Reviews// Dark Souls III

I'm all for appeasing fans and at this point in the series' life it should be high up the priority list, but in Dark Souls III I like that they're making an attempt to draw more people in, get them hooked and then repeatedly smash them into the ground with a giant monster.

There's an argument to be had that the difficulty curve is a bit high in Dark Souls III and it's hard to argue against that point. Just when you think you're comfortable, have five or six boss heads on your wall and are ready to visit one of the most beautiful areas the series has to offer, you cross a bridge and the game suddenly switches from hard to insane.

It takes you off-guard and I'm sure there will be a few who will decide to call it a day. But for some this will just be another brick wall to break through and another memorable moment in a game full of memorable moments.

Dark Souls III feels refined to the point of perfection. In fact it takes what once felt perfect and makes it even better. Character movement is a huge step forward from previous Dark Souls games with your character being more agile.

It makes you feel as though there are more options in combat. Hiding behind a strong shield is still a solid tactical approach, but here going in swinging and rolling is just as valid. Your stamina bar still needs to be at the front of your mind as it leaves you with less puff in your lungs than Bloodborne does, but From Software has balanced this out with fewer mobs to fight and so maintained the different feelings of the games while still having them be inspired by each other.

The big introduction to the series in Dark Souls III is your abilities bar. Here you can split your Estus flask in two in whatever way you see fit and use it to fill either your health bar or your abilities bar, offering you more of that risk reward stuff that the Souls games thrive on. You're either boosting your defence or attack.

Abilities are weapon-dependent, offering powerful charge attacks of different types. While they seemed like an interesting attack option I found that they didn't fit in well with how I played, so completely ignored them for the vast majority of my play-through.

Thankfully the game offers these new techniques as an option rather than forcing the new idea on you. I put all of my estus into health regeneration and could continue playing exactly how I wanted.

If I was forced to make a negative comment about Dark Souls III it would have to be that the game lacks the winding, expansive play space that the original had. Dark Souls' world felt solid and connected. The different areas were linked through the game's fantasy logic and various shortcuts.

Here it's more about a journey through the environment rather than within it. More Demon's Souls than Dark, and although that might be a turn-off for fans of the original, it's hard to get angry about once you're playing.

The game might be more about defeating an area and moving onto the next, but it hasn't lost its sense of discovery and exploration. Areas are wide and full of hidden paths and items. Those who choose to explore will be rewarded with anything from new armour to a strange enemy that they haven't seen before or even stumble across an optional boss.

It manages to maintain your curiosity and tempt you to stray from the obvious path without losing the sense of progression that a path can offer. Although I miss the huge world I discovered in Dark Souls, I'm not as disappointed as I thought I would be with a more linear game.

I guess I should trust From Software more. They are aware of what their fans want at this point. They know that to tinker with their game that is loved by so many will come with extreme scrutiny, but they're masters of their craft and know what they're doing.