10 Ways Dark Souls Made All Video Games WORSE
Listing negative Dark Souls facts is the Dark Souls of internet posting.
Dark Souls (and, well, by default, Demon’s Souls) certainly changed the way the industry approached the third-person action adventure.
For years, the formula had started to stagnate - with a growing focus on cinematic set-piece action, on trying to emulate the action blockbusters of the movie industry and leaving gamers so far removed from a sense of grounding that even the most realistic-looking game just felt like going through the motions.
When Dark Souls grew in popularity, it did so in response to those games, but in turn brought a few... quirky flaws of its own, like throwing out an old pie that was way too salty and replacing it with a curry with raisins in it.
I personally... do not like the Dark Souls formula. I can understand the appeal in theory, but to me, it represents a number of steps backwards in a number of crucial game design principles. Whilst I can absolutely appreciate a lot of aspects of the series - environmental storytelling, architectural art and so forward - there’re a ton that stick in my teeth like... curry raisins.
God, I hate raisins in curry.
So, putting my own neck on the line, here are ten ways Dark Souls made all videogames... worse!
10. Calling Everything “The Dark Souls Of...”
Hey, did you lot know that Riesen Chocolate Chews are the Dark Souls of chocolate bars? And ironing is the Dark Souls of household chores? And that Dark Souls is the Dark Souls of Dark Souls?!
Seriously, you lot - I know it’s a bit of a meme by this point, but most of the time, this phrase is uttered in earnest, normally to describe a game as difficult or particularly trying, but now it’s oozing like Nickelodeon Gak out into other walks of life, infecting the vernacular and making your great uncle ask “what’s the Dark Soul?” on Facebook.
Things can just be “tricky” without being anything to do with Solaire. Getting those huge boots on that you only wear to your “special interest” club? Just say they’re “a pain in the **** to get on” like a normal person, instead of side-smirking and remarking that they’re “the Dark Souls of footwear”.