‘Dark Souls III’ gameplay details revealed at Gamescom 2015

The first and only time that fans were able to see “Dark Souls III” was during its reveal at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, 2015 in June in a hands-off demo. Now, two months after, fans were able to get a feel of the third iteration of the game at Gamescom 2015. Apart from the hands-on demo, fans were also able to see yet another gameplay trailer.

In light of the hype of the appearance of “Dark Souls III” at Gamescom, IGN revealed some of the details they know about From Software’s new “Dark Souls” game. First off, players reportedly noticed a slightly faster combat pace compared to past “Dark Souls” games. Those in attendance at Gamescom noticed that it played more like its Japanese predecessor, “Demon Souls.” However, although dodging and rolling speed has increased, players will still need to rely on shields to deflect heavy hits from enemies.

As seen in the gameplay video below, one of the bigger adjustments in the combat system is the addition of Weapon Arts, all of which players can access. The gameplay trailer shows an example of a Weapon Art with a spinning attack performed using dual scimitars. Even some shields are capable of Weapon Arts; players can emit an explosion of force that can stun nearby enemies. However, the Weapon Arts are exhaustible and must be refreshed at bonfires.

Critical strikes performed by backstabs also make a comeback in the game after its absence in “Dark Souls II.” Also, just like in “Dark Souls,” backstabbing enemies would initiate a short animation.

From Software also improved the levels in “Dark Souls III” to veer away from the linear levels in the previous title. In the new game, levels are interconnected and branching, meaning there will be several ways to reach an area.

However, despite generally positive reviews from Gamescom attendants, PC Gamer reports that the game has some technical issues. PC Gamer noted that there are frame-rate drops within the game, and that its camera is a little hard to control.

Hopefully, From Software will fix the issues before the game releases. The game is set to launch in the spring of 2016.