the Flume Knight super easily but struggled a ton with Sir Alonne

I played The Legend of Zelda the other day.

Graphics were weak, secrets were easy to anticipate, world was small, battle mechanics sucked.

I don't understand the love for this clunky, 8-bit piece of crap.

I disagree... Ocarina of Time feels great to play to this day.

BusterAg said:

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I played The Legend of Zelda the other day.

Graphics were weak, secrets were easy to anticipate, world was small, battle mechanics sucked.

I don't understand the love for this clunky, 8-bit piece of crap.

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I know you didn't just throw shade on one of the best games the NES had to offer.

DallasTeleAg said:

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I disagree... Ocarina of Time feels great to play to this day.

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Ocarina is the only zelda game I ever finished. I didn't grow up with a nintendo so I have no connection with the series. Every other zelda game I played sucked including the two recent ones.

Sucked?

Lol. I get it may not be your cup of tea, but saying it sucks is an insane opinion.

Yeah, sorry, meant it sucked for me.

Definitely Not A Cop said:

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After beating Elden Ring for the first time, I'm attempting to beat Sekiro for the first time now. Last time I played was two years ago and I rage quit at the double apes, so I'm just starting over from scratch to get back in the groove. After beating Elden ring, I do feel like the game is much easier than when I was playing last go around.

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Isshin Sword Saint is my *****. Two FromSoft games down now, debating whether to jump back in the Elden Ring DLC now.

Definitely Not A Cop said:

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Definitely Not A Cop said:

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After beating Elden Ring for the first time, I'm attempting to beat Sekiro for the first time now. Last time I played was two years ago and I rage quit at the double apes, so I'm just starting over from scratch to get back in the groove. After beating Elden ring, I do feel like the game is much easier than when I was playing last go around.

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Isshin Sword Saint is my *****. Two FromSoft games down now, debating whether to jump back in the Elden Ring DLC now.

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Gratz!

In my opinion, the hardest FromSoft boss. What were your overall thoughts on Sekiro? I still think it is the hardest SoulsBorne game, but it feels so good when you get the mechanics down.

Definitely jump into the DLC. It is definitely a step up in difficulty, as are all FromSoft DLC's.

I originally got in on the one. Imo, it's benefitted greatly from the jump to the series x and not having to wait 30-45 seconds every time I die.

That being said, I enjoyed the combat more than any other game I've ever played. Elden Ring is amazing in its depth, as is the Witcher 3. But there is nothing like going sword to sword and aggressively fighting back like you can in Sekiro. I heard the new DLC in Elden Ring has a talisman that brings this concept back, would be interested to see how much that changes the game.