Soulsborne (Dark Souls trilogy and Bloodborne)

[Darkness]

Because we don't have a thread on these games.

Dark Souls 2 (SOTFS) is my favourite of the series. The story, the mechanics, the atmosphere, the zones. I love it. Sure Dark Souls to has this whole interconnected world going on and its beautiful but, for me, it quickly turns into a slog and I don't enjoy the mechanics of combat nearly as much of those of 2. Dark Souls 3 is basically a lazy homage to 1 and whilst I prefer its mechanics to those of the original game, its not nearly as much fun as 2. I understand all the complaints people level at DS2 and they just don't stand up to scrutiny to me, possibly with the exception of ENB's critique of adapability but....... I've played through the game without putting any points into ADP and frankly it isn't the issue people make it out to be.

The biggest criticism I can level at 2 is..................The Royal Rat Authority. Fuck that boss.

All of this said, I do love the games and at some point I will pull my finger out to complete Bloodborne and maybe even get Demon Souls for the PS3.

[maxbeedo]

I would say the more annoying aspect of Adaptability is the time it takes to use an item.  Without any points your character uses items or drinks Estus agonizingly slow, making healing in tight spots nearly impossible.  The difference between 90 agility and 100 agility is 7 more iFrames during rolling and 10 less frames using items (based on 30 fps).  My first playthrough I didn't put any points into Adaptability and did ok because I blocked everything (greatshields are OP), but any build not focusing on strength will NEED the iFrames to survive consistently.  It doesn't detract from the game as a whole though, because Adaptability is probably the least useless out of the "most useless stat" in each game (Resistance in DS1, Luck in Demon's Souls and DS3, Arcane in Bloodborne).

Demon's Souls is definitely worth playing.  It's not quite as hard as the other games (with the exception of specific enemies that one-shot you pretty much regardless of health), and is slightly more forthcoming and consistent about its lore, though still just as confusing with some mechanics like World Tendency and Character Tendency that were never reused.  You might be surprised how much From Software got right with the combat on the first try, and also how much things haven't really changed throughout the series (like enemies hitting you through walls, being able to snipe with arrows from afar while safely out of aggro range, etc.).  Easy Allies just posted Part 1 of their Souls retrospective which covers Demon's Souls.

[Pixie]

I beat Dark Souls 2 once. With a fair bit of help from a friend.

Would not repeat.

I keep trying DS3 and failing, so I keep uninstalling it in rage, then reinstalling it a few weeks/months later and trying again.

I want to love these games. But I'm just not good enough. As heretical as it sounds, I'd love a version with a "less hard" mode, so I can enjoy the aesthetics and lore and worldbuilding without feeling like I'm punching myself in the face the entire time.

[Darkness]

My first playthrough I didn't put any points into Adaptability and did ok because I blocked everything (greatshields are OP), but any build not focusing on strength will NEED the iFrames to survive consistently.

My Hexer is a STR build, doesn't use a greatshield and is only STR to use the CBS. No points in ADP. Honestly it was only at the point where I'd capped all the other stats I needed to cap, that I started putting anything into ADP. Yes it was harder in some places but, not noticeably harder than the first time I played through (where I did lvl adp). Largely because Hexer is "pew pew pew, dead."

[maxbeedo]

Attunement also boosts Agility (though not as much as Adaptability), so using a caster at least gets your Agility to the point of your rolls not being useless, just not "ninja flip OP" territory like they can be.  A character focusing on katanas or rapiers without much casting would need some points in adaptability... or just keep trying until they succeed.  My advice comes from a "least deaths possible" point of view.  It's possible to beat these games with anything, at level 1, on NG+100.

[Darkness]

I'm aware that SL1 -ing the games is a thing.

My point is that ADP isn't the crutch people think it is. Because it isn't. The game is perfectly playable, and by that I mean "not impossibly hard" without levelling ADP. I wouldn't recommend a first time player do it but, for anyone with experience it should be fine.

[maxbeedo]

One of the amazing things about this series is the difference between what it feels like on a first playthrough versus a second.  It can be downright terrifying going through some areas because death actually has a cost, but after fully exploring an area and learning a boss's full moveset you feel like, as Yahtzee put it, "Fantasy Batman".  You know exactly where all the enemies are, know what stats you need for certain weapons/spells, know where all the traps are, and generally feel like you've actually conquered something worthy.  Poison swamp areas?  Incredibly scary, until you get used to them, then you start exploring and discover the bazillion items hidden there.

[Darkness]

The exception being NG+ on DS2, which throws in a lot of new surprises that the NG+ modes the other games don't.

I think for DS2, NG++ is when the Batman feeling starts to kick in.

[maxbeedo]

That's why DS2 has the best NG+ system .  I didn't test it myself but supposedly the DLC areas do not change on NG+ though, only NG++ and above.