Dark Souls

In short, it's everything I could have hoped for in a (spiritual) successor to Demon's Souls. I'm pleased to recommend it to anyone who wants to see the medium pushed to its limits and beyond.

Despite the difficulty and the uncompromising approach of From Software, what makes Dark Souls so special is the sense of accomplishment that it generates when you get things just right. There's never a moment when the game feels unfair, even the most abrupt (seemingly random) deaths are preceded by some kind of warning.

Few games combine tension, atmosphere, deep combat and interesting online play in a way that can even compete with Dark Souls.

Dark Souls is one of the defining RPGs of this generation that goes above and beyond the genre to bring us something terrifying and unforgettable. An unmissable gem for the daring.

For those claiming that Dark Souls is unreasonably difficult, all one can respond is that is that they are sorely missing the point. The reality is that Dark Souls is not too difficult rather most games today are too easy. It is perhaps the most balanced game one can play. To survive, one must have patience, persistence and a high level of concentration…nothing is spoon-fed or handed to you on a silver platter.

One of the best games of the year and one of the most punishing ones. Dark Souls is superb, but it's not a game for everyone. You have been warned.

Dark Souls is easily one of the best RPGs on the market and manages to even eclipse Demon's Souls, its predecessor. The gameplay is slow and methodical, but never in a way that feels boring. The game is hard, but almost always in a fair way.

Dark Souls is an extraordinary role-playing game that transports you to an awesome and menacing world you may never forget.

An incredibly addictive game and those who embrace it will most certainly end up living it.

It is not a game for everyone, but From Software can again be proud of producing an instant classic in the action-RPG genre, which will be talked about for years. It is not as surprising as the original Demon's Souls, as we had great expectations for this spiritual sequel, but it improves on it and becomes one of the greatest games of the year.

Like coal turned to diamonds, Dark Souls is capable of compressing frustration and hardship into deep satisfaction.

From Software achieves one of the most addictive games this year. Dark Souls' difficulty level can sound just as heavy as it is, but at the same time it's enough to keep you engaged to its addictive gaming experience.

Utterly unforgiving... But stick it out and you'll see months of crushing lows and glorious highs. [Dec 2011, p.94]

At the end of the day Dark Souls succeeds in producing a game that is both incredibly challenging and fair.

A sprawling and beautifully built role-player from which there is no escape. [Issue#211, p.78]

Put away Dragon Age, forget about Risen, let The Witcher be and don't wait for Skyrim. The feelings of fear and suspense that accompany you when you enter a new chamber in Dark Souls' castle cannot be described. You must experience it for yourself. And then suddenly die, of course. [November 2011, p.72]

This is at times a devastating experience – and, at times, it will leave you breathless with awe. There's no denying that a substantial part of the appeal is masochistic. The dedication and patience required to get the best of Dark Souls are steep, but its scope is staggering, and the rewards truly worth it.

Dark Souls is a twisted, depraved, unforgiving bundle of death, hopelessness, and despair, and I mean that in the best way possible because if you can overcome the many, many obstacles it will throw at you over the 20+ hours it takes to complete, you will come away with a sense of accomplishment that few other games can match.

Dark Souls provides an amazing experience through a fantastic world, and it demands your patience and control every step of the way.

If not for the amount of bugs, the slightly disappointing graphics and the lack of a truly interesting story, this would have been the perfect sequel to 2009's frustratingly hard Demon's Souls. It's still a fantastic experience though... if you're up for it.

If you know you're the kind of player that can appreciate the depth and difficulty of Dark Souls' experience, you should run out and buy it right now.

It has a great combat system, a unique world to explore, and a difficulty level that made me count the hours to the review's dead line. One of the best action RPGs ever made. [Oct 2011]

This is a game that rewards those who truly don't give up and explore to find solutions to the constant and seemingly insurmountable barriers that emerge.

Dark Souls is a form of game development that you just don't see anymore. It's tough, it's unforgiving, and you have to fight for every inch of progress, but it has an allure that keeps you coming back, and a sense of satisfaction that very few games can give you.

Dark Souls is one of the most difficult games of the year and adds a lot of crazy enemies and surroundings. The co-op could have been done better but that shouldn't stop you from engaging in this sixty hour long adventure.

Dark Souls is Demon's Souls times two. A bigger world with more torture for your bucks, but also an increase in errors. The result is fantastic though: a huge game filled with secrets and a learning curve for only the most dedicated gamers.

Get into the Dark Souls mindset and be prepared for repeated failure in one of the most engrossing gaming experiences available.

A gem of sublime darkness. In the same way that an infamous ring did poison the soul of the one wearing it, this game becomes both the burden and the treasure of the one playing it. Cruel, even more so than its predecessor from which it keeps almost everything, Dark Souls offers a singular atmosphere, one where the player is prey, gambles its life with each step he dares to take, and its sanity every time he makes progress towards more evil that can kill him in a single strike. If you feel crazy enough to dive in, though, Dark Souls will possess you like very few can: it's a drug, and it's in the poison it exudes that lies its virtue.

If entertainment is fun without failure and progress without pain, you'll have to find it somewhere else. But you'll be missing out on one of the best games of the year.

The cycle of Dark Souls is essentially the same: Hours of diligent, often frustrating work followed by a surprising, often spectacular payoff.

A fine example of how great forethought and a less than tepid attitude towards taking risks pay dividends in the hands of real gamers. It is nothing short of extraordinary, though perhaps a couple of years on from Demon's Souls, it is also less surprising.

Dark Souls beckons the masochistic with its chilly indifference. If you steel your nerves and persevere, the loot you'll uncover is an adventure so exquisitely morose and far-ranging that it will tug at your mind insistently during the hours you spend apart.

An incredibly assured attempt to rewrite the rules of modern gaming, where even the smallest mistake can cost you dear but the tiniest victory seems like an epic achievement.

If you just play games for fun, this isn't for you, and no amount of insistence on my part is going to change that. But if you're interested in the limits of the videogame form – to see just how focused, how pure and how uncompromising in its vision a game can be – Dark Souls is unmissable.

Because of its insanely high difficulty, Dark Souls isn't for everyone. That said, after playing a while, you'll eventually fall in love with Dark Souls, and spend mnay, many hours on it. Prepare to die!

Despite my complaints, I can't help but feel a rush of adrenaline just thinking about Dark Souls. I spent around 60 hours playing it over the last month and died nearly 100 times while doing so. I screamed, I cursed, and I threw down my controller in defeat more times than I'm proud of. I can't wait to get back in and do it all over again. Dark Souls probably won't be the biggest or best game released this year, but I'm already sure it's the one I'm going to spend the most time playing.

Dark Souls is brilliant as its predecessor, but this time, thrown in an vast open world without hints, the player will be a little more frustrated than before. Sometimes the difficulty can be frustrating, instead of stimulating, challenging and rewarding. Dark Souls remains one of the greatest examples of dark fantasy in this generation.

Dark Souls tests you. It puts you in an absurd situation and asks you to not only survive, but to conquer. You have to be careful but at the same time, you can't remain idle.

All in all, Dark Souls is a more difficult, but less enjoyable (and less accessible) Demon's Souls.

It's certainly one of the most difficult games I have ever played, but it's clear that every single element of it has been designed meticulously to reward the cautious and clever participant.

Dark Souls has hooks, and those hooks are in me deep; I'm already planning my next several playthroughs as different classes, and for a game that is 80+ hours, that's a testament to its gripping quality.

Grinding, leveling, and, of course, dying over and over again will keep the most dedicated players immersed in this world for a very long time.

It would be foolish of us to pretend that Dark Souls is a game for everyone. It's perfect at what it does, but a big part of what it does is make you suffer for your mistakes. It is a harsh, uncompromising task master and you will have to work to win its approval, because it certainly won't work to win yours. [Dec 2011, p74]

But our perseverance was rewarded with an overwhelming sense of accomplishment, making Dark Souls one of the most engrossing RPG's we've ever played. [Dec 2011, p.76]

Hard like a frowning diamond, but with huge depth to discover. [Dec 2011, p.82]

Dark Souls is one of the best action-RPGs this generation, as it pulls of the combination of both elements perfectly. It may only be suited for hardcore gamers, but they are given heaven.

Dark Souls will easily dominate your gaming skill making you submissive to its will. It's a ritual in frustration, yet one that is worth the journey, if you are OK with a little pain.

If you push yourself through this nightmare and its spiritual prequel, you will find that you enjoy modern games a lot more. Dark Souls lacks the open structure of Demon's Souls, but might be even more rewarding.

Quotation forthcoming.

Dark Souls isn't a game you play for fun. It's something you do to say you've done; like running a marathon or climbing Everest. You won't enjoy it like you will other games, but you won't forget it either, and you'll be damn proud of yourself for seeing it through to the end.

This game preys on your feelings, and is very skilled at manipulating them. Make no mistake, it takes a certain kind of person (never mind gamer) to stick with and possibly enjoy this game - we believe they are sometimes called Masochists - but Dark Souls does what it does extremely well, and it's to be applauded for that at least.

The most egregious of all faults lies in the enemy AI. Nearly all creatures in Dark Souls are hyper-aggressive and many of them to a fault. Some will completely ignore a gap between you and them, running off a cliff.