OldBoy

Got it. Thx guys. 3 I’ll try it is.

OldBoy

You mean play online, like multiplayer with others? I really don’t do that or like mp. I did try 3 and liked the few minutes I played a lot, so I bought 1 remastered and will start with that. Thanks for thoughts and answers. To all as well. Think I’m in for tumultuous but fun adventures…

RichC2

It's hard to explain, but you want the online features enabled even though you aren't actually playing mp. It gives the game more life even though you aren't directly interacting with people, and some of the notes folks leave are incredibly useful.

I just say this because given the option originally I chose offline and that was a mistake.

OldBoy

Ok, so when I start up they’ll be an option to play online or off and just go with on?

RichC2

Yep

OldBoy

Gotcha. Thx. Off tomorrow, so hope to begin this fantastical journey!

OldBoy

so, i played first few minutes of 1: remastered and...

but, is it supposed to be kinda clunky controls? is that normal in beginning, whole game? i saw all the dodging and blocking messages on ground, lit some bonfires, got an ellegy or whatever, but the slashing and hacking at simple skeleton zombie was like something out of old PC game or something. or am i missing something?

i mean i did like it, but died, came back and figured out, got to back away. you can't just go in close and hack and slash, right?

just trying to understand so far and get into this Souls games phenomena. certainly looks pretty and very cinematic to me. more so than any other game. the beginning especially reminded me of LotR.

RichC2

Yes and no. Every action eats away at your endurance bar, but as long as you aren't holding up a shield it restores pretty quickly (but don't get me wrong, you need to use your shield. You just don't restore endurance quickly when you have it up.) and while DS1 is definitely somewhat slower with combat - you're probably just

OldBoy

oh really about weight? i did choose knight and strong upper body. endurance bar is the green lower bar that quickly reduces with every swing? it's like one swing and it goes down, 2 and it's gone, so what you just run away, since it does recharge quickly? that's what i been doing, then i use a shield when they strike and then i go in for a couple strong hits (RT on xbox controller RB, the regular hits doesn't seem to do anything).

i guess just early on and trying to understand. i'll stick with it. such a great realistic and atmospheric game. love that. no cartoonishness. you actually believe these dead figures exist in this world. incredibly rendered characters and environments. very nice.

OldBoy

Sorry Rich, but I cashed in my chips for DS1. Refunded from MS. I still have DS3 which got new disc for $12, so feel fine. I can use refund for Alan Wake: Remastered in a week. And some Tales of Arise stuff. Unless it’s cheating…

RichC2

Lol, yeah It's why I added to keep going on the one you already own. DS1 has a steeeep learning curve, takes a couple hours to get going and is visually super muddy until you at least hit Undead Parrish. It's also super uneven as a Knight until you have Havels Ring (which is early on, but only if you knew it)

Edit: Just finished DS2, pretty sure I'd rank these as BB > DS3 > DS1 > Demon Remake > DS2, though the range of scores would still be like 8.5 to 9.5. Great set of games.

Dan

Well I gave up just as easily as I had started back when I made this post 6-ish years ago.

However, after playing and beating Elden Ring last year, I eventually wanted to dive back into these games, but needed a healthy break . So I bought the trilogy last week, which includes DS1 Remastered, DS2, and DS3, along with all the DLC. The North American version seems to be sold out literally everywhere, but you can buy the EU discs on Amazon for like $40, and they're region free (for Xbox, not sure about other options).

Anyway... I'm about 30 hours into DS1 Remastered. I love it. I'm loosely following a guide because while I appreciate that these games are intentionally a bit obtuse, I wanted to go into it with some structure.
As far as progress, I've most recently beaten the Iron Golum (giant knight with a huge axe) atop Sen's Fortress, and have now been transported over to Anor Londo.

Also... fuck Blighttown. Hated that place more than any other so far.

RichC2

Blighttown is a nightmare. I also like how accidentally skipping Havel makes the difference between the game being reasonable and borderline impossible.

Edit: And you're almost to my favorite part of DS1. It's also imo the peak of the games difficulty before it seemingly got a lot easier. Also, DS2 is a nice break from formula on these titles, it almost feels like an Ubisoft take on Dark Souls

Noonan

Finishing Blighttown is like getting out of prison. Never so happy to see daylight.

Dan

The archers of Anor Londo are serious horse shit. At least in other parts of the game, you could go back back get supplies. Here, I have nowhere to go and no merchants near by to get arrows. All I can do is grind and level up, but even still, it takes one arrow in the back or one whack of their swords when I reach them to get knocked off the platform. Horse shit!

Finally made it to the next bonfire. Was ready to quit!

Jeremy517

Best way to do it is to not attack them, bur rather just get close enough to the one on the right so that it pulls out its sword and lunges off the edge.

RichC2

Yeah the archers suck but there are strategies to avoid combat

Dan

It only took me about five or six tries, but I beat the double bosses in Anor Londo. They were tough, but keeping my distance from the big guy and not mashing buttons sure helped! I didn't even summon anyone, and took out one boss completely before taking on the second one.
Finally I can warp between some bonfires! Not sure exactly where to hit up next to be honest, but I'll sort it out. I honestly don't know how much of the game I have left, but I'm thinking I'll finish this up then play Wo Long on Game Pass before diving into DS2.

RichC2

I'd say you're a little past half way, but I also found the game became a bit easier after that stretch.

Dan

It did seem like the biggest hurdle so far. Plus, it gave me time to level up some more so I'm moderately over powered now. Looks like I'll tackle the catacombs next

dom56

Hope you have luck on fighting Smough and Ornstein on solo

Unless your are a sorcerer with powerful spells, fighting them melee can be a pain.

Noonan

I think Dan is already past them:

Dan

Yep. I meleed the shit out of those fuckers.

I beat... a boss... In the catacombs. Probably the easiest boss ever? Not the titanite demon, but someone with magic who split into three. The name escapes me, as usual

dom56

That Pinwheel and yeah very lame boss.

Dan

Killed the four kings. Really odd fight since it feels like you're floating in nothingness. Really throws off depth perception. Still, I'm leveled up enough that it took one try.

Seath took me too many tries. Bastard cursed me too, so I had to fight him with 50% health... Didn't want to keep alleviating it just to die and get it again. Once I figured out a good strategy, he wasn't so bad. The Crystal area just sucks, but not nearly as bad as Blighttown.

I've skipped over killing the titanite demons. Only killed one or two, but I know each one gets stronger based on how many are left. I don't like fighting those guys.