Dark Souls The New 8 Bit Game

themadlionsfan
themadlionsfan Members Posts: 9,133 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited March 2012 in IllGaming

Dark Souls is this Generation's Best 8-bit Game

How From's RPG revolutionized the genre by drawing on some very classic ideas.

By: Bob MackeyMarch 22, 2012



Anyone who's soldiered through From Software's Souls series has the psychological scars to prove it; the games' brutal difficulty and often-impenetrable nature stand in defiance to some of the more disappointing design trends of the past 20 years. Detractors commonly regard these RPGs as "unfair," and yes, they can seem that way when compared to the outright friendliness of just about every other game released during this generation. But Souls supporters know that, above all else, From Software forces its victims to sincerely think about each and every action they make -- an utterly terrifying prospect for many. For those that can handle the challenge, though, this lack of a safety net is often regarded as the games' greatest feature; putting so much responsibility in the hands of the player makes each and every victory all the more rewarding.

If you've been alive long enough to grow up alongside video games, you might have noticed that both of these devious RPGs feel very old-school -- and not just in terms of controller-throwing frustration. With a great deal of hindsight at their disposal, From Software designed their most popular creations by making deliberate choices that have been M.I.A. from video games for quite some time. And this 8-bit design philosophy absolutely shines in Dark Souls, which renovated the many technical and mechanical flaws of Demon's Souls to become what many regard as the greatest RPG of this generation. Dark Souls may innovate in many areas, but its greatest strength can be found in the deliberately antiquated sensibility baked into the game's sprawling world. The following ideas are hardly new, but it's certainly nice to see them return in such a big and beautiful package.






A World of Discovery


In the early days of the arcade, players could be sufficiently informed by a blurb printed somewhere on the machine. But as games grew too complex to summarize with just a few lines of text, instruction books became a necessity. Developers could have integrated this material within the games themselves, but, in the 8-bit era, ROMs didn't offer the nearly limitless storage capacity that our Blu-rays and DVDs do today.

True to the game's hostile nature, Dark Souls rarely explains anything explicitly; even the vital soapstone used to initiate multiplayer sessions receives a description solely based on its function within the game's lore. Sticklers may note that Dark Souls features a tutorial of sorts, but it can be skipped entirely and only indicates the most basic of abilities that most users would pick up on their own after fiddling with the controller for a few minutes. Outside of these essentials, the joy of discovery is left entirely to the player. Mistakes can (and will) be made, but anyone desperate enough to seek help can easily jump into the many Dark Souls conversations happening inside wikis, guides, and forums: the Internet equivalent of the rumor-filled video game discussions that dominated playground chatter throughout the '80s and early '90s. It's rare to talk about Dark Souls with a fellow fan without being told about something completely amazing you missed the first time around.






Limited Life


It's possible to build a Dark Souls character with an emphasis on brute strength, but most players would agree that dodging attacks makes for a more effective strategy than trying to absorb them. Like game heroes of ancient times, your Dark Souls protagonist typically can't take more than a few hits without dying -- and some particularly nasty enemies have techniques that can claim all of your HP, if you're not careful. And while the game (thankfully) doesn't feature a formal "lives" system, the Estus Flasks act as a sufficient replacement. Like Mega Man's e-tanks, this reusable item -- a fantastic improvement over Demon's Souls' countless varieties of healing grasses -- can fill up your life on the fly, allowing players to make a limited number of mistakes before forcing them to replay from a checkpoint.

This could make for an irritating and tedious experience, but both Souls games approach this antiquated idea with a great amount of thoughtfulness; failed attempts rarely make for wasted time, since players get to keep all loot gained prior to their demise, and a chance to nab the souls they dropped upon death. As with 8-bit games, you'll find yourself replaying areas over and over again until you get them right, since you won't respawn mere seconds before you bit the dust. Character persistence adds just the right amount of modern sensibility to the Souls series, while still allowing the games to emphasize a "perfect run."

Comments

  • themadlionsfan
    themadlionsfan Members Posts: 9,133 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Dark Souls is this Generation's Best 8-bit Game

    How From's RPG revolutionized the genre by drawing on some very classic ideas.

    Continued (page 2 of 2)








    Easy Cheesability


    Whether it's due to a lack of resources or sheer laziness, From Software didn't imbue their enemies with much intelligence. Similar to nearly every threat from the 8-bit world, the various creatures of Dark Souls operate under the same battle strategy as Super Mario's goombas and koopas; and taking advantage of the enemies' suicidal nature works just as well now as it did then. Many foes in Dark Souls can be done in by their own rash behavior, as they tend to forget that it's impossible to get from point A to point B if a bottomless pit exists between the two. Just as thousands of children lured Double Dragon's Abobo onto a conveyor belt to Hell, thousands more have performed the Dark Souls equivalent by sending the brain-dead enemies of its world to an equally hilarious demise.

    And this lack of a self-preservation instinct isn't limited to pits alone; a common strategy for some of Dark Souls toughest opponents involves slowly plinking away at them with projectiles from a distance, which often doesn't earn more than a raised eyebrow on their part. It might not make for the most honest play style, but Dark Souls encourages the player to game the system by populating its world with enemies whose simple-mindedness allows them to be easily manipulated.






    No Guarantee of Success


    Most modern games are designed to be completed. With a bit of persistence, it's possible for Joe and Jill Wal*Mart to pick out a random title and eventually work their way to its conclusion. And should they run into any problems, there's always an easier setting, often suggested by the game itself after multiple failures. Dark Souls stands in direct opposition to this trend by refusing to offer the player any outs; the game provides no artificial way to reduce the difficulty, and, unlike most RPGs, grinding for levels is not a tedious-but-reliable path to success. Many folks hit a wall at the infamous Blight Town and never return, while some can't bring themselves to face the pitch-black horrors of the Tomb of the Giants. And there's also the fact that a handful of big, beautiful levels exist behind illusory walls or oblique puzzles -- From Software definitely isn't concerned that you might not see some of the content they crafted.

    Because of the game's unforgiving qualities, finishing Dark Souls acts as a badge of honor for most gamers. The same could be said for game of the age of the Nintendo Entertainment System; reaching the end of an 8-bit game was a true accomplishment, not the expected outcome of forking over 50 bucks for a cartridge. Finishing a game in 2012 doesn't call for much fanfare; in fact, games with social network connections like Uncharted 2 proved that nothing annoys people more than constant updates about their friends' achievements. When finishing a game wasn't a guarantee, though, gamers respected their peers for "mastering" certain titles; we all knew and admired people who were able to effortlessly blaze through the likes of Battletoads, Golgo 13, or Fester's Quest. Upon its initial American debut, the Souls series seemed completely preposterous to many -- how could a developer make a game so punishing and uncompromising? But fans of From's decidedly different JRPG know that these qualities are what makes Souls so special: these games bring old-timers back to an age when our hobby rewarded performance and persistence, rather than attendance.
  • VulcanRaven
    VulcanRaven Members Posts: 18,859 ✭✭✭✭✭
    If I want 8 Bit I will play the NES.I don't give devs credit for making games with outdated mechanics.Give me Skyrim bruh.