Dark Souls ships 1.5 million worldwide

by Ludwig Kietzmann on Nov 2nd 2011 11:03AM

Namco Bandai is expanding its captive audience for Dark Souls, the grim action-RPG that critics and fans like, loathe and then love. According to developer From Software in Japan, 1.5 million vectors for its brutal challenge have shipped to stores worldwide.

North America has received the largest Stockholm Syndrome shipment of 620,000 units, followed by Europe with 470,000 and then Japan (370,000), where Dark Souls was published by From exclusively on PlayStation 3. The game's gauntlet landed in Asia last on October 18th, shipping 40,000 copies to that region.

We'll be keeping an eye out for Dark Souls' commercial performance in North America once the NPD releases the next round of statistics. How effective is word of mouth, we wonder, when it's whispered seductively through prison bars?

Source: Andriasang (Translation), From Software (Japanese PDF)

Tags: dark-souls, from-software, microsoft, namco-bandai, playstation, project-dark, ps3, shipments, xbox

Reader Comments (89)

i read "Dark Souls whips 1.5 million worldwide." i wouldn't have been surprised.

@Lambrick Someone had a similar thought for a tee: http://www.redbubble.com/people/andresabel/t-shirts/7903437-sandm

:)

I really wanted to like this game, and I bought it on launch, played for about 50 hours, and realized, I was bored. It became a repetitive chore. Made it to Sen's Fortress, after killing Ceaseless Discharge but realized I was no longer having fun. The combat is fantastic, but other than that, I felt the world had no personality, the technical problems were too abundant, and the difficulty was artificial, and just difficult for the sake of being difficult. Disappointed.

@jeck77 I think everyone is entitled to their opinion- the only point I greatly disagree on is 'the world has no personality'. Are we playing the same game? : )

@jeck77 I totally agree with the technical problems & difficulty.

@jeck77

How many games come close to 50 hours of playtime before boring you?

@jeck77 I agree with you. Demon's Souls had way more 'personality' to it.

@jeck77 Wrong. The difficulty is not artificial. Artificial difficulty is like in fps games were the enemies on higher difficulties simply have more bullets/do more damage. In dark souls you can literally beat the game without ever getting touched at level 1 if you're skilled enough.

There's a patch out today in japan (should be very soon..at least for ps3...pretty sure xbox has to get permission from MS or some crap) that will fix a ton of issues especially pvp balance

@Altairio At least he or she gave it the time it deserved. How many people quit after the first hour or two?

Why is Jeck77 getting downvoted for sharing what seems to be a well formed opinion? He's not bashing anything, and he seems to have put a lot of effort into enjoying the game.

@That One Guy No, it took him 50 hours to realize he was bored. He may not have liked it since hour one, but he still played it out.

To be fair, my favorite genre is open world RPG's. Everything from Bethesda, to Bioware (not many true open world, but they kind of make you feel like they are). I liked Demon's Souls, so I was hoping to really like this one. Don't get me wrong, I put in 50 hours because I really kept wanting to see if I was missing something. Like I said, I really enjoy the combat, but I felt Demon's Souls atmosphere was much better, and felt the difficulty and variety in Demon's Souls was better than Dark Souls.

When I beat Ceaseless Discharge on my second try, I just repeated my same attack over and over again after he slammed his tentacle down, and felt like the fight was boring. I'm not saying the whole game, just kind of felt overall I was bored, and only playing to try and beat the challenge.

Just an opinion, I don't bash anyone who really likes the game, because I can see why, it's just not for me I guess. I really did try, just took me 50 hours to realize not for me.

@Oddgirl

Eh it's ok. Downvoting doesn't bother me, it's the internet, my life doesn't revolve around getting approval from strangers I've never met or ever will. I just find it funny how many people still can't handle opinions when it differs from their own.

@Drew327

Haha, well I guess I missed some of the environments of Demon's Souls. I always felt uncomfortable and at unease from Demon's Souls, this game just didn't have that same effect.

@That One Guy
"It took you 50 hours to realize you don't like a game?"

Well it took me 20 hours to finally *like* Demon's Souls so I can see how it might take that long to dislike Dark Souls.

Sen's Fortress and Anor Londo are probably the two best areas of the game. I would play through them before giving up. Fifty hours is a lot of time to invest without seeing the best the game has to offer (which is Anor Londo in my opinion).

Great to hear, I would be up for a 3rd game. Crossed 100 hours and not ready to put it down, actually made me cancel my Skyrim pre-order. Will get that at the first price drop I guess.

I am not the most hardcore, but I gave this game a try. I played about 15hrs or so & I have to say there are some things I really liked about it, but it was ultimately NOT fun & returned to Gamefly. Don't really get the appeal.

@lewminous

The appeal is the challenge.

@lewminous

The things about this game that turn a lot of people off are the very things that some of us find so appealing.

The hand holding era of video games has made me numb to the point that I can't wait to pop in Dark Souls a few nights a week and receive a kick in the nutsack.

@Jenks I get what you're saying. That's why I just it wasn't fun for me as apposed to just badmouthing the game. I liked playing co-op...but I wasn't able to find humanity/player often enough. I only got to play with others about 3 times. I understand what they were going for, but it's not for me. If they were to create a similar game with drop-in/drop-out co-op & difficulty settings (even with the easiest being harder than other games) I would be all over it.

@lewminous

Skilled gamers like DS. Pampered gamers do not like DS.

DS reminds of the old school games that require skill like Megaman, Ninja Gaiden, Ghost and Goblins. No in-game tutorials or pop ups that tell you how to beat a boss. The only way to learn is through trial and error. That is the appeal in games, it's like a puzzle.

@lewminous

I like being dropped in a labyrinth and the developers saying "go, find your way out". You create your own story, not select from a map or dialog tree.

For the first playthrough, Dark Souls was such a tense and rewarding experience. I loved Demon's Souls, but I like the open world aspect better in this. If there's one area that is giving you trouble, there's usually 3 or 4 others to explore.

@counterko This is ignorance...it's not ABOUT difficulty. That was only a part of the comments I made & the ones I agreed with from another person. Obviously, it's not about skilled vs. pampered either. You like what you like. I DON'T like it enough to keep playing. If you do, great! PRAISE THE SUN! Perhaps, I may pick it up again in the future. I don't totally hate it.

@(Unverified) I hear you...there were times where I would get frustrated & try to look for alternate paths. Oftentimes, I would have to return to try again later after thinking about it more. My process was, try a path a few times, if I couldn't figure it out, look for an alternate route & return later. I made quite a bit of progress. I got quite a ways & I'm happy about that. I didn't think I would get very far.

You hear that? One-point-five million people hate Anor Londo.

@Copybass Ah jeez zombies

1.5 million people hate those stupid Black Knight archers.

*run up the very thin walkway, get shot, fall, promptly throw controller through TV*

@Copybass Ah jeez zombies

Blight town is worse IMO.

I can tell they designed that place to make you feel like you just came back from hell when you finally manage to make it out, and hellish is the word that best describes it.

My first time in blight town I wasn't prepared for the horrors I found, I had no moss, I was a little underleveled, I didn't have the rusted ring and I didn't know about the secret bonfire, to make things worse I was playing offline, so no help or advice. It wasn't pretty, that was the closest I've come to quit this game, but finally beating Queelag and finding the exit to the valley of the drakes was one of the most satisfying experiences I've had with video games.

@Luciano Yes, add to that the fact that the frame rate takes a crap as you get down to ground level! That area was painful.

@Luciano

First time in Blighttown, came in the back entrance:

Walking along, this place is kind of dark. No big deal though, killing these weird bug things. Just hope I don't run into another giant, those guys were rough. Oh hey, it's a little guy with a blowgun, that's adorable. Tink, Tink, Tink goes the dart on my shield. Oh, I just got hit in the back by a mosquito, that's annoying. Hey, why is my health plummeting. Toxic, WTF does it mean that I'm toxic! Crap, what cures toxic? Oh god, the mosquitos keep hitting me. Run away, run away, run away. Fall over dead. Curtain.

@Copybass Ah jeez zombies
The snipers were probably the worst part in the game for me, but you only have to do it once. If you have poison arrows it makes it a lot easier. Ornstein and Smough were pushovers and I even beat "Super Ornstein" didn't think it was tough at all.

The game went to crap 2/3rds of the way though. The beginning is amazing, the middle is really challenging and fun, and the last 1/3 is lazy, terrible zone design with bad monster fights and cheap (NOT challenging) kills.

Stop after Anor Londo, you'll thank me.

@Daveboy

What exactly is cheap in the last 1/3rd besides navigating Lost Izalith?

@Dubiousity

http://s3.amazonaws.com/data.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltwhvoHTbn1qilq9oo1_1280.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAJ6IHWSU3BX3X7X3Q&Expires=1320260257&Signature=Ij10TtHyFIGTS%2F7zpI4adNfZGRQ%3D

@Nie

Ugh, other part got cut out. That picture is relevant to Lost Izalith

@Nie

That doesn't answer my question because that IS Lost Izalith.

@Nie

Unless you were making a joke, in which case I feel stupid.

@Dubiousity

Yea, it was just a joke

@Nie

Dern my impulsive self, I give my apologies sir.

I'm guessing none of you did any pvp. That's where the fun is at

@Imminent Fate

The first and only time so far that I got invaded so far, was damn intense. I barely survived with a sliver of health as this guy was attacking me while I was defending myself from a rat. I had to sit back for a few minutes until my heart stopped pounding.

@Imminent Fate

PVP has so far either been heart-pounding, exhilarating fun (win or lose) or an awful, frustrating, rage inducing fight (always lose). I do feel like there are some exploits people are using in PVP that ruin the experience. I have yet to figure out a defense against Ring of Fog on someone who is a master at backstab. Just seems like there shouldn't be one attack that is so incredibly unbalanced against almost everything else you can do in PVP.

@Lucky48

Thanks for the tips! I'll try those out tonight. I don't have TwoP (no Faith at all), but I do have the Stone Greatsword and can wield it for the same effect. I'll try dropping it as soon as PVP starts and hopefully still have it going by the time I encounter the backstabbers.

I don't have a Fog Ring yet, still trying to get one from the Hunters Covenant, which has been going poorly, as I keep losing in the forest.

@Courtney

Fog Ring and TWOP are getting nerfed in the new patch. Can target fog ring users, and can roll during TWOP among other things. It's out in Japan now, we're anxiously awaiting it here (well, some are anxiously dreading it). Hopefully it'll make PvP more enjoyable and balanced :)

@LockeDaemonfire

Sounds good to me! I think I realized what some of my problem with PVP was. When defending the forest as part of the Hunter's guild, it looks like you can be dropped in on people of varying level. Based on the powers and weapons I was seeing tonight, those people had to have been considerably higher level. About 1 in 5 people I went up against seemed like they were more outfitted like me, and those were always fun. Though me and another guy did manage to take out one uber-phantom, and the payout was 100K in souls. Which was fantastic!

What was so hard about Anor Londo?

@Drew327

Silver Knight archers blocking a short path with arrows that had twice the knocking power of standard arrows, and essentially hit like trucks even when blocked.

@Copybass Ah jeez zombies Ah yes, I was using Havel's shield so could block them. I just ran up on the one on the right, he would take his sword out and inevitably fall off the ledge.

@Drew327

That part is only hard is you proceed like a wuss. You have to run striaght to the archer on the right so he pulls out his sword..THEN! you proceed to sharpen your sword with his collar bone. See...easy as pie! I'm so proud to be one of those 1.5 million owners...and even more proud to be amoung the few with a platinum trophy for this game :)

I appreciate that this game rewards skill in combat. But since the game basically offers no real training, you're forced to learn "on the job". Which is ok, because the penalty for death is not too too steep. So, what's my problem then? Loading from a checkpoint takes too long.

So, I gave up shortly after I began because I found some tough as nails skeletons about 5 minutes outside of the asylum, and was determined to defeat them. I was prepared to die often in perfecting my technique. But every time I died, I had to wait too long, and walk too far to try again. And then I realized that I stopped having fun, and have better things to do. After 8 times, I gave up permanently.

@mezzb

The area with the skeletons is more of a mid/end-game area. You're supposed to head up to Undead Burg which is up the stairs by the cliffs.

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Dark Souls

Dark Souls ships 1.5 million worldwide

Reader Comments (89)

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:04AM Lambrick said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 3:08PM darkfan said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:06AM jeck77 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:09AM Drew327 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:15AM lewminous said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:15AM Altairio said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:15AM CountNoobula said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:17AM Kougeru said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:18AM Oddgirl said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:25AM Oddgirl said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:31AM jeck77 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:35AM jeck77 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:37AM jeck77 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 12:02PM fohf said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 7:42PM BananaBoat said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:07AM Drew327 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:12AM lewminous said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:15AM Dubiousity said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:27AM Jenks said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:39AM lewminous said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:50AM counterko said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 12:01PM (Unverified) said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 12:04PM lewminous said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 12:12PM lewminous said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:16AM Copybass Ah jeez zombies said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:25AM Dubiousity said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:32AM Luciano said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:36AM Drew327 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 1:41PM Courtney said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 2:38PM FiXxXeRJL said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:22AM Daveboy said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:31AM Dubiousity said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:39AM Nie said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:41AM Nie said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:41AM Dubiousity said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:42AM Dubiousity said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:46AM Nie said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:49AM Dubiousity said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:27AM Imminent Fate said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 12:49PM kentuckyfried said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 1:34PM Courtney said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 4:20PM Courtney said

Posted: Nov 3rd 2011 12:59AM LockeDaemonfire said

Posted: Nov 3rd 2011 2:11AM Courtney said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:31AM Drew327 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:46AM Copybass Ah jeez zombies said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:53AM Drew327 said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 2:32PM RagingStormX said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:35AM mezzb said

Posted: Nov 2nd 2011 11:40AM Dubiousity said

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