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From Software The Dark Souls Discussion Thread

Matador

Arcane
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Joined
Jun 14, 2016
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How hard do you think the Souls games actually are?

My first one was Dark Souls back in the early 2010's and it definitely jolted me out of what had become my then comfort zone, after around 5-10 years of easier gaming. I played it without a guide, and the initial learning curve was tough, I'd say 8/10. But once past that curve (around 10-15-ish hours) and outside the first game, most Souls games I've played have been around the 6 or 7/10 difficulty. With a guide you can easily drop this to a 5/10 (I used one for Code Vein as frankly it was boring me, and I just wanted to get it over with). And most normies who have now dogged onto the series use a guide for sure.

I don't think many, if any of them hold a candle to some of the older games of the 80's & 90's difficulty-wise. Twin Cobra (on the SEGA Megadrive, which is harder than the arcade), Chakan, DoDonPachi, Blades of Vengeance etc. if you're looking for genuine 9/10 or 10/10 difficulty....which is fair and mechanically sound...then I think all Souls games which I've played are still playing catch up to bygone eras by comparison.

Be interested to get takes from the likes of Great Deceiver , Lyric Suite and Nutmeg too.
I started playing with the Asian version of Demon's Souls (it was the first release in English) and at first the formula felt pretty hard, but fair. It rewarded the player for paying attention to his surroundings and not charging on like a retard. In hindsight Demon's Souls is the easiest game in the entire series by far, but it's still my favourite.

I consider each of the sequels worse than the preceding game (except for Bloodborne by sheer strength of setting + atmosphere), both because of the formula getting stale and because of increasingly silly solutions to fundamental mechanical problems that failed to address the root cause from a design standpoint (i.e. ubiquitous helicopter bosses to disincentivize roll spam instead of dealing with the fundamental issue of invincibility frames - except for DS2, which caused many people to cry).

But even at their peak difficulty, I don't think they compare to arcade games at all. You can suck donkey balls at any Souls game and still see everything the game has to offer by spending enough time to grind things out and/or look up an overpowered build online that will trivialize 99% of the content.

Shmups are very different - you can study superplays as much as you want, but the execution barrier is still incredibly (too) high for most people. So to me there's no comparison. Of course there are easier games, but even those considered to be on the easy side (i.e. Slap Fight, Deathsmiles) require sustained mental fortitude and execution that's simply absent from any modern games, Souls included.
100% Agreed, I would add that in DeS, DS1 and DS2 using RPG mechanics and adventuring skills were relevant to beat the game. DS3 and ER are mediocre action games with good dungeons.

BTW. Sekiro was a a great and fun action game, with incredible bosses and strong level design and setting. I thing they nailed the timing based combat with ninja tricks support. That gave the game its own place compared to combo based DMC or tactical survival/assassination like NG.
 

Max Damage

Savant
Joined
Mar 1, 2017
Messages
748
All Souls games and Elden Ring are action games, everything else is cope levels of "Diablo is prestigious roguelike while Diablo 2 is action popamole".
 

Halfling Rodeo

Educated
Joined
Dec 14, 2023
Messages
963
All Souls games and Elden Ring are action games, everything else is cope levels of "Diablo is prestigious roguelike while Diablo 2 is action popamole".
So you're telling me the most popular game genres right now are action games with RPG elements? Well I'm shocked! How could you say such a thing!? Next you'll say Diablo 2 has loot and clicking on things! Think of the children!
 

cvv

Arcane
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Joined
Mar 30, 2013
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18,970
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Kingdom of Bohemia
Enjoy the Revolution! Another revolution around the sun that is.
421636403_768910021939532_1204225019208485034_n.jpg
 

Caim

Arcane
Joined
Aug 1, 2013
Messages
17,447
Location
Dutchland
Man, better use those souls ASAP to get some levels.
 

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