text:
- Publisher: Namco Bandai Games
- Release Date: Aug 24, 2012
User Score
Mixed or average reviews- based on 1519 Ratings
User score distribution:
Positive: 1,090 out of 1519
Mixed: 81 out of 1519
Negative: 348 out of 1519
Review this game
- User score
- Most active
- By date
- Most helpful
- Most Clicked
Aug 24, 2012Bad Pc port and hard controls but still i really enjoy of this game
Aug 24, 2012Pc gamers give pc gamers a bad name. One of the best games of all time down voted because it is the exact same as the console (not entirely true, extra content + durante's rez fix + better frame rates make this the ultimate version). Just goes to show that PC gamers dont actually like great games, they like epeen things like $1000 video cards and 3-monitor setups. Meh, their loss.
Aug 24, 2012Due to the bad port, I'd give this 8/10. However, adding the graphical mod and using a controller make both of my main issues with the game a non-issue. Since there are people out there giving 0's I am making this a 10.
Assuming you are playing with a controller (first time I've ever hooked my xbox controller up to my PC but totally worth it)
-The controls feel great.
-The graphics are good once modded.
-The gameplay is solid, not once did I die and think, "Well that was unfair."
-Combat has weight and strategy.
-The world is dark medieval fantasy at its best.
-Boss fights are grand, epic, challenging, and rewarding once taken down.
-Armor is interesting.
-Weapons look neat and feel distinct.
-Difficulty is just right.
-Death is an expected teaching mechanic. -You are punished for making bad decisions but through those decisions you come up with new ideas. -This game punishes you with death for making bad decisions but it rewards you for playing smart.
-Each encounter is consistent, deliberate, and gives the player plenty of opportunity to make the right decisions.
At the end of the day, Dark Souls delivers the same experience as consoles but with some extra content, a faster framerate, cheaper price point, and the potential to pickup a mod for higher resolution textures.
Play this with a USB controller, my xbox controller had no issues syncing up for this game. I highly recommend people play this game on any system they can get their hands on. Just make sure your have a controller if you get the PC version.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012It's Dark Souls, on pc and it's a 10. It's an exact port of the best console game/ game of this generation. Seriously ignore the high pitched girlyman resolution/keyboard/mouse/gfwl/consoleportomfgshtuup background whine and just buy an xbox gamepad. I really really wish i could be playing it again for the first time just to experience it with fresh eyes. It has a game world full of weird mystery, memorable characters and some of the most awesome and imaginative bosses and combat ever. It hints where other games crap exposition over you, and a winding twisting design to the levels that really impresses once you understand what is going on.
There is nothing remotely close to this on pc.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012This game is a direct console port. They didn't even remap the Xbox buttons to interact with things. But that's ok, they still released a PC version by community request. I highly recommend playing this game with a Xbox controller, or a PS3 controller using MotionJoy DS3 Tool to emulate a Xbox controller--this is what I do, and it plays perfectly like the PS3 version. Next thing I recommend is to get the community made resolution fix located here: http://blog.metaclassofnil.com/?p=108
The difference is unbelievable, and will make your game look phenomenal.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012To all people who are downrating it because the game because it is a port. I have to ask, what did you expect, Fromsoftware is an EXTREMELY small company who barely had the manpower to make the game for ps3 and xbox. If they wanted to make a perfect pc port, they would have had to rewrite the entire code for the game, by themselves, which would have been impossible. Fromsoftware gave the information that it would be a port from xbox before it was released and anyone who didn't know this, or rather is downrating because of it, shouldn't be a little **** about it… Expand
Aug 24, 2012the game is amazing. amazing enough to get a 9 or 10. the port is crap, but the resolution fix from durante has saved form software from a catastrophe and it may as well make them some money. i have seen plenty of people double dipping just because of this resolution fix. myself included. if thats what it takes to get this game to have good sales, thats fine. maybe we can all hope about a good next game in the series coming to pc. dark souls gets a 10. port gets a 5.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012LOL at those giving it a bad score just because you suck at it. Ungrateful PC players trashing a game that the DEVELOPERS THEMSELVES already said that they weren't fully developing for PC. It's a decent to bad port, but plays just like on console with a Xbox Controller. Areas where frames used to drop don't drop anymore (Blighttown, Demon's Ruins),
Just because you're bad at the game, and because it isn't shiny, don't whine. Ungrateful PC players :) as usual. Go play Battlefield 3 or Skyrim (easy games that hold your hand and have a no-need-to-think gameplay). You weren't even supossed to get this game. Ever. Now I hope next time you don't get nothing at all. Whine some more.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012TL;DR: Use a controller, and the graphic fix and this game is awesome. --- I have never given a review on Metacritic before but felt it was important to review this game due to all the surrounding "controversy". THE GAME itself is AWESOME. THE PORT was HORRIBLE (depending on your expectations). It's a 1:1 direct port to PC. Everyone wanted to play this game on PC and now you can, with a few caveats.
To enjoy this game you MUST use a controller. The game goes from a horrible, unplayable, direct port. To a fun, exciting, easy to control game. Also, it is imperative that you download the graphic fix. Before this fix the game felt like it was straight out of 2000. With the fix, while it's no Skyrim, the graphics get a much needed boost, and become quite beautiful.
PRE controller/graphics rating: 1
POST controller/graphics rating: 9
I wanted to do this to help people who are on the fence about this game, because while it is a direct port (some may say a lazy port) the ONLY things you need to do are a very minor graphic fix, and use a controller... I don't think thats too much to ask to enjoy a game of this caliber.… Expand
The game itself is a great RPG, it is however quite difficult - the combat system will get you killed pretty often, the boss fights are tough (assuming you play without reading spoilers), there are also no maps in game and every death puts you back at last checkpoint while also respawning all monsters. Now, keep in mind this is a CONSOLE PORT. It was meant to be a console port and it is a console port. You need a gamepad (I used Razer Onza) to really enjoy the controls. Also make sure to get the Durante's mod that unlock internal buffer size - it's a must have! Out of the box the game looks horribly on 1080p screen, after switching the buffer size to 3840x2160px it's a completely different game!… Collapse
Aug 24, 2012Its strange that this game was release in only 720p, a shame really.... don't let that discourage you though.
you see this game is still just as amazing as before and the new content is every bit completely worth it! although im obviously not going to spoil that.
Let me add that there is a patch that puts this game into 1080p and i have to say the game looks amazing now that Ive applied this patch hopefully the developers will release it as an official patch now that its been created.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012Well, us PC gamers asked for it and we got it. Dark Souls - Prepare to Die is just as fun as the original console game, with the added bonus of several hours worth of new content. However, it's dragged down somewhat by quality of the port. Granted, this is the first ever PC port From Soft has attempted, so they ported it with the intention that it was to be played with a PC gamepad. Keyboard and mouse controls are kind of clumsy, but still tolerable.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012The atmosphere of this game is amazing, with a minimalistic plot everything in the world is excessively dark. I can't imagine Dark Souls being less difficult, unforgiving, it teaches you that life is more suffering than pleasure, more failure than success. But if you are persistent enough you will be awarded with a pure sense of jubilation. Nothing else in gaming compares to this experience.
Aug 25, 2012For those coming from the shiny generic tale of Diablo III, Dark Souls takes an approach to story in the same vein as Diablo II: The world has been created and populated with a great background, but it is up to you to find it, instead of it being shoved into your face with endless cut-scenes and minutes-long exposition. The game itself is strict but fair; any mistakes made will be punished severely but the game will never cheat. Similar to Bayonetta and Devil May Cry, you will get to the end of the game not by brute-forcing it, but by becoming a better player. It is one of the most rewarding games to play on PC.
It is just a shame that such an amazing game has been let down by one of the worst ports in memory, regardless of the player-made fixes available.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012This is exactly what we were promised. If you are disappointed, then that is your fault. The game looks and basically plays the same as it did on the 10 year old console hardware that it was originally developed for. Of course it doesn't look like a new state of the art PC game. Also, if you came into this thinking that you were going to play on a keyboard, and are now complaining about the controls...you're an idiot, straight up. Did you know/read nothing about this game before purchasing it? Thanks to From-Software for listening to it's consumers and actually releasing this.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012Great game with a basic port. It is well worth whatever minor inconvenience the port poses to be able to play this unbelievably great game. Personally, i just got a gamepad and all problems were solved. Thanks so much to the developer for bringing this to the PC platform.
Aug 24, 2012This game is not a great port, but it's not a terrible one either. Despite what some people would have you believe, you don't have to have a controller to play this PC game. Having analogue sticks would certainly make controlling a bit more precise, but I've had no problems playing with keyboard alone. The default config is working fine for me, but the keys are completely remappable in-game, so there's really no excuses to complain about the controls. It's true that the in-game prompts don't display the keyboard keys, but if you can't even be bothered to read the manual and see what the controls are before playing a game you're not qualified to write a review for it in my opinion. Despite the minor issues I feel this game is fully deserving of a 10/10 based on the gameplay alone. This is the sort of thing all games should aspire to be.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012Superb game & decent enough port what are you waiting for buy it now. PC version is way better than the console versions its the definitive version of this superb game. There is a lot of misinformation about this being a poor port its not at all. Its certainly not the best looking game ever made but also with the upscaling graphical mods (check the neogaf forums) now available it looks very good in places & is very well optimised on PC. The higher resolution alone makes it look a lot better than the console but throw in the mods, AF filtering, instant load times, vsync & smooth FPS combine to make it a decent enough technical experience. Its designed around the MS 360 gamepad & wokrs very well with that. KB+mouse is not the best way to play this but still possible. This game has superb atmosphere, art direction, voice acting & creature/work designs. One of the best games ever made & also one of the hardest its not an easy game but also not as challenging as others its more about exploration & making the right choices. GFWL works very well here but most of the time you will not even notice its present apart from the achievements appearing onscreen (you can even disable these notifications if you do not want to break atmosphere). Ignore the BS & hate campaigns against this game its one of the best ever made & just has a unique & superb atmosphere. Only a 3.7GB install as the game is so well optimised & the textures highly compressed. No pointless lengthy FMV here or dialog to waste disc space its so the install size is small but the game world is still pretty large.… Expand
Sep 11, 2012You should definitely play this game. But remember, when you play you have to want to get better or you'll only frustrate yourself.
Don't be afraid of the children raging about the controls just because they couldn't lower the camera sensitivity on the options menu. Several people already played and beaten this game on full keyboard and keyboard+mouse controls. Some even preffer not using a controler.
Some people rage about the game being unfair and stupid while they try to play the game without learning the basic combat mechanics, without blocking, without locking target or trying to rush everything spaming the attack button on a game where you have a stamina bar. Enough said, the game expects you to analize your sorroundings before proceeding, to take one enemy at time, to learn how to deal with each enemy and each location and to learn from your mistakes, something that some people just can't.
Expect to die. That's part of the game not the end of it. That's how you learn to play the game: by dying and experimenting; observing enemy patterns, learning to parry attacks or when desperate calling help from other players online. Talking to the community, wanting to learn how to play the game and upgrading your gear is also for the best. If you have doubts, don't hesitate to ask. All veteran have once suffered before.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012All the complaints about the bad keyboard & mouse controls infuriate me. This game is MEANT TO BE PLAYED WITH A CONTROLLER. I too, hate the fact that the PC controls suck... But this is a non-issue if you plug in a controller. I would give this game 11 / 10 just to make up for the low ratings from people who are to dumb to plug in a controller. This is the best. gaming. experience. Ive. ever. had. When playing Dark Souls, I feel like being young again and sitting in front of the old Zelda titles, immersed in the game. I just want to say thank you to the developers... Thank you.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012Well, i was also a little bit disapointed by the stright port. But to be fair, From Software communicated it months ago: Get a controller. Now i'm playing the game with the resolution fix and my ps3 controller and i have to say it really, really looks amazing and runs pretty stable. However, i have a nvidia card. Ati user maybe experience other circumstances.
Aug 29, 2012Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition is a love-letter written in blood to us sadistic fans of old-school "kick my butt and I'll ask for more" gamers who are getting tired of every game holding our hand, and in some cases, offering to just... you know, beat each level for us (Here's lookin' at you, Super Mario 3D Land!).
If you own this on PS3 or Xbox 360 already, it is still fully worth purchasing for PC.
By default the framerate is locked at 30FPS (which strangely somehow works just fine for the game) and the resolution is locked at *GASP* 720p.
Never fear, my fellow videophiles - an online hero who goes by the alias "Durante" released a fix for the game that unlocks the resolution, removes the low-quality fog, and overall makes the game... just... beautiful!
(Durante's fix can be found here: http://blog.metaclassofnil.com/?tag=dsfix)
Also, for the few out there who care - this game looks AMAZING in 3D.
Well? What are you waiting for?!? Go ahead, get the game, and Prepare to Die!
(NOTE: this game was never meant for mouse + keyboard. The game style just doesn't lend itself to that. Get yourself a wired Xbox 360 controller, or a PS3 controller + Motionjoy to enjoy all this game has to offer!)… Expand
Sep 26, 2012When I first got this game, I was so frustrated by the camera and the lack of easily understandable computer controls. For some reason I kept cracking at it and found the diamond underneath. The good points of the game are that it is punishing and the world usually presents you with multiple unbeatable situations. The reward of leveling up and hanging onto dear life when fighting large bosses is a rush. The game provokes you on to the eventual victory achieved. The bad is the camera is shaky but you get used to it with the locking on feature. The controls were literally the hardest part of the game and take alot of online research to understand them. All and all a real masterpiece once you get by the orginal frustrations. And whatever you do not kill any of the talking npc's (especially weapon smiths) they DO NOT come back which can cripple your progress in the game.… Expand
Aug 24, 2012Great game, not a great port but the PC community will come with mods and high res packs. its way cheaper than console, DLC comes for free, runs better and there is already a mod to fix resolution and textures day one, you can't go wrong.
Aug 28, 2012One of the greatest games of our generation. As for those complaining about the PC port, let me quote the Eurogamer review for you:
"In general, the arguments are wearying and all that needs to be said is this: Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition does not come with the technical options you would expect from a well-engineered PC game, because it's a port of a console game, and that's all From Software ever promised to deliver. Anyone who passes up Dark Souls for this reason is cutting off their nose to spite their neckbeard of a face."
If you pass up Dark Souls because you have to patch it to unlock it's resolution or because you might want a gamepad, you're denying yourself one of the best gaming experiences in years for easily overcome technical reasons. That's like skipping an amazingly cooked dinner because you have to drive to a friends house to eat it.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012Action RPG's are a dime a dozen these days. Most tend to err on the side of caution when it comes to what they will toss at you. The developers don't want to alienate customers by making a game that might be *gasp* too challenging. Dark Souls brings the challenge in spades but does it without feeling unfair or overly cheap. You'll get punished. then adapt, and actually feel like you have achieved something. Unlike most games which reward you for accomplishing next to nothing. It's gameplay is Dark Souls' greatest strength, in how it ties everything together (much like a fighting game) with logical solutions so that you always know you can overcome whatever challenges you are facing, no matter how difficult. I wish more developers focused on gameplay first and everything else second. --- Technically speaking the game performs very well, however, this is a straight from console "no frills" PC port. It was a game that wasn't supposed to be on the PC after all, and the way the port was handled does show signs of inexperience and hesitation on the part of the publisher/developer to give PC support. The game must be played with a controller, m+kb support is limited as was stated by the developers months ..ahem ..months ago. Also the resolution is set way too low but there is already a fix for that and I'm sure more tweaks to come (gotta love the PC modding community). People want to label the game as a "bad port" but honestly this is still the best version available as far as performance is concerned. --- Darks Souls is all about stellar gameplay and a high degree of challenge. I'm not sure this game is for eveyone and will be a pretty easy target for critics and trolls, but for me who normally likes things sleek and shiny, Dark Souls is one hell of a rough gem.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012Great game, knew it would be a bad port from the start since From can't do PC. And GFWL doesn't bother me since all you need to do is sign in. All the bad reviews are stupid entitled PC gamers.
Aug 24, 2012For all the users that are complaining about Keyboard and Mouse not working ideally for this game, let me lay this on you for a second, because this is how you guys sound:
You have a box of nails you want to hammer into the wall. (Dark Souls) You have measuring tape. It has a flat side. (Keyboard)
You don't have a hammer. (Gamepad)
Instead of going out and buying a hammer to hammer in the nails, you start hammering nails with THE MEASURING TAPE.
You then start complaining "Holy crap these nails suck. They don't work well with the measuring tape. This is so difficult!"
"Screw nails! Nails are terrible! I'm gonna write a review about how bad these nails are because they dont get hit into the wall well with my MEASURING TAPE."
The reasons you guys don't have hammers, is probably because you're either broke, or you're lazy, or you have some personal vendetta towards hammers. BUT THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE NAILS. It's not the nails' fault you are too lazy, broke, or have developed some deep racism towards hammers. That's on you! The nail is made for hammers! Hammer it in with a hammer and stop complaining!
So really you guys giving it a 0 for not playing perfectly with keyboard is really unfair. I can give maybe half a point for it not matching up with the keyboard controls and using xbox icons, but that's about it really. It's made to be played with a gamepad. So play it with one, and stop giving this game a low score because of your own personal issues with gamepads.
Dark Souls is a console port. From Software said that. They made it very clear when the game was coming out. "This is mostly a console port. No surprises!" That means the game is structured from the bottom up in a console fashion. Why would it be so different from what was promised? So that means, you run it with a console controller, it plays at a console resolution with a console speed, with hopefully better console performance. That's what was promised, and that's what From Software delivered. I personally don't see anything wrong with that. PC Fans requested a game that was console exclusive and got it on their platform. It works! It's non buggy! It looks like the console version! It's just as great as it originally was (Fantastic and amazing game!) What else is there to say? It's a great game. I love it. The graphics are amazing, the frame rate is BETTER than console. The story is incredible, the gameplay is on point and very responsive. The game isn't choppy or has hiccups, or anything like that. Game plays smooth like butter at 30 FPS. Honestly, it plays better than most PC games I've messed with lately with twice the frame rate.
Plus Durante modded it recently to increase the resolution past the initial renderer limit, so that's just the icing on the cake. This is a great game and I'm glad this game is finally on PC!… Expand
Aug 25, 2012This game is great, graphics problems already solved with 3 hotfixes and controls with keyboard/mouse are OK, it just takes little time to get used, so i dont regret for the money ive spend.
Aug 25, 2012i dont understand people which rate this game low due to worst keyboard mouse control ever. It suck and it is fact. Bad graphics? Not the edge of technology but playable. I tell you Mount and Blade is bad graphics not this one. The main thing is that there are no glitches freezes and so on what usually people call bad port. it works fine. It is great game indeed. And be honest - you low rate this game not cause of port, you do it cause you dont like it overall :) but as always this game doesnt care… Expand
Aug 31, 2012In general, it's a very lazy port never meant for PC. The game was programmed in such a way that changing the FPS from 30 to anything else is impossible, and changing the native resolution of the game is impossible as well without a mod.
Aug 31, 2012Bad Pc port and hard controls but still i really enjoy of this game, he game is amazing. amazing enough to get a 9 or 10. the port is crap, but the resolution fix from durante has saved form software from a catastrophe and it may as well make them some money. i have seen plenty of people double dipping just because of this resolution fix.
Aug 28, 2012Game of the decade.
The port isn't bad per se, rather, it's a 1:1 conversion from the console version but it requires a gamepad. Resolution-lock can be easily disabled, and the resulting upscale shows a game which looks better than the likes of Skyrim and Mass Effect, despite being made on a far smaller budget and originally developed for consoles, not PC.
As for the game itself, tight combat, immense replay value, deep gameplay mechanics, once again, best game of the past 10 years.… Expand
Aug 3, 2013While I did have major gripes about the PC version earlier they proved to be easily fixed with DSfix. Even with the problems this port has I still feel it deserves the highest praise just because the game is so incredible. The two warnings I have are that the game is very bad at explaining itself I didn't know what poise was, for example, a major facet of the game, and you have to look it up to learn. The other is that it exists to fill a very specific niche. If it fills that for you, then there is no finer game this generation. The game is a game of skill, not luck while it is renowned for its difficulty once you learn the ins and outs of combat it quickly becomes much better, though still challenging. For a game ported straight from consoles it looks wonderful. The boss battles are tense and exciting and will often destroy you, but even then are still fun. with the flaws it has I feel that it excels at everything it does and deserves incredible praise. I could go on about how incredible Dark Souls is, but the basis is, you should play this game. It deserves it and so do you.… Expand
Aug 31, 2012It takes some time to get used to the controls and u HAVE to dl the fan made patch, but after all this is done u gonna have the best time in a (finally, wake up bioware ffs!) well crafted RPG. As a hardcore RPG(er?) dating back to Baldur's gate and PS:T i can honestly say that this is one of the best RPG's i played in a loong time.. (including ME123 DA12 Witcher2 )
If u really like this style u wont let a crappy control thingy get in ur way. and btw for those who have a hard time with the keyboard (after much bashing): esc = menu navigate= page up / down enter = space going back = backspace more info = ins and del. happy Titanite hunting!… Expand
Aug 28, 2012I'm shocked by all the negative feedback this game as been getting. Sure, it's obviously a port, no surprise there, but it's completely playable with keyboard alone, and the keys are completely rebindable. Bottom line, this is an amazing game, and despite the relatively minor issues it has, I feel it fully deserves a 10 out of 10 based on the quality of the gameplay.
Aug 31, 2012Dark Souls is a shining example of a game that was never intended to be ported to the PC, but due to overwhelming demand got the developers attention and was made so. Despite problems with the port (and their solutions) that I will be covering near the end of this review, the core game is absolutely fantastic and without a doubt one of my personal favorite games of this entire gen. From its inspired and gritty fantasy setting to its incredibly complex combat and RPG mechanics, Dark Souls has the tools to keep you absolutely immersed - but only if you're willing to submit to its ever present difficulty with patience and the motivation to learn and adapt. It's no surprise to anybody that Dark Souls is known for its punishing difficulty, and some players will tell you that these games are simply cruel, executing you at every turn. From the moment control is given to you, you're thrust into a boss battle, and after that, you're navigating a world with constant dangers outside of the central hub of firelink shrine. Though there is an intended line of progression through the various interconnected environments, especially in the early parts of the game, the game gives you the freedom to go almost anywhere within it - it can be daunting at first, but you will soon figure out which areas you should and should not be progressing to. A very important factor in this game is exploration. You should talk to every NPC and listen closely to what they have to say. If you can purchase items from them using souls, the universal currency, which is also used to level up your character, you should see what they have in stock. Not only are there powerful items, upgrades, and magical abilities to be found, there are also achievements tied to discovering them. Important items are littered throughout the environment in chests and on corpses, on ledges near and far, and you should keep an eye on every single one of them. In fact, you should keep a keen eye to all events in this world. Every enemy poses a challenge to you, and unlike in other RPGs where enemies scale to your level, or you gear yourself to a godlike, almost immortal status, each and every single enemy in this game carries a significant hazard or status ailment that if not evaded will hurt, and hurt a lot. You will die a lot in Dark Souls, and to be fair, some areas can seem unfair, but the truth is that there is always a solution, and if you're good, one that involves taking not a single point of damage. Being in Human form as opposed to soul form, especially in online mode, is the more risky way to play, as you have the chance to be invaded by other human players who are looking to kill you and steal your humanities. Invading and co-operative play are a big part of this game and a strong deterrent to piracy, as other players are more than willing to help you by leaving helpful messages inscribed on the ground that can tip you off to enemies, hidden loot, and sometimes asking for help to defeat a boss, which is made easier in co-op. Another helpful ability you gain in human form is the ability to summon certain NPCs you've met to help you during boss fights, the latter of which are another point of complaint. Marked by a very large health bar and the boss' name above it, these enemies are very intimidating but each have their own strengths and weaknesses. There is a significant learning curve to each one, and you should make it a priority to learn their move sets before you tackle them in head on combat - each of them is possible to beat without taking a single point of damage. There is so much more I would like to say about progression in this game, how you level up your character and their weapons and abilities, how attributes synergize and stack with weapons and items, and so much more. The truth is that there is simply too much information to take in at once, and that's all part of the steep learning curve. Though it doesn't take a korean supergamer to master this game, just remember that if you do, you'll be one of the few who can actually say that they got through Dark Souls without a hitch.
Now, as for the PC version, I would highly recommend installing a very tiny mod that unlocks the internal rendering resolution of the game by means of placing a d3d9 file and its configuration settings file within the DATA folder of the games' installation directory. It is also highly recommended that you play this game with a wired Xbox 360 controller or a wired controller of some kind, because there are simply too many functions and commands for a keyboard control scheme to be viable. This game does not require a very powerful system to run well, but even given my powerful PC with the internal resolution set to 2560x1440 and running at 1920x1080 (I did this to supersample), there was one specific area which caused pockets of noticeable framerate drops from the locked 30Hz cap. 9/10… Expand
Sep 20, 2012While maybe it could have been more pretty or polished, the minor issues with this PC port do not detract in any way from the enjoyment of it's gameplay.
Aug 27, 2012This is an amazing game let down by reviewers wanting things the company never promised. Basically don't buy this game unless you have an Xbox 360 controller or will buy one to play the game. Use Durante's great fix to allow the graphics to run at 1080p and super sample and with any decent graphics card you are going to love this game. It's brutally hard, and very beautiful. The manual is not great and you'll undoubtedly get a little frustrated at first, but great things await anyone with a modicum of intelligence and a desire to play a unique and challenging RPG.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012THE CONTROLS ARE SPOT ON. ANYONE WHO COMPLAINS ABOUT CONTROLS IS JUST A NOOB. The game is excellent. I use a Razr Onga which is extremely good. Being able to play Dark Souls anywhere I go on my laptop is something I have been waiting eagerly for ever since I heard about the release.
Aug 26, 2012The new content is fantastic. Dark Souls was wonderful before now, and now it's mind-blowing.
Get a gamepad, yes. Get a resolution patch. Then dim the lights and prepare yourself for one of the most engrossing and rewarding experiences you will have in your life. Dark Souls.
Aug 25, 2012Definitely worth buying if you haven't played it yet. I would recommended getting a a gamepad and using montioninjoy. I emulated one of my ps3 controllers as an xbox controller and it is working flawlessly. I also downloaded a resolution fix to enhance the graphics, still haven't encountered any problems from that. I am using an nvidia card, I heard ATI cards are having some issues with the game. Money well spent 10/10 for me.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012The game is amazing and very, very playable. The graphics/framerate "issue" is not a problem to me.
My only gripe is that you have to use a controller to play the game.
Aug 29, 2012One of the most rewarding Action RPGs you can get. If you're tired of handholding, quest markers, combat where you can't really lose a fight unless you tie your hands behind your back, and generic Tolkien-esque fantasy, then Dark Souls is your game. Many different weapons with different move sets and combos allow you to tailor your combat experience to your style of playing. Stab enemies with a spear while blocking with a shield, or learn how to parry. Dual wield pretty much anything, dual wield shields and bash your enemy's head in. Decide to wield your main weapon with both hands at any time for extra damage (yes, this also works with a shield). Choose from three different types of magic, each with its own mechanics. Explore every nook and cranny and find anything from additional mini-bosses to specific weapons, armor sets, rings, NPCs, short cuts, and so on. All this in a beautifully crafted, very vertical, open but tightly packed world backed by amazing original lore. On top of that, you get a very unique interpretation of multiplayer with many different modes of online play with varying degrees of interaction, from simply seeing the ghosts of other players and blood stains where they die to leaving messages for others, helping them out with hard fights as a phantom, or even invading their games and hunting them down in a number of different ways. The PC adds arena based PVP to all that, and also comes with a load of new content with its own unique style but yet fitting in perfectly with the rest of Dark Souls. This is one of the best Action RPGs of this generation and if you can stand the challenge and can live with eventually meeting a boss you can't beat on the first try, or second try, or twentieth try, this is your game.… Expand
Aug 27, 2012Forget the porting problem. It's all fixable... If you can see past the technicall issues you have one of the best games ever made. Download DS fix from Dante and plug in the controller and you will see, that its not that bad of a port if you use this fix and a controller. If you are looking for a challenge and rewarding very good fighting system, then this is the game for you. Bosse's are just amazingly done and the souls concept of the game really adds an interesting gameplay. If you die you're gonna want to get the souls back and you probably will die alot as the title say's :). I love that there are still some deep adult rpg's and not just hack and slash **** Diablo 3 can eat Dark Souls dust... I really urge you not to listen to the whining that it's a bad port. The game itself with the fix and an xbox controller is just amazing. Really recommend it!… Expand
Aug 27, 2012Don't let the PC Elitist's complaints keep you from giving Dark Souls a try. I've reviewed it before, and my opinion remains the same; It's one of the best games that have come out in the past few years and console-level graphics and low resolution textures can't take that from it. The PC gamers aren't being treated any worse than the console users, and they shouldn't be giving this game negative reviews because they expected their high performance computers to be forced to work at their full potentials. It's been called a lazy port, and that's understandable, but it wasn't just a port; it came with new content that the rest of us won't see for two months. From Software is not a PC developer, and they did what they could to appease the masses. Does no one realize that they would have had to recreate all the animations in the game from the ground up to run at 60 fps? Dark Souls wasn't designed for PC and it's optimized for running at 30 fps. If From Software had rebuilt the game for PC optimization, it would have taken months or years to be released. I guarantee that all of the negative reviews are due to complaints about the keyboard and mouse controls and the "bad port." Both are irrelevant to the quality of Dark Souls. Give it a shot or wait until it's released on October 26 on Xbox 360 and PS3, but don't give it a negative review without putting more thought into what went into making the game.… Expand
Aug 26, 2012For some games like Ghost Recon Future Soldier or Prototype 2 I was complaining about crappy-ass port, but not for this game!People asked developers for port despite the developers have not much experience on pc programing I just want to play this game on my PC so far the experience and atmosphere is great
Aug 27, 2012DO NOT listen to people complaining about graphics being sub par. There was a graphics 'patch' form a 3rd party 23 minutes after the game was released. Some googling can find it in less than a minute, these people who are complaining about graphics should stop writing reviews if they can't use google to find the patch. Just like the other Souls game, this one is amazing. The new content is challenging, and the new zones are quite large and have lots of items to scavenge. Upon completion, just like the other Souls games, it leaves you wanting more. The Prepare to Die edition now also comes with 1v1, 2v2, and 4 player FFA deathmatch style arenas. It may force you to use games for windows live, which I thought was going to be a downside, but it really isn't that bad. Don't let that be a breaking point on your decision.
The resolution + frame rate fix can be found by googling "metaclassofnilblog" and downloading the files. It is fully explained how to install it in the readme, and it is literally as simple as dragging and dropping 2 files, no overwriting files either. If the other people reviewing this game can't manage that, they shouldn't be reviewing games on this site.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012Amazing game, if you're having difficulty with K+M just use a controller. It's either that, or you can adapt slowly just as I did. It takes a bit of dedication to the controls, but once you get it down, you've got it. The resolution can be easily fixed by using the neo-gaf fix made by a user named 'Durante'. It easily polishes the game, and you can hide your cursor with F9 to finally give the camera that tight feeling. Fixes the textures, and gives your armor that shiny feel you wanted. All in all, even though it was a horrible port. There's still a community out there dedicated to it, that won't back down. Fixing the mistakes made by FS. Goes to show how passionate they are about the game. Definitely a steal at 40 dollars, and the on line community is just relentless. Really amps up the tension of reversing your hollowing and traversing hard landscapes in that state. Can't wait for future updates, whether they're made by the fans or the developers. Only time will tell, definitely a 10/10 on my end.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012I'll start with the negative:
Everyone knows that this was a bad port. The controls are terrible if you intend to use a keyboard and mouse. The camera control is pretty bad. The resolution and fps lock (resolution lock has since been fixed) are also very bad. And, worst of all- the game says "press the start button", etc. It was a very lazy port, indeed.
That being said, all of that did not stop me from enjoying the hell out of an absolutely amazing game. I sincerely hope that FromSoftware comes to their senses and develops for PC, as well as consoles for the next game in this series.
The controls with a gamepad are absolutely fantastic and fluid.
The art direction is great, and while some armor is way over the top, I really enjoy most of the armor design for this game as well.
There are many different weapons, and unique weapons on top of that. They put a lot of work into the animations of this game.
The online is simply brilliant, it is a blast to invade, help other players out, and vice versa. I can't say anything bad about this game other than the lack of effort put into the port.
If the port was done right I would give this game a 10/10.
With the port being the way it is, I'd give it a 8/10.
I will, however, be giving this a 10/10 anyways to combat the ridiculous 0 scores people are giving it.… Expand
Aug 26, 2012Exactly the same GREAT game as it was on consoles, with better frame rate, sharper graphics and new content. Easily one of the best games in recent years, like it was on consoles. Being somehow old school and refreshing at the same time this game gives tons of excitement if u are willing to learn it. The port it weak, but not even near as pathetic that GTAIV was. It has and console-like shoddy graphics and locked frame rates, but it also runs on ancient machines..so the trade of is at least fair in my opinion. Thanks to Durante the low resolution was fixed before the official launch and it's pretty good looking with the fix. It's not perfect, but still great enough for 10 compared to modern "blockbuster" games that were quite disappointing everyone (i.e. Skyrim, Diablo 3 etc.).
If u are on graphics and/or "everything should be easy" gamer (a real pansy) this is not for u, but if u like a great challenge with lots of replay value and hidden things to find. This is one of the best games u can buy. Definitely worth every coin from your wallet.. Easily in my all-time top 3.… Expand
Aug 26, 2012Maybe the graphics are outdated and the controls with the keyboard sucks, but if you play Dark Souls with a gamepad, the atmosphere, the story, the secrets, the monster, the difficulty, the playtime, the game depth will kick your ass and let you hate and love this game. Your heart will remember this fantastic game.
You want a game which you'll remember in ten years? Then play Dark Souls - one of the best RPG of all time.… Expand
Aug 26, 2012Okay it isn't the best of ports, but this is still a fantastic game. The key port issue for me was the resolution and this has now been corrected. A unique, compelling experience. Highly recommend.
Aug 27, 2012First, I'm not giving this port a 10 to offset low scores. That's what I actually think the port deserves. It doesn't have many graphical options (though it has more than Darksiders 2 or Rage), but honestly the game is so easy to run you won't need many options. My GTX 460 768MB and 3.2Ghz Phenom II max it easily and keep it above the cap at all times. The 30fps cap, btw, is way smoother than any 330fps cap I've ever seen. Borderlands at 30fps hurts my eyes, whereas a stable 30 in Dark Souls is smoother than a stable 60 in most games. It was made to run at 30 fps, the animations were recorded at 30 fps, and the cap is totally stable. It doesn't create minor inconsistancies like capping with Fraps (or any 3rd party program), so it's way smoother.
On graphics, at 720p this looks better than Skyrim on ultra at 1080p. If you download the simple resolution uncapper mod (it installs in literally 4 seconds), Dark Souls has amazing graphics. They're truly gorgeous at 1080p; dynamic rays radiate from the sun, the water flows and ripples around your legs with full mesh reflections, baked ambient occlusion makes the landscape look great, and the textures are ultra HD. The people saying they're low quality textures are forgetting that the game is forcing what looks like awful trilinear texture filtering by default. Switch to at least 8x Anisotropic in your video card drivers, and these textures are amazing. The game is optimized amazingly; a 9800 will give you PS3 performance, while my 460 blows it away completely. Anything higher just adds more room for forced SSAO through your drivers, and graphics mods.
On my 460 with the modded resolution uncapper allowing true 1080p instead of the fake effect that's in by default, Dark Souls looks comparable to The Witcher 2 and runs better. I'm not joking, this is just amazing. That one simple mod changes everything. To people who say you can't rate a game for mods, what about Skyrim? Without mods Skyrim's barely playable on the PC with the imprecise UI and heavy-handed aim assist.
People who say this is not optimized are no doubt looking at their graphics card as the culprit, but because it saves and loads constantly you need a strong cpu rather than a strong graphics card. This is why some people are getting low framerates with 660's; if you have an Intel Pentium at 2.3 Ghz your graphics card doesn't matter. A dual core i3 at at least 2.5Ghz should handle it fine, but my Phenom II at 3.2Ghz is above and beyond. An i5 at 3.0Ghz or an i7 at almost any speed would be above what you need. I rated Skyrim well, because of mods, and I rate Dark Souls well partially because of that one resolution uncapper. It's so simple and easy to install there's absolutely no reason not to have it.
I will say that you NEED a gamepad to play this. The keys can be rebound (contrary to what some people posted here without even bothering to check), but mouse controls just aren't meant for this game. I love my gaming mouse for shooters and precision, but a gamepad just works way better in Dark Souls. You can use most PC gamepads and all 360 controllers. PS3 controllers also work great if you download a program like Motion Joy to allow your PS3 controller to work with a PC.
Aside from the port, the game itself is top-notch. Dark Souls is a perfect 10 in gameplay, style, lore, and just about everything else. I saved that for the PS3 review page, so I'm not going to fully cover it. It just has everything you could possibly want. Dark Souls has120+ hours of gameplay without touching New Game+ or the awesome online (btw, the online is now totally lag free if you have a decent internet connection). If you walk in snow, you leave footprints. You can dual wield or single-hand any weapon on the fly, and the dodging is superb and fluid. Capes flow in the wind, ambient sound effects and intense dark fantasy music add atmosphere, and nearly every clutter item can be shattered into individual boards and shards. A spindly chair or vases can be rolled through and crushed, while a heavy oaken table may require a full dive or an attack to break, but it all breaks dynamically. This makes the combat visceral and intense, and means that you have zero annoyances while dodging and diving around. The animations on all the unique enemies are amazing and sinuous, the art style is perfectly dark, and it's all skill. People say it's cheap because you're just as weak as the standard enemies you're fighting, but all that really means is you need more skill. The game is totally seamless, and virtually never loads once you start it up. It's so immersive it's breathtaking, and the spells, bows, and melee are all just fun and really smooth and responsive to use. The game lets you roam with quite a bit of freedom, and if you can see something you can walk to it eventually.
The new DLC is also great. It's all as high-quality as the best moments from the base game, so it's just peerless.… Expand
Aug 27, 2012If you love Real games, get on here and make your voice heard. The game runs fine well enough on my rig and I could tell right away that it is indeed something special. Use a controller - get one for twenty bucks if you need to (I'm using a Logitech in the PS3 controller style), you are good to go. It Does take time to get used to the camera and controls - don't expect instant gratification, like everyone is saying this is a real game not a hand-holder. FromSoftware deserves a ten for enduring the pain of porting this to the PC for us. Hurray!… Expand
Aug 27, 2012Terrible port, but an otherwise amazing game. The user-created graphical mod that's been going around is a big help in making the game more enjoyable on PC, but it's a shame FromSoft/Bamco could not provide this feature on launch. Keyboard/mouse support is a bit iffy, but if you use a controller everything plays great.
The game itself is just incredible, reminiscent of the punishing difficulty and open exploration of classic metroidvania-style games. The story is deep and intriguing, but not handed to you on a silver platter; it must be discovered and pieced together by the player.… Expand
Aug 29, 2012Firs My advice for those noobs who complains about graphic res...Download "DS fix from Dante" (google :dark souls dante) it will increase resolution of the game and plug in the controller !
The game itself is great! it's true that playing with a keyboard and mouse is frustrating becuse game was oryginaly made for consols and its 1:1 port!, but probably fromsoftware will improve it in the next patch. Playing with a pad is pure pleasant :)… Expand
Aug 29, 2012This game is the best I've ever played, period. I'm pretty patient when it comes to graphics, so I don't mind it looking like an obvious console port. Personally I think people are being a little too harsh in that regard. As for the controls, just get an xbox controller. For a game like this it's really worth having full and easy control of the mechanics, and you'll get your time's worth out of it, creating multiple characters and what not. This game is definetely not meant to be played on a keyboard, but you can't blame From Soft. I can't imagine how they would make fluent keyboard controls for this game.… Expand
Sep 1, 2012I have played Dark Souls and Demon Souls since the day of release... I pre-ordered Dark Souls the second I heard it was coming to PC and boy I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED. The new DLC is perfect and adds a new challenge with perfect armour/content. The game is a direct port and sometimes it shows in areas (30fps cap, resolution) but all of that can be fixed with mods readily available.
Sep 5, 2012The port may not be perfect, but it is the best way to play dark souls. Even without 3rd party mods, the base game has extra content, AA and a more consistent frame rate. In addition it also has a number of bug fixes and some re-balancing. There are no more input lag issues and items like the dark wood grain ring and hornets ring have been toned down. The new content is masterfully put together, integrates with the game nicely and doesnt feel bolted on.
It is a requirement to play this game with a gamepad as without mods the keyboard and mouse controls are broken and unusable, the game also requires games for windows live, which will put some people off. There are a number of oversights like a locked sub 720p frame buffer, 30 fps frame rate and no in game substitutes for prompts when playing wih a keyboard and mouse...no xbox 360 buttons on a keyboard sorry FROM. How important the above is to you and whether youre prepared to investgate 3rd party mods will dtermine whether this game is for you.
Dont listen to all he overreacting negative reviewers, its this attitude that will prevent further such ventures in the future and im just appreciative that such a brilliant game can be enjoyed by more people. It may not be the best port in unmodded form, but its supporting for the long time viability of such games reaching pc in the future in more polished form. 9/10 from me, 10 on metacritic to balance all the low scoring troll reviews.… Expand
Sep 4, 2012I laugh at all these people complaining about bad textures and poor controls... USE A GAMEPAD! GET THE RESOLUTION MOD! Easy fixes people! Ask yourself a question: If you get to a huge boss that could turn you into hamburger in 1 hit, do you say to yourself "Wow those textures are bad!" or "Ermagerd how do I beat this monstrosity!?". I'm pretty sure you know what the right answer is.
Aug 30, 2012Waaaaaah, it only renders at 720p! Waaaaaah, the frame rate is locked at 30fps. That's all I see in the negative reviews, both from users and critics. This is one of the great games of the last few years, maybe all time. And, content-wise, this is an AMAZING edition; I've played all the way through the new content, and it is every bit as good as the original content. AND the frame rate is more stable and consistent than it was on the 360/PS3. AND, if you really care about the internal framebuffer resolution, there's already a mod out there that fixes it for you. So maybe you ought to actually play this one before you **** about it, Internet.… Expand
Aug 27, 2012Great game, I knew it had potential from articles, but once i sat down and actually played it, it blew me away.
The graphics is awesome, these guys really understand what immersion is. Its not about high res textures (which they have), but how well you hide them to look deep and gloomy.
The gameplay hats off, even not as user friendly as Darksiders it has depth and allows more room for user skill. So many good ideas in one basket. This is a masterpiece. It deserves a shrine… Expand
Aug 31, 2012This game is AMAZING. It is really challenging, it is strategic, it is interesting and it is a really bad port of one of my favorite games on the PS3.
But I don´t want to give this game a bad rating because it is that good. You really only can play this game with a gamepad for starters, so if you already got the console version stay away from the PC release.
Graphics aren´t any better then the PS3 version and Games for Windows live is annoying.
However if you don´t own a console then my dear PC-User you should get this game right away, I am not joking, I was blown away by this game from the start where I just kept on dying to the end where Gargoyles feared my appearance to the amazing PVP System in this game that it made me quickly forget about how sloppy the port actually is.… Expand
Aug 25, 2012Hopefully devs and publishers clue into the notion that they hold the power to shape the attitudes of their consumers, with that they need to put a disclaimer with the advertising and sales of their games that they are designed for game pads - a simple "Optimized for Game Pad" do you agree before clicking to purchase would bring a stop to all these numpties who refuse to buy a game pad for what ever principled and or stubborn idea they have around remaining elite (non console).
PC gaming allows for the best of both worlds - yet there are so many small minded whingers in the community it is disgusting!! Don't you non game pad whingers see we on PC would not have half the games we have in our current library from last 5 years without console gaming feeding it.
Dark Souls is a solid port that when played with a game pad (as it was optimized for) is a better experience than the console counterparts had served to them.… Expand
Sep 5, 2012One of the best games of this decade. This port has a few flaws however: GFWL, Xbox controller is a MUST and the multiplayer is often bugged but the game itself is so close to perfection it still deserves 10/10
Sep 7, 2012Dark Souls lives up to its predecessor, and the PC version, despite being poorly optimized, is no exception. This game has tense combat, challenging exploration, stunning graphics, and a minimal but well crafted story that encourages the player to fill in the blanks. But when you reach a boss, you bloody well know it!!
I dare you to play this game!!
Aug 25, 2012Pretty solid game, its a decent port due to it running the game even better than its console counter part not to mention having a nice res. Sure you need to mod it (its literally drag and drop) but there is indeed a decent res fix for the game. The only let down would be the keyboard and mouse controls but if you are like me and own the console version already you already have a gamepad handy to play the game because you do not limit yourself to one platform and pretend to be better than everyone else. TLDR stop being a casual and pretending to actually like video games because you have a pc that idles on tf2.… Expand
Aug 26, 2012As expected, pc boys can't handle a real game. But if you're the exception, come on and earn your stripes. The best action rpg, possibly ever with the enphasis on 'action'. RPG fans may want to stay clear too, as it's really more of a hardcore action game than your typical rpg.
Aug 27, 2012Read the PC Gamer review - it says it all: yes it´s a bad port, yes it´s cumbersome to control - and yes it´s impossibly rewarding. More so than anything before it, and probably will be unmatched for quite some time in the foreseeable future. What other game throws you between true dispair, dread, fury and in the end, utter satisfaction? Disregard all gripes about technical shortcomings, jump into the rabbit hole and be amazed.… Expand
Aug 27, 2012Needs to be played with a game pad and requires a mod to fix the resolution the game is rendered at, but once you are past this and start in on the game you will be treating yourself to one of the best games of this age. Easily one of the strongest games ever in gameplay mechanics and the level of difficulty is just spot on, even without a difficulty option offered. This is a must buy for anyone who loves adventure dungeon crawlers.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012As long as you have a controller and know the issues with the graphics, this is a very solid game. If you can't bear paying $32 (after 20% off in green man gaming), then wait for a sale!
Aug 28, 2012This game is simply a masterpiece, there's nothing else to it. The gameplay is challenging and not boring you in all situations, and it will punish you, no matter how good you think you are. If you're too focused on graphics and high FPS, this game doesn't have it. The art style is amazing, however, and with a simple download of a graphics fix you can make the game look even better. I don't mind having to download something else to have a better looking game, because I'm focused on gameplay, for the most part. Another great thing about this game is the amount of detail put into it. I'm not just talking about graphically, but I'll get to that in a second. In the story! Oh wait, you didn't know there was one? Well that's another great thing about Dark Souls, if you're not going to try and look for a story or try and do your best, you're not going to like it. While I am not necessarily the super hardcore crowd of gaming, although this game will appeal to them too, I am somewhere in the middle. However, this has to be my favorite game I've ever played. There is no game that gives me so much satisfaction of killing a boss, finding new items and trying them out, upgrading weapons, and even... breaking boxes! This game has it all. The difference between Dark Souls difficulty and games harder than Dark Souls, is in Dark Souls you will only die if it's your fault. Trying to run past all the enemies and they catch up to you and kill you? Your fault. Not healing before going into the last hit to kill a boss and dying? Your fault. You can NEVER blame the game for your mistakes, unless you have some kind of strange physical condition. There is also a CRAZY amount of detail put into the graphics and art style, especially armor and weapons. I can't explain it, so I recommend you try it out for yourself. My only complaint is the keyboard and mouse controls. I'm using my PS3 controller with motionjoy, and if you do something similar or use an xbox 360 controller you won't have any trouble learning the controls. The keyboard and mouse controls, which I've dabbled in briefly, simply isn't for a game like this. I still think if you are strict about KB+M controls, to get this game, because you are missing out on a real gem if you don't. Once you're hooked, you're hooked, and you won't be able to put it down for months, possibly years, wouldn't be suprised. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to pick up one of the most challenging, rewarding, and best games of gaming history.… Expand
Aug 31, 2012Dark Souls is just amazing. This is the deepest game I've played so far. What it really offers is the incomparable immerse. It's hard, it pushes you to your limits, but importantly it offers incomparable feeling of reality. The price of a mistake is usually so high, that you start to LIVE your character, you start to feel the danger, and you feel the pulse of adrenaline in your veins. When you first meet the boss, you have two primary tasks: to survive and to learn his patterns and abilities, and you know there will be no other easy chance to simply try it, save and try several times.
This game is hard for those who like to play guided games, but it is invaluable for those who dream to LIVE the game fully, experience it like a real-life adventure, where nobody will give you maps, pointers and directions - there is only you, your armor, your weapon, your bravery, your attention, your memory and... your legacy.
Hearing a lot on technical issues I would like to say, that this all comes out from people who doesn't value the most that this games is here to offer: it's remarkable gameplay. Game port is not playable for me using keyboard and mouse, but is that really an issue? You can (and SHOULD) use your Xbox 360 Controller or PS3 Dualshock Controller with MotionJoy, that will make the gaming experience just the same as on console. I played Dark Souls on PS3 before the PC release and should say that with gamad the game experience on PC is just the same.
And to address the resolution wailing: most of you guys should know, that a majority of games on consoles, especially on PS3, run in 720p with upscale, and it doesn't make them look much worse then originally 1080p-designed games.
This game is awesome. If you ever played Demon's Souls or Dark Souls on console, you get the exact experience on PC. And that's just great!
And for those of you who never played Demon's Souls or Dark Souls, I would like to advice you to read more about the game. If you like the gameplay ideas which it offers, you'll definitely will enjoy the PC port, because it just brings this amazing experience to PC. And for those who doesn't like difficult games which require a lot of thinking and investigation before actually "go and kill them all" - better miss Dark Souls, you'll be disappointed.
Dark souls is hard, but though rewarding. It brings the deepest feeling of accomplishment, it fills your body with happiness of worthy achievement, it blows your mind with detailed battle mechanics, it pushes you to learn, to die and reborn stronger, wiser and better player.
Death is only the beginning. So Prepare to Die!… Expand
Aug 31, 2012An excellent game buried under a bad console port.
This game is just great , but i am afraid you need a controller for this game , but believe me , it is worth the money.
Sep 2, 2012First of all, if you don't have a control pad, go get one, don't attempt to play it on keyboard and mouse because you will end up whining like all the other kids giving 0's to this game. This game might not be the best port, but it IS the best RPG in many years. Its completely playable on PC and I would even say I liked it more than on console.
Pseudo-"reviewers" giving this a 0 because of the difficulty are just pathetic, the game is hard but not unfair. You have to learn how to play, the learning curve might be steep but with a bit of a brain and patience you will get and you'll realize why people love this game. And when I say patience, I don't only mean patience learning, but patience controlling your character, I've died countless times for being overconfident.
If you love RPG's you should really play Dark Souls, the world is one of the best I've seen. All the areas are connected in ways so smart that is obvious how much thought was put into the map. Unlike Skyrim's world, there are no fillers between areas here, no walking for "kilometers" to get from one place to the other.
The PvP is complex and intense. You have to actually be smart to try it.
All in all, this is a game every RPG lover should try. Like Demons' Souls, this is a unique experience unlike any other game.… Expand
Sep 3, 2012This is one of the most amazing games I have ever played. As a first time Dark Souls player, I was very refreshed when I realized how amazing of a game this is, it's one of the most unique games I've ever played. All of these negative reviews for graphics are laughable, I'm sorry it takes literally 2 minutes to install the res fix and it makes the game look better than Skyrim with the graphics mod. I have only played it with a 360 controller, while the controls for PC are quite bad, the game is only $40 and not $60 like 99% of all other games. I have already logged in over 100 hours on this game and I don't see myself stopping anytime soon. The only downside for me, is GFWL.… Expand
Sep 4, 2012I'd give this a 9 but just gonna go ahead and slap a 10 only to balance the user score somewhat. Game is awesome. I know, I know, quite a lot of you think this game sucks because it has the 30 FPS lock and the developers couldn't even bother to fix a silly problem like resolution cap. But after the application of the resolution fix by Durante, this game looks really good. And even at 30 FPS, the gameplay is smooth as it can be. I mean, it was DESIGNED around the 30 FPS mark. If it was messed around with, the gameplay would probably get messed up as well. So yeah, no worries there. The gameplay is all good. As for controls, I don't really play any game with controller so I used a keyboard and mouse here. Surprisingly, this controlled much better than SO many people said it would. I don't have any problems with the controls as they're decent enough. I've just entered Blighttown and haven't had problems with the controls, besides a few odd deaths due to the finicky lock-on mechanic (yeah, this could've been better!). ANYWAY, overall, I think this deserves high scores. Because it IS a good game and an okay port.… Expand
Jan 8, 2013Dark Souls is a bad PC-port but it's not unplayable. Playing with a keyboard and a mouse is possible but not easy (with a controller it's a lot easier).There is no excuse for these problems and as you're playing it becomes clear that the developers did not put any effort into making the game suitable for PC. You have to resort to community-created fixes and mods to get past the problems that they should've taken care of but apparently were too lazy to. Even the tutorial is for people with X-Box controllers and the mouse is always jittery.
The game is difficult but that's basically the trademark of Dark Souls so I don't consider that a negative. It was meant to be hard and it's clearly not meant to be played by casual gamers seeking purely entertainment. The game doesn't tell you the story the traditional way - by handing it for you on a silver platter. Instead you have to be interested yourself - you need to combine the pieces you got from talking to NPCs, reading item descriptions, looking at the game environment and deducing into a story. Not a groundbreaking story but a decent story.
One thing I absolutely love about this game is the bosses. Oftentimes they do not really have any ties to the story but they are so difficult that beating them feels rewarding, like you truly accomplished something. The people who designed the bosses had a good imagination; each and every boss is interesting and unique. Not that there are any complaints about your everyday enemies in this game.
Gameplay is absolutely fantastic and that's a good thing because that's what this game is completely based around. You don't need to sit through 30-min cutscenes, instead you can play the game itself and that's all you need to ever do. You are fighting enemies more powerful than yourself so combat is not just mindless button mashing. In combat, you have many options and not just "boring attack 1" and "boring attack 2" and to win you need to know how to use all the different mechanics. You need to be patient and getting from point A to point B is never easy as enemies never disappear - they respawn always if you rest at a checkpoint.
If you're looking for a challenge and a certain old RPG-charm (and you can stand playing the game with a keyboard and mouse or you are ready to buy a controller which you shouldn't have had to buy) then you've found your game.… Expand
Sep 10, 2012Apply the resolution fix, buy a controller if you don't have one, and immerse yourself in this terrifying and deeply challenging action RPG. Forget twitch reflexes and crazy weapon combos, you'll need to learn to be strategic against every monster and encounter in this realistically brutal game if you wish to ultimately succeed. It's all about knowing the strengths and weaknesses of yourself and your enemy; knowing which attacks to dodge, which to block, and which to be completely out of range of. Can you use the environment to your advantage? What weapons are most effective against your foe? Armed with this knowledge you can easily conquer any seemingly impossible challenge. It is important to note that while the game is hard, it is never unfair. Patience will reward you. Every death is a learning experience. I find it difficult to flaw such a brilliantly crafted game. There's little I can think of to actually improve it. It lacks a deep story, but that could be something that also works in its favour. The fact that you're exploring this haunting world without any sense of direction really adds to the atmosphere. Expect 70-100 hours to complete your first play-through. One of the best games of all time.… Expand
Aug 27, 2012Once you've installed the fixes made my the community members, this game is a true jewel. If possible, you might want to play with a gamepad for your own comfort, although mouse and keyboard is also a viable option. The game itself has a rich atmosphere, interesting NPCs, glorious combat which is very realistic and rewarding. This is a MUST BUY for any gamer out there.
Aug 29, 2012Excellent game, but it is impossible to play this game with keyboard and mouse and the graphics looks really outdated. But awesome gameplay and story makes this game a must-buy
Sep 3, 2012Awesome game, not the best port but with the small fix the game looks stunning! There is no going back to console version after the fix. The only complain is locked 30fps. Controls are as good as in console version (nobody should play with keyboard these kind of games anyway). Hopefully From Software continues support PC but I highly doubt it after these new games who rage when there is a slight problems.
All in all, very solid port. No crashes or freezes, fps drops rarely (no Blightown issues anymore). Works
better than most of the other PC games what I have played. The best PC game at the moment with SSF4 AE 2012 and RE5. Must have!… Expand
Aug 29, 2012Phenomenal game, if only a bare-bones port. The new content lives up to, and in some cases surpasses, the bar set by the content shipped with the original, console, game. While the game comes stock with a few odd limitations, all of them that can be fixed/removed have been by industrious members of the community. Overall this is a must-buy for anyone who loves challenging, in depth, and rewarding game play experiences.… Expand
Aug 28, 2012A word of warning: This game is a straight port to PC and I highly recommend using a gamepad (preferably an Xbox360 pad). The internal resolution of this game is capped at 1024x720 and the frames are capped at 30 as well (Not a big deal since this is an RPG). There does happen to be a fix from a modder going by the handle Durante. Just google DSFix for Dark Souls. Anyways, onto the review. The game is gorgeous in the sense that the art style fits this unforgiving game so well. It's dark, gloomy, and hangs towards a more gritty and realistic rendition of medieval European times. The enemies are intimidating, especially the stronger ones, and the bosses even more so. And this all ties together with the difficulty of this game. This isn't an accessible RPG. At all. You will die a lot. This game needs to be taken slow, and strategies need to be thought out. This may seem like a hack n' slash but trust me, it isn't. Strategies come down to the actual gear and stat builds of your characters and how you want to play the game. You can be a quick and nibble thief, a long range master of the bow, a sorcerer, a tanky knight that can withstand a beating, or even a melee caster focusing on fire-based DPS. It all comes down to your play style and how you'll utilize it against the merciless foes in this game.… Expand
Sep 3, 2012A hardcore game for hardcore gamers, Dark Souls is a true masterpiece that PC gamers deserve to play. The port may be perfunctory but it's stable and the performance is much improved over the console versions, provided you have a decent system. Ignore the idiots giving the game a low score just because From Software didn't make any specific improvements to the PC version.
Sep 3, 2012I won't get in-depth with my review as I already have one for the PS3 version of the game, but I will say that Dark Souls: Prepare to Die Edition is the definitive Dark Souls experience assuming you play with a controller. I'm not sure why you wouldn't play with a controller to be honest. I'm first and foremost a PC gamer, and I'm a huge advocate of mouse and keyboard being the superior input method, but this game and even this genre is meant for a controller. Swallow your pride, fellow PC gamers. Yes, certain aspects of the port are of poor quality, but the hacks provided by Durante solves most if not all of the gripes I had personally. The game looks amazing with the resolution hack, there is no FPS slowdown assuming your PC isn't from the stone age, and the new content is great. What more could you ask for?… Expand
Aug 29, 2012Love this game to death! Yes you do need a game pad or xbox360 controller for smooth game play but it's worth it(the pc version has more than xbox360 and ps3 version for now). I have never enjoyed getting battered so much in my life. Really not arsed about graphics.. there's a mod to fix that, game play is so hard it's awesomeXD
Sep 7, 2012I had been wanting to get this game for a long while, and right when I got it for 360, mine broke. I decided to play it using my 360usb controller and the game was pretty nice. definitely an option for those not willing to toss down a lot of cash for a console
Aug 31, 2012THIS IS THE BEST PORT AS IT IS THE MOST STABLE PORT I'VE EVER SEEN. Other games ported to the PC either crashes alot or are very unoptimized.
This is a really great game to come out for the PC and I am very grateful for it! This is also the VERY definition of a direct port, and let me repeat again how stable it is.
The only fault I see for the game is the locking system, which, with a little movement changes your lock on an enemy to another.… Expand
Sep 3, 2012its sad that so many ppl r giving this game a 0. yea the keyboard controls are horrible but i've managed 20 hours on em and then put another 40 with controler (yes i bought 1 just for the game) but that aside this game is simply amazing and depsite all the ppl being buthurt over the controls they shouldnt let that drag down the core of the game
Sep 6, 2012Even though this is a poorly optimized port with brutal keyboard and mouse controls, a capped low resolution, and only two graphical options for pc gamers to tweak on/off (motion blur and anti-aliasing). Dark Souls is still one of the most incredible games of this generation, if you can handle the brutal difficulty. The thing I appreciate about this game is the uniquely old-school design of this game. Your dropped in the middle of a harrowing yet utterly beautiful world and have to fend off horrible and extremely creative beasts with amazing controls (if you're using a gamepad) that are not to complicated to learn but really engaging and rewarding in use. It's an open world is designed so expertly that you dont even need a map. You're always unlocking new shortcuts which makes the world very intertwined and easy to navigate. One of the best games I have ever played.… Expand
Aug 31, 2012In general, it's a very lazy port never meant for PC. The game was programmed in such a way that changing the FPS from 30 to anything else is impossible, and changing the native resolution of the game is impossible as well without a mod. The controls for keyboard and mouse are terrible, and you'll need to use a gamepad (I'm not sure if anything aside from the Xbox 360 wired gamepad will work, but I'd assume that's the case). This uses two layers of DRM if you bought it from Steam. Games for Windows Live (GFWL) and Steam's built-in DRM both are potential hindrances to playing, but so far have not been too much of a problem. The game retails for $40, which is on par, if not somewhat slightly above the average price of a PC game.
The in-game graphics range from pathetic to tolerable, depending on whether or not you have the hi-resolution mod installed. The mod that changes the resolution doesn't also increase the size or clarity of textures, doesn't increase the fidelity of models, and doesn't add better AA. Hell, if it did that, the game might have an even lower FPS.
The game this is a port of is fantastic for it's medium, which is a console six or seven years behind the curve. The development process for this game is laughable at best, as some of the problems that prevented the port from being amazing stemmed from incredibly lazy design choices. For instance, frame-based movement (ex: having a character move a fixed amount per frame, regardless of speed) prevented the game from running higher than 30 FPS. Designing the game's art assets at a low resolution instead of designing high-quality assets and then scaling them down is to blame for the horrid texture quality.
Dark Souls for the Xbox 360 and PS3 are both fantastic games, and this is as well, even if it is plagued by a coupled of PC port-related issues.… Expand
Aug 30, 2012One of my recent favourites. I bought this when it came out on the PS3 and I could not wait to get this edition.
A lot of the frame rate issues were fixed, content was added, PvP was improved-- overall, for 40$ this is a steal.
Aug 29, 2012This game is one awesome RPG experience. Unfortunately this game has been receiving review scores much lower than deserved. This is because the PC gaming community has become spoiled over the years. If you look at the average meta-critic scores for it's Xbox360 and PS3 counterparts it got much higher ratings. This port is almost exactly like the Xbox360 version and should receive no lower than what the 360 rating was. In fact. With the help of the PC community there have already been resolution fixes which makes this port to the PC much better looking. It's the same game and i'm not speaking on the entire behalf of the PC gaming community, but unfortunately too many of us have gotten used to being treated "special". Game sales are always cheaper on the PC compared to consoles, We have a community of modders that provide content and bug fixes for many games, and we expect top of the line graphics. That's okay and all, but From Software had no original intentions of porting this to the PC. They Have little to no PC experience and they simply ported to PC because the community asked them too. That's awesome. The outcome of how this game does on PC ground is important and may decide if the company decides to port any future titles. It makes me sad to see so many negative reviews because of the fact that it's a bare bones port. Get over it. It's still a great game and deserves an honest review. I hope that anyone who calls themselves an RPG gamer gives this one an honest try.… Expand
Aug 30, 2012I for once do not own a console. And I am so grateful to Form Software and for those people who signed the petition along with me - now I can finally enjoy this masterpiece of a game. I waited for this since Demon's souls first came out on consoles - I wanted to play it so bad, I almost bought a console for a single game! If you're a kid complaining about graphics and bad controls - this game isn't for you, just play some FPS and leave Dark Souls for the people it was intended to. This is not the best PC port for sure, but a cheap $10 gamepad and a resolution patch fix this little issue. The devs themselves recommended that you play on a gamepad - that's fair, I wouldn't want to re-do perfectly working gamepad controls. Just plug in a controller and stop complaining. This game isn't about graphics or keyboard controls - this game will be remembered alongside with diablo 2 as one of the best RPG's of the 21st century. If you're unsure whether or not to buy it - I'd say - If you consider yourself a true RPG fan - that's a must buy. Trust me, I've been playing RPG's since Diablo and Baldur's Gate and Fallout - I know.… Expand
Aug 30, 2012On the surface just a disappoint console port of a great game, but try DSFix from blog.metaclassofnil.com and enjoy the game as it was meant to be played!
Aug 31, 2012A lot of people have been giving this game grief, which is a sad thing. Yes, the frame rate is locked. Yes, the resolution is locked. Yes, the controls arent as good as they could be, nor are the pop ups changed for computer controls. While I do agree that the last issue is a valid one, the rest are superficial, and rating a game down for them is just insane. Dark Souls is a game made to slaughter you, not hold your hand through beautiful scenery.
I have progressed a large distance through the game (roughly 50%) using the keyboard and mouse, and even though it isnt the easiest way to play it, it is very playable, without any real issues. Instead of relying on the popups to tell you what to do every single time, memorize the controls, like you would with any other game (this is directed to people who say you have to button mash to get the right button).
Recently I bought an xbox controller to use, and I found that difficulty of the game practically halved, and I was no longer experiencing the difficulty that the game had promised. So if you want my honest opinion: Controller if you are a kid who needs their hand held, Mouse+Keyboard if you want the brutal challenge that was promised.
Furthermore, the game is MEANT to be difficult. I have seen people complaining that the game is too hard. What a joke. The game is not labled -Prepare to Die Edition- for no reason.
Graphics-wise, the game is beautiful in its own twisted way, despite the lower resolution of the game. It gets the job done, and looks nice while doing so. Gaming isnt exclusively about graphics, as some people are so blatantly unable to realize. The graphics are good enough to make the game enjoyable for the eyes, and thats what matters. Many people have complained about the locked resolution, which does not bother me personally. If it bothers you too much, there is a mod made that allows you to toggle the resolution and disable the mouse cursor.
Anyone who knows about this game would know that the story is not shoved in your face as it is with most other RPG games, which can be considered a good thing by some, and bad by others. I personally dont mind the lack of apparent story, as I generally pay a lot of attention to dialog and other sources of story, and the lore for Dark Souls is actually quite interesting for those willing to dig it out. So, with this game, dont expect a highly story driven game with cutscenes every mission.
The RPG elements in this game (Leveling, stats, equipment and so on) are relatively well balanced. There are no truly game breaking stats or items, minus a certain sword that you can get that makes the early portion of the game far easier. Leveling is fast in the early levels, but can take hours of work after level 50, and the growth of required XP is nice and at a managable rate. Stats all effect something practical, as well, so there are no wrong stats you can level in the long run. Overall, the system has a nice balance: The player is not too powerful, nor are they too weak (assuming the player is of sufficient skill)
The sounds of the game are nothing too special, as with all games. They do the job right, sound in place, and are generally unremarkable. The music however, is nicely written and suits the game very much. There are many areas where there is no music at all, as well, which can add a nice contrast to many RPG games where the music is constantly going. With other RPGs the music can very easily mix together and becoming an unremarkable string of sound, with no clear definition between songs. That is not the case here. The lack of music in areas adds large contrast to when the music starts, and each song on the soundtrack has a nice unique sound to it, further adding to the contrast and uniqueness.
Overall, I think the game is very good, considering. We knew for over a month that this wouldnt be a perfect, flawless port. And even though it ISNT a flawless gem of a game like the console version, it is definitely better than many people give it credit for.
* Gameplay: 10/10 - The gameplay is brutal and unforgiving for those who make mistakes or who plan ahead poorly.
* Controls: 6/10 - The controls are clunky but playable with a keyboard and mouse, and it adds a nice brutal bonus to the difficulty for those seeking it. The main reasons I have rated this lower than normal is due to the fact that the mouse is insanely sensitive, which makes locking on an issue in fights with groups, and for people who wish to skip the PC controls, they must pay extra.
* Story: --/10 - it is an arguable point. I would give it high marks for having good lore that is not forced on the player, but others would likely rate it low for not having enough obvious story driving it.
* RPG elements: 10/10 - well balanced, not too complex, not too watered down.
* Sounds: 10/10 - The sounds in the game are what is expected, and the soundtrack is great.
OVERALL: 9/10 - Great… Expand
Sep 1, 2012I hate this game so much, why can't I stop playing you!! I die over and over again!! I haven't experienced such a challenging single player game in so long, it truly is awesome! A poor console port is the only downfall but using the resolution fix and getting my xbox 360 controller out of storage made it just fine... but I cry that I can't make use of my incredible PC hardware, it feels like this game would run well on a phone lol..… Expand
Sep 3, 2012When a resolution fix and mouse/camera fix made by community is used, the game becomes perfect port. I must say, I have not had such a great time playing PC games for very long. It may sound strange, but after playing all the "wannabe RPG" games, I am finally playing the only and real RPG game. What a fantastic design of areas, monsters, gear, abilities, fighting and fantastic difficulty (where almost ONLY your own skill matters)...this is a truly epic experience!… Expand
The game itself is a great RPG, it is however quite difficult - the combat system will get you killed pretty often, the boss fights are tough (assuming you play without reading spoilers), there are also no maps in game and every death puts you back at last checkpoint while also respawning all monsters. Now, keep in mind this is a CONSOLE PORT. It was meant to be a console port and it is a console port. You need a gamepad (I used Razer Onza) to really enjoy the controls. Also make sure to get the Durante's mod that unlock internal buffer size - it's a must have! Out of the box the game looks horribly on 1080p screen, after switching the buffer size to 3840x2160px it's a completely different game!… Collapse
Feb 6, 2013The irony is that the PC version could have been much better than the PS3/360 ones, with higher resolutions to make the textures look better, a cornucopia of mods and/or an active (in theory at least) community. But FROM ruined it all (with the assistance of Games for Windows Live). It's a shame really, if we at least had just a decent port (or a better infrastructure for a less appalling multiplayer mode), Dark Souls could have been one of the best RPG for the PC. [November 2012]
Nov 19, 2012Not often do you see a game that is equally rewarding as it is frustrating; and it's not because the game is unfair.
Oct 29, 2012Dark Souls returns the hardcore elements back to action RPGs – heavy focus on uncompromising fight mechanics and absolute freedom in hero profiling. The price of this game is not for everyone. [Oct 2012]


text:
NASA Mars mission gets a helping hand from Europe, in pictures
Nasa / Space
NASA is reinventing itself with the cloud, private contracting and a focus on science.
Featured Stories
Related Topics
Articles about Nasa / Space
Interstellar queller: Why Virgin Galactic won't have a Hollywood ending
Space travel is fraught with danger and peril. Which is why it should never be considered as a joyride for the wealthy.
EU space agency eyes robotic 3D printer to build moon base
The ESA is looking to colonise the moon and use 3D printers to add a touch of European design.
Do you think this cartoon is offensive? Many Indians do
OPINION: Indians think that a recent cartoon published by The New York Times is simply more evidence of the way the world looks at them despite their progress.
India's Mars Mission, executed 'on a budget less than Gravity's' wows the world
By putting a satellite into Mars' orbit, India has brought attention to its space program and its ability to do complex things inexpensively.
NASA issues contracts to Virgin Galactic, US space firms
The US space agency has awarded contracts to American companies for payloads to be sent into space.
Rebooting on Mars
NASA will be reformatting the flash memory on its Mars rover Opportunity.
To the Moon: 45 years after Apollo 11
A new generation of manned missions to the moon by NASA is not a certainty, but many of the parts are being put into place to make it possible.
To the Moon: Rocketdyne, Keeper of the Flame
Our third installment in our series is about Rocketdyne, the company which built and designed the mighty rocket engines for the Saturn V.
To the Moon: Grumman, One Giant Landing for Mankind
Our fourth and final installment in our series is about Grumman, the company which built the Lunar Module (LEM) which made the historic manned landing on the Moon's surface on July 20, 1969.
To the Moon: Boeing, the Rocket Foundry
Our first profile in our series about the Apollo program is Boeing Integrated Defense Systems.
To the Moon: The Integrators
Our second installment in our series is about IBM and UNIVAC, the two primary computer systems integrators for the Apollo missions.
To the moon: How we built the technologies
While many of the proud Americans who were involved in the Apollo project are no longer with us 45 years later, the technologies they built live on, will be further refined, and will return us to that lonely world and beyond.
To infinity and beyond! Voyager 1 is indeed in interstellar space
According to NASA and the Jet Propulsion Lab, a solar storm has caused Voyager 1 to reach interstellar space.
Australia, US, and UK join partnership to protect satellites
Australia is joining a global initiative to help satellites avoid space junk, and each other.
RIP: China lunar rover...or not
Headlines that China's troubled lunar rover, named Yutu or Jade Rabbit, has breathed its last are apparently premature, after reports surface it has regained normal signal reception but still faces serious malfunction.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
You're going to want to read through this thread, because you're a bit off on some basic concepts.
The cookie-cutter build is this one; 3/5 Reckoning instead of DS/DG would be more threat but isn't necessary. If you want to read up on why the spec is cookie cutter, that information is here.
I really, really wouldn't recommend using a macro. Your core rotation is 5 abilities and isn't difficult to learn.


text:
May we also suggest the following gifts...
Customer Reviews
Average Ratings:
Write your own review
Rate this product:
"Business Card Holder"
By BethAnne
Comments: Perfect Gift! Was very pleased with the quality of the gift and the engraving was perfect. Thank you
"Card holder with pen"
By Greg Lemus
Comments: Very handy and it looks great. Ordered a few more for my clients and added my business logo. They came out perfect. It's always a pleasure ordering from memorable gifts.


text:
Etchings ReviewiPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Etchings employes a simple and clean interface to give photo addicts the ability to make any photo look like a hand-drawn sketch.
Read The Full Review »
Posts Tagged MindSea Development Inc
Etchings ReviewiPhone App - Designed for the iPhone, compatible with the iPad
Posted September 4th, 2012 by Michael Halloran
Read The Full Review »
Top 148 App Lists
Featured Apps
Follow Us
Would you like your application reviewed on 148Apps? See the About page for information.
Hot Apps!
Latest Posts
Tilt to Live Bundle Set to Arrive This Thanksgiving
One Man Left has unveiled an upcoming Tilt to Live bundle, allowing players to get the series for a discounted price. Entitled the Tilt to Live Tilty-Tilt Boom Boom Bundle, the bundle will include Tilt to Live, Tilt to Live 2: Redonkulous, and Tilt to Live: Gauntlet's Revenge at a price that's 44% cheaper than buying all […]
Steel Media Network
148Apps - iPhone app reviews and news. The best gosh darn iPhone app site this side of Mars.
Android Rundown - Android news and reviews. Where you get the rundown on Android apps and hardware.
Best App Ever - Yearly Mobile App Achievement Awards.
Pocket Gamer - Mobile game reviews, news, and features.
Pocket Gamer.biz - Mobile games industry news, opinion, and analysis.
AppSpy - iOS game news and video reviews.
Copyright © 2008-2014 Steel Media Ventures.
148Apps is an independent publication of Steel Media Ventures that has not been authorized, sponsored, or approved by Apple Inc.
iPhone App Reviews | iPhone News | iPhone App Price Drops | New iPhone Apps | iPhone Accessories Store | iPhone App RSS Feeds
Top iPhone Accessories Top Free iPhone Apps | Top Free iPhone Games | Top Paid iPhone Apps | Top Paid iPhone Games | Top Paid iPhone Games
About 148Apps | Contact Us | Advertising | Privacy Policy, Terms of Use, Disclosures | Why 148?


text:
Post links to your portfolios, reader reviews etc here. We pay for any we publish
Use this control to limit the display of threads to those newer than the specified time frame.
Allows you to choose the data by which the thread list will be sorted.
Order threads in...
Note: when sorting by date, 'descending order' will show the newest results first.
Forum Rules


text:
Where is home technology headed? We saw some great innovations—many in the TV world—at the recent CES 2010 show.
We also talked to some of our friends who make a living as custom electronics professionals (CE pros) to get their take on what's big for 2010. Systems that can help homeowners curb their energy use are hot; so are multiscreen video walls and housewide high-def. The popularity and use of these technologies are no where near pervasive, but we've certainly seen a paradigm shift as custom electronics professionals and consumers are beginning to include them in their home designs.
CE pros understand that importance of staying on the cutting edge. If they don't, they risk losing customers. It's their job to introduce homeowners to the latest and greatest in home technology. Even if you don't latch on to some of their ideas now, you'll at least be able to keep a pulse of where the industry is headed, and can add these devices and systems when you're ready
Here's where home technology is headed, according to a few reputable CE pros we asked:
—More mobile control. Whether you've got an iPhone, BlackBerry, Droid or some other mobile device, you'll be able to link to the systems in your house remotely through special programming (often free) downloadable applications.
—Voice control. "The ability to ask a computer or system to play a song or pull up a bit of information seemed far fetched a while ago, but with Rhapsody, Hulu, YouTube, and Google, it seems only a matter of time before someone will be able to provide an interface that will able to support voice control," says Brian Duggan of Union Place, Excelsior, Minn.
—Video walls. Requests for video walls are increasing at Hi-Tech Home in Clovis, Calif., says company general manager Chris Green. "Whether it's using six TVs that can be combined into one display or one large display that can be separated into four sections, a video wall is a lot of fun."
—Energy management. Technology is and will continue to be used increasingly as a way to conserve energy. Curtis LeMaster of Control Designer in Orlando, Fla., sees huge potential for LED lighting. "It's going to have a big impact."
—Fiber optics. Entertainment is driven by content—both physical and downloadable. As the bandwidth requirements of this content increases, fiber optic cabling will become necessary, says LeMaster. "It is not well used in the residential market now, but this will change and change soon."Follow Electronic House on Facebook and Twitter.
Check out our recommendations for the season's best new TVs for home theater, living room or anywhere.
Home automation system helps wounded war veteran live more comfortably.
Check out our recommendations for the season's best new TVs for home theater, living room or anywhere.