Dark Souls
Game28 documents
Documents about Dark Souls
Extra Credits6 min
How Much Agency Do Games Need? - Choices in Linear Games - Extra Credits
The quality and relevance of player choices are significantly more important to the gaming experience than the sheer quantity of options provided.
- Player agency is defined by the meaningful impact of actions on the game world rather than the sheer volume of choices provided.
- The binary debate between open-world exploration and linear narrative is reductive, as agency can be effectively integrated into both structures.
- Designers can foster deep emotional engagement in constrained, linear sequences by allowing players to physically navigate spaces, as demonstrated in the opening of The Last of Us.
Extra CreditsOct 2013
Extra Credits8 min
When Difficult Is Fun - Challenging vs. Punishing Games - Extra Credits
The gaming industry often conflates difficult game design with punishing experiences, leading to a misconception that high-difficulty titles lack commercial viability.
- Effective difficult game design prioritizes player mastery over frustration by ensuring mechanics remain consistent and predictable rather than arbitrary.
- Challenging games must provide players with a robust toolkit for creative problem-solving, moving away from designs that rely solely on rote memorization.
- To maintain engagement, games should feature short iteration times that allow players to immediately re-engage with a challenge after failure rather than repeating previously mastered content.
Extra CreditsJul 2013
Financial report4 pages
Bandai Namco Holdings: Financial Highlights for the Fiscal Year Ended March 2012
The financial results for Bandai Namco Holdings for the fiscal year ended March 2012 demonstrate a significant recovery in profitability and operational performance.
- Bandai Namco Holdings achieved a significant financial recovery for the fiscal year ended March 2012, reporting net sales of 454.2 billion yen (a 15.2% increase) and operating income of 34.6 billion yen (a 211.8% increase).
- The content business was the primary growth driver, generating 225.5 billion yen in sales—a 25.3% year-over-year increase—fueled by 23.3 million global unit sales of home video game software including Dark Souls and Ace Combat Assault Horizon.
- The toys and hobby segment contributed 178 billion yen to total sales, bolstered by the strong performance of established character franchises such as Mobile Suit Gundam, Masked Rider, and One Piece.
Bandai NamcoMay 2012
Financial report36 pages
Bandai Namco Holdings Consolidated Financial Report for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2012
Bandai Namco Holdings achieved significant financial expansion during the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012, characterized by a 15.2 percent increase in net sales to ¥454.2 billion and a dramatic surge in net income to ¥19.3 billion.
- Bandai Namco Holdings reported a 15.2% increase in net sales to ¥454.2 billion and a significant rise in net income to ¥19.3 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012.
- The Content business segment saw a substantial profit increase from ¥3.1 billion to ¥17.0 billion, driven by the success of home console titles like Dark Souls and the expansion of social gaming platforms.
- The Amusement Facility business achieved a 33.8% increase in segment profit despite a slight decline in overall revenue.
Bandai NamcoMay 2012