Critical Close-up: Dark Souls
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 เม.ย. 2014
- DISCLAIMER: This is a revised version of the Dark Souls Critical Close-up, with errors related to "strategy games," "aural decoy" and the aqueduct wormhole corrected. Unfortunately TH-cam doesn't allow re-uploads onto vidoes with the same URLs, stats and comments, so you can find the old version with your old comment threads here: • Video
Dark Souls: a game about life, love, and learning how to hurt yourself.
Here's a 35-minute in-depth review about how and why Dark Souls is so challenging, vague and macabre. This video is less lore and story speculation than it is about lore and story speculation.
Special thanks for machinima help & lore consulting:
/ vaatividya
/ hellkitedrake
/ sunlightmaggot
Further reading:
www.jesperjuul.net/text/fearo...
digm.drexel.edu/jzhu/publicati...
www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/...
This video uses sound effects from audiomicro.com
This video also lives at www.superbunnyhop.com - เกม
"Items have to be on a body or in a box" maybe they're always on a body, and treasure chests are just dead mimics
thanks for the existential crisis, bro
or just "in a chest".
Man, don't do this to me
*laughs in mimic*
I think Dark Souls really represents a beautiful intersection of Western and Japanese art and design philosophies. Baroque and Mono no Aware, Romanticism and Wabi-Sabi. As Shozo Kato said, "Western beauty is radiance, majesty, grandness and broadness. In comparison, Eastern beauty is desolation, humility and hidden beauty." Dark Souls is both. You have massive monuments, ornate palaces, majestic vistas and colorful forests but even in their scale they are transient. A once mighty kingdom is now abandoned, a once glorious sun is now an illusion, a once mighty fire is now fading, a once steadfast knight now hollow. Even the story is a tale of great importance and scale yet it is cannot be completely told because part of it is lost to time. Dark Souls finds the beauty in the grand and the ephemeral and shows that in many ways they are inseparable ideals.
@KC Oof, don't cut yourself on all that edge.
@KC LOL buddy who hurt you? You sure do have a lot of projections to make about people you don't know 😂
@KC Hahahahaha so because I called you an edgelord you automatically know everything about my personality and what I do for work/in my free time? That'd be pretty impressive if it were true, but for all you know I might not even like Dark Souls and you're calling me a fanboy, you must need some meds man, you're so aggressive over literally nothing and it's really pitiful 😂
@KC You're the only one that's triggered here, boss 😂
@KC I'm the one foaming at the mouth? Lol. I could care less about Dark Souls or your opinion on it, I just thought it was funny how much of an edgelord you are. Don't go shoot up your school, buddy, it'll be alright 😂😂
When you mentioned DSP and said "anyone can beat it, I mean anyone" while having him whine in the backround I subscribed INSTANTLY..
Don't know why..
He was not whining.
@@angelshark64 In fairness, its hard to tell the difference XD
@@termnus77 No, it isn't.
@@angelshark64 If you can tell the difference, more power to you sir.
@@angelshark64 you must be fun at parties.
George has a voice that was made to talk about death.
More like made to talk this topic _to_ death. I didn't think I'd get this disengaged and bored with an deep, thoughtful look at Dark Souls but here I am, eighteen minutes in, irritated by the onerous listing of qualities minus much insight, down-voting, and fucking off.
@@Beretta249 "down-voting" . Ok go back to reddit
get him to do a deep dive analysis on your life from a psychology perspective for your eulogy
@@kentcampbell122 hahahahahaha
@@kentcampbell122 Agreed 🙏🙏
We need more Critical Close-up episodes. This stuff is awesome.
Yeah I wish he made more of them. Seems he hasn't found a game worthy to dive into again deeply.
I still remember the first time I was invaded. That singular moment was scarier than pretty much any horror game I've played and it still gives me goosebumps whenever I get invaded. Something about an unknown enemy that can appear practically anywhere can be really disconcerting.
ChuckleDuck the 1st time I got invaded we where doing footsies and checking each other when a enemy backstabbed me
Downloaded a pirate version of the game. Got confused when an invasion message appeared, thinking it wasn't possible. A naked character with the same sword I was using appeared (Gravelord Sword). Dodged to the side, hit the invader once, and it died.
I still don't know what to think of it...
Maneater Mildred is scarier than life itself
"Its not the character leveling up, its you" - truth be told
Mind blown
+Tofu
Eh, not necessarily. Dark Souls isn't a pure action game where skill is the only thing that matters and no stats exist. It's still an RPG. And like all RPGs, stats and gear matter too. You can't equip certain weapons unless your stats are at a certain point. You can't do good damage to opponents if your weapons have zero durability. Like, you can be the most skilled player in the world with 9,999 hours of experience playing Dark Souls, but if the character you're playing doesn't have at least 31 STR, you can't two-hand the Demon's Greataxe.
+brightsuperstition it's true
But what if you're so good, you don't need 31 strength or a demon great axe? I've seen someone beat Bloodborne on ng+7 with FISTS ONLY. If you're good enough, you can really utilize anything. That's what this is trying to say.
+Jared Lucus
Sure you can play the game at SL1 (or BL4 if this is Bloodborne). You can do it entirely with your fists. You can even do it while you're cursed with only half or a quarter of your health. I'm familiar with them. I've done by fair share of those SL1 on NG+7 runs. That's not the point. The point that I'm trying to make is that there are still many things in this game that are dependent on your stats and that sheer skill alone can't make you do, like the weapon example I previously mentioned. In this sense, Dark Souls is still an RPG game.
brightsuperstition preach. That is where ds stands out from other rpgs. It is not a level some shit up to win type of game, but how well can you react under pressure and learn from your mistakes. Im not by any means a pro, but just finished a ds1 sl1 run. The most difficult boss wasnt kalameet or manus, but gywn himself. Bastard knows you just healed and pulls out one last swing even when he just finished a combo.
Dark souls is one of the most heartwarming games I've ever played.
Never imagined that I would ever say this when I first played this franchise.
That DSP joke...you sir deserve an high-five just for that.
+YujiNanaya Now I feel really bad I haven't finished it
The graphics on pc and my bad eyes don't work together
+Rhine Horn download dsfix, you can set the render resolution to 1080p instead of 720p which will fix the graphics, and you can also unlock framerate and install dsmfix, which fixes mouse control
i know about these. still ugly
did you disable the DOF and AA?
dont remember, the underground levels were hard to see in
I think I have watched this video a dozen times and every time, it follows or preceeds Matthewmatosis Dark Souls 2 Critique.
These two videos are real gems.
Mehdi Husain That and MatthewMatosis' Demon Souls Commentary. Pure gold and I can't wait for his Dark Souls walkthrough.
I don't have any issues really at all with Mathewmatosis, but I think he is talking out of his ass in his DS2.
And no , I'm not a DS2 fanboy. It was only years after beating DS1 and DS3 a bunch of times that I decided to actually finish DS2.
in all fairness, he does make some valid points. But I think hbomberguy's DS2 video is way more accurate.
Dark Souls is a masterpiece.
Dark Souls honestly, is a fucking fantastic reflection of life.
This video's old and I'm sure someone told you by now, but Dark Souls's continuity is confusing because it's based on the director's experiences reading Western fantasy books without a strong grasp of the English language.
Lieselotte Aya which means creating people like vaati was EXACTLY miyazaki's goal.
Lmao
More because they literally made it all up as they went along. There was no story or guidelines. They just added stuff they thought of as they made the game. That's why it's confusing and there isn't really a deep gripping story
@@trod146 as trump would say... "wrong"
@@electroman51 jup, I cant believe how some people think there is no deep story to dark souls.
Just the story about the Abyss and Artorias alone is mindblowing and even has a cool twist to it.
To be fair, I discovered the thing about the Darkmoon covenant by myself. The moving stairs/elevator from Anor Londo links to a small room with a bonfire. Why put a seemingly useless bonfire? There's no use for it as a shortcut, there aren't any enemies near and it makes no sense using it having the bonfire that's been kindled by the darkmoon firekeeper on a much easier route. The game even tries to tell you THIS IS IMPORTANT by making it warpable with the Lordvessel, and it's named Darkmoon Tomb.
When I found the Darkmoon Seance ring it was obvious it had something to do with that peculiar bonfire.
So what I want to know, then, is how the Darkmoon Seance Ring ended up in the Catacombs
@@tiagodecastro2929 it's not useless, it's the most efficient checkpoint against the Anor Londo Silver Archers.
Its placement, and the difficulty getting past those archers, make it seem like a deliberate design choice, IMO
@@StrikeWarlock I think you replied to the wrong person, buddy. Pablo was the one criticizing the bonfire placement. I just brought up a lore question lol
Dark Souls did a very intelligent thing, maybe unintentionally so, but it did. In an era where the internet has all the answers, Dark Souls asked questions, and hence came answers as satisfying as ever, and almost integrated itself into the actual game. It's genius !!
That first statement is very true about pvp. It is so broken that it's balanced. An example would be that there's the zweihander which stunlocks you until you die but you can escape by toggling your weapon.
Not to mention that a lot of those questions still don't have answers, and some have several different answers; many of which are contradictory to others. It lets the player come to their own unique conclusions.
That's great, at this point he didn't know about the third area with music which is a fantastic thing to look back at
Loved how you showed DSP "Anyone can beat the game." Lmfao
Too bad it discredits Super Bunnyhop.
@@angelshark64 how?
@@abramwalker882 Professional don't do jabs at other people.
@@angelshark64 since when lmao
@@handlesarestupid154 Since Professionalism was a thing, Dumbass.
Gotta say, I really love this period of George's work. I really do enjoy his focus on a more educational view lately as well, but I often find myself going back to these really great video game essays. I am a Psych Honours grad so I can appreciate a great essay :P
I keep coming back to this video because of the ending with the trailer music.
We need more games that force players to try their hardest, and succeed. It's unfortunate that games today are becoming more of a business, then an opportunity to give people an experience, that goes beyond just a good story. Imagine if Bioshock had gameplay like that of Dark Souls. It would had been a much more enriching experience, in the end. But instead, the combat in Bioshock is just something you have to do, so you can gain access to watch more in-game cutscenes. It's a shame, really.
Urrm, you have never heard of System Shock 2? It was the Hardcore version of Bioshock, by the same developers, significantly better, but it didn't sell well which forced the devs to make a much simplified and easy version which came to be Bioshock. If you haven't played it give it a shot, I consider it better than Dark Souls only just.
john smith That is a pretty ridiculous connection. There's absolutely no reason why the success of System Shock 2 would force "Irrational Games" to make Bioshock easier to play. There's eight years between the two games, and Irrational Games was since then bought by Take-Two Interactive, as well.
Bioshock isn't purposely easy, either. It's easy because the gunplay/gameplay is simply just bad. I got bored playing the original Bioshock demo, and I had to actually force myself to finish Bioshock Infinite, as I had payed money for it.
ThisIsMyFullName Let me rephrase: there was no unseen force that prevented them from making another Hardcore title, they must have felt cornered and unappreciated by the lack of success of System Shock (and all Looking Glass games). There most definitely is a connection and to deny it would be naive.
"Bioshock isn't purposely easy, either."
Yes it absolutely is. It's one of the easiest first person games ever created, whilst System Shock 1+2 are some of the hardest. There is no argument here.
john smith SS2 has odd difficulty balance issues if you play on the harder settings. Impossible difficulty makes the cost for upgrading your character obscenely high to the point where you have to hunt down just about every cyber module you can get to be able to build your character in the later half. Normal mode isn't that much harder than Bioshock, really. The AI and pathfinding is much better in SS2 though which is really funny.
Never touched the first game but it seems like it has really complex level design, which can be both a good thing and a bad thing.
"Normal mode isn't that much harder than Bioshock, really. "
Then you need to play both again. What I said was not opinion. Bioshock has a giant yellow arrow that is frankly insulting to 90% of player's intelligence, the zero consequence vita chambers that effectively removes the majority of the challenge, ammo spread about the place that would make an OCD sufferer have a heart attack, and lastly the simplified systems overall. this is not including less notable (but notable nonetheless) aspects of design such as SS2's old school platforming, it's puzzles (codes hidden in the art terminals, anyone?), it's inventory system and so on. This is all objective and cannot be argued with, it's simply a whole lot more challenging in nearly all aspects of design, and there are many said aspects.
Bioshock's gameplay is an insult to games of it's legacy.
And not a single fuck was given about amazing predecessor of Dark Souls - Demon's Souls.... again... what a shame.
Demon's Souls is the fertile ground from which Dark Souls sprang to life.
Eddiethenotsogreat And dark souls is the shining beacon from which the wobbly-leg cum stain of dark souls 2 propelled itself.
it would actually be very relevant to make reference to Demon's Souls in some of the more negative points the guy makes about Dark Souls.
For instance, when he complains about the placement of the Dark Moon Seance ring needed to open up the Dark Moon covenant - I agree, it's unreasonable to believe that many players would work this out the first, second or even third play-through by any other means than dumb luck. It would have been nice here to hear him talk about the item placement in Demon's Souls which were done a lot better in my opinion.
I've only just seen this video but I completely agree. No one ever mentions demons souls. I remember reading about people importing it and how hard but addictive it was and then it was eventually bought out in more regions.
But whatever let's just talk about dark souls, darks and more dark souls.
Loved the upbeat start of the video!
What an awesome video. For someone who sunk about 400 h in Dark souls 1 & 2 this little movie just shows me why I love this game series so much.
ok so I'm quite new to Dark Souls. I downloaded it years before I bought Bloodborne. I couldn't see why it was so revered by gamers and critics alike. So after 100% completion of Bloodborne I revisited it.
You know what? I now know why it's loved. After I figured out that managing your stamina is key I made great progress. I've just rang the second bell and I can't wait to see the end game.
Dying in Dark Souls isn't really a failure. You died because the game is trying to teach you something.
Fantastic game.
For me it was a bit similar. First the game was buggy and frustrating, and after playing and finishing Dark Souls 2 I gave it another shot and for some reason it not only runs better now on Windows 10 but also is incredibly fun.
After a while it suddenly becomes really enjoyable, especially as it's also very fair.
Yeah, I do think you have to quit Dark Souls at least once then come back before you can enjoy it.
If I had 1 wish. I would wish for my memory of dark souls, demon souls, and ds2 to be erased. There is nothing like the first playthroughs.
I'd wish for more wishes.
Tubbier Wombat I'd wish for all your wishes.
+hurrdurrmurrgurr i'd wish for the genie to have extremely shit short-term memory xD
incredible analysis, hats off to you dude. Dark Souls is my favorite game of all time and you picked apart its game mechanics perfectly. Its funny, ask any super dedicated Soulsborne fan like myself and pretty much all of us will tell you that we wish we could go back to the first time we played our first Souls game, there really isnt anything else like it. I dont show too much emotion with most games but Dark Souls was a whole different story I remember when i finally beat Ornstein and Smough for the first time after like 30 tries i got up outta my couch pumped my fist and yelled fuck yeah! then proceeded to do the "well what is it?" gesture 5 times in a row. and now whenever i play it i always play with handicaps to make it so the game isnt too easy. Nothing beats that first time
Thirteen minutes into your video, I'm enjoying it so far. What I'd add to your discussion about combat in DS is this: The game makes up for not having attack combos by providing a huge assortment of weapons to find, each with their own move-sets, which are at least somewhat unique to each weapon. This fact also makes the game replayable, as you can try a different build that uses different weapons every time you play; not only when restarting as a different character, but also with the same character.
This is seriously like, the definitive Dark souls video.
+darkzarkaster93 This and Matthewmatosis's commentary.
***** Indeed.
The Zelda analogy is pretty good. I like to think of DS as the "mature" version of Zelda.
Gameplay-wise they arent that different (exploration, combat, puzzles).
And the themes can be quite similar (rebirth, decay, endless struggle) .. after all, in Zelda, the bad guys wins all the time at game start, and often a hero victory at the end doesnt stop the "world" from falling into ruin/decay later in time (sequels and timeline show this).
The hero is always reborn, he always have to fight big G (who never really dies, just inconvenienced for a time) and Z has do be involved somehow. We see several sentient species and civilizations disappear. We often see the same secondary characters making a comeback too, like they are stuck in that rebirth cycle.
There are "godesses", but they don't really care. They either destroy some more (WW) or fail utterly at protecting the land (most other games) from "evil". They seem to be behind the rebirth cycle and that might mean they actually go out of their way to destroy hyrule (or wherever else) to force a rebirth cycle. The best they can do is stall for time for the hero to pop.. (and that's a maybe, plus its likely under their control) or they do that whole setup for far darker reasons.
I'm at a loss for words, seriously. This is such an amazing way to experience and understand even more the world of Dark Souls. Gotta say, man, thank you. Your video made me want to go back and try this game one more time, even though I've decided not to play it again, but this was so good that I cannot play theis game again after watching this. Kudos for the amazing video.
The PvP at the beginning of the game is one sided because most of the guys that invade at this low level are troll that get super powerful gear, either by cheating (Cheat Engine) or being super good (getting everything while staying at SL10) just to piss people off. It's kinda sad but hey, Prepare to Die.
Chips Light One thing I found extremely satisfying about the game was to run around the Undead Burg in Human Form while in NG+. Most people that invaded me didn't stand a chance since they were expecting to fight newbies. Once I even stood right in front of the boss gate to the Gargoyles after summoning both Solaire and Lautrec and waited for someone to invade me. A guy materialized right in front of me and was dead within seconds :P
It felt really good to pay back the trolls who mostly lag- stab with Hornet Rings.
This video deserves much more views. You can see the time and effort put in it. And there's a very inspiring message at the end. Marvellous work.
I am simply blown away by your ability to eloquently yet clearly express your feelings on this wonderful game- it's been examined and examined, but I think your close-up here has become my favorite thoroughly fleshed-out view on my favorite game in the world thus far.
Great video but the game wasn't necessarily designed to be difficult it was more immersion based. Letting you feel like you were living in a hostile world with death around every corner.
gamer4life
Yeah this. Im surprised the video didn't mention Demons Souls, which was arguably comparable to DaS in almost every aspect but wasn't marketed as a punishing expierience. The director DeS and DaS has repeatedly said that the first consieration was creating a good game. not a hard one.
TheXell Demon Souls is pretty easy though, easily less difficult than Dark Souls 2.
Yeah, since Bamco tried to market the game for its difficulty. Goes to show that HARDCORE UNF doesnt necesserily make a better game.
gamer4life If I die and hell exists.. I hope it's like a Souls game xD
Oldschool Bogdan are you sure? If that were true I'd be those pathetic undead in the beginning of the games =/
The vagueness of the storytelling realistically contributes a lot to the richness of the world for me. I don't understand every piece of lore and history of Dark Souls but I know it's out there to learn; I'm just playing as a character who exists in the world. It's just like how I don't know every little thing and historical event of our current reality, I just live in it.
Perhaps the best video about Dark Souls on TH-cam! I wish there was one about Demon's Souls. I'm replaying it once again and see if I'm finally capable of finishing it.
And I like how the pvp footage is mostly against twinks in Burg and Parish. Unfortunately that's the introduction majority of people get about Dark Souls pvp, useless jamokes who need full giant set in Burg to not die against SL10 newbies in unupgraded wanderer sets. Keep in mind kids, those are griefers, they're useless scrubs who can't play worth jack so they take it out on newbies by oneshotting them with a ridiculously unfair equipment advantage. The pvp is actually awesome and one of the highlights of the game.
When ever I invade at lower areas with my SL1 build, I put a twist on it.
If I'm at Parish and use gear with actual strength, I hunt down phantoms, dark spirits and drake sword users. Host is irrelevant if he has no drake sword and isn't properly geared against me.
I've been thinking of trying to offer myself as a boss fight as well for co-opers, but I'm not sure how to execute that idea properly.
Sometimes I invade with only headgear on and I keep spamming R2 and L2 while having bows equipped and no arrows. My goal is to confuse my target so I can backstab them without them seeing it coming. If they attack me, I'm only allowed to deal damage by riposting. And I will also stand at inconvenient positions, so the hosts cannot run away from enemies.
But if I invade at later areas like Blighttown and beyond, I unleash the Pyromancy Inferno! Balanced Pyromancy Inferno that is, because screw combustion and fire surge; they land hits way too easily.
*****
Invaders and summons can get to your world only if their level is 10% + 10 levels within your range. Meaning you cannot get invaded by players with level much beyond yours, nor can you get help from or help others who are far away from your level.
Invaders are 10% + 10 below their level and infinite above. Meaning level 1 invader can invade anyone.
Red Summons are 10% + 10 above and infinite above. Meaning max level host can summon any red summon.
Spirits of Vengeance have a have a very different scaling, but they only bother indicted invaders.
Forest Hunters are just invaders with few exceptions: they're limited to one area only, they can invade even in undead form, the invasion item is a ring and it functions even if you're not in the area.
If you're low level and have a hard hitting weapon, invaders will take plenty of damage no matter how well they're geared up.
And in case you're wondering how player soul drops work:
Host gets 50% of the soul level requirement of an invader.
Summon gets 25%.
Invader gets 10% from each kill.
Brah just go to the forest it'll be fine
PvP would be a highlight of the game if it weren't for the crippling balancing issues and the horrible lag on any version of the game. I tried getting into Dark Souls PvP but any time I won it never felt right because it often wasn't a matter of skill. It literally came down to who got the first lag stab or who's using the most broken build. Unfortunately Dark Souls II did nothing to fix this other than maybe toning down the lag just a bit, but it still suffers from the same problems.
***** I understand completely lol. When my friend onlyafro and I co-oped the game one time and I got killed by pvpers and would complain, he'd say that along with "git gud" all the time and it was the most frustrating thing lol
But I still love him
"Anyone can beat the game... and I do mean anyone" then you show a clip of dsp. that was the moment that made me subscribe to you
You must have poor taste.
Why?
@@kingdomkey2262 He's just salty that people are criticising Dsp
@@angelshark64 goddamn do you have some kind of script that finds comments mentioning DSP 🤣
@@uncertified-banger5595 Nope. It's sad, really. And that was not criticism.
Can I just gush that I have seen this video half a dozen times and every time the music swells during that final long speech I get pumped and inspired and feel goosebumps...
You're the man for that.
Jesus christ this is like one of the most thought out and well constructed videos i've ever watched on youtube. Keep up the amazing work
You know I seem to watch those close ups over and over because I can't find anything else of equal quality.
It's kind of like Snake Eater.
Same here. This is the third time I've watched this video. It's just so well written.
That's amateur level, mate. I've watched Matthewmatosis' Dark Souls Commentary at least five times from start to finish. Not even kidding.
damianopodobny Watch hbomberguy. His videos on games are just as in depth as George's (or maybe even more so) and similarly uses evidence and academic sources about game design. He does tend to have clickbait titles though, I think ironically. Like he has a video titled "Fallout 3 sucks and here's why", but then the comments are full of things saying "I loved fallout 3 but you've convinced me". His video on bloodborne and why playing it actually retroactively makes dark souls 1 more fun to play, is really insightful, and so many other youtubers constantly reference hbomberguy now because of how well he puts together an argument
Have you seen Xbox Ahoy? His style of presentation is as equal and unique in its presentation that it manages to captivate viewers in a simple history discussion of Video games and the era during a certain time. Look at his latest Monkey Island vid or the Cold War one it’s really good...
HOPELESS ENTERTAINMENT he's just called Ahoy, isn't he? But yeah he has like 3 videos a year but they're all amazing
Should do a close of up Silent Hill 2!
This was the best review I have ever seen, your always so thorough and on-point. You made me love the game even more.
From 31:44 to the end, the combination of the footage, script and music, is just simply amazing. :)
Dark Souls is definitely hard but not THAT hard, you just have to learn to play by the games rules.
Hell, if fucking DSP was able to finish it then anyone can.
Serpico's Beard believe me, DSP is better at games than he let's on. What he does is suck for views.
@Cthulhu
it is smart to use a Dumb Persona to keep his content interesting...
but it takes a Smart Person to impersonate a Dumb one.
Serpico's Beard He couldn't beat the first boss of The Old Hunters tho
Then again if he ended up getting to, let alone beating Orphan I think the world would implode
He may be able to dumb his way through most things, but that DLC, and especially that boss is not one of those things
It's "hard" but fair, like godhand. You can technically do everything without being hit, I believe.
It's not "hard" but it feels hard for modern gamers because you are likely to die a lot, and that puts many people off. The punishment for death is low enough to not bug me but high enough to create tension in dangerous situations. I fucking love the game.
I mean a truly hard game would be something like a quarter eater like mad dog mcree or something, dark souls is more like easy to play but impossible to master.
Someone did finish a no-hit run of Dark Souls, so it is possible.
Super Bunnyhop is my favorite channel on youtube right next to Angryjoe and ProJared :P Awesome work dude!
Petkuhuiputtaja that aged badly.
This is probably the best video on Dark Souls as a piece of art out there, and maybe the best Dark Souls video in general. Your channel is awesome, keep up this hell of a good work man.
It shows that you put a lot of time into your videos, in-depth analysis in an entertaining way
Still probably my favorite game ever. So hype for the third one. I only picked it up a little under a year ago in a steam sale, and that was thanks to EpicNameBro and Vaatividya. See, I'd heard about Bloodborne and how much everyone liked it, and I was almost immediately captivated by everything about it. The lore, the gameplay, the weapons, the animations, the atmosphere, the graphics. I didn't have a PS4 so I needed to vicariously experience it through ENB, and get as much lore explanation as I could from Vaati. While I waited for his lore videos I watched some of his older stuff, a few videos of which I had already seen a while before, and came to the conclusion that I needed to experience Dark Souls for myself. So when a sale came around I did. And it was one of the best, most captivating experiences I've ever had. It helped that I got it near the start of summer so I could devote an ungodly amount of time to it every day.
I completely agree with your statement on majoras mask I always say dark souls is similar to zelda
Thats half the reason so many people like dark souls. that sense of exploration of exploration and discovery is just wonderful
cameron ImNotGivingMyLastNameToYou It's basically the "darker, more mature, less linear, more difficult, harkening back to the original LoZ, but filled with supporting character-driven sidequests a la Majora's Mask" Zelda game that fans have been asking for since at least Wind Waker.
Nnenna Monet It's like LoZ's older brother, a game intended for those who grew up with LoZ, but mechanically and narrativly deeper and slightly more complex. it also has a hint of DnD stat based mechanics to appeal to those who enjoy crafting their own character.
It's a lot like a Zelda. Except with more stats and without any environmental puzzles.
This video put into words what I couldn't describe before. It helped me with setting into a mindset not only about Dark Souls but life itself. And I want to thank you for this. I've come back to this video a number of times throughout the years and always came out bolstered. Praise the Bunnyhop.
this reupload is just a reason for me to watch this great review of one of the best games of all time again. love your work x)
Also the link to chests and corpses with items, you can drop items fine on the ground to share with your invaders or co-op friends or just to be rid of them. I think it's just that everything not stuck in chests or in use by people have just been pillaged already long ago.
I'd like to see a critical close up for Dark souls 2 and 3 as well, and even BloodBorne (though I've understand if you feel as though you covered enough with this)
A lot of the elements in these games are very much the same, so there'd be a lot of repetition. Additionally, I don't think he could speak with the same reverence of those titles, especially DkS2. Perhaps Bloodborne, purely because of the ways it is different.
Tom I. hence why I said I understand him not doing it.
he already did bloodborne when he spoke about HP lovecraft and the game.
crazybongo5 That was more specifically the narrative and how it related to HP lovecraft's work, not including anything like level-design etc. (though now he has covered all of that in a massive video about the level design of the whole series including bloodborne, so I got what I wanted in the end.)
gotcha.
The Ash Lake music at the beginning got me hooked instantly.
4 years later still one of the best analysis I've seen for this game.
holy shit this video is amazing
the leveling mechanics and damage system work completely diffrerently than what is illustrated in this review. It's easy to see why it was incorrectly seen this way.
Also, you can speed up certain attacks by leveling dexterity to 45 points. This speeds up casting, removes stumbles from longer weapons (halbard class in particular), and if you look at weapon scaling, some scale better with dex or str, or even int/faith depending on enchantment.
So, if you don't look at ALL the stats, and figure them out, you'll never get the level adjustment figured out for some of the most powerful weapons in the game.
For instance, the difference between a bog-standard great scythe, and a +10 (NOT RAW) G. Scythe with high dex are simply insane (which makes this weapon on the of the best 'dex' weapons on the game, also the 45 dex will remove a stumble animation on misses...)
Dark Souls is incredibly deep in its leveling system, and someone who says that leveling has little to no effect fell into the trap of the Raw Weapon buff, or weapons that do not scale with stat. Conversely, magic damage and miracle damage can scale to an incredible degree with those stats. This is where your glass cannons come from.
3 year old comment but idgaf.
1.) Dex absolutely _does not_ negate built-in weapon stumble on whiffed r1's with Halberds and Greataxes. This is that awful kind of fake news (not that that term would have been used when this comment was written lmfao). This can be demonstrably proven incorrect within seconds but, if given the chance, it could sprout in the consciences of players too lazy to find the truth because the untruth they already know 'sounds right.' I hope to god no inexperienced soul in the past 3 years has seen this comment and tried, in their poor ignorance, to make a mace work on a dex build, wasting an ass load of time and resources because they're expecting an advantage that will never come.
2.) What _little_ the video said on damage stats _only_ implied that players would likely be better off upgrading weapons than leveling - which is supported by the math and the weapon's own snowballing upgrade systems, which begin to scale _better_ at higher upgrades in addition to the blanket increase in AR. Hence why one may reliably stunlock Ornstein (and/or Smough) with a ~+15 Battleaxe at SL1. Upgrades are more important than levels for AR. Both are required, but upgrades best of all. George is correct. It isn't responding to whatever you were saying, but you weren't responding to what he was saying so lol.
Hope the last 3 years have been kind to you. Take care, person who will never read this.
Man I'm hooked on his videos. It's just such thought out and intelligent reviews.
I enjoy watching your videos simply because it is quite clear you truly love the video gaming experience, and your content reflects this 100%. Good stuff!
...Fuck it. I'll watch this again.
I have mixed feelings about this. Some comments were insightful and showed that a good deal of thought was put into making this video. But then other comments were demonstrably false, and made me wonder how you could have missed what I found obvious. I guess that leads well into one of your main points, though: This is a game that requires cooperation to really get the best experience. Two people will perceive the game differently, and by sharing their knowledge they come to a greater understanding.
Your Critical Close-up inspired me to do my own Dark Souls video:
Dark Souls: The Exploration of Death
Keep up the good work!
wow, so I've been watching all the videos in chronological order from the beginning, and the production value just went through the roof right from the intro !
You got some real talent man. I love your videos. All of them. Can you tell me how you came up with the name super bunnyhop?
NO?! Thanks for being cool to your fans.. lol it's not like you have a hundred thousand subs and can't keep up with the comments.
I played the game as a mage and I didn't know much about leveling gear ( In fact I never did it ) so I'm playing against as a warrior and seeing how different gear upgrades make the game. Playing the game as a glass cannon was still super hard for me because I could literally get 1 shotted by a boss.
One Word: ZweiHander. Get this weapon as soon as possible, its not too far from firelink shrine and just destroys bosses.
bosses cannot 1 shot a player even when at sl1 with base health.
Enigmas The Anime Guy Um... What are you smoking? Bosses CAN one shot players, it just matters how you play or what your gear is.
My main character (SL175 on NG+++) Wears the Painting guardian set. I decide to take magic and fire defence instead of physical defence, but this leave me at one shots. I have got one shot countless times and I have quite a ton of VIT.
Jacob Foote To clarify I mean on NG no boss can 1 shot you, a combo is not a 1 shot. A boss can combo you to death but a single hit cannot 1 shot.
It matters about your build. 6 VIT could get you 1 shot from Gywn on NG. Much like the original comment, glass cannons get 1 shot rather often. Because they replace health for damage.
You had me at the Majora's Mask comparisons. Good find!
I would say you summed the first game up in a spectacular way that I feel you were right on the money with every point. I spent 3 years straight playing this game so I can listen to this video and confirm that everything is valid and I am now a fan of your reviews. More close-ups of the other Soulsborne games would be pretty sweet,but I honestly think you captured the Soulsborne series as a whole with just this one video. Thanks and Good Luck in blowing away our expectations.
Walks up to fire keeper to level up flask.
*DEAD*
[OK]
; _ ;
What an amazing break down of a truly unique! Onward to dark souls 3!!!
3 was a letdown to me.
Really? I thought three was a great combination of the whole series
*****
way to easy for me. did three playthroughs .gamemode ,plus,plus 2 in 60 hours. didnt care for the no armor upgrading either .my least favorite of the series
No offence is meant by this comment, I just want to ask; could this simply be because (since you've probably played both 1 and 2, possible bloodborne, possibly demon's souls) you've become very experienced with this type of game now, and your experience with this type of game is making it too easy?
Doomcat1066
the first time i play any of these games it takes me a while. i dont look through wikis or maps ect. ds3 took me no time at all..it just seemed way to easy
This is the one essay I come back to from time to time to remind myself that there's sense and beauty in the struggle. This is also one of the best videos shattering the "easy mode or bust" argument.
Loved not only the analysis here, but your actual setup and editing with the intro with footage from the game....simply marvelous. You should try Demons Souls too, it is my favorite of the series (tough as nails too) but really rewarding.
Guess we can expect a DS2 review once the PC version arrives too
'Nuance' is this guy's favourite word I swear
Campy, adorable, schlock, janky, juxtaposition and comparison are some of his other favourites
My theory. I think the proper ending to the game is where all character arcs (side quests) are completed.
*SPECULATION* Meaning that Solaire fights Gwyn along side you. If Solaire kindles the first flame, then YOU become the king of the new land.
In Dks2 they say Vendrick slayed the 4 "old ones" and took over. If that's the case then doing the proper ending to dks1 and naming your character Vendrick would make the most sense. Vendrick still becomes the king of men, but the age of fire continues. This would explain the sun shield having an image of Solaire on it, because nobody EXCEPT the Chosen Undead (Vendrick) would know who he is. This explains how people know about Pharis, or the name Havel.
Maybe I'm overthinking it. But this would explain a bunch of stuff if only it wasn't so far fetched.
What a fantastic critique of such a great game. Informational, compelling analysis, and very well-edited. Subscribed for sure
Since I didn’t see anyone mention it after briefly scrolling through the comments, the curse of the undead is a curse because when you cannot die, everything eventually losing meaning. If you cannot continue to find purpose, you go hollow, and it is only a matter of time until everyone loses purpose as you either complete all your goals or through yourself at an insurmountable goal until it breaks you. This is when the sense of self evaporates along with your memories and your sanity.
I wanted to ask this last time it was posted but... What is the music at 29:30? The 'Prepare to Live' music, is it from Dark Souls? I don't seem to remember it at all.
It's what plays when you place the lordvessel. I grabbed it out of a dump of the game's sound files, but you also might be able to get it by turning SFX all the way down during that cutscene.
Super Bunnyhop picked up both games after your critical closeup. man.. THANK YOU! 300 hours of my life well spent.
Also... Be wary of giant, but hole!
Jolly - Co-operation
+Kletterhase Be wary of giant, but hole! Try a plunging attack.
+Super Bunnyhop It's been a while, but any chance you remember how to find that track among the many hundreds of the game's audio files?
Goddamn you didn't change the curse part. It's a curse because after death you lose a little of your memories and a little of yourself. You feel the pain of the steel dessecrating your skin and the fire burning your bones, after you reappear you remember that and lose part of your sanity. After a long cicle of death and return you turn hollow, after you die as a hollow, you don't reborn.
That's still implied by what he says, and common sense really. It's the literal definition of purgatory.
Regular people perceive time and events differently as they get older; generally the longer you live the faster days and months pass you by. Things seem to fly by because most days in life are formulaic. People lose track of what day it is because days become a meaningless unit of time when you start pushing 70.
Just imagine the kind of shit that would happen to someone who lives hundreds of years. They'd go crazy before magic would get involved.
***** Also it's only a curse because of how powerful faction's viewed it
Nevermind the fact that pretty much everything other than the player respawns just as the player does. To say you finally and truly die when you're Hollow is both mechanically wrong and incorrect story-wise.
The player begins hollow, and respawns hollow when they die. You can only unhollow with Humanity, a finite resource only made infinite via repeated invasions into other parallel dimensions of Lordran similar to, but subtly different to your own Lordran.
The Darksign is STATED TO BE A CURSE in game. The curse of the undead is a terrible one, giving them immortality that does indeed slowly break their sanity and will to continue. The Undead in the Asylum and the New Londo Ruins simply stand around, awaiting another death. Most others continue vainly against their curse, truly unable to undo their fate: Infinite deaths in infinite worlds by infinite Chosen Ones.
You start at being undead, not hollow. Even a character says to you: "Don't you dare go hollow".
Humanity only restores your human form bro.
Sorry to burst your bubble, but I just did most of a Legend Never Dies run, and every bonfire said "Unhollow." The Chosen Undead is hollow, S/he's simply just not as hollow as the wailers of New Londo or the Asylum.
I clicked off of this video after a few seconds long ago because I wanted to see a video essay critique and got low quality footage of a nerd spouting a monologue in a graveyard down the block from his house. Finally caught back up with your channel and I'm glad I gave it another chance, your content is so intelligent and thought-provoking! Keep up the great work, George!
Good shit man. Speaking as a long time fan of the souls series, you have summed it up quite well, and found some interesting parallels that I hadn't thought of. Good work. This was worth the length of the video :).
As far as I know environmental story telling has been around since Metroid Prime (2002).
+PauLtus B But not many people know how to do it like Retro and Miyazaki do
Nep Nep I'm getting kinda tired of all the Dark Souls praise.
Well, there's a reason it gets so much praise--
It deserves it. I could go on about my short list of other masterpiece games if you like?
Nep Nep If you like. Metroid Prime's a masterpiece, but dramatically underplayed.
I'm pretty sure everyone with a GC has played Metroid Prime, and the general consensus is that it's amazing. I haven't played it in years, though.
Dark Souls is my favourite game, but before that it was Majora's Mask. I did see a connection before, but your comparison makes me think Dark Souls have taken a lot of inspiration from the Zelda games. Mind blown.
A surprisingly uplifting message at the end. Well done.
You blew my mind with the comparison to Gwyn's theme
Critical close up of majora's mask please. Pretty please. Pretty please with a cherry on top
you know whats up
It takes a lot of brains not to have lots of subscribers it seams. Fantastic video like all the others! thank you!
These are so good. I hope you find the time and to keep making them.
Wow, this is brilliant! Came here through the polaris podcast and this is your first video I've watched and it is incredibly good!
You can restore the Firekeeper's tongue?!
Polonium Fist Yeah I just found that out about an hour before watching this vid!
Polonium Fist Yes.
[Spoiler Talk Now]
After Lautrec kills her, you can get a Black Eye Orb. And the description of said orb tells you, that it is looking at Anor Lando. And if you enter the room before the boss room with Smough and Ornstein, it becomes usable.
You can now invade his world and kill him. Careful though, because he has friends too. He drops the Firekeeper's soul which allows you to resurrect her at her old place underneath the flame.
I don't blame you for not knowing that. Why would that even be possible? It doesn't work for other characters. It's weird.
I was more concerned with the lack of gratitude from the firekeeper, If I knew she was gonna be that ungrateful, then I would've used her soul to upgrade my flask
hayward213 My first thoughts were that she was brainwashed by the church. Along the lines of "Your mission is the most important thing you're ever going to do in your life." And her talking to people or being able to walk away would make things too complicated.
Now I'm not saying this because I wanna bash the church irl. It's just that the church in Dark Souls is evil.
Yup. And it's a lot of trouble to go through for her to spit out one line of dialogue and go back to the silent treatment, haha.
Glad to see this vid improved a lot from the original.
This is honestly one of the most interesting and entertaining videos I've watched in a quite a while. Consider me subscribed!
Your videos always amaze me! The amount of time and effort you put into them really shows! I'm so glad I found out about you from when you were on the co-optional podcast, and since then I have just been working my way through all your content. I can easily watch one of your half hour-plus videos and wish it was longer. There really isn't that many TH-camrs that I can say that about. Anyway I hope you will be coming out with some more longer length videos soon!
im super curious what 'aural decoy' error was Q_Q
For some reason, I said "alluring decoy" the first time. I don't know why it came out that way, none of the people I sent the script out to noticed, and it looked super dumb when a drove of commenters started tagging the error.
+Super Bunnyhop Is this out on steam? If not where can I download/buy it for my PC?
+slick trill Yep, it's on Steam. Look for "Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition". That includes both the base game and the DLC.
This is a really well put together video, but I am missing theBerserk references in it. A lot of the designs in the Souls games are very reminiscent of that manga, especially Artorias.
Vivi Orunitia So I love Berserk as well, but except for character ideas and the general artstyle, I have really had trouble connecting these two works artistically. Berserk and Dark Souls are trying to tell very different stories, Dark Souls about humanity's struggle to survive in a dying world, both physically and mentally, while Berserk is about human evil corrupting the world due to an inability to deal with hardship. I could almost say the two are in opposition, Souls games place Humanity as a lesser force within a great and terrible world, humans in Berserk are kind of the end all be all. There are similarities, but besides an unwillingness to give up, I can't really think of anything.
If you have any ideas as to why these two stories are worth comparing, I would love to hear it. I could always use more interesting looks at things that I love
BARMN89
I didn't really mean to compare them story- wise, it's just that the designs in the Souls games are very reminiscent of Berserk and other Dark Fantasy stories. I have only read a few volumes of the manga yet, so I can't really say in what way the stories of these titles are similar.
The witch Beatrice looks a lot like Schierke, Gwyndolin resembles Griffith, Artorias is essentially Guts in his dark armor, and some of the armor designs are also similar.
The Dark Sign is also something that appears in both stories. In Berserk, it makes everything around Guts want to kill him and drag him into Hell, while the Dark Sign in Dark Souls curses the MC to be a Hollow and be unable to die.
Also, Miyazaki himself admitted to be a big fan of Berserk and that he was partly inspired by it.
Vivi Orunitia I have trouble just saying that there are characters inspired by other characters means it is important to an analysis. Like there is little to say about stuff besides that it is a reference.
Take for instance the Moonlight Butterfly, it clearly shows a resemblance to the apostle Rosine. Now comparing these two kinda ends there, with little to say about either. I could see an interesting comparison between Artorias and friends and Guts and friends, because that influence references back to similar character relationships, like Ciaran and Casca's affection for Artorias and Guts respectively.
Also while Gwyndolin may look like Griffith, fun fact, Ornstein is actually referred to in the games code as Griffith, and would a more interesting comparison as he was the leader of the group of knights Artorias was a part of. :3
So while I see that there is references, I guess I just have trouble seeing the point most of the time. I think they are neat and cool, but overall probably don't need mentioning in an analysis of Dark Souls.
Great video. The part about how the multiplayer aspect changes the whole feel of the game is something I've been trying to articulate since Dark Souls 2 came out and I got to play one of these with actual WORKING multi for the first time in the series. Really enjoyed the explanation on how much thought went into making it feel the right kind of hard too.
Also Sanic Speedo is a legit character name.
You quickly became one of my favorite youtube channels. Happy they had you on the podcast.
Afak hollows don't gain ability to die permanently by going too hollow. The only way for hollow to die for good is to kindle a bonfire with themselves, be it the first flame or the bonfires. This is why you have So Many super old undead around, none find true death. The non-respawning thing is as far as I understand a gameplay mechanic and not tied to the lore. Making things less obnoxious and giving some sense of progress.
Incorrect, once someone Hollows completely, the next time they die they're gone. All the undead you encounter in Lordran have already died a number of times.
Nothing in the lore supports that tho, it in fact states the opposite where anything related to it is mentioned.
Read the description of a homeward-bone its the bone of an undead that hollowed and eventually died.
Homeward bone description only speaks of them being torched in the bonfires, not just any dead.
Bone fragment reduced to white ash.
Return to last bonfire used for resting.
Bonfires are fueled by the BONES OF THE UNDEAD.
In rare cases, the strong urge of their previous owner's
to seek bonfires enchants their bones with a homeward instinct.
18:52
Unlike the real world with it various religions, it is inappropriate to call it a creation _myth_ in this game, because the game has told us it is true.
22:28
Not true. You can put down items yourself, or pick up items that other players have dropped for you.
Zedek He's talking about where items are found within the game, not by players, in a PVP online setting.
Yu Narukami Alright man, earlier he uses Oscar as an example to show that the people in this world need to use corpses or chests to set down items. Even in offline mode, when you're playing completely alone, your character has the capability to set down items. You, the player, are very much a part of the game, your character is within the game.
Your character is also undead, and your character _can_ interact with items that are _outside_ of a body or chest. This also happens with Snuggly the crow, who you set down items for, log out of the game and log back in, and then Snuggly has set down a _new_ item for you. Sorry man, the vid's hypothesis doesn't check out. Right here, I have both the undead player interacting with items, and an NPC putting items on the ground with the knowledge that the undead player can/will interact with it.
Zedek isn't everyone undead though?
Zedek maybe it has to do with ownership and permission, you are not allowed to take that has not been given, (not per se to you), with corpses and chests being testaments of ownership which you overtake and the crow reserves it for you
Yeah that segment on where to collect items is a bit overreaching. Not every mechanic in a game has to have some deep lore tied behind it. That you can only collect items from a few areas I just think was a choice of game design to keep a certain system simple and consistent. If it's lore-based at all I'd say the corpses merely represent unfortunate adventurers who succumbed to the hazards of the world and here you get to pick whatever belongings they held on their carcasses (that's how the Undead Merchant in the Burg goes about his business anyway, neh heh heh heh heh!). The placement of some of the bodies is interesting and even tell stories in of themselves, no matter how little. Like the binoculars you find in the graveyard, it's at the edge of a cliff. Probably someone doing some sight-seeing of the distant mountain vistas when suddenly they got an unpleasant wake-up call from the nearby skeleton army. Or the princess you rescue from the golden golem at Darkroot Basin. She was trapped for god-knows-how-long, and after being freed, her spirit remained, able to be summoned, but her belongings you find on a corpse in the area you fought the golem. The remains of her physical body? And some stranger ones yet, like the outfit you collect that triggers the Ceaseless Discharge boss battle. Maybe there's an explanation for it but what about that outfit in particular sets him off so much when before he was a passive, giant ugly lava monster standing around leaving you be, I dunno, that's an interesting one to look up, that one definitely seems deliberate somehow, the fact that they have the monster already there facing you before the fight even starts seems proof positive to me there's something going on there.
An absolute beautiful prose on the nuances of Dark Souls...
Masterful and well thought out.
This video is so good! I've watched it multiple times. Looking forward to your opinion on Elden Ring.