Who else finds Souls games relaxing?

[sn00zer]

This is not a brag thread. Souls games are easy blah blah blah....they aren't, saying they are is dumb.

I was watching clips of some streamers playing Elden Ring. I get that they are upping the emotion for entertainment value, but my God they seem so stressed out. Like, they seem like they are genuinely getting angry. When I die 95% of the time I'm like "ah better luck next time"

Anyway. I find Souls games very relaxing. Unless Im are very specifically at a particularly difficult point in the game like a boss battle, I find these games pretty damn relaxing.

They require your full attention, which is fine, but the sort of wait for an opportunity to attack means there's actually a lot of down time. Slowly walking along, waiting to attack, wandering around. It's surprisingly chill outside of boss fights.

Who else finds Souls games relaxing? Note....not Sekiro...Sekiro is the opposite of relaxing.

 

[Strings]

After the first run they're therapeutic/comfy, yeah. The first time through, iunno if I'd describe them as relaxing.

 

[fontguy]

The relative lack of dialogue, music, and cutscenes leave a lot of room for introspection. Lots of quiet serenity.

 

[lvl 99 Pixel]

In a way. They're surreal and take me out of real problems for a short while, but that's not exclusive to Dark Souls.

 

[Red]

I am in this boat. People talk about farm sims as "comfy games" but for me I rarely feel more at home than when on the roofs of Anor Londo.

 

[Host Samurai]

Absolutely. I love just exploring at my leisure as I absorb the atmosphere and admire the art.

 

[Dogui]

After finishing the first time, they are definitely relaxing. Specially with a podcast.

Aside stuff like Super Mario, first Dark Souls is the ultimate relaxing game for me, specially because i know everything about it at this point. It's the game to replay when i don't want to think and something irl happened.

Still die 5+ times at a lot of bosses, but i'm too used to that to lose my cool.

 

[Kinthey]

 

[MoosetheMark]

I know it's kind of anathema to many folks but I love playing these games with a guide. Even the first time, I have too much exploration FOMO for such long arduous games that I'm unlikely to play again. It's like completing a Lego set for me, following instructions to complete an intricate task, Only with Souls games there are brutally challenging boss battles along the way. It helps with my focus and it's great to just pop on, make a little progress, and walk away for a while.

 

[Cryoteck]

The earlier titles I find are but the newer ones just aren't for me.

 

[blueredandgold]

I was never a (twin sticks) console FPS guy but I think the COD4 era (eg that training course at the start which is SMB Level 1-1 tier of gameplay mechanic teaching) whereby the player learns something that's going to be innate but they don't they're learning is the same thing.

The early to mid spots in a game like Dark Souls that let you find your own rhythm (why is this word so hard to spell) are similar - you could and absolutely might 'fail' or some skills might atrophy. But it's like riding a bike, you just have to remember to get on it again and before long, you never actually forget your brain just goes 'I got you'.

 

[Command & Conker]

Absolutely. I think it's the pace of the combat and the game in general. Slow and methodical.

 

[naff]

Absolutely, I think a big part of their appeal is how stripped back they are letting you engage without telling you you're missing an interaction, got 4 sidequests left in this hub area, haven't maxed out your social connections, while still having a lot of those activities there to explore if you're inclined.

Meditative.

Wildly different games, but I think of games like Super Metroid and Morrowind similarly. Comforting classics that just let you hang out and vibe in the world without overwhelming you with communicating what you're supposed to be doing.

 

[LossAversion]

Dark Souls 3 is an extremely comfy game for me.

 

[Faces of Death]

Yup. After the first run they're pretty chill and comforting.

 

[psionotic]

They're now the only video game type that allows my ADHD-addled brain to achieve a pleasurable flow state. I get frustrated or bored by just about everything else.*


*except Slay the Spire, which in accordance with another thread, is indeed a perfect video game.

 

[Hoggle]

Yeah, they're really easy to just pick up, start a new character, and then play until I've had enough. Once you've sort of learned how to play the games there's not really a lot to remember and so I can just jump in and feel comfortable.

Contrast it to something like Nioh and I feel j have to play the tutorial each time to remember the mechanics

 

[Kiyamet]

They are slow moving rhythm games. Just gotta turn the music down because it gets pretty harsh sometimes.

 

[Shoot]

The relative lack of dialogue, music, and cutscenes leave a lot of room for introspection. Lots of quiet serenity.

Click to shrink...

Yeah it's the silence that makes it relaxing.

 

[Deranged Hermit]

Yeah, I replay them in part due to this. Combat is intense but brief (and on replay it's not that intense) and most of your time in the game is spent traveling, observing, and planning. 80% of the game is very calm and quiet.

 

[Bizkit Krueger]

yeah they're real cozy. some of the best videogame spaces to sink into and relax with once you've got your bearings

 

[Conciliator]

I'm not sure I would describe it that way personally, but I kinda get it. They have a real ambient atmosphere, and in a world where more and more things are seemingly tuned towards immediate gratification and lower attention spans and maximized content feeds, they also have this confidence about letting things be slow and quiet much of the time.

 

[Freedonia]

Very relaxing, and very easy to get immersed. Replays are even more fun and relaxing, I don't care how high of a ng+ I'm on, I'm collecting every item that I know of

 

[SunBroDave]

Yeah they are simultaneously "all consuming" in that your brain is so preoccupied with all of the different gameplay elements that you get taken out of whatever real world stuff is stressing you out, and Souls games are also "simple" in that once you've "mastered" a game and know the ins and outs, executing in a way that leads to victory and progress is so consistently achievable in a way that real world problems are not. Both of these things contribute to a feeling of "relaxation" when real life is throwing you curve balls

 

[100%TrophyMaster]

I mean about as relaxing as a resident evil game which isn't relaxing at all. I don't find dying in a few hits relaxing. I find the Souls games more satisfying when you advance versus comfy.

 

[ChrisD]

On replays more so. But yeah honestly even a first run through, if you get in the mindset of combing through stuff, just that slow, methodical gameplay. It can feel "relaxing".

Different game entirely, but I think one of the most therapeutic game series for me is Etrian Odyssey. You travel a bit. You fill the map. You go back to town. You go out a bit further, this time to a shortcut. You go back to town. You travel out again, fill the map to another shortcut. You have enough TP to continue on so you hit up the Gather Points at least. You go back to town. It's a very mean series with some of the random encounters, but it's also very easy to turn into a calm routine. And that's how I would sometimes end up playing Souls even in first go through.

 

[wtd2009]

This is my comfort food these days. I've played them enough now that there is comfort in making a build I'm familiar with, trying a different weapon sometimes, knowing where things are. I usually summon too because I'm just kind of breezing through the game.

Except dark souls 2. That fucking game owns me no matter what.

 

[TaySan]

Not for me i can never get into them.

 

[L11ghtman]

100% I do, although it really depends on how familiar I am with the game. A new FROMSOFT is pure tension, excitement, and discovery because they're artists at ensuring you find something new every few seconds of movement. Elden Ring doesn't get enough praise for how well it does this… something interesting every few seconds of moving around the map. The older games do this well too, as do many non-FROMSOFT games, but it's really a sign of brilliant game design. Makes it hard to relax when you don't know what's coming though. After my first run, yes absolutely relaxing. The animations, sound, music, and environments are sometimes paradoxically peaceful and calming. At least when nobody is aggro on you.

 

[Ashes of Dreams]

Absolutely, once you've played them enough. Dark Souls 2 is basically comfort food at this point.

 

[ArcticWolf]

I do find them relaxing and of course I totally understand why others would not.

There's a methodical tempo to them that if you're able to not become hung up on things or too worried about things that really don't matter then it just becomes a slow mood. There's an odd feeling also of 'you're alone but still one of innumerable others on this same quest' that the games reinforce which gives this distant community feeling too.

I mean about as relaxing as a resident evil game which isn't relaxing at all. I don't find dying in a few hits relaxing. I find the Souls games more satisfying when you advance versus comfy.

Click to shrink...

Ironically RE1, 2, & 3 (the originals) I find relaxing at times. They were terrifying as a child but some time around halfway through RE1/2 there's a slow tempo achieved that's missing in the modern RE games and Remakes that seem far more 'on your back' about being wound up and tense all the time AND YOU GOTTA SHOOT THE THING NOW RUN FASTER, DAMNIT. On revisiting the old RE's when the fear has long since lost its venom there's an odd calm that's rather soft, like listening to a haunting musical piece.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo3k78A18r4

 

[kamineko]

Yeah, after the first playthrough I can just zone out. Love it.

 

[Grips]

I think its relaxing because its very replayable and rewarding.
Same with RE games.
edit: oh and MGS1-2-3

It immerses me and relaxes my mind, really odd.

 

[CrocM]

 

[Corv]

On replays for sure. First time through and still learning things though, not so much.

 

[100%TrophyMaster]

I do find them relaxing and of course I totally understand why others would not.

There's a methodical tempo to them that if you're able to not become hung up on things or too worried about things that really don't matter then it just becomes a slow mood. There's an odd feeling also of 'you're alone but still one of innumerable others on this same quest' that the games reinforce which gives this distant community feeling too.



Ironically RE1, 2, & 3 (the originals) I find relaxing at times. They were terrifying as a child but some time around halfway through RE1/2 there's a slow tempo achieved that's missing in the modern RE games and Remakes that seem far more 'on your back' about being wound up and tense all the time AND YOU GOTTA SHOOT THE THING NOW RUN FASTER, DAMNIT. On revisiting the old RE's when the fear has long since lost its venom there's an odd calm that's rather soft, like listening to a haunting musical piece.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lo3k78A18r4

Click to shrink...

Man I just wish I had the calm factor this thread is giving. Even on replays with both Souls and RE I am stressed/anxious/peak focused. For me the type of chill game you guys are describing is Assassin's Creed. Peak exploration with no real threat for dying.

 

[Grips]

Souls games are therapeutic honestly.


"don't you dare go hollow"

 

[DinoBlaster]

I'd be on board with this if I could simply pause the game lol. I know that's a colossal ask!

 

[Melody]

Yeah, they're pretty chill games. It's nice that they don't really require fast reflexes, it's more about patience and pattern recognition than anything else. I like to explore their worlds and like that their combat and bosses are basic enough you can auto pilot the vast majority of them. I beat everything quick and just go back to looking around every corner, mostly just taking in the cool architecture or whatever cool environment I find myself in.

 

[Zebesian-X]

View: https://youtu.be/Z9zUkNBGVhs?si=2aUav_Of5gPt7aJv

 

[AwakenedCloud]

Most of the time. You just have to accept that dying is part of the process, and the run backs are there for you to process info.

 

[ArcticWolf]

Man I just wish I had the calm factor this thread is giving. Even on replays with both Souls and RE I am stressed/anxious/peak focused. For me the type of chill game you guys are describing is Assassin's Creed. Peak exploration with no real threat for dying.

Click to shrink...

Everyone is totally different, me for example can't find the happy calm a lot of have with Fuga: Melodies of Steel because even though it's not an especially difficult game nor is even time focused (all turn based) it's filled with a lot of one way choices and budgeting limited resources. Often I tab to a walkthrough and to check I'm not going to have to throw another orphan in the furnace because I spent my limited points on the wrong characters dry cleaning.

 

[Neverx]

I agree, there is something about the atmosphere that really makes it chill, especially when grinding for a bit

 

[BigPete7978]

Relaxing? No. Atleast not for me. Do I enjoy the environments and atmospheres they offer? Sure. I am horrible at them, but enjoy them.

 

[Yam's]

I also find the Dark Souls trilogy and Elden Ring very relaxing, outside of a few areas obviously. There's something very soothing about meticulously exploring their world and soaking in their peculiar atmosphere. Even more so in NG+ where the games become a power fantasy journey.

Bloodborne and Sekiro though? Not so much.

 

[Lucreto]

It's quite the opposite. I never played a genre that raises my blood pressure as much. I am at a point if a game it describes as Soulsbourne or souls like with no difficulty options it permanently kills any hype for the game.

 

[jaymzi]

Definitely not on the first playthrough.

After that though, yeah, I am just basically running around destroying everything with some OP build.

 

[Dogui]

Everyone is totally different, me for example can't find the happy calm a lot of have with Fuga: Melodies of Steel because even though it's not an especially difficult game nor is even time focused (all turn based) it's filled with a lot of one way choices and budgeting limited resources. Often I tab to a walkthrough and to check I'm not going to have to throw another orphan in the furnace because I spent my limited points on the wrong characters dry cleaning.

Click to shrink...

The first Fuga game gets specially easy if you always choose the hardest routes. Yeah.

Because it will mean more exp and the characters will get super overpowered.

Fuga 2 balances it a lot better to the point that sometimes the hard route actually makes the game harder, though.

 

[Boopers]

I like how intimate you get with all the enemies and their attack patterns. It's kinda cozy in that regard — you know what to expect.

Plus, like, everything's dead already, so there's no real consequence to dying. Yeah, you lose souls, but those are material — you still have yourself.

 

[thetrin]

Not in the least bit. I feel like I'm going to have a heart attack all the time playing those damn games.