What is a Dark Soul? #
I have spent most of my life playing video games, of all kinds even. Whether I was given a copy of a game, I would play it and tear it apart. I wanted to understand how it worked, and how this (cartidge, disc, cart, downloadable title) came to be. No matter the game, no matter the genre, I always gave it a shot. I followed in Commander Shepard's shoes throughout all three games; as Master Chief exploring the Halo rings, as Gordon at Black Mesa, and Shrek in Shrek the Movie the Game. RPG, FPS, MMORPG, Racing, Arcade, Casual, literally any genre. There was never a sense of "this game is too hard" from a community perspective. Yeah Halo had its skulls or vidmaster, Doom had Ultraviolence, difficulty has always existed. So has elitism. But nothing pervaded so much back in the day as the feelings around Dark Souls
It was the vitrolic 'git gud' that surrounded Dark Souls that led to me ignoring all Fromsoftware titles entirely up until Elden Ring launched. Well, in any serious manner, I did play some DS2 and 3, along with trying bloodborne and giving up before even finding the cleric beast. Why did this happen? Well, its easy to point to people (Capital G Gamers) who want their sense of pride to be inflated to the level of the challenge they faced. It's not that something is difficult, everything in a fromsoft game is a challenge. The games' provide a kit of tools (summoning, weapons, throwables, consumables) in response to this challenge, all a player has to do is lean into them, and learn what makes them stronger.
I didn't attempt these games seriously until Elden Ring came out, and I was hooked. It very much melted away that façade for me, that idea that someone had to spend hundreds of hours to be great. For the most part, all it required was some grit, and wit. Elden Ring took me on a horse and showed me all the beautiful game design I was missing, and was now flush with games to return to and learn from. All of Fromsofts games really were building up to Elden Ring, and they knocked it out of the park.
Soulsborne-again #
I found Elden Ring on my hard drive just randomly one day, and this led to me eventually buying the game after spending 10 hours just wasting time farming the first main solider village you walked upon. Fromsoft had taken their formula and turned it into a true open world exploration experience. This captivated me, and apparently as everyone as heard, the 12 million who also bought it opening week.
It has been a hit, and that can't go without mention. Elden Ring introduced me to the beauty of the Soulsborne combat system, and from there I was hooked. This was just about 5-6 months ago, and ever since I've had this lust, this need, that is only sated by a Fromsoft title. I still haven't beaten Elden Ring, I'm going through Caelid now. Mostly because I load it up and get distracted, exploring every inch of this amazing world created by Fromsoft. I've found Ranni, made it through Lunaria, and decided at this point "What else does this series have to offer."
So I snagged Dark Souls Remastered on the switch, starting making my way through that. I really have enjoyed my time with it, but the clunkier feel of the switch, and lack of online PC servers. I have decided to put down Dark Souls Remastered for the being. As mentioned, I did play some Dark Souls 2 and 3, falling off from my lack of understanding. My fear of these games was strong, still coming out even today every time I go up against a new boss. Yet, time and time again, I always hear about Bloodborne. How it's amazing, how it's the best of all the games in general, at least to some fans. Those fans all end up being my friends though.
Now, I'm lucky to have a PS4 from years back, and a ps+ copy of Bloodborne, so after resubbing to the service, I downloaded the title and was off to the race
A hoonter moost hoont. #
I have made it to the "real start" of Bloodborne, having beaten the Cleric Beast and the first hunter, Father Gascoigne. The rush I feel in every combat encounter in unmatched to what I've felt in gaming in a very long time. Each swipe and fight has weight, and its up to me to pull the cards in my favor. To attack aggressively, but smart. To hunt, but not become bestial like the poor father. While I wish I had more to say, my perspective is young and the night is long.
So here is where I am wrapping this up, a somewhat disapointing ending, if it were the end. This is the first in a series of posts to describe my experiences with all the Fromsoft titles, and I hope you check in for the rest.