Comment on What games did you sleep on for too long?
scutiger@lemmy.world 16 hours agoI suggest starting with Dark Souls 1 and playing them in order. DS1 is slower and clunkier than the sequels, but will introduce you to the mechanics and playstyle of the series. That clunkiness is especially obvious after playing the sequels. DS2 is the one most people like the least, but it’s still pretty decent, and plays somewhat faster than the first. DS3 is the smoothest experience, and probably hardest of the three.
Bloodborne is a more action-oriented experience, definitely a faster pace than the Souls games, and arguably harder because of it.
If you still want more, check out Demon’s Souls. Some of the mechanics are tedious and can easily be ignored, others are main parts of the game and have been simplified somewhat in the later games. I haven’t played the remake, but apparently it’s as close as possible to the original experience, only with upgraded graphics and sound. I read that even the game’s timings are exactly replicated.
thatKamGuy@sh.itjust.works 15 hours ago
I was expecting you to recommend Elden Ring, honestly!
Willing to tackle the series chronologically, if that’s what you think would be the best way to familiarise myself with the genre.
MissingInteger@lemmy.zip 11 hours ago
Elden Ring is a fantastic game and by far my favorite in the Soulsborne series. It’s also at the same time both the hardest and the easiest in the series. If you explore and make use of the tools at your disposal, it can be the easiest. But you can also simply bang your head against every challenge, and then it can be the hardest. Don’t get me wrong; that can also be very fun.
Also, Elden Ring is just incredibly beautiful. Every frame looks like it is straight out of a fantasy novel. The music is fantastic. The story is a bit cryptic, but I personally enjoy that kind of storytelling, and the world-building in Elden Ring is my second favorite in the Soulsborne series - barely behind Bloodborne.
Should you start with Elden Ring? I’m not sure. It’s pretty long and complex. If you just want to play one, I would say play this one. If you simply want to play one of them to see if you like the series, I would say play Bloodborne, which is an excellent teacher. But you said you only have a PS3 and Steam Deck, and Bloodborne is a PS4 exclusive. It can be run with an emulator, but that’s pretty resource intensive.
I would argue against starting with Dark Souls 1 unless you plan to tackle the whole series from the get-go. The combat is pretty clunky when compared to the other titles, and the second half is notoriously rushed.
Dark Souls 2 has a special place in my heart, but the RPG mechanics are the most obtuse in the series. Not beginner-friendly.
Dark Souls 3 would be my recommendation to start if you can’t play Bloodborne. The combat mechanics are mature, and the RPG mechanics are relatively understandable. DS3 is also pretty linear, which I personally view more as a negative, but as a newcomer, you are never confused about where to go. Also, Dark Souls 3 is just a pretty fun game.
And yes, you can definitely story-wise play the Dark Souls games out of order. Dark Souls is more about lore and worldbuilding than a story in the strictest sense.
I also want to give a shout-out to the c/Soulslike community here on Lemmy. If you have a question regarding Souls games, you can always ask there.