You Died Quotes

“lot to laugh about. I’ve tracked down Greer, who also co-hosts the wonderful Dark Insight podcast, to discuss numerous facets of Dark Souls PvP.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Long-term observers of video games will remember that they went through something of an identity crisis in the mid-'00s, during which they were continually trying to ape films, as if the creative apex of the video game form was to be exactly like a movie... It took a good while for games to emerge from this phase and realise that they didn't actually have to be like film; that they have their own ways of telling stories, their own ways of getting into your head...

...An especially interesting aspect of Dark Souls' story is that it could only be told through a video game, making it almost unique. It tells us very little through the mediums of text or film, and vast amounts through context, exploration and environmental storytelling that simply would not be possible in any other format. Nowadays it's widely regarded as a masterclass in interactive narrative design, despite the fact that any given player could bypass the story entirely if they weren't inclined to investigate.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Long-term observers of video games will remember that they went through something of an identity crisis in the mid-'00s, during which they were continually trying to ape films, as if the creative apex of the video game form was to be exactly like a movie... It took a good while for games to emerge from this phase and realise that they didn't actually have to be like film; that they have their own ways of telling stories, their own ways of getting into your head...

An especially interesting aspect of Dark Souls' story is that it could only be told through a video game, making it almost unique. It tells us very little through the mediums of text or film, and vast amounts through context, exploration and environmental storytelling that simply would not be possible in any other format. Nowadays it's widely regarded as a masterclass in interactive narrative design, despite the fact that any given player could bypass the story entirely if they weren't inclined to investigate.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“It is totally possible to play through Dark Souls in its entirety and have no idea what actually happened. There is no shame in this... This is because enjoying Dark Souls' story is not a passive experience; it's not told to you. You have to find it. You have to search for hints in item descriptions, in the sparse snippets of dialogue, in your surroundings, in the forms and lairs and implied histories of the bosses you encounter... It's an extraordinary approach to telling a story. Most games are so straightforward with their plots.

...This philosophy of ambiguity derives from Miyazaki's teen years reading fantasy novels in English... Because of the language barrier, much of these stories remained mysterious to him: he was left to fill in the blanks with his own imagination... [T]here was an allure to not knowing entirely what was going on... [His] method of storytelling comes from that inspiration – the shadowy parts of a story, or a legend that you can't make out.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“It is totally possible to play through Dark Souls in its entirety and have no idea what actually happened. There is no shame in this... This is because enjoying Dark Souls' story is not a passive experience; it's not told to you. You have to find it. You have to search for hints in item descriptions, in the sparse snippets of dialogue, in your surroundings, in the forms and lairs and implied histories of the bosses you encounter... It's an extraordinary approach to telling a story. Most games are so straightforward with their plots.

...This philosophy of ambiguity derives from Miyazaki's teen years reading fantasy novels in English... Because of the language barrier, much of these stories remained mysterious to him: he was left to fill in the blanks with his own imagination... [and] there was an allure to not knowing entirely what was going on... [His] method of storytelling comes from that inspiration – the shadowy parts of a story, or a legend that you can't make out.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Long-term observers of video games will remember that they went through something of an identity crisis in the mid-'00s, during which they were continually trying to ape films, as if the creative apex of the video game form was to be exactly like a movie... It took a good while for games to emerge from this phase and realise that they didn't actually have to be like film; that they have their own ways of telling stories, their own ways of getting into your head. Dark Souls didn't start that counter-movement, but it was a hugely persuasive example of it.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Over the course of writing this book, one thing I've heard over and over again from Dark Souls players is that, because of the high stakes, both victory and defeat feel more meaningful... Other games are exciting, sure, but I don't think I've ever leaped up and screamed at the television, arms raised in jubilation, whilst playing any other game. The way you feel during the final minutes of those tight boss fights, where both you and your foe are millimetres from death and you've been holding your breath for seemingly minutes at a time, is not something most video games are capable of eliciting.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Other games are exciting, sure, but I don't think I've ever leaped up and screamed at the television, arms raised in jubilation, whilst playing any other game. The way you feel during the final minutes of those tight boss fights, where both you and your foe are millimetres from death and you've been holding your breath for seemingly minutes at a time, is not something most video games are capable of eliciting.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Over the course of writing this book, one thing I've heard over and over again from Dark Souls players is that, because of the high stakes, both victory and defeat feel more meaningful.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Dark Souls' most obvious trait also happens to be its least interesting; fixating on 'gosh, this game's hard' seems a bit obvious when we could be talking about its themes, its lore, its fascinating game design.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“You'll hear jazz musicians talk about how playing the rests in the music can be just as important as hitting the notes surrounding them. In Dark Souls, more spacious arenas such as Darkroot Basin provide a necessary counterpoint to the highly crafted arteries through which you pass in the game's maze-like sequences.”
― Jason Killingsworth, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“The vast majority of level furniture in RPGs feels like part of a prefabricated set, as if it came out of a Lego box and was artfully snapped together by the designer. A bridge here, a thatched-roof cottage there. The Great Hollow's interior, by contrast, feels organic, hand-crafted. The roots and branches here loop, weave and curl through the tree's interior like a calligrapher's strokes drawn across three-dimensional space. It's hard to detect any algorithmic sausage-making at work in the code. As a result, you get a world that feels like it was sketched on a canvas, as opposed to programmed on a computer.”
― Jason Killingsworth, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Start mashing controller buttons and triggers, find your light and heavy attacks, how did that feel? Nice, eh? Take a moment to appreciate the gleeful hyperbole of the sound design – the audible crunch of each weapon strike, the elongated swoosh as an enemy's soul vacates its body. Every combat transaction in Dark Souls feels rewarding, in large part because of sensory heft.”
― Jason Killingsworth, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“Exploring Lordran is one of Dark Souls' foremost pleasures, and the seamlessness with which its various zones connect offers the gratification you get watching adjoining puzzle pieces snap together. It's worth considering each area in its turn, the architecture and meticulous care with which they're constructed. It's difficult to think of another game in which every brushstroke feels this considereed - everything down to the placement of specific pieces of loot and their significance to the lore. This is why fans feel comfortable speculating so aggressively about the world of Dark Souls. The lack of arbitrariness across so many facets of the game's construction makes every subsequent detail feel just as potentially meaningful.”
― Jason Killingsworth, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion

“A horrible goat demon has moved in below.”
― Keza MacDonald, You Died: The Dark Souls Companion