Topic: Dark Souls (Read 43629 times)

Smiler · « **Reply #500 on:** September 04, 2012, 01:22:09 PM »

Trying to make a sunbro, but the sunlight altar won't talk to me. COME ON I NEED MY FIX.

Praise the Pidgeon Man

Beat Bandit · « **Reply #501 on:** September 04, 2012, 02:00:52 PM »

25 faith - 5 for each area boss you clear as a white phantom. It's possible I just used to be a nice guy, but I could've sworn it used to be any phantom-based interaction.

Smiler · « **Reply #502 on:** September 04, 2012, 03:00:46 PM »

I thought you could interact with the altar even before you have the requirements.

François · « **Reply #503 on:** September 04, 2012, 05:05:27 PM »

Quote from: http://www.metro.co.uk/tech/games/910110-dark-souls-interview-hard-master

[Dark Souls Director Hidetaka Miyazaki]:"I personally want my games to be described as satisfying rather than difficult. As a matter of fact, I am aiming at giving players sense of accomplishment in the use of difficulty."

On this first playthrough for me, for the most part the game hasn't been really difficult ever since I returned from Blighttown; before that point I was still learning mechanics, and I wasn't really sure about what kind of character I was building. In any case, the Moonlight Butterfly, Sif and Pinwheel fell on the first try. The Iron Golem and the Hydra killed me once, Smough and Ornstein killed me twice. I really don't say this to try to brag. Even now I know I couldn't hold a candle to the skills of series veterans like you most of you guys. But I think this is the result of my cautious nature and general tendency to aim to be crazy prepared to an almost Batmanesque level; it seems like what I like to do in video games is a perfect fit with what you need to do in this one.

So I understand what Miyazaki is saying. I may not have had much trouble with these encounters, but I felt the danger. There were close calls. I had to analyze my foes and take risks calculated on the fly. When I won, I felt like I accomplished something. I earned satisfaction. Dark Souls doesn't talk down to me; it respects my skill by challenging me to exercize it and rewarding me with success when I do.

There is a prevalent sentiment that Dark Souls is good because it kills you a zillion times, but I think the broader picture is that it's good because it's not afraid to kill you a zillion times. It's not worried about hurting your feelings and doesn't pull punches. And when it does kill you, you know it's your fault. You didn't notice that pressure plate on the floor, underestimated a foe, did not dodge in time, took unreasonable risks, did not prepare sufficiently.

"I personally want my games to be described as satisfying rather than difficult". Mission accomplished, good sir.

DestyNova · « **Reply #504 on:** September 04, 2012, 05:07:13 PM »

Quote from: Smiler on September 04, 2012, 08:43:02 AM

Dark Souls Trolling/Dual Talisman Invasions-輪唱 / デュアルタリスマン侵略

Of course they don't know the dozen+ times they get smashed by those who have played more than a month.

DestyNova · « **Reply #505 on:** September 04, 2012, 05:10:27 PM »

I agree with Francos, but I have noticed that one of the aims; Having people pick a weapon they like and master it gets tossed by the wayside due to the overwhelming power of backstabs. If Perhaps backstabbing was limited to weapons like rapiers,daggers and short swords there would be more attempts at mastery. As it stands it is mostly LOLZaphander.

François · « **Reply #506 on:** September 04, 2012, 05:37:43 PM »

For my part I hardly ever backstab, I found it's a whole lot easier to bait attacks and punish them with a couple well-placed Zweihander swings from appropriate distance. At first I wasn't sure whether I could stand the speed of it after getting used to the faster Claymore but practice really really paid off and it's been what's carrying me with relative ease for a while now. In fact, if I'm dealing with multiple foes, getting an accidental backstab kind of bugs me because the animation just makes the fight take longer.

That said I'm building a tank who puts on elite knight armor and havel boots when he feels like traveling light, so intentionally aiming for backstabs just isn't in my mental arsenal much.

patito · « **Reply #507 on:** September 04, 2012, 06:31:46 PM »

You have like the exact weapon progression I did, claymore into zweihander, also using elite knight armor.

Also, it is to my understanding that the last patch made enemies drop twice as many souls as before, so leveling up is rather easier in the current state of the game, I've had no need for grinding but I do feel somewhat overleveled at ever stage of the game. The game's still really fun though, and even if I'm not dying it's because I'm being careful.

The problem is that people have misunderstood the entire game, dark souls isn't and has never been a hard game. It's a game all about enemy placement and using the environment to the advantage of the enemies whenever possible, and as long as you remember this you'll do fine as well.

With this whole talk about adding an easy mode I totally agree with that idea. Though really the game has always been as hard as you let it be, not because the game wants to be hard. To me, if you level up past SL1 you're playing an easier difficulty already.

François · « **Reply #508 on:** September 04, 2012, 08:03:53 PM »

I've had that feeling of being overleveled, definitely. But I've had a couple moments when it's like, I'm going through Undead Burg because I'm at Firelink Shrine and I want to go to Darkroot Basin. And I think, this'll be quick and easy. Then I get surrounded by early game trash mobs and cut to pieces in five seconds.

The game caught me slipping, tripped me up because I wasn't paying attention, and reminded me to keep my guard up at all times. And I was happy to oblige.

One may think one has earned the lion's obedience, but its body is strong, its teeth are sharp, and a king is not so easily cowed.

Stush · « **Reply #509 on:** September 04, 2012, 10:06:32 PM »

I don't get where you guys get this idea that the game isn't hard, I've gotten killed about 8 times this morning in the first part of blight town, twice by invaders, once because I got toxin and had firebombs equipped rather than estus flasks, and like 5 times by getting knocked over the edge by the big guys with the clubs.

If it was any other game, I would have given up by now, but i'll come back in a bit and make it through that area with no trouble at all. Whenever you're having a hard time, you can always just take a break and come back later and you'll be able to pass it.

I don't really like the idea of adding in difficulty levels, because I feel like the games are already really balanced, and if you add in different difficulty levels, you have to rebalance every enemy in the game, it's a lot of work for probably not all that much benefit. Anyone can play dark souls, it's difficult, but you can pick it up with time and persistance. I'm really bad at the game, but i've finished both dark souls and demon's souls, it feels really rewarding when you accomplish stuff in this game, too.

François · « **Reply #510 on:** September 04, 2012, 11:04:01 PM »

Yeah, you're right, from almost any angle this game is brutal. I guess the heart of my point is that it's not good because it's hard*, it's good because it's good. (As silly as that sounds.) For all the time I've been hearing about the series since Demon's Souls was released, the impression I had as an outsider looking in, without a current gen console, is that the games were defined by their difficulty. But here we are, I'm at a spot where I'm having steady and rapid progress, you're at a spot where the game is proving extremely challenging**, and we're clearly both having amazing experiences. So my impression, and perhaps apprehension, for all this time, has been unfounded. And I'm very glad for it.

*: Not that this is a point that anyone in here would be trying to make, it's more of a general impression.
**: I'm fairly confident everything after Blighttown has seemed so easy for me in large part because I struggled in that putrid crevice for so long. If you had asked me if I was having an easy time back then I woulda said no, without reserve. I went back down there for a bit recently to farm Large Titanite Shards off leeches, looked for a moment at all the giants that I had entirely avoided the first time through, and thought "err, yeah, no, maybe next time".

Stush · « **Reply #511 on:** September 05, 2012, 04:29:41 AM »

Oh, I agree totally, the games are good because they're made with so much love, and everything's so well made, I think the challenge is still a big part of why people love it so much, I mean, When I played fable 3, I just gave up because I realised I was doing nothing but mashing the attack button for most of it and I was just getting bored as hell. And there's so much stuff, there's always something new to try or find, even after hundreds of hours of play.

It makes me think of this theory I heard about why people like chili, It's because after all the burning, the relief afterwards feels so good. Dark souls like, keeps just pissing me off so much that I want to quit, but I always come back because the good moments feel really good.

Beat Bandit · « **Reply #512 on:** September 05, 2012, 04:37:36 PM »

Streaming again.

Got a decent microphone and trying to work out the levels. So join me as I try to get the lordvessel while gaining as few levels as I can manage.

http://www.twitch.tv/beatbandito

patito · « **Reply #513 on:** September 08, 2012, 12:48:42 AM »

So I made a gravelord, with the plan to troll around sen's fortress eventually.

I'm level 25 and haven't gotten around to ringing the second bell, but I'm at a good level to do gravelord stuff in the depths, but I only had one successful connection and the guy gave up looking for me even though I was standing by the bonfire near the slimes. I'd say it wasn't very succesful but who knows, maybe I made some guys so miserable they were unable to even reach the save point to face me.

I went back to undead burg because I figured why not, may catch an overleveled newbie or an overleved guy who's trollilng for newbies, since at this point I can still catch people at around level 13 there. It was a very successful run!

With a single eye I got two red phantoms, obviously people hunting newbies, one of which did laps around the level trying to get the undead to kill me, to no avail, but he did distract me enough to make his escape up that really long ladder by the beginning, I went back in the direction to the merchant to try to intercept him, but he suddenly died, don't know if it was the poison or maybe he just did a backflip into a pit. The second guy didn't actually try to run, so he put up a fight, not for long though.

The two blue phantoms though were the fun part, I got one who was probably on a new character but still knew what he was doing, since he started doing laps much like the first red phantom trying to get the undead to kill me. Again that didn't work, but while I was distracted with the undead and while he made his escape up the ladder another blue phantom invaded. I made my way back around the merchant and found a well equipped blue phantom approaching. After an intense battle and a backstab that did no damage from the first guy, the second guy positioned himself to ruin my day. Wasn't able to kill any blue phantoms in that run but it was the most fun.

Beat Bandit · « **Reply #514 on:** September 11, 2012, 04:26:54 PM »

More stream, same link, better audio.

http://www.twitch.tv/beatbandito

François · « **Reply #515 on:** September 12, 2012, 12:23:32 PM »

Welp, completed the game. A Zweihander +15 allowed me to take out almost every boss I had left in one try. ([spoiler]Lost to Gwyn and Seath a couple times, and Bed of Chaos took me a few tries before I figured out what the final step was.[/spoiler]) Final armor set was Elite Knight Helm +3, Silver Knight Armor, Silver Knight Gauntlets, and Havel's Leggings, with a Black Iron Shield +10. I feel kind of dumb now for not using up more titanite than I did; I think I got like 20 twinkling stockpiled and who knows how much of the other stuff. I got invaded a bunch of times in the final stretch but the one guy whom I didn't manage to straight up chop in half fell to a stockpile of regular firebombs.

It turns out I missed out a few areas entirely (Lake of Ash I think?) and didn't touch the Prepare to Die content. Didn't expect the end to throw me straight into NG+ like that, but that's more stuff to look forward to in the replay. I might start an Int/Dex guy though; I haven't touched sorceries yet and I'd like know how the game feels as an agile character instead of an immovable object with an eight foot sword.

So, all in all, that game was worth the wait.

DestyNova · « **Reply #516 on:** September 12, 2012, 05:20:39 PM »

Congrats. The whole NG+ thing has even been spun into the lore.(Don't know if it is offical or just fan-made)

Ash Lake is worth visiting at least once. The devnotes said that they wanted to go even DEEPER underground.

Beat Bandit · « **Reply #517 on:** September 23, 2012, 06:25:46 PM »

Next time you want to find and murder the invader that ruined your day, just think of me.

Because it probably was.

DestyNova · « **Reply #518 on:** September 23, 2012, 06:34:54 PM »

If you go human in the catacombs I would be glad to invade and say hi. (ID Granolaeater)

Bal · « **Reply #519 on:** September 23, 2012, 09:31:41 PM »

That's not, like, an international leaderboard or anything, you know, it functions off of the same "proximity" system as all the multiplayer functions.

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Author Topic: Dark Souls (Read 43629 times)