DARK SOULS™ III - Ashes of Ariandel™ Review Summary

Final boss highly praised: The final boss is frequently mentioned as one of the best in the series and the game, with players finding it fun, challenging, and memorable.

Sister Friede is a standout boss: Sister Friede is highlighted as one of the best and most challenging bosses in the series, with players appreciating her unique fight and difficulty.

Challenging and fun gameplay: The DLC offers challenging boss fights and enemies, which players find enjoyable and fun.

Beautiful and atmospheric locations: The locations in the DLC are praised for their beauty and atmospheric design, particularly the snowy and icy areas.

DLC is enjoyable and worth it: Players find the DLC enjoyable and worth the price, with positive impressions and recommendations.

DLC criticized for poor value: The DLC is widely criticized for being short, lacking content, and not worth the price. Many players find it forgettable and not interesting, with some calling it the worst DLC of any game.

Boss fights are lackluster: Players find the boss fights to be poorly designed, frustrating, and not fun. The bosses are considered weak, boring, and lacking in challenge, with some fights being repetitive and difficult.

Enemy placement and design issues: Enemy placement is criticized for being annoying, frustrating, and poorly implemented. Enemies are often overpowered, have too much health, and are placed in a way that seems lazy and rushed.

Poor level and map design: The level and map design are criticized for being boring, uninspired, and poorly designed. Players find the areas uninteresting to explore and the gameplay mechanics lacking.

New enemies and bosses: The DLC includes new enemies and two main bosses: Champion Grave Warden with a wolf and Sister Friede with Father Ariandel. These additions enhance the game's challenge and variety.

New PVP arena and modes: The DLC adds a new PVP arena and introduces new PVP modes, including a Duel mode with specific rules. This provides additional content for PVP players.

Level design with snow: The level design includes snowy areas, which can be challenging to navigate and may lead to enemy swarming. These areas add a unique atmosphere and difficulty to the game.

DLC introduces diverse new areas: The DLC features a large, interconnected location with various environments such as forests, snowdrifts, a rotting village, and creepy caves. It also introduces a new area called Ariandel, described as beautiful and detailed.

Boss fight mechanics and design: The DLC features detailed boss mechanics, including movesets, weapon design, and phases. The final boss has a three-stage battle, adding complexity and depth to the fights.

Missing textures in buildings: Players have reported issues with missing textures in various buildings throughout the game. This problem affects the visual quality and immersion.

Season pass recommended for purchase: Many players recommend buying the season pass, especially at a discount, as it provides better value and includes multiple DLCs.

Ringed City preferred over Ashes of Ariandel: Several reviews suggest that The Ringed City is a better purchase, especially after finishing the base game, and some recommend getting both DLCs together as a package.

Worth it for boss fights: Many players find the DLC worth buying for the boss fights alone, which are considered some of the best in the series.

Worth experiencing for the story: Players who enjoy the story find the DLC worth experiencing at least once, making it a worthwhile playthrough.

Recommended for fans of the base game: The DLC is particularly recommended for those who enjoyed the base game and want more of the same experience.

Community fair range: $5.00 - $7.50.

Game completion: 5.0h.

Story completion: 4.0h.

Session length: 1.0h.

The game is initially perceived as tedious and boring, with fun starting only after reaching certain boss fights, particularly Friede. The overall sentiment is negative due to poor level design and enemy layout.

Reported time to anchor: 1h.

Friction: tedious gameplay; poor enemy layout; boring level design.

Lore Enthusiast: Explores all story elements, enjoys digging into lore, and appreciates narrative depth. Motivation: Story and lore expansion. Stance: sale.

Versatile Challenger: Enjoys both PVE and PVP, experiments with new weapons and spells, seeks out challenges. Motivation: Replayability and challenge. Stance: sale.

Hardcore Veteran: Seeks out and enjoys the most difficult content, persists through challenging gameplay, values overcoming hardships. Motivation: Seeking extreme challenges. Stance: deep sale.

Steam Deck: The analysis of user feedback reveals significant issues related to the control scheme and accessibility of the game. Many users find the game much easier and more enjoyable when using a controller, suggesting that the default control scheme may not be well-optimized. Additionally, the necessity of having a controller to fully enjoy the game poses an accessibility challenge, as users without a controller may find the game frustrating and less enjoyable.

Monetization: The analysis of user reviews for the DLC and Season Pass reveals a significant amount of dissatisfaction regarding the value for money and perceived greed of the developers. Many users feel that the content does not justify the price, leading to a perception of greed and a lack of substantial content. However, there are also positive reviews that highlight the enjoyment and worth of the DLC, indicating a mixed reception.