(Written before the dlc, probably a bad idea)


This game is goated to a fault. Thousands of collective hours of pure artistic integrity that had to be shaped in the form of the (probably) final soulsbourne game. No gamer deserves to look at 3d environments this breathtakingly beautiful, journeys this exciting and unforgettable, characters and designs this instantly iconic, dialogue this fucking hard, just enough lore to bring life to the world but not too much it feels like required reading.


The only reasonable criticism you can have towards the game is criticism you can throw at any soulsbourne game except, much like everything here, it is amplified ten-fold due to sheer scale and ambition. You thought soulsbourne game had consistency issues, especially with their bosses? Half the bosses here look like they are playing a better game than you. The areas range from action rpg perfection you want to explore every inch of to massive slogs. I understand scale is above all else and i respect that completely, but the formula established in ds1 (never played demon souls idk) sometimes feels almost incompatible with this philosophy. Claustrophobia and physical weight is what defined this style for like ten years for pretty good reason. Just how far away does the boss have to teleport before i am surely convinced this is a big deal?


But honestly fuck all that. this game was still a joy to play overall and i don’t regret any of it hence the high score. Don’t let some criticism rob you from such a cool experience.