About four times, a pillar or wall got stuck between my vision and my character. If I died, it was usually because I rushed into the fray too soon or wasn’t properly outfitted-though the camera did get me killed a few times. But every swing and dodge roll is still an uninterruptable commitment, and shields haven’t lost their importance, so with enemies rushing from every side, quicker attacks are an exciting, necessary addition. Dark Souls 3 sets up even more chaotic arenas throughout and accommodates with attacks that execute much faster than prior Souls games, shifting the focus to improvisational crowd management. In this instance, I could light up a gunpowder barrel with my pyro’s fireball, skirt the edges of the arena to take out the smaller enemies, and then focus exclusively on the spellcaster. With a lot to deal with at once, and very early on, I noticed myself prioritizing enemies, studying the arena, and dipping into my deep arsenal more often than before. Instead of a few undead soldiers, I regularly ran into, for example, 10 armed undead villagers, a corpse dog or two, and a beefy spellcaster.

I spent most of the game with my shield up, tip-toeing.īecause so many more enemies can appear on screen than in previous Dark Souls games, extremely cautious play is rewarded. It’s a harsh system that blankets every foray into new territory with uncertainty and tension. Run back to pick them up and carry on, hopefully further this time, but die before reaching them and they’re gone for good. Dying means you lose your souls and respawn at the bonfire you last rested at. You still kill monsters, collect souls, and use them to level up a short list of primary stats. Like it’s predecessors, Dark Souls 3 is an eerie Japanese spin on western fantasy that tells a surreal story in broad, vague strokes. Marred only by few performance hiccups, Dark Souls 3 is one of the most engrossing, cohesive games I’ve ever played, and the most focused, potent game in the series. Sure, the thrilling, punishing combat and notoriously difficult boss battles are its titanium skeleton, but the language and ambiguity of the world are its flesh and blood-the beating heart that imbues an excellent third-person action RPG with mythic authenticity. This is what makes Dark Souls 3 so profound. That might be reason enough to keep this rotten place together. But this giant is, and if he cares about a little white tree, then I should too.

Dark souls 3 size