I suppose the Souls franchise is mostly known for its difficulty, which is a damn shame if you ask me.  The thing it should be known for in my opinion is how it handles its lore. Very few games throw you off into the deep end with next to no explanation like a Souls game will.  Most, if not all the NPC’s you find during your struggle will likely offer very little insight into any of the crazy shit happening around you, and will instead utter bizarre almost riddle like clues to where you should go next, if you’re lucky. The lore is hidden in the descriptions of every item. This means that every time you die, and you will die frequently, you will gather knowledge of your surroundings and the enemies you face, thus enriching the experience without the need to shove endless cut scenes or dialogue sequences down your throat, almost as refreshing as a cold beer on a hot summer’s day.

The problem with its difficulty is that for most seasoned Souls vets, the Souls games stopped being hard after the first game, Demon’s Souls, as most of the difficulty is derived from the element of surprise.  Once you make the realization that things that look too good to be true usually are and have nasty surprises in the form of huge boulders or floors that cave in, just waiting for you. After that you tend to play a lot more conservatively, nullifying many of the ‘Oh God! How did I not see that coming…’ moments.  I guess that is actually my main gripe with the Souls games. When Demon’s Souls came out, it was exactly what the game industry needed to break away from the tedium of stale and dated concepts, sequels and games that were generally just too easy. Here was a game that was not afraid to punish the player, to not hold his or her hand every step of the way, like a mother grasps onto her child the very first day of school. This made it one of the most rewarding games to play, and overcome. The feeling of accomplishment when you finally beat the Tower Knight, or whoever was your first hurdle is beyond anything experienced in any video game.

Dark Souls came out a few years later, and felt like a slightly streamlined version of Demon’s Souls. It was an excellent game that built on the core of the first game, while still managing to be both exciting and surprising, taking many of the ideas found in the first game and ramping them up to ten. Dark Souls 2 on the other hand, just shouldn’t exist. I’m not saying it’s a bad game, far from it in fact. What I mean to say is that Dark Souls 2 was the start of the Souls series becoming exactly what it set out to destroy, a stream of tired sequels, endlessly plugging the same ideas with fresh new coat of paint. Bloodborne was a brief rise back to top and is the true third Souls game. I could spend hours talking about that game. Play it if you haven’t already.

So, Dark Souls 3. I’m not even sure how I actually feel about it. I’m torn. As a Souls game is a tad predictable, and thus quite mediocre, but even a mediocre Souls game is better than most other games on the market. It kind of boils down to this, if you have never played a Souls game before, this one is a great place to start. Many of the weird design choices present in other Souls games have been ironed out, making the whole experience a much more user friendly one. Your journey will still be tough and arduous though, you will just have slightly less things to worry about. If you have played any of the Souls games, with the exception of just 2, you might feel just a bit disappointed.

Everything feels so familiar. But as I said, even a disappointing Souls game, it is better than most, and oh so welcome in this drought of quality single-player experiences. And who cares, you have probably bought it anyway. The gameplay is still top notch, as is the level and enemy design. I just had higher hopes for Miyazaki’s final Souls game.

This one didn’t turn out so funny, but some things you just don’t joke about, like cancer, or Metal Gear Solid V.

8.5/10