[Megathread] Dark Souls

[ElAmigo]

Just out of curiosity, explain what exactly is hideous?

Then, explain why this looks so good:

This Dark Souls shot definitely looks better than that Skyrim ground shot, as for the other Skyrim shot, that doesn't even look like an in game shot.

As for the the gamepad vs mouse/keyboard debate. Are you really trying to say that you have faster control with of the camera with a gamepad? That's just insane.

[Lyriok]

As for the the gamepad vs mouse/keyboard debate. Are you really trying to say that you have faster control with of the camera with a gamepad? That's just insane.

I have to agree with it all gamepad > Mouse + keyboard in every way besides camera and even at that neither makes a game breaking difference.

Im going to play with a gamepad because I simply kind of miss playing on a gamepad for games like this, PoP and GoW felt amazing on a gamepad.

[wynnyelle]

I've had a change of heart regarding this port. I was originally not planning to touch it because of how terrible it initially sounded, but after watching some leaked footage, it doesn't look nearly as bad as I expected it to. I'm actually really hyped for the DLC, and the Artorias fight looks amazing (you can try to hunt around for a video, but most of the ones that I had seen earlier have since been taken down. I imagine that there's still some floating around, and I know you can download it on one of the Dark Souls wikis.), so now I'm kind of excited for it, and I don't think I'd be able to wait for the PS3 DLC to come out. :P GFWL is lame, but I can deal with not having HD graphics. I suppose that it would be nice to support the devs anyway, since they really only did the PC version because the fans wanted it so badly. It's the least I could do.

[Lyriok]

I've had a change of heart regarding this port. I was originally not planning to touch it because of how terrible it initially sounded, but after watching some leaked footage, it doesn't look nearly as bad as I expected it to. I'm actually really hyped for the DLC, and the Artorias fight looks amazing (you can try to hunt around for a video, but most of the ones that I had seen earlier have since been taken down. I imagine that there's still some floating around, and I know you can download it on one of the Dark Souls wikis.), so now I'm kind of excited for it, and I don't think I'd be able to wait for the PS3 DLC to come out. :P GFWL is lame, but I can deal with not having HD graphics. I suppose that it would be nice to support the devs anyway, since they really only did the PC version because the fans wanted it so badly. It's the least I could do.

Reading this post about your change of heart made me happy

Welcome aboard!

[Vice80]

I find it hillarious how I sit for whole month between when Secret World became a boring crap, until GW2 with nothing to play, and then as soon as GW2 release date is near, we get all those releases. Well, I'm not buying this now. I need it NOW, not one day before GW2 release. I seriously wonder if game developers even look at competition or even realise what is a threat to their sales and what is not.

[Maleficia]

I'm faaarrr too excited for this game, been a huge Souls buff since Demon's and I've played through Dark Souls more times than I can count.

Also, I /epicfacepalm'd when the OP said the Plot is "minimalistic", Dark Souls has one of the most in depth, awesome stories I've seen in a game, you just have to find it for yourself.

[Jinna]

This Dark Souls shot definitely looks better than that Skyrim ground shot, as for the other Skyrim shot, that doesn't even look like an in game shot.

Except it is. And that is one of the major points of contention among the fans who asked for a PC port. The majority of them were thinking while playing, "what would this look like on my PC with my <top of line gfx card + HD monitor> setup"

There are very few people who own a gaming PC who don't also one one or other (in my case both) of the consoles this game was released for. The only reason you want a PC port, is so you can get A) better graphics B) modability.

Unfortunately DS will have neither. Skyrim has both. What you are likely seeing in the screenshot above is the improved water effects mod and the high-res textures mod/DLC. If you commit to porting a game from console to PC, then it's perfectly fine for the customers to expect you do it right.

Option B would be for them to leave the game in an open enough state for the community to make high-res mod or other graphics tweeks to increase FPS.

[Pacer]

Except it is. And that is one of the major points of contention among the fans who asked for a PC port. The majority of them were thinking while playing, "what would this look like on my PC with my <top of line gfx card + HD monitor> setup"

There are very few people who own a gaming PC who don't also one one or other (in my case both) of the consoles this game was released for. The only reason you want a PC port, is so you can get A) better graphics B) modability.

Unfortunately DS will have neither. Skyrim has both. What you are likely seeing in the screenshot above is the improved water effects mod and the high-res textures mod/DLC. If you commit to porting a game from console to PC, then it's perfectly fine for the customers to expect you do it right.

Option B would be for them to leave the game in an open enough state for the community to make high-res mod or other graphics tweeks to increase FPS.

You cant compare DS to Skyrim high res pack, you would have to compare the games as they are/were the day they were released. Even if Dark Souls wont have improved graphics on PC the graphics will still be as good as on PS3/Xbox and most people who have played this game agree that it is one of the best looking console games ever made.

It is a known fact that the graphics in DS is almost too good for consoles as it lags a lot in certian areas of the game (blighttown in particular), a PC with a better processor and a better graphics card should atleast eliminate these lag problems.

At the end of the day even if DS never becomes modable and thus never gets better graphics than Skyrim it will still have combat that is about 10 times better (with a controller atleast).

---------- Post added 2012-08-13 at 02:25 PM ----------

I find it hillarious how I sit for whole month between when Secret World became a boring crap, until GW2 with nothing to play, and then as soon as GW2 release date is near, we get all those releases. Well, I'm not buying this now. I need it NOW, not one day before GW2 release. I seriously wonder if game developers even look at competition or even realise what is a threat to their sales and what is not.

I agree, I actually think it would be better if they delayed the release by two to three months now because by then most people will be "bored" with MoP and GW2. Releasing it one day before GW2 is such a bad move, yes From Soft announced their date first so they are not the people who did something wrong here but if they want to sell more copies they should delay the game now.

[wynnyelle]

Also, I /epicfacepalm'd when the OP said the Plot is "minimalistic", Dark Souls has one of the most in depth, awesome stories I've seen in a game, you just have to find it for yourself.

Dark Souls is easily my favorite game, lore-wise. It's amazing what's in the details, and I also love how there are certain things that just cannot be explained right now no matter how deep you dig. That sense of mystery is one of the best feelings.

Reading this post about your change of heart made me happy

Welcome aboard!

Thanks! It's nice to be excited for something rather than apathetic.

[Arrowstorm]

I agree, I actually think it would be better if they delayed the release by two to three months now because by then most people will be "bored" with MoP and GW2. Releasing it one day before GW2 is such a bad move, yes From Soft announced their date first so they are not the people who did something wrong here but if they want to sell more copies they should delay the game now.

I don't think they cared for more than getting the port out there. Sure, money's nice, but at the end of the day they probably won't get many new customers that haven't already heard about it being this amazingly hard game, so it almost doesn't matter when they release it. It's going in my stack of games I need to play.

[Roar-Powah]

Pass, GFWL is the dealbreaker for me, never touching that shit again.

+1 to this and also i hear the controls are god awful for PC

[Lyriok]

I don't think they cared for more than getting the port out there. Sure, money's nice, but at the end of the day they probably won't get many new customers that haven't already heard about it being this amazingly hard game, so it almost doesn't matter when they release it. It's going in my stack of games I need to play.

It's rather difficult to say, To an extent I can agree with them just wanting to get the port out but it's mostly because of us gamers/fans. They pretty much warned us that they aren't too familiar with porting and the game was made specifically for console to begin with.

Im sure if it get's good reception they'll try polish it off after release, They seem like a good honest group of people to me.

[vanin]

I just hope that a lack of a good reception - much due to GFWL and other shortcomings on their end due to aforementioned inexperience - won't make them heistant on releasing for PC in the future. Skyrim, which has pretty severe issues on PC in my book (the UI is made for consoles damnit!), still managed to prosper on PC as usual with TES games, thanks to moddability and a willingness in the community to use that moddability to fix the game. If the next Souls game is released on PC and developed with PC in mind + opened up for modders the game could sell really, really well on PC with a long life cycle that cannot be seen on consoles.

[everydaygamer]

am i the only person who's never had issues with GFWL? i actually kind of like it cause its linked to my xbox live account.

[Lyriok]

am i the only person who's never had issues with GFWL? i actually kind of like it cause its linked to my xbox live account.

It would seem like your one of the lucky few.

4/4 games I have that are GFWL were unplayable for sometime or required me to look into it and find a get around so that I could play. It tends to just create alot more drama than good.

[RoKPaNda]

Read about the issues, none of them seem major to me, buying it and looking forward to it.

[Lyriok]

Read about the issues, none of them seem major to me, buying it and looking forward to it.

The issues really aren't bad at all.

People are simply writing it off due to...

GFWL
Visually limiting
Controls (This is the only understandable one)

I pre-purchased it as soon as I was able to xD

[Tobywongg]

I would be happy if it were getting a proper port because I was super excited for this. Now though, I'm very skeptical as to if I will purchase it or not.

GFWL is horrible and I almost refuse to buy any game that incorporates this nonsense. I've been locked out of the few games I have that use this feature more times than I can count because of how terrible it is. It's pretty much universally hated amongst PC gamers and I have no clue why any company uses it anymore. It's horribad.

As far as their statements, I applaud their honesty (something that is very rare nowadays), but unfortunately it's not helping. I can deal with some framerate issues (although it's silly to leave them in...), but I'm MUCH more concerned with how it handles. One of the biggest downfalls of console ports to PC is that the game plays horribly. The games are unresponsive, have very loose controls, and are just painful to play. THAT'S what I'm afraid of. If that's the case, no amount of amazing gameplay can make up for horrible controls, especially if you don't have the option to rebind them to a more comfortable setup.

My question is; if they knew they has NO experience porting to PC, why wouldn't they bring on a few contractors who DO have experience doing successful PC ports who can help guide them in the process? The initial investment would definitely pay off with a better quality game that would sell more copies.

At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if it struggles on PC, piracy gets blamed, and PC gamers see even FEWER ports of good console games to PC. It's exactly what happened with Bulletstorm. The game was a HORRIBLE port to PC and sold like shit because of it. But of course piracy gets blamed, not the shitty port job they did. It's really frustrating.

PC gamers won't, and shouldn't, be happy with trashy ports, so they won't buy them. If companies haven't figured this out yet I'm not sure what else to say...

I have over 20 games that use GFWL, and have never had a problem, even with extensive modding. I don't understand all the fuss over it. Why do people hate everything Microsoft does?

[Lyriok]

I have over 20 games that use GFWL, and have never had a problem, even with extensive modding. I don't understand all the fuss over it. Why do people hate everything Microsoft does?

As stated in the quote.

GFWL is horrible and I almost refuse to buy any game that incorporates this nonsense. I've been locked out of the few games I have that use this feature more times than I can count because of how terrible it is.

A large number of people experience this 4/4 of my games are unplayable and 1 is now playable after waiting for a patch, having to configure some files and look into the problem. I can't even launch 3 of the games that run through GFWL, On the rare occassion I can it refuses to save the game.

Plus noone likes DRM-Ception. Running a DRM(GFWL) inside of a DRM(Steam).

[Arrowstorm]

As stated in the quote.



A large number of people experience this 4/4 of my games are unplayable and 1 is now playable after waiting for a patch, having to configure some files and look into the problem. I can't even launch 3 of the games that run through GFWL, On the rare occassion I can it refuses to save the game.

Plus noone likes DRM-Ception. Running a DRM(GFWL) inside of a DRM(Steam).

While it was a pain in the butt to make the account, and it's highly unnecessary, my Batman games seemed to do well enough with GFWL.