Dark Souls III is on the way to
our PS4’s, Xbox One’s, and PC’s this April 12^th!

Since the announcement of the
final installment of the Souls games, we have seen an absolute ton of new
content and ideas implemented into the game, as well as old things making a
return.

---SPOILER WARNING---

So now I am going to give the
rundown on everything we know is CONFIRMED for Dark Souls III via game footage
or direct confirmation from any of the From Software staff, especially Miyazaki
himself.

(Note: While I will try to avoid
speculations, any of the things I list could possibly change by the release of
the game. Take these with a very big grain of salt.)

Mechanics:

Dark Souls III
at first glance looks like a glossed over version of Dark Souls, which it
pretty much is at the core. Although that may sound bad to anyone who doesn’t know
what I mean, don’t worry, it’s not. Dark Souls III harbors mechanics from both
Dark Souls I & II, as well as Demon’s Souls and Bloodborne. So I am going
to categorize them as I will be mentioning them a lot.

Dark Souls:

Parrying is
back! This is probably the most anticipated mechanic in Dark Souls III due to
the easy accessibility of a successful parry. All the animations for the
backstab, parry, reposte, guard break, as well as all weapons, armors, gestures
and movements have made a full return from the original Dark Souls style.

Invasions are
back in their former glory with the Red Eye Orb item making a return. This item
is special because it allows a player to infinitely invade other players
without collecting and consuming Cracked Red Eye Orbs.

Lighting is
eerie as ever now. We all know that Dark Souls II was overhyped for what it
actual was, (albeit a great game anyways), including the lighting mechanics. In
Dark Souls III, rooms will be pitch black if there is no light source
available. This is great news for those who loved the lighting style of Dark
Souls.

Embers are the
new form of Humanity in this game. When used, they add an ember effect to your
character, as well as grant (approximately) 40% of an increase in health. This
is somewhat reminiscent of Demon’s Souls’ soul form.

Demon’s Souls:

Mana makes a huge comeback in
Dark Souls III. Not only does it take from Demon’s Souls and allow infinite
spell use,  but a new mechanic is added
called Weapon Arts that uses mana as a source of energy. Weapon Arts are a
stance moveset that is unlocked by equipping an offensive shield. Ash Estus is
a new blue Estus Flask that allows you to refill your mana , and will be
extremely helpful to sorcerers.

Enemy designs are highly inspired
by Demon’s Souls. Their attacks, their approach, even their AI draw similarities.
Knights hiding behind shields, hollows going ballistic, and even enemies going
as far as to avoid backstab-fishing.

Blooodborne:

Dark Souls III is overall a
faster paced game than the prequels thanks to Bloodborne. The enemies are to be
taken on in groups rather than one by one, similarly to the area preceding the
Gargoyle boss in Dark Souls.

The level design and architecture
of Dark Souls III is of the same Victorian Gothic era as Bloodborne, with a bit
of Demon’s Souls atmosphere. Miyazaki himself saw to the design of each area
personally, and even stated that the player may travel into every building they
can see in the distance.

The menus are updated to the
Bloodborne version of the inventory and quick item select. This is helpful for
players who like to equip quick items in combat or while in dangerous
situations while on a time crunch.

Story:

DARK SOULS

When the world was formed,
Ancient Stone Dragons rose and conquered the Earth. This time was known as the
Age of Ancients.  Many humans worshipped
the dragons as Gods, that is, until the Age of Fire.

The Age of Fire was a time of
power for the humans. In a kingdom known as Lordran, Lord Gwyn, Lord of
Sunlight, led an assault on the dragons. Darkness swept over the land as Manus,
Father of the Abyss prepared to inherit the world from the Age of Fire.

The Age of Dark was upon humanity,
as the fire was fading, but Gwyn was determined to prolong the Age of Fire by
reigniting the flame. So he sacrifices himself into first flame, becoming the
first Lord of Cinder. This sacrifice was known as the First Sin.

A chosen undead is said to link
the flames once more, so they do. Gwyn is murdered and the flame is linked,
continuing the cycle.

DARK SOULS II

Kingdoms rise and fall as a
result of the First Sin. The fire is bound to be linked by chosen undead. Even
if an undead refuses the flame and walks into the dark, another undead will
link the flame. It is a never-ending cycle of fire.

In a kingdom known as Drangleic,
another chosen undead sets off to destroy the fragments of the darkness, (daughters
of Manus) and link the flame.  Although,
this undead is able to defy the cycle, defy the dark and the flame. The undead
chooses its own path to end the Age of Fire permanently and complete the cycle.

DARK SOULS III

The flame hasn’t been linked for
a long time, and the world has sunken into chaos. The Ancients, The Lords of
Cinder, and the Darkness have all risen to take the world over. The cycle has
broken and the earth is decaying in an apocalypse of destruction. To ensure the
flame is never lit again, the chosen undead takes his final journey to
eliminate the Lords of Cinder, who are once again rising from the dead to link
the flame.

Conclusion:

Dark Souls III will complete the
trilogy that has been praised by so many. The cycle of the Age of Fire is
finally ending as the world collapses. This apocalyptic setting is the perfect
way to end such an amazing trilogy such as Dark Souls (in my opinion). These
new changes all sit very well with me and I am excited to see what else the
game has in store for us behind the scenes. Let me know what you think of all
this information below -cylonbait