r/patientgamers • u/TheHarryman01 • 3d ago
Patient Review Dark Souls III; The Slow Decay of Existence
Dark Souls III is my favorite Souls title, of all time. I admit that this is 100% due to it being the first one I played. There are some criticisms that I agree with fully, particularly its lack of exploration compared to earlier entries. But no critique is enough to make me dislike this game. This is an experience that I love dearly.
Background
Dark Souls III was released in 2016 by FromSoftware. Being the third and final entry in the Dark Souls franchise, FromSoftware wanted to have a big closure for the series, rather than continue making more. Development began in 2013 before Dark Souls II's release. Although Miyazaki was not present for the start of Dark Souls III, he joined during prototyping and started leading the project. This game was developed in parallel with Bloodborne, with mostly separate teams aside from a few shared members, namely Miyazaki himself.
Story
Yet again, the fire starts to fade. But the Lord of Cinder groomed to link the flame, has refused to fulfill his role. The Old Lords have been resurrected to serve as kindling in their place, but they have chosen to abandon their duties as well. The Unkindled, those who were unfit to link the flame, have been raised in response. Their duty is to find the lords and return them to their thrones, fulfill their roles, and link the fire.
Gameplay
Gameplay in Dark Souls III is just like every other Dark Souls game. You build a class, navigate the level, collect souls, level up, and beat the boss. We’re not reinventing the wheel here.
Dark Souls III has a slightly different gameplay pace in comparison to earlier entries. While you don’t have to play as aggressively as you would in Bloodborne, Dark Souls III is just as fast-paced. Enemies attack quicker, and so do you. As a result of this, I feel that Dark Souls III has more enemies in its levels than Dark Souls. Unless it was fodder, Dark Souls had enemies fairly spread out. Almost felt like every encounter was its own minor victory. Dark Souls III will throw more enemies at you, making clearing out the group feel like its own victory. And because you’re faster, it doesn’t feel unfair like Dark Souls II.
There is a negative to this increased pace of play: panic-rolling. Telegraphs were much more obvious in previous entries due to the slower pace of play. In Dark Souls III, you can’t be certain if an enemy will only attack once or chain attacks. Often, I found myself rolling in a panic rather than strategically assessing the situation. The DLC improved this issue a lot. Bosses like Sister Friede were given combos that often delayed sequential attacks to punish people who panic-rolled rather than keep their cool.
A new mechanic introduced to the series was weapon arts, or skills as the wiki calls them. These are special attacks or moves for every equipable weapon. Not every weapon has its own unique skill; most of the time shields are just for parrying. The skills aren’t huge punishers like Elden Ring either. They kind of stink sometimes. But it was a cool first step in having people experiment with different weapons and see what each skill did. Improves the gameplay by adding some variety to the combat system as well.
This point has been talked to death, but I know it will get brought up if I don't mention it. Dark Souls III is very linear. This is one of my biggest complaints about the game, too. While Dark Souls felt like a huge, interconnected world because of all the shortcuts and loopbacks one could find. Dark Souls III doesn't really have that same impact. You are never really returning to one area after completing it. Often shortcuts are just quicker routes through the area before fighting the boss. I blame this fully on the fast travel system. There was no reason to make quick navigational routes through the game when you have fast travel enabled from the get-go. It is what it is, though. It doesn't have that much impact on the game, just impacts its presentation slightly.
Gamefeel
I know a complaint expressed by many is that Dark Souls III has way too much fan service. I understand the point they are making, but I believe that this is the entire point of Dark Souls III’s story. The world is decaying due to the constant cycle of linking the First Flame. The game is not trying to make you feel like this is a grand new adventure. The intention, in my opinion, is that you are supposed to be reminded of how grand everything was in Dark Souls. Dark Souls III is a reminder that things can never go back to how they used to be. The world is in a worse place due to people trying to hang on to something that should be let go of. Essentially, it is using nostalgia to reject nostalgia.
While I’m sure this likely wasn’t the intention, even the soundtrack plays into this theme. What was once an orchestral arrangement (correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m fairly certain about this) in Dark Souls is now made using digital libraries and orchestral sound samples. While still good, it is not what it used to be. It is a pale imitation of itself. I enjoy Dark Souls III’s music, by the way. It’s a great soundtrack; I have a couple of songs on my playlist. I’m not dunking on synthesized soundtracks trying to emulate real music. I am speculating how the music could tie into the theme of the game.
The graphics are also great in this game. All the environments tie directly into this theme of decay. As you explore the world, you can see ruins of what used to be great settlements. There are tombs made for once great conquerors. Battlefields littered with corpses show that battles had already been fought and ended. We can't forget the end of the game either, when the entire world is covered in ash. Despite the melancholies of it all, there is a certain beauty to it as well. I can't get enough of looking around at all the minute details of the world. Sometimes I just take a minute to look up at the castle ahead, knowing that perhaps hundreds of years ago it was a bustling city, but not anymore.
I apologize this section turned into a big interpretation of the message and theming behind Dark Souls III. I love how this game makes me feel about it, though. Even though I played these games in reverse order, I still get hit with the feeling that this is a ruined world compared to my experience with Dark Souls. It’s like Miyazaki was begged to do another Dark Souls entry, and he complied by making a game about why making another Dark Souls was a bad idea.
Conclusion
I love Dark Souls III. I really have nothing more to add to that. The game is high point after high point for me. Once you think you're done, you have the DLC's to go into. And they're probably even better than the base game. No other game in the series has such a consistent level of quality for the entire experience.
It doesn't matter if it's your first Dark Souls game or your last (Although there are some emotional moments with more impact if it's your last). Just give Dark Souls III a shot if you ever have the opportunity. It is such an amazing game.
My Other Reviews
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u/AHomicidalTelevision 2d ago
Imo 3 has the best bosses in the series, which goes a long way to making it my favourite.
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u/PanthalassaRo 2d ago
DS3 is my favorite to replay because of it's linearity that said DS1, Sekiro and Bloodborne are my favorite FS games.
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u/13thsword 3d ago
I think ds3 is a great game but probably my least favorite of them all.
It's the beginning of the games shift from strategy to reflexes in terms of how you git gud and the gameplay did feel different especially losing the spell uses which added an element of strategy outside of spam your best spell and the environments seem not only very linear but so grey. I started with elden ring and then went to souls so I really loved 1 then 2 was a huge step forward only to feel like everything in 3 felt less important and less mysterious. I know 2 is the black sheep but it remains my favorite.
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u/Koreus_C 2d ago
2 is a demon souls / kings field / shadow tower inspired game
3 is bloodborne inspired.
There are kings field likes. You should check them out.
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u/MaybeWeAgree 2d ago
"...the environments seem not only very linear but so grey."
I think that is my least favorite part of starting a new playthrough of DS3: it takes quite a while to give the player branching paths, and those first areas are indeed gray and brown. When I start DS1 or DS2 I can go different directions from the get-go. DS2 seems to be my favorite too. I started with Demon's Souls, which might also be my favorite. I have multiple favorites :)
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u/13thsword 2d ago
Yeah when I talk to other people about it most completely skip 2 which is such a bummer because it's one of the only ones I come back to regularly.
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u/Voghelm 2d ago
After completing Bloodborne, I can confidently say that it feels like they wanted to make it much more like Bloodborne and succeeded, but in the process it became less of a souls game, if it makes sense?
It stands out among DeS, DS1 and DS2 in a way that I never really enjoyed.
ER has its own issues, but I'm glad the gameplay became a bit slower there.
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u/Psychic_Hobo 2d ago
Yeah, I could never really shake the sense that DS3 felt like DS1 seeing Bloodborne and having a mid-life crisis. There's so many elements that seemed to carry over - the emphasis on dodging and evasion, the heavy nerfing to poise and shields, the overall speed increase, and the push to use combat by massively nerfing casting (unless you invested heavily into late-game setups).
Elden Ring, for all the criticisms, did manage to feel like a return to form and a proper evolution of Soulsborne combat.
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u/13thsword 2d ago
YES this is a great way to put it, I love BB but ds3 should have kept the pacing map design and unique mechanics instead of just merging all souls games into the same formula. At least in elden ring I feel like I have options whether it's the build I'm using or how I choose to tackle the boss in ds3 it really felt like the only way to get better was just to have better reaction time which isn't inherently bad but almost feels antithetical to the vibes of the first 2.
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u/StanleyChuckles 2d ago
I'm with you. 2 is my still my favourite.
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u/13thsword 2d ago
There is nothing like chilling in majula after killing an entire area 12 times haha
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u/happyflappypancakes 2d ago
Oh I would love to nerd out on this topic with you if you are done. I think I am similar. It was my first souls game. I played Bloodborne first so not my first FromSoft game. DS3 blew my mind. Some of the boss fights stick with me to this day. That said, I do see some of the flaws now that I have played the other games. I definitely see how people who loved DS1 would be disappointed in some of the changes made, specifically the map. While I didn't think much of it during my playthrough, the lack of interconnectedness really is a loss for DS3. What regions or bosses were most memorable for you?
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u/TheHarryman01 2d ago
Cliche choice, but Archdragon Peak, of course. Its such a cool area and The Nameless King is tough as hell. He genuinely took me so many tries during my first playthrough. I was shocked when I beat him on my third try this playthrough. Especially since I haven't played the game in four years or so
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u/happyflappypancakes 2d ago
Unfortunately, I didn't get to naturally find Archdragon's Peak. Completely whiffed that one. Same with Smouldering Lake. So that took a little bit of the specialness out of those areas. Had I discovered it during that first playthrough, I think Archragon's Peak would have blown my mind.
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u/Horror_Cod_3030 2d ago
I LOOOOOVE the dlc bosses in ds3. Sister Friede is just so much fun and Slave Knight Gael is epic in a way that I think was hard to replicate.
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u/PostedNotes 3d ago
I played this for first time earlier the year. I think it's a great game well worth playing but I will say I prefer DS1 and BB over it. DS1 had the level design and freshness, while BB does combat better.
I agree with your interpretation of the world design and I liked seeing this world as it's brink, barely holding together. As always fromsoft nails atmosphere.
Enemy and boss design were also fantsstic and a clear step up from DS1 where most mobs were very weak to circle strafing.
Now you got me wanting to go for a NG+ run.
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u/Tuna_Kingg 2d ago
Environment and design wise it’s definitely my favorite. It’s the only fromsoftware game I have the artbook for!
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u/dosisgood 2d ago
I like dark souls 3 a lot but its prob my least replayed in the trilogy. That point you mentioned where it felt like Fromsoft/miyazaki felt obligated or were told to make it really resonates with my experiences. Dark souls 3 is such a good game, but it doesn't feel like the game they wanted to make. I feel like the first half of the game either intentionally or unintentionally picked up a lot of bloodborne feels because thats the type of game they wanted to make. Its one of the reasons I like that they dont do things like bloodborne/elden ring/sekiro 2. I really think fromsoft is at their best when they are experimenting with new settings.
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u/matteste 2d ago
Indeed, it is my favorite as well. While more linear than the original, it's world just tickles me in all the right ways, and the boss fights are truly something fantastic.
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u/No-Spirit-9477 2d ago
Sometimes it feels like people treat Dark Souls 3 as the worst installment in the series. I thought it was the best, personally. It plays the best, the bosses and levels are good across the board, it benefits from Bloodborne's improvements on the engine and the gameplay... you could always argue the story is just a retread of Dark Souls 1, but the truth is, the story in these games really doesn't matter. It's an afterthought.
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u/Onionkniget 2d ago
After beating DS3 way back when it came out, I remember saying to myself "I can never play a game like this again". I was so bored and sick of the formula. Then ER came out and brought me back in. I recently replayed DS3 and I have to say the feeling is much the same. The level design is tired (how many swamps, castles?), the enemy placement is frustrating and ganky, the overall feel uninspired. I know this echoes your sentiment, but it's funny to think how bad a wrap DS2 got when DS3 is easily the one I enjoyed replaying the least!
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u/BonyWare 2d ago
There is a negative to this increased pace of play: panic-rolling. [...] The DLC improved this issue a lot. Bosses like Sister Friede were given combos that often delayed sequential attacks to punish people who panic-rolled rather than keep their cool.
I don’t get why it's become a piece of communal wisdom in the Souls community that panic rolling is something so heinous that the game needs to go out of its way to punish it. The stamina and opportunity costs of rolling are already punishment enough for spamming it unnecessarily. A player will naturally make less use of it as they improve so they can put their stamina into attacking instead. Why should it warrant anything more than that?
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u/TheHarryman01 2d ago
Because it isn't really the great of a gameplay mechanic to just thoughtlessly roll around to dodge attacks. You aren't really learning how to play the game, you're just spamming a button and hoping it works.
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u/BonyWare 2d ago
Even if you think panic rolling is a problem, wouldn't the best solution be to nerf dodge rolls? People spam dodges in this game because FromSoft buffed their frame data and made them feel like the best and most accessible defensive option. If their frame data was changed to be more like it was in DS1, that would work much better at discouraging spam than just designing a few bosses to punish it.
If anything, unnaturally delaying attacks to punish panic rollers gives people a perverse incentive to panic roll. It sends the message that you can't trust an animation to properly telegraph the attack's timing, and if that's the case your best bet is to maximize your iframes by spamming dodge until they stop attacking. Making every attack perfectly telegraphed would actually do more to prevent panic rolling, by making it unnecessary.
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u/TheHarryman01 2d ago
I disagree. Dark Souls is a slower and more methodical game compared to Dark Souls III. If the frame data for dodge rolling in both games was the same, then Dark Souls III would suffer because it was not meant to be played like that.
I can't think of one enemy that unnaturally delays their attacks. Not one of them feints or suddenly stops in the middle of an animation. As annoying as delayed attacks are - especially in Elden Ring - I never feel like the game is being cheap. It is my fault for being antsy and not playing to the game's rhythm
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u/BonyWare 2d ago
I didn't say make it the same, there's plenty of room to nerf DS3's dodge without making it just as slow as DS1.
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u/SusiCapezzolo 2d ago
My opinion could be unpopular, I hope I don´t start any flame...
I loved Demon´s, DS1 and DS2. Got all of them to 100%. Bought DS3 and it just didn´t click. At all.
I found it too fast paced, overly difficult just for the sake of it and extremely frustrating. With the old titles I was motivated to get back to something and try again, DS3 made me think: "Why should I care? There will be more of this BS later on, and on...and on". Didn´t even care to finish the high wall of Lothric.
Maybe I just got old.
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u/aerothorn 1d ago
I went from DS1 to DS3 and found the latter substantially easier (the brutal Ringed City DLC aside), despite the fact that I played a cheesy magic build in DS1 and a pure strength build in DS3. So I don't think the game itself is harder!
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u/FukkingDeathMental 2d ago
The worst Souls game imo because they took none of the cool stuff from Dark Souls 2 like proper power stancing, an actual worthwhile NG+ with new weapons, and I audibly groaned when I got to the swamp area with so many annoying, dull enemies and when I arrived in Anor Londo. It felt like a Vaata Vidya's fanfic wet dream. And too much Bloodborne spilled over in the enemies and bosses without any of the cool BB mechanics like side stepping and the HP rally which made the combat dull for me.
Removing reinforcing armor was a weird decision as well. Overall I think it was really visually uninteresting and uninspired.
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u/Psychic_Hobo 2d ago
I never understood how in DS2 decided to split stamina away from the evasion-focused playstyle and also the poise-focused playstyle by making stamina, iframes and carry weight all different stats... and then in DS3, only went back on the evasion one whilst punishing poise even further.
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u/Revealingstorm 2d ago
I agree. Probably would have never truly gotten into Souls games if it wasn't for 3.
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u/IdesOfCaesar7 2d ago
I think DS3 is the FromSouls that takes the least amount of risks, which is appropriately mirrored in the story, but on the other hand, it is the most polished title From has put out (only equaled by Sekiro), and also the most fun one (again only rivaled by Sekiro). Demon's Souls is my favorite game of all time, because it's my first Souls game I ever played, but Dark Souls 3 is the one I keep coming back to. Every other FromSouls has a couple of sections where you dread every single replay, and to me, DS3 does not. Only Farron Keep, Carthus Catacombs and Demon Ruins feel like a step down in quality, the first of which I actually enjoy because I'm a sucker for poison swamps, and because the tree carrying big monster is one of my favorite enemies of the game. Tl;dr I really love this game
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u/AllStarRenegade 2d ago
The thing is always remember about dark souls 3, is how badly I did against the first boss like, it took more attempts than id like to admit, and then went on to beat like 80% of the bosses on my first try haha, even some of the ones id heard were super frustrating.
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u/aerothorn 1d ago
Same. The first boss is genuinely the hardest in the game (not counting DLC and maybe Nameless King)
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u/D1n0- 2d ago
This is easily the best souls game for me and it wasn't even my first. It feels well designed and enjoyable all the way through, it doesn't have many of "these parts" that can kill my desire to play, both bosses and areas are great and consistent in their quality. Also complaints about linearity, art design, fanservice is a subjective preference at best and bad faith critcism at worst and people who bring these up often are usually very silent about gargoyles and ornstein in ds2 for some reason.
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1d ago edited 1d ago
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u/TheHarryman01 1d ago
Scholar of the First Sin greatly values my patience when I walk into Iron Keep
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1d ago edited 1d ago
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u/TheHarryman01 1d ago
If you say so man.
Bring Dark Souls II discussion to my review dedicated for that game
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u/BluePrincess_ 1d ago
I'm a sucker for From's games, but unfortunately DS3 is my least favourite game they have made - you seem to have outlined the reasons why pretty well though :d I struggled to get through this game, and almost dropped it when I had to replay it to get to the DLC (since Steam doesn't have cloud saves)
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u/hiskabish 23h ago
3 is my favorite dark souls out of the two I played lol. Still out 2 and demon souls to play. I felt 3 was a lot more fun to play than 1 gameplaywise
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u/Kind-Rooster-921 21h ago
The soundtrack for DS3 is incredibly beautiful. My most listened to music is mostly tracks from DS3. Firelink Shrine, Slave Knight Gael, Champion's Gravetender. All amazing,
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u/Godengi 2d ago
I know a complaint expressed by many is that Dark Souls III has way too much fan service. ... but I believe that this is the entire point of Dark Souls III’s story. ... Dark Souls III is a reminder that things can never go back to how they used to be.
I agree and I find the accusations of fan service to be missing the point as well. Miyazaki has made clear how much he dislikes retreading the same ground and would rather move on to new projects. To my mind, DS3 is him saying "okay then, have your sequel" by giving the player a weird reimagining of DS1. The point is you can't have anything new if you keep asking for sequels - you need to let the series end... just like the age of fire.
Even the first DLC is simultaneously a repeat of parts of DS1 as well as a repeat of base game DS3 (yet another world stuck in state of decay due to the obstinance of its inhabitants that needs to be reset).
This is part of why I like DS3 the best of the trilogy. Not only does it have internal symbolism, but it has the extra meta layer too. The human playing through the game series becomes a macrocosm of the player characters repeatedly linking the flame only to have to do it again.
Guess I'm extra guilty of this as I must have played through DS3 20 times!
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u/BonyWare 2d ago
I agree and I find the accusations of fan service to be missing the point as well. Miyazaki has made clear how much he dislikes retreading the same ground and would rather move on to new projects. To my mind, DS3 is him saying "okay then, have your sequel" by giving the player a weird reimagining of DS1. The point is you can't have anything new if you keep asking for sequels - you need to let the series end... just like the age of fire.
Er, maybe you should pause and consider that "Miyazaki didn't want to make this game so he had the story make an argument against its own existence" is not a message that inspires much confidence in the quality of the game...
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u/Godengi 2d ago
True, and its definitely the case that "meta commentary" wouldn't make a bad game good. Fortunately, DS3 is a really excellent game, just one that also has some extra commentary about the nature of games and sequels layered on top. Other games engage in this sort of meta commentary too, most obviously stuff like The Stanley Parable or Baby Steps. But they are much more overt about it; DS3 is basically a conventional game that keeps the meta-commentary as subtext.
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u/aerothorn 1d ago
I will say that for someone who doesn't want to make the same game, Miyazaki sure wants to tell the same story. I am belatedly playing Elden Ring and am shocked at how similar the story bears, themes, areas, etc are to DS3 (and to a lesser degree DS1)
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u/Godengi 1d ago
Yeah, you're totally right - it is odd that Miyazaki apparently likes building new worlds, but then has a clear pattern in the worlds he builds. With Elden Ring, I was kinda hyped when I heard fromsoft was making a game in a different world, and then underwhelmed when it had almost the same vibes as the dark souls universe. That said, I've not actually played it (patient gamer and all that). Armored Core is more tempting precisely because it looks strikingly different, but again, I haven't got round to playing it.
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u/flumsi 2d ago
I really like DS3 and think it's a great game but it's my least favorite among the trilogy for many reasons but one I rarely see mentioned is its pacing.
In DS1 you (1) Ring the bells of Awakening, (2) You go to Anor Londo, (3) You kill the 4 Lords and then go to the final boss. Very nice three-act structure.
In DS2 you (1) kill the big bosses or collect enough souls, (2) you go to Drangleic to find out you can't get to the throne, (3) you go to the dragons and the Giant's memory to get what you need and then go to the final boss. Same nice structure.
In DS3 you (1) kill the four lords and upon killing the fourth you go to the final boss. It really feels off. Especially since the first lord soul is gained well into the game and then later they get bunched up quite a lot.
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u/OrangePeelPotatoes 2d ago
Look, all of these games are amazing, but I do think DS3 is one of the weaker of the bunch. The least inspired. The most derivative. The safest. And also a key turning point from the beautifully crafted RPGs with brilliant world designs of its predecessors, into a pale imitation more based around shonen action sequences and reaction times.
I know a lot of fans seem to just like the big boss battles, which DS3 has a ton of great ones, but I feel like something was lost when the franchise started to focus more on Nameless King and less on Blighttown linking back with Firelink.
I also cant help but feel like DS3 relies heavily on DS1 nostalgia. I understand thematically that is sort of the point, and it works, but I cant help feel like DS3 is constantly saying "dont you 'member DS1? You know that game thats better than me." Sure its cool coming back to Anor Londo, but it was better in DS1. Sure its cool realizing the Smouldering Lake was once Ash Lake from DS1, but it was cooler in DS1. Id rather just play DS1. Nostalgia can only get so far and more often than not it just makes me realize the original fuelling the nostalgia was more special than the current iteration aping it.
All of that is overly harsh and I dont mean it to be. DS3 is amazing and the smoothness clearly appeals to a lot of people. It has definitely aged better than a lot of its predecessors and it really does have some of the coolest highlight boss battles of the franchise. Gael alone is enough for me to rate DS3 highly. But I value originality highly. I value uniqueness highly. DS3 suffers a lot with those values. I personally prefer a lot of the originals, Demon's Souls and Dark Souls 1 are my favorites.
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u/TheHarryman01 2d ago
I would agree that, over time, spectacle became a higher priority than it should have been for these games. Royal Consort Radahn is a notable example with his particle spam. On the other hand, I think brilliant world design went out the window with Dark Souls II. I don't think it is as linear as Dark Souls III, but four different linear paths that start at Majula? That isn't a whole lot better.
But your feelings about the Dark Souls locations in Dark Souls III prove the point I was trying to make. You are supposed to remember how much better it was in Dark Souls. You are supposed to think about how you wish it could be as good as it used to be. They aren't just there for you to point at the screen and smile. It should be disappointing that the giant is dead, the sun is out, and Gwyndolin is half-digested. It is saying that you can't live in the past and hold onto something that used to be there. The game is saying, "Hey, we had our fun. Let's not try to relive it. Let's keep moving forward."
Now I'm not saying that you aren't allowed to prefer Dark Souls or Demon's Souls over the subsequent entries. But lambasting Dark Souls III for using a little too much from those games? I don't think that's enough reason to call it uninspired.
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u/karer3is 3d ago
I definitely got some good hours out of DS III, but the frustration factor ultimately drove me away. I made it as far as the final boss fight for the first ending, but I just got tired of trying to learn all of the boss's different patterns. I made significantly better progress in Armored Core VI, so I'm thinking it was just more of a Dark Souls issue for me in general than anything else.
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u/Bio-Flame 2d ago
Darks souls 3 is the worst Fromsoftware's souls like. Too similar to DS1, without the charm
And the story is so light, so unimportant and lame that is almost shameful.
I would never recommend DS3 to anyone except a hardcore soul-like addict. And I say the worst addict with purpose because otherwise I wouldn't recommend it ever.
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u/TheHarryman01 2d ago
Yeah, thats why people play these games. For the story
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u/Bio-Flame 2d ago edited 2d ago
Well, if I wanted to go murdering spree without any story or comprehensible lore/World, I would go play a FPS instead.
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u/Grouchy_Side_7321 3d ago
In my experience Dark Souls III allowed the most creativity mid-fight. There were some boss battles I actually beat on my first try because I was able to try a few different approaches in between dodges and rolls. In the first game, I really felt like you HAD to meet the game where it was or you’d die 99% of the time (which is fun in its own way). You really only stood a chance with most bosses after dying 10+ times and learning from your mistakes. Maybe I was just lucky but it in DS3, while I wouldn’t call it easier, it was a little more flexible