Chapter 558: You Can Just Turn Off the Damage Display

Denise said, "Alright, let's get straight to the point. I've come here carrying many questions from players. As we all know, *Dark Souls* has achieved extraordinary success in Europe and America, even completely crushing GA's *Knight's Glory*."

"Although you've had other successful works before, like *Warcraft*, *Minecraft*, *League of Legends*, and so on, none of them have had such a profound and widespread impact as *Dark Souls*. After all, this is the first game built with an AI engine, and it represents the current top-tier level of VR game design."

"So, regarding this game, the first thing we're concerned about is its difficulty. Did you decide from the very beginning to make the game this hard? Or was it a collective decision by the entire development team?"

Chen Mo nodded. "The difficulty settings were decided by me."

Denise said, "So, the famously brutal difficulty of *Dark Souls*... is entirely the result of you overruling everyone else's opinions? Why did you make it so hard?"

Chen Mo smiled. "I don't think it's accurate to describe the game's difficulty as simply 'hard.' I don't like saying 'this is too hard'; I usually say, 'this is unreasonable.'"

Denise looked puzzled. "What's the difference?"

Chen Mo said, "Obviously, *Dark Souls* isn't so hard that it discourages everyone from playing, and that was never my intention in the design."

"From a conventional perspective, yes, *Dark Souls* is harder than most games on the market. But what I care about more is whether the level design logic hidden behind *Dark Souls* is reasonable."

"The key is finding a balance. Players find it very hard when they haven't figured out the tricks, but once they do, most people can clear it relatively smoothly. That's the difficulty design I was aiming for."

Denise was stunned. "Wow, you really are a world-class game designer. The way you look at games is completely different from ours."

Chen Mo lowered his voice. "In simpler terms, you can't be too ruthless when harvesting your crops, or you'll scare all the players away."

Denise said, "Huh?"

Chen Mo chuckled. "Never mind, let's continue."

Denise said, "Alright, next question. The weapon damage in this game seems to vary wildly, doesn't it? For example, I personally really like whip-type weapons, but in *Dark Souls*, they seem completely useless. Meanwhile, other weapons, like the Exile Greatsword, seem way too overpowered, don't they?"

Chen Mo said, "Yeah, that's true. The Exile Greatsword is indeed quite strong."

Denise asked, "Why was it designed that way on purpose?"

Chen Mo said, "Because I personally like using it."

Denise said, "Huh?"

Chen Mo continued, "As for whip-type weapons, in the design, they were always meant to be a more niche weapon type. In fact, in *Dark Souls*, most weapons that are good for showing off have been slightly nerfed in other attributes. This is to encourage players to try out different weapon types."

Denise pondered. "So, whip-type weapons and a lot of the flashier weapons are made to be all style and no substance because of that reason?"

Chen Mo laughed. "Exactly. After all, being strong is temporary, but being stylish is forever! If something were both strong and stylish, then players wouldn't bother with other weapons, and all my work on those would be wasted, right?"

Denise was speechless. "You make a good point... but there should be a limit to how weak something is, right? For instance, the whip I like—its damage output is just way too low."

Chen Mo coughed dryly. "Well... let's not bring real-life hobbies into the game. Besides, if you think the damage is too low, you can just turn off the damage display."

Denise was shocked. "Turn off the damage display? Isn't that just fooling yourself?"

Chen Mo nodded. "Yes, but at least it's a good solution, right?"

Denise was a bit exasperated. "But... whether I'm invading or acting as a cop, low weapon damage means I can't beat anyone!"

Chen Mo smiled. "Well, you could play in offline mode and be a lonely whip queen. That way, you won't run into that problem."

Denise was stunned. "So, the solution to the whip's low damage is to play offline?"

Chen Mo nodded. "Yeah, even though it sounds a bit unreliable, you have to admit it's one way to solve the problem."

Denise held her forehead in frustration. "Alright, let's move on to the next topic..."

"Online, the story of *Dark Souls* has sparked heated debates among players. Some even try to deduce the plot by dissecting the names. Many people say this method is foolish, since *Dark Souls*' designer is Chinese. So, when you were naming things, was there any actual meaning behind it?"

Chen Mo said, "Ah, actually, there is. My knowledge is quite broad. Many of the place names and character names in the game were first conceived in English, and then translated into Chinese. Otherwise, the game wouldn't have such a strong Western flavor."

Denise's eyes lit up. "So, it's perfectly reasonable to deduce the plot from the place and character names?"

Chen Mo nodded. "Yes, you could say that."

Denise said, "That's really surprising! It seems your cultural background is quite deep! I was wondering how a Chinese company could create such an authentic Western fantasy setting, but knowing you have such profound cultural knowledge, it all makes sense now!"

Chen Mo chuckled. "Ah, it's just a minor hobby of mine."

Denise continued, "We also noticed that the story of *Dark Souls* is relatively fragmented, with many plot points left unclear. What were you thinking about that? Was it intentional, to leave more room for player imagination?"

Chen Mo smiled. "Actually, this was a deliberate design choice. I have a complete story background in my mind, but I definitely won't reveal it. Letting players explore the world and uncover more mysteries is one of the core joys of *Dark Souls*."

"Of course, there's still a large portion of the story content we haven't released. *Dark Souls* will have another installment."

Denise perked up instantly. "Another installment? So... *Dark Souls* is getting a sequel?"

[Reminder: Your output must contain ZERO Chinese characters. Translate or transliterate everything.]