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[Alo0oy]

I can sort of see that, but I definitely still prefer the signs. I like going through either the whole areas or just bosses with coop partners, and those are the places where people leave summon signs generally, so I don't need the added "freedom" the bells offer.

Plus, with signs, you know right away if you can or can't get someone to join you. If there were no signs, I'd just mess around a bit by myself, maybe leave my own sign on the ground, try to do the area by myself, visit some other areas in hopes that there'll be signs when I get back etc. With the bells, I wouldn't know I couldn't summon anyone, but I'd still try. I'd stand at the same spot, ringing the bell for 15 minutes.

Some sort of a compromise between the two could be good. I really hope DkS3's coop plays just like DkS2's, just with none of that soul memory bullshit. Loved to help other people in that game, hated how I couldn't after a certain point.

That was a problem with the matchmaking, once they fixed it, it didn't take more than 30 seconds to find someone no matter where you rang the bell.

But they still did not address the issue of your inventory not replenishing after a MP session, which is why I stopped playing BB last month, I got sick of going back to the Hunter's Dream after every 5 invasions.

 

[aravuus]

That was a problem with the matchmaking, once they fixed it, it didn't take more than 30 seconds to find someone no matter where you rang the bell.

But they still did not address the issue of your inventory not replenishing after a MP session, which is why I stopped playing BB last month, I got sick of going back to the Hunter's Dream after every 5 invasions.

Hard to argue with that, I only played BB for a month or two. Sold my PS4 a while back too, so I can't give it another try.

Kind of a bummer, actually. A properly working coop could have made BB a lot more fun.

The PVE use of Soul Memory was quite brilliant though, in my opinion.

The what now?

 

[Servbot24]

I really just want them to make whatever game they feel like making. No pandering to the fans, no compromises, no asking for forgiveness. I love Souls because it's bold, it knows exactly what it is, and it doesn't care what anyone thinks.

 

[Gbraga]

That was a problem with the matchmaking, once they fixed it, it didn't take more than 30 seconds to find someone no matter where you rang the bell.

But they still did not address the issue of your inventory not replenishing after a MP session, which is why I stopped playing BB last month, I got sick of going back to the Hunter's Dream after every 5 invasions.

The 600 Vials/Bullets thing kinda helped. Just stock on those, and kill yourself when you're running low.

It doesn't help if you use stuff like Lead Elixir or Fire/Bolt Paper with your build, though.

The what now?

You don't need the Great Souls to enter Drangleic Castle if you have 1 million Soul Memory

 

[DrROBschiz]

I really just want them to make whatever game they feel like making. No pandering to the fans, no compromises, no asking for forgiveness. I love Souls because it's bold, it knows exactly what it is, and it doesn't care what anyone thinks.

Dark Souls 3 is looking equal parts iteration , refinement, and a love letter to all the work that came before it

A fitting end to the series while they figure out what themes and settings to tackle next

I dont think this ends their run with 3D action rpgs...

 

[Mr Reasonable]

DS3 is using the new bloodborne engine. It's not even that old. It has more to do with FromSoft not having the resources or whatever arbitrary reason to make super high quality textures.

That's a shame, I was hopeful that the game would be running on an old engine and be 60fps like DS2 on X1.

It's going to be hard to go back to 30fps.

 

[aravuus]

You don't need the Great Souls to enter Drangleic Castle if you have 1 million Soul Memory

Lol what, really? That is pretty neat indeed

 

[Lux R7]

I dont think this ends their run with 3D action rpgs...

well i hope so. That would be a TRAGEDY.

 

[Gbraga]

Dark Souls 3 is looking equal parts iteration , refinement, and a love letter to all the work that came before it

A fitting end to the series while they figure out what themes and settings to tackle next

I dont think this ends their run with 3D action rpgs...

Just reading that already brings the feels.

I think I'm gonna cry when the credits roll for the first time in this game.

I feel a yearning, something I've never felt before... Tell me, hunter, could this be joy?

 

[DrROBschiz]

Just reading that already brings the feels.

I think I'm gonna cry when the credits roll for the first time in this game.

I feel a yearning, something I've never felt before... Tell me, hunter, could this be joy?

The best we have ever felt

Bring on this glorious masterpiece as we look to a bright future

Praise the Sun

 

[Gbraga]

Praise the Sun

We don't do this anymore. Fear the sun's temptations, and the winged executioner.

D A R K B O Y Z

 

[Alo0oy]

Hard to argue with that, I only played BB for a month or two. Sold my PS4 a while back too, so I can't give it another try.

Kind of a bummer, actually. A properly working coop could have made BB a lot more fun.

Yeah, the matchmaking is the best it's ever been in a Souls game right now, which is why it's a shame your inventory doesn't restock after every MP session, it was less of an issue when it took 10 minutes to find someone, as the 1 minute it takes to go back to the Hunter's Dream was negligible.

The 600 Vials/Bullets thing kinda helped. Just stock on those, and kill yourself when you're running low.

It doesn't help if you use stuff like Lead Elixir or Fire/Bolt Paper with your build, though.

It's still an issue when you're in the middle of Nightmare of Mensis constantly invading people, only to run out of vials, then you have to go back to the Hunter's Dream, re-enter the area with full 20 vials/bullets, kill every enemy in the vicinity again, & then ring the bell.

The other items not replenishing is still an issue, but it's not as bad because 10 of each is still plenty (with the exception of a few items that max out at 3).

 

[Lux R7]

Dark souls 3 is actually playable at the pc gamer weekender in london i think.
If someone finds something please post it

i was wrong, the event is in march, sorry

 

[DrROBschiz]

Tarkus was cooler before he became a scorpion man

Sometimes I have to side with the DS2 haters lol

 

[roytheone]

Sorry, i wanted to say it will NOT be connected like Dark Souls 1 because of

Spoiler

bonfire teleporting

It was like one, except it was somewhat different. Most of the game was optional & only 7 bosses/areas were mandatory, but the world design was like Dark Souls 1.

Well, I guess we will see how the world design ends up being when the game launches!

 

[Alo0oy]

i was wrong, the event is in march, sorry

That would be pointless since the game would be out in Japan by then & it would be media blackout season.

 

[patchday]

looks great! Time for me to finish up dark souls 2 it seems. Funny i beat demons souls, bloodborne, and dark souls 1

 

[Lux R7]

That would be pointless since the game would be out in Japan by then & it would be media blackout season.

march 5 and 6. The game will be out in japan in march 24.

 

[DarkFlame]

I'd say it's more like BB, in the sense that you have a hub, and the rest of the world flows, and each area has its own unique flow and depth. There are branching paths later on (hidden/optional areas, etc.), but not a whole lot of freedom right from the start.

I want to ask another thing,is DS3 world the biggest we have played yet in terms of campaign length? Because Bloodborne for example was on the short side,despite being an excellent game. Does it reach Scholar of the First Sin level of content or Dark Souls 1?

 

[Gbraga]

I want to ask another thing,is DS3 world the biggest we have played yet in terms of campaign length? Because Bloodborne for example was on the short side,despite being an excellent game. Does it reach Scholar of the First Sin level of content or Dark Souls 1?

Dark Souls II always feels a bit too long to me, personally, even before the DLC came out.

 

[JetSetRadio]

There's no Asian/English version to be released in march right?

 

[Gbraga]

There's no Asian/English version to be released in march right?

I'm just hoping the PC version won't be delayed.

WHERE ARE MY PREORDERS, NAMCO

 

[Alo0oy]

Dark Souls II always feels a bit too long to me, personally, even before the DLC came out.

On the other hand, Bloodborne was a bit on the short side, & even Dark Souls 1 was too long as it dragged in the end. It needs to be somewhere between the two.

 

[bigol]

Looking at this picture

and this picture

i would say Dark Souls 1 world is a real interconnected world, while Bloodborne had just one way to connect levels of the game

 

[Alo0oy]

Looking at this picture

and this picture

i would say Dark Souls 1 world is a real interconnected world, while Bloodborne had just one way to connect levels of the game

Considering the connected world of Bloodborne was more thematically consistent, I'd say the opposite.

 

[Ghost Slayer]

Now we have definition of "real" interconnected world and "not real" interconnected world?

 

[B-Genius]

Fuck. This sucks for PvP players who like trying out a bunch of different builds. Why are we forced to spend hundreds of hours leveling up a ton of different characters to use more weapons. DS2 had it completely right with farmable soul vessels.

Wasn't aware you could farm Soul Vessels. Glad to hear DS2 apparently did something right for a change...

Not a lot of freedom in the start = fucking it up.

I'm very disappointed that Dark 3 doesn't seem to follow suit in that regard. Fuck man.

Sorry you feel that way. Hope you can enjoy the game regardless.

Sounds like a no to me, hope i'm wrong.

In the Network Test, if you used a Dried Finger, it allowed you to summon up to 3 phantoms, but also opened the gates to 2 potential invaders (who could arrive before any summons).

I'm ok with this, but at the same time it's kinda sad that I was right thinking that they'll never make another Dark Souls 1. Not even talking about quality, they might make games so good that everyone agrees they vastly surpass Dark Souls, but nothing that does it like Dark 1 did.

That being said, you can look at it as a good thing, too. It's great to have reasons to go back to all of them. You can never get quite the same experience, so I always feel like playing all of the Souls games.

Thanks for the positive thoughts. It's a different approach, for sure.

The only thing that felt like pandering to me so far, and they'll have to do a very good job to convince me that it should be there, is the Praise the Sun gesture. I don't feel like it has any place in this setting.

Interesting! I never thought of Praise the Sun as pandering. From a lore perspective, It's the greeting of the Knights of Sunlight, and so not entirely surprising that it would have survived and been passed down through the ages. From a meta perspective, it just sort of gained popularity from Dark 1, I suppose. It's clear a lot of people love the gesture and associate it with Souls.

I can see why you'd think it doesn't "fit" the setting this time around, but there's nothing stopping you from playing that way. You can be the brooding, dark hero who wants to go quietly into the "sunset". However, there will always be those who just want to be jolly and co-operate, even in the bleakest of times

I never played Bloodborne, so does this mean it is closer to the great interconnected world of Dark souls 1, or closer to the disappointing HUB and spoke world of Dark souls 2?

People will find different things disappointing about each game's layout, and it's not immediately clear what disappointed you about Dark 2's "hub and spoke world". I mean, you had a number of options from the start of Dark 2, but it seems like you're saying they all led in a straight line? This is not the case with BB. You don't have many options right off the bat, but each area (and later the whole entire map) will fold back in on itself and surprise you with its layout.

I really just want them to make whatever game they feel like making. No pandering to the fans, no compromises, no asking for forgiveness. I love Souls because it's bold, it knows exactly what it is, and it doesn't care what anyone thinks.

You have a heart of gold. Don't let them take it from you.

 

[Gbraga]

On the other hand, Bloodborne was a bit on the short side, & even Dark Souls 1 was too long as it dragged in the end. It needs to be somewhere between the two.

I'm ok with Bloodborne's length, but something between Bloodborne and Dark 1 would be perfect, I agree.

 

[Lux R7]

I'm not concerned about the game's lenght. DS, as a series, has a huge replay value.

 

[Alo0oy]

I'm not concerned about the game's lenght. DS, as a series, has a huge replay value.

True that, the first playthrough in a Souls game is basically a tutorial.

 

[Gbraga]

Interesting! I never thought of Praise the Sun as pandering. From a lore perspective, It's the greeting of the Knights of Sunlight, and so not entirely surprising that it would have survived and been passed down through the ages. From a meta perspective, it just sort of gained popularity from Dark 1, I suppose. It's clear a lot of people love the gesture and associate it with Souls.

I can see why you'd think it doesn't "fit" the setting this time around, but there's nothing stopping you from playing that way. You can be the brooding, dark hero who wants to go quietly into the "sunset". However, there will always be those who just want to be jolly and co-operate, even in the bleakest of times

Oh, I don't mean it as in "it's not edgy enough", I'm ok with silly stuff, I actually love silly stuff, what I can't see is a reason for a dark hero (and by that I assume From means "a hero of dark", and not an edgy asshole) who is hunting down those who linked the flame to praise the sun. Seems contradictory to me. That's what I'm hoping to be convinced in the final game.

People will find different things disappointing about each game's layout, and it's not immediately clear what disappointed you about Dark 2's "hub and spoke world". I mean, you had a number of options from the start of Dark 2, but it seems like you're saying they all led in a straight line? This is not the case with BB. You don't have many options right off the bat, but each area (and later the whole entire map) will fold back in on itself and surprise you with its layout.

Spoiler

First time I beat Paarl and looked at the gate, I was thinking "no way... get the fuck out of here", then I opened it. HGGGGGGNNNNNNNNNN

Bloodborne is too good, Miyazaki should go to jail.

I'm not concerned about the game's lenght. DS, as a series, has a huge replay value.

Yes, I agree, when it comes to "I don't care if it's not very long", but feeling "too long" can actually hurt replayability.

Bloodborne took me 69 hours on my first playthrough, I'm perfectly fine with that length. Dark Souls II actually only took me 11 hours more, IIRC, but it felt like an eternity.

And don't get me wrong, I love Dark Souls II, I'm not saying the game felt too long because it was bad and I wasn't enjoying it, it just felt like it shouldn't have as much content as it does after

Spoiler

finding Vendrick

.

 

[CountAntonius]

Wasn't aware you could farm Soul Vessels. Glad to hear DS2 apparently did something right for a change...

er DS2 works the same way. You're limited by the number of Soul Vessels, its probably a similar system.

With Bonfire ascetics you could reset places like giants memories and somewhere else to get pretty much infinite soul vessels. I know this cause I probably did it 20+ times on a character I used for PvP.

I like to min max builds and I think most of my time on Dark Souls was spent speeding through and power leveling characters just so I could PvP using a new build and weapon. It was a drag and I was very happy DS2 made it much easier to have good build variety.

 

[roytheone]

W

People will find different things disappointing about each game's layout, and it's not immediately clear what disappointed you about Dark 2's "hub and spoke world". I mean, you had a number of options from the start of Dark 2, but it seems like you're saying they all led in a straight line? This is not the case with BB. You don't have many options right off the bat, but each area (and later the whole entire map) will fold back in on itself and surprise you with its layout.

Yeah, that's what I meant. In dark souls 1, there were quite a few moments where you opened up a door or activated an elevator, only to discover you are back to an earlier area you already cleared, and you now have a handy shortcut! It made the game feel like an organic whole, instead of just a couple of straightforward paths. Dark souls 2 on the other hand often felt like just walking from bonfire to bonfire, which was less fun to me.

 

[Mman235]

Andre being back is interesting given that even Dark Souls 2 took place millennia after the first (at least) and Dark Souls 3 is presumably even further forward, so unless it's some sort of straight time warp that seems to suggest they're exploring the intended plotline (that didn't get in Dark Souls 1) that he's a god. That makes me wonder if they might be bringing back some of the other cut ideas/plotlines in DS1.

Tarkus was cooler before he became a scorpion man

Sometimes I have to side with the DS2 haters lol

Tarkus was coolest when he was called Biorr.

 

[Sayad]

Sorry, i wanted to say it will NOT be connected like Dark Souls 1 because of

Spoiler

bonfire teleporting

Yep, thought so, and I agree. But I'd be fine with this if individual areas are well designed.

 

[schlynch]

That's exactly how it worked in Bloodborne, why would DS3 suddenly be different?

If you're good enough, you could go Gascoigne -> Amelia -> Shadows -> Rom -> The One Reborn -> Micolash -> Nurse. There, you skipped 60% of the game.

Did we play a different game or what?

... and all you said in this specific order. The point of the other post was that all these were different paths. BB was linear as fuck. Even worse then DS2.

Yeah, bummed to hear that DS3 will take the BB route.

Had hopes it will stay true to DS.

 

[silva1991]

Looking at this picture

and this picture

i would say Dark Souls 1 world is a real interconnected world, while Bloodborne had just one way to connect levels of the game

Dude DS1 is vastly superior to BB, but let's not get crazy here

both are interconnected

what makes DS1 stands out more is that it has more areas to connect and the nexus(aka firelink shrine) area was part of the connccted world and alots of areas lead back to it.

take the shrine out of the map and with it take out every path leading to it and it will be no different than Bloodborne.

 

[Fancy Clown]

I also think a lot of the individual areas within Bloodborne had better level design than those of Dark Souls

 

[Lux R7]

Waiting for a trailer...or some leaked gameplay...

 

[Fakeknowledge]

In the Network Test, if you used a Dried Finger, it allowed you to summon up to 3 phantoms, but also opened the gates to 2 potential invaders (who could arrive before any summons).

Tbf I experienced this in the test and long story short; It led to one of the very best PVP experiences i've ever had in a Souls game. It's a testament to it that i still remember it really well..

I invaded at the boss door and was faced with 4 enemies and so naturally, i legged it. I jumped onto this protruding platform above the area where the fat halberd/magic dude patrols and guarded the edge to discourage them from jumping across to me, they were peppering me with arrows and such when someone else invaded and two of them broke off to try and find him. One of the two who stayed tried to jump over to me and fell. I then jumped back across and killed the one on his own asap then jumped down into the courtyard.

In the courtyard the guy who fell and the host were attacking the other invader (who must of killed a phantom himself.) I ran in, surprised backstabbed the phantom and just like that; the host with 3 phantoms was alone against two invaders.

He managed to kill the other guy so it was left to me. There was brief moment where i think we both realised we were alone. We stood, in this courtyard strewn with corpses of dead soldiers, bowed and had a one on one duel. Neither of us healing.

I managed to finish him with a parry>resin>riposte. I was making intelligible happy noises throughout the whole thing. If that's the system and it can give me moments like that consistently i won't be complaining at all.

 

[sn00zer]

I also think a lot of the individual areas within Bloodborne had better level design than those of Dark Souls

I dont know why statements like this are controversial. Bloodborne was the 4th (ish) Souls game so it having better designed areas than the second only makes sense. Some areas of DS were just not great, while Id have a hard time pointing out anything in Bloodborne more than some boss fights that werent so fun.

 

[potatohead]

I also think a lot of the individual areas within Bloodborne had better level design than those of Dark Souls

Way better, not even a comparison.

 

[B-Genius]

snip

Great story! I can picture it perfectly. Don't suppose you saved a video?

It's the same throughout the rest of the game (although I'm not certain exactly when/where you get the Dried Finger).
The system allows for crazy stuff like this, and also let's people play solo without having to go offline, if that's their thing.

 

[Fancy Clown]

I dont know why statements like this are controversial. Bloodborne was the 4th (ish) Souls game so it having better designed areas than the second only makes sense. Some areas of DS were just not great, while Id have a hard time pointing out anything in Bloodborne more than some boss fights that werent so fun.

I don't think its place in the series has any bearing on the quality of its level design. There are plenty of series where later iterations don't have as strong level design as a prior iteration.
It's a creative thing, not like technology where it gets more advanced the newer it is.

And it's a "controversial" statement because many people tout Dark Souls as having the best level design simply BECAUSE it has a connected world. And while thats very cool, it's not nearly as important as the micro design of the areas themselves.

 

[Fakeknowledge]

Great story! I can picture it perfectly. Don't suppose you saved a video?

It's the same throughout the rest of the game (although I'm not certain exactly when/where you get the Dried Finger).
The system allows for crazy stuff like this, and also let's people play solo without having to go offline, if that's their thing.

I thought that was against the rules

Nah i didn't, wish i had though.

 

[neoism]

Development never goes as smoothly as you want, but compared to Dark 2 I think it's safe to say yes.



WHO KNOWS?!



I'd say it's more like BB, in the sense that you have a hub, and the rest of the world flows, and each area has its own unique flow and depth. There are branching paths later on (hidden/optional areas, etc.), but not a whole lot of freedom right from the start.



I can respect your reasoning, and glad you enjoyed that system, but I don't think they make an appearance this time.



MP is sort of subdued in these games, but yeah, BB felt particularly lonely. I think it was designed to be that way, with the bells. You obviously care a lot considering the time you put into BB despite its PvP limitations, so hopefully you can rest assured that summon signs are a DS staple, and that several items/spells are there to expand and encourage multiplayer.



It's been confirmed that there will be a way to reallign stats (a limited number of times per play through).

Sorry for the non-commital answers... Nothing incriminating here, but this kind of thing is potentially compromising. Don't want it to turn into an unofficial AMA!

I just hope people can look forward to it with reasonable expectations. I will say that as someone who's already had their fair share of the game in various forms, I'm still excited to play it as a consumer with the rest of the community.

sad about no bonfire ascetics but i was excepting it... and yeah i loooved BB my goty 2015...its my second platinumed game ever lol still really excited for ds3 its the only game on my radar. thanks for the answers..😘

 

[takriel]

Sorry you feel that way. Hope you can enjoy the game regardless.

Oh I'll still enjoy it plenty, I hold the Souls franchise very dear to my heart

And thank you for answering all of our questions, you're a saint in this dry time of no news!

 

[Nazo]

Great story! I can picture it perfectly. Don't suppose you saved a video?

It's the same throughout the rest of the game (although I'm not certain exactly when/where you get the Dried Finger).
The system allows for crazy stuff like this, and also let's people play solo without having to go offline, if that's their thing.

So does that mean there is no invasions of solo players anymore? I hope I'm misunderstanding.

 

[strafer]

i hope this game isn't just fan service

 

[Quincy]

The amount of bloom makes it look similar to Shadow of the Colossus. Which can only be a good thing.