4:41 - ??: The story in Dark Souls 3 revolves around the “Lord of Cinder“, his resurrection and the Dark Hero trying to defeat him.
4:41 - ??: When asked about the Lord of Cinder being directly connected to Dark Souls I or II (we’re all thinking Gwyn right?) we were given a very vague answer which essentially meant “It will be open for the player to decide“. We were also given the impression that the story of Dark Souls III would not be directly linked to the previous titles, but again be open to interpretation.
4:42 - ??: A new feature, epitaphs, are the lore notes of Dark Souls III. These tiny gravestones of fallen knights can be found through out the game and once lit will allow the players to read the epitaphs inscribed on them. Epitaphs tell you about the lore of the game:
This knight fought for the Lord of Cinder
4:42 - ??: Miyazaki: “I like to place dragons early on the game”
4:42 - ??: We progressed through the level fighting undead warriors, knights, a Stone Dragon and the first boss named “Dancer of the Frigid Valley“. The setting is familiar and the enemies have that slight deja-vu effect from a distant memory: The undead warriors were very similar to those in Undead Burg in Dark Souls, and the knights were wearing shiny silver armor that and fought somewhat like the Black Knights from Dark Souls. But it wasn’t until we got to a bridge that the true feeling of Dark Souls settled in: Out of nowehere, a Stone Dragon landed atop a wall in front of us and burnt the many undead to ashes, also blocking the player’s way and forcing him into an unexpected detour he was not ready for.
4:42 - ??: World interconnectivity is completely back. Everything is once again completely connected, as was the case in Dark Souls I. Everything you can see you will be able to explore and go to.
Miyazaki stated that he personally has taken over the world design for the game, and there will be no world hub.
4:43 - ??: The combat is very similar to that of previous Souls titles, but there are some new improvements. First off is “Stances“. It seems that several weapons in the game have Stances that allow for powerful attacks when used. In the demo we saw the Straight Sword have what is called the “Ready Stance“. In this Stance the player holds the Straight Sword in a two-handed fashion (putting away his/her shield) and holds the sword up like a Samurai holding a katana. The hilt is held back by the head of the player with the tip of the blade pointing directly forward. The player was able to Guard Break two shield-wielding enemies with the attack from this Stance. This was the only Stance shown in the demo.
4:45 - ??: Bows completely got a revamp. You can now effectively use the Short Bow in close range combat. If fires quickly and is nearly instantaneous.
4:45 - ??: Miyazaki: “Using the short bow is a bit like being like Legolas in Lord of the Rings. Ok, I’m probably exaggerating a little.”
4:45 - ??: One important thing to note here is that enemies can use Skills and Stances just like the player. This makes the combat more intense and more difficult as they tend to do it unpredictably. And, Parries and Backstabs looked nearly identical to Dark Souls II and are also in the game once again.
4:46 - ??: We also got to see some Gestures return to the game along with the fan favorite “Praise the Sun“, similar to Dark Souls II. I know you will all love that
4:46 - ??: Miyazaki said that the matchmaking for co op and PvP will be based on Soul Level. I specifically asked Miyazaki during the demo if Soul Memory would be in the game and it was reiterated that Soul Level will be the only criteria for matching players. There will also be no Dueling Arena and when asked whether there will be unique multiplayer PvP mechanics, Miyazaki said there will be “unique” ones for sure.
4:48 - ??: The game looks to be a lot like a hybrid between Dark Souls and Bloodborne, if only artistically. The combat is not Bloodborne, there are no dashes or fastness, this is Dark Souls II movement speed and timings. The improvements to the combat system should make Souls combat more interesting than ever before and help it keep up with the frenetic pace of Bloodborne that we’ve all come to love. The matching of players by Soul Level once again will give many piece of mind and I know we all love the connected world from the first game (as well as Bloodborne). I have no data on Hollowing except that it will be in the game and “improved”. No magic, miracles, hexes or devices were shown.
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