When thinking of a Souls game, the first thought that comes to mind probably isn’t therapeutic. They’re games of difficult enemies, impossible boss fights, few checkpoints, and… accomplishment, apparently. Despite the games being so easy to get upset over, despite them taking hours upon hours, the games have been said to somehow be a massive help to mental health.
A Souls game is a game produced by Fromsoftware studios, set in a dark fantasy genre. They tell unique stories, with complicated worldbuilding one would need to explore the entire game to learn. These games are made to be a challenge- one where the player isn’t designed to win. In other games, there’s usually some sort of failsafe in place. One gets more lives, stronger weapons, better armor, etc. The player is meant to beat this. And of course, Souls games have all of these things, but it’s not something one can go get and come back with. One has to earn it. Getting the better materials is a challenge in itself. If one dies, that’s it, go back and try again. The bosses are expected to be difficult and usually take multiple attempts, and some of the regular enemies are a boss in and of themselves.
Given all of this, most people would think these games are usually given up on. That no one would actually go through this just for a video game. It seems extremely difficult, like a waste of time. But no, people love these games. People are better off because of these games.
Most everyone has felt the feeling of beating a boss in a video game- dying a few times until they’re finally defeated. Savor the feeling, collect the reward, and move on to the next level. But a Souls game is different. In any other game, if a boss fight is failed, the player can just go out and get better equipment. They can go practice. Some games will even alter the difficulty of the game if a player fails enough, just to make sure that they don’t get stuck there. A Souls boss doesn’t have that. There isn’t better equipment until after a player gets past this roadblock. The only way to practice is to fight the actual boss. In a Souls game, the boss fight never gets any easier; the player just gets better.
This fact gives people a massive sense of accomplishment when they finally win. Many stories report how the Souls games have helped bring players back from a dark place, and some even claim these games saved their lives. These are some of the hardest games out there, with no easy mode and no luck, nothing but the brutal enemies, near-unkillable bosses, and the player. It would seem obvious that this would mean these games go against people’s mental health, and that they make people upset. And of course, this can happen, but at the end of the game, when that last boss is finally done, there’s nothing left but achievement. There was no one else there to help. There was no help from the game. There was nothing but the player themself beating the boss because they got good at it.
Dark Souls isn’t a licensed therapist, but it can give one a better mindset and keep them moving forward. So fight that boss in your life, keep pushing forward, and don’t you dare go hollow.
