Hey everybody, my name is Dave Jackson, and this is Tales from the Backlog, a video games podcast where I will bring in guests to talk about the games we play My guest today is a good friend, the artist behind this podcast’s cover art, and the actual furtive Pygmy, Jack Allen Today we’ll be talking about Dark Souls- an action rpg developed by FromSoftware and published by Namco Bandai Games in 2011. Elevator pitch for Dark Souls- difficult but fair combat with great exploration and an opaque story. But before that, what else have you been playing lately? Ok, let’s get into today’s focus, Dark Souls. There will be a spoiler section at the end of the show where we will discuss the story, sparsely told as it is, and specific experiences with levels and bosses. Our histories with the game- What interested us in this game? I played Dark Souls for the first time back in 2013 or so, and it absolutely captured my imagination. It was such an amazing, magical experience the first time….until I got to Capra Demon. I got so mad I quit and didn’t play again for 6 months. But I got the itch to go back to it, looked up a little bit on making a proper build (more on this later), and it really kicked off my love of FromSoftware’s games. Since then I’ve played Dark Souls 2 and 3, Sekiro, Bloodborne twice, the Demon’s Souls remake, and even King’s Field 4! When did we play, on what platform- Maybe around 2013? I don’t remember exactly what year but I do remember what house I lived in. Play time- Probably around 100 hours over 2 full playthroughs. And my first playthrough that ended at Capra Demon. Basics of how the game works, key mechanics, what makes this game stand out? Rules of Dark Souls Thou shalt ignore gatekeepers- must solo every boss, must be naked with dragon tooth, fuck that Thou shalt send the elevator back down Thou shalt dodge forward Thou shalt smack every treasure chest Thou shalt approach every corner cautiously Our experiences the first time. Fighting asylum demon, Going in the graveyard, finding undead burg, etc. Combat and difficulty Difficulty? Jack? Deliberate combat, you absolutely must be aware of what enemies are doing, button mashing will get you killed. All enemies are readable with predictable or learnable attacks. And at least in this game, most of the attacks are slow. They hit really hard but most are easily avoidable if you take the time to pay attention and learn. Combat- depends on your character - Jack what’s your play style? Most people will end up playing a melee build of some kind Stamina management and baiting enemy attacks and reacting is key. This is not a game where you should be on the offensive unless you’re sure you can stunlock an enemy (against mooks you can) Circle strafing is king. Backstabs! Blocking with a shield is very effective in DS1 and I encourage new players to use a shield. Don’t let the naked giants club gatekeepers dissuade you. Parrying- not for me Dodging- I Frames and equip load Ranged classes use magic, 3 kinds, or bows Magic does not use MP in dark souls 1, each spell has a specific number of uses. Status effects- poison, bleed, toxic, curse Bosses In this game, generally slow with big long windups, generally very learnable. Mostly very challenging at first but once youlearn them, pretty satisfying Can summon (and should! Don’t listen to gatekeepers! It’s built into the game for a reason!) Tier list bonus episode coming. Soulslike elements- kind of weird to explain like I did in Hollow Knight and Death’s Gambit episodes, because this is the game that the others are iterating on. Stamina management Death system When you die you lose your souls and also turn into hollowed form When hollow, no summoning, no invasions When human, can summon and be invaded. Secondary currency called Humanity, as seen by the number in the top left of the screen having higher humanity also provides resistances and buffs to various stats Estus Get more flasks by turning in fire keeper souls that you find Bonfires Full heal, recharge estus, but enemies respawn with very few exceptions Can fast travel later in the game Level ups, attuning spells, etc Storytelling- indirect, via item descriptions Asynchronous multiplayer Orange soapstone messages Summoning Jack? Invading Jack You can also see phantoms of other players moving through the world, touch bloodstains to see how other players died (funny when there is a trolling message), and hear when other players ring the bells of awakening Obtuse NPC quests My one big problem with From’s design philosophy- relying on community to do work for them. It feels like they think “we can make these totally fucked up npc quests or hide trainers/merchants in fucking weird locations” because the community will figure it out and share it around. Same for how to access the DLC (that people paid for once upon a time!) RPG Spend souls to level up one of your 8 stats. For new players, some helpful advice is to find the stats you need to equip the weapon you want to use, achieve that, add points into VIT and END for more health and stamina Resistance is a trap, you’ll get resistances for leveling up. Lots of good character build options, at least 3 types of magic builds, then 3 or 4 other “classic” build types. Jack how did you build your characters or what were some fun builds? Weapon upgrades are generally worth more than stat upgrades, though you do need to do both Some people claim that armor doesn’t matter (fashion souls) but I disagree Level design Famous for interconnected open levels With some exceptions, many levels loop back to firelink shrine, the hub, in some way. Great moments where you take an unknown elevator or passage and the firelink music starts Levels are often centered around one bonfire, sometimes two or three, with shortcuts that you open up as you play. Finding a shortcut is one of the best rewards for exploration Exploration is very very good. Rewards are often good, sometimes you’ll find huge rewards like fire keeper souls or weapons. Sometimes shortcuts or even whole entire levels. Levels are visually distinct and shortcuts are so memorable that, while you don’t get a map, you don’t often need one. Mental mapping is pretty natural. Story setup/setting Jack did you grasp the story while you were playing? Takes place in the kingdom of Lordran Dragons once ruled the land, a primordial fire called The First Flame was kindled, and four beings find “Lord Souls” around the first flame. Gwyn Nito The witch of izalith Furtive pygmy (so easily forgotten) These are shown to you in the opening cutscene This begins the age of fire, the “normal world” where humans thrive, but the age of fire is coming to an end. You play as the cursed undead, a nameless undead character who is tossed into the undead asylum, labeled by the darksign, which causes them to live forever and resurrect indefinitely until they eventually lose their mind, which is called “hollowing”. An NPC in the asylum tells you to ring the bell of awakening (there are actually 2, thanks depressed soldier at firelink) That’s all the story setup you get, so we will save the rest for the spoiler section I do not pick up on story much, and without the help of videos and podcasts dedicated to the lore, I would still not know any of the specifics beyond the opening cutscene. Visuals and music Famously no music during the levels, only in boss fights. Firelink shrine is an exception, love that track. Boss fight music is usually big and bombastic, though there are lots more reserved boss tracks in this game, when compared with DS3 and Bloodborne. Areas are visually distinct, which is really important since there is no map Environmental storytelling, often with how corpses are placed, what items you get from them, etc DLC- Artorias of the Abyss Travel back in time, Gives more story on the titular Knight Artorias, whose wolf buddy Sif you encounter in the base game. Accessing the DLC is hidden (again, I hate this) so you should probably look up how to do it. Overall very good. A few fun bosses, one horrible boss, and then the best boss fight in the game IMO. And a fun level to explore. Final thoughts, Do we recommend? At what price point? If you know yourself and you know that you’re not patient, that you’re not in for the process, I understand how DS can be frustrating and end up not being any fun. But if you trust yourself or want to give it a shot anyway, this game has almost transcended video game circles for a reason- it’s imo one of the best games ever made, and is in part responsible for AAA game developers realizing that your games don’t have to be incredibly easy in order to be a success. FromSoft has gone on to win game of the year awards with arguably harder games, we can give gamers some credit, like I said in the Disco Elysium episode. But in addition to the challenge, this game boasts an addictive and almost infinitely replayable exploration and combat-based gameplay, with a story with lots to dig in to if you so choose. It’s a game that anyone who enjoys action games should play, it’s required reading. Housekeeping - Thank you for listening! If you want to support the show, please subscribe on your platform of choice, leave us a rating and review if your platform allows it, and spread the good word! I also do a podcast called A Top 3 Podcast, where each week we pick a topic, pick our top 3s in that topic, and discuss. It’s a good time, so check that out if you want to hear us talk about other subjects. SPOILER WALL Will not be going through the story beat by beat, will not be focusing on every boss, there is too much for this show and frankly this type of storytelling is the type that I just vibe with instead of going deep into the lore. Instead, there will be a boss tier list episode! Ringing the bells in the parish/blighttown Blighttown experiences? Sen’s fortress? Linear until after Anor Londo Anor Londo lights out. Did you find the painted world? Order of four lord souls after getting the lordvessel? New Londo ruins (four kings), Duke’s Archives (seath), Tomb of the Giants (Nito), Lost Izalith (bed of chaos) Gwyn sacrificed himself to prolong the age of fire, but it’s coming to an end again Gwyn fight. Plin plin plin. Gwyn is almost pathetic, withered, a shell of what he used to be, what you saw in the cutscene. Jack do you snuff the flame or kindle it? Dark souls will find something that gives you trouble- First play through boss walls- Capra Demon, Ornstein and Smough, Four Kings, Gwyn (no parrying for me), Manus, Quelaag, basically all of them? Second play through boss walls- O&S, Manus, fuck Manus, seriously. Bonus Boss rush episode coming later this week!