Chapter 95: If You Don't Offer Players an Immersive Experience, Are You Still Human?
Let's set aside the plot background for now. Let's focus solely on the gameplay.
Whether it's stat points, equipment, or combat system rolls, shield parries, backstabs, and other elements, these are not new to other action and RPG games. But Dark Souls' greatest strength lies in the perfect integration of these already established elements, along with the creation of maps, levels, and bosses, into a gameplay clearly focused on levels.
Everything is designed to encourage players to advance through levels, defeat powerful enemies, and achieve a sense of accomplishment and pride. With the help of [Memory Capsules], Alex spent almost an entire day creating the complete conceptual draft.
And it wasn't even a complete conceptual draft. It simply outlined the main elements of the game, without broader content, such as a detailed plot. After all, it was just a draft, and there were still some details to polish before moving forward.
Everyone in the conference room had arrived early and was sitting in their seats, whispering softly. But when Alex opened the door, everyone fell silent.
"I think almost everyone has already guessed what today's meeting will be about. That's right, it's a new game."
"I'll skip the extra words and start by introducing the project. It's a Western fantasy story."
"The art style is quite different from the games we've made so far."
"The overall theme is deep, dark, and realistic. The overall impression of the game is based on Western European architecture. The game features different regions, such as Farron Keep, Undead Settlement, and Irithyll of the Boreal Valley, which incorporate various cultural elements, such as Baroque architecture and Romanesque churches."
Alex rested his hands on the table; his hand-drawn concept art was displayed on the projection screen behind him.
If Dark Souls' story is the skeleton and its gameplay the soul, the game's artistic expression is, without a doubt, the skin. This is also the first thing players will encounter, which is why Alex created high-quality graphics and presented them at the exhibition.
Classical Western European architecture is combined with a darker art style, and armor and weapon designs resemble medieval bladed weapons. Clearly, the art style presented at the exhibition had already resonated deeply with players.
Alex explained some of Dark Souls' systems. For example, the combat system, with features like invincibility frames, shield parrying, backstabs, and durability (common features in most action games), was familiar to everyone, with a basic understanding of the concept already in mind. It would only require subtle adjustments and variations in action later.
There would also be some unique features, such as unique combat techniques for each weapon.
Furthermore, unlike the previous world, the technological advancements of the parallel world allowed Alex to further improve the game's visual aspect. Of course, this was not the main focus, but the details of the experience.
"Also, our main focus in the early stages will be the production of artistic resources. As for you, Eric, I need to make the game's action even more engaging," Alex said, looking at him.
Hearing Alex's words, Eric and the others nodded.
Although Dark Souls is not an action game, but one focused on levels, this does not mean that action is not important. On the contrary, it is a fundamental element of the Dark Souls experience. Any action game has very demanding requirements for its effects. Speaking of action feedback, to put it bluntly, it's about the feel and smoothness of the hits.
For example, the famous Skyrim offers a hit that is essentially like cutting through air. While it's not a bad ARPG, the combat experience is not excellent, and it even discourages some players.
The most common method to create a sense of impact, in addition to sound effects, is frozen image stabilization. Simply put, if a weapon hit takes 60 frames to swing and retract, there is a pause of a few frames, creating the illusion that the blade cuts flesh; this is what is known as impact.
Previous games like Monster Hunter, God of War, and Street Fighter are examples of this.
But for Dark Souls, creating the right impact, instead of simply cutting through air, requires adjusting various parameters. This technique is not suitable for all games. For example, the fluid pace of Ninja Gaiden's combos and the combinations of the Devil May Cry series are generally not suitable for this.
They require constant refinement by the team. It is unrealistic for Alex to handle everything himself.
And, of course, he wouldn't dare to develop action games in the future. Therefore, the team needs to constantly experiment with optimization. Alex had this intention during Outlast's development. Meanwhile, during the two months of Fall Guys and Three Kingdoms Tactics' development, Eric and his team have mainly focused on continuously optimizing action feedback.
The results so far have been satisfactory, but there is still much room for improvement.
Other aspects of the game are simpler, mainly through outsourcing artistic resources. For example, map and level design, with Dark Souls' interconnected areas, is quite complex.
This is a typical seamless flow design. For example, the player could be in area A, travel to area B, and discover that there is a small path from area B that leads back to area A. After the final encounter in Area C, they discover a small path that led back to Area A.
This is, in fact, a standard Metroidvania map design technique. However, in Dark Souls, it has changed from a 2D horizontal version to an authentic 3D stereoscopic mode. It also includes puzzle-solving and exploration content, a unique feature of Dark Souls.
In the previous version, Dark Souls III left many veteran players who had played Dark Souls I dissatisfied, believing that Dark Souls III was not as good as Dark Souls I, mainly due to changes in map design. As for new players, this design can be considered a shame.
However, even so, hearing Alex's introduction to the game's details, Jane, responsible for map levels, was still confused.
"Will there be a minimap design in the game?" Jane noticed a key point mentioned by Alex and asked confused.
"That's right. This way, players can truly experience the charm of the game map. Why do more and more games minimize their interface or even remove it entirely?"
"It's to increase player immersion. Think about Dark Souls' setting: it's a world of despair. The lack of a minimap reinforces this sense of immersion. Additionally, the intertwined map design allows players to experience the surprise of their discoveries," Alex explained with a smile.
The lack of a minimap is a hallmark of Souls-like games. Even the later Elden Ring, although it has a map system, requires players to collect fragments manually, just like Hollow Knight, a classic design.
"What if they don't know how to move?"
"They die a few times, run back and forth, and they'll get the hang of it. All of this is for the players! Are they still human if they don't look for ways to immerse themselves more in the game?"
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