Fresh yet familiar
After exploring the winding pathways of the Cemetery of Ash, we descend into a secluded area lined with headstones. At the centre of the scene kneels a motionless knight, impaled by a coiled sword. Upon removing the sword, we notice black writhing vines protruding from his back. It is clear that the knight is still alive as blood pours from his wound. There’s an intense pause as we wait for the knight to react. He loses his balance as the pain slowly kicks in, before rising to attack. In fury, the knight swings his coiled axe in strong, sweeping movements but his brute strength is no match for us. The fight unfolds as he continuously lunges forward, leaving himself vulnerable. We roll and attack until we are certain he has been defeated. He stumbles. Suddenly, the black vine on his back erupts into a giant serpent-like creature, completely replacing the Knight’s torso. The creature’s head twists ferociously and its claw tears at the air with lethal intent. As we battle, occasional sips from an Estus Flask reinvigorates us and we slay the beast. The billowing, black mass evaporates as the knight falls to the floor. The Heir of Fire has been destroyed.
A few days ago, we were invited to play the first three hours of Dark Souls III. This was our first hands-on preview with the game and we can confirm that there is a lot to look forward to! Here are some of our first impressions, including some comparisons with the rest of the series.
Firstly, Dark Souls III has found a new sweet spot between Dark Souls and Bloodborne when it comes to bosses. Gone are the countless humanoid bosses from Dark Souls. These have been replaced by monstrous creations, most definitely influenced by an enemy-style that was far more prevalent in Bloodborne. Humanoid bosses have not been entirely omitted, as noted above however, they have been made more interesting. What’s more, a black parasite has infected the enemies that roam the new world. We cannot be sure what this is exactly but it’s triggering some terrifying mutations.
We encountered three bosses in our play-through: Iudex Gundyr; Vordt of the Boreal Valley and the Curse-rotted Greatwood. Each of these bosses had their own distinctive quirks. Vordt of the Boreal Valley can be described as a heavily armoured ice creature. He is dog-like in the sense that he attacks on all fours, but he also carries a mean-looking staff that features in most of his attacks. In contrast, the Curse-rotted Greatwood is a gigantic tree infested with clusters of blood-filled spores. It is also accompanied by a number of smaller humanoid enemies. Furthermore, after you have dealt about a quarter of a bars worth of damage to this creature, it will actually break the stage, plummeting you into a watery pit to finish the battle. Although we have only come into contact with three of the bosses that feature in Dark Souls III, their unique design certainly holds a lot of promise for the rest of the game.
For returning Dark Souls and Bloodborne players, Dark Souls III will already feel very familiar. The game appears to be a melting pot of both franchises, incorporating a number of elements from each. A few characters that appeared in Dark Souls have returned; Batwing Demons and Andre of Astoria, to name a few. In addition, we noticed that a number of areas in Dark Souls III resemble areas that can be found in Bloodborne - though this could be down to the developer reusing older assets for their new game. The engine used to power Bloodborne is being used in Dark Souls III and it is apparent right from the beginning. The game looks significantly more detailed compared to Dark Souls II (though it is important to note that we were playing the unfinished PS4 build of the game). If we are lucky, this new engine should be able to run at 60fps on the PC build. (Editor’s Note: Bandai Namco recently confirmed to GameWatcher that Dark Souls III will run at 60FPS on PC)
Moreover, there was noticeable backlash from fans following the release of Dark Souls II. Fans of the series felt disappointed that the game just didn’t feel the same as Dark Souls I, stating a number of changes that seemed ‘off’. An example of one of these changes was the way levelling had changed from Dark Souls I to II. Originally players could level up from any lit bonfire in the first game, however this was changed in the second game so players were forced back to the starting area if they wanted to strengthen their character. This highly contested decision has not been altered in Dark Souls III.
If players want to level up, they must first travel to a specific area (similar to the Nexus in Demon’s Souls) in order to do so. Dark Souls II also introduced the agility stat. The agility stat affected the speed that a character could perform certain actions, for example: the higher your agility, the higher the number of invincible frames in your roll animation. While this may seem unimportant, fans saw this as a waste of level ups, especially when the original game worked perfectly fine as it was. Dark Souls III has dropped the agility stat completely, allowing players to place their hard earned level ups into things they actually want.
Furthermore, Dark Souls III introduces a mana bar and the Ash Estus flask (which is exclusively for replenishing the bar) – both are series firsts. In the previous game, using magic consumed your stamina which could potentially stop a player from dodging if the gauge was low. With a dedicated bar for magic, this problem can no longer occur. Finally, the last significant change made from Dark Souls II to III is the removal of the anti-farming mechanic. Enemies will continue to spawn no matter how many times you kill them. There’s also no real punishment for dying (aside from potentially losing your souls) as hollowing has been completely removed. As a result, these changes make the game easier for new players as its easier to farm souls, using magic won’t deplete your stamina bar and your agility stat (or what it has become now) is sufficient from the start of the game.
Overall, Dark Souls III appears to be shaping up to be a strong addition to the series. The game feels fresh yet familiar and combines enough from previous Dark Souls games to make it seem like a worthy Dark Souls title. It also seems that that game has been influenced by Bloodborne, taking some of the most interesting elements from that game and adapting them. We believe that Dark Souls III feels more similar to Dark Souls I than II and consequently believe that fans will not be disappointed. For those that did not enjoy Dark Souls II, this may well be the sequel that you were hoping for.
Dark Souls III will be released on 12th April 2016 on PS4, Xbox One and PC.
Most Anticipated Feature: Beating the Curse-rotted Greatwood boss.
