Godric said:
1. Does the game pull unfair moves? I am currently playing the Witcher 2 and although combat can be tough as long as i remember to parry and very occasionally roll I can survive and if i do die I can see why. Compare this to other games I have played where as soon as i recover from being knocked down I am hit again before i can even attack. This just becomes frustrating.
2. Do earlier enemies get easier as you level up? and finally from what I have seen from videos a lot of player seem to use a hit and run away tactic is this the only was to win?
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
1. You will die a lot from things that you may feel are cheap (how in the fuck was I supposed to block/ dodge that? WHY DOES IT DO SO MUCH DAMAGE), but once you've learned an enemy's attacks and behaviours, they became pretty easy because you know how to take them down. They can and will still fuck you up if you're not careful, though.
2. They do get easier as you progress because they don't level with you, but by the time you've cleared an area it's about as easy at level 1 as it is at level 50. Difficulty in this game doesn't come from the statistics--whether you kill it in one hit or three doesn't matter if you know you can score the hit, and dying from ten hits instead of one doesn't matter if you know you can dodge. Your level isn't nearly as important as your knowledge, though of course a more health/ stamina/ defense can't hurt.
A few pieces of advice if you choose to play Dark Souls (forgive me if I rant, I really love this game):
The class you select at the beginning doesn't ultimately matter, you generally make your build fit your playstyle by how you spend your level-ups and equip yourself. With that in mind, I highly recommend picking the Thief class, for two reasons. One: If you do end up choosing to use a thief-like build, you are given the best dagger, the Bandit's Knife, right off the bat, whereas the other classes generally give you shit, and Two: The Thief gets the Master Key by default, meaning you can pick a gift besides it and still have it.
Which gift you pick generally depends on the reasons you're playing the game, which I will for the sake of convenience narrow down to two categories: Gameplay and Aesthetic (both of which Dark Souls excels at):
For gameplay purposes, the Black Firebombs can help you clear the earlier enemies if you're in a tight situation, but they're one-off, so I wouldn't recommend it. The Master Key (if you choose not to go with the Thief class after all) will unlock a few doors early, but you can find the key to every locked door, and it's generally unwise to venture into areas "early," as you are probably woefully unprepared for them, so it's really not useful until future playthroughs where you know what you're doing and just want to cut through a little quicker. The Tiny Being's Ring is basically useless after a while, so at best it's a very slight training wheel while you still figure shit out. The Twin Humanities are enough for you to figure out what Humanity does should you choose to experiment at a Bonfire, but you can pick up Humanity pretty early in the game anyway, so yeah. It heals a lot, though. The Divine Blessing, I would say, is your best bet, because they're pretty rare: Just don't use them early on in the game, or you will regret it later when you actually need it. This ************ here is useful no matter how far into the game you are.
For aesthetic purposes, the binoculars are nice to get a look around at the beautiful setting of Lordran, but not really useful for much else. I really wouldn't get this because you can pick it up almost right off the bat anyways if you know where to go. If you're into lore more than gameplay, get the Old Witch's Ring. Do not get the Pendant: It has no known use. The description literally says, "no effect," and game director Miyazaki actually came out and confirmed it has no use. But... if you play through Dark Souls and you get absolutely captivated by the lore, it is a very significant item. Miyazaki said in an interview, when asked which Gift he would get when playing, he said something to the effect of "From a roleplaying perspective, I'd get the Pendant." Nobody knows what the fuck it is, where it came from, or if it means anything at all; the speculation train keeps on a rolling.
A few parting words: As far as the technical skill involved, Dark Souls isn't too demanding. Parrying/ riposting take practice, but once you've got it down, you've got it down. Rule of thumb: If the enemy is your size or twice your size, human-like, and has a weapon, it can generally be parried. Get familiar with the game's mechanics; the Dark Souls Wiki/ community is your friend. If you have a question or are stuck, just ask them, or ask us! We are your bros, bro. Unless you like being invaded, don't play in Human Form. If you want a story, expect to do some digging. Amazing chest ahead, Praise the Sun, Prepare to Die.
Good luck!
