At a surface level, the average gaming fan might look at a video game franchise like From Software’s Dark Souls and think that it’s not an immersive story-based game, that it’s merely a hack and slash action RPG with incredibly steep difficulty curves.
Now, while it does do a phenomenal job at being a dynamic and very difficult action RPG, it truly is so much more than that. The entire Dark Souls series is filled with some of the most intricate and complicated interwoven storylines and themes that I’ve ever seen in a series of games. But, much like the franchise’s challenging gameplay, developer From Software doesn’t hold your hand when it comes to its rich storylines, too. You must pore over in-game text, listen closely to NPC conversations, complete all bosses and DLCs to be able to put together the epic tapestry that is Dark Souls.
Now, I was going to attempt to concisely break down the Dark Souls story, but I decided to give some love to some of those magical storytellers and theory-crafters out there in the gaming universe by sharing the incredible video above. In about 10 minutes, Cheps Gaming gives one of the most concise, yet thorough, breakdowns of the entire Dark Souls trilogy that I’ve seen yet. If you’ve got the 10 minutes to spare, I highly recommend you praise the sun, grab an Estus flask or two, and enjoy!
