The recent release of Bandai’s apocalyptic anime-tinged brawler, Code Vein, has brought inevitable comparisons with Dark Souls, which holds plenty of similarities in terms of its core gameplay.
Many have renowned Code Vein for its cinematic flair, its co-op functionality, and its satisfying, complex magic system, which adds a new dimension to the combat. Still, there remains plenty of Dark Souls diehards that still hold up that grueling dungeon-crawling franchise as the “Soulslike” gold standard.
After all, it’s largely Dark Souls that helped pioneer an entire subgenre in the first place. And despite its emphasis on magic abilities, there seems to be much that Dark Souls excels in when it comes to its atmosphere, thrills, and its captivating gameplay as a whole.
With that said, let’s examine 10 key areas that demonstrate why Dark Souls is still the superior experience at the end of the day.
10 Creepy Atmosphere & The Sense Of Urgency
Sure, having an AI companion by your side in Code Vein makes for a somewhat simpler, less intense adventure. Though we can’t help but think that somehow, this aspect is more of a detraction from the experience than an addition. The feeling of eerie solitude when wandering the treacherous dungeons of Dark Souls is simply not the same in Code Vein, where your buddy can just take out some of the monsters for you.
The grueling difficulty, desolate environments, and often helplessness felt when crawling through the vast dungeons of DS presents a thick, unique atmosphere that CV never quite manages to capture.
9 The Environments
Fans of anime - especially of a post-apocalyptic bent - might cry foul in this case, but there’s something about Dark Soul’s vast, empty, medieval landscapes that carries a feeling of weight and authenticity. The utter creepiness of its dark dungeons, massive stone palaces, and thick forests takes the cake when compared to Code Vein’s more typical and somewhat repetitive ruins.
To its credit, CV does present a rather cool narrative with its premise of vampiric mages, but most of the actual environments, at least until late in the game, leave something to be desired.
8 The Amount of Freedom
Of course, it wouldn’t be too accurate to classify the Dark Souls series as a total open-world affair. But developer From Software does open things up to the point where players can choose a number of areas to wander off to at one time.
The layout of the maps is set-up more like a Metroidvania, where you can often hone in on a specific “branch” or series of areas before choosing the next segment. In this sense, Dark Souls utilizes a blend of open-world elements and linearity, providing a sense of freedom in this vast, uncharted world, while keeping things focused.
Code Vein maintains more of a centralized, linear focus, as its dungeons follow a narrower, corridor-like layout, and contains more isolated, segmented areas. This isn’t poor design by any means, but it tends to feel more limiting.
7 The Gear
While Code Vein’s emphasis tends to be on its magic system of “Gifts,” Dark Souls is still unmatched when it comes to its gear and weaponry - in terms of its sheer quantity, creativity, and enjoyment. This also makes for a more interesting dynamic when it comes to close-range combat.
Part of the enjoyment that comes from dungeon crawlers is the sheer plethora of unknown items, weapons, and armor that you’ll be gathering either from loot or boxes during your journey. Dark Souls has this in abundance, while Code Vein sticks more to salvageable “parts,” “Vestiges” (memories) and new spells, which can be satisfying to unearth, but don’t typically feel as fun or valuable.
6 The Amount Of Content
In fairness, Code Vein boasts a pretty lengthy campaign in its own right, clocking in at over 30 hours. Though there’s a good degree of cinematic bombast and lengthy dialogue exchanges that waters some of the experience down.
The original Dark Souls game is absolutely rich with content, featuring a robust campaign that can take well over 40 hours - which will likely be further extended with the increased grinding and unanticipated deaths endured during the journey.
5 Phantom & Message Online Functionality
Code Vein’s online gameplay might be a tad superior when it comes to traditional co-op functionality. Yet, part of the unique appeal of Dark Souls is its innovative online features which can best be described as “passive” assistance from other players.
The game allows players to deposit various messages in their wake, which can be used to offer quick tips, warnings, or even just random goofy shoutouts to other players approaching that area. The game also hosts a cool “Phantom” mechanic. This will give you a glimpse of a recent action taken by another player, which they can activate by using a Soapstone. These attributes act as subtle ways to inject some connection and comradery while still retaining that creepy feeling of solitude.
4 The Monsters
Games that lean heavily on dungeon crawling and combat need an array of cool and colorful baddies to keep things exciting. While both Code Vein and Dark Souls provide an array of neat, twisted, and often ominous foes, DS wins in this front.
The monster designs typically offer a solid blend of fantasy and creepy realism, are detailed and diverse, and take on a more menacing appearance. Code Vein’s monsters are neat in their own way, but take on a more common shadowy look, and come with less-sophisticated AI to boot, which can be easily distracted by your AI companion.
3 The Lack Of Cinematic Bloat
For residing in a genre that emphasizes high-intensity action and combat, Code Vein can tend to feel slow-moving at times. While this is partly thanks to some brutal load times, it’s somewhat a result of the abundance of dialogue and liberal use of cutscenes - including those “walks down memory lane” when activating Vestiges.
Dark Souls manages to tell its narrative more through its visuals and overall atmosphere, clearing out room to keep things going and keeping you directly engaged in the action. Given the number of times you are destined to die, this more swift pacing is crucial.
2 Rewarding Gameplay
Dark Souls has a knack for invoking strong feelings of triumph, thanks in part to its insane difficulty and its abundance of cool items and gear that can be gathered throughout the journey. Code Vein certainly has its rewarding moments as well, like busting out an epic new Gift for the first time.
Yet, between your AI companion doing some of the work for you, and the relative lack of tangible goodies, it lacks some of that feeling of accomplishment. The bliss of finally getting over the hump of, say, those insane Bell Gargoyles provides a feeling of relief and glory rarely matched in gaming. And speaking of which…
1 Boss Fights
As tough as even some of the more typical enemies can be in Dark Souls, many of the game’s crazy boss fights make them seem tame by comparison.
Code Vein tends to fling a lot of chaotic elements at players with its multiple phases of each boss, which can feel a bit gimmicky and annoying, especially when it comes to their long-range attacks. They’re still typically tough kills, but it’s more about recognizing their repeating patterns. And again, your AI buddy takes some of the heat, making for a relatively simpler and less-exciting romp. The Dark Souls bosses aren’t just more badass in terms of their designs, but they typically make for harder, more exciting showdowns.
Next: 10 Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do In Dark Souls 3
