Dark Souls has been awarded the title of ‘Ultimate Game of All Time’ at this year’s Golden Joystick Awards, beating some stiff competition along the way.
When I say Dark Souls, what do you think of? The dozens of times you died over and over again to the same boss, likely at the very start of the game? Perhaps the masterful environmental storytelling which has since become creative director Hidetaka Miyazaki’s calling card? The unique gameplay loop that inspired an entire subgenre of video games?
Or as the Golden Joystick Awards have recently announced, do you think of Dark Souls: the greatest video game of all time?
In order to claim its mantle, Dark Souls came up against some pretty serious contenders; the original Doom, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Metal Gear Solid, and Half Life 2 were hardly there to just make up the numbers. Hell, imagine coming out on top of Tetris and Pac Man – games that practically birthed the modern video game industry.
Dark Souls creator Hidetaka Miyazaki was seemingly stunned by the revelation, stating he was “deeply moved” by the gesture.
『#ダークソウル』が「史上最高のゲーム賞」に輝く快挙を達成！
シリーズディレクター・宮崎英高氏「まだ信じられない気持ちですが、大変な栄誉だと感じています」https://t.co/eob9qcDV8zシリーズを手がけたフロム・ソフトウェアの宮崎英高氏が受賞コメントを発表。全文を画像に掲載する pic.twitter.com/pt8AQqBtu0
— 電ファミニコゲーマー (@denfaminicogame) November 24, 2021
The acclaimed game director, who is now the President of FromSoftware, went on to thank all those who contributed to game’s success:
“It’s still unbelievable that the users have selected us from among the nominated works, but I feel it is a great honor. Thanks to everyone who was involved in the development, cooperation, and support at the time, including From Software and Bandai Namco Entertainment, and above all, thanks to the users who played and supported the game. I’m really thankful to you.”
Dark Souls was originally released in 2009 on PS3 and Xbox 360. It has since received two sequels and become one of the most influential video games of all time, inspiring so many copycat games that ‘Soulslike’ is now a popular genre in its own right.
Elden Ring, often refereed to as “big Dark Souls”, is scheduled for a February 25, 2022 release, and will be the first game FromSoftware have put out since 2019. It won the ‘Most Wanted Game’ award at the Golden Joystick Awards too, showing that fans are just as passionate about the developer’s future as they are its past.
