Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition

 PC
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2514 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,867 out of 2514
  2. Mixed: 224 out of 2514
  3. Negative: 423 out of 2514

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. entar256
    Sep 4, 2012
    1
    TL:DR Do not buy to PC, get it to a console. The console version must have been great, however for the PC it is a train wreck. Resolution, FPS-lock and controls this bad does not belong in a PC-game. The game felt like it really hated me and tried to make me stop playing it at every corner. Using the mouse to look around is nauseating at best as the camera is really jerky, you can forgetTL:DR Do not buy to PC, get it to a console. The console version must have been great, however for the PC it is a train wreck. Resolution, FPS-lock and controls this bad does not belong in a PC-game. The game felt like it really hated me and tried to make me stop playing it at every corner. Using the mouse to look around is nauseating at best as the camera is really jerky, you can forget any attempt at making smooth sweeping camera pans. I read a lot of review that tells of the rewarding controls and difficulty, that when you die it was because you made an error. I have yet to feel that way as the jerky controls have sent me over cliffs, made me attack twice and leaving me open to counterattacks, made me do some weird jump attack into a bunch of enemies that promptly ended my characters life. Not once I have felt that "Oh, if I used attack *A* on enemy *B* wouldnt have used attack *C* on me and I would have survived" it has been more of "A**!" or "Why the **** did he do that?!". Frankly, this is really a hardcore game now when I think about it; pattern recognition, trial and error, cheap deaths, bad controls. All in an attempt to prolong a short game, which was a common practice in the NES days, and I dont even think the game actually needs to artificially increase its length. So, if you want a hardcore NES experience today, by all means: buy Dark Souls. You will have many an hour filled with frustration and cursing. But if you rather stay sane: buy Dark Souls to a console and forget about the PC-port. Final thoughts: Graphics: artistically bland, grey and brown. Technically bad, looks blurry and messy. Controls: Keyboard and mouse: dont even try, and if you need to get a gamepad to play a PC-game its not worth your time (imagine if an FPS to a console required you to get keyboard/mouse to be able to play properly...) Gameplay: Hardcore NES experience. If that is your thing: get this game to a console. Sound: irritating, and where is the music? I really wanted this series ever since I saw Demon souls for console, and I almost got a PS3 only for this series, however after this atrocious port and blatant attempt at milking money I lost all desire to play it. I also created an account here on Metacritic only to review this "game". This review only regards the PC-port of the game, I have not played the original, but I hope/guess it is 1000% better than this... thing.… Expand
  2. victorRic
    Aug 24, 2012
    10
    Great game, not a great port but the PC community will come with mods and high res packs. its way cheaper than console, DLC comes for free, runs better and there is already a mod to fix resolution and textures day one, you can't go wrong.
  3. Azurim
    Aug 28, 2012
    1
    The game is simply not playable on the PC. 1. Did not launch. To launch had to reinstall windows live, reinstall the game, run in XP compatibility mode. Took me several hours to find out what needs to be done. 2. Outdated graphics (and I did not find a way to improve it any way through settings or by forcing)
    3. Terrible interface.
    4. Awful controls. I was unable to figure out how to use    The game is simply not playable on the PC. 1. Did not launch. To launch had to reinstall windows live, reinstall the game, run in XP compatibility mode. Took me several hours to find out what needs to be done. 2. Outdated graphics (and I did not find a way to improve it any way through settings or by forcing)
    3. Terrible interface.
    4. Awful controls. I was unable to figure out how to use spells. Still don't know how to do it. These are the cons, I can't figure out any pros. Results: was really looking forward to play, but un-installed after 15 minutes of torture. The game was actually so bad I even decided to make an account here to write about it to save some people their money. Don't buy the game on PC. If you want to play the game, get it on PS3, maybe it doesn't suck there.    … Expand
  4. macronus
    Oct 5, 2012
    0
    This game is absolutely anti-fun and terrible designed. Checkpoints 3km away from bosses/important spots, minimum information about important things making this game unplayable without reading tons of guides/watching letsplays.
  5. Khornez
    Nov 25, 2012
    2
    Im extremely disappointed to see this horrible port made with no effort that they hope we will somehow love because the original game was awesome. Crappy res, untranslated keys, horrible key mapping... but the worst is a shaky camera even when mouse sensitivity is at 1 that simply makes it unplayable without having a headache, not to mention that if you use window mode, the mouse isn'tIm extremely disappointed to see this horrible port made with no effort that they hope we will somehow love because the original game was awesome. Crappy res, untranslated keys, horrible key mapping... but the worst is a shaky camera even when mouse sensitivity is at 1 that simply makes it unplayable without having a headache, not to mention that if you use window mode, the mouse isn't immediately locked, meaning you can move it out from the window by mistake and click outside, forcing you to make weird moves with that shaky camera just to keep it in the center, as if it was made in flash or something.

    To all those who say "buy the xbox pad": if i wanted to do that, i'd buy an Xbox and forget about PC.    … Expand
  6. pizzer123
    Mar 11, 2014
    0
    This is absolutely the worst game in existence i have no idea what kind of complete moron reviews this game and finds it "enjoyable" it is a game that aims to anger and does so again and again, if you are some kind of masochistic then this is the game for you, otherwise ignore what your friends say, ignore the reviews the only explanation i can possibly think for this horrendous game toThis is absolutely the worst game in existence i have no idea what kind of complete moron reviews this game and finds it "enjoyable" it is a game that aims to anger and does so again and again, if you are some kind of masochistic then this is the game for you, otherwise ignore what your friends say, ignore the reviews the only explanation i can possibly think for this horrendous game to get such great reviews is that this is some kind of sick internet joke.… Expand
  7. Azazaa
    Sep 20, 2014
    0
    7.3 ? Are you kidding me? Absolutely bad graphic! PC version is bad. It so bad - that mouse cursor runing over game! It so bad that i don see difference with resolution 640*480 and 2550*1440! It so bad that 4 kays not move to keabord! I see many games, ilsee thousands bad games. But this - absulutely record of bad games.
  8. Peterpantsless
    Aug 25, 2012
    10
    I'll start with the negative:

    Everyone knows that this was a bad port. The controls are terrible if you intend to use a keyboard and mouse. The camera control is pretty bad. The resolution and fps lock (resolution lock has since been fixed) are also very bad. And, worst of all- the game says "press the start button", etc. It was a very lazy port, indeed. That being said, all of that    I'll start with the negative:

    Everyone knows that this was a bad port. The controls are terrible if you intend to use a keyboard and mouse. The camera control is pretty bad. The resolution and fps lock (resolution lock has since been fixed) are also very bad. And, worst of all- the game says "press the start button", etc. It was a very lazy port, indeed.

    That being said, all of that did not stop me from enjoying the hell out of an absolutely amazing game. I sincerely hope that FromSoftware comes to their senses and develops for PC, as well as consoles for the next game in this series.

    The controls with a gamepad are absolutely fantastic and fluid.

    The art direction is great, and while some armor is way over the top, I really enjoy most of the armor design for this game as well.

    There are many different weapons, and unique weapons on top of that. They put a lot of work into the animations of this game.

    The online is simply brilliant, it is a blast to invade, help other players out, and vice versa. I can't say anything bad about this game other than the lack of effort put into the port.

    If the port was done right I would give this game a 10/10.

    With the port being the way it is, I'd give it a 8/10.

    I will, however, be giving this a 10/10 anyways to combat the ridiculous 0 scores people are giving it.    … Expand
  9. RoweShamboe
    Aug 28, 2012
    0
    Completely unusable as a PC they do not even try. The tutorial is written for the Xbox controller and it took forever to find out how to bring up the Menu (it is End not Esc). Do not buy, more frustration than fun.
  10. murut87
    Aug 25, 2012
    7
    It means to be playable using Controller,if playing Keyboard Controller,its freaking impossible.Worst Console Port Ever,with Lack of Tweaks,Capped FPS and Frustratingly Hard-To Play this game.But the game core is good on every possible so,i don`t recommend this game if you wanna play using Keyboard+Mouse because its all messed up....I really wanted to play this game because it looks fun toIt means to be playable using Controller,if playing Keyboard Controller,its freaking impossible.Worst Console Port Ever,with Lack of Tweaks,Capped FPS and Frustratingly Hard-To Play this game.But the game core is good on every possible so,i don`t recommend this game if you wanna play using Keyboard+Mouse because its all messed up....I really wanted to play this game because it looks fun to play even through its Difficulty was way impossible...… Expand
  11. bigbradford
    Sep 7, 2012
    1
    This game is **** garbage. The controls are awful and the camera is all over the place, very frustrating to play on a KB & mouse. Namco should be ashamed of themselves for this horrible "port" I should of just bought the xbox 360 version.
  12. Romars2021
    Aug 26, 2012
    9
    As expected, pc boys can't handle a real game. But if you're the exception, come on and earn your stripes. The best action rpg, possibly ever with the enphasis on 'action'. RPG fans may want to stay clear too, as it's really more of a hardcore action game than your typical rpg.
  13. GAAAAAAAAABE
    Aug 25, 2012
    10
    Great game, knew it would be a bad port from the start since From can't do PC. And GFWL doesn't bother me since all you need to do is sign in. All the bad reviews are stupid entitled PC gamers.
  14. Serious00
    Aug 26, 2012
    0
    This review is about the port, not the game itself. This game is genuinely inferior on PC. If you want to play this game, buy it used for a few bucks and play it on your console. The developer should *not* be compensated for doing D grade porting. If you're interested in the special PC content, wait a few months for a new console edition to come out with that said content. You've been warned.
  15. StavrosDim
    Aug 26, 2012
    5
    I got this game because of all this hype I heard from its fans,that it's a super-duper game that is very challenging and rewarding. Unfortunately I can't say I like it.
    It suffers from frame rate issues in AMD graphics cards too much. I have an AMD HD 6850 Vapor X edition that allows me to play Crysis and Battlefield 3 at Ultra,yet I get frame drops lower than 30fps with this game which    I got this game because of all this hype I heard from its fans,that it's a super-duper game that is very challenging and rewarding. Unfortunately I can't say I like it.
    It suffers from frame rate issues in AMD graphics cards too much. I have an AMD HD 6850 Vapor X edition that allows me to play Crysis and Battlefield 3 at Ultra,yet I get frame drops lower than 30fps with this game which is rediculous. I have a better frame rate playing Metro 2033 at High settings with DX11 on,than in this,which is crazy.
    Its controls are broken,and I'm not talking about the console button prompts or the mouse support.
    I play it with Xbox360 controller,and I can't say it controls well. Often the actions have latency so I might press the button to attack but my character will stay staring at the enemy for many moments,and when he will finally decide to attack it will be too late because the enemy will already have gone to another direction,have approached me,and attacks me the moment the attack animation is finally initiated.
    The game's lock-on system is broken. It rarely locks the enemy you want,because if there are many enemies on the screen it locks on random target,so there might be an enemy standing 1 foot away from you and another one 100 feet away,and the game lock to the enemy 100 foot away while the enemy 1 foot away slashes me in pieces. If you already have locked on the wrong enemy and you press the lock button again,sometimes the lock turns completely off and other times it locks on the other enemy,so you can never know what will happen,and once I got killed because I wanted to lock a different enemy and instead the lock function was turned off meaning my character also stopped backpedaling and instead turned his back to the enemy,and other times I wanted to stop having the lock function on 'on', so I can sprint away from an enemy I couldn't block with my shield,but instead the game locked to another enemy and I died again.
    In this game you are not fighting the monsters,which are not really that big deal,but you are fighting the controls.
    These broken controls make playing the game more like a chore and less like entertainment.
    I wouldn't have a problem with a game that would offer pure genuine and fair challenge,but this is beyond rediculous,getting killed because the game's mechanics sometimes work and some don't isn't exactly fair or intriguing. It's so bad I don't know if I will ever finish it. I will give it one more try,but I'm not sure.    … Expand
  16. Hyperwolf
    Aug 27, 2012
    10
    This is an amazing game let down by reviewers wanting things the company never promised. Basically don't buy this game unless you have an Xbox 360 controller or will buy one to play the game. Use Durante's great fix to allow the graphics to run at 1080p and super sample and with any decent graphics card you are going to love this game. It's brutally hard, and very beautiful. The manual isThis is an amazing game let down by reviewers wanting things the company never promised. Basically don't buy this game unless you have an Xbox 360 controller or will buy one to play the game. Use Durante's great fix to allow the graphics to run at 1080p and super sample and with any decent graphics card you are going to love this game. It's brutally hard, and very beautiful. The manual is not great and you'll undoubtedly get a little frustrated at first, but great things await anyone with a modicum of intelligence and a desire to play a unique and challenging RPG.… Expand
  17. refdxf
    Aug 28, 2012
    10
    THE CONTROLS ARE SPOT ON. ANYONE WHO COMPLAINS ABOUT CONTROLS IS JUST A NOOB. The game is excellent. I use a Razr Onga which is extremely good. Being able to play Dark Souls anywhere I go on my laptop is something I have been waiting eagerly for ever since I heard about the release.
  18. mikeblackney
    Aug 26, 2012
    10
    The new content is fantastic. Dark Souls was wonderful before now, and now it's mind-blowing.

    Get a gamepad, yes. Get a resolution patch. Then dim the lights and prepare yourself for one of the most engrossing and rewarding experiences you will have in your life. Dark Souls.
  19. l3wdandcr3wd
    Aug 25, 2012
    10
    Definitely worth buying if you haven't played it yet. I would recommended getting a a gamepad and using montioninjoy. I emulated one of my ps3 controllers as an xbox controller and it is working flawlessly. I also downloaded a resolution fix to enhance the graphics, still haven't encountered any problems from that. I am using an nvidia card, I heard ATI cards are having some issuesDefinitely worth buying if you haven't played it yet. I would recommended getting a a gamepad and using montioninjoy. I emulated one of my ps3 controllers as an xbox controller and it is working flawlessly. I also downloaded a resolution fix to enhance the graphics, still haven't encountered any problems from that. I am using an nvidia card, I heard ATI cards are having some issues with the game. Money well spent 10/10 for me.… Expand
  20. AthanasiosT
    Mar 9, 2013
    1
    I really really tried to play this one. but when I play a PC game, I want to be able to play it as it's meant for PC. Meaning that this is a really bad console conversion. Mouse and keyboard have just decorative roles, even though I downloaded two extra moddings (1 for game and 1 for mouse controls). Framerate is awful and if you insist on using mouse control, the frames just hop like aI really really tried to play this one. but when I play a PC game, I want to be able to play it as it's meant for PC. Meaning that this is a really bad console conversion. Mouse and keyboard have just decorative roles, even though I downloaded two extra moddings (1 for game and 1 for mouse controls). Framerate is awful and if you insist on using mouse control, the frames just hop like a frog. Too bad, because the game seemed very-very good....… Expand
  21. SpaceyCasey
    Oct 11, 2012
    10
    Dark Souls is a completly unique experience. Instead of repeating old tired RPG concepts, it is a totally new kind of experience. Improving on the ideas of Demons Souls, this game adds great new elements like a seamless world. This game gets a 10/10 for creating a unique experience while most games today are repeated versions of old ideas. Whether you love it or hate it, you are reallyDark Souls is a completly unique experience. Instead of repeating old tired RPG concepts, it is a totally new kind of experience. Improving on the ideas of Demons Souls, this game adds great new elements like a seamless world. This game gets a 10/10 for creating a unique experience while most games today are repeated versions of old ideas. Whether you love it or hate it, you are really missing out if you dont give it a try. The PC version is a straight port with a whole new content - enough to be considerd a full expansion. Like any expansion, 90% of the game content is just a repeat of the orginal - this is not a new game. The graphics are very good, but no different than the PS3 version. This game is simply a port for PC plus an expansion. it dosen't need to be more. Personally I have played both and had a great time repeating the adventure again, this time playing the game with a different style and greatly enjoying the additional content.… Expand
  22. GeorgeA
    Oct 6, 2012
    6
    Played for several hours and I can't see the big deal. This game is painfully mediocre and bad port doesn't really have to do with that. After several community fixes and patches, Dark Souls is more or less playable on PC with mouse and keyboard. But the real problem lies within the core design of the game. First, there is no story, just lore. Some may say, that it allows you to make upPlayed for several hours and I can't see the big deal. This game is painfully mediocre and bad port doesn't really have to do with that. After several community fixes and patches, Dark Souls is more or less playable on PC with mouse and keyboard. But the real problem lies within the core design of the game. First, there is no story, just lore. Some may say, that it allows you to make up your own story or something like that, but it seems nothing more than an attempt to hide developers' laziness. The sound design is great, though and music is all right, but the voice acting is uninspired. Graphically it won't blow you away, but unless you are one of these "no DirectX 11, no tessellation, this game sucks!"-type, there's nothing terrible about how the game looks thanks to great architecture and visual design, as long as you have the resolution fix. As for, the gameplay, I have mixed feelings . The fighting itself is reasonably hard and dynamic, forcing the player to constantly be on guard and pay attention to every small detail in order to beat incredibly overpowered enemies. The role-playing elements, though scarce, are flexible enough to allow you to create your own character. There are 10 classes and pretty big selection of weapons and armor. All of these positive elements are ruined by two huge flaws, which for some reason are considered as "hardcore". The first one are the checkpoints. When you die (and you will a lot, even if you are the most skilled gamer out there), you are taken to a checkpoint, you lose all of your souls (XP) and you"ll have to travel to the place you died to retrieve them. The distance may be pretty long and it will feel like waste of time. Was adding manual save function after you have beaten your enemies (and deactivating it while you are fighting) really that hard? The second and by far the greatest flaw is the enemy respawn. Not only they respawn after you die, the SAME enemies respawn at the SAME place the game designers have put them and you have to fight them again. This becomes incredibly frustrating and repetitive. Even if you don't die, you HAVE to visit the bonfires (checkpoints) if you want to upgrade your stats with souls and guess what? The enemies respawn again! This sucks all the fun from the intuitive but, ultimately, unoriginal fight system and makes this game more like a chore to play. Again, was putting random respawn that hard? Also, the absence of the world map (not mini-map, by the way) makes it hard to navigate and you'll probably need a guide in order to find out which hub is connected to which. I don't mind not having a mini-map, but in my opinion a game should have at least some navigational mechanic. The supposed open-world design is fake, as in Dark Souls there are nothing more than linear hubs connected with even more linear paths , in Kingdoms of Amalur fashion. Final slap in the face are lack of ANY facial animations. This is unforgivable for a 2011 triple-A third-person action game title. In all, the game is better than recent Bioware and Bethesda garbage, but the design flaws basically kill it. I'll give it a try some other time later, but doubt I'll like it. Rent it before buying.… Expand
  23. Andrew_Paterson
    May 18, 2013
    2
    Sometimes I wonder why I haven't learned to read meta critic user reviews BEFORE buying a game.

    Dark Souls is probably an awesome game provided you're not playing the shoddy PC port. But I'm getting ahead of myself and before I start ranting about how terrible the game-play is I must walk you through the issues in trying to get to game-play. Firstly there was the wait for the Steam key    Sometimes I wonder why I haven't learned to read meta critic user reviews BEFORE buying a game.

    Dark Souls is probably an awesome game provided you're not playing the shoddy PC port. But I'm getting ahead of myself and before I start ranting about how terrible the game-play is I must walk you through the issues in trying to get to game-play. Firstly there was the wait for the Steam key it took about a week to acquire which is long in the digital age but livable. Then I had endless issues with Windows Live. I have windows live installed and working for other games but for Dark Souls it crashed and/or battled to sign in. Sadly you need Windows Live to save. I sorted Windows Live out and finally got into the game. Or thought I had: I got bogged down in the awful, awful character creation interface and then got stuck watching a long unskippable cinematic followed immediately by another long unskippable cinematic.

    I finally get to play but have very little good will left after the preceding mess. And then I discover that the controls are broken. A keyboard and mouse are not recommend and can't be used anyway as the mouse sensitivity on it's lowest setting will see a tiny bump swing the character through ninety degrees. An XBox controller (which is recommended) doesn't work because the button configurations are mangled and can't be re-configured. A genuine XBox controller on a genuine windows operating system (Win 7) and somehow the Dark Souls developers got the button mappings wrong.

    This game is broken.

    I finally quit in frustration. Or tried to. Because the controls are mangled there was no way to get back to a menu to save and quit; I had kill the process instead. Now every time I launch the game it chastises me for not closing it correctly.

    After installing various fan patches I got the game to a playable (and decently looking) state and unfortunately discovered that after all the effort I'd gone through the game play is terrible.

    The premise is that Dark Souls is unforgiving and will kill you again and again until you play cautiously which is awesome. I've been looking for a challenging game for years.

    The reality is the game killed me again and again as the camera seldom points anywhere useful and I stepped off ledges I couldn't see. Or the character locks onto an enemy far behind him and stops me from blocking an enemy immediately in-front. A stabbed in the back instant kill.

    Absolutely nothing about Dark Souls is good or even working.    … Expand
  24. Stefarooh
    Sep 25, 2012
    9
    I understand all the criticism surrounding the game and by no means should they be overlooked. Yes playing this game straight out the box without the resolution fix and a 360 controller you are setting yourself up for one major disappointment. My advice, if you don't already own a controller, is to purchase one before playing or avoid the game entirely and save yourself the frustrationI understand all the criticism surrounding the game and by no means should they be overlooked. Yes playing this game straight out the box without the resolution fix and a 360 controller you are setting yourself up for one major disappointment. My advice, if you don't already own a controller, is to purchase one before playing or avoid the game entirely and save yourself the frustration (although I still don't understand PC gamers reluctance to adopt controllers...I play certain games with a keyboard and mouse and most others with my controllers and I still get the same enjoyable gaming experience with raising my blood pressure levels screaming about silly things as using a controller on a PC). But as for Dark Souls PC - with the resolution fix and my wireless controller and Dark Souls plugged into my HDTV, the game looks phenomenal. I played Demon Soul's on PS3 and this looks infinitely better. I am having a blast with the game. Easily one of 2012 best if you can get past the stumbling blocks… Expand
  25. Stevo5000X
    Sep 27, 2012
    10
    This is a great game, I've never enjoyed a game as much as this one. This is a must buy who enjoys a hardcore game. This game is so much more enjoyable with the new fix.
  26. Antiks
    Jan 7, 2013
    2
    Terrible port. Controls can't be reset and the mouse and keyboard stuff is just broken. Do not buy this game if you don't own and xbox 360 controller for your pc. Also you need to make several community fixes to the game to get it looking decent and running decent. Would not recommend anyone purchase this game for PC. Buyer beware.
  27. howlhaku
    May 3, 2014
    0
    This game, just like the first, is broken. They pretend it's 'hard' but it's just an excuse for a lack of testing and play balance. The save points are sparse and the game play is tedious. Tbh I could forgive most of this if the graphics were at least decent but jeebuz they are terrible. Unless you are a cutter I would avoid this like the plague.
  28. mberserk
    May 12, 2014
    0
    This game doesn't works properly. Crash on start screen. I bought it on Steam. I've played with Windows 8. But Windows 8.1, crashes, crashes and more crashes. Tried several workaraounds but no sucess.
  29. jimbobslimbob
    Dec 10, 2014
    3
    Meh.

    I don't understand the hype around this one. It's really nothing special. Couple this with the god-damn awful PC port that it is, it's enough to safely put me off from playing this anymore.I found the game to be significantly lacking in all areas. Sure, it's hard, but that is really all it's got going for it.

    Jimbo Rating: 3/10
  30. shingouki
    Aug 24, 2012
    10
    For all the users that are complaining about Keyboard and Mouse not working ideally for this game, let me lay this on you for a second, because this is how you guys sound:

    You have a box of nails you want to hammer into the wall. (Dark Souls) You have measuring tape. It has a flat side. (Keyboard) You don't have a hammer. (Gamepad) Instead of going out and buying a hammer to hammer in    For all the users that are complaining about Keyboard and Mouse not working ideally for this game, let me lay this on you for a second, because this is how you guys sound:

    You have a box of nails you want to hammer into the wall. (Dark Souls) You have measuring tape. It has a flat side. (Keyboard)
    You don't have a hammer. (Gamepad)
    Instead of going out and buying a hammer to hammer in the nails, you start hammering nails with THE MEASURING TAPE.
    You then start complaining "Holy crap these nails suck. They don't work well with the measuring tape. This is so difficult!"
    "Screw nails! Nails are terrible! I'm gonna write a review about how bad these nails are because they dont get hit into the wall well with my MEASURING TAPE."

    The reasons you guys don't have hammers, is probably because you're either broke, or you're lazy, or you have some personal vendetta towards hammers. BUT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE NAILS. It's not the nails' fault you are too lazy, broke, or have developed some deep racism towards hammers. That's on you! The nail is made for hammers! Hammer it in with a hammer and stop complaining!

    So really you guys giving it a 0 for not playing perfectly with keyboard is really unfair. I can give maybe half a point for it not matching up with the keyboard controls and using xbox icons, but that's about it really. It's made to be played with a gamepad. So play it with one, and stop giving this game a low score because of your own personal issues with gamepads.

    ----------------------------

    Dark Souls is a console port. From Software said that. They made it very clear when the game was coming out. "This is mostly a console port. No surprises!" That means the game is structured from the bottom up in a console fashion. Why would it be so different from what was promised? So that means, you run it with a console controller, it plays at a console resolution with a console speed, with hopefully better console performance. That's what was promised, and that's what From Software delivered. I personally don't see anything wrong with that. PC Fans requested a game that was console exclusive and got it on their platform. It works! It's non buggy! It looks like the console version! It's just as great as it originally was (Fantastic and amazing game!) What else is there to say? It's a great game. I love it. The graphics are amazing, the frame rate is BETTER than console. The story is incredible, the gameplay is on point and very responsive. The game isn't choppy or has hiccups, or anything like that. Game plays smooth like butter at 30 FPS. Honestly, it plays better than most PC games I've messed with lately with twice the frame rate.

    Plus Durante modded it recently to increase the resolution past the initial renderer limit, so that's just the icing on the cake. This is a great game and I'm glad this game is finally on PC!    … Expand
  31. Drewster
    Aug 25, 2012
    9
    Hopefully devs and publishers clue into the notion that they hold the power to shape the attitudes of their consumers, with that they need to put a disclaimer with the advertising and sales of their games that they are designed for game pads - a simple "Optimized for Game Pad" do you agree before clicking to purchase would bring a stop to all these numpties who refuse to buy a game pad forHopefully devs and publishers clue into the notion that they hold the power to shape the attitudes of their consumers, with that they need to put a disclaimer with the advertising and sales of their games that they are designed for game pads - a simple "Optimized for Game Pad" do you agree before clicking to purchase would bring a stop to all these numpties who refuse to buy a game pad for what ever principled and or stubborn idea they have around remaining elite (non console).

    PC gaming allows for the best of both worlds - yet there are so many small minded whingers in the community it is disgusting!! Don't you non game pad whingers see we on PC would not have half the games we have in our current library from last 5 years without console gaming feeding it.

    Dark Souls is a solid port that when played with a game pad (as it was optimized for) is a better experience than the console counterparts had served to them.    … Expand
  32. 0and0is00
    Sep 3, 2012
    0
    The lack of the possibility to use the PC-controls (mouse/keyboard) correctly, makes this game basically unplayable on the PC.
    Rather spend the money on another PC game.
  33. Lino
    Sep 18, 2012
    0
    DONT BUY THIS GAME!!!!!

    I just created an account to rate this 0 because its an absolute impudence to sell this game on PC like that. I will never buy a game of that company again you cant do that. There are no controlls for PC its all made for consol, and whats worng with the grapic this looks awful, now i have to buy an 360 controller for my Pc Just to play this game. How can ppl even    DONT BUY THIS GAME!!!!!

    I just created an account to rate this 0 because its an absolute impudence to sell this game on PC like that. I will never buy a game of that company again you cant do that. There are no controlls for PC its all made for consol, and whats worng with the grapic this looks awful, now i have to buy an 360 controller for my Pc Just to play this game. How can ppl even rate this game with more than 5 its simply lieing to ppl who trust an honest rateing.    … Expand
  34. Al53guy
    Sep 3, 2012
    10
    its sad that so many ppl r giving this game a 0. yea the keyboard controls are horrible but i've managed 20 hours on em and then put another 40 with controler (yes i bought 1 just for the game) but that aside this game is simply amazing and depsite all the ppl being buthurt over the controls they shouldnt let that drag down the core of the game
  35. Orctownorc
    Aug 22, 2013
    5
    The opening cinematics hint at a truly remarkable game. The rave reviews of fans are encouraging. However my PC version of this game remains unplayable for two key reasons: (1) Games For Windows Live. Why in the seven hells, did they have to append this horrible DRM on the game? This refuses to log in, refuses to allow saves in game, and refuses to even allow the game to be quit out ofThe opening cinematics hint at a truly remarkable game. The rave reviews of fans are encouraging. However my PC version of this game remains unplayable for two key reasons: (1) Games For Windows Live. Why in the seven hells, did they have to append this horrible DRM on the game? This refuses to log in, refuses to allow saves in game, and refuses to even allow the game to be quit out of without alt F4! (2) The controls are even worse than you heard. From Software chose the most ridiculous keys they could think of for their key mapping. "Buy a controller?" Hell, WHY! This is clearly a console game. As PC software it clearly earns 0/10. I suggest those who want to enjoy it do so on console.

    THE GROT REVIEW CRITERIA: After a long time writing reviews like an anus, think its time to set a few bad habits straight: Stop insulting designers. Show some respect for the design process and getting games in circulation. Hence (1) No Red scores. (2) Game scores as follows: Bad Game 5/10. Poor Game 6/10. Mediocre Game: 7/10. Good Game 8/10. Great game 9/10. Stella Game 10/10. To get 10/10 it must be a game that can be (theoretically) play-able for 1000+ hours. Not only great but near endless fun. Games may be bad or poor but making them should earn respect. Thus even the worst POS will still be a 5/10. 0/10 no longer exists in my vocabulary. Yellow is the new red. For the sake of accountability: you can reply if needed: Orctowngrot: Tim Rawlins: timtimjp@yahoo.com    … Expand
  36. MrFunsocks
    Jul 20, 2013
    0
    Worst purchase ever. Terrible controls, for mouse or keyboard. The joypad controls aren't rebindable, and the default bindings are atrocious. I spent about an hour messing with it before I started using JoyToKey to try and remap my controller. Just got fed up. Maybe it's good, but the intro (even aside from controller issues) shows some tired graphics, incomprehensible story setup, andWorst purchase ever. Terrible controls, for mouse or keyboard. The joypad controls aren't rebindable, and the default bindings are atrocious. I spent about an hour messing with it before I started using JoyToKey to try and remap my controller. Just got fed up. Maybe it's good, but the intro (even aside from controller issues) shows some tired graphics, incomprehensible story setup, and incredibly bland gameplay, along with a basically nonexistent tutorial. Maybe it gets better later, I don't know, but I'm not going to fight the game for another hour just to find out.… Expand
  37. Eitr
    Aug 12, 2013
    0
    Garbage port. Key bindings are the worst and the game wont even tell you which key because it only displays controller buttons. After finally getting it to go full screen and controller hooked up, gameplay was still buggy and the camera was awful. At one point an enemy had killed me at a bonfire, but when I respawned he still had agro on me again (and again). To make this worse, the gameGarbage port. Key bindings are the worst and the game wont even tell you which key because it only displays controller buttons. After finally getting it to go full screen and controller hooked up, gameplay was still buggy and the camera was awful. At one point an enemy had killed me at a bonfire, but when I respawned he still had agro on me again (and again). To make this worse, the game does not pause at all when entering any menu so I had to kite the enemy around before he killed me just to be able to exit the game. I can understand not pausing during pvp but this was in offline mode. Tutorial is practically non existent and expects you to just guess what the mechanics of the game are half the time. Little notes written on the ground where it's usually too late to respond to the situation after trying to read them does not suffice for helping new people get into the game.… Expand
  38. camoe
    Aug 27, 2012
    3
    the euro gamers says its not the worst port in the world yes it is truly horrible pc port if you don't have a xbox controller don't bother buying it you can not play this game with keyboard and mouse their are no graphics option fps cap resolution cap.Also its so slow everything in the game is just plain slow.The is non existent all in all a sloppy and lazy port why support a company thatthe euro gamers says its not the worst port in the world yes it is truly horrible pc port if you don't have a xbox controller don't bother buying it you can not play this game with keyboard and mouse their are no graphics option fps cap resolution cap.Also its so slow everything in the game is just plain slow.The is non existent all in all a sloppy and lazy port why support a company that dishes out this rubbish they don't deserve it.… Expand
  39. KachoCrits
    Aug 25, 2012
    10
    Amazing game, if you're having difficulty with K+M just use a controller. It's either that, or you can adapt slowly just as I did. It takes a bit of dedication to the controls, but once you get it down, you've got it. The resolution can be easily fixed by using the neo-gaf fix made by a user named 'Durante'. It easily polishes the game, and you can hide your cursor with F9 to finally giveAmazing game, if you're having difficulty with K+M just use a controller. It's either that, or you can adapt slowly just as I did. It takes a bit of dedication to the controls, but once you get it down, you've got it. The resolution can be easily fixed by using the neo-gaf fix made by a user named 'Durante'. It easily polishes the game, and you can hide your cursor with F9 to finally give the camera that tight feeling. Fixes the textures, and gives your armor that shiny feel you wanted. All in all, even though it was a horrible port. There's still a community out there dedicated to it, that won't back down. Fixing the mistakes made by FS. Goes to show how passionate they are about the game. Definitely a steal at 40 dollars, and the on line community is just relentless. Really amps up the tension of reversing your hollowing and traversing hard landscapes in that state. Can't wait for future updates, whether they're made by the fans or the developers. Only time will tell, definitely a 10/10 on my end.… Expand
  40. Blackcompany
    Aug 26, 2012
    0
    Automatic Zero. Why? It uses Games for Windows Live. That's reason enough to rate any game Zero. Avoid it or get it in some other way. Preferably a way that allows you to play it without the aggravation suffered by paying customers at the hands of this awful DRM scheme from Microsoft.
  41. Taskmaster69
    Aug 25, 2012
    10
    Pretty solid game, its a decent port due to it running the game even better than its console counter part not to mention having a nice res. Sure you need to mod it (its literally drag and drop) but there is indeed a decent res fix for the game. The only let down would be the keyboard and mouse controls but if you are like me and own the console version already you already have a gamepadPretty solid game, its a decent port due to it running the game even better than its console counter part not to mention having a nice res. Sure you need to mod it (its literally drag and drop) but there is indeed a decent res fix for the game. The only let down would be the keyboard and mouse controls but if you are like me and own the console version already you already have a gamepad handy to play the game because you do not limit yourself to one platform and pretend to be better than everyone else. TLDR stop being a casual and pretending to actually like video games because you have a pc that idles on tf2.… Expand
  42. Kerith
    Sep 22, 2012
    1
    Could of been awesome, but it fails at the most basic requirement to be a PC game: controls. Incorrect keyboard shortcuts displayed on menu items, giggle joystick quick-time events, and choppy camera rotations can be experienced within the first 15 minutes of play.

    Second big fail are the graphics, they are even worse then then their console counterparts. As they chose to port the Xbox    Could of been awesome, but it fails at the most basic requirement to be a PC game: controls. Incorrect keyboard shortcuts displayed on menu items, giggle joystick quick-time events, and choppy camera rotations can be experienced within the first 15 minutes of play.

    Second big fail are the graphics, they are even worse then then their console counterparts. As they chose to port the Xbox 360 version (evidence is button displayed in-game), there is no excuse for the reduction of graphic quality seen. Microsoft has gone out of their way to share the API for DirectX 9 and Windows, and even has extensive tutorials on how to port between platforms on XNA. Now my first point can be easily fixed and forgiven with a quick patch. Binary Domain had even worse controls at release and a patch was announced the next day for the next week. They delivered. Nothing out of FROM software, nor the original developers for patches and they are still pushing the 40 dollar.price tag on Steam .

    The graphics issue can be fixed with a third party patch, this is where it gets fun. I had purchased this on Steam, so the third party patch could threaten my entire game library if VAC is configured to work with the Windows Live DRM. The method used could trip cheat detection software and result in the loss of your entire game library. The patch is basically a DLL replacer, sprung into popularity for FXAA support and shader modding in Skyrim. The policy on banning cheaters does vary on the developer and whether the game is multiplayer or not. In the case of Skyrim, the official stance is that they do not ban these types of mods. There has been no comments from FROM Software about anything at this point, so I recommend buying this on separate accounts so you don't get screwed over. Below i have noted some dev statements on the use of these mods in multiplayer.

    Blizzard on Diablo 3 - "All mods are against the TOS and could be banned at any moment"
    Source (the mod read-me is funny too): http://us.battle.net/d3/en/forum/topic/5150763717

    ArenaNet on Guild Wars 2 - http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Guide_to_modifying_in-game_graphics/Texmod#ArenaNet

    EA Games, ME3 rumoured bannings for singleplayer modding and some BF3 bannings (I couldnt find a reliable source sorry)

    You will notice these mods come with source code usually, and it is not because of good will. They can touch your OS and hardware at a lower level then most applications can because they act like a middle man between your game and the graphics card. That is why you get a copy of the source, so you can compile your own version of the DLL and have a complete understanding of what it is doing to your computer.

    Ugh way longer then I wanted this, but I had to fight the steam game hub to understand the risks of these mods. I was going for a 3, but its not a 1 after all those words.    … Expand
  43. darkballz_pl
    Mar 31, 2013
    10
    Poor console port but the best RPG so far. This is how the RPG should be made, dark and bleak, however the controls can be pain in the ass. In some areas fight is really hard but yet enjoyable. Definitely challenging and absolute must-have for an RPG player.
  44. Xanthor
    Mar 22, 2013
    0
    With most PC console ports I am willing to see past the problems and try to enjoy the game. But this game is horrendous. The resolution is awful (even running 1920x1080). Never heard of camera smoothing? Then, several keys just won't bind. Finally, after painfully setting up the controls, attacking the undead creatures will result in hitting air to the left or right.

    Well, Bandai,    With most PC console ports I am willing to see past the problems and try to enjoy the game. But this game is horrendous. The resolution is awful (even running 1920x1080). Never heard of camera smoothing? Then, several keys just won't bind. Finally, after painfully setting up the controls, attacking the undead creatures will result in hitting air to the left or right.

    Well, Bandai, enjoying the easy money? How about completely redesigning the PC port and RESPECT one third of your customer base for a change? It could be a great game, but the port makes it a complete waste. By the way, there are more publishers that could (should) set the same example.    … Expand
  45. bombrero
    Apr 26, 2014
    0
    Back in the day i didnt write a review for this game because it would be another 0, so I just thought "let it be, its not worth the rant, the game is unplayable and takes the bad pc porting to a whole new level, people will struggle to play it and the result will be all the same, low score for the controls high score for the gameplay, no need to punish it", but something happened that madeBack in the day i didnt write a review for this game because it would be another 0, so I just thought "let it be, its not worth the rant, the game is unplayable and takes the bad pc porting to a whole new level, people will struggle to play it and the result will be all the same, low score for the controls high score for the gameplay, no need to punish it", but something happened that made me notice that it had to be punished: The sequel came out. When I bought the first one (this game) It was the worst pc port I had EVER played (and thats saying something): Locked internal resolution (1024 x 720) and FPS (30fps), bad performance, CTDs, unskippable cutscenes and logos (which rapidly becomes a problem if your game crashes often and takes one full minute to restart only for it to crash again), and for the love of god! no keyboard and mouse functionality, as in the mouse didnt even had a chance in this game, and rebindible keys? be lucky with them, on top of some input lag that set the foundation to a horrible experience. But then, hours after my purchase one man, ONE TRULY DEVOTED MAN fixed a lot of the issues releasing a quickfix that let you set internal resolution, fps unlock, skip the cutscenes and logos, and somehow made the flickering graphics and CTDs I was experiencing go away. Then another man joined him and made a fix for the mouse making it fully playable with just minor inconveniences (negative mouse acceleration was still there). And It was hen that I started to have a damn good time. The game itself was good and nostalgic. It was like one of those unforgiving dungeon RPGs from my childhood, but with nice graphics (thanks to the savior who made the fix) and great inmersion. The game ended up being really enjoyable for me, so I bought the second one yesterday thinking that the huge backlash would have been enough for them not to make the same mistakes... Well, not the same mistakes were made, some of the issues were fixed, but it came with a whole new mix of old problems and new problems that make the game again a bad, uncomfortable experience, almost unplayable. That made me realize that thjis scores even if pointless, those "Its unplayable have a nice 0" people (and me) have been giving are completely necessary so these thing wont become a cycle. I'm getting a refund on DS2, and I will state that though I had a great time with this game, it was only thanks to the fans, who made the game possible, since the company sold an unplayable piece of garbage. Thats why I'm giving this game what it deserved in the first place.… Expand
  46. iozay
    Nov 1, 2012
    1
    The game is impossible to control. Controles are by default incorrect displayed in the interface(For PC version at least). I would defenitely not recommend this game to anyone. The game defenitely has a lot of potential but is not executed well.
  47. SohailACE
    Nov 21, 2012
    0
    Worst port of the year, worst graphics, gameplay sucks, biggest flop of the year 2012.................................................................
  48. Paco73
    Nov 20, 2012
    0
    ..........................................................................................................................................................................Crappy port. Not even worth a $2.99 bargain bin purchase.
  49. legomyhobo
    May 19, 2013
    10
    You can adjust to the console port and use it fine. It's pretty similar to most games...use key is q or e. It's all convenient. Graphics are fine and I didn't even notice the frame rate cap. While the story is distant to modern reality and there's no dramatic damsel in distress, the idea of going around in a vibrant wasteland appeals to me more.

    The targeting system is obnoxious and    You can adjust to the console port and use it fine. It's pretty similar to most games...use key is q or e. It's all convenient. Graphics are fine and I didn't even notice the frame rate cap. While the story is distant to modern reality and there's no dramatic damsel in distress, the idea of going around in a vibrant wasteland appeals to me more.

    The targeting system is obnoxious and aiming bows is too difficult with a mouse, but thanks to the games flexibility, I just took different approaches so it wouldn't matter much.

    This game took me over 50 hours for my first playthrough. There's lots of content I missed, the visuals and scenery is awesome. The enemies are satisfying to kill and by the end of the game, I feel like I've grown in my level of patience, approach to challenging problems, and ability to appreciate difficulty as healthy rather than hindrance.    … Expand
  50. mosti
    Dec 1, 2013
    1
    Absolutely terrible.Graphics are crapola! There's a patch mod to make it better but I spent 4hrs to try to get it to work without luck so I decided to just get into the game with it's crappy graphics.
    The idea of the game is great and is the only reason I'm not giving it a 0/10!
    What irritates me the most above the graphics and the usual glitch and bug is the difficulty and imbalance of    Absolutely terrible.Graphics are crapola! There's a patch mod to make it better but I spent 4hrs to try to get it to work without luck so I decided to just get into the game with it's crappy graphics.
    The idea of the game is great and is the only reason I'm not giving it a 0/10!
    What irritates me the most above the graphics and the usual glitch and bug is the difficulty and imbalance of this game. If you enjoy a game that you're finding yourself continuously having to kill the same enemies over and over and over to try to advance (as they respawn every time you die, or heal at your camp when you run out of potions), then good luck to you because this will certainly break you as it did I!
    The entire combat system is beyond retarded! Wayyy to difficult to block and counter enemies. Stamina is used to strike, block, dodge, counter you name it! So when you find yourself up against 2+ foes swinging their swords in your face...you die...why? Because you spend all your stamina blocking the first two strikes which leaves you open for a massive hit (3hits your dead).
    Horrible game, seriously steer clear    … Expand
  51. Kovil1402
    Apr 2, 2015
    0
    I would give this game a 5 just because its the worst concole port I've ever seen and because it is impossible to play the game without the controller...Moveover the game is boring the plot is simple and vacuous not to say the least.The story is just not engaging and even the gameplay itself,which is supposed to be key in this game, is filled with walking through poorly designed corridorsI would give this game a 5 just because its the worst concole port I've ever seen and because it is impossible to play the game without the controller...Moveover the game is boring the plot is simple and vacuous not to say the least.The story is just not engaging and even the gameplay itself,which is supposed to be key in this game, is filled with walking through poorly designed corridors and engaging in combat with armies of skeletons.This is not fun at all!Difficulty is not enough for making a good game.Challenge is not the only thing needed to make an interesting game.I am concerned that this game has so many fans because this tells much about the gaming community as a whole.… Expand
  52. Goden
    Jan 8, 2014
    1
    If you want to read about the story or gameplay then read a review from someone that can actually get it working. As for me, Steam's timer shows that I have played it for 27 minutes and that is about as far as I can take it. Keyboard Mouse controls are almost completely unplayable and illogically bound BUT FEAR NOT as I have a Logitech gamepad tucked away for games that require aIf you want to read about the story or gameplay then read a review from someone that can actually get it working. As for me, Steam's timer shows that I have played it for 27 minutes and that is about as far as I can take it. Keyboard Mouse controls are almost completely unplayable and illogically bound BUT FEAR NOT as I have a Logitech gamepad tucked away for games that require a controller to use, so I plugged that badboy in. Whoops, turns out that unless you're using an official Microsoft Xbox360 controller then there is roughly a 30% chance your controller will actually work. If it doesn't then you need to download, install, and then config a third-party 360 controller emulator and blah blah blah blah. This game was gifted to me by a friend and I would very much like to play it but so far that seems highly unlikely. I honestly have to question the legality over selling a product which more broken and dysfunctional than most early alpha test games. If I had paid full price I would certainly be requesting a refund from Steam support.… Expand
  53. Warfighter
    Oct 7, 2012
    5
    Okay where to start.
    The game is just exactly the same as the PS 3 one. Only thing that isn't there is a resolution fix (already fixed by a mod). Not good nor bad just okay. (They are lazy yea okay)
    Now what really pisses me off are the controls. I don't mind bad graphics, i don't mind bad voice acting. I don't mind little glitches or bugs. I do hate (and hate is just the nicest word i    Okay where to start.
    The game is just exactly the same as the PS 3 one. Only thing that isn't there is a resolution fix (already fixed by a mod). Not good nor bad just okay. (They are lazy yea okay)
    Now what really pisses me off are the controls. I don't mind bad graphics, i don't mind bad voice acting. I don't mind little glitches or bugs. I do hate (and hate is just the nicest word i could find) the controls, it just ruins the entire gameplay. If you gonna port something to the PC you have to know we use a mouse and a keyboard not an Xbox 360 controller nor PS 3 controller. I was struggling to play this game and after 8 hours of frustration i just gave up and searched the internet for a solution (because you know not everyone has a Xbox controller) now i play this with a PS 3 controller.
    The controls are just a lazy 15 minute add on which they probably didn't even test and i hate lazy companies. If i can give you a tip just buy it for the PS 3 and save yourself from some frustration.    … Expand
  54. Lobby
    Sep 25, 2013
    6
    I just don't get it have some people can rate this game so high.

    The port is complete fail. I don't really care about graphic, but I feel cheated as they deliver sub standard port where you can't even change the resolution not mention anything else. This go even further as they were not able even remove default mouse cursor Think like game is running in window mode by default is just    I just don't get it have some people can rate this game so high.

    The port is complete fail. I don't really care about graphic, but I feel cheated as they deliver sub standard port where you can't even change the resolution not mention anything else. This go even further as they were not able even remove default mouse cursor Think like game is running in window mode by default is just detail. It scream loudly lets get some money out of it while it is still popular.

    Controlling is not really good while playing on game pad and from time to time you would feel like you need one more finger, the latency of you clicking is quiet slow and sometimes you just look how your character is still doing something while you are trying to do something else. Also sometimes miss-click may cost you your life and trust me it happens more often than pleasant. If you would think you can play it with keyboard forget it they just tried to map game pad directly to keyboard and it is just unplayable. If you do not own gamed or planing to buy one don't by the game.

    The game looks great even in oldish graphic it have its charm and is quite original with nice sceneries.

    The system of stats, weapons, armours and magic is good but nothing really original, what I liked a lot was weapons are not purely based on strength or dexterity but it partially on both and the ratio depends on each weapon. Also I really like how weapons don't just go through the walls but actually stop the attack as if you hit enemy shield.

    There is one more problem and that is camera I found myself dead few times just because I could not seen myself and saw just wall behind me or boss or something like this instead or when I used lock on enemy this occasionally picked someone than wasn't even endangering me instead of the creature that actually killed me before I managed to hit because of this.

    The best think about this game should have be that it is hard and challenging and that was the reason I bought this game in a first place as I love such game and they are really spare nowadays, but somehow I can see it her. The part where you are fighting with non-boss monsters is just normal nothing changeling (if camera don't do its tricks or you up dead because of the lazy controller) .

    Fight with bosses are deadly hard, but the strategy is not so hard to made only problem is the execution when you can die easily as they can kill you with one or two blows, this wouldn't be such a problem it was not quite often result of bad camera or problematic control. Your dead will result in re-spawn of you but also all monsters so you need to get through repetitive fights with lesser monster again and again as you will never beat the boss in few first tries. This was quite boring to me. I don't know, I just can't see than supper challenges and hardcore difficulty, I see hardcore bosses, but the rest is more like problems of camera and controls or tedious killing without any real difficulty or challenges.

    On one hand I liked lot of aspects of this game very much and it brought lot good stuff, but have also lot of problems and things that were plainly shoddy done in process of porting. I think this is most inconsistent game I have ever played what is really shame as it could have one of the best games I have ever played with just a bit of polishing here and there and some proper porting    … Expand
  55. Gzhindra
    Jul 28, 2013
    9
    Dark Souls is hard but Dark Souls is highly rewarding. It is long and it is deep, full of lore and secret and there is something to be said of this game’s atmosphere too: Dark and warm at the same time. It has also a lot of replayability. I could praise this game forever.

    The fighting systems appear simple at first but when you start to dig it has a depth few games have. The character    Dark Souls is hard but Dark Souls is highly rewarding. It is long and it is deep, full of lore and secret and there is something to be said of this game’s atmosphere too: Dark and warm at the same time. It has also a lot of replayability. I could praise this game forever.

    The fighting systems appear simple at first but when you start to dig it has a depth few games have. The character development is also outstanding. Everything has its use and it change the way you play along with the tone of weapons that have their original move sets.

    It is a bless that this game came to the PC.

    The resolution is locked in the vanilla version but you can mod it in 5 min and after that the experience is perfect. The 30 fps limit is not a problem with this kind of game if your computer can keep it constant.    … Expand
  56. Muffinrex
    Aug 13, 2014
    3
    The game might be terrific for all I know, but the PC port is so goddamn awful that I just can't play it. I spent hours trying to figure out how to get around Games For Windows Live, and when I finally got into the game, I FOUND OUT IT WAS HORRIBLE.

    I am so disappointed! The framerate and resolution are crap, as well as the over all graphics. You can clearly tell that the team didn't    The game might be terrific for all I know, but the PC port is so goddamn awful that I just can't play it. I spent hours trying to figure out how to get around Games For Windows Live, and when I finally got into the game, I FOUND OUT IT WAS HORRIBLE.

    I am so disappointed! The framerate and resolution are crap, as well as the over all graphics. You can clearly tell that the team didn't put any effort into this terrible port, because the bloody hotkey icons are still looking like X360-buttons! And the mouse, OH GOD THE MOUSE. The camera keeps spinning around, and the mouse cursor is still on the screen in-game.

    Don't buy this. If you have a PS3 or a Xbox 360, buy it for one of those. This port is a waste of cash. Totally unplayable.    … Expand
  57. Snadiwchhhh
    Jun 13, 2013
    3
    The game earns high scores by its hardness. But even after many years, game on PC is horrible: controls, camera, lock on, movements, FPS, bugs, lags, graphics of games created in 2002, horrible in-game menu, no explain of controls, everything is shown as xbox controls, horrible combo controls and many other cons. Even game without them is average, im not saying on hardness, but whyThe game earns high scores by its hardness. But even after many years, game on PC is horrible: controls, camera, lock on, movements, FPS, bugs, lags, graphics of games created in 2002, horrible in-game menu, no explain of controls, everything is shown as xbox controls, horrible combo controls and many other cons. Even game without them is average, im not saying on hardness, but why demons are so easy to kill (hide behind the tree while demon swings with his weapon and then attack, or go above the beast and jump on his head to kill him) and why mini bosses kill you with one hit or 2 bites of huge rat will poison you for 2 minutes, what is fatal for your hero. Game is saying that you can do whatever you want and go where you want, but its lies. Because going wrong way you will meet enemies who kill you with one hit. Games biggest enemies are not demons or bosses, but lags and optimization of the game. Hope that sequel will fix all these cons.… Expand
  58. maikarukun
    Jan 2, 2013
    6
    The Game itself: Amazing, The User Experience: Horrible. That sums up Dark Souls PtDE PC. The game itself is beautiful, very fun challenging gameplay, a deep and complex combat system with dodging, parrying and ripostes, a huge world, massive enemy variation, tons of great bosses and cool gear, but all of it, is eclipsed by how horrid this port is. Here's my experience with it: The gamesThe Game itself: Amazing, The User Experience: Horrible. That sums up Dark Souls PtDE PC. The game itself is beautiful, very fun challenging gameplay, a deep and complex combat system with dodging, parrying and ripostes, a huge world, massive enemy variation, tons of great bosses and cool gear, but all of it, is eclipsed by how horrid this port is. Here's my experience with it: The games resolution is limited to 1024x720... like, really? So, right off the bat, I'm installing DSFix just so I can play the game at a resolution befitting of something made post 2007.
    So, DSFix properly installed, recognized by NexusModManager, brilliant, time to play, right? WRONG.

    The game immediately crashes on launch 'DARKSOULS.EXE is not working', really?
    So, I uninstall the game, and reinstall Games for Windows Live, thats' right guys, it's not SteamWorks, welcome to the Dark Ages.
    I spend an hour reinstalling the game and then DSFix, same error again.

    Not to mention its unplayable with keyboard and mouse. If you want Dark Souls, buy it on Xbox or PS3, it isn't worth the money of effort of getting it to work on PC and pretending you don't want to through your monitor at a baby.    … Expand
  59. wiike
    Jan 6, 2013
    9
    Extremly solid gameplay combined with deep plot. It has the best map design I ever seen and it's a open world ARPG. The overall mood of the game is great and actually make the game very addict while anger introducing when your character died and lose all your souls. The only weakness of this game is the bad UI design and slightly lack of music. Some might complain about the graphic butExtremly solid gameplay combined with deep plot. It has the best map design I ever seen and it's a open world ARPG. The overall mood of the game is great and actually make the game very addict while anger introducing when your character died and lose all your souls. The only weakness of this game is the bad UI design and slightly lack of music. Some might complain about the graphic but there are a graphic fix free to download online.… Expand
  60. RajinJMG
    Jan 8, 2013
    9
    Easily one of the best games I have ever purchased. This game offers a wide array of exploring and battles starting with smaller enemies working up to nerve racking battles with Giant Water Hydras and Fire Breathing Drakes. However, if purchasing on PC, GET AN XBOX CONTROLLER. Almost impossible on keyboard.
  61. MrZellian
    Jan 23, 2013
    6
    Terrible absolutely terrible port! I loved this game, i believe its one of the best rpgs i ever played! If i was to rate the gameplay and the story its definitely a 10 and a MUST play for anyone who loves rpgs and has some patience because this game has a very steep learning curve, but the game is horribly delivered to the PC! If you can get your hands on the xbox version i highlyTerrible absolutely terrible port! I loved this game, i believe its one of the best rpgs i ever played! If i was to rate the gameplay and the story its definitely a 10 and a MUST play for anyone who loves rpgs and has some patience because this game has a very steep learning curve, but the game is horribly delivered to the PC! If you can get your hands on the xbox version i highly recommend it! Other than that the mutliplayer has a lot of issues mainly issues with cheaters and lag. 10/10 for the game, 6/10(it would be lower for any other game, but its still Dark Souls) for the port! If you can get your hands on an xbox controller or do some searching on the Internet to find some good mods to make it work properly its a definite purchase!!!… Expand
  62. LewisWells93
    Feb 19, 2013
    9
    I bought the PC port of this game (Purely because it was £20 cheaper). I can see where people are coming from when they dislike the transfer over (Instructions given in 360 format) also the game is horrific to play with a mouse and keyboard! With a controller however the game plays just as well as the console version does. This was my first jump into the 'Souls' universe and whilst theI bought the PC port of this game (Purely because it was £20 cheaper). I can see where people are coming from when they dislike the transfer over (Instructions given in 360 format) also the game is horrific to play with a mouse and keyboard! With a controller however the game plays just as well as the console version does. This was my first jump into the 'Souls' universe and whilst the 'Prepare to die' caption made me worry, I think it was for the right reason. This games difficulty is unforgiving. Period. People may hate, or like this. I am one of those who was slowly turned throughout my experiences, you might ask why? Dying over and over again to begin with was a frustrating experience but then I soon learned that this game was not meant to be rushed. You have to take the time to check for traps, blindspots, shortcuts etc and the game will reward you accordingly (Bonfire, items etc). A game being difficult does not make a game bad, people have grown up in an age of Call of duty/Mindless action games where all you need to do is run and gun. I find the brutal difficulty very refreshing and it gives me a great sense of accomplishment when I manage to kill off a tough boss or get through a hard area! To the actual game mechanics itself... At full resolution this game looks beautiful, I could not tell the difference between the PS3 and PC version, so I have no qualms about graphics! I enjoy RPG's anyway, but to those new to it, I think its a nice simple levelling system which just requires you to do a bit of reading to see what will benefit and what wont help. The flexibility of the system also allows you to create your own unique character to suit your style of play! The only issue I would take up with this game are the online features. Good the majority of the time however some things do ruin it for example the invasions of other players to your world can leave you at a great disadvantage (Especially against hackers who have the best equipment right at the start), it can leave you feeling rather done over if your new to the game, also Windows live has a wonderful tendency to not allow you to summon players or will just disconnect itself.

    Apart from those online issues, I think the game is wonderful, like I mentioned due to its refreshingly difficult gameplay and it's classic RPG elements. If your not afraid of a challenge I would highly suggest giving the game a go!    … Expand
  63. Aquazi
    Oct 10, 2013
    9
    I consider myself being one of the kind of players that just feel bored after 30 minutes of a single player and just want to log to LoL/WoW/Dota or Counter Strike. I played most new games like Bioshock, Dishnored, Batman, ecc, but the real game I really enjoyed to play is Dark Souls. Why?
    Dark Souls is not an interactive movie with crap gameplay like Bioshock Infinite. It has no unique    I consider myself being one of the kind of players that just feel bored after 30 minutes of a single player and just want to log to LoL/WoW/Dota or Counter Strike. I played most new games like Bioshock, Dishnored, Batman, ecc, but the real game I really enjoyed to play is Dark Souls. Why?
    Dark Souls is not an interactive movie with crap gameplay like Bioshock Infinite. It has no unique pattern and approach with boring fights like Batman.
    In Dark Souls you really feel lost to yourself not knowing sometimes where or what to do, every direction you look from Firelink Shrine you are scared. It really took me long to finish the game, and trust me it was a very stressful accomplishment to make. I give the game 9 because the port sucks. Don't dare playing it without a joypad, better if you have a 360 one.    … Expand
  64. thangar
    Mar 30, 2013
    5
    I really want to like this game, I really do. I've played it before on a PS3, looked pretty neat, a couple days later, I saw it on sale at steam, and I make the poor decision to buy it.
    It's a good game, but PC port is just awful. Actually, it's worst than awful: It's just freakin' bad.
    Poor controllers, it's bad even with a XBOX360 Controller, I have no idea how they managed to do this.    I really want to like this game, I really do. I've played it before on a PS3, looked pretty neat, a couple days later, I saw it on sale at steam, and I make the poor decision to buy it.
    It's a good game, but PC port is just awful. Actually, it's worst than awful: It's just freakin' bad.
    Poor controllers, it's bad even with a XBOX360 Controller, I have no idea how they managed to do this. Poor Resident-Evil-4-graphics, you can't even change the most basic graphic options, just resolution and antialising. Dumb controls: you have to surf through menus with the awful xbox360 controller D-pad (or should I say circle-pad?), and finally GFWL. Seriously? It's 2013 and still using GFWL?
    Don't buy this, spend your money in a better and well-made game.    … Expand
  65. f0rdragon
    Dec 23, 2021
    7
    very good game with a lot of potential but poorly executed.low fps,terrible pc port and don't even bother to even test it without controller.some of the port problems can be fixed by dsfix but this isn't an excuse for these major problems.
  66. critickarlo
    Jun 3, 2013
    10
    This is one of the best RPG-games in the history of video gaming. The PC port is quite rough, but it still is really not as much as a problem as some peoples say. Download the free DSfix and enjoy.
  67. fnhostyle
    Jul 18, 2013
    1
    First of all ...I wrote this review jokingly... it doesn't really read that way tho.. anyway,.. read on....

    If I were explaining the worth of this game to a friend... the descrption would contain, at minimum, several million swear words.....drowning out all comprehensible information. I will say these words.... .....console game... bad port....... ....terrible graphics........rip    First of all ...I wrote this review jokingly... it doesn't really read that way tho.. anyway,.. read on....

    If I were explaining the worth of this game to a friend... the descrption would contain, at minimum, several million swear words.....drowning out all comprehensible information.

    I will say these words.... .....console game... bad port....... ....terrible graphics........rip off .swear word...... refund different swear word.. bad port... (again).. nonsensical half finished swearword..etc

    Although I'm unfortunate enough to have purchased a 360 controller, I tried this tittle first time around using (what I prefer)...a keyboard and mouse setup.... the result talking to myself out loud about the lack of mouse pole rate adjustment or smoothing.... (without even knowing what I'm really talking about)....then the lack of being able to re-assign mouse buttons, screen refresh rate maximum at 60hz making my eyes sore being used to 120hz, the windows mouse cursor being stuck on the screen...and moving although not utilizable end result... me hitting alt F4.

    Player control, using the mouse and keyboard, is set up as if the character were a car or vehicle ....to explain better......Rather than turning both the character and camera as one unit with the mouse... the people that ported this title only linked the mouse to camera movement so as you walk.....turning is accomplished only via keyboard... leaving the camera behind to continue looking at a wall .....so constantly repositioning the camera view point using the mouse is necessary ...which is difficult considering the attack left or right hand and light attack left or right hand and block left or right hand is all controlled back on the keyboard by the mouse hand... and getting used to the fact that facing the enemy with the mouse will not ensure you faced your character at the enemy, with turning by tapping the turn keys to line the character and target up...or auto lock on target.. only accomplish-able really when the camera is also adjusted.....makes things difficult..... and all these complications might be overlook-able....to some people....for instance the people who did the port...., but making the matter worse the mouse is not calibrated correctly for widescreen use so up and down is more sensitive than left and right ruining the normal sense of balance that exists in basically every other game...and therefore the feeling of control or what little that may have remained from the 10 different mouse sensitivity adjustment settings the user may have try'd to settle upon.

    Keyboard assignments are so bad that the "end" key is used in place of the "esc" key to bring up the main menu..

    So anyway I restarted the game.....and After sitting through 15 different non skip-able splash screens again, I tried it out with the 360 controller... a lot better... I then find out that not even the buttons on the 360 controller are re-assignable... which leaves me with only swearing as re-course, once again, about how crap this game is..... at the same time the games for windows live menu is popping up over the game nonstop as I try every button on the controller looking for a "lock onto target" button ...or something else actually handy....and then once more after finding the difficulty of even the first boss creature damn near impossible....I give up.

    Thanks Good Game host Bajo for explaining about how great a game this is so great in fact ...he's playing it a second time through....apparently....
    I now...unfortunately.. have to re-evaluate any future usefulness of the aforementioned persons opinions.. lol

    I think this game may have been designed for 11 year olds...to be fair..... by 11 year olds... smart ones tho..... I'm sure..

    Value=$7.60    … Expand
  68. Trigonometry
    Sep 16, 2013
    5
    When it comes to dark souls, I am conflicted having played both the console and PC Port. I'll start now, saying that the PC Port receives a 5/10 without any mods, 6/10 properly modded while the console version gets a 7/10 because it's multiplayer isn't compromised by Games for Windows Live. Take this score as objectively as possible, because my subjective opinion is that I absolutely loveWhen it comes to dark souls, I am conflicted having played both the console and PC Port. I'll start now, saying that the PC Port receives a 5/10 without any mods, 6/10 properly modded while the console version gets a 7/10 because it's multiplayer isn't compromised by Games for Windows Live. Take this score as objectively as possible, because my subjective opinion is that I absolutely love this game and if I graded this score based on my subjective opinion, I'd grade it a 10.

    Dark souls is a gritty dungeon crawler that has become famous due to it's difficulty with a slightly more open world than it's predecessor Demon Souls. Unlike Boletaria, Lordran is plagued with the undead who have started to appear as the fires within the Kiln of the First Flame start to die out.

    Gameplay: Dark souls follows the same formula as Demon Souls when it comes to gameplay. It's an 'hack and slash' adventure RPG with a lot of strategic depth. Fights require you to think and time your attacks precisely whilst monitoring your stamina use. Stamina is used for attacking, blocking, dodging and running making it incredibly important. Weapons and armor all have their pros and cons, but although there are weapon and armor stats there is also a metagame involved. There is no 'best weapon of the game' like in some other RPGs as a weapon is only useful if you can use it well. In PVP this is seen quite clearly. Armor might be effective, but you might want to use light armor to be more mobile and able to dodge, or invest in Endurance so you get more carrying capacity and are able to use Medium armor as if it were light armor. If you don't know how to move in the set of armor you're using, it's also not going to do much which makes the game very skill based which is a very good thing.
    It's also here however that the game takes a blow from it's poorly executed PC Port. I'm certain that many PC gamers are thankful that From Software ported the game to PC, but the PC controls are absolutely horrible making the game impossible to play without a gamepad unless one gets mods to fix them like the DSFix and the DS Mouse Fix. I know some people who don't have gamepads, and were greatly aggravated claiming the game was unplayable until they finally got the mods.

    Multiplayer is the heart and soul of the game, you don't experience it fully if you're not playing online. Players leave messages giving you hints about dangers ahead or luring you to your death, bloostains tell you how others have died, if you're not Hollowed, a state that you start at untill you sacrifice Humanity to reverse it and regain if you die, you can summon players from their game world to help you complete the level, but you can also be invaded by other players or worse. Unlike Demon souls where there was just an axis between good and evil, in Dark Souls factions were introduced into the game with plenty of different multiplayer interactions, Gravelords will infect your world with powerful monsters until you find their signs for instance which is many a New Game player's woe. If you get it to work that is. Games for Windows Live is absolutely broken and I'm sure From Software only used it because they didn't know what they were getting into. Because it doens't work, players have brought upon themselves ways of fixing this by modding the game, but making it only possible for players in their friends list to invade them, with large groups like /vg/ having a player list so people can have others to interact with but also further isolating the community. Without the mod, you're likely not to invade anyone not to mention the amount of people who just play the game as Hollow to not be invaded, completely removing multiplayer from the picture due to it's horrible implementation.

    The story is very interesting but also very vague, but I say this in a good way. Most of the things you'll discover will be through speculation and item descriptions, with Lordran itself being an amazing setting filled with different scenarios. From the decadent Undead Parish, it's sewers and putrid blight town, to the Demon Ruins below the earth filled with Lava, to the city of the 'Gods' Anor Londo and the new DLC areas which include the Abyss.

    However, when looking at it objectively, this game is an improvement Demon Souls but some of it has been stripped and streamlined. There is no longer 'mana', magic has charges which makes it very easy for a character to pick it up. In fact, with Pyromancy, one only needs attunement to get more spells and an improved pyromancy flame to be effective (As well as skill to use them). In Demon Souls, you needed intelligence to improve your mana and spell uses. As a Faith character, you needed to invest in inteligence anyway for mana as well as faith for your spells to be effective and to have more spell slots. There are too many checkpoints, making the game a lot easier than it's predecessor. It's still a game you can spend a lot of time on and worth your money.    … Expand
  69. edknator
    Sep 9, 2013
    9
    This game is very atmospheric and challenging. People complaining about it just have to go and buy a controller to plug into their PC. It's only ~20$.
  70. LosingStreak
    Sep 11, 2013
    9
    Pretty much the exact same fantastic game as the console versions but FROM SOFT messed up the port with bad keyboard+mouse controls, and poor PC optimization. Nothing community mods couldn't fix though.
  71. Klotz
    Dec 21, 2017
    9
    Dark Souls is an unique gaming experience, and I'm glad I give it a second chance.
    I started playing it at release in 2012 but fast getting frustrated and bored after about 20 hours.
    With Dark Souls 2 close to release I decided to give it another try and what can I say? I love it now ! This time I was mutch more careful, I prepared myself for every encounter and take my time when I    Dark Souls is an unique gaming experience, and I'm glad I give it a second chance.
    I started playing it at release in 2012 but fast getting frustrated and bored after about 20 hours.
    With Dark Souls 2 close to release I decided to give it another try and what can I say? I love it now !
    This time I was mutch more careful, I prepared myself for every encounter and take my time when I arrived at a new area.
    In consequence of that I died a lot less what led to less frustration and less repetition.
    I think the main problem for a lot of gamer nowadays is that we not longer used to this kind of slow paced gameplay. Your decisions have always impact in the world of Dark Souls. The atmosphere and the level / enemy design is great, combat is challenging and the voice acting is out of this world.
    Would give probably a 9 but the terrible frame-rate issues cost DS a point (even with mods).    … Expand
  72. PessimisticMan
    Mar 20, 2015
    7
    My favorite game of all time gets a 7. The reason for this is, while it is my personal soul-mate, it is definitely not for everyone, and plenty of flawed game design is in it.
    PROS:
    + The art direction is so incredible! This is one of the main reasons my love for Dark Souls is so enormous. If you decide not to get this game - at least pick-up an art book. + 90% of the bosses are    My favorite game of all time gets a 7. The reason for this is, while it is my personal soul-mate, it is definitely not for everyone, and plenty of flawed game design is in it.
    PROS:
    + The art direction is so incredible! This is one of the main reasons my love for Dark Souls is so enormous. If you decide not to get this game - at least pick-up an art book.
    + 90% of the bosses are challenging but fair (most of them). They can be amazing, brilliant, beautiful, and sometimes (if you know the lore) tear-jerking.
    + The lore is so deep; every character has an incredible back-story, no matter how small their role. A prime example of this is Knight Lautrec of Carim, who has more story than screen-time.
    + While some levels are hot smelly trash (*cough* Blighttown *cough*), some levels are amazing, for example, the Painted World of Ariamas.
    + So many weapons, so many spells, so many upgrades, so many classes; your character is a slate for you to do what every you want with.
    CONS:
    - Some bosses (the 10%, if you will), are just stupid. Bed of Chaos is one of the most frustrating bosses ever, Priscilla can be irritating your first few playthroughs, Gwyndolin decides if you live or not. But including maybe a few others, there aren't many.
    - Some levels are dumb - just designed to make you angry: Blighttown, The Depths, The Great Hollow, Ash Lake, and the route to Manus (if you have the DLC) is another awful one. But keep in mind, again, there are some AMAZING levels in this game.
    - Invasions, they aren't fair. But at least they don't pretend to be fair.
    - The biggest learning curve in any game every. You'll be frustrated when on your first playthrough you find out you've screwed yourself by wasting humanity and leveling the wrong stats 10 hours ago.
    If you're skeptical about a purchase of this game (unfortunately there isn't a demo I can recommend), just watch a Let's Play of the game on YouTube, and decide from there. But it is my favorite game of all time, and I would recommend picking it up on sale.    … Expand
  73. cwilder06
    Dec 2, 2013
    10
    I played this relatively recently so wanted to point out to readers that they should be mindful of the date of the user review. There have been very simple patches released that make this game easily playable on the PC with mouse and keyboard. It took a solid couple of hours adjusting to the controls but from there on out there was another 100 hours without any meaningful problems (cameraI played this relatively recently so wanted to point out to readers that they should be mindful of the date of the user review. There have been very simple patches released that make this game easily playable on the PC with mouse and keyboard. It took a solid couple of hours adjusting to the controls but from there on out there was another 100 hours without any meaningful problems (camera was fine, frame rate fine, resolution fine, etc.).

    That being said, as I am sure one can discern based upon the critical reception, the game is fantastic with one caveat, if you go into it expecting hand holding consistent with how most games have been made over the past decade it's something of a rude awakening. The game is difficult but not as awe inspiringly challenging as some would have you believe, rather it just has a steep learning curve. Once you figure out the fairly basic mechanics of how the game works where it punishes you and where it doesn't it's no more difficult than playing another game in it's "hard" mode. If you're like me, you'll appreciate the challenge.

    A complaint of mine has been that too many games you fly through the game without ever pausing to really take in the surroundings. Not so with Dark Souls in large part because the game forces you to proceed cautiously rushing into any area generally will mean a fairly quick demise. Overall though, your experience of the game hugely benefits because of this. And in terms of getting bang for your buck, pulling 60 hours out of your first playthrough is not an entirely unreasonable expectation depending on how thorough you choose to be.

    I will not go into the minutiae of the game itself other than to say it's the most fully realized and engrossing dark fantasy world available on the PC. The only other that comes close is the Witcher 2 (another game I would strongly recommend, though for different reasons). If you like action RPG's and don't mind a challenge, this is the ticket.    … Expand
  74. Drago_Malik
    Jul 11, 2014
    1
    The game is not difficult. You can game it easily by learning to doge and evade the patterns of everything including bosses. Therefore you can kill anything easily. The only stumbles I found are the camera doesn't lock on the PC view so you end up having blocked views if you don't adjust the second axis for the camera while you move. The other is the stuns that cause loss of characterThe game is not difficult. You can game it easily by learning to doge and evade the patterns of everything including bosses. Therefore you can kill anything easily. The only stumbles I found are the camera doesn't lock on the PC view so you end up having blocked views if you don't adjust the second axis for the camera while you move. The other is the stuns that cause loss of character control from hits or falls that delay character reactions that are much needed. These two are very gamey things that add difficulty which is easy to adjust once familiar with the game. The game is very linear. You open up new areas which are also linear. I like the concept of being undead and collecting souls and monsters and gear look cool for the most part. The multiplayer is burdensome and clunky. Try to get a friend in the game with you and you can wait up to an hour before they can join sometimes. That doesn't add to difficulty, it just is a time sink. Combat is interesting, but easy to game around with good evasion and not using target lock will help you more. Easy mode = skip to any item you want for your build by remaining low endurance to dodge and weave your way through anywhere in the world. Farm exp / souls by running high value monters/npcs off cliffs. Way too gamey imo.… Expand
  75. Sivea
    Jan 13, 2014
    7
    Yes, this game is one of the most horrible ports I've seen in a while. They still even had the Xbox controller icons in the game. The people who are complaining about the controls are not very skilled, just an excuse to compensate for their poor performance. (These people are those idiots that buy an Alienware machine and can't clean it) Yes, at first, the controls for theYes, this game is one of the most horrible ports I've seen in a while. They still even had the Xbox controller icons in the game. The people who are complaining about the controls are not very skilled, just an excuse to compensate for their poor performance. (These people are those idiots that buy an Alienware machine and can't clean it) Yes, at first, the controls for the mouse/keyboard are just horrid. I had to reconfigure them to make it less awkward than it already is. As an avid PC gamer, you must learn to adapt; that's what I have done: On NG 3+ and have already beaten the DLC as well as Ornstein and Smough. I played on an old 5+ year old machine, Dell inspiron 530 stock with a GT210 (512mb), (constant 20- fps) no one can complain. Other than that, it's a very solid and unique game on its own. The game is more action focused than Role Playing, in which the combat delivers very well.

    Gameplay will feel very strange at first, for all the people who don't have a PS3 and have played Demon Souls probably won't have many problems. The game has a learning curve, a big one, but with a bit of bravery and practice, you will surpass that and be killing enemies and bosses with ease. When you first play the game, it is an experience you will never forget, you will push yourself to the brink of frustration. Exploration is very fun and risky but that's what makes it fun. You're taking a huge risk of dying, enemy encounters only make exploring more exciting. Landing blows are very satisfying. You feel like you're doing damage (most of the time). There are minor RPG statistical elements and pseudo-realistic elements as well: such as armor weight and armor protection, both are numbers that have an effect on you. Same with everything else in game. Leveling system is quite nice, if you have enough souls (which you collect from killing enemies or looting), you get to distribute one point into a variety of different skills to suit your play style. You can make your typical builds like any other fantasy RPG, but they are optional, you can build your character however you want. Which can lead to a terrible character if you do not properly distribute points and go for a good build. Boss battles are unique, and can be taken down in all ways if you're able to. The game can feel unfair a lot of the times. There are a nice variety of places to explore, and hardly any loading times for the scale of the map.

    One thing that makes the game all the worse is the queuing system. The queuing system is by far one of the worst I have seen in a while. Buttons seem delayed a lot of the times. Say, I'm attacking, I click twice, in the middle of that, I try to roll out; As soon as I'm done with my second attack, the enemy is going to hit me, instead of rolling, the game makes me attack again, which would result in my death; even though I wanted to roll, not attack again.

    Another huge gripe is the mouse targeting. All you do is face an enemy, middle click, then it would lock on. Simple right? To an extent, it's not that it's not simple, but how it functions most of the time. When facing more than one enemy, the lock on would spaz out and switch to both targets constantly and would most likely get you killed. This happens with the mouse sensitivity on high or low, there is no sweet spot.

    The graphics are quite nice, you would see some nice shading, but it is there to compensate for the low quality of some textures. Animations are pretty terrible, male and female characters have the same animations, even the funky "crapped your pants" idle stance. The game is too "asian" like, almost anime-esque, which is a massive turn off for me. The voice acting as well, they mind as well have that irritating japanese school girl voice in. I feel that western games just feel and look better overall. They don't have that stupidly pointless excessive-ness that (stereotypical) asian things/games/everything seem to have.

    The story feels like it almost doesn't exist. It is a very interesting story that is indirect and is solely based off of fan speculation. I wish it would be told in the actual game though, I want to know who I'm fighting, why am I fighting, who is this guy? Why is he here, what does he want? Most questions are not explained in the game, I wish they were. Interaction between characters is extremely limited. Which leads to the non-role playing part. Yes, I am my own character, but my influence feels artificial, my only influence seems to be from a strike of my sword.

    The game is overall unpolished, but still good. The game is challenging, not "lolz,i 'm so hardcore pro MLG quality" though, I played this game casually, got NG2 in less than 80 hours. A good game on it's own. I would recommend it if the player is willing to take the challenge. With the exception of the anime-esque aspects, the quality and longevity is shortened by the lack of mod support, terrible port, and Games for Windows Live.    … Expand
  76. Thijnie
    Dec 11, 2013
    9
    It's a fine maybe even great game as long as you don't care to play with a controller which makes it way easier. Also the port to pc wasn't great but it is not even close to game breaking. It is hard and challenging everything you need in a game
  77. limelikegreen
    Mar 11, 2014
    7
    You're going to die, you're going to want to throw things across the room and that's the point of buying this game. I love challenge, but I love challenge that comes from the game itself.

    The poor porting to the PC version leaves much to be desired. Controls are non-intuitive and difficult to understand. I got it on sale over Steam so it was a great deal for the playtime that I got    You're going to die, you're going to want to throw things across the room and that's the point of buying this game. I love challenge, but I love challenge that comes from the game itself.

    The poor porting to the PC version leaves much to be desired. Controls are non-intuitive and difficult to understand. I got it on sale over Steam so it was a great deal for the playtime that I got out of it, I just wish I wasn't fighting the controls and interface as much as the impossible monsters and bosses in the game.    … Expand
  78. Tylaris
    Dec 5, 2015
    6
    + Overall good melee combat mechanics with a strong emphasis on "impact" behind every action, every action carries a price and must be calculated, making it one of the most engaging combat systems
    + Good soundtrack
    + Great variety of enemies and their move sets + Excellent weapon (with their own animations) and armor variety, customization to your play style + Entire Player subculture    + Overall good melee combat mechanics with a strong emphasis on "impact" behind every action, every action carries a price and must be calculated, making it one of the most engaging combat systems
    + Good soundtrack
    + Great variety of enemies and their move sets
    + Excellent weapon (with their own animations) and armor variety, customization to your play style
    + Entire Player subculture through "covenants"
    +Good boss fights...some great, some are poor( Discharge, Butterfly, Bed of Chaos, summon exploitsm etc), but overall enjoyable
    + Well executed concept of learning about the world through subtle hints through dialogue, discovery, items
    / Atmosphere, Lore and sound design
    / Art style, environment design and visuals
    / Magic system, extensive but very unimaginative
    / Difficulty...challenging and rewarding, but trial and error also often cripples the fun factor
    - Controls with very noticeable lag, especially with jumping, dodging and rolling
    - Very poor combat UI
    - Abysmal dialogue and npc's, very poor voice acting...most of the time WITHOUT any lyp sinc
    - Poor Archery
    - TON of repetition and grinding
    - Poor and easily exploitable enemy AI that attacks through walls or shoots arrows relentlessly at them, or is simply unable to walk across ledges
    - Very "clunky" combat system with poor animation transition...very stiff, unsatisfying, with very poor or barely any decent combat coreography...it simply isn't fun
    - no tutorial of any kind
    - very poor pc port...fps drops, controls, UI

    Personal rant:

    Nothing of absolutely "legendary" quality that DS fanatical ( and somewhat rabid and insane, at times) community would have you believe. It combines elements from different games, improving on some, degrading others, while attracting the crowd with "Dark Souls is what turns boys into MEN" silly propaganda .
    It is a very limited title, with as many flaws as positives and one that requires more patience than anything else. I personally don't get a hard on from clicking a mouse and Dark Souls, most of the time simply comes across as being a tedious chore, than a fun and challenging experience.
    Still, I respect a vision behind this game and I can see that a lot of effort went into it, so I cannot judge it negatively despite my impression.    … Expand
  79. matt79
    Jan 27, 2015
    10
    Bad PC port, but this game is still good enough to deserve a 10. It has a brilliant plot, combat system, world and artistic design. Just please do not call it an RPG, as there are no plot altering decisions here.
  80. SilentBobVG
    May 23, 2015
    9
    First of all, before I can actually write a decent review of the game, I need to get the cons out of the way so I can move on to the pros. This is an absolutely horrific console port if you play it vanilla. Seriously one of the worst games (from a technical standpoint). And requires quite a bit of modding before it is in a playable state. Here's the main issues;

    1. 30fps frame lock    First of all, before I can actually write a decent review of the game, I need to get the cons out of the way so I can move on to the pros. This is an absolutely horrific console port if you play it vanilla. Seriously one of the worst games (from a technical standpoint). And requires quite a bit of modding before it is in a playable state. Here's the main issues;

    1. 30fps frame lock

    2. 720p resolution lock

    3. Horrid mouse and keyboard support (I wouldn't even use the word support here in all honesty)

    4. GFWL on launch (although that's thankfully been removed, and is now on Steamworks)

    5. The current Steamworks version of the game as quite a huge problem with the way the servers work, making it sometimes impossible to co-op with a friend.

    Thankfully most of this can be fixed by installing DsFIx and DSMFix, and tinkering around inside ini files.

    Alright, now that the quite hefty list of negative is out of the way I can talk about what I love about the game. And there is quite a lot;

    I have just over 100 hours in the Steam version of Dark souls, and hundreds more across the xbox and PS3 versions. I can honestly say without a shadow of a doubt that this is possibly one of my favourite games of the generation, and definitely earns a spot in my top 10 games of all time list. It's such a beautifully crafted game, in every single aspect. Playing through it for the first time provides you with a huge sense of awe. From the expansive world design, to the interconnecting areas, there's not a single bad thing I can say about the world design in this game.

    Every time you defeat and conquer an area boss, you feel more than a sense of accomplishment, it's euphoric. The constant feeling of wanting to continue to explore the deep and winding world leads you to never wanting to set your controller down (YOU'RE PLAYING WITH A CONTROLLER, RIGHT?).

    Of course, there is the element of the difficulty, but I feel people actually mistake involved gameplay mechanics with artificial difficulty. Dark Souls is not an inherently hard game, once you learn to master the parry and dodging mechanics, you'll be flying through the game in no time.

    I think what my absolute favourite part of this game is, is that you can play through the game dozens of times. Each time with a different playstyle, or weapon in miind, and your experience will be entirely different from the last. Not only that, but you still have the same feeling of wonder and enjoyment each time you beat the game.

    Typically, your first playthrough will come out to around 60-70 hours, if you're exploring all the areas. However, subsequent playthroughs can be cut down significantly in time, since you'll have a familiar understanding of the level design, enemy placement and the fastest routes to completing areas.

    From Software have created an unsung masterpiece in Dark Souls, and one I think a lot of people are fearful of playing because of the supposed difficulty or mechanics. I would strongly urge any and everyone to play this game though, for under £20 you will absolutely not regret it.

    TL;DR

    BUY THIS GAME    … Expand
  81. Keenanz
    Oct 3, 2015
    3
    BAD THINGS :
    Terrible PC port.
    This game is unplayable on average PC unless you download a mod called DSFIX. You can't even bind numeric key if you want to play this game with keyboard. Graphics looks bad and a lot of framerate drop in certain area. Terrible game Design This is basically a rage game, a Lot of enemies can often insta kill your character even if you wearing    BAD THINGS :
    Terrible PC port.
    This game is unplayable on average PC unless you download a mod called DSFIX. You can't even bind numeric key if you want to play this game with keyboard. Graphics looks bad and a lot of framerate drop in certain area.

    Terrible game Design
    This is basically a rage game, a Lot of enemies can often insta kill your character even if you wearing medium-heavy armor and invest a lot on vigor stats. Some bosses are easier than some normal enemies that you will encounter while exploring. Overall, this game is cheap and unbalanced in the terms of difficulty. If you want a balanced and challenging game, this is not the game for you

    A lot of area in this game are felt empty and lack of detail. the dev are even put strong enemies in ridiculous formation for preventing players to explore some unfinished area.

    took 30 hour less to beat the game on my first try, and i missed the DLC content because no way i can find the portal without reading online guide.

    GOOD THINGS :
    - O&S is my favourite boss fight in this series
    - Cool armor design
    - some enemy design are mindblowing
    - interesting lore
    - unique multiplayer design    … Expand
  82. Swagalf
    Jan 30, 2016
    10
    Dark Souls..
    First of all : Use a controller. And if you want to, use some mods.
    After that.. just enjoy. Enjoy, die, enjoy, die and enjoy again. You can go through the game without reading anything, without searching anything. And you'll play the ending cinematic , thinking : "What the **** happened there? This is the worst story ever blblblbl" and you know what? You'll still enjoy    Dark Souls..
    First of all : Use a controller. And if you want to, use some mods.
    After that.. just enjoy. Enjoy, die, enjoy, die and enjoy again.

    You can go through the game without reading anything, without searching anything. And you'll play the ending cinematic , thinking : "What the **** happened there? This is the worst story ever blblblbl" and you know what? You'll still enjoy the game.
    But.. you can explore everything and learn about one of the best story ever created in the history of video game. This game is simply beautiful, touching and incredibly deep. You'll have question, you won't understand everything and you'll make theory and search in the internet.. some people will have a different theory and you'll read.. read again, searching for more. And you'll discover the wonderful truth. You will never understand everything and be 100% sure. But you'll search again.
    This game is challenging, yeah. But it's fair. You can avoid 90% of it's difficulty by looking for clue or way to kill a boss.
    I don't recommend this game if you don't like a start without any clue about what's going on. I don't recommend this game if you need a game that hold your hand all way long.
    This game look at you and challenge you. You want to enjoy it ? You will have to deserve it before!

    You can think that this game hate you. And you will love it for that.
    But at some points, you'll understand that this game love you and all of the game community. And you will love it even more for that.

    This, is for me one of the best game ever.. if not the best game ever. This is an experience. This is an adventure. This is a tale. This is Dark Souls.    … Expand
  83. SuperSourSauce
    Nov 1, 2017
    10
    Remember Castlevania? It was like Dark Souls! Because it was so difficult for its time.

    And Battletoads? Ghosts 'n Goblins? Zelda 2? All those games were like Dark Souls! Because lord knows we can't have a conversation about ANY challenging game/game with swords and shields these days, without it somehow being compared to Dark Souls! Ocarina of Time may go down in history as    Remember Castlevania? It was like Dark Souls! Because it was so difficult for its time.

    And Battletoads? Ghosts 'n Goblins? Zelda 2? All those games were like Dark Souls!

    Because lord knows we can't have a conversation about ANY challenging game/game with swords and shields these days, without it somehow being compared to Dark Souls!

    Ocarina of Time may go down in history as being the best Dark Souls game, but all work and no Dark Souls makes Souls a Souls Souls.    … Expand
  84. Saix
    Sep 9, 2012
    0
    Totally wasted my time! First, I learned to use a keyboard, watching this obsolete graphics, then I connected an Xbox controller and it become better. But all was a waste when I was killed by a dragon came from nowhere and lose all XP :( Why do so?
  85. ALkasyn
    Sep 1, 2013
    4
    A friend suggested I buy this game because it is challenging and a good throwback to how games used to be. Well, I can agree that the game is indeed difficult, but unfortunately it is the dumb kind of difficulty, where the enemies just 2 shoot you. Normal creeps also have the ability to instagib you with an animated attack, even if you are at full health. The story is pretty muchA friend suggested I buy this game because it is challenging and a good throwback to how games used to be. Well, I can agree that the game is indeed difficult, but unfortunately it is the dumb kind of difficulty, where the enemies just 2 shoot you. Normal creeps also have the ability to instagib you with an animated attack, even if you are at full health. The story is pretty much non-existent, you are never told anything helpful as there is no tutorial/practice level and you learn the tactics for a particular boss by dying to them, respawning and running to them again. You don't really know where to go or what do to apart from a general idea of "ringing two bells". The NPCs don't tell you anything more useful than that. Top it off with PKers invading your world even though their level is twice as high as you and the fact that to understand anything of the game-play the Covenants, the Invasions, the Phantoms, Bosses etc. you have to browse the Wiki. Oh, and the abysmal respawn system where you have to run back to where you died to pick up your experience points before finding a shortcut this might take up to 15 minutes to reach your body the monsters have all respawned, too. All in all, a disappointment, and the only redeeming factor for me is that I bought it on a Steam sale. If you do play this game, do it on a controller, not the keyboard+mouse as the port sucks.… Expand
  86. Molvanian
    Jan 18, 2016
    0
    This game is known for being hard. It isn't hard because it's a well made, challenging game. It's hard because the camera is game-breakingly awful, the enemies will awkwardly slide around at times while tracking you with attacks rather than animating movement (Or standing still like you have to), and they forgot to add any character motivation. The entire reason for literally everythingThis game is known for being hard. It isn't hard because it's a well made, challenging game. It's hard because the camera is game-breakingly awful, the enemies will awkwardly slide around at times while tracking you with attacks rather than animating movement (Or standing still like you have to), and they forgot to add any character motivation. The entire reason for literally everything you do is a guy says his family told him undead should go to this place. So... you do. Even though you must fight legions of monsters to do so. Because some dying guy mentioned it.

    Don't believe the hype, this game is poorly made, it's lazy, enemies attack through walls that instantly stop your attacks if you're even near. Save your money and don't buy into the hype. It's not worth it, and it's not the difficulty. It's just poorly made.    … Expand
  87. zmaint
    Jul 22, 2013
    0
    Another console port. No keyboard support, you have to use an Xbox controller. Graphics are low res Xbox crap.

    Good news: I paid $2.49 on a Steam sale.
    Bad news: I wasted $2.49 on a complete and utter steaming pile of crap.
  88. lockie507
    Sep 25, 2013
    0
    This is by far the worst port I have ever seen. they have not even bothered to remove the Xbox controller promps when playing on a keyboard.

    Also the Camera is very jittery and unpredictable, also why oh why would they leave the standard mouse pointer to be seen permanently in the game....

    Please don't waste your money on this.
  89. Knoxville
    Oct 24, 2012
    0
    This game absolutely ruined my day. Camera work is terrible, character dies from a 1 foot fall, it's just...bad. DO NOT get this game whatsoever. You have been warned.
  90. Kain
    Jan 17, 2013
    0
    This game is offensive to everyone that is not in coma since 2000 , it's rather easy to look for a game made in that time superior to this that they called a "game" , 0 graphics , 0 sound , 0 Gameplay , the one thing that could be interesting is the plot , but i will take my hat to the ones that have the courage to play this more than 10 mins .... 6.8 user score at the moment is veryThis game is offensive to everyone that is not in coma since 2000 , it's rather easy to look for a game made in that time superior to this that they called a "game" , 0 graphics , 0 sound , 0 Gameplay , the one thing that could be interesting is the plot , but i will take my hat to the ones that have the courage to play this more than 10 mins .... 6.8 user score at the moment is very flattering to this "game"… Expand
  91. zrrz
    Jul 14, 2013
    0
    Trash. Input made by a retarded donkey. Kicked me to the start menu because of "frames problem," when it was running perfectly. Would have been decent if Devs put 10 minutes into making it a PC game.
  92. cataplasia
    Sep 26, 2012
    9
    When I first got this game, I was so frustrated by the camera and the lack of easily understandable computer controls. For some reason I kept cracking at it and found the diamond underneath. The good points of the game are that it is punishing and the world usually presents you with multiple unbeatable situations. The reward of leveling up and hanging onto dear life when fighting largeWhen I first got this game, I was so frustrated by the camera and the lack of easily understandable computer controls. For some reason I kept cracking at it and found the diamond underneath. The good points of the game are that it is punishing and the world usually presents you with multiple unbeatable situations. The reward of leveling up and hanging onto dear life when fighting large bosses is a rush. The game provokes you on to the eventual victory achieved. The bad is the camera is shaky but you get used to it with the locking on feature. The controls were literally the hardest part of the game and take alot of online research to understand them. All and all a real masterpiece once you get by the orginal frustrations. And whatever you do not kill any of the talking npc's (especially weapon smiths) they DO NOT come back which can cripple your progress in the game.… Expand
  93. kozzy420
    Aug 29, 2012
    5
    Great game but a HORRIBLE port to PC.
    If it was not for a wodnerful modding community that has fixed the game already, I would not recocmend this game.
    As it stands its a great game with a poor PC port, but if you know how to use mods and you have a controller to play with then I would suggest getting the game. But if you want to use K+M and or you dont know how to use mods then stay    Great game but a HORRIBLE port to PC.
    If it was not for a wodnerful modding community that has fixed the game already, I would not recocmend this game.

    As it stands its a great game with a poor PC port, but if you know how to use mods and you have a controller to play with then I would suggest getting the game. But if you want to use K+M and or you dont know how to use mods then stay far away from this game.

    Lazy ports are not something I like, but if the game is good I can look past them sometimes. Just make sure that you know what you are getting in for before buying this game before you pick it up. Its the worst PC port since Saints Row2 and RE4, but in the end its still a good game if you have a controller and dont mind modding.

    The choice is up to you!    … Expand
  94. Matseb2611
    Jan 23, 2013
    10
    Dark Souls is a great, dark fantasy RPG. It is set in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world, where vile creatures are everywhere and nowhere is safe. The game's atmosphere is very intense, thanks to beautifully-crafted locations and dramatic music that usually plays during boss fights. The flow of the game is sort of semi-linear, meaning that more often than not there is a choice of severalDark Souls is a great, dark fantasy RPG. It is set in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world, where vile creatures are everywhere and nowhere is safe. The game's atmosphere is very intense, thanks to beautifully-crafted locations and dramatic music that usually plays during boss fights. The flow of the game is sort of semi-linear, meaning that more often than not there is a choice of several locations to do in your own order of preference and in many of those locations there are branching paths, often leading to shortcuts to the previous locations, hence saving you the time in case you wanted to go back. Now of course one of the most defining features of Dark Souls is its high difficulty. However, it is quite unlike most other challenging games out there. The way it is designed, dying is an important part of the game, and hence the words 'Prepare to Die' have to be taken seriously. The players should expect to die frequently, at which point the game simply continues and returns them back to the last bonfire (checkpoint) rested at with all enemies respawned. The trick is not about trying to avoid death altogether, but about picking yourself up and learning from your mistakes. It's a tactical game, because every enemy and every boss requires the right approach, and until you approach them with the correct mindset, they will keep beating you again and again. Admittedly sometimes it can be annoying having to walk big portions of the area to get back to the boss fight, but it is almost always well worth it. Dark Souls is not a button masher. It's not about how fast you can hit the attack button, but more about your timing, patience, concentration, and battle strategy. Its premise is quite simple really - persistence and determination pay off. Initially a lot of the areas and bosses seem impossible, but eventually any challenge can be beaten. There have been times I thought to myself … Expand
  95. Osmium
    Jul 30, 2013
    0
    The game itself is simply fantastic, a legend among videogamers. The atmosphere is always tense, the difficulty level is horrendous you need a lot of patience and will die very often in this game. But this is exactly what makes progressing in this game so rewarding. Great action RPG, though recommendable to hardcore gamers only.
    But: The PC version which I am rating here is by far the    The game itself is simply fantastic, a legend among videogamers. The atmosphere is always tense, the difficulty level is horrendous you need a lot of patience and will die very often in this game. But this is exactly what makes progressing in this game so rewarding. Great action RPG, though recommendable to hardcore gamers only.
    But: The PC version which I am rating here is by far the worst console port ever to defile my hard drive. Graphics are horrible, controls (with mouse and keyboard) are beyond broken, other technical issues (games crashes to desktop, freezes, inexplicable FPS drops) are taking away the rest of the fun. No effort whatsoever has been put into this console port, it is disgusting and a disgrace to the devs. I would recommend anyone interested in this title to get it on the console, not for PC.    … Expand
  96. Flash_Over
    Dec 28, 2013
    2
    DO NOT BUY THIS GAME! Any game that requires Windows Live Beware! I've been screwed again buying before researching! This game is horrible, the voice acting is really bad, the graphics are bad even with top settings, and the 'auto-save' system is horrible. up and want to start a certain part over? NOPE. You will replay that horrible save over and over unless you make a new game. SpeakingDO NOT BUY THIS GAME! Any game that requires Windows Live Beware! I've been screwed again buying before researching! This game is horrible, the voice acting is really bad, the graphics are bad even with top settings, and the 'auto-save' system is horrible. up and want to start a certain part over? NOPE. You will replay that horrible save over and over unless you make a new game. Speaking of making a new game, the story is very vague at the beginning and you get dumped into a jail and apparently you are a zombie, then with little to no tutorial and bag controls you are then pushed into a boss fight. I dont mine difficulty, but as a new play on level 1 everyone wants an easy level to learn how to play, but getting pushed into a ring with a boss right the get go only to be smashed 20 times before defeating it is just... Bad. This is a HORRIBLE console port (console ports are bad to begin with) But, the controls are really poorly done. if you do not have a Xbox controller, forget attempting to play this game. Luckily I got this on a steam sale for $6. TOTALLY not worth the full price. This game did however install perfectly and it didnt really have any bugs from waht I could tell. So it gets a 2. As for everything else over all, the story sucks, controls suck, graphics suck and voice acting sucked. Nothing good about this game but the music.… Expand
  97. Chaosmaker
    Sep 27, 2012
    7
    This is a good game, but definately not a proper RPG. The focus is totally on combat, there are no dialogues, character advancement is secondary at best. The controls are... uh, terrible - forget the mouse and keyboard, I was able to play it only on a gamepad. FPS are low. Despite that, it still is a very good game, with nice visuals, difficult combat and dreary landscapes. Just it couldThis is a good game, but definately not a proper RPG. The focus is totally on combat, there are no dialogues, character advancement is secondary at best. The controls are... uh, terrible - forget the mouse and keyboard, I was able to play it only on a gamepad. FPS are low. Despite that, it still is a very good game, with nice visuals, difficult combat and dreary landscapes. Just it could benefit immensely from a good PC port.… Expand
  98. giskarduk
    Sep 25, 2013
    3
    If there is 1 thing that really annoys PC users it is terrible console ports. It is not so bad if they make an effort but when they do not, it shows. The entire game becomes a reminder of how bad games get. Dark Souls is such a game. The games controls are super sensitive by default on modern PCs and because it is a bad console port, there is no sensitivity adjuster like you would expectIf there is 1 thing that really annoys PC users it is terrible console ports. It is not so bad if they make an effort but when they do not, it shows. The entire game becomes a reminder of how bad games get. Dark Souls is such a game. The games controls are super sensitive by default on modern PCs and because it is a bad console port, there is no sensitivity adjuster like you would expect in ALL PC GAMES made during the last 15 years. Also the keys that the game tells you to press are not the keys the PC version uses. So you are left guessing how to get back to the menu to check what keys should be pressed. Only they did not use the default escape key for that, that would be far too easy to find, no they used the END key... so you spend 30 minutes stabbing at the keyboard hoping to get lucky when half the time, keys do nothing unless your stood next to something special. So you still do not learn what the keys do simply by pressing them and the game makes zero effort to teach you them. A truly terrible game, no effort made during the porting process what so ever and it shows.… Expand
  99. Mastrolindo
    Apr 12, 2013
    10
    Here it is "Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition". Well i've got to say the porting sucks. EXTREMELY. I had even some problem's with GFWL but then with some help of the forum i resolved it. I don't agree with the ones that say it sucks only because of the porting and they say you CANNOT mod the game... i did and is not so difficoult they just must be retarded what can i say D:. Talking aboutHere it is "Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition". Well i've got to say the porting sucks. EXTREMELY. I had even some problem's with GFWL but then with some help of the forum i resolved it. I don't agree with the ones that say it sucks only because of the porting and they say you CANNOT mod the game... i did and is not so difficoult they just must be retarded what can i say D:. Talking about the game is just as it is on console only with a new area the Abyss and some new bosses like Artorias. So if you liked it on Console and you want it for PC for the new content or because you never played it feel free to buy it!!! Just install Durante DSfix and the bad porting by FROM SOFTWARE will be resolved! And probably you will not encounter the problem i had with GFWL … Expand
  100. X19
    Aug 25, 2012
    6
    This will probably go down as the WORST PC port of all time...Ever... That said, DON'T get this unless you don't have access to the console versions. That might sound hard to believe, but it's really true. The graphical differences are minimal or even worse than the console versions. The controls are absolutely atrocious. (WHO USES THE "END" KEY TO OPEN A MENU?!) Madness, really. PlayingThis will probably go down as the WORST PC port of all time...Ever... That said, DON'T get this unless you don't have access to the console versions. That might sound hard to believe, but it's really true. The graphical differences are minimal or even worse than the console versions. The controls are absolutely atrocious. (WHO USES THE "END" KEY TO OPEN A MENU?!) Madness, really. Playing with a mouse is next to impossible. You will have to use the keyboard for everything. The button prompts are all based off a 360 controler, even if you don't have one plugged in. You'll get tips saying press RB to attack, instead of LMB or H; yeah, that's right "RB". At least the developers did warn us, but seriously? Couldn't they have hired third part support? Not to mention GFWL. If you can look past all of the many downsides then it's still Dark Souls, an excellent game. But if you've already played the console versions and just want this for +60 FPS (BTW, it's capped at 30) or the extra content you will be sorely disappointed because it's just not worth it.... Who knows? Maybe modders will make this a great game, but in the meantime stay clear. If you still want it just make sure to get a gamepad.… Expand
Page:

Awards & Rankings

22
#22 Best PC Game of 2012
10
#10 Most Discussed PC Game of 2012
20
#20 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 42 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 36 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 42
  3. Negative: 1 out of 42
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 6, 2013
    72
    The irony is that the PC version could have been much better than the PS3/360 ones, with higher resolutions to make the textures look better, a cornucopia of mods and/or an active (in theory at least) community. But FROM ruined it all (with the assistance of Games for Windows Live). It’s a shame really, if we at least had just a decent port (or a better infrastructure for a less appalling multiplayer mode), Dark Souls could have been one of the best RPG for the PC. [November 2012]
  2. GameFocus
    Nov 19, 2012
    80
    Not often do you see a game that is equally rewarding as it is frustrating; and it's not because the game is unfair.
    Read full review
  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Oct 29, 2012
    80
    Dark Souls returns the hardcore elements back to action RPGs – heavy focus on uncompromising fight mechanics and absolute freedom in hero profiling. The price of this game is not for everyone. [Oct 2012]
See all critic reviews »