Why is the first go always the best?
this post was submitted on 27 Apr 2024
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ShittyDarkSouls
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Because the first go you don't know what's going to happen. You are making split second decisions in real time.
Second go, you hesitant because "his big sword move is coming any second!". Then, still get hit by big sword move because you haven't gotten the timing down. You just think you do and you time it wrong.
Better to not know what's coming and react, than know what is coming and react poorly.
I wonder if they program them to appear easier the first time, but still programmed to kill you before they die. I've seen a lot of games being developed where the developers talk about doing shit like this to "enhance" the experience.
One that really stood out to me was health bars in the red when you were still at 40% health.
Everything is deception.
A lot of the dark souls bosses have some cutscenes or intros the first time that position them and the player somewhere different than when you return through the fog wall for round 2.
Since most of the bosses act on your position, just that difference can make round 2 feel way different.
That may play a part but I think it's more so everyone plays more patient and cautiously in the first encounter and that is kind of the style of play that Dark Souls requires. The second time around we get more impatient and aggressive and get punished hard for it.
I just lean into it at this point. Round 1 is for getting a feel for the fight. Rounds 2-58 are for trying stuff out to see what works and where I should be aggressive vs cautious.
Yup and then load fextralife to study their weaknesses..
This is such a well-known phenomenon that it needs to be seriously studied somehow.
It's the bell curve.
To a certain extent not knowing what you're doing can be helpful. It makes you unpredictable. The second time you know what to expect so you're actually strategizing instead of acting on instinct.