Okay, let’s settle another debate via the medium of ‘poll’.
There are currently three ‘Souls’ games: Demon’s Souls, Dark Souls and Dark Souls II. Which one is best?
(I’m just gonna put it out there and spoil this poll by saying that I think Dark Souls is the best one, but there are crazy people out there who prefer Dark Souls II!)
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35 responses to “The Big Question: The Best ‘Souls’ Game”
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver *runs*
Oi! Get back here and take the lashes you know you deserve.
That’s a goodun
Soul Caliber!
Soul Bubbles.
Soul Train. No?
If Demon’s Souls is in there, surely Bloodborne should be, too? I spent a lot more time with Dark Souls Ii purely because I didn’t come to it as late as the first game. I’m yet to finish Demon’s Souls.
I think III is gonna top them all though.
I agree. Despite the attempts to change up the formula, Bloodborne is still very much a Souls game.
Yep, I would say it’s the best Souls game out. Though Dark Souls III looks to be pretty good too
Anyone hyped for Dark Souls 3? I’m cautiously optimistic. Although I will totally wait for the edition that comes with the DLC. Served me well for the first two games.
Played the demo at PAX and got up to the first boss (which no one else seemed to have done in from my watching). Was fun. Very soulsy. I’m keen as beans. I miss being able to block (LOOKING AT BLOODBOURNE)
Did you get to play around with the weapon arts much? I’m curious to see how much of a crutch they’d be for boss fights. More importantly, does rolling have i-frames?
Definitely still i-frames in rolls, but I died too quickly (twice. I played like garbage.) to really get a feel for the dodge, to tell length, etc.
To be honest I was shocked there was a boss fight. After watching everyone play, all we were seeing was the same areas, baddies and people dying to a giant slime type normal mob on the roof. After killing that and playing a bit further into a giant cathedral type area the boss jumped down and i was like AHH SHIT! I’d wasted most of my estus flasks previously and didn’t get that big a turn on it. The boss didn’t seem that hard but I was just using a normal shield/sword type combo. Didn’t get a chance to play with the weapon arts stuff.
Keen.
Even if it’s not Ds1 stellar it will still be worthwhile fun I imagine.
I haven’t played demon’s souls. While I liked Dark Souls, the capra demon fight really tarnished my enjoyment of that game and I never felt enthralled enough to finish it. DSII I’ve finished multiple times, mostly because when I died I knew it was completely my fault, DSI there seemed to be more unavoidable deaths. The interconnectedness of DSI craps all over the level design from DSII, by all rights the first game should be my better pick, but I just can’t enjoy it. So DSII gets my vote until dark souls 3 arrives
See, I felt the complete opposite with Ds and Ds2. Capara was a jerk but you always knew what killed you and why. Each death was a learning experience.
Ds2… was just full of cheap,lazily designed encounters and dick moves.
Where’s King’s Field? ^_-
I own them all & Dark Souls is the only one I actually finished. Something about the interconnected world kept me interested.
Soulcalibur!
Easy. Demons was a great first run but needed work.
Ds2 was good but the makers did not fully understand what made it’s predecessors great.
Dark Souls had the polish and fine tuning off the back of Demons’ basics and had an amazing balance and coherence and identity that it’s sequel couldn’t manage to replicate.
Soul Asylum!
Demon’s Souls was brilliant as a first foray into that kind of universe and gameplay. The long levels, infrequent spawn points and beautifully obfuscated lore made it quite a compelling romp.
Dark Souls, however, is possibly one of the most beautifully memorable games I’ve played. The single world was its masterstroke, and I still remember uncovering shortcuts and slowly piecing together the world such that I could now draw it out on a map (if I could draw in 3D). My first save file for Dark Souls was about 30 hours long and I’d rung only the topmost church bell and still struggled and bled for every new bonfire along the way. My second save was 20 hours and saw me pass Queelag and get right up to those horrendous Silver Archers on the Cathedral (area prior to fatboy and his skinny friend). My next save was a pyro re-roll so I could take advantage of that OP-spammy goodness. This save was the one, the one where I blitzed my way past Queelag without dying once in a mere handful of hours and it was this save that saw me put in my remaining 70 hours of DS time getting to NG++++.
Dark Souls 2 ran out of charm fairly early on. Areas became levels, the hideous menagerie of the past became and endless succession of swords and armour… boss fights… I can’t even remember the names of the bosses, it was all just so generic. DS2 felt like a company emboldened by its success just having fun with the formula and not putting in the love that Bloodborne eventually received. I still have it and wouldn’t sell it, but I also don’t really want to play it. I don’t feel the same hunger but then, maybe that’s not Dark Souls 2’s fault? Maybe I scratched that itch with my time in Dark Souls, furrowing the skin hard enough to make it painful to continue any longer.
I will say for all of them that the way the story is revealed through its absence is a highlight of their strength as storytellers. Tired of being spoonfed narrative in that awful American fashion where the obvious must be stated. Trust in your audience’s intelligence and let them uncover the threads, hooks and channels that interconnect the denizens of the Dark Souls world.
I saw the Dark Souls 3 trailer and it seems the team is back in gear and have given this iteration the attention it deserves.
I used to stick up for Dark Souls 2, but truthfully you cannot be a fan of the series without hating it. A recent replay made me realize it has no soul, no pun intended, that’s the only way to put it. Im sure ds3 will be better but im genuinely upset there wont be anymore souls after that. Annualize that franchise and ill shelve it up my ass i love it
1. You can.
2. How dare you try and act like you’re an authority on Souls/What people can enjoy.
You can’t. Somebody has to be the authority so that’s not really fair. Im not being serious anyway ds2 was my favourite game when i first played it but after playing ds1 and going back it felt like eating a ciggie sanga. Im glad i played ds2 first coz i didnt get the disappointment. The dlc in 2 is amazing and easily the best dlc this side of the old hunters but that doesnt make up for the base game.
Ds2 should be remade entirely keeping the lore/important bosses but with a better world. Its a blemish on a diamond of a series.
I’ll get Dark Souls 3, but I have 1 & 2 and didn’t really like either of them, though I’m kinda playing through 2 at the moment.
Bloodborne > *
In my opinion Dark Souls II so far, purely because Its the From Software game that I’ve had the most fun with and I liked its story best. I have not played Demon Souls however. From how things are shaping up, it’ll look like Dark Souls III will soon be my favorite.
I voted for Dark Souls and I haven’t even played it. But from all the lore I’ve seen in the first one compared to the mosh-mash that was DS2, I can easily concede I played the lesser of the 2 titles.
Demon Souls, I can still remember getting to Storm King (was my first boss) and not having any ranged weapons and derped my Storm Ruler; needless to say it was a while before I came back. I really like the fact that there were bosses that were near impossible if you built a certain way and didn’t pick up an ally to help.
I will say that I do feel like the game has progressively gotten easier, but that might just be our skill sets adjusting to this kind of game.
I feel like DSII recieves a lot of criticism from fans, although I think it may be my personal favourite. Also, I just want to state that critically, it was the most acclaimed of these three games.
You’re right, it certainly was a lot smoother to play and benefited from the updated visuals, but the worst thing about it, other than the world itself, was the woefully uninspired bosses.
Soul mass transit system!
Definitely the first Souls game, although i haven’t played Demon’s Souls (yet, waiting for a sale on PSN).
Slowly playing through the second and although some of the mechanics having earlier access such as fast transport are nice, the bosses and story just haven’t stuck with me and i found myself getting actually lost and needing to consult a guide to get around, never needed that with the original =P