Dark Souls: Remastered is the game that defined an entire genre. Its interconnected world — where shortcuts loop back on themselves in satisfying 'aha' moments — remains unmatched in level design. Every door, elevator, and hidden path connects areas in ways that reward exploration and memory. The difficulty is legendary but fair: every death teaches a lesson, every boss has exploitable patterns, and mastery feels genuinely earned. The Remastered version runs at 60fps with improved textures and restored online play for up to 6 players. If you've never played a Souls game, this is where it all started.
Starting Dark Souls: Remastered can feel overwhelming. This guide tells you exactly what to focus on during your first hours so you don't waste time on things that don't matter yet.
What Kind of Game Is This?
Dark Souls: Remastered is a rpg game built around interconnected world and humanity system. The core loop involves mastering these systems to progress through increasingly challenging content.
What to expect: Time investment in learning mechanics, experimentation, and gradual mastery. The game rewards patience and knowledge.
Choosing Your First Build
| Build | Beginner Rating | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Knight | Excellent for beginners | Two-hand the Claymore for aggressive play, or one-hand with Grass Crest Shield on the back for passive stamina regen. |
| Pyromancer | Good (but demanding) | Throw fireballs at bosses from range. Great Combustion for close-range massive damage. Invest all stat points in survival since pyromancy damage is free. |
| Sorcerer | Excellent for beginners | Buff with Homing Crystal Soulmass, fire Crystal Soul Spear at range, use Great Heavy Soul Arrow for efficiency. Stay at maximum distance. |
| Bandit | Situational | Two-hand the Zweihander for its devastating R2 attacks that flatten most enemies. The R2 pancake keeps enemies on the ground for follow-up hits. |
| Deprived | Situational | Survive early game, find a weapon that fits your target build, and respec into your desired stats using the flexible base. |
Our recommendation: Start with Pyromancer. Pyromancy requires zero stat investment for damage — the Pyromancy Flame upgrades at Laurentius/Quelana for souls only. This means you can put all levels into Vitality and Endurance while still having powerful ranged attacks. Great Combustion and Great Chaos Fireball trivialize many bosses.
Avoid Deprived as your first pick. Starts at SL1 with all stats at 11.
First Session Step-by-Step
Step 1: Learn interconnected world
Unlike DS3's bonfire warping, Dark Souls 1 has no fast travel until mid-game (Lordvessel). Every area connects physically through doors, elevators, and tunnels. Discovering that the elevator from Undead Parish leads back to Firelink Shrine is a defining gaming moment. This design forces you to learn the world's geography intimately.
This is the foundation. Spend your first 15-30 minutes getting comfortable with how interconnected world works before worrying about anything else.
Step 2: Head to Firelink Shrine
The central hub area connecting to multiple paths. Contains the Crestfallen Warrior (hints), Frampt (Lordvessel), and access to the graveyard (Zweihander), New Londo Ruins, and Undead Burg. Return here frequently — new NPCs appear as you progress.
Clear the main content here before moving on. Everything teaches fundamentals you'll need later.
Step 3: Get Your First Upgrade
Look for Quelaag's Furysword — it's the most accessible early upgrade. A curved sword created from Quelaag's Soul with fire damage that scales with soft Humanity (up to 10). At 10 Humanity it deals excellent damage with a fast moveset. The weapon art is a wide AoE fire explosion. One of the most efficient boss weapons in the game.
Step 4: Understand humanity system
Humanity serves multiple purposes: using one at a bonfire restores your human form (enabling summoning/invasions), spending Humanity at bonfires kindles them (more Estus charges), and holding soft Humanity (counter at top-left, max 99) increases item discovery rate and Chaos weapon damage. Dying in human form risks invasion but enables co-op.
This is the system most new players overlook. Invest time here early — it pays off throughout the entire game.
Step 5: Push to Undead Burg
The intended first area with basic Hollow soldiers teaching combat fundamentals. Contains the Taurus Demon boss and the famous Hellkite Dragon bridge. The shortcut back to Firelink (through the tower) is the first 'aha' moment of interconnection. Solaire is found here for co-op summoning.
Essential Mechanics Explained
interconnected world
Unlike DS3's bonfire warping, Dark Souls 1 has no fast travel until mid-game (Lordvessel). Every area connects physically through doors, elevators, and tunnels. Discovering that the elevator from Undead Parish leads back to Firelink Shrine is a defining gaming moment. This design forces you to learn the world's geography intimately.
humanity system
Humanity serves multiple purposes: using one at a bonfire restores your human form (enabling summoning/invasions), spending Humanity at bonfires kindles them (more Estus charges), and holding soft Humanity (counter at top-left, max 99) increases item discovery rate and Chaos weapon damage. Dying in human form risks invasion but enables co-op.
weapon scaling
Weapons have letter grades (S/A/B/C/D/E) for how well they scale with each stat. A weapon with A Dexterity scaling gains massive damage from Dexterity investment. Infusions change scaling: Lightning removes all scaling but adds flat lightning damage. The best approach for most builds is to find a weapon with good base scaling and upgrade it to +15.
covenant online play
Covenants govern multiplayer interactions. Warriors of Sunlight (co-op focused), Darkwraiths (invasion focused), Forest Hunters (area defense), and Blades of the Darkmoon (invader punishment) each have unique summoning/invasion mechanics. Covenant items are rewarded for successful online interactions.
weight ratio
Equip load ratio determines roll speed: under 25% gives fast roll (longest i-frames), 25-50% gives medium roll, 50-100% gives fat roll (shortest i-frames), over 100% you can't roll at all. The Havel's Ring (+50% equip load) and Ring of Favor and Protection (+20%) are near-mandatory for heavy armor builds.
Common Beginner Mistakes
1. Going to the Catacombs or New Londo Ruins first — the intended early path is Undead Burg → Parish → Depths → Blighttown
The Catacombs skeletons don't stay dead without divine weapons.
2. Leveling Resistance — this stat is nearly useless
Every other stat provides better value per level. Never invest a single point in Resistance.
3. Upgrading weapons along the wrong path — standard upgrade to +15 is almost always best
Lightning and Fire remove stat scaling, making them worse than +15 at high stat levels.
4. Fighting the Hellkite Dragon on the bridge — run past it
The dragon can be cheesed with arrows from below but fighting it directly at low level is nearly impossible.
5. Not returning to the Undead Asylum — the return trip grants the Rusted Iron Ring and the Peculiar Doll (access to the Painted World)
Access it via the nest at Firelink Shrine.
First 5 Hours Checklist
- Understand interconnected world and humanity system
- Choose Pyromancer as starting build
- Clear Firelink Shrine main content
- Acquire Quelaag's Furysword or equivalent upgrade
- Reach Undead Burg
- The Master Key starting gift opens shortcuts throughout the game — most notably skipping Blighttown entirely via the Valley of the Drakes. It's the default recommendation for experienced players.
- Upgrade your Pyromancy Flame fully before investing in offensive stats. At Ascended +5, even a SL1 character deals massive fire damage with Great Combustion and Great Chaos Fireball.
Tips for New Players
- The Master Key starting gift opens shortcuts throughout the game — most notably skipping Blighttown entirely via the Valley of the Drakes. It's the default recommendation for experienced players.
- Upgrade your Pyromancy Flame fully before investing in offensive stats. At Ascended +5, even a SL1 character deals massive fire damage with Great Combustion and Great Chaos Fireball.
- Kindle every bonfire you plan to use repeatedly. Kindling costs 1 Humanity and adds 5 Estus charges (up to 20 with the Rite of Kindling from the Catacombs).
- Fast roll (under 25% equip load) has significantly more invincibility frames than medium roll. Consider using lighter armor to stay under 25% for difficult boss fights.
- Backstabs deal 3-4x damage and have a generous positioning window. Circle-strafe to the enemy's right side and press R1 when behind them. This trivializes many humanoid enemies and invaders.
- The Grass Crest Shield passively regenerates stamina when on your back. Two-hand your weapon and keep the Grass Crest Shield equipped for free stamina regen without actively blocking.
- Weapon upgrade level matters more than stat levels. A +15 weapon with minimum stats out-damages a +5 weapon with 40 in the scaling stat. Prioritize upgrade materials.
- The Rusted Iron Ring (found in the Undead Asylum return trip) lets you walk normally through water and swamps. Essential for Blighttown and New Londo Ruins.
- Crystal weapons can't be repaired and have limited durability, but deal 10% more damage than +15 equivalents. Only use crystal infusion on weapons you have duplicates of.
- The DLC (Artorias of the Abyss) is accessed by killing the Hydra in Darkroot Basin, rescuing Dusk, and getting the Broken Pendant in Duke's Archives. It contains some of the best bosses and weapons in the game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I play Dark Souls Remastered or the original?
Play Remastered. It runs at 60fps (original was 30fps on console, required mods on PC), has improved textures and lighting, and revived online play. The gameplay is identical — Remastered is strictly a technical upgrade. The original PC version with DSFix mod is no longer necessary.
What is the recommended level for Ornstein and Smough?
SL 40-55 with a +10 weapon is typical. Kill Ornstein first for an easier Smough (he grows but stays slow). Kill Smough first for Super Ornstein (very aggressive, but drops the Leo Ring and Dragonslayer Spear). Summoning Solaire trivializes the fight.
How do I access the DLC?
Kill the Hydra in Darkroot Basin, rest at a bonfire, return to find Dusk of Oolacile. Say yes to her. Later, get the Broken Pendant from a Crystal Golem in Duke's Archives. Return to where you found Dusk and a portal appears. The DLC is late-game difficulty (SL 60-80 recommended).
Is Dark Souls really that hard?
Dark Souls is demanding but not unfair. Every enemy has telegraphed attacks, every boss has exploitable patterns, and the game gives you powerful tools (pyromancy, summoning, shields). The difficulty reputation comes from its refusal to hold your hand — you must learn by dying. Most players who stick with it past the first 5 hours are hooked.
What to Read Next
- Dark Souls: Remastered Builds — Optimize your build once you've learned the basics
- Dark Souls: Remastered Walkthrough — Full progression path
- Dark Souls: Remastered Tips — Advanced strategies for when you're ready
