Dark Souls

2011catchphraseclassic

Dark Souls is a dark fantasy action role-playing game series from FromSoftware that launched in 2011 and grew into shorthand online for punishing difficulty. The phrase 'the Dark Souls of X' became a meme used to describe any brutally hard game or challenging situation.

soulsborne memesgamingsnowclone memesboss fight memesfrustration memes

Overview

Dark Souls is a dark fantasy action role-playing series developed by FromSoftware where players build a custom character, explore an interconnected world, and die repeatedly to bosses and traps until they learn the patterns1. Killing enemies drops 'souls' that double as both currency and experience points, and losing them on death is a core part of the tension2.

Beyond the games themselves, the name became gaming shorthand for anything brutally hard. The phrase 'the Dark Souls of X' is used across forums and social media to describe punishing games, challenging tasks, or even social situations that feel unforgiving3. Fans also push back on the 'impossible game' reputation, arguing the series is more about trial and error than raw difficulty3.

How It Spread

Dark Souls II was announced at the Spike Video Game Awards on December 7th, 2012, with Miyazaki stepping back to a supervisor role while Tomohiro Shibuya and Yui Tanimura co-directed1. The sequel shipped in March 2014 on PS3 and Xbox 360, and Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin followed in April 2015 as an expanded rerelease on current-gen consoles and PC1.

Interest in the series exploded again in June 2015 when Rooster Teeth's news show The Know published leaked screenshots and details for Dark Souls III, which Polygon and other outlets picked up on June 5th, 20152. IGN then released official promotional art on June 9th, 2015 ahead of the E3 reveal1, and Dark Souls III launched in Japan on March 24th, 2016, followed by its worldwide release on April 12th, 20161.

The fanbase built out its own corners of the web alongside the releases. Reddit hosts dedicated communities at r/DarkSouls, r/DarkSouls2, and r/DarkSouls3, and by April 2016 the official Facebook page had over 600,000 likes while the Dark Souls Wiki listed more than 2,900 articles1. Bloodborne, FromSoftware's 2015 PS4 exclusive, is often folded into the same conversation as a spiritual sibling to Demon's Souls and Dark Souls1.

How to Use This Meme

Online, people typically deploy 'the Dark Souls of X' as a comparison whenever something feels punishing or requires many attempts to overcome3. Common examples pin the tag on other hard games ('Crash Bandicoot has become Dark Souls'), on unrelated genres, and jokingly on real-life challenges like escaping the friend zone3. The format is short and drop-in: name a thing, then declare it 'the Dark Souls of' its category.

Frequently Asked Questions

Dark Souls

2011catchphraseclassic

Dark Souls is a dark fantasy action role-playing game series from FromSoftware that launched in 2011 and grew into shorthand online for punishing difficulty. The phrase 'the Dark Souls of X' became a meme used to describe any brutally hard game or challenging situation.

soulsborne memes gaming snowclone memes boss fight memes frustration memes

Overview

Dark Souls is a dark fantasy action role-playing series developed by FromSoftware where players build a custom character, explore an interconnected world, and die repeatedly to bosses and traps until they learn the patterns1. Killing enemies drops 'souls' that double as both currency and experience points, and losing them on death is a core part of the tension2.

Beyond the games themselves, the name became gaming shorthand for anything brutally hard. The phrase 'the Dark Souls of X' is used across forums and social media to describe punishing games, challenging tasks, or even social situations that feel unforgiving3. Fans also push back on the 'impossible game' reputation, arguing the series is more about trial and error than raw difficulty3.

How It Spread

Dark Souls II was announced at the Spike Video Game Awards on December 7th, 2012, with Miyazaki stepping back to a supervisor role while Tomohiro Shibuya and Yui Tanimura co-directed1. The sequel shipped in March 2014 on PS3 and Xbox 360, and Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin followed in April 2015 as an expanded rerelease on current-gen consoles and PC1.

Interest in the series exploded again in June 2015 when Rooster Teeth's news show The Know published leaked screenshots and details for Dark Souls III, which Polygon and other outlets picked up on June 5th, 20152. IGN then released official promotional art on June 9th, 2015 ahead of the E3 reveal1, and Dark Souls III launched in Japan on March 24th, 2016, followed by its worldwide release on April 12th, 20161.

The fanbase built out its own corners of the web alongside the releases. Reddit hosts dedicated communities at r/DarkSouls, r/DarkSouls2, and r/DarkSouls3, and by April 2016 the official Facebook page had over 600,000 likes while the Dark Souls Wiki listed more than 2,900 articles1. Bloodborne, FromSoftware's 2015 PS4 exclusive, is often folded into the same conversation as a spiritual sibling to Demon's Souls and Dark Souls1.

How to Use This Meme

Online, people typically deploy 'the Dark Souls of X' as a comparison whenever something feels punishing or requires many attempts to overcome3. Common examples pin the tag on other hard games ('Crash Bandicoot has become Dark Souls'), on unrelated genres, and jokingly on real-life challenges like escaping the friend zone3. The format is short and drop-in: name a thing, then declare it 'the Dark Souls of' its category.

Frequently Asked Questions