It was the game that created it’s own genre. A game in which the story had to be learned from item descriptions and conversations with other characters. A game in which failure was common, but was also a learning tool. Created by FromSoftware, the remastered version of Dark Souls has finally arrived and there is no better way to praise the sun then this.
The story of Dark Souls is very simple. In a medieval world, a great flame has kept the darkness at bay. Prolonging the fire has kept the world alive, but it has also allowed the undead to start to rise. You are one of these undead, escaping from an asylum and trying to become human once more. Your journey will take you to the great city of Lordran and the path to keep the great fire burning.
The remaster is all about two things. The first is the graphics. We see the glory of this game in full 60 FPS. I had played the game before, but I found myself looking more at the landscape as it almost pops off the screen. The second thing is the multiplayer function. There are now servers dedicated solely to the game and more players can join up. It has been heavily influenced by Dark Souls III, which refined the multiplayer experience. You can now help, or hurt, those who you have a password to join their game.
While many people have heard of Dark Souls, a surprising number have never played it. The reason is simple: It’s too hard. While the difficulty in Dark Souls is legendary, to the point that games that are hard are now called “Dark Souls like”, it is not without purpose. Yes, you will die many times and sitting at a bonfire to replenish your health will also re spawn all of the enemies, but the game wants to teach you. When you die and lose the currency, souls, you have decisions to make. Will you try and go back for them? Or will you give them up for lost? When you have enough to put into your levels, the choices become very important. There are many hard games out there, but being hard just for being hard is nothing new. Dark Souls is hard, but once you get the feel of it, it becomes a learning experience. If it did not, it would never have been considered one of the greatest games of all time.
Some have complained that not enough has been changed to justify the price. My question to those is how do you improve on perfection? This is a remaster, not a remake which means certain things were polished. The core of the game needed no improvement. This was not another case of Scholar of the First Sin, which made Dark Souls II much more playable. The creators had a vision that was carried out to perfection and just because they could make changes does not mean they should have.
While remakes seem to be coming out every week, this is one that is a must buy. Seeing the world that launched everything in the best graphics available is truly a treat. I have the original Dark Souls, and I feel good with telling you to buy the remaster. For Nintendo Switch fans, we have to wait a little longer, but fighting and dying on the go will be worth it to. If you have never played it, the time has come to pick your undead body off the ground and go to the fire. Now about Demon Souls….
10/10
Available now on PS4, Xbox and PC. The Switch version will be released later this year.
