From Software Games like Dark Souls on pc?

[mugarod]

I watched few videos on youtube to see what the fuss was all about and the game reminded me of Castlevania:dark symphony of the night which I enjoyed back in a day. I dont ahve PS3 and dont really plan on buying it anytime soon but I would like to play more games like that. Is there anything on pc that would be similar to dark souls or Castlevania? or the only games are on consoles if so can someone recommend something I can emulate on pc, maybe for ps1 or w/e

 

[Crooked Bee]

I'd recommend From Software's earlier games, the predecessors to Dark Souls and Demon's Souls, especially Shadow Tower (PS1) and Shadow Tower Abyss (PS2; it received an English translation patch recently; link) as well as the King's Field series and Eternal Ring. Can't really go wrong with them; they're some of the best dungeon crawling ARPGs ever made. (And yes, you can emulate them no probs.)

 

[Cowboy Moment]

Blade of Darkness as far as the combat itself goes. It lacks the exploration of Dark Souls, but the combat is similar, albeit without the huge bossfights. It's also quite hard, but in a different way. Dark Souls' difficulty comes from it punishing you for being stupid or reckless, kind of like roguelikes do. In BoD, the combat itself is the challenge.

 

[mugarod]

I finished Blade of Darkness like 5 times allready. That game was awsome but not quite what I am looking for right now. To specify I guess I want to play a game with exploration like Dark Souls, where its a huge area and you get to find all this different shortcuts all the time so its all interconnected and you get to fight some ridiculous bosses. That is why it kind of reminds me of Castlevania since a lot of it was backtracking through same areas to find new secret spots. I havent really played a lot of console games so I dont even really know what is avaliable like that.

 

[Damned Registrations]

If you're looking for exploration heavy metroidvania sort of gameplay, there's Aquaria and An Untitled Story on PC. Both are 2D and have much different atmosphere though. Also, the second one is just plain ugly. Aquaria starts off on the linear side but opens up quite a bit in the midgame.

Also, metroid games obviously. Though the prime series was a lot more linear than super metroid, and I don't know anything about the handheld ones. Buts thats all game for emulation. There's also the DS Castlevania games, though they didn't quite match up to SotN in my book.

 

[RPGMaster]

I finished Blade of Darkness like 5 times allready. That game was awsome but not quite what I am looking for right now. To specify I guess I want to play a game with exploration like Dark Souls, where its a huge area and you get to find all this different shortcuts all the time so its all interconnected and you get to fight some ridiculous bosses. That is why it kind of reminds me of Castlevania since a lot of it was backtracking through same areas to find new secret spots. I havent really played a lot of console games so I dont even really know what is avaliable like that.

Batman: Arkham Asylum.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

Also, metroid games obviously. Though the prime series was a lot more linear than super metroid, and I don't know anything about the handheld ones.

Metroid Fusion is like Super Metroid but feels less "desolate" and there's a NPC (an AI) nudging you in the "right" direction at save points. Still, it is like SM so it's not really bad.

 

[SCO]

I finished Blade of Darkness like 5 times allready. That game was awsome but not quite what I am looking for right now. To specify I guess I want to play a game with exploration like Dark Souls, where its a huge area and you get to find all this different shortcuts all the time so its all interconnected and you get to fight some ridiculous bosses. That is why it kind of reminds me of Castlevania since a lot of it was backtracking through same areas to find new secret spots. I havent really played a lot of console games so I dont even really know what is avaliable like that.

Try this for a snes emulator:
http://drewseph.zophar.net/

 

[Jasede]

Maybe you will like the Metroidvania games, like Symphony of the Night. I mean, you mentioned that game in your first post, but maybe you can try out all the similar games, like the ones for the Nintendo DS?

I don't like them, but most people do.

 

[deuxhero]

Don't forget the GBA Castlevanias.

IMO

AoS>DoS>CotM~=PoR>HoD. Haven't done OoE yet because it is stuck at the too expensive for my budget 20 bucks.

You should play From Software's Lost Kingdoms 2. It isn't like Dark Souls (You can't fall off edges), but it is awesome.

 

[Apollion]

The closest I can think of in terms of atmosphere and difficulty would maybe be the Gothic series. It also remind me a bit of that certain type of first person rpg that the elder scrolls series could never quite reach the level of, games like Arx Fatalis, Ultima Underworld I & II. Someone already mentioned the King's Field games on the PS1/2 (including Shadow Tower games), they deserve a second mention though, very unique titles. Any incarnation of Mount & Blade is also a great idea if you just want a game with satisfying combat.

I wish they'd release Demon Souls on 360/PC. I wish I could say this game is worth buying a 360 for, but there are so few other exclusive 360 titles worth mentioning. I don't regret buying one myself (got a good deal), but as a PC gamer the PS3 would have been a better option.