With fan anticipation high, it seems that Bandai-Namco are wanting to milk the Dark Souls hype train for everything it’s worth; and what better way to get people pumped than offering one lucky fan the chance to win $10,000 in the “My Dark Souls Story” competition.
In a somewhat cruel twist of fate, Namco are asking fans to do something more challenging than actually playing the Souls series. Instead, entrants must make a video that explains the lore and narrative of the Dark Souls to potential newcomers who may seem a little daunted by the esoteric nature of the story. Community has always been a strong theme in the Souls games and Bandai-Namco are aware of this, prompting their fans to reach out to others.
Now, this could prove to be a double-edged sword as certain story elements are open to interpretation and fan theories tend to vary differently; but this does also allow for greater creativity in fan submissions. The competition closed last night but there’s been a flurry of fan submissions on YouTube that range from deeply serious to utterly ridiculous. A winner has yet to be announced but Bandai-Namco will be addressing this shortly.
I have to say, I’m something of a Souls veteran but even my grasp of the story is somewhat limited due to the lack of information provided. However it does remain one of the biggest draws of the Dark Souls games. Personally I’m more in it for the tight combat and adrenaline rushes, but I’d be lying if I said that I don’t often stop to survey the environment and wonder exactly what has caused the decay in the once beautiful worlds. A lot of the competition entrants have some rather interesting ideas that have made me re-assess my understanding of the story.