So I just finished playing through the entirety of the original Dark Souls and its expansion, Artorias of the Abyss, in 2017.
I think I offer a somewhat unique perspective, as my first Soulsborne game was actually Bloodborne. It kicked my ass hard, but I learned to love it. In my first playthrough, Father Gascoigne + Blood Starved Beast + Defiled Watchdog took my life more times than the rest of the bosses combined!
Then I wanted more. Thank goodness for the port of DS2: SotFS on the PS4. No need to farm healing items! Overall, a great package brimming with content. I liked it quite a bit. Except for the Frigid Outskirts and the thunder reindeer. Eww.
And then, DS3 came out and my body was so ready. I think DS3 had the most consistent quality throughout the game, along with BB. After two soulsborne games, this game still offered bosses who'd kick my ass - The Nameless King. Friede & Ariandel. Midir. After playing the game again with a pure sorcerer, I found that NK and Midir (albeit with the NPC summon) to be trivial, though
One problem with DS3 is that I didn't get the references. Arriving at Anor Londo meant pretty much nothing to me, since I've never been there before. Firelink shrine. 2nd phase of Soul of Cinder and the music that kicks in. None of them evoked particular emotions. The game itself was mighty fine, but I couldn't help but feel I was missing out.
So, I sought the original DS1. I had to dust off my 360, order a copy from amazon, and purchase AotA from the Xbox store (PC was not an option). 35 hours later, I could finally claim to have finished the entire Dark Souls series.
Now I finally understand why DS1 is considered one of the best in the series by many. Why there are so many fans of AotA. Why people despise the Bed of Chaos. Why the Lost Izalith is hated. Why Blighttown is Blighttown. What an "interconnected world" really means. ALL the memes. The VaatiVidya lore videos. The unbelievably annoying Silver Knight archers of Anor Londo. The boobs of Anor Londo. Why Solaire is loved by all. The OG onionbro, and his daughter?! The sheer awesomeness of Ornstein & Smough. Mostly Ornstein. Even the Painted World was not a DS3 original?
Funny thing is, I felt some serious nostalgia in DS1, thanks to fact that I played all the soulsborne sequels first. Seeing Anor Londo in all its golden glory brought a smile to my face. Ohhhh, that's the giant blacksmith! Demon Ruins with actual Demons in it! Wait, Havel is in this game too, and he is the OG Rock? And is that King Oceiros' uncle or something? Why is Kalameet soooo tiny and cute (I fought Midir not too long ago)? Hey, it's that guy from Aldritch boss fight! I knew both Gael and Artorias are based on Guts from the Berserk comics, but they open the fight with the same "pick up and throw a corpse"? And of course Gwyn, whom I immediately recognized as the 2nd phase of Soul of Cinder
I felt the warm emotions that many players must have felt playing the DS series in chronological order. It's ironic, but it works! Given that one recurring theme of DS1 was that time was convoluted and the present affects the past which in turn influences the future, this was quite fitting.
Speaking of emotions, the first time I stumbled upon Ash Lake. Wow. It was sublime. The stillness. It really felt like I arrived at the bottom of the world. This is what I feel like when I imagine the deep sea. The speechless stone dragon at the end of the area only adds to the atmosphere. Something very ancient, something that humans cannot comprehend, but at the same time, not oppressive in a Lovecraftian way. It was peaceful, quiet, and felt like a place where all life began ages ago, frozen in time. One might even say, a cold, dark, and gentle place. (And I must add how amazing it was to see Ash Lake on one side and Demon Ruins on another in the late game, after trudging through the blackness of the Tomb of the Giants. The interconnectivity!)
Having played BB before DS1 also offered me an unique experience in AotA. Visiting Oolacile was great, but when I first saw this guy at a shortcut:
Yep. Top hat and the fancy garb. The fact that he was brought here from the future. The way he fights when he invades you - the quick dash, the advanced crossbow, the nimble footwork and the speedy kicks (well, this wasn't in BB). The fact that he was dragged into this world by a mysterious GIANT FUCKING HAND (cough*amygdala*cough, and recall where you get the Top Hat in BB)! Yeah, we were grabbed by Manus' hand here, but the context, the circumstantial evidence here is so enticing. His eerily calm demeanor, almost suggesting that he'd seen worse (#nightofthehunt). Dare I say he was a hunter of beasts in his own time?
Because I played BB first, I was immediately convinced that an Amygdala grabbed him and threw him here from Yharnam. I had to google it and of course this was an old theory Yes, AotA and BB had overlapping development periods and this was simply a reflection of that, and not necessarily implying that DS and BB share the same universe, but hey, it is fun to speculate. Seeing Marvellous Chester brought a huge grin to my face like no other.
In fact, AotA share a lot of similarities with BB, much more so than the rest of DS1. The AotA bosses are very fast and nimble a la BB. Artorias. Santcuary Guardian. And of course, Manus, who would be a natural fit as a boss in BB. By the way, Manus also reminded me of another videogame villan - Mundus from Devil May Cry. The glowing multiple eyes. How the coolest swordsmen in the game got corrupted by him. And how we get to kick his ass in the end.
Being somewhat of a soulsborne vet, I found DS1 to be by far the easiest game in the series. I actually killed every single boss in my first try except fucking Bed of Chaos. Even O&S, the Four Kings, Artorias, Kalameet, and Manus. But again, I think it was because by now I was so used to the series, every boss seemed too slow. It also helped that I took my time to get the titanite chunks to upgrade all of my gear including armor. And that poking with the +15 Balder Side Sword is OP. Or maybe I finally got gud.
And with that, I can finally say I beat every single boss in the Dark Souls and Bloodborne games. Here are my picks for the best boss in each title:
DS1:
DS2:
DS3:
BB:
If you managed to read all the way down here, I'm sure you noticed one glaring omission from this masterpiece of a series. Perhaps that one will get a remastered treatment at E3, along with DS1? One can hope. In the meantime, I think I'm going to put down the controller and let the Chosen Undead, the Bearer of the Curse, the Ashen One, the Good Hunter take their well-deserved rest.
I think I offer a somewhat unique perspective, as my first Soulsborne game was actually Bloodborne. It kicked my ass hard, but I learned to love it. In my first playthrough, Father Gascoigne + Blood Starved Beast + Defiled Watchdog took my life more times than the rest of the bosses combined!
Then I wanted more. Thank goodness for the port of DS2: SotFS on the PS4. No need to farm healing items! Overall, a great package brimming with content. I liked it quite a bit. Except for the Frigid Outskirts and the thunder reindeer. Eww.
And then, DS3 came out and my body was so ready. I think DS3 had the most consistent quality throughout the game, along with BB. After two soulsborne games, this game still offered bosses who'd kick my ass - The Nameless King. Friede & Ariandel. Midir. After playing the game again with a pure sorcerer, I found that NK and Midir (albeit with the NPC summon) to be trivial, though
One problem with DS3 is that I didn't get the references. Arriving at Anor Londo meant pretty much nothing to me, since I've never been there before. Firelink shrine. 2nd phase of Soul of Cinder and the music that kicks in. None of them evoked particular emotions. The game itself was mighty fine, but I couldn't help but feel I was missing out.
So, I sought the original DS1. I had to dust off my 360, order a copy from amazon, and purchase AotA from the Xbox store (PC was not an option). 35 hours later, I could finally claim to have finished the entire Dark Souls series.
Now I finally understand why DS1 is considered one of the best in the series by many. Why there are so many fans of AotA. Why people despise the Bed of Chaos. Why the Lost Izalith is hated. Why Blighttown is Blighttown. What an "interconnected world" really means. ALL the memes. The VaatiVidya lore videos. The unbelievably annoying Silver Knight archers of Anor Londo. The boobs of Anor Londo. Why Solaire is loved by all. The OG onionbro, and his daughter?! The sheer awesomeness of Ornstein & Smough. Mostly Ornstein. Even the Painted World was not a DS3 original?
Funny thing is, I felt some serious nostalgia in DS1, thanks to fact that I played all the soulsborne sequels first. Seeing Anor Londo in all its golden glory brought a smile to my face. Ohhhh, that's the giant blacksmith! Demon Ruins with actual Demons in it! Wait, Havel is in this game too, and he is the OG Rock? And is that King Oceiros' uncle or something? Why is Kalameet soooo tiny and cute (I fought Midir not too long ago)? Hey, it's that guy from Aldritch boss fight! I knew both Gael and Artorias are based on Guts from the Berserk comics, but they open the fight with the same "pick up and throw a corpse"? And of course Gwyn, whom I immediately recognized as the 2nd phase of Soul of Cinder
I felt the warm emotions that many players must have felt playing the DS series in chronological order. It's ironic, but it works! Given that one recurring theme of DS1 was that time was convoluted and the present affects the past which in turn influences the future, this was quite fitting.
Speaking of emotions, the first time I stumbled upon Ash Lake. Wow. It was sublime. The stillness. It really felt like I arrived at the bottom of the world. This is what I feel like when I imagine the deep sea. The speechless stone dragon at the end of the area only adds to the atmosphere. Something very ancient, something that humans cannot comprehend, but at the same time, not oppressive in a Lovecraftian way. It was peaceful, quiet, and felt like a place where all life began ages ago, frozen in time. One might even say, a cold, dark, and gentle place. (And I must add how amazing it was to see Ash Lake on one side and Demon Ruins on another in the late game, after trudging through the blackness of the Tomb of the Giants. The interconnectivity!)
Having played BB before DS1 also offered me an unique experience in AotA. Visiting Oolacile was great, but when I first saw this guy at a shortcut:
Yep. Top hat and the fancy garb. The fact that he was brought here from the future. The way he fights when he invades you - the quick dash, the advanced crossbow, the nimble footwork and the speedy kicks (well, this wasn't in BB). The fact that he was dragged into this world by a mysterious GIANT FUCKING HAND (cough*amygdala*cough, and recall where you get the Top Hat in BB)! Yeah, we were grabbed by Manus' hand here, but the context, the circumstantial evidence here is so enticing. His eerily calm demeanor, almost suggesting that he'd seen worse (#nightofthehunt). Dare I say he was a hunter of beasts in his own time?
Because I played BB first, I was immediately convinced that an Amygdala grabbed him and threw him here from Yharnam. I had to google it and of course this was an old theory
Yes, AotA and BB had overlapping development periods and this was simply a reflection of that, and not necessarily implying that DS and BB share the same universe, but hey, it is fun to speculate. Seeing Marvellous Chester brought a huge grin to my face like no other.In fact, AotA share a lot of similarities with BB, much more so than the rest of DS1. The AotA bosses are very fast and nimble a la BB. Artorias. Santcuary Guardian. And of course, Manus, who would be a natural fit as a boss in BB. By the way, Manus also reminded me of another videogame villan - Mundus from Devil May Cry. The glowing multiple eyes. How the coolest swordsmen in the game got corrupted by him. And how we get to kick his ass in the end.
Being somewhat of a soulsborne vet, I found DS1 to be by far the easiest game in the series. I actually killed every single boss in my first try except fucking Bed of Chaos. Even O&S, the Four Kings, Artorias, Kalameet, and Manus. But again, I think it was because by now I was so used to the series, every boss seemed too slow. It also helped that I took my time to get the titanite chunks to upgrade all of my gear including armor. And that poking with the +15 Balder Side Sword is OP. Or maybe I finally got gud.
And with that, I can finally say I beat every single boss in the Dark Souls and Bloodborne games. Here are my picks for the best boss in each title:
DS1:
Ornstein & Smough
Fume Knight
Gael
Lady Maria
If you managed to read all the way down here, I'm sure you noticed one glaring omission from this masterpiece of a series. Perhaps that one will get a remastered treatment at E3, along with DS1? One can hope. In the meantime, I think I'm going to put down the controller and let the Chosen Undead, the Bearer of the Curse, the Ashen One, the Good Hunter take their well-deserved rest.
