Hidetaka Miyazaki went above and beyond the call of duty when it came to crafting one of the best gaming experiences of all time, Dark Souls. The game features the almost-mythological story of the Chosen Undead as he either leaves the world steeped in darkness or sacrifices himself to light the First Flame.
Dark Souls was such a breakout hit for From Software that they’ve managed to enjoy a meteoric rise to the very top of the gaming industry, releasing a slew of games that have taken the main concepts present in Dark Souls and built upon it with each successive title. This makes the original game such a massively important title in the gaming industry — after all, various other developers are still trying to ape the elements of Dark Souls that have made it a resounding success.
10 There’s Something Funny About Maneater Mildred
Maneater Mildred is one of the more popular NPC invasions in the game, serving as one of the more ludicrous opponents in an area that is already as hard as can be.
This invasion was actually integrated after a developer — who loved the invasion by the Meat Cleaver-wielding black phantom in Demon’s Souls — decided to prank one of the developers during the testing phase by invading them with a similar-looking phantom.
9 The Pendant Was A Prank
For the longest time, Miyazaki stated that he always started a game of Dark Souls with the Pendant or no starting item at all. This compelled people to try and figure out how relevant this starting item was in the game. However, all of then went for a toss when the director revealed in a later interview that his statements about the Pendant were nothing but lies, making the inclusion of this item nothing more than an elaborate prank.
8 The Chosen Undead Originally Had A Rival
The person who freed the player from their cell and gave them their first Estus Flask was initially meant to be the player’s rival, going by the name of Oscar. He was supposed to be alive for the majority of the game and side with the serpent that the player ignored. While this idea was scrapped in development, remnants can be seen in-game. Beyond Oscar rescuing the Chosen Undead in the Asylum, all developer notes feature Oscar’s portrait– suggesting your rival would be leaving you clues across Lordran.
7 The Developers Toyed With Perma-Death
Dark Souls was going to integrate the horrible mechanic of a ‘Final Death’, where the player’s save file would be deleted if they died too many times. One can only be eternally thankful to From Software that they didn’t decide to be so unnecessarily sadistic in a game that was already hard enough as is.
6 The Gaping Dragon Is A Corrupted Everlasting Dragon
The Gaping Dragon might not be one of the harder bosses in the game, but it’s his iconic design that has turned him into such a legendary encounter amongst the Dark Souls fandom. According to the studio, the Gaping Dragon was actually an Everlasting Dragon who succumbed to the sin of gluttony, causing him to develop such a massive maw.
5 There Are Four Fan-Made Shields In The Game
One thing that most people might not be aware of is the fact that four of the shields that are present in Dark Souls were actually the victors of a fan contest of sorts.
These include the Sanctus, the Effigy Shield, the Bloodshield, and the Black Iron Greatshield.
4 Lost Izalith Was Actually Rushed
In comparison to the brilliant first half, the second half of Dark Souls is rushed, feels disjointed, and features some of the cheapest encounters in the entire game.
Lost Izalith is the most telling instance of this dip in quality, a linear area that showcases none of the brilliant world design featured in the previous areas. To top it all off, the area ends with the Bed of Chaos boss fight, which is unanimously considered to be the worst boss in the history of Dark Souls. The players aren’t alone in holding this mentality — the developers also hate Lost Izalith with a passion, considering it to be absolutely bog-standard when compared to some of the other areas in the game.
3 Miyazaki & The Final Fight Against Gwyn
The final fight with Gwyn might have a rather beautiful setting — coupled with one of the best boss music themes of all time — but one can’t deny that parrying this legendary figure with ease certainly takes a lot away from this final encounter.
This is a grievance that is echoed by Miyazaki as well, who is not a fan of how easy it is to parry Gwyn in the final encounter. In fact, he was so perturbed by the anti-climatic nature of this boss that the Soul of Cinder’s second phase actually used Gwyn’s moveset without any parrying windows.
2 The Painted World Of Ariamis Exists Because Of Miyazaki’s Stubbornness
There was a ton of lore that Miyazaki wrote about Crossbreed Priscilla, but she ended up not fitting into the main theme of the game itself. So, in a bid to still integrate her in the game, Miyazaki created a new optional area called the Painted World of Ariamis, which is considered by many to be one of the more interesting areas in the entire game.
In fact, this world was originally supposed to have Gravelord Nito as an optional boss fight before the existence of Priscilla ended up complicating things.
1 Miyazaki Made Up The Lore On The Fly
The deep and intricate world of Dark Souls, coupled with its brilliant lore, might compel some people to believe that Miyazaki had thought out the story and world of this game well in advance. Well, that’s not even remotely the case — Miyazaki made up the lore of the game as it was being developed, writing up stories that would fit in with the game’s mechanics and story beats. The fact that the lore still managed to seem rich and interconnected is a testament to Miyazaki’s genius.
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