Skyrim or Dark Souls

[Taviscratch 453]

So which do people prefer, Skyrim or Dark Souls? I'm already pretty sure about how this poll is going to go and I think it'll disappoint me but let's find out. Who knows, perhaps I'll be pleasantly surprised and regain some faith in humanity.

 

 

Edited March 29, 2015 by Taviscratch

[Fallen Valkyrie 525]

Dark souls litle stupid game for my not much lore.It just sells on how game is hard

[Blue Moon 6,336]

I prefer Skyrim. Nothing against Dark Souls, but I have more fun playing Skyrim. The world of Skyrim is large and very interesting, and I like the amount of things you can do or just find.

[Vemillia Nightshade 2,247]

Not to down Dark Souls, but I'm more for Skyrim. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with Dark Souls or it's sequal. They are in fact challenging games. I'm just more of the exploration type. The morality system and choices given to you in Skyrim have my attention more since mistakes can happen. Deaths are more unexpected, as you could suddenly face a foe much stronger than yourself that has the potential of killing you. With Dark Souls, everything can kill you if you make one mistake. I'm not saying Dark Souls is bad for that kinda mechanic but for some, it can be a more frustrating aspect of the game. Elders Scrolls has a major upper hand in lore compared to Dark Souls however. I say to each their own though. I'm just stating my opinion.

[Banul 3,831]

Dark Souls is a fantastic game, but I have to go with Skyrim. Dark Souls probably has better gameplay, but I find Skyrim to be more immersive which is more important to me. Plus, with the modding community, I can keep Skyrim fresh forever, so I keep comming back to it. Also, I'd be lying if I said that Dark Soul's difficulty doesn't  get somewhat frustrating for me.

 

The two games are pretty different though, so its kind of an apples and oranges comparison.

 

 

 

 

Dark souls litle stupid game for my not much lore.It just sells on how game is hard

 

Thats not completly true, Dark Souls does have lore. Its just delivered in an unconventional way.

Edited March 29, 2015 by Banul

[Taviscratch 453]

Elders Scrolls has a major upper hand in lore compared to Dark Souls however. I say to each their own though. I'm just stating my opinion.

You're not playing Dark Souls right. The lore is rich, you just have to look for it. Whereas Skyrim feeds you the lore, Dark Souls rewards you the more you invest in the game.

 

I expect more people to like Skyrim, it's mainstream and Dark Souls is not for everyone as it demands more from the player.

[Vae Victis 742]

Why not both?

 

* Cue Hispanic music *

 

 

In all seriousness, I believe both games are good in their own right. Skyrim is more of a " hey, it's been a long day. Lets chill out, kill a dragon or two, explore a cave, and have fun with it." Kind of game. The musical score and environments are phenomenal, and just walking through areas can be fun in my opinion. But then again, I'm a fellow who is quite easy to entertain. Combat is fun, if a bit repetitive at times.

 

Now Dark Souls is great. In very few games can I feel the challenge that a Soul's game provides. No matter how powerful you may be, this game WILL punish you for being a cocky little runt. Plus, the PVP is extremely fun. The only thing I don't like about dark souls is it's extremely elitist community. Everyone goes around calling each other " a casul " or telling them to " git gud ", when in reality, most of them need to take their own advice, along with accepting the fact that others will want to play other games. I'd be a very bored individual if dark souls was the only game i owned. Aside from that, the lore of the world of dark souls, it's grim-dark tone, it's lore, and combat make every playthrough unique. Combat is challenging but fair.

 

Overall, both are great games. It's just a matter of what you are in a mood for or what you perfer.

 

I give Skyrim an 8/10

I give Dark Souls a 9/10

 

Both are great. Both are fun.

[Passion 3,478]

One of the most cruel polls I was able to participate in...

 

However, Dark Souls does not have Khajiit :l ...

 

In all honesty though, I need to vote Skyrim simply because how it allows me to do anything I want given time. I want to go and smash monsters' heads with two handed weapons? Check. Get bored? Respec and switch to dual wield. Get bored? Respec and switch to archery. Get bored? Respec and switch to stealth+dagger. Get bored? Respec and become a mage... There are just so many various gameplays available without having to start a new game that it's just so much more appealing to me.

Dark Souls? Pick one path and continue down it, or die trying. Actually, to be more precise: AND die trying.

 

Plus, Dark Souls has that console controls to it... it's literally next to impossible to play it without a pad. Meanwhile Skyrim can be absolutely conquered with keyboard+mouse combo.

 

Still, both games are awesome. It's just a matter of preference.

 

EDIT: Also... mods. Sorry, but mods make the difference here. Example: Nexusmods.

 

Dark Souls: 23 pages of mods.

Skyrim: 1237 pages of mods.

 

If you want to, you can basically mod Skyrim so hard that it'll become no less challenging than Dark Souls is So the "difficulty" advantage disappears here

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,151]

Personally I would have to say Skyrim, but that is in NO WAY a shot at Dark Souls. DS is a great game, but my enjoyment of it lacks as it tends to frustrate me easily when I reach that gargoyle demon. >_<

 

Skyrim, while easier, is also much more fun, immersive, pleasant, and just an absolute joy to play through.

 

The lore of Dark Souls is amazing though; I must admit.

[Taviscratch 453]

Dark souls litle stupid game for my not much lore.It just sells on how game is hard

Same goes for you. I'm assuming English isn't your first language but if it's not then I can see why you missed the lore of Dark Souls.

You guys don't need to say "not to take a shot at Dark Souls", I'm not going to get offended by people choosing Skyrim...even if it's combat system is the same as Minecraft XD

[Shift 4,271]

I prefer Skyrim. Skyrim has hours upon hours of sidequests, badass battles, great NPC's, amazing chracter customization and roleplay opportunities, some of the best DLC that's out there (Arguably the best, trust me the money for the Dragonborn and Dawnguard DLC is well worth it), more mods, and it always feels fresh. Dark Souls is a great game, but I just tend to enjoy Skyrim better for the hours of gameplay.
 
Dark Souls is more of a difficulty game as others have said; Skyrim is more of an exploration game that immerses you into the story with better and more three-dimensional and memorable characters. For example, Astrid is one of my favorite Skyrim characters for her impact on the Dark Brotherhood arc and I just think she's awesome. Seriously, I can barely name any memorable Dark Souls NPCs, but for Skyrim I can name quite a lot off the top of my head that stuck with me. (Ulfric Stormcloak, Astrid, Cicero, Lydia, General Tullius, Miraak, Aelea...)
 
OP, to be honest, from your comments I believe that you truly only dislike Skyrim from the fact that it's 'mainstream' and 'popular', and how you believe that most people prefer Skyrim over Dark Souls. I'm assuming that you like Dark Souls over Skyrim purely because it's the less mainstream option.
 

[Vemillia Nightshade 2,247]

You're not playing Dark Souls right. The lore is rich, you just have to look for it. Whereas Skyrim feeds you the lore, Dark Souls rewards you the more you invest in the game.

 

I expect more people to like Skyrim, it's mainstream and Dark Souls is not for everyone as it demands more from the player.

 

Excuse me for not being a super experienced gamer at something I know little about. I grant you this, it's not for everyone. If you want to truth, I just really can't pick Dark Souls up like I can Skyrim. I guess it cannot not be helped.

[Passion 3,478]

even if it's combat system is the same as Minecraft XD

 

Uh... so?

 

Combat system is not everything that game has to offer

 

TES III: Morrowind had even more simplified combat system than Skyrim has, yet it is considered to be one of the best action RPGs out there, and definitely the best TES game in the series.

 

If I want to have some casual fun, I play Skyrim.

But if I really want to feel immersed in the TES lore and world, I'd pick Morrowind each and every time, no exceptions heh.

 

@@Shift,

I had to scratch my head at the mention at Aelea, and then I realized you mean Aela the Huntress xD #KhajiitNazi

[Shift 4,271]

@@Khajiit,

 

...it's spelled Aela isn't it. Curses, I can never spell her name correctly. But on the bright side I did remember her, so that counts.

[Taviscratch 453]

Excuse me for not being a super experienced gamer at something I know little about. I grant you this, it's not for everyone. If you want to truth, I just really can't pick Dark Souls up like I can Skyrim. I guess it cannot not be helped.

 

Uh... so?

 

Combat system is not everything that game has to offer

 

TES III: Morrowind had even more simplified combat system than Skyrim has, yet it is considered to be one of the best action RPGs out there, and definitely the best TES game in the series.

 

If I want to have some casual fun, I play Skyrim.

But if I really want to feel immersed in the TES lore and world, I'd pick Morrowind each and every time, no exceptions heh.

Sorry, tone doesn't convey in text. I was channeling my inner Dark Souls hardcore gamer for a laugh but upon reading my post back realised I came across as sincere in my "git gud" message. Like I've said before, I understand why people like Skyrim as it allows you to just pick it up and waste a few hours without actually requiring any effort. Personally, I like something which rewards me the more I invest in the game. Plus there's nothing quite like the achievement of succeeding at something which is actually difficult. Skyrim is too easy and the only times it gets hard is through artificial difficulty.

[Passion 3,478]

Well, what can I say?

 

Mods mods mods!

 

You can entirely change combat system, you can make it so that the fatigue actually AFFECTS your fighting instead of limiting you to using basic attacks only, you can crank up monster stats, alter their AI.

You can even add a need for things like sleep, food and thirst, to a point where you can starve to death if you don't counteract it.

 

I personally pushed it too far twice, to a point I had to scratch all the mods and check out new ones simply because I've modded Skyrim so hard that it wasn't the same game I used to start playing anymore, lol.

 

...

Then again, killing that blasted Ornstein and Smough as a PVP-dagger-agi character using a bandits' knife at 28th try can give you a sigh of relief after 20+ moments of endless frustration.

Don't get me started at the Four Kings, however... these guys are impossible solo with this build...

[Banul 3,831]

Sorry, tone doesn't convey in text. I was channeling my inner Dark Souls hardcore gamer for a laugh but upon reading my post back realised I came across as sincere in my "git gud" message. Like I've said before, I understand why people like Skyrim as it allows you to just pick it up and waste a few hours without actually requiring any effort. Personally, I like something which rewards me the more I invest in the game. Plus there's nothing quite like the achievement of succeeding at something which is actually difficult. Skyrim is too easy and the only times it gets hard is through artificial difficulty.

 

Eh, there are different ways to be rewarded.

 

Completing a storyline with one of my Skyrim characters that I've invested a lot of time into can be very rewarding, from a role playing perspective, even if it wasn't all that difficult. Thats something that I don't really get from Dark Souls, which is rewarding in a different way.

 

Naturally, those things are going to appeal to different people. For some, difficulty doesn't even factor in to their enjoyment of a game. For others, difficulty is everything.

 

 

I personally pushed it too far twice, to a point I had to scratch all the mods and check out new ones simply because I've modded Skyrim so hard that it wasn't the same game I used to start playing anymore, lol.

 

Thats the worst. I've broken my game beyond repair a few times, and had to delete everything and reinstall before it would run again.

Edited March 29, 2015 by Banul

[Taviscratch 453]

OP, to be honest, from your comments I believe that you truly only dislike Skyrim from the fact that it's 'mainstream' and 'popular', and how you believe that most people prefer Skyrim over Dark Souls. I'm assuming that you like Dark Souls over Skyrim purely because it's the less mainstream option.

It's true that I'm a bit of a video game hipster but that's only because I look for novel ideas, innovation and a challenge in the games I play. I'm hard to impress so a game has to be extra special for me to enjoy it thoroughly. I played 60 hours of Skyrim before I just couldn't do any more since the game was starting to stagnate. The areas were copy and pasted instead of lovingly crafted and the world was full of dungeons full of draugr. There was a lack of variety in the enemies, unlike Oblivion and Morrowind. The locales were mostly bleak and grey, whereas Oblivion was bright and green. The only actual fun I found in the game was fighting the Dragon Priests as they were the only challenge I found in the game. Past level 30 it takes twice as long as the length of a given quest in order to sell the loot gained from said quest. Then the combat is "wave sword at enemy until enemy perishes". I don't think these are unfair observations of Skyrim much like "it's too difficult" isn't an unfair observation of Dark Souls.

[Shift 4,271]

@@Taviscratch,

 

Skyrim isn't necessarily 'easy' - on difficulty levels such as 'Legendary' or even 'Hard', the game poses quite a challenge. I usually play on the 'Normal' setting and I even still had trouble with a few of the quests (Final Dragonborn and Dawnguard DLC main quest, The Atherium (Whatever the heck it's spelled) Forge quest, the Stones of BLAH (Not going to bother to spell that) quest, that quest with that Karstaag guy). Even some of the higher-level/rank dragons can give you hell if you're not prepared.

 

EDIT: 

 

Referring to your post that you ninja'd above me; Skyrim doesn't necessarily have a complex combat system; but the combat system can be changed up if you want something different. As someone mentioned above me; if you get board of waving a sword around, you can switch to magic for more strategic combat (What spells to use and when), if you don't like fair combat do stealth (My personal favorite), if you just don't like hand-to-hand combat altogether switch to archery, hell you can even attack using your voice. All of the shouts can be also used if you require a strategy (I remember when in the dawnguard quest for that bow I came up with such a complex and mathematical strategy to kick that snow elf's ass involving shouts, perfectly timed butt-shots, and mind control, god that was so satisfying when it paid off) that's different from the norm. Also you can battle while on a dragon! That's fun.

Edited March 29, 2015 by Shift

[yeet 2,026]

Never played dark souls. So I have to go with Skyrim. And Skyrim is amazing.

[Taviscratch 453]

@@Taviscratch,

 

Skyrim isn't necessarily 'easy' - on difficulty levels such as 'Legendary' or even 'Hard', the game poses quite a challenge. I usually play on the 'Normal' setting and I even still had trouble with a few of the quests (Final Dragonborn and Dawnguard DLC main quest, The Atherium (Whatever the heck it's spelled) Forge quest, the Stones of BLAH (Not going to bother to spell that) quest, that quest with that Karstaag guy). Even some of the higher-level/rank dragons can give you hell if you're not prepared.

I get that there are difficulty levels that can be changed, however simply increasing the health and damage output of enemies is a form of artificial difficulty.

[Sunbro 4 Lyfe 938]

*ahem*

\[T]/_420 praise it_\[T]/

I think i've said enough.

[Fallen Valkyrie 525]

 

 

Thats not completly true, Dark Souls does have lore. Its just delivered in an unconventional way.

That is a point i dont whant to search or go some wher on internet <cough>Desteny<cough>to find out what heppened to something or someone,litle search is ok but not 20 min seach for 1 page or 1 line of lore.

[Taviscratch 453]

That is a point i dont whant to search or go some wher on internet <cough>Desteny<cough>to find out what heppened to something or someone,litle search is ok but not 20 min seach for 1 page or 1 line of lore.

Well you don't have to go online to find the hidden lore of Dark Souls. It's told through the environment, speaking with NPCs and item descriptions along with their locations.

[Vae Victis 742]

*ahem*

\[T]/_420 praise it_\[T]/

I think i've said enough.

A sunbro? DARKWRAITHS! TO ARMS! WE INVADE IN THE ABSOLUTE WORST PLACE! TOMB OF THE GIANTS!

 

( That is one way to get hatemail, by the way XD)