It is the fourth week of my time in Lordran.
The Bells of Awakening were rung. The Lordvessel has been claimed. The Four Kings of New Londo are no more. Gravelord Nito is but a memory. 2 of the Lord Souls have been acquired. I need only journey to The Duke’s Archives and Lost Izalith to claim the Lord Souls of Seath the Scaleless and The Witch of Izalith respectively.
Along the way, I have aided many a fellow Undead in their quest. Many who are afraid of venturing through the Depths and of the Basilisks that inflict curse. I have been a comrade to those seeking to defeat Dragonslayer Ornstein and Executioner Smough who block the way to the Lordvessel. I have journeyed far and wide, honing my skills to a sharp edge. I have acquired all manners of weaponry and armor, rare and common. I have harvested all sorts of ores and materials to make the tools which I employ that much more lethal. I have mastered magicks of all all types: Pyromancies, Sorceries, and Miracles.
I have journeyed far. Yet the journey is not yet over. Gwyn, Lord of Cinder still beckons my arrival.
What has changed?
Not much honestly. I would say that Dark Souls is still the flawed game it is that I mentioned in my previous Dark Souls post. The bugs (input lag?), the glitches (Great Magic Shield invulnerability cheapness? Iron Flesh? Ring of Fog cheapness? elemental weapon insane stats? TWoP?) , the freezing (did crash once), and yet Dark Souls keeps me glued to the game, my TV, and unable to start playing the numerous other games that have released since Dark Souls. By all means, I should be done the game with the over 100 hours I’ve invested, but I’m not. I’m enjoying the journey, however flawed it may be.
Maybe that’s one of the most redeeming aspects of Dark Souls. The game IS a messy pile in many cases. Frame rates, input lag, just to name some of the issues can be utterly horrendous and irritating. Yet, despite all the game’s flaws. I just can’t put it down.
Is it the game’s lore? Maybe. I do so enjoy reading as much as I can in game, all the item descriptions and all the story I can muster from it.
Is it the game’s systems? Likely. Few other games can do combat systems as well as the Souls games have. I can’t bear to watch any sort of fighting video from Skyrim, but I can watch Dark Souls PvP videos all day long.
Is it the game’s plot? Heck no. It’s there. It’s sorta interesting. It’s never really shoved in your face. It also doesn’t really matter to me.
Then what could it be?
Maybe, it’s a little bit of everything. Maybe, just maybe. Every little aspect of the game contributes to making it a fun experience. Have I died a lot? You bet. Has it been a blast? Every second of it and counting.
