Get a Better Look at Dark Souls III Cut Content, Like Portable Bonfires

Dark Souls III launched nearly three years ago. Still, there’s more worth uncovering about the game. Better yet, there are things left to discover that didn’t make the final build. That’s where Lance McDonald comes in, a YouTuber whose channel focuses primarily on Soulsborne titles. In McDonald’s latest video, he revealed cut content uncovered in a Dark Souls III alpha build. Evidently, portable bonfires and advanced PvP options were left on the cutting room floor.

Check out McDonald’s fascinating findings in the video below:

McDonald began by explaining a feature he’s deemed “Cult Death.” In the files he restored, McDonald noticed some Hollow NPCs have a different death animation than others. This special death animation involves a burst of light following the NPC’s death. Afterwards, the player character can grab hold of the enemy’s body, and drag it around. Neat, right? Yet, most interesting is how the “Cult Death” feature related to bonfire-creation.

FromSoftware originally implemented seven cults into Dark Souls III for players to join. McDonald is unsure of how the cult mechanic would’ve worked. However, he did find that the seven include: Level Up, Redistribute Stats, Reverse Hollowing, Absolve Sin, Summon White Phantom NPC, Bomb, and Prevent Invasions. In whichever cult McDonald chose, he was able to approach an NPC he’d moved, and select a new action button option. Following the button press, a ceremony was performed. Ultimately, FromSoftware’s intended players to draw a “coiled sword,” which would then be pierced into the enemy’s body. The effects from the sword would disintegrate the body, turning it into a bonfire.

An item named the “Ceremony Sword of Flame,” would have allowed for a new PvP feature. According to McDonald, the description of this items says, “by using this, you can invade worlds that have been eclipsed by darkness…” When using the sword on a deceased NPC, the option to make a bonfire appears once more. However, resting isn’t an option. Rather, clicking on the prompt would unlock player transport to a “PvP enabled world.”

Why these features were cut remain a mystery. But it’ll be interesting to see if some vestige of them makes an appearance in FromSoftware’s next title, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice will hit store shelves early next year on March 22, 2019.

[Source via PCGamesN]