Same. I've probably beaten it 30 times and still got it on switch last week. It's been like 3 or 4 years since I've played through it, and I gotta say, fuck ornstien and smough... I made it through Anor Londo without dying, got to them, and died in like 30 seconds.
Big Hat: 'A pointed hat is the signature of a heretical sorceress' - He uses the hat to disguise himself as a woman so he can be taken to the Archives' giant cell. Logan: Referring to Logan stones, large stones that can be rocked as a result of spheroidal weathering. Associated with druids and witchcraft.
I'm impressed once again that you're able to provide an original, insightful take on a piece of media that has been dissected and reconstructed innumerable times by everyone before you. Fantastic job, I really liked this. I hadn't made the connection between Ash Lake and the Abyss, I just thought it was a really dark lake, so I had to resist the urge to facepalm hard enough to break my forehead open, lol.
@@akoda8887 too be fair, the idea of the world trees being created by the abyss wasn't something I had considered. I thought the archtree dragon world before gwyn took the lord soul and corrupted the world was just as is presented, I hadn't considered an abyss connection as the abyss was as I thought it contained below that world, below even where humanity and gwyn were found, and it grew to rise and rise as a result of the world corruption. Then again, the trees stretch down through the entire world, so it does make sense, you'd just assume otherwise based on a lot of sights within the game and especially the intro.
@@christopherrapczynski204 I don't think ash lake's water is the abyss. I don't know if the abyss was made by the four kings actions or if its older then them but the abyss is made out of humanity. Ash lake is a lake made out of water. (The floor is made of floor.) Since the arch trees were the dragons homes I assume they were older then fire which means they are older then light and dark. I could be wrong. The abyss could just be a corrupted version of the lake. The deep might have been a different kind of corruption after receiving so many dregs. Still I'm not sold on that part of an otherwise awesome video.
@@Brandonious15987 His theory holds if Humanity comes from the abyss and not vice versa. The dark soul may very well come from the abyss while being connected to it.
Quick thing: if memory serves, Fromsoft's VR game, Deraciné, was heavy on the folklore surrounding Faeries, the Faeries had these wands that drain one's years, to add to their own power, lifespan and their ability to go back and forth in time, their wands happen to take the shape of Hermes'/Mercury's Caduceus staff.
If i remember correctly, Hidetaka Miyazaki has been somewhat obsessively drawn to western tales since childhood. He read plenty of stories about knights and such, but since he didn't understand english enough, he had to often imagine stuff into the stories, or how they ended. That might explain why he has a knack for creating such archetypical worlds.
To be honest Max, every video you have made had an interest interpretation I hadn't really thought about. Your video on 46&2 is still the best youtube video I have ever seen.
I've been playing/following Soulsborne games and videos for 9 years now, and this is easily one of the most thought-provoking and well researched I've ever seen. Thanks for the great video, Max. P.S: Someone should show this to Vaati!
@@maxderrat I've never even heard the Ash Lake-Abyss connection before. These games have been around and analysed for years and you come along and offer something new. Thank you. And please, pleeeease, you simply must play Sekiro. Not even for us, if only for yourself :)
If I remember correctly, in the Japanese text, both Kaath and Frampt are actually referred to as "World Serpents" rather than Primordial serpents like in the English version. Still shows a cool inspiration/connection with the Prima Materia and the Ouroborus. Also gives them a more Norse inspiration from the World Serpent Jormungandr
About the Norse connection, don't forget about Nidhog, who eats at the roots of the World Tree Yggdrasil. His goal, much like the other serpent Kaathe in the abyss, is to throw the cosmos back into chaos. I do think its interesting how there are two world serpents in Norse mythology, one residing around the abyss, and Jormungandr in the waters of Midgard and under the light of day, which are extremely similar to what was talked about in the video. That being said, the facts and legitimacy of Norse mythology is hotly debated by historians. Unrelated but as a side note, Jormundgandr holds his tail in his jaws, creating an identical image to the ouroboros.
Well you forget most major religious always have a chaos serpent that fights the creator of the world. So for one to join Gwyn and one go against him,, its not too crazy to see where it came from beyond Norse mythology. Shoot even in ancient Judeo-Christian theology we have the chaos serpent that fought God at the beginning of time and Samael, archangel of God who became the serpeant in the garden of Eden
Hey Max, I recently started watching some of your videos about games and I gotta say, your ability to recognize and understand these deep rooted allusions to real world religions/philosophies/ideologies within the narratives and visual design of video games is really cool. While most people understandably focus on the narrative and themes contained within the media itself, you bring a unique prospective with your knowledge of things like alchemy and various world religions. You've kind of inspired me to try and make these connections with the media that I engage with, so I just wanna say thanks for making these videos, man
I never thought I’d see the day you’d cover my favorite game lore, you’ve inadvertently made my day. I really look forward to seeing everything you come up with eagerly. Thank you for doing what you do as always.
In the Dark Lord ending, both Kaathe and Frampt, as well as 8 more primordial serpents, bow down to serve the new Dark Lord. Maybe they're all part of one big hydra? :3
Maybe they have all been swapping places to speak with you, to nudge you in the direction they want, so you only think there is two of them until the Dark Lord ending happens.
I discovered dark souls earlier this year. I. Keep getting slaughtered by the skeletons for hours until I realized I could go take the begining path. I love how the world is all connected and layered. A very original experience and was so rewarding once I beat the game. I then picked up 2 and 3. After watching videos on 2 and realizing it was a different director and team that made 2. I jumped in to 3 and love it as much as the 1st one. Haven't beat it yet but I think I'm getting close. Thanks for the video max. Love your content.
DUDE... I was the same way. Went towards the skeletons and not up the hill. xD And I'm also going to 3 first and then back to 2. Thanks so much for dropping by, Justin! :D
That's kinda funny bc going to the skeleton path early on a suicide run is like a key path in a lot of "overpowered early" strategies, mainly by getting a chaos infused zweihander or even the gravelord sword. Also the development of DS2 is quite interesting and it's surprising how it was even salvageable, and eventually got to be quite good with the scholar of the first sin edition
I really like dark souls 2 for lore and other reasons, I think it adds a complexity. DS3 involves a lot of stagnation as its themes, but DS2 does some bold things that further define how the lore operates. I think Max will get a lot out of 2 if he puts his heart into it tbh
Ehhhh, so you dropped ds2 bc it wasn't made by the same director? Why? It's still cannon, aldia was even supposed to be in the ringged city. Miyazaki was involved in it and even took the director seat to finish it.
I've never heard anyone connecting the ash lake to the abyss but doing so seems to make so much sense to me. This is your first video about this game and you've already blown my mind like no ther Souls Lore youtuber has ever done. I guess it's because you approache the topic from a different view point.
I think it might fit better with the deep and potential links to Kos and the fishing hamlet in the bloodborne dlc. The pillars in the hunter's dream look like archtrees.
Yeah, Ash Lake & the Abyss doesn't feel right with what is known about the Abyss & how the concept is explored later on in the series. I get why they were connected, it makes sense to call the expanse under Ash Lake an abyss, but THE Abyss was spawned by Manus when his humanity went wild, and is essentially exactly that- the darkness of humanity.
@@utes5532 We can't necessarily think like that, especially with how open to interpretation and subjective Souls lore can be. It's far from a settled topic, you know? That being said, I mostly agree with the assertion that this would have already cropped up and seen some play
@@EnsignEpic No. The Abyss existed from the begging of time. It was and is the source of strength for the Dark Soul and humans. It's our true nature. It's from where us humans were suposed to draw our power.The weapons and armour of early men were forged in the flames of the abyss and had so much strength that they didn't need Gwyn's lightning to slay dragons.But because of Gwyn's selfish sacriffice and because the dark was denied its rightful place at the helm so many times it got corrupted. It turned from something that should give us humans strength and should be our power source into something in wich not even we can stand ,something poisonous even to us. Ash Lake is nothing but the plane of existence of the begging. The world of the Age of Ancients.The place where the war was fought.That's why there is so much ash and dragon remains and you even encounter an ancient dragon. All that ash is from the witches of chaos burning the archtrees the homes of the dragons to the ground.Gwyn built his world on top of the old one.
This is why I keep coming back to your videos. Always intriguing and insightful looks into a series that's been combed over to death and able to find something fresh and original.
Awesome video; I had only a cursory awareness of the origins of the lore, but I noticed based on this how a "copycat" like Salt & Sanctuary was able to so perfectly capture the same feeling as these games where other "soulsborne clones" failed. If the name doesn't give it away, that game is also pretty heavy on the alchemic references...
Wait, there's a good Soulsborne clone? I'm shocked. A dev team finally figured out that artificial difficulty spikes, copy pasted 'bonfire" mechanics and progression, and big scary bosses are not the sole reasons why those games are loved. Soulsborne games have environments and lore that are intriguing and mysterious. The player wants to reveal all the secrets and find out exactly what the hell is going on. FromSoftware creates engaging and dangerous worlds that people want to learn more about. The devs leave just enough info scattered throughout the world in the form of items and environmental storytelling to keep players intrigued. Nothing is spelled out for you. You need to put in the work. Slowly piecing together the story of these imaginative worlds is one of the best features of FromSoftware titles. Most devs that try to clone the Souls formula fail miserably because they forget that the world and its lore should be compelling enough to take center stage. Whether its Yharnam, Boletaria, Lothric, etc, the setting and story are the main attractions.
While I'm not sold on your theory, I'm glad someone's finally trying to analyse Dark Souls through a lens of myth - where its very obvious Miyazaki pulled a lot from - rather than just "hurr durr this is like Berserk"
Wow super cool take on the souls series. That's why I love this franchise, it's so open to discussion and interpretation. Great video man, you definitely deserved that big thumbs up
Taking the game not literally, as many people have already done, nor by cited influences - as those taking things one step further tend to do; but by longstanding storytelling and mythological roots? Truly a new perspective Max.
I've just discovered your channel via your Bloodborne video. I've only been playing these incredible games for the last couple of years myself, so welcome! As a very slow, methodical player, I like to bide my time and ponder theories/lore during my gameplays, so very much enjoy hearing your theories & insights. Alchemy & mythology of the world is extremely intriguing and how it all entwines. You come across in a very clear, concise manner, too. Keep up the great work, and don't you dare go Hollow! :-)
This is a really unique take on the Dark Souls lore's origins, but at the same time I feel like a lot of what you said is so general that they could just be coincidence.
Fascinating comparisons to alchemy and the world of Dark Souls. Its worth noting since you got so tantalizingly close to this point but did not quite state it: You referred at some point to all things in creation, since being formed from the Prima Materia, maintaining a trace of that material within them. You drew that conclusion to the making of quicksilver bullets in Bloodborne, but that fragmented remnant of the primordial also exists conceptually in Dark Souls- that being, the Dark Soul. Humanity's Curse of the Undead as marked by the Darksign is an indication of fragments of the Dark Soul of man residing in the people of the world. Humanity as a consumable in the game also represents the original Dark Soul's fractured state of being and how it resides in all of humanity. This in turn lead to the God's eternal conflict as a mirror to Kaathe and Frampt's goals, as the Gods sought creation through the maintaining of the Age of Fire and knew humanity and its Humanity from the Abyss were a threat to their way of life.
Couldn't be better timing, Max. Just taking a smokebreak from my 2nd playthrough of Bloodborne in ~3 years (guess who inspired me to..), and this pops up. Thanks, great as always!
YAY please take your time with the games and have fun playing and making content. I love this stuff and all the lore but it is very easy to get lost in , stay safe and stay strong
Awesome analysis! Miyazaki truly is a genius and I need geniuses like you to explain me the actual extent of his creations. Thank you for making this. Hoping for more!
I am watching Souls lore videos for many years and yet never saw anyone bringing out theme of philosophy. And in such a deep and integral way too. This is probably the most wholesome theory on Souls lore I have ever seen! Great work, mate.
Well illustrated. This adds even more credibility to the already accepted lore that Darkness and the Light (and their endings) are in fact the same. You simply resume the cycle of life.
I have been following SoulsBorne lore for years and have never once come across such a great explanation of what The Abyss is. Fantastic content dude, keep up the great work.
My idea of the dark sign on the undead was that it was a representation of the "Sol Niger" as it corresponds to the rotting and closure of the sun. And that itself leads to the darkness over the world and then eventually rebirth I've never made a youtube video in my life but I have a small 1500 word script about elements of dark souls that were similar to the alchemy you used in this video and it's absolutely amazing for someone else to finally notice this alchemical logic in the Dark souls universe Good job Max Derrat
As others have said, it's so good to see someone come to the dark souls series with a new perspective and fresh ideas that we don't usually see in the usual lore analysis videos. I'm excited for the next video you'll make!
great stuff as usual pal, id say you're the best big brain gamer on youtube, that being said may i suggest one thing, you put a reading list in your videos/descriptions for those of us looking to dig deeper due to your videos inspiring us to reasearch
I’m so happy you’ve continued making videos. I always stop whatever I’m doing to watch your new videos. Thank you for your amazing analysis and content.
Wow, I'm glad this was recommended to me. Maybe it was a good thing avoiding the series for so long, because now you have all the previous information gathered and created by people and able to have a fresh look on it. When you follow something for so long it usually results in having a fixed perspective on it. Keep up the great work!
plenty of comments here already, but comments are good for the algorithm, so here’s my contribution. very interesting and original take, and very well explained too. you made over 15 minutes seem like less than 5. MOAR!!
Great analysis!!! Let me just point out a few more things that you might find interesting. In the Ashes of Ariandel DLC, the doors of the church have caduceus' carved all over it, and the glass mural in Ariandel's room depict two people stabbing two snakes. I'd love to see what you can analyze from that. Cheers!!!
I watched you bloodborne video and was blown away. I’m a huge fan of from software and I’ve consumed just about every video that’s been made of the lore and speculations etc. Seeing your video I really felt that you brought something completely new, and very relevant, to the table! I couldn’t be happier with you tackling the mythos, lore and undertones of these games. Praise the sun!
nah vaati doesnt have any new loreist to rip off thats why he mystically hasnt had a new video analyzing lore and story lately,im sure once the big dark souls loreist make new videos when demons souls remake comes out vaati will have some new content
VaatiVidya wishes he could make videos as insightful as these. He regurgitates theories we've all come to accept without adding much in terms of speculation, he just happens to edit quite well. He's great for introducing people into the lore but he also remains a bit too basic in his interpretations of the lore...
I loved how you correlate the world of Dark Souls with alchemy. I have been playing this game since its debut in 2011 and I have been enjoying to read about the lore and theories of the Dark Souls world, and I can tell for sure that this is a unique way view of seeing it. Thank you for sharing your insight! I hope to see more videos about Dark Souls.
Very inspiring video. I love Souls lore and complexity. Miyazaki is so great at using inspiration to blend into his tales. I am going to try and put some alchemy symbols in my next painting.
this really do be an "art imitates life" moment. tho really in all seriousness i'm still impressed that this 9 year old game has so much to discuss and discover, and just goes to show how much care miyazaki takes in crafting these games.
After all these years, and we're still getting new perspectives and interpretations for Dark Souls. This one was particularly intriguing. Truly a Masterpiece of our times. I honestly am glad to be part of this journey with all of you my contemporary chosen undeads. Hidetaka Miyazaki deserves all the praise he gets for these works of art.
I love what you are doing here. The application of alchemical ideas to the Soulsborne games is very interesting. Just one point though: The Abyss is not the first material from which everything emerges. In the opening cinematic it says that in the beginning everything was grey. From the grey comes the light and the dark. The light and dark is the first step away from the undifferentiated matter. They are not an expression of the formless form from which everything emerged. They are more an expression of the nature of a reality divided. The Abyss and the Dark Soul are connected to the dark and not the grey and so have no connection to the material from which everything emerged. This is closer to a Taoist conception of Ying-Yang/Light-Dark rather than an alchemical idea.
You quoting Jung like this in your video reminds me just how attached he was to the metaphysical. He was so influential to the advancement of many psychological concepts and theories, but it's so easy to forget he had a much wider range of interest, study, and yes, influence. Nevertheless, this was a really cool reading of Dark Souls. I'm not well-versed on alchemy, but it's really cool to see the parallels that can be made between it and Dark Souls. I subscribed because this shit is legitimately fascinating. As a fan of the franchise, I've dropped hundreds of hours into all of the games. And as a novice in occult teachings and philosophy, the interpretations you gave really do pique my interest. I hope that I may look forward to more videos like this one!
I am not one to usually comment on videos but I had to say I find your channel refreshing. The MGS (one of my favourite sets of video games) and Silent Hill videos you have covered are great, but I appreciate your coverage on Miyazaki's games. These videos are highlighting the connective tissue of the games or rather, the implicit sides of the story which usually gets neglected or glossed over. Thanks for giving the time. P.S. I would not kick yourself over the case of the bloodborne quicksilver thing. I don't doubt you were aware of it, it seemed more of a case of jamais vu, or something that was not pointed out due to concentrating on the other elements of the game especially for this being the first one you probably played. Being brought into these games for the first time no matter which one, is an analytical, joy overload which shows how rich these games are in mythologies and subtext. Its very easy to take the fromsoftware games formula for granted.
Max, Is there any alchemical correlation to the entirety of the unofficial Soulsborne joint timeline concept, that you've noticed? "Demon Souls begins with the old one, an eldritch great one, descending upon the Earth. Once awakened, it inspires a hierarchy of demons dedicated to the retrieval of every soul, in exchange for great power. In the evil ending, deep below the Nexus, every soul is given to the old one and a great fog blankets the world. Eons later, deep below a gray land covered in fog, four hollow beings discover an immense amount of souls (and the story of Dark Souls begins). The fog is dispersed, civilization is reborn and souls flourish, anew. However, the irrevocable poison of the old one persists, and eventually humanity looks for an escape from this cursed world. They find a way out, through a painted world of blood and (as the tale of Bloodborne begins), humanity creeps ever closer to the eldritch truth they've forgotten (strengthened by the echoes of the past found within the blood)." - Vaati
I think souls videos are always cool and your ideas are very different from other youtubers' and very enjoyable to listen. Miyazaki does a great amalgamation of eastern and western concepts. I think you'd go nuts reading Berserk, seems like exactly what you would enjoy.
This was great video! But I think the inspiration for the mythology of Dark Souls can be found in Enuma Elish, the Sumerian creation myth. In it we can find all the elements that found their way into this game. Elements like: fire being a representation of spirit (the four great souls.) Gods fighting dragons which preside in the primordial darkness, or abyss (obvious.) The Abyss spawning numerous, hideous creatures (Manus, and his ilk.) Serpents being the descendants of dragons (Sen, and his experiments.) A hero bestowed with powers from the gods to conquer the darkness (the chosen undead.) Lightning being used to kill dragons (Gwyn's lighting.) The Abyss being sealed away under a city (Anor Londo) - among countless other similarities. Actually, to be honest, most of the elements have different meanings in Enuma Elish. But if you read it without knowing the context, it reads like the cliffsnotes version of an early draft for the dark souls mythos. CHECK IT OUT
Ah, always happy to see you trying something new Max, both this and your bloodborne videos were quite informative and well put together. Keep up the good work!
Can't wait for the Sekiro video diving into the tyrannical father, the wise old king, and the choices that affect the ego and shadow manifesting in the player-character. Keep up the Soulsborne content 👌
The foundation of The Oldest House in Control gave me some serious Ash Lake/Abyss vibes. Former kinda looks like an insectoid snake as well, I might have to look up images to confirm.
I don't know if anyone spoke about this directly, but in Bloodborne the Formless God Oeden, who is thought to have impregnated Arianna in the chapel of his own name, is described to exist only in voice having no body and the caryll rune Formless Oeden gives you a larger supply of quicksilver bullets which as Max mentioned is tied to Mercury i.e the Spirit. Matches the trinity concept that's being pushed here and whats talked about in SolePorpoise's video on Bloodborne transforming the myth. I thought it was a really neat attention to detail added by Miyazaki and how calculated he really is when building his world and it's characters in line with its lore.
Such excellent work linking modern works of fiction with classic myths. I have a large interest in alchemy and would love to research further if you have any recommended reading for beginners.
I honestly cannot believe it had taken this long for a in depth video exploring the inspiration of the stories to come to light. It seems like everyone, me included, ignored the value of analyzing its roots to to speak in order to piece together the actual telling of the story and find the meaning in the missing pieces. Good on you man I'm impressed. Never seen the Channel before but I subbed and liked, your perspective is very clever and thank you for the super interesting content (:
@@maxderrat I also replied on your newer video about the ancient dragons and its a very weak one but I had a theory on the point where salt comes in for the body. As a side note it seems if you look surface level at the symbolism as well that he specifically designed the visual aspect of things to fit many many categories of how it could be viewed either to widen the ability to grasp the more vague concepts and interest a wider audience or to add more ambiguity to the story so the "right" answer isn't clear. Like how on a minor level the terms soul, hope and passion can be interchangeable depending on the context and that hope is a light in the dark just as a soul brings life to the mundane and passions when being pursued with enough enthusiasm are called Burning passions lead each back to the idea that souls are fire and fire represents life and safety and creation. Just as without fire you cannot have some chemical reactions, without you being a person with purpose will also make change less common. Honestly with the angle and thorough analysis you bring to the table we might finally be able to minimize the speculation of a lot of more mysterious questions and finally draw some hard conclusions. I know it's not how Miyazaki intended it to be but not all of us are always satisfied with ambiguous endings and missing details (: I'm glad my comment could even get recognized honestly, there's so much digital storm on some of these big names and platforms that it becomes impossible to get information across effectively sometimes. (: If you ever wanted to talk soul's then pm me and I'd be happy to give you my discord to join in some fun light hearted speculation if you need video ideas or anything! I know I've written a book here so I'll stop now but I just wanted to say, for God sake please please make a video on velka and her origins because this character start to finish is as pivotal as Gwen himself but given about as much screen time and thought by the community as the slime in the sewers.
Very nice of u max that u have broken down the structure of myths/lore in videogames. there is much more in video games then people think. althought i dont game anymore, i used to be a big fan of games. in my investigation now i see alot of symbolism in these games, even occult ones. thank u for sharing light and these topics. wish u well with making more videos man.
the lore and secrets behind the souls game are one of the reasons why i still even go on youtube I fucking love their dept and level of speculation in their untold lore
:O Thanks so much! BTW, my next video is the second part in this series. I'll be talking about the cre... uh... actually, I want to keep it a secret. :P Just tune in next week. ;)
Hit it out of the park again. And I realized you had more knowledge about Hermeticism and other mystic schools than you let on in the last video. I think you already knew most or all of the books I recommended, haha. There's multiple symbolic links that Miyazaki has tried to make with the lore of both Dark Souls and Bloodborne and he's taken inspiration from many, many different mythological and esoteric sources. I hope you keep making vids about these games, there's a lot to be deciphered still. At this point, these vids are far more important in my view than simple in-game lore explanations from other folk. By the way, I also hope you can make your way round to the SMT series sometime. There's a LOT of stuff to unravel with that series and I'm sure you'll have a blast doing it.
I think an interesting distinction is one seems to be attempting to find real world connections, while the other is attempting to dissect what was written. I think it offers two really cool takes.
honestly, many of Vaati’s videos provide a somewhat shallow (though quite broad!) insight into the lore , in my experience at least. not saying Vaati does bad work of course, but if you actually are looking for someone who dissects and digs deep, try Hawkshaw. I don’t agree with everything in all their videos (some of it is outright speculation), but holy shit do they make some interesting connections. Vaati is more of a tour guide trying to tell interesting things about everything you see, where Hawkshaw operates as a detective or archaeologist trying to solve a case, with much more context and tying several leads together
They say there are only 3 or 4 great stories in the world, retold one way or another over the course of history. I agree; Miyazaki not only crafts excellent lore that hits right in the core of those fundamental myths, but is able to utilize gameplay to inform the stories being told. FromSoft are freakin legends.
This video is just beautiful, thank for taking the time to make it. This week I've been thinking about playing dark souls. Now I decided :3 thank you again, you are doing a great job.
Love your work Max though there are two things I gotta point out: 1.) There is no reason to believe the waters of Ash Lake are the Abyss. The abyss is a specific location that the 4 king's/Manus hand out in, and is pretty far away from ash lake. Furthermore the abyss corrupts creatures who reside within it, if Ash Lake was the Abyss the hydra would show signs of corruption in some way. As far as I can tell the only real hints as to why the water is so dark is in the name of the location; Ash Lake, imo the water is darkened by the ash itself. 2.) The Abyss is NOT the original substance of the universe of Dark Souls. It's pretty clearly told that Light, Dark, Life, Death are all co-equal parts of the soul that all began with the First Flame. The closest thing to the Prima Meteria that you mentioned (imo) would be mb Chaos as there is some mysterious connection between Chaos and the Ash Trees (look into the Scholar of the First Sin if you haven't yet). With that said, as always I found the video to be truly insightful, I'd love to see videos like this for the rest of the series as well! Thanks!
I also came to point out #2. I feel compelled to disagree about the Chaos being the Prima Meteria though, as I feel the primordial fog that was said to cover the world before the advent of fire fits that role perfectly. Although my DS2 lore is very rusty, so I might have to educate myself about the connection you mentioned.
@@Eiroth Ngl that makes a lot of sense. Where I was going with the DS2 connection was that (iirc) the Scholar specifically was interested in the Primordial, which lead to him learning of the First Sin and gaining his weird chaotic tree form. The inference made being Chaos itself is Primordial. This is just speculation though.
fine, you convinced me: I'll play Dark Souls for the 40th time
My Xbox has cobwebs now. Suppose that means it’s been long enough
Try the Champions of Ash mod!
Yeah run [random number that doesn't actually resemble reality ] here we go
Same. I've probably beaten it 30 times and still got it on switch last week. It's been like 3 or 4 years since I've played through it, and I gotta say, fuck ornstien and smough...
I made it through Anor Londo without dying, got to them, and died in like 30 seconds.
@@dwoodard5717 they are always a good a challenge to the regular player, a well designed game fight is always a fight to behold
The Philosophisers Stone of Dark Souls: Why is he called Big Hat Logan?
Gonna have to scour all the item descriptions to find a hint, hmmm...
Big Hat: 'A pointed hat is the signature of a heretical sorceress' - He uses the hat to disguise himself as a woman so he can be taken to the Archives' giant cell.
Logan: Referring to Logan stones, large stones that can be rocked as a result of spheroidal weathering. Associated with druids and witchcraft.
Shit meme
We may never know
DEEPEST LORE
I'm impressed once again that you're able to provide an original, insightful take on a piece of media that has been dissected and reconstructed innumerable times by everyone before you. Fantastic job, I really liked this. I hadn't made the connection between Ash Lake and the Abyss, I just thought it was a really dark lake, so I had to resist the urge to facepalm hard enough to break my forehead open, lol.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
My thoughts exactly. Can't undestand why I hadn't made the connection.
@@akoda8887 too be fair, the idea of the world trees being created by the abyss wasn't something I had considered. I thought the archtree dragon world before gwyn took the lord soul and corrupted the world was just as is presented, I hadn't considered an abyss connection as the abyss was as I thought it contained below that world, below even where humanity and gwyn were found, and it grew to rise and rise as a result of the world corruption. Then again, the trees stretch down through the entire world, so it does make sense, you'd just assume otherwise based on a lot of sights within the game and especially the intro.
@@christopherrapczynski204
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Same
I'm starting to think we might have been led to think inside the box that the intro presented...
@@christopherrapczynski204 I don't think ash lake's water is the abyss. I don't know if the abyss was made by the four kings actions or if its older then them but the abyss is made out of humanity. Ash lake is a lake made out of water. (The floor is made of floor.) Since the arch trees were the dragons homes I assume they were older then fire which means they are older then light and dark. I could be wrong. The abyss could just be a corrupted version of the lake. The deep might have been a different kind of corruption after receiving so many dregs. Still I'm not sold on that part of an otherwise awesome video.
@@Brandonious15987 His theory holds if Humanity comes from the abyss and not vice versa. The dark soul may very well come from the abyss while being connected to it.
Quick thing: if memory serves, Fromsoft's VR game, Deraciné, was heavy on the folklore surrounding Faeries, the Faeries had these wands that drain one's years, to add to their own power, lifespan and their ability to go back and forth in time, their wands happen to take the shape of Hermes'/Mercury's Caduceus staff.
If i remember correctly, Hidetaka Miyazaki has been somewhat obsessively drawn to western tales since childhood. He read plenty of stories about knights and such, but since he didn't understand english enough, he had to often imagine stuff into the stories, or how they ended. That might explain why he has a knack for creating such archetypical worlds.
Holy shit. This is something ENTIRELY NEW within the Dark souls lore, and it's in 2020! No one has unraveled this for years now! Kudos to you mate.
To be honest Max, every video you have made had an interest interpretation I hadn't really thought about.
Your video on 46&2 is still the best youtube video I have ever seen.
Oh, man. Thank you so much. It's still surprising to me how much people resonated with that video.
I've been playing/following Soulsborne games and videos for 9 years now, and this is easily one of the most thought-provoking and well researched I've ever seen. Thanks for the great video, Max.
P.S: Someone should show this to Vaati!
Thank you, sir! Expect a WHOLE lot more in the weeks to come. :D
BTW... someone SHOULD send this to Vaati. :P
Glad to see you finally tackling Soulsborne games, Max! Stay yellow.
You stay yellow too, my brother. :D
@@maxderrat I've never even heard the Ash Lake-Abyss connection before. These games have been around and analysed for years and you come along and offer something new. Thank you. And please, pleeeease, you simply must play Sekiro. Not even for us, if only for yourself :)
And don’t go hollow.
@@Aries_Luck Don't you dare go hollow :)
Henry Erving No. Don’t you dare go hollow.
Dark Souls and Max Derrat's deep, thoughtful analysis?
Yes please! Take my like 👍🏻
Take my
If I remember correctly, in the Japanese text, both Kaath and Frampt are actually referred to as "World Serpents" rather than Primordial serpents like in the English version. Still shows a cool inspiration/connection with the Prima Materia and the Ouroborus. Also gives them a more Norse inspiration from the World Serpent Jormungandr
That's a very good intuition. The Norse World Serpent is a derivative of the same core idea.
About the Norse connection, don't forget about Nidhog, who eats at the roots of the World Tree Yggdrasil. His goal, much like the other serpent Kaathe in the abyss, is to throw the cosmos back into chaos. I do think its interesting how there are two world serpents in Norse mythology, one residing around the abyss, and Jormungandr in the waters of Midgard and under the light of day, which are extremely similar to what was talked about in the video. That being said, the facts and legitimacy of Norse mythology is hotly debated by historians.
Unrelated but as a side note, Jormundgandr holds his tail in his jaws, creating an identical image to the ouroboros.
Well you forget most major religious always have a chaos serpent that fights the creator of the world. So for one to join Gwyn and one go against him,, its not too crazy to see where it came from beyond Norse mythology. Shoot even in ancient Judeo-Christian theology we have the chaos serpent that fought God at the beginning of time and Samael, archangel of God who became the serpeant in the garden of Eden
Hey Max, I recently started watching some of your videos about games and I gotta say, your ability to recognize and understand these deep rooted allusions to real world religions/philosophies/ideologies within the narratives and visual design of video games is really cool. While most people understandably focus on the narrative and themes contained within the media itself, you bring a unique prospective with your knowledge of things like alchemy and various world religions. You've kind of inspired me to try and make these connections with the media that I engage with, so I just wanna say thanks for making these videos, man
I never thought I’d see the day you’d cover my favorite game lore, you’ve inadvertently made my day. I really look forward to seeing everything you come up with eagerly. Thank you for doing what you do as always.
In the Dark Lord ending, both Kaathe and Frampt, as well as 8 more primordial serpents, bow down to serve the new Dark Lord.
Maybe they're all part of one big hydra? :3
10 serpents in total, huh? www.pinterest.ca/pin/539446861601302384/
@@maxderrat Kabbalah time!
Maybe they have all been swapping places to speak with you, to nudge you in the direction they want, so you only think there is two of them until the Dark Lord ending happens.
Uh, hate to burst the bubble, but the serpents have bodies...
@@skhighglitch4217 like a body with a tail tip?
I discovered dark souls earlier this year. I. Keep getting slaughtered by the skeletons for hours until I realized I could go take the begining path. I love how the world is all connected and layered. A very original experience and was so rewarding once I beat the game.
I then picked up 2 and 3. After watching videos on 2 and realizing it was a different director and team that made 2. I jumped in to 3 and love it as much as the 1st one. Haven't beat it yet but I think I'm getting close. Thanks for the video max. Love your content.
DUDE... I was the same way. Went towards the skeletons and not up the hill. xD
And I'm also going to 3 first and then back to 2. Thanks so much for dropping by, Justin! :D
That's kinda funny bc going to the skeleton path early on a suicide run is like a key path in a lot of "overpowered early" strategies, mainly by getting a chaos infused zweihander or even the gravelord sword.
Also the development of DS2 is quite interesting and it's surprising how it was even salvageable, and eventually got to be quite good with the scholar of the first sin edition
I really like dark souls 2 for lore and other reasons, I think it adds a complexity. DS3 involves a lot of stagnation as its themes, but DS2 does some bold things that further define how the lore operates. I think Max will get a lot out of 2 if he puts his heart into it tbh
Ehhhh, so you dropped ds2 bc it wasn't made by the same director? Why? It's still cannon, aldia was even supposed to be in the ringged city. Miyazaki was involved in it and even took the director seat to finish it.
Dude, 2 has some of the most important information about the truth of the world. Playing 3 first spoils the whole thing.
I've never heard anyone connecting the ash lake to the abyss but doing so seems to make so much sense to me.
This is your first video about this game and you've already blown my mind like no ther Souls Lore youtuber has ever done.
I guess it's because you approache the topic from a different view point.
I think it might fit better with the deep and potential links to Kos and the fishing hamlet in the bloodborne dlc. The pillars in the hunter's dream look like archtrees.
Yeah, Ash Lake & the Abyss doesn't feel right with what is known about the Abyss & how the concept is explored later on in the series. I get why they were connected, it makes sense to call the expanse under Ash Lake an abyss, but THE Abyss was spawned by Manus when his humanity went wild, and is essentially exactly that- the darkness of humanity.
If it's the first video to make that connection in the years upon years of vigorous lore analysis, I kinda doubt it's validity
@@utes5532 We can't necessarily think like that, especially with how open to interpretation and subjective Souls lore can be. It's far from a settled topic, you know? That being said, I mostly agree with the assertion that this would have already cropped up and seen some play
@@EnsignEpic No. The Abyss existed from the begging of time. It was and is the source of strength for the Dark Soul and humans. It's our true nature. It's from where us humans were suposed to draw our power.The weapons and armour of early men were forged in the flames of the abyss and had so much strength that they didn't need Gwyn's lightning to slay dragons.But because of Gwyn's selfish sacriffice and because the dark was denied its rightful place at the helm so many times it got corrupted. It turned from something that should give us humans strength and should be our power source into something in wich not even we can stand ,something poisonous even to us. Ash Lake is nothing but the plane of existence of the begging. The world of the Age of Ancients.The place where the war was fought.That's why there is so much ash and dragon remains and you even encounter an ancient dragon. All that ash is from the witches of chaos burning the archtrees the homes of the dragons to the ground.Gwyn built his world on top of the old one.
This is why I keep coming back to your videos. Always intriguing and insightful looks into a series that's been combed over to death and able to find something fresh and original.
7 years listening to lore videos and it's the first time I hear this point of view. My mind is blown. Subscribed.
Awesome video; I had only a cursory awareness of the origins of the lore, but I noticed based on this how a "copycat" like Salt & Sanctuary was able to so perfectly capture the same feeling as these games where other "soulsborne clones" failed. If the name doesn't give it away, that game is also pretty heavy on the alchemic references...
Wait, there's a good Soulsborne clone? I'm shocked. A dev team finally figured out that artificial difficulty spikes, copy pasted 'bonfire" mechanics and progression, and big scary bosses are not the sole reasons why those games are loved. Soulsborne games have environments and lore that are intriguing and mysterious. The player wants to reveal all the secrets and find out exactly what the hell is going on. FromSoftware creates engaging and dangerous worlds that people want to learn more about. The devs leave just enough info scattered throughout the world in the form of items and environmental storytelling to keep players intrigued. Nothing is spelled out for you. You need to put in the work. Slowly piecing together the story of these imaginative worlds is one of the best features of FromSoftware titles. Most devs that try to clone the Souls formula fail miserably because they forget that the world and its lore should be compelling enough to take center stage. Whether its Yharnam, Boletaria, Lothric, etc, the setting and story are the main attractions.
While I'm not sold on your theory, I'm glad someone's finally trying to analyse Dark Souls through a lens of myth - where its very obvious Miyazaki pulled a lot from - rather than just "hurr durr this is like Berserk"
Well tbh Berzerk is probably not the only inspiration bubba.
Bruh, I rarely see anyone mention berserk aside from Vaati on occasion. Nearly all the vids approach it via the mythological/religious perspective
It always makes me happy when somebody picks up Dark Souls and likes it!
Amazing video!
super psyched for dark souls videos from you man! Keep up the good work!
Wow super cool take on the souls series. That's why I love this franchise, it's so open to discussion and interpretation. Great video man, you definitely deserved that big thumbs up
"First video in this series" Hell yes!
Taking the game not literally, as many people have already done, nor by cited influences - as those taking things one step further tend to do; but by longstanding storytelling and mythological roots? Truly a new perspective Max.
I've just discovered your channel via your Bloodborne video. I've only been playing these incredible games for the last couple of years myself, so welcome! As a very slow, methodical player, I like to bide my time and ponder theories/lore during my gameplays, so very much enjoy hearing your theories & insights. Alchemy & mythology of the world is extremely intriguing and how it all entwines. You come across in a very clear, concise manner, too.
Keep up the great work, and don't you dare go Hollow! :-)
I've been following lore hunters for years, and it feels so good to have a new take on it! Welcome dude!
This is a really unique take on the Dark Souls lore's origins, but at the same time I feel like a lot of what you said is so general that they could just be coincidence.
Fascinating comparisons to alchemy and the world of Dark Souls. Its worth noting since you got so tantalizingly close to this point but did not quite state it:
You referred at some point to all things in creation, since being formed from the Prima Materia, maintaining a trace of that material within them. You drew that conclusion to the making of quicksilver bullets in Bloodborne, but that fragmented remnant of the primordial also exists conceptually in Dark Souls- that being, the Dark Soul. Humanity's Curse of the Undead as marked by the Darksign is an indication of fragments of the Dark Soul of man residing in the people of the world.
Humanity as a consumable in the game also represents the original Dark Soul's fractured state of being and how it resides in all of humanity. This in turn lead to the God's eternal conflict as a mirror to Kaathe and Frampt's goals, as the Gods sought creation through the maintaining of the Age of Fire and knew humanity and its Humanity from the Abyss were a threat to their way of life.
Couldn't be better timing, Max. Just taking a smokebreak from my 2nd playthrough of Bloodborne in ~3 years (guess who inspired me to..), and this pops up. Thanks, great as always!
I got you, dawg!!! :D ;)
Thank you!
Dark Souls is rich with philosophy, theology, mythology, metaphysics etc.
Yet, there's not much content on this. So thanks for the video
YAY please take your time with the games and have fun playing and making content. I love this stuff and all the lore but it is very easy to get lost in , stay safe and stay strong
Awesome analysis! Miyazaki truly is a genius and I need geniuses like you to explain me the actual extent of his creations.
Thank you for making this. Hoping for more!
Your channel is pure gold. Thank you very much for the content.
I am watching Souls lore videos for many years and yet never saw anyone bringing out theme of philosophy. And in such a deep and integral way too. This is probably the most wholesome theory on Souls lore I have ever seen!
Great work, mate.
Well illustrated. This adds even more credibility to the already accepted lore that Darkness and the Light (and their endings) are in fact the same.
You simply resume the cycle of life.
This was awesome! Would love to see more breakdown of Dark Souls' connections to myths, and various ways to interpret the lore.
I have been following SoulsBorne lore for years and have never once come across such a great explanation of what The Abyss is. Fantastic content dude, keep up the great work.
My idea of the dark sign on the undead was that it was a representation of the "Sol Niger" as it corresponds to the rotting and closure of the sun. And that itself leads to the darkness over the world and then eventually rebirth
I've never made a youtube video in my life but I have a small 1500 word script about elements of dark souls that were similar to the alchemy you used in this video and it's absolutely amazing for someone else to finally notice this alchemical logic in the Dark souls universe
Good job Max Derrat
As others have said, it's so good to see someone come to the dark souls series with a new perspective and fresh ideas that we don't usually see in the usual lore analysis videos. I'm excited for the next video you'll make!
This is such an awesome video max. Very high quality
Thank you, Lord Gwyn. I hope to do your origins justice in the second video. ;)
No way! Today I started DS1 Ptde and Max releases this video! :)
I've been waiting for this video.
great stuff as usual pal, id say you're the best big brain gamer on youtube, that being said may i suggest one thing, you put a reading list in your videos/descriptions for those of us looking to dig deeper due to your videos inspiring us to reasearch
Oooh, that's a good idea. I'll try to do that from now on.
Your channel is amazing Max, I saw one video and now I'm slowly watching them all. Keep up the good work.
Hey max. I'm glad you're branching out into more and more topics to discuss and analyze. Can't whait for the next video!
you blew my mind with this one Max, awesome video and work you put into this keep up the great content
I’m so happy you’ve continued making videos. I always stop whatever I’m doing to watch your new videos. Thank you for your amazing analysis and content.
I am so grateful to have people like you in my audience, Wrecked Stamps!
Amazing video - the gaming community is very fortunate to have you!
Wow, I'm glad this was recommended to me. Maybe it was a good thing avoiding the series for so long, because now you have all the previous information gathered and created by people and able to have a fresh look on it. When you follow something for so long it usually results in having a fixed perspective on it. Keep up the great work!
plenty of comments here already, but comments are good for the algorithm, so here’s my contribution. very interesting and original take, and very well explained too. you made over 15 minutes seem like less than 5.
MOAR!!
I already love your content for the MGS series, and now you're bringing another franchise that I love: Dark Souls. Thank you.
Great analysis!!! Let me just point out a few more things that you might find interesting. In the Ashes of Ariandel DLC, the doors of the church have caduceus' carved all over it, and the glass mural in Ariandel's room depict two people stabbing two snakes. I'd love to see what you can analyze from that. Cheers!!!
I watched you bloodborne video and was blown away. I’m a huge fan of from software and I’ve consumed just about every video that’s been made of the lore and speculations etc. Seeing your video I really felt that you brought something completely new, and very relevant, to the table! I couldn’t be happier with you tackling the mythos, lore and undertones of these games. Praise the sun!
This is easily the best dark souls lore video of all time
Love the angles you come at these games from. Really refreshing
Saw the notification and thought this was a VaatiVidya video lmao
This is way better.
Me too, something about the thumbnail gave that vibe
nah vaati doesnt have any new loreist to rip off thats why he mystically hasnt had a new video analyzing lore and story lately,im sure once the big dark souls loreist make new videos when demons souls remake comes out vaati will have some new content
@@joshuawiseman5629 ...so why haven't those big Dark Souls loreists made any vids, then? Are they also having difficulty finding people to rip off?
VaatiVidya wishes he could make videos as insightful as these. He regurgitates theories we've all come to accept without adding much in terms of speculation, he just happens to edit quite well. He's great for introducing people into the lore but he also remains a bit too basic in his interpretations of the lore...
i love that you are doing souls videos now. So excited.
I loved how you correlate the world of Dark Souls with alchemy. I have been playing this game since its debut in 2011 and I have been enjoying to read about the lore and theories of the Dark Souls world, and I can tell for sure that this is a unique way view of seeing it. Thank you for sharing your insight! I hope to see more videos about Dark Souls.
I've always said that Ash Lake is the most important location in the lore that nobody pays attention to. Thank you for acknowledging it
Very inspiring video. I love Souls lore and complexity. Miyazaki is so great at using inspiration to blend into his tales. I am going to try and put some alchemy symbols in my next painting.
this really do be an "art imitates life" moment.
tho really in all seriousness i'm still impressed that this 9 year old game has so much to discuss and discover, and just goes to show how much care miyazaki takes in crafting these games.
After all these years, and we're still getting new perspectives and interpretations for Dark Souls. This one was particularly intriguing.
Truly a Masterpiece of our times. I honestly am glad to be part of this journey with all of you my contemporary chosen undeads.
Hidetaka Miyazaki deserves all the praise he gets for these works of art.
I love what you are doing here. The application of alchemical ideas to the Soulsborne games is very interesting.
Just one point though:
The Abyss is not the first material from which everything emerges.
In the opening cinematic it says that in the beginning everything was grey. From the grey comes the light and the dark. The light and dark is the first step away from the undifferentiated matter. They are not an expression of the formless form from which everything emerged. They are more an expression of the nature of a reality divided.
The Abyss and the Dark Soul are connected to the dark and not the grey and so have no connection to the material from which everything emerged.
This is closer to a Taoist conception of Ying-Yang/Light-Dark rather than an alchemical idea.
Have awaited the world in which Max discovered Dark souls and it’s depth. It has arrived!
You do an incredible job! It's already one of my favorite channels.
You quoting Jung like this in your video reminds me just how attached he was to the metaphysical. He was so influential to the advancement of many psychological concepts and theories, but it's so easy to forget he had a much wider range of interest, study, and yes, influence. Nevertheless, this was a really cool reading of Dark Souls.
I'm not well-versed on alchemy, but it's really cool to see the parallels that can be made between it and Dark Souls. I subscribed because this shit is legitimately fascinating. As a fan of the franchise, I've dropped hundreds of hours into all of the games. And as a novice in occult teachings and philosophy, the interpretations you gave really do pique my interest. I hope that I may look forward to more videos like this one!
thank you man, I've been waiting for someone to adress the mythological genius of the soulsborne games
I am not one to usually comment on videos but I had to say I find your channel refreshing. The MGS (one of my favourite sets of video games) and Silent Hill videos you have covered are great, but I appreciate your coverage on Miyazaki's games. These videos are highlighting the connective tissue of the games or rather, the implicit sides of the story which usually gets neglected or glossed over. Thanks for giving the time. P.S. I would not kick yourself over the case of the bloodborne quicksilver thing. I don't doubt you were aware of it, it seemed more of a case of jamais vu, or something that was not pointed out due to concentrating on the other elements of the game especially for this being the first one you probably played. Being brought into these games for the first time no matter which one, is an analytical, joy overload which shows how rich these games are in mythologies and subtext. Its very easy to take the fromsoftware games formula for granted.
Max,
Is there any alchemical correlation to the entirety of the unofficial Soulsborne joint timeline concept, that you've noticed?
"Demon Souls begins with the old one, an eldritch great one, descending upon the Earth. Once awakened, it inspires a hierarchy of demons dedicated to the retrieval of every soul, in exchange for great power. In the evil ending, deep below the Nexus, every soul is given to the old one and a great fog blankets the world.
Eons later, deep below a gray land covered in fog, four hollow beings discover an immense amount of souls (and the story of Dark Souls begins). The fog is dispersed, civilization is reborn and souls flourish, anew.
However, the irrevocable poison of the old one persists, and eventually humanity looks for an escape from this cursed world. They find a way out, through a painted world of blood and (as the tale of Bloodborne begins), humanity creeps ever closer to the eldritch truth they've forgotten (strengthened by the echoes of the past found within the blood)."
- Vaati
I think souls videos are always cool and your ideas are very different from other youtubers' and very enjoyable to listen. Miyazaki does a great amalgamation of eastern and western concepts. I think you'd go nuts reading Berserk, seems like exactly what you would enjoy.
This was great video!
But I think the inspiration for the mythology of Dark Souls can be found in Enuma Elish, the Sumerian creation myth. In it we can find all the elements that found their way into this game. Elements like: fire being a representation of spirit (the four great souls.) Gods fighting dragons which preside in the primordial darkness, or abyss (obvious.) The Abyss spawning numerous, hideous creatures (Manus, and his ilk.) Serpents being the descendants of dragons (Sen, and his experiments.) A hero bestowed with powers from the gods to conquer the darkness (the chosen undead.) Lightning being used to kill dragons (Gwyn's lighting.) The Abyss being sealed away under a city (Anor Londo) - among countless other similarities.
Actually, to be honest, most of the elements have different meanings in Enuma Elish. But if you read it without knowing the context, it reads like the cliffsnotes version of an early draft for the dark souls mythos. CHECK IT OUT
Awesome work Max. Love seeing all these parallels in these games
Max? Thank you.
I've been hoping for a new take on the Abyss for a long time and now I understand something I haven't before.
Ah, always happy to see you trying something new Max, both this and your bloodborne videos were quite informative and well put together.
Keep up the good work!
I've been waiting for a dark souls video for a long time, great job :3
this is actually an incredible introduction to hermetic tradition, and the bloodbourne vid too. keep up the cool vids
Can't wait for the Sekiro video diving into the tyrannical father, the wise old king, and the choices that affect the ego and shadow manifesting in the player-character. Keep up the Soulsborne content 👌
Pov : you’re max and trying to crack Miyazaki’s insanity
It's not "insanity", it's just good storytelling.
The foundation of The Oldest House in Control gave me some serious Ash Lake/Abyss vibes. Former kinda looks like an insectoid snake as well, I might have to look up images to confirm.
Thank you for this video. Dark Souls changed my life and took me out of depression.
I don't know if anyone spoke about this directly, but in Bloodborne the Formless God Oeden, who is thought to have impregnated Arianna in the chapel of his own name, is described to exist only in voice having no body and the caryll rune Formless Oeden gives you a larger supply of quicksilver bullets which as Max mentioned is tied to Mercury i.e the Spirit. Matches the trinity concept that's being pushed here and whats talked about in SolePorpoise's video on Bloodborne transforming the myth.
I thought it was a really neat attention to detail added by Miyazaki and how calculated he really is when building his world and it's characters in line with its lore.
Such excellent work linking modern works of fiction with classic myths. I have a large interest in alchemy and would love to research further if you have any recommended reading for beginners.
Max and Dark Souls, what a time to be alive! Great video as always my man. Stay yellow.
always love getting an upload notification from you
I honestly cannot believe it had taken this long for a in depth video exploring the inspiration of the stories to come to light. It seems like everyone, me included, ignored the value of analyzing its roots to to speak in order to piece together the actual telling of the story and find the meaning in the missing pieces. Good on you man I'm impressed. Never seen the Channel before but I subbed and liked, your perspective is very clever and thank you for the super interesting content (:
Oh man, this comment made my day!
@@maxderrat I also replied on your newer video about the ancient dragons and its a very weak one but I had a theory on the point where salt comes in for the body. As a side note it seems if you look surface level at the symbolism as well that he specifically designed the visual aspect of things to fit many many categories of how it could be viewed either to widen the ability to grasp the more vague concepts and interest a wider audience or to add more ambiguity to the story so the "right" answer isn't clear. Like how on a minor level the terms soul, hope and passion can be interchangeable depending on the context and that hope is a light in the dark just as a soul brings life to the mundane and passions when being pursued with enough enthusiasm are called Burning passions lead each back to the idea that souls are fire and fire represents life and safety and creation. Just as without fire you cannot have some chemical reactions, without you being a person with purpose will also make change less common.
Honestly with the angle and thorough analysis you bring to the table we might finally be able to minimize the speculation of a lot of more mysterious questions and finally draw some hard conclusions.
I know it's not how Miyazaki intended it to be but not all of us are always satisfied with ambiguous endings and missing details (: I'm glad my comment could even get recognized honestly, there's so much digital storm on some of these big names and platforms that it becomes impossible to get information across effectively sometimes. (:
If you ever wanted to talk soul's then pm me and I'd be happy to give you my discord to join in some fun light hearted speculation if you need video ideas or anything!
I know I've written a book here so I'll stop now but I just wanted to say, for God sake please please make a video on velka and her origins because this character start to finish is as pivotal as Gwen himself but given about as much screen time and thought by the community as the slime in the sewers.
Very nice of u max that u have broken down the structure of myths/lore in videogames. there is much more in video games then people think. althought i dont game anymore, i used to be a big fan of games. in my investigation now i see alot of symbolism in these games, even occult ones. thank u for sharing light and these topics. wish u well with making more videos man.
the lore and secrets behind the souls game are one of the reasons why i still even go on youtube I fucking love their dept and level of speculation in their untold lore
as a person who loves both dark souls and philosophy this has to be one of my favorite videos of your
:O Thanks so much! BTW, my next video is the second part in this series. I'll be talking about the cre... uh... actually, I want to keep it a secret. :P Just tune in next week. ;)
Hit it out of the park again. And I realized you had more knowledge about Hermeticism and other mystic schools than you let on in the last video. I think you already knew most or all of the books I recommended, haha.
There's multiple symbolic links that Miyazaki has tried to make with the lore of both Dark Souls and Bloodborne and he's taken inspiration from many, many different mythological and esoteric sources. I hope you keep making vids about these games, there's a lot to be deciphered still. At this point, these vids are far more important in my view than simple in-game lore explanations from other folk.
By the way, I also hope you can make your way round to the SMT series sometime. There's a LOT of stuff to unravel with that series and I'm sure you'll have a blast doing it.
Vaati: dissecting Fromsoft games
Max: a challenger appears
:P Nah man, no fighting. Just love.
I think an interesting distinction is one seems to be attempting to find real world connections, while the other is attempting to dissect what was written.
I think it offers two really cool takes.
honestly, many of Vaati’s videos provide a somewhat shallow (though quite broad!) insight into the lore , in my experience at least. not saying Vaati does bad work of course, but if you actually are looking for someone who dissects and digs deep, try Hawkshaw. I don’t agree with everything in all their videos (some of it is outright speculation), but holy shit do they make some interesting connections. Vaati is more of a tour guide trying to tell interesting things about everything you see, where Hawkshaw operates as a detective or archaeologist trying to solve a case, with much more context and tying several leads together
@@markvandenthillart5739 Than Max is the scientist who researches the lore.
Are we just going to ignore the dark sign is allso a hint towards the prima materia ?
Whenever Max uploads, I feel like my day is instantly better. Stay Yellow/Simpsons Max.
They say there are only 3 or 4 great stories in the world, retold one way or another over the course of history. I agree; Miyazaki not only crafts excellent lore that hits right in the core of those fundamental myths, but is able to utilize gameplay to inform the stories being told. FromSoft are freakin legends.
This is so impressive and mindblowing. You put in so much effort for this video good job.
Thank you! Expect a new one next week. :)
This video is just beautiful, thank for taking the time to make it. This week I've been thinking about playing dark souls. Now I decided :3 thank you again, you are doing a great job.
PD: yog-sothot is a trinity too. Past, present and future are all one in yog-sothot. And is the guardian of the abyss.
Thank you so much, Anny! Have fun, and let me know if you notice anything?
BTW, what is yog-sothot?
Love your work Max though there are two things I gotta point out:
1.) There is no reason to believe the waters of Ash Lake are the Abyss. The abyss is a specific location that the 4 king's/Manus hand out in, and is pretty far away from ash lake. Furthermore the abyss corrupts creatures who reside within it, if Ash Lake was the Abyss the hydra would show signs of corruption in some way. As far as I can tell the only real hints as to why the water is so dark is in the name of the location; Ash Lake, imo the water is darkened by the ash itself.
2.) The Abyss is NOT the original substance of the universe of Dark Souls. It's pretty clearly told that Light, Dark, Life, Death are all co-equal parts of the soul that all began with the First Flame. The closest thing to the Prima Meteria that you mentioned (imo) would be mb Chaos as there is some mysterious connection between Chaos and the Ash Trees (look into the Scholar of the First Sin if you haven't yet).
With that said, as always I found the video to be truly insightful, I'd love to see videos like this for the rest of the series as well! Thanks!
I also came to point out #2. I feel compelled to disagree about the Chaos being the Prima Meteria though, as I feel the primordial fog that was said to cover the world before the advent of fire fits that role perfectly. Although my DS2 lore is very rusty, so I might have to educate myself about the connection you mentioned.
@@Eiroth Ngl that makes a lot of sense. Where I was going with the DS2 connection was that (iirc) the Scholar specifically was interested in the Primordial, which lead to him learning of the First Sin and gaining his weird chaotic tree form. The inference made being Chaos itself is Primordial. This is just speculation though.
I am looking forward to seeing you give Dark Souls the Silent HIll treatment. Keep up the great work!
You're great. Keep making these!
Great video as usual Max. Do you have any suggested reading on Alchemy, it sounds very interesting, but where to start?