Quick Look: Dark Souls III: Ashes of Ariandel

Oh dear, totally the wrong direction at the end there. So close to respite.

I love Dark Souls 3 a decent bit, but they released too many of these games in too short of a span. I was kind of tired of Dark Souls by the time I played 3, and despite having wonderful level design, fun enemies, smart changes to combat, and good length, I just didn't care anymore. I was blown away by the beauty the game presented-- from the first moments you see Lothric, to the time you see Irithyll, the game is just loaded with great scenery, clever designs, good enemies, and fun gameplay... but I just didn't care. I long for the days of Dark Souls 1, when everybody was trying to figure out this crazy-ass game, when you were never quite sure what you were going to see next... that's an experience that can never be replicated in gaming. What a great, fun thing it was to be a part of that scene.

Here's to hoping others can figure out how to get a similar experience out of their games, and here's to hoping that From Software to the legacy justice with the upcoming end-of-series DLC. If not, that's okay, I've kind of already had the best experience in my gaming history with the first game, and I can't expect them to replicate that ever again.

@golguin: I don't think the "complainers just aren't real fans" argument is fair here. I've been obsessively on-board with the souls games since Demons Souls, and I think that Dark Souls 3 is the weakest of the series, and that this DLC was an immense letdown both gameplay-wise and lore-wise. It doesn't push forward the main story at all, at times it even feels like a shitty fan fiction. The environments are the weakest of the whole series, with more cheap kills than interesting puzzle encounters and almost no visual variety at all. And I don't think that people comparing it to Bloodborne's DLC are disappointed that it's shorter, they're disappointed that it's just not as good. Bloodborne and its DLC are as perfect as the Souls games have ever been, every moment of gameplay and environmental detail pushes the story forward, and the level design, distribution of upgrade materials and blood echoes rewarded by bosses are perfectly paced to push the player through the game without any hiccups. It's not a matter of "not getting" what Ashes of Ariandel is putting down, it's just that it's not as good as the rest of the series.

Lol, he didn't even beat the big wolf before saying it was boring. Why even do the quick look if go in having let outside reading dictate your feelings of it?

Vinny and Rorie need to retake the Dark Souls coverage on this site, pronto.

You only want Vinny and Rorie to "retake" the coverage because they will give you the positive vindication you seem to want from the people commenting about the Dark Souls series. No every thought and/or opinion has to be positive, hence why it is "editorial". Sheesh. Some fandoms are the worst.

I can confirm that this is indeed Dark Souls.

I really love the meta interpretation of DS3 and it definitely colored my enjoyment of the game. The base game plays with series expectations and the DLC is no different. I don't know, as a series vet I enjoy that aspect and find it all a fitting send off, but it's not necessarily wrong to want for more either.

Personally, a combination of how disappointed I was in DS2 and the terrible series fandom over the years led me to having no grand expectations for DS3 or its DLC. I guess we're all a little hollow at this point.

@golguin i wasn't responding to the people criticizing the DLC. i agree that it's disappointing, though i still thought it was fantastic. there just wasn't enough of it. the valley area was pretty boring compared to the interesting snowfield and corvian settlement areas. tbh the valley feels a lot like the middling areas of DS2.

i got about 10h out of the DLC, including 2.5h or so on the main boss, all singleplayer. that is actually a good length, but when i go through there again i'll be very lucky if the whole DLC lasts 2h. looking back, there actually wasn't that much ground to cover, at least compared to the previous souls DLC.

I'd sum up by stating that the DLC play through was mostly boring, but the boss fight was challenging and fun. Too bad Brad didn't get to it. It would have been marvelous.

@qrowdyy: I can agree with you on the referential stuff. Dark Souls II left a bitter after taste for me though.

Have you played the DLC so far (the wink to ariamis had me a little distraught).

Seems like you had a ....dog...of a time...wakawaka!

Featuring the Oestreicher twins: Jason and Fella. Cool!

Glad to see this game get back into the staff's mind. I was afraid it was going to be forgotten come GOTY time. I think this totally deserves to be on the back half of a top 10.

This game alright. My least favorite Souls (including Bloodborne) game, but still fine. I have no desire to play the DLC. I'll watch some of this though I guess.

I don't know why the snow collapsing thing at 16:50 was so confusing.

Also to chime in on the debate, I think Dark Souls 3 is great. I agree it is a bit too referential to DaS1, but other than that (mechanically, graphically, length, etc.) I thought it was great for the most part. I would probably have more complaints on the mechanics if I engaged more with the PvP though.

Brad always almost gets me motion sick with these games. He did well for a cold run (hehe) of this and was pretty close to the bonfire there at the end!

Also, Dark Souls 2 was the worst of the trilogy. Get over it, haters. The environments were also the most bland in comparison. Not to mention that outside of the Pursuer (did I call him the right name?) at the beginning its all pretty easy for many, many hours and I found DS1, Demons Souls, etc decently hard.

all dark souls are like my children, i love them all and refuse to rank them. obviously ds3 didnt make much of an impression at giant bomb, which is fine. but its pretty funny to hear brad bitching so much about the difficulty in an area that the devs went out of their way to say "hey, its pretty tough in here, so you better be ready". like the dude has never been a good souls player, did he think he was gonna walk in massively under leveled after months of not playing and just start kicking ass and taking names?

I agree that DS2 drags a lot through the middle, but it gets way more than it's fair share of hate. The DLC in 2 is easily some of the best content in any Souls game. Also I felt like 2 had way more interesting armour and equipment, which made the game way more repayable for me.

@golguin: Well even if you're exploring this DLC completely it's still around 4-5 hours. Which compared to previous Souls add-on content feels over in an instant.

It really seems like Brad came into this DLC ready to dislike it based on general opinion. He also seems to really be dumping on the game for just being...hard? And being a souls game? Like he gets killed by a pretty difficult enemy when he's underleveled (he even says he's underleveled) and he immediately goes off on it saying it's 'rough'.

I went into the DLC for the first time underleveled as well and even as a souls veteran I had a TOUGH time. I got most of the way through it before deciding I needed to upgrade my weapon from +7 to +10 and get 5-10 levels.

I mean, look, I didn't think the DLC was great either but I also got much further than 15 minutes into it before maligning it like Brad does.

The first area in the DLC sucks, it takes some of the worst aspects from DS2 and multiplies it. Difficulty through volume rather than quality, I'm not surprised the guys didn't like it. I didn't like it either. The big flat landscape is also super super boring. The level design doesn't get much better later on, sadly, and there is absolutely nothing memorable in terms of levels or aesthetic in the rest of it.

Saying that, the boss fights are fun, and the last boss fight is almost worth the price of the DLC alone. Almost. It has some really cool new weapons with inventive new moves, although probably most people don't seriously try them out.

Overall I loved the main game. It was beautifully crafted, had probably the best boss fights in the entire trilogy, some of the coolest weapons and some truly memorable areas - the moment you step into Irythill is one of the best moments in games this year I think. The characters(mostly) weren't up to much and the story was a bite tired, but the atmosphere and pure gameplay were fantastic.

Easily handles a goon: "And they said it was hard".

Two minutes later: gets ganked by a goon squad.

Brad, you're awesome. Yes I know he was being facetious.

@veektarius: at least a few of us, apparently

All I can tell you is how much I revere this proclamation of unqualified to the ends of the earth endearment. All the more so because there was something in the lighting and color I particularly valued DS2, that DS1 and for most( but not all) extent DS3 fell short of. Simply stated, I liked DS2, but I liked the others also both on their own ground and shared.

As for the DLC, guess I will have to play (already bought it) to form an opinion.

Sure looked greyish black and white and by the numbers...

EDIT- This QL made me laugh, Brad and Jason are a good combo.

@joker369 said:

It's not going to be. I said Bloodborne wouldn't be either and some people thought I was crazy. This has no shot.

I have been totally uninterested in Dark Souls 3 since I burned out on Scholar of the first sin. Until this video brought back all the good memories of Dark souls. Maybe I'll get this. Maybe.

"Some people play games to relax, others play for fun! AND OTHERS JUST WANT A GAME TO F**K THEM UNTIL THEY LOVE IT!" Honest Trailers have never been more honest. God I love these games, even though they don't love me back

Dark Souls 2 Scholar of the First Sin is my favorite Dark Souls, with Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition close behind.

I'll probably play DS3 again when the next DLC comes out since I already own it, but i'm unlikely to ever touch it again after that.

Has anyone ever just sprinted forwards through a level to get to the boss & never looked back on the first try? It's something that i will do if i explored the entire area and only have to beat the boss, but it seems like some people have no problems to just sprint forwards looking for a bonfire.

It's probably my compulsive item hoarding that tells me to explore all nooks & crannies before i move on ^_^

There has never been a Souls game in the top 10 and this one wont do it either. The fact that Bloodborne didn't make it and The Witcher 3 barely made it at number 10 shows that games that are long or games that are both long and difficult don't have a chance.

I just want my Sif pupper.

I always enjoy NG+ or better yet NG++ more than I enjoy the first run though of a souls game. Better loot, of course, and a bump in difficulty in bosses. I really think these games come into their own and are much more enjoyable at NG+ and beyond.

@art_vandelay: Ya, dissapointing to see a Painted World rehash. After all the mystery and intrigue surrounding Londor in the base game, I was hoping for a dlc that took place there. Still one more dlc left. Hope for the best, i guess.

I think its important to understand that the loudest and most assertive voices on the GB staff prefer games that focus on immediacy of gameplay, narrative optional. This includes Alex, Dan, and most importantly Jeff.

Things that I have found that turn these guys off of otherwise great games include :fiddling with stats and obtuse/non-standard mechanics in rpgs, long complex narratives where the gameplay is almost secondary, games that take multiple hours to pick up steam and get "good".

Because of this I'll always look to Vinny or Brad for opinions on rpgs/narrative games. But when it comes to GOTY they've often been too willing to compromise in the past.

For example, 2011 GOTY podcast Vinny resignedly starts off the discussion on Dark Souls by acquiescing to the room at large that they can knock the game off the list even though its one his favorite games of the year. This is before anyone has said anything about the game, negative or not. Surprised, Patrick says he was willing to go to bat for Dark Souls with Vinny but by then they've already begun crossing the game off the shortlist.

So with Titanfall 2, Doom, and Overwatch all coming out this year, no way in hell is DS3 making the top 5, even if it deserves it. With all the other great games out this year, i wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't make the list at all.

I think Crown of the Sunken King is the pinnacle of all Dark Souls level design. It seems often overlooked in the general pooh-poohing of all things DS2 in favour of DS1.

Man, Brad got SMOOSHED. This is really like...manageable for most people as Post-Game content, like the Crowns from DS2. The "be level 80" thing is totally not good advice. You need a maxed out weapon and like 120 levels under your belt.

"They said this was hard."

Famous last words! Oh, Brad.

That's why I'm pretty excited about Deck 13's new game The Surge (same developers who created Lords of the Fallen). Looks like DS in Spaaaaaace!

@veektarius@sloppydetective Before Brendan Fraser played the live action version, there was a Saturday morning cartoon from the late 60s early 70s.

I've yet to play any of these because I have a strong dislike of respawning enemies. Once I clear an area, I want it to remain clear.