Dark Souls is finally making its way to the current generation of consoles with the May 25 release of Dark Souls: Remastered. The game is releasing on PS4, Xbox One, PC and even the Switch! As a hardcore fan, this might be my most anticipated release of the year. But what exactly are we getting with this remaster? 

Dark Souls takes place in the brutal, yet beautiful, world of Lordran. It's a place full of ghouls, skeletons and giant demons out to kill you. And thanks to the boosted frame rate and resolution in this Remastered version, the world really comes alive. Dark Souls actually had a lot of graphical details that were washed out in the lower resolutions of the last generation releases, so it's nice to finally see them in all their glory. PC fans have been enjoying the higher quality assets for a while and now it's coming to consoles. As I made my way from the start of the game to the first main area, I couldn't help but look around in awe. The first thing that impressed me was the sparkle effect around the first item you can pick up. The lighting has definitely been improved. At one point I wanted to put a "Beautiful View Ahead" message on the ground, but realized I didn't have the item that allows you to do that. I'm looking forward to seeing how the improved resolution and lighting will enhance some of the oppressive areas later in the game.  

The biggest changes coming to this version are the multiplayer and this is what I'm looking forward to the most. The maximum number of players in the same world is increasing from 4 to 6, and tweaks are being made to allow friends to connect with each other much easier. It appears that the new system will be similar to that found in Dark Souls 3, which is good news as that game was much smoother than the previous entries. The chaos of six players fighting each other in the forest area will be a sight to behold!

Quality of life improvements galore. Fans have been demanding various small fixes to make lives easier when playing the game and it looks like the developers were listening. Consumable souls and covenant items can be used in multiples rather than one at a time. What a time-saver! And covenants can even be switched at the bonfire now. Look forward to other small tweaks that will make surviving Lordran slightly less painful. One change that I haven't been able to confirm is gesture canceling. Being attacked by dishonorable players while you were stuck in a bowing animation is terrible. It was not possible to cancel gestures in the demo I played, but I hope it can be added into the final game. 

Thanks to Dark Souls: Remastered coming to the Switch, players can now play anywhere they want. If portability is a big deal to you, grab the Switch version. Though this is a game that requires intense concentration. It might not be the best choice for a morning commute. I do look forward to being on the bus and hearing "Why's that guy back there screaming?" "Oh, he's been stuck on the tutorial boss all week..."

And the game is still hard! I've actually beaten Dark Souls and some of the other games in the series without leveling up. Sure, I haven't played this game in a few years, but how hard could it be? Well, the challenge is still there. You can never underestimate Dark Souls! I actually died a few times and I was really happy about that. I can't wait to jump back into the challenge when the game launches in late May.

Hint: Don't throw your controller in frustration, especially if you're playing on Switch!

by Alexis Kirsch