You’re standing on the high wall of Lothric, looking out over a dying world that’s literally folding in on itself. It’s breathtaking. It’s also terrifying because you know that in about thirty seconds, a winged knight is going to turn you into a grease stain on the cobblestones. That's the core loop. Gameplay Dark Souls 3 is a strange beast because it represents the absolute peak of FromSoftware’s "corridor" design before they decided to go massive with an open world.
Honestly? Some days I think it’s actually better than the open-world stuff.
There’s a tightness here. A specific, aggressive rhythm that Bloodborne fans recognized immediately when the game launched in 2016. It isn't just about swinging a sword. It’s about the "dance." If you’re coming from the slower, more methodical pace of the original Dark Souls or the clunky, divisive agility of Dark Souls 2, the third entry feels like it’s running on high-octane fuel. It is fast. It is punishing. But man, is it precise.
The Mechanical Shift: Speed and Weapon Arts
When Hidetaka Miyazaki returned to direct this one, he brought the speed of Yarnham with him. The stamina bar doesn't feel like a heavy chain anymore. You can roll. Then roll again. Then roll a third time. In the first game, if you rolled three times in a row, you were basically out of breath and waiting for a burial. Here, the gameplay Dark Souls 3 offers is built around mobility.
But it’s not just about running away.
Enter Weapon Arts. Or "Skills," if you want to be formal about it.
Before this, weapons were basically stat sticks with a light attack and a heavy attack. Now, every single piece of gear has a "personality." Take the Farron Greatsword. It’s not just a big slab of iron; it’s a breakdancing kit. You press a button and you’re sliding across the floor, dodging under horizontal swings while dealing massive damage. It changed the meta entirely. It made the "Quality Build" (leveling both Strength and Dexterity) the king of the mountain because you wanted to see every single unique animation the developers tucked away in these blades.
The FP Bar Controversy
We have to talk about the blue bar. Mana? Focus Points? Whatever you call it, it replaced the old "casts per spell" system. Some veterans hated it. They felt it made magic too reliant on the Ashen Estus Flask, which meant you had fewer heals. They weren't wrong. If you’re playing a sorcerer, you’re constantly playing a game of inventory management. Do I take seven health heals and five mana heals? Or do I go glass cannon?
It’s a trade-off. It makes the gameplay Dark Souls 3 provides feel more like a traditional RPG where your resources actually matter. You can't just spam Soul Arrow until the boss dies without thinking about your "Blue Juice."
Boss Design as a Rhythm Game
If you ask anyone why they still play this game ten years later, they’ll say the bosses. It’s the bosses.
Think about Slave Knight Gael. Or Sister Friede. These aren't just fights; they are choreographed performances. Friede, in particular, is a three-phase nightmare that tests your patience, your reflex, and your ability to not throw your controller through a window. The first phase is a stealth hunt. The second is a chaotic duo fight. The third? That’s just pure, unadulterated speed.
It works because the hitboxes are—for the most part—pixel perfect. When you die in Dark Souls 3, you usually know why. You dodged left when you should have stayed still. You got greedy and tried to sneak in that third hit when the boss only gave you a window for two.
It’s fair. Mostly. Except for the Camera Demon, of course. The ancient enemy of every FromSoft fan.
The Problem with Giant Bosses
We have to be honest: the game struggles when things get too big. Fighting the Ancient Wyvern isn't really a fight; it’s a platforming puzzle that feels out of place. And Yhorm the Giant? If you don't use the Storm Ruler—a specific sword found in his room—the fight is a boring slog against a massive health pool. These are "gimmick" fights. They break the flow. When the gameplay Dark Souls 3 is at its best, it’s humanoid-on-humanoid. It’s you versus the Abyss Watchers. It’s the clink of steel and the desperate roll through a trail of fire.
Level Design: The Illusion of Choice
One of the biggest critiques of Dark Souls 3 is that it’s linear. And yeah, it kind of is. You start at the High Wall, you go to the Settlement, you hit the Woods. There aren't many "sequence breaks" like there were in the first game where you could end up in a late-game area within five minutes of starting.
But look closer.
🔗 Read more: I Am The Milkman: The Viral Chaos of Psychonauts Explained
The individual levels—the "legacy dungeons"—are masterpieces of verticality. The Cathedral of the Deep is a massive, sprawling labyrinth that loops back on itself so many times you’ll get dizzy. You’ll find a shortcut, open a door, and suddenly realize you’re back at the very first bonfire you lit an hour ago. That "Aha!" moment is the drug that keeps people hooked.
- Exploration rewards: The game hides the best loot behind illusory walls.
- Environmental storytelling: You find a corpse slumped over a railing, and the item they're holding tells you exactly why the kingdom fell.
- Risk vs. Reward: Do you push forward with no heals to find the next bonfire, or do you teleport back and lose your progress?
The linearity actually helps the difficulty curve. The developers knew exactly what level you’d be and what gear you’d likely have when you reached a certain boss. This allowed them to tune the encounters to a razor's edge. You never feel truly "overpowered" unless you spend six hours grinding silver knights in Anor Londo. (Which we've all done. Don't lie.)
The Multiplayer Ecosystem: Covenants and Chaos
PvP is where the gameplay Dark Souls 3 offers truly lives forever. The Covenant system is brilliant, even if the "Blue Sentinels" never seem to get summoned when they actually need to be.
You have the Mound-Makers, the "purple phantoms." They’re wildcards. They can help you kill the boss, or they can stab you in the back right before you reach the fog gate. It adds a layer of social tension that you just don't get in other games. You see a purple sign on the ground and you have to ask yourself: "Am I feeling lucky today?"
Then there’s the "Point Down" gesture. It’s the universal sign of disrespect in the community. If you get invaded and killed, and the guy points at the ground, it’s a rite of passage. It’s toxic. It’s hilarious. It’s Dark Souls.
The Visual Identity and Performance
Lothric is grey. It’s brown. It’s ash-colored. Some people find it drab, but it fits the theme. The world is literally ending. The "Dreg Heap" in the DLC shows cities literally piled on top of each other. It’s a visual representation of "The End."
Technically, the game holds up remarkably well. On modern consoles and PC, you’re getting a smooth 60 FPS, which is vital. In a game where a single frame can be the difference between a successful parry and a "YOU DIED" screen, performance isn't just a luxury—it’s a gameplay mechanic.
👉 See also: Space Doughnut Cookie Run: Why This Strange Alien is Actually Meta
Why We Still Care
There’s a specific feeling you get when you finally beat a boss that’s been stonewalling you for three days. Your heart is pounding. Your hands are actually shaking. You feel like a god.
That’s why the gameplay Dark Souls 3 provides is so sticky. It respects the player’s intelligence. It doesn't put a waypoint on your map. It doesn't have a talking companion telling you to "try using fire" every five seconds. It trusts you to figure it out.
It’s a game about persistence. About the fact that failure isn't the end; it’s just data. You died to the Pontiff’s clone? Okay, now you know the clone mimics his moves with a slight delay. You died to the Dancer’s grab? Now you know the tell is a soft hiss and a hand movement.
Actionable Tips for New (or Returning) Unkindled
If you’re jumping back in for a replay or finally tackling it after finishing Elden Ring, here’s how to actually survive.
1. Don't ignore Vigor. New players love putting points into Strength or Intelligence. Stop. Put your first 20 levels into Vigor. You can't deal damage if you’re dead. Having a massive health bar gives you the "buffer" you need to learn boss patterns without getting one-shotted.
2. The Knight is the best starting class.
It’s not boring; it’s efficient. You start with a 100% physical reduction shield and some of the best armor in the early game. The Longsword you start with can literally carry you through the entire game if you keep upgrading it.
3. Learn to roll into attacks. It feels counter-intuitive. Your brain wants to back away. But most bosses have "roll-catcher" moves designed to hit you if you retreat. If you roll through the attack, you end up behind the enemy, perfectly positioned for a backstab or a heavy swing.
4. Use your consumables. That Pine Resin sitting in your inventory? Use it. Most bosses have a weakness. Vordt hates fire. The Abyss Watchers hate lightning. Don't save your items for a "rainy day" that never comes. The rainy day is right now.
5. Manage your weight. Keep your equipment load under 70%. If you go over, you "fat roll." Your invincibility frames disappear, and you become a slow-moving target. If you have to choose between cool-looking heavy armor and a fast roll, choose the roll. Every time.
The world of Lothric is harsh, but it's one of the most rewarding experiences in gaming history. There is no feeling quite like linking the fire—or letting it fade—after a hard-fought journey through the dregs of the world.
The fire fades, but the gameplay is eternal.
Next Steps for Mastering Lothric:
- Audit your build: Go to Rosaria in the Cathedral of the Deep to re-allocate your stats if you feel like your damage has plateaued.
- Hunt the Umbral Ashes: Finding these key items and giving them to the Shrine Handmaid is the only way to unlock unlimited upgrade materials like Titanite Shards and Large Shards.
- Focus on 'Soft Caps': Most stats in Dark Souls 3 see diminishing returns after 40 points. Don't waste levels pushing Strength to 99 until your other vital stats are leveled up.
- Master the Parry: Spend an hour at the High Wall of Lothric practicing parrying the basic hollows. Once you nail the timing, the game's difficulty drops significantly.