34 replies to this topic

[SaitoH]

http://www.preparetodie.com/en/

Just picked up my collectors edition and am ready to dive into the game tonight. Who else is dying to uhhh die?

[dammitmattt]

I always wanted to play Demon's Souls but never got around to it. The timing on this one is pretty bad for me, but I'm still very interested. Is it any more user-friendly than Demon's Souls? I'm slowly turning into an ornery old man and I don't have the patience that I used to. Is the difficulty fair and balanced? I'm thinking back to something like the Maximo series on PS2. It was widely known as a fairly difficult series, but it was always fair so as long as you took your time and learned the enemy patterns, you'd be okay. Is Dark Souls like that?

[SaitoH]

Demon's Souls was a very tough but fair game, so -having not played Dark Souls yet- I can only assume it will be similar. There's a couple other differences such as not having to beat the first zone and boss before being able to level and the bonfire system that could make the game a bit easier. We shall see ...

[MojoBox]

Quite likely gonna pick this up on my lunch break today. Unfortunately I only a 360 and will be getting it there, I've heard rumor of it having significant framerate problems that the PS3 version doesn't have. Either way, excited for it. I really enjoy roguelikes so the concept of dying to make progress doesn't really deter me.

Edit: Just returned from my lunch break, Dark Souls in tow. Can't wait to get home this evening!

Edited by MojoBox, 04 October 2011 - 02:10 PM.

[gamer812]

Prepared and ready to die. Collector's Edition while a free upgrade became a bit meh when they announced they would only offer some items as digital goods. I would rather have a steelbook than a sizable tin case.

[StinkingBishop]

I bought this today for the 360. Hopefully I can find time to play it. I also always wanted to play Demon Souls but I never owned a ps3 at the time. I also like to think I am back in university when I had time to play long games.

So what is a good class to start with that is not that difficult? I know the game is tough so I mean the class that would not be overly complicated. I played less then 20 min tonight and started with a Knight so I still have time to change.

Also did anyone notice that the color of the shadow of the character was green?

[MojoBox]

I bought this today for the 360. Hopefully I can find time to play it. I also always wanted to play Demon Souls but I never owned a ps3 at the time. I also like to think I am back in university when I had time to play long games.

So what is a good class to start with that is not that difficult? I know the game is tough so I mean the class that would not be overly complicated. I played less then 20 min tonight and started with a Knight so I still have time to change.

Also did anyone notice that the color of the shadow of the character was green?

I started a Wanderer and am making steady progress, though I don't have a lot of margin for error. I suspect the Warrior might be the most basic, easy class to begin with. I also noticed the green shadow, but only in the starting dungeon.


So far I'm really liking this game a lot, though I can see where you can get frustrated even if you accept that you are simply going to die a lot. I've probably perished a dozen times and I've only just made it to

Spoiler

The first mini-boss guy, I forget his name but he's a winged creature with a giant hammer up on the ramparts. I nearly had him dead, maybe a couple bubbles left, when he nailed me good. I blocked it and didn't take much damage, but it didn't matter cause the impact knocked me back into a portion of the parapet that was crumbled and off I went down into the inky blackness. Had I been standing a bit to either side and I would have been fine. I also died again on my way back to the boss, so there went about 1200 souls lost to the void, alas!

Amazingly for all the times I've died, it's yet to feel cheap in any way.

Edited by MojoBox, 05 October 2011 - 12:03 AM.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

It's hard for me to drum up any interest even though I fucking love EVERYTHING From Software does. From Metal Wolf Chaos to Tenchu Z to 3D Dot Game Heroes, they know how to make great games.


Despite the fact that I love punishingly difficult games, I just never found the interest I was so desperately searching for in Demon's Souls, so I eventually sold it. I never sell games, so this generation has been really weird. The only other PS3 game I picked up and ended up selling because of total apathy was the visually spectacular but ultimately hallow Bayonetta.

Maybe I'll rent this one when it comes out.

[StinkingBishop]

Thanks Mojo. I might check out those classes before diving too deep. And good to hear on the shadow. I was worried my Xbox was dieing.

[DistantStorm]

Traded some some stuff in at Best Buy yesterday and grabbed the 360 version for fourteen bucks, although they didn't have the collector's edition, like the flyer said they would.

I always agonize over character creators, buy in the end I went with the standard warrior,although wanderer was sorely tempting. I've never gone for the Mage/cleric types, and I don't get the appeal of being a barbarian at all, starting with nothing but a loincloth and a wooden club. So that left my options somewhat limited.

Made it into Undead Burg last night, although progress through there has slowed considerably. While never finishing Demon's Souls, I did play the hell out of it for quite awhile. Even so, this game is not easy, nor does it go out of it's way to explain much to you. It's left very much up to the player to make their own way through this bleak and incredibly deadly world.

In a strange way, that sense of being thrown in the deep end is exactly what can make this game so cool, if you have the right mind for it. I liken it to starting off on some kind of dangerous pilgrimage; you begin with nothing, and all the knowledge and experience you acquire is only what you yourself gain, and the little scraps of information left in the messages of players before you, in pilgrimages of their own.

There are no handy tutorials to give you details on things you would know nothing about, and bringing up the pause menu does not whisk you away to some state of impervious suspension, where you are free from threat of time or injury. It is very much like actually inhabiting this world for real; knowledge is dearly bought, and stupid decisions will almost certainly get you killed.

There really isn't much else like it, and anyone who's not prepared for it's unforgiving nature will have quite a rough go of it. But those who are, you're in for a treat.

Edited by DistantStorm, 05 October 2011 - 09:19 AM.

[MojoBox]

I played this game for like 30 minutes before work today, and I never do that. All I could think about when showering was how I wanted to scourge the undead burg again. I can feel this game sinking it's hooks deep into me.

I'm used to other RPGs where Dexterity means "To hit", but it totally doesn't in Dark Souls. Dexterity seems to be the substitute "strength" stat for classes that are more technique fighters (like the Wanderer that I'm playing). It's a really cool idea to split your melee weapons between big heavy clubby things and fast, technical blades.

I should mention that if you're confused about what stats do, hit the back button (probably select on PS3 I guess) and it'll bring up an explanation screen that lets you scroll through stats in the menu. There's no explanation at all for a lot of the stats (like "Param Bonus") in the manual and it only mentions that you can hit back on one random menu somewhere.

[dammitmattt]

So there's no way to pause the game? Not even via the guide/PS button? That's not good for fathers, pet owners, or people who have distractions while gaming...

However, the way people are describing it, this sounds like the perfect game to sink my teeth into in January or February. There are just too many games right now for a 100+ hour game.

[MojoBox]

No way to pause at all that I've found, which is an annoying design choice. I'm fine with not being able to use the inventory or look at my stats or anything during combat, but at least give me a dedicated "pause" screen. On the plus side, if you're standing in a room and not currently being attacked, it seems unlikely that you'll get killed if you step away for a few, and it autosaves constantly, so I guess you can always just shut it off.

[KinectFan]

I always wanted to play Demon's Souls but never got around to it. The timing on this one is pretty bad for me, but I'm still very interested. Is it any more user-friendly than Demon's Souls? I'm slowly turning into an ornery old man and I don't have the patience that I used to. Is the difficulty fair and balanced? I'm thinking back to something like the Maximo series on PS2. It was widely known as a fairly difficult series, but it was always fair so as long as you took your time and learned the enemy patterns, you'd be okay. Is Dark Souls like that?

I just got done listening to Vinny on the Bombcast describe this game as making him a bad person. It pissed him off so much it was an irritable jerk after playing it. Sounds like a game that demands patience. Lots of patience.

I know it's not for me.

[Wenny]

So there's no way to pause the game? Not even via the guide/PS button? That's not good for fathers, pet owners, or people who have distractions while gaming...

However, the way people are describing it, this sounds like the perfect game to sink my teeth into in January or February. There are just too many games right now for a 100+ hour game.

Yep - there was never a way to pause in Demon Souls. I really loved Demon Souls...and would have loved it more if I hadn't sucked so badly. Like you, I'll probably get into this later (even though I suck) and maybe after a price drop. Ratchet and Layton are right around the corner so my gaming time is about to get sucked up.

[SaitoH]

Anywhere you log out that's where you resume and if an area is clear of enemies you are safe. Not a perfect solution, but for games like PSO, Monster hunter it seems to be the norm.

[MojoBox]

When I was a kid there was a choose your own adventure book I checked out from my school's library about some kid traveling through a big, fantasy castle. Most of the endings for this book involved the kid (you) being killed in a wide variety of bizarre traps and by strange monsters. It's a strange connection, but I really loved that book and this is one of the few games I've ever played that captures that sort of atmosphere (the other being, strangely enough, the forest temple in OoT, at least way back when). I am utterly, madly in love with this game.

Spoiler

Last night I spent about five hours repeatedly clearing the undead burg, leveling up, being killed mercilessly by Black Knights, being pummeled by a weird steel creature with a big club/thing, burnt to a crisp by a giant dragon and fleeing for my life when I got way in over my head in a few areas. I felled the Taurus Demon on the ramparts and snuck into the Undead Parish. Oh, and I spent an inordinate amount of time dueling the hollowed shield spearman using my sabre two-handed style. Fucking epic Samurai shit, for reals.

Madly in love.

[SaitoH]

Few things:

-Kick the guys hiding behind their shields to break their guard.
-50% of your equip weight gives you better mobility. 25% of your equip weight gives you the best mobility. You decide which you prefer.
-Use the drop attack on bosses if you can. Quite a few boss encounters seem to be designed with this in mind.
-Don't use the Fire Keeper Soul item. It upgrades your flask, but you have to give it to the old lady in the jail cell at Firelink Shrine.

[MojoBox]

Few things:

-Kick the guys hiding behind their shields to break their guard.
-50% of your equip weight gives you better mobility. 25% of your equip weight gives you the best mobility. You decide which you prefer.
-Use the drop attack on bosses if you can. Quite a few boss encounters seem to be designed with this in mind.
-Don't use the Fire Keeper Soul item. It upgrades your flask, but you have to give it to the old lady in the jail cell at Firelink Shrine.

Ahhhh, dammit. I used the first (and so far only) Fire Keeper Soul I got immediately, balls!

Played till the wee hours last night. After deciding to stop forging forward for a bit and going back to explore, I found I had overlooked a boss. First bell rung now

[StinkingBishop]

I am having trouble with the controls. I can't seem to consistently perform kicks or other moves that are RS
+ Buttom/Trigger and it frustrates me. I know it is just me since from what I have read I have not heard this. Oh well. Must go try some more.

[MojoBox]

Flick the left stick forward at the same moment you hit the R1/Right Bumper button and you should get a kick (or an awesome attack/evade move if you're using a slashing weapon like me). Takes a little practice but you'll get it, and don't forget there's a jump attack if you do the same thing with the strong attack.

Spoiler

Last night I pestered the dragon outside the Undead Parish with my new longbow. Gave up on trying to kill him, but not before I shot his goddamned tail off and got me a drake sword Just made my way into the lower Undead Burger and found another boss to fight.

So loving this.

Edited by MojoBox, 08 October 2011 - 02:08 PM.

[SaitoH]

Beat the Gaping Dragon. Not particularly difficult, but damn that boss is the stuff of nightmares. I applaud the designer.

[StinkingBishop]

I switched to a Wanderer and found the first part to be so much easier. I got to the second area and I head off to the right and keep throwing myself off the edge while fighting bad guys and dieing. Usually while accidentally using that flying kick thing the Wanderer does.

[MojoBox]

I switched to a Wanderer and found the first part to be so much easier. I got to the second area and I head off to the right and keep throwing myself off the edge while fighting bad guys and dieing. Usually while accidentally using that flying kick thing the Wanderer does.

I've done that more than once, that's for sure. Usually happens when I'm trying to close distance and get an attack in as quickly as possible. The weird thing about that move is it doesn't seem to require you to flick the analog stick in any particular direction. Also, I guess it's worth noting that the evade move is linked to slashing weapons and not to the Wanderer class per se.

Spoiler

Downed the Moonlight Butterfly and Capra Demon, found my way to Blighttown and opened up the Depths. I've hit Soul Level 30 and reinforced the hell out of my gear (think my scimitar is +7 now). I should have killed Moonlight Butterfly much earlier, but I was stupid and got one hit killed by one of it's attacks and assumed I couldn't stand up to it yet. I've really wrapped my head around the game mechanics now and I'm making a lot of progress, it's great. Killed off all the Black Knights I had access too at this point, as well as the big dude with the big hammer thing at the bottom of the tower near Darkroot Basin. Time for me to press forward towards the other bell.

[SaitoH]

It's been complained about before, but dang Blight Town is Valley of Defilement all over again and I like it as much as I did before.

The layout is pretty crazy, but once you figure out where the first bonfire is you just have to resign yourself to spend a while exploring. I managed to do quite well even after my game got invaded, but, after defeating the invader I got myself in a tricky situation that required a calm head and promptly died with over 20k souls. Of course I fell to my death just seconds after reviving and found out I had walked right past and I mean right past the second bonfire. Got a club, whip, ninja suit, ninja sword and weird looking falchion for my trouble.

I complain, but I'm loving the game.

[StinkingBishop]

I am really torn on this game. I enjoy the combat and the difficulty the enemies provide, but I keep falling of ledges and killing myself. It is as I am the toughest enemy in the game. I am not sure how much more of it I can take.

[MojoBox]

Playing this game reminds me a lot of playing Metroid back when I was a little kid. I never had any manuals for my games, and the only thing I every new about them was what I could work out for myself or what I heard from friends on the playground. Dark Souls has a manual but it's devoid of much in-depth information on the game mechanics. It's not a very modern design choice, but it does seem to me to be a very deliberate one and I'm very glad they had the balls to do it.

It's striking to me how little fun I was having with Dead Space 2, which wasn't particularly difficult but felt cheap every time I died (especially in those goddamn QTEs), compared to how much fun I'm having with Dark Souls, despite being very challenging and me dying a lot, but it rarely feels cheap.

[MojoBox]

I'm finally on to the last stretch of this game, but I'm feeling a bit unmotivated to keep pushing on. I don't really fault the game, more my having put nearly 60 hours into it since it came out.

Still, gonna be a top contender for GOTY as far as I'm concerned.

[Fahrenhype]

Late to the torture session on this one, though not as late as I was with Demon's Souls. I played a Thief last time, relied a lot on the magic and health regeneration rings, finished in about 29 hours and never learned a miracle. I played another 15 hours into a New Game + but stopped since it felt pretty similar. Are there any particular suggestions of what class to use in this game? I am thinking about a pyromancer since that will be different from how I played the previous game, but I don't want to get into a situation where I'm constantly falling back from enemies because attacks are not doing much damage. I've taken it for granted that a lot of the ways in which I got through the first game briskly were flukes (like using a poison gas cloud on the 1-4 boss who never tried to avoid it) so I'm expecting this game to actually be a lot harder and to die quite a bit more.

Can you still autosave just by brining up the inventory or do you have to use those campfires this time?

[MojoBox]

The game pretty much autosaves constantly, there's not really any way to lose progress (or undo losses). The bonfires are for leveling and respawning more than for saving, just quit to menu anytime you're ready to stop playing and all is well.

It's been awhile since I played, but if I remember correctly, the Pyromancer is sort of overpowered from the start but evens off as you get into the game a ways. The Pyro's starting spells are way powerful, but it will be longer than any other class for you to upgrade those spells.

[SaitoH]

I need to play Dark Souls again ...

[MojoBox]

I need to beat it still. I'm stalled on the Giant's Tomb, it's the last Lord's Soul for me to get.

[DistantStorm]

Ive been wanting to get back to this so fucking bad. But then Arkham City came out, and The black hole that is Skyrim consumed pretty much til Mass Effect came out. I haven't finished that yet, and now Witcher 2 is out. And I STILL need to go back and play AC Revelations.

This is all Skyrim's fault.

[famousmortimer]

Dark Souls, imo, is better than every game you skipped it for.

[DistantStorm]

I can't really argue with you too much on that point. I played the fuck out of Demon's Souls for like two weeks straight-didn't finish it, but I had a blast the whole time I was into it. As much fun as all these other games have been, Dark Souls is the one my mind keeps going back to.