Thomas Marinelli ’26

by Thomas Marinelli ’26 on November 6, 2025

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In 2017, as a middle schooler, my friend introduced me to a game called Dark Souls III. My friend had already played it and was desperate for me to try it. I had played plenty of games by that point, but this one would prove to be the hardest yet.

My first reaction? It looked like Game of Thrones meets The Lord of the Rings—definitely my kind of thing—but it was wicked hard. The player is immediately dropped into a world swarming with enemies. At the end of each level are the dreaded “boss fights,” huge enemies with massive health bars, orchestral music blasting, and infinite retries. The first boss, which is supposed to be the easiest, took me over 20 tries to beat. By the second boss, I doubled that number. Needless to say, I hated it.

Why would anyone play this game? It was too hard, there wasn’t much storytelling, it was confusing, and there were barely any multiplayer options. Most of the time, you were forced to traverse a lonely world, hearing nothing but your own footsteps. I quit almost as soon as I started and didn’t look back.

But that summer, something about it stuck in my memory. I couldn’t shake it. I decided to give it another shot. It sounds silly, but I told myself I’d give it my full effort this time. Before I knew it, it had become my favorite game. It was hard but rewarding, and the more I played, the better I got. As a 13-year-old, this was literally a game-changer.

I loved it so much that I went back to play the earlier games: Dark Souls (2011), Dark Souls II (2014), and Bloodborne (2015), which were made by the same developers as Dark Souls III and were just as incredible. The last major game from the same studio, FromSoftware, was Elden Ring, released in 2022 when I was a senior in high school—and you better believe I played it.

Each of these games is held in high regard not just for their impact as role-playing games, but for their depth of lore, level design, unforgettable enemies, and haunting atmosphere. Dark Souls is the most beautiful game I’ve ever played. Every structure looks like a Roman or Gothic cathedral in an ancient city surrounded by creatures from your wildest imagination. Every area has its own unique design and color palette, completely immersing the player in its ever-changing world.

The storytelling is never direct. It’s woven into the player’s actions and hidden in item descriptions, guiding you not just in your understanding of the world but also in your growth as a player. One of the most fascinating concepts in the series is “going hollow,” where humans who lose their humanity after dying repeatedly fall into a vegetative, soulless state. It’s both a game mechanic and a reflection of life itself.

Dying in Dark Souls is part of the process. Each death teaches you something new. Every time you respawn at a bonfire—your only moment of rest—you gather yourself before venturing back into the unknown. The goal is to link the First Flame, banish the darkness, and end the curse of the undead. Each death makes you more “hollow,” and you lose your souls, the game’s currency, which you must retrieve before dying again. When you fail, the screen flashes the famous words: “You Died.”

So why play it? Well, if you’re a geek like me, that’s probably reason enough. Beyond that, Dark Souls offers a kind of challenge that few games dare to. It makes you believe you can overcome the impossible, and every victory feels earned. Out of all the games I’ve played, this series has taken up the most time and given me some of my favorite gaming memories.

It’s more than just exploration or item collection. If a player approaches it that way, they’re missing the bigger picture. Dark Souls is a game that always gives you the chance to succeed, but only if you truly believe you can. Otherwise, you’ll lose hope and give up. Your humanity—both in the game and in yourself —is your will to keep going, an enduring spark that never dies out.For all the times I’ve played and replayed it, Dark Souls was never once a lonely game. Even though it is just one player in a vast world, all you needed was yourself, the guide toward the seemingly impossible, and a spark that never fades into the darkness.