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Dark Souls - Playstation 3
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About this item
- Extremely Deep, Dark & Difficult - Unforgiving in its punishment, yet rewarding for the determined
- Fully Seamless World - Explore a completely integrated world of dark fantasy where dungeons are seamlessly intertwined, with great height.
- Mastery Earns Progression - Player success depends on their eventual mastery of how and when to use the magic spells
- Players may cross paths with one another, interacting with each other throughout the game even as each player plays their own game.
- Flexible Character Development & Role Play - As the player progresses
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Product information
ASIN | B004NRN5EO |
---|---|
Release date | October 4, 2011 |
Customer Reviews |
4.6 out of 5 stars |
Best Sellers Rank | #55,089 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games) #981 in PlayStation 3 Games |
Product Dimensions | 5.31 x 0.59 x 6.69 inches; 3.17 ounces |
Type of item | Video Game |
Rated | Mature |
Item model number | 11047 |
Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
Item Weight | 3.17 ounces |
Manufacturer | Namco |
Date First Available | February 22, 2011 |
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Product Description
Product Description
Dark Souls (PS3)
From the Manufacturer
Strategize and use your mind to conquer seemingly impossible challenges.
View larger. Live Through A Million Deaths & Earn Your Legacy
Enter a dark world filled with despair and threaded by hope where your ability to creatively strategize, learn and overcome unpredictable and unique challenges determines your fate. Dark Souls will demand your absolute concentration, unflinchingly punish your mistakes, but reward your ability to learn from death. Each challenge is a mind game met with endless combinations that will test your ability to creatively strategize a way to conquer unimaginable monsters and progress deeper into this bleak and forbidding environment filled with the un-dead.
Key Game Features
- Extremely Deep, Dark & Difficult – Unforgiving in its punishment, yet rewarding for the determined – learn to strategize freely and conquer seemingly impossible challenges. You will organically design your own gameplay style by developing your character and continuously trying different strategies to finally achieve successful progression.
- Fully Seamless World – Explore a completely integrated world of dark fantasy where dungeons are seamlessly intertwined, with great height.
- Mastery Earns Progression – Contains 60 hours of gameplay, with nearly 100 uniquely despair-inducing monsters & an incredibly nuanced weaponry & magic spells system, the effectiveness of which is determined by combat situation, fighting style and character attributes. Player success depends on their eventual mastery of how and when to use the magic spells, choice of armor, the number of weapons, the types of weapons, and the moves attached to the weapons.
- Network Play – Players may cross paths with one another, interacting with each other throughout the game even as each player plays their own game. Networked play allows users to cross paths with one another to enhance the single-player gameplay experience without destroying it.
- Flexible Character Development & Role Play – As the player progresses, they must carefully choose which of their character’s abilities to enhance as this will determine their progression style. Players can choose to play as a sword master and a wizard, for example.
- Community – See other real players and empathize with their journey, learn from seeing how others died, find and leave messages for your fellow players; helping them or leading them into death.
- Symbolic of Life & Hope – The Beacon Fire is an important feature of Dark Souls for many reasons. Though in gameplay it serves as a recovery and re-spawn point for players whose health gets low, it is also where players can emotionally share experiences with other players, and is the one place in the dark world where players can find a fleeting moment of warmth and calm.
Will your fellow peers steer you from evil...or lead you to them?
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Cross paths seamlessly with other adventurers during Network Play!
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Savor the few moments of warmth and calm in a world of darkness.
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Explore a world of fantasy and evil lurking around every corner...
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Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers like the graphics, quality and refreshing of the video game. For example, they say it's beautiful, artistic and enthralling. Some appreciate the value and world. Opinions are mixed on difficulty level, entertainment value, and difficulty.
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Customers find the game enjoyable, rewarding, and amazing. They say the fun never ends, the variety is almost endless, and it's addictive. Customers also say the combat is some of the best they've encountered in any game. They mention that the game is tough, but always beatable, and rewards persistence, patience, and cleverness.
"...Dark Souls is the perfect blend of both worlds. Brutal, uncompromising, unforgiving.The game starts off much like almost every other RPG...." Read more
"...This makes the game incredibly fun and unique for each player because you really get to test out and choose which weapons you like depending on..." Read more
"...The Good:1. Really addictive. I went full-out at this game. When I couldn't play, I wanted nothing more than to get back at it...." Read more
"...The combat in Dark Souls is some of the best combat I've encountered in any game, with each weapon offering its own style and moveset, from long-..." Read more
Customers like the graphics in the game. They mention that the level design is incredible, artistic, and pretty. They also say the creature and level designs are exquisite, intricate, and highly detailed. They say the visuals in the games are fantastic, and the art direction is superb. Overall, customers find the graphics and sound nice, and compliment the subdued and esoteric storyline well.
"Dark Souls (and its spriritual predecessor, Demon's Souls) is a truly unique and amazing gameplay experience...." Read more
"...lonesome, dark, mysterious atmosphere which I think is complimented very well by its subdued and esoteric storyline...." Read more
"...I can't say enough about how beautifully designed the world is...." Read more
"...Long story short, yes the graphics are sharp and detailed and yes you feel like you're a part of the world...." Read more
Customers find the video game refreshing. They say it provides a real sense of accomplishment and is gratifying when you do something right. They also find it extremely cathartic, thought provoking, awe inspiring, and frustrating. They mention that the rewards for victory are greater than any other game they have ever played, making beating it a rewarding experience. Customers also say that the replay value is tremendous.
"...But it provides a sense of accomplishment like no other game before it has...." Read more
"...you were facing and you will be rewarded with one of the greatest senses of accomplishment you have ever felt from a video game...." Read more
"...It keeps things fresh. You aren't in castles the whole game. The areas are always changing dramatically and so are the enemies...." Read more
"...and enemy move sets were all really good, and it was just the most rewarding and fluid combat I've ever seen in an Action-RPG...." Read more
Customers like the value of the video game. They say it's well worth every penny, offers excellent replay value, and is a great buy for DLC. Some mention that the game is incredibly challenging and worth the effort.
"...Just a quick side note, Atorias of the Abyss is a great buy for DLC adding new enemies, four bosses, weapons, armor, spells, and six new locations..." Read more
"...is still one of my favorite games ever." The challenge, the replay value, the variety, the boss fights, the EVERYTHING...." Read more
"...1. Cheap: In my 30+ hours of play I only met a couple of bosses that were a bit cheap...." Read more
"...Oh, and the game is still hard! But this game has some serious replay value. Deep, mysterious, challenging... it just doesn't get boring!" Read more
Customers find the world of the video game to be vast, mysterious, and huge. They also say the graphics are gorgeous, and the game has lots of places to explore and things to do. Overall, customers say the game provides a sense of scope and scale that was simply impossible.
"...Dark Souls is the perfect blend of both worlds. Brutal, uncompromising, unforgiving.The game starts off much like almost every other RPG...." Read more
"...2. Very large world. The level design in this game makes the world in Demon's Souls look like a high school project in comparison...." Read more
"...Upgrading weapons and armor makes more sense and offers a variety of paths to improve your stuff, sound is rich and atmospheric, and bosses are..." Read more
"...The combat is amazing, it feels very inclusive, like you are the character...." Read more
Customers are mixed about the difficulty level of the video game. Some mention that it's extremely challenging, while others say that it is too hard and will take too much time. They also say that the weapons crafting can get grindy and the combat is awkward.
"...Again, check online for videos. It is very easy to do, and gives you a sword that will carry you well many hours into the game and can 1 or 2 shot..." Read more
"...It was grim, unnerving, and difficult. But I have to admit, there were several times where the game wore me down...." Read more
"...Not only does this system provide you with a great chance to explore on your own but the different enemies in each area constantly keep you on your..." Read more
"...through it was hard at the begining. it gets fairly easy after a while. make sure you search every corner for weapons and special early items...." Read more
Customers are mixed about the entertainment value of the game. Some find it intense, exciting, and unique. They also say the story is good, incredibly rich, nuanced, and fun. However, others say that the game draws away from the total experience, has a relatively weak story line, and is replete with pointless activities.
"...Its an unbelievably satisfying and wonderful feeling and its something that very few, if any, other video games have ever been able to deliver so..." Read more
"...4. Not much story. If you want a story-driven game experience, this is probably not for you...." Read more
"...worlds, a wider array of enemies and locations, more weapons, more secrets, more items...." Read more
"...While many covenants are shockingly lacking in lore, useful items, and things such as that, there are several that are actually really good in that..." Read more
Customers are mixed about the difficulty of the game. Some find the world of Dark Souls more open, with a darkly brooding atmosphere. They also say the game is awesome, with rich and dark atmosphere that immerses them seamlessly in its world. However, others say the difficulty is challenging, frustrating, and almost borderline unfair. They mention that the soul requirements to level, purchase consumables, spells, and the game rips control of your character away from them.
"...With all the opposition, Dark Souls is never unfair (although a few sections and a couple of bosses toe the line of "fair")...." Read more
"...I'm told it's because the level is so complex and the enemy AI needed to navigate it, so it takes a lot of processing power...." Read more
"...It has this amazing lonesome, dark, mysterious atmosphere which I think is complimented very well by its subdued and esoteric storyline...." Read more
"...The enemies, unfortunately, seem quite a bit more intelligent then in the previous games...." Read more
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First of all one of the most impressive things about Dark Souls is how unbelievably balanced the game is. Every weapon in this game can essentially be used effectively. No weapon is overtly better than any other. Sure heavier weapons maybe more powerful but they are also much slower. Spears allow you to attack with your shield up but they also have generally lower damage output. This makes the game incredibly fun and unique for each player because you really get to test out and choose which weapons you like depending on your playstyle without any inherent disadvantages. Your skill in combat depends primarily on your skill as a player, its not what weapon you use but how you use it. I Personally like using Katanas like the Uchigitana (my favorite weapon) and causing my enemies to bleed but other guys like using big weapons like the Zweihander and just pounding enemies with well-timed slow strikes (some of the best players I've ever seen do this). This balance also travels over to character development. When you make a character in Dark Souls you can choose 10 basic character classes but these classes only decide your starting level, beginning stats, and starting equipment and after that what you level up or what type of character you choose to play is entirely up to you. So the starting class only means something in the beginning and as the game goes along it starts to lose all its meaning. That means that the amount of character customization open to you is nearly limitless because any character can use sorcery, pyromancy, miracles (holy magic), or just straight up fight physically. This makes for a huge variety of different viable character builds so there is an immense amount character customization.
The combat system in this game is just flawless. It controls beautifully well and you always feel like you have complete control over your character. The combat system maybe one of the deepest parts of this game there is just so much variety to the attacks you have with different weapons and the ability to do critical hits by either backstabbing (stabbing a humanoid enemy from behind) or parrying (countering a strike with your shield and leaving them wide open to a powerful attack) make the combat incredibly satisfying and difficult.
In Dark Souls your character travels through an open world composed of different areas that you can travel through freely. Every area in this game is unique and different from each other as are the enemies in each area. Not only does this system provide you with a great chance to explore on your own but the different enemies in each area constantly keep you on your toes and make every area fresh and unique. There are no pallet-swapped versions of enemies you encountered previously in Dark Souls (like there are in so many other RPG's).
However I know what everyone wants to hear about and that is the difficulty level of Dark Souls. This game is very very hard. At times its almost punishing but one of Dark Souls' greatest strengths is that while it is incredibly difficult, it is never unfair. This is an amazing line that very few games are able to walk successfully. There are no cheap enemies or bosses in this game and when you die it is nearly always your own fault. What Dark Souls however does better than pretty much any other game is emphasize patience, caution, and learning. With all the frantic FPS's like COD and crazy third person shooter-platformers like the Uncharted series (which I love btw) these are aspects of gameplay that have kind of been lost in this generation of video games. In Dark Souls if you run into an area attacking a group of enemies head on without any forethought you are going to get your butt whooped. You're going to die a lot in Dark Souls and as you do you're going to start to learn from your mistakes and you will see results. There are strategies you can use against every enemy and every trap in this area and its up to you to develop them.
I am not going to lie to you, the amount you will die will be at points truly frustrating but this is a good thing. Not only that but this game really really punishes you for dying because when you do you lose all your souls (experience points and currency) and in order to get them back you have to go to your bloodstain which is where you died last time. You may be so angry and upset and you'll start to feel like you'll never beat this boss or pass this part and that you never want to play the game again. If you keep going however, you will eventually conquer the obstacle you were facing and you will be rewarded with one of the greatest senses of accomplishment you have ever felt from a video game. When you finally beat a boss or clear an area after hrs of fruitless attempts this euphoric sense of achievement just washes over you and then everything you did, all those deaths, feels completely worth it. Its an unbelievably satisfying and wonderful feeling and its something that very few, if any, other video games have ever been able to deliver so successfully. Dark Souls brings you to the lowest of lows so that it can also bring you to the highest of highs and it really is just a great treat, especially for anyone who enjoys a challenge.
If there's one knock against this game it's against its story. Many people complain that Dark Souls has no story or more specifically that its story isn't very clear or accessible. This is an absolutely fair point. The story of Dark Souls isn't really clearly elucidated or told to you, its more up to you to find it on your own and interpret it based on item descriptions, various conversations you have with different characters you have throughout the game, and so on. While I I think that Dark Souls' story is awesome, I will also admit that it isn't as good at telling it. Nobody really tells you what exactly is going on throughout the game and it is true that at points you will be told to do things for no reason known to you. However I think that people who complain about this have really missed the point of Dark Souls. The story isn't the main focus of this game, its the gameplay. You play Dark Souls to beat it because you want to conquer this game and its extraordinarily fun. The story is just there to essentially tie everything like the bosses, the enemies, the areas, and the npc's together and give it a common theme. The game's story is built around the gameplay not the other way around and frankly I think that if there was more direction in Dark Souls it would ruin the whole spirit of adventure and mystery the game has around it. It has this amazing lonesome, dark, mysterious atmosphere which I think is complimented very well by its subdued and esoteric storyline. Think about this way, did anyone really know the story to Contra based on the game??? No but everyone played it and loves it because its fun and you just wanted to beat it because it was really hard. This is similar to what Dark Souls does and a more exposition heavy delivery of its tale would hurt the game more than help it I think.
Anyway I've gone on way too long. I hope this review convinced you to buy this game as it is truly an amazing experience that I think everyone should give a shot. Sure its high difficulty level is not for everyone but I still think you should try it because if it is for you, it will be one of your absolute favorite games ever. Seriously just play it...
1) Those who love punishing, unforgiving difficulty; don't mind dying frequently to learn/memorize levels; or
2) Those who enjoy reading message boards, wikis, and FAQs to learn more about the game
I myself fall into the second category. I am not much of a RPG player nowadays, but something about the Souls series really feels nostalgic to me. It reminds me of the countless hours I poured into games like Chrono Trigger or Final Fantasies as a kid, reading FAQs on how to obtain that rare item or defeat that optional boss. The unique thing about the Souls series is that almost every encounter, every level, every boss feels like that rare event in other RPGs you need to prepare for. It makes for a very gratifying gameplay experience, if you are willing to put in the time.
If you don't fall into one of those two categories above (or a mixture of the two), then I feel as though Dark Souls might not be the right choice for you. The game can be VERY unforgiving if you arent carrying the right equipment for the situation, or if you didn't do things in a certain order, etc. Almost all enemies (save for some "mini-bosses") respawn when you die, so if you don't want to consult a FAQ/wiki, you may find yourself dying 10, 20, or more times in certain sections of the games which understandbly can get very frustrating. Fortunately though, there is usually some trick / item / method to get by almost all difficult sections in the game, so long as you are willing to seek help online.
Bottom Line --- the game is indeed difficult, and sometimes very vague in how to accomplish certain tasks. However, if you are willing to play online and summon help, or to consult FAQs/Wikis online, there is NOTHING in the game that is not doable.
Let me start with the similiarities between Dark Souls and Demons Souls:
- Game saves constantly / Can't undo any actions / Save and Quit anytime, anywhere you want and reload at the exact spot
- Combat feels largely the same, aside from some nice changes I will list out later on
- Many "nods" to Demons Souls in gameplay (a dragon who breathes fire on a bridge you have to cross, a NPC who kills other NPCs, etc)
- Shortcuts are littered throughout the levels
- Souls are the currency of the game and are used to level up as well
- Souls (and new Humanity) are lost when you die. You have one chance to get back to where you died to reclaim them
- Still need to repair equipment. I find this annoying but most equipment lasts a long time before needing to be repaired.
- Crystal lizards return (they drop very nice items used to upgrade equipment) -- except this time they are MUCH easier to kill and the way they spawn is MUCH more forgiving than Demons Souls (in Dark Souls, even if the crystal lizard gets away from you, you can just reload your game and he will spawn again. In Demons, each lizard had a respawn counter based on how many bosses you've killed, and if that respawn counter went to zero you would never see that particular lizard again!)
- Online invasions and co-op return, largely similar to Demons Souls in practice
Some of the new changes are:
- "Open" World design. No more central nexus safe zone. The world of Dark souls is one open map with many areas being interconnected to several other areas. I put "Open" in quotes because while you can explore many areas to begin with, there is really one general path of gameplay for new players. If you deviate from this path and explore, you will most likely be slaughtered very quickly by the enemies in areas where you are not "supposed" to be in yet. Still, that shouldn't stop you from making "suicide" runs to obtain nice loot from these areas early on.
- Ability to jump. While running, releasing and pressing the run button again will cause your player to jump. There are actually some "platforming" areas where you have to jump across a gap. It is something simple but i feel like it adds a lot to the gameplay.
- Bonfires. Strategically placed by the developers throughout the world, these are your new resting points. When you die, you respawn at the last bonfire you rested at. You level up, switch out magic spells, etc at bonfires. When you rest at a bonfire, all enemies respawn.
- Infrequent loading screens. Makes farming much, much faster than in Demons Souls.
- No more item burden!! Carry as much junk as you want.
- You still have equip burden, but now arrows dont count towards your equip burden. So i can finally walk around with 500 arrows and not move like a slug.
- In Demon's Souls, your roll/run speed was determined on whether you were above or below 50% of your equip load. In Dark, this is further refined into 25% splits (0-25% of equip, you move fastest, 25-50% you move a little slower, etc)
- Healing is done through "Estus Flasks" which are limited in quantity and are only refilled when you rest at a bonfire (sounds tough, but actually works well)
- Magic has limited casts and the casts are refilled at a bonfire (also sounds tough, but i actually like this way better - and i play as a melee/mage character. No more needing to interrupt your battle by refilling your MP)
There are some issues with the game, most notably a sluggish framerate in certain areas. This is my only complaint. However, the framerate is bearable and is not game-breaking. I play on PS3 and yes, the area "Blighttown" is pretty bad in terms of framerate but I never died because of it and never felt like something bad happened to me because of it.
Now is a great time to buy this game, especially since patch 1.05 is out. This patch fixed a lot of things with the game, most notably making it much easier (enemies give more souls, you can buy upgrade materials at blacksmiths instead of having to farm them, etc). Pre-patch 1.05, this game was MUCH more difficult in my opinion. Patch 1.05 gives it a "comfortable" level of difficulty (still hard though).
Here are some tips for new players to make your life a little easier (minor spoilers):
- Choose the Master Key as your gift when creating a character. If you choose Thief, they automatically get it so choose something different or you'll end up with two keys
- Pyromancer is a good class that most recommend to beginners. You start with a fireball spell that is helpful
- Check online for a video that shows you a quick 8 minute or so run that you can do right after the tutorial, using the master key, to get some cool armor/weapons/items to help you begin the game
- Almost all bosses have some sort of method to defeat them pretty easily. For example, the first real boss, Taurus Demon, you can utilize the tower to do a plunging attack on him over and over. The next boss, Bell Gargoyles, is almost impossible to defeat solo but becomes a cakewalk when you summon help (and don't worry if you play offline --- I believe the devs knew this boss was meant to be beat with help so you can summon NPCs if you are playing offline)
- After Taurus demon, get the Drake Sword by shooting the tail of the red dragon on the bridge. Again, check online for videos. It is very easy to do, and gives you a sword that will carry you well many hours into the game and can 1 or 2 shot kill most regular enemies. Do NOT upgrade this sword --- by the time its damage is feeling low to you, you will have access to better weapons. This sword doesnt have any stat bonuses, so even a regular upgraded weapon will do better later on as your stats are higher.
- In the beginning, if you see a tall, black knight standing do NOT engage him. He will kill you (unless you are very comfortable dodging & backstabbing, or willing to kill him a cheap way). You can come back later to teach him a lesson.
- Once you come to the red dragon on the bridge, take the stairs down on the right hand side. Go across the room and there is another staircase down that leads you to the earlier bonfire. KICK down the ladder before jumping down and that opens up a shortcut between the dragon and the bonfire. Now you can easily farm souls --- run up to the bridge, trigger the dragon, and run back down. The dragon's fire will kill all the enemies on the bridge, netting you ~500 souls (in the beginning, each level up costs 700 - 1000 souls). Rest at the bonfire, and repeat. You can gain 10+ levels pretty quickly doing this, and it will give you some breathing room (plus it will help you equip the drake sword).
Hope you guys have fun with this game. It is truly great.
If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment.
Top reviews from other countries
Reviewed in Brazil on November 30, 2020
I have used an online game guide which helps a lot....If you like open world games like skyrim etc then buy this game...Awesome fun