Dark Souls III: The Ringed City Released, Reviews

If these initial reviews for The Ringed City on its release day are any indication, the Dark Souls trilogy seems to have come to a triumphant conclusion. I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of From Software’s penchant for horror-themed action RPGs either, as they’re clearly good at pulling off continued success.

IGN gives it an 8.0/10:

Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City has found a way to revisit the past without a cheap reliance on nostalgia, wrapping up the story of Dark Souls in a way that will be satisfying for fans who enjoy digging into the rich lore the series has been building for the last few years. But you don’t need an encyclopedic knowledge of the Souls series to appreciate the satisfying twists and turns of this short, but exciting adventure, with its abundance of haunting, secret-filled locales and terrifying boss fights.

GameRevolution gives it an 8.5/10:

Speaking of improving upon Ashes of Ariandel, which had essentially two horrible bosses, The Ringed City has imaginative bosses oozing out its pores. Even bosses that are normally deemed as no-nos (ones with multiple foes) are pulled off in such a way that inspires both awe and ire, the latter being achieved mostly because I’m not particularly talented at Dark Souls.

Destructoid gives it an 8.5/10:

If The Ringed City really is the end of Souls, it manages to hang its head high with the rest of the series. From Demon’s to Dark III we have more than enough macabre settings to pore over in the years to come. They aren’t all created equal, and some of them aren’t even created by Hidetaka Miyazaki, but I’ll remember each and every one of them for as long as I live. It’s been a wild ride.

PC Invasion gives it a 9/10:

t’s difficult for me to see beyond Artorias of the Abyss as the outstanding DLC release of the series (and, frankly, one of the best expansions of the last decade), but The Ringed City is up there with the best parts of Dark Souls 2’s Lost Crowns trilogy. After multiple releases in a similar vein, FromSoftware are still capable of assembling a piece as grimly beautiful and demanding (in both mechanical skill and exploratory intellect) as ever. It’s tempting to insist they keep making more; but better, perhaps, to trust a studio that knows to step back after a string of spectacular highs.

PushSquare gives it an 8/10:

Two locations and four bosses doesn’t sound like a whole bunch but don’t be fooled – The Ringed City easily clocks in at four to five hours depending on how you fare with the bosses and other challenges. It’s a meaty instalment and a welcome deviation from the practices seen in Ashes of Ariandel, while still interlocking with and continuing the complex narrative. The bosses are challenging and visually fantastic – besides a cheap NPC opponent – and the environments continue the Dark Souls tradition of being large, intricate, and engaging. The Ringed City feels like the climatic end that the Souls franchise deserves, even if we find ourselves hoping that this isn’t actually the end at all.

RPG Site gives it a 7/10:

Dark Souls III is supposed to be the last game in the series for quite some time, and it had an ending that left me very satisfied. So much so that I was apprehensive to play any DLC for fear it might leave an undesirable taste in my mouth. Thanks to The Ringed City that was not the case though. While it is less polished than its counterpart Ashes of Ariandel, it shows a willingness on From Software’s part to innovate until the very end. If you’re the sort of fan that gets lost in item descriptions trying to learn more about the world, then The Ringed City is something you can’t miss.

Gamereactor gives it a 9/10:

Overall The Ringed City was lots of fun, and even towards the very end the studio succeeds in surprising us with some interesting ideas. However, familiar themes from the series are recycled and partly copied. This didn’t have too much of a negative impact on our experience, but we know not everyone sees it like that. Make no mistake, though, this is a grand finale for one of the best video game series to date, and in our opinion a great curtain call. We had a brilliant time with the game in 2016, and with more than 200 hours spent on Dark Souls III, we think we can say that The Ringed City is up there with the very best that the game has to offer.

And FextraLife gives it a 9.5/10:

Plentiful, engaging and beautifully designed content adds many hours of playtime and reasons to return to the base game one year after release, be it to enjoy fashion souls or your powerful new arsenal, or simply explore what humanity may have meant all along. A fitting end to a fantastic game, worth full price.