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Hello,[br]and welcome to New Frame Plus.

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Every now and then,[br]I like to pick just a single animation

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from a game[br]and really dig into it.

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And, by patron request, today’s subject[br]is the parry & riposte in Dark Souls.

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But I say why stop at just one![br]Dark Souls didn’t, and neither shall we.

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Let’s look at the parry & riposte[br]in all three Dark Souls games

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and see which[br]one is animated the best.

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Pop a humanity everybody,[br]we are going on a JOURNEY.

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Alright, first up: Dark Souls.[br]Let’s give this thing a look ...

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So, for the initial parry,[br]the character takes a wide stance

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and swats the enemy weapon away.

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From there, they will either transition[br]back to their idle animation

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or the player can choose to[br]follow up with a counterattack,

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which varies by weapon type.

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Now the parry is actually my[br]favorite part of the whole thing.

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I love how exaggerated[br]this shield swipe is.

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She’s not just carefully[br]deflecting the attack,

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she is swatting that sword[br]away like GET OUTTA HERE.

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There is a real sense of[br]power behind this parry,

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and a big part of that[br]is the weight behind it.

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Watch her hips:

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You see how her center of gravity[br]drops down and to the left

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just before twisting to[br]help whip the shield around?

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She’s throwing her whole[br]body into that parry.

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Now, realistically, I would wager that throwing[br]your shield out to the side like that

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is probably not an ideal[br]defensive parrying technique,

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but I’m not an expert[br]in swordsmanship.

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And also, I don’t care!

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In the context of a video game,

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clarity is FAR more important[br]than realism 99% of the time,

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and the exaggeration on this[br]shield swipe is very clear.

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And a lot of that clarity is[br]also thanks to the posing.

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Look at the silhouette on[br]this succession of poses…

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The anticipation pose brings[br]the shield way out to her right

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(making sure it’s clear of[br]her body so we can see it),

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then she whips it all the[br]way across to her left side

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(again, clear of her body to[br]maintain a nice silhouette),

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and then the weight of the thing[br]brings it down for the recovery…

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even in the heat of combat,[br]all of those poses are super clear.

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Now, the enemy’s reaction to[br]being parried is interesting…

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Compared to the[br]ferocity of the parry,

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the enemy’s animation feels[br]kinda soft and swimmy.

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I mean, Dark Souls animation trends[br]pretty slow compared to most games anyway,

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but this almost feels[br]like slow motion.

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Maybe the original[br]animation played back faster,

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but when they started[br]fine-tuning the combat,

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they decided that the enemy needed[br]to be vulnerable for more time,

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so they just slowed the[br]animation down a little.

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Or maybe this was an[br]aesthetically intentional choice

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to help the player more quickly[br]recognize the enemy’s vulnerability.

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See, at first I was kinda[br]wishing that there was

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a little more sharpness[br]to the start of this,

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like more of a harsh bounce off of your[br]shield to match the intensity of your parry,

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but then I remembered that that’s what[br]happens when you just do a regular block.

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You see how much[br]sharper that bounce is?

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Maybe the softness here[br]was designed to feel

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tangibly different than[br]a regular blocked hit,

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to make the riposte vulnerability[br]more immediately apparent.

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Weird as it feels,[br]I do have to admit that -

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especially when combined[br]with the sound effect -

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it is IMMEDIATELY clear to the[br]player that that parry was successful.

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Now, if the player[br]chooses to riposte here,

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you’ll see the enemy’s[br]position change instantly,

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snapping to a spot right in[br]front of the player character.

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This warping happens because the[br]riposte animation in Dark Souls

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is what many of us call[br]a “synced animation”.

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See, when you need two[br]different characters in a game

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to physically interact[br]in some complex way,

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sometimes that interaction[br]is only going to look right

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if both characters are playing their[br]respective animations at the exact same time

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and in the correct position and[br]orientation relative to each other.

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Like, if this ogre is going to[br]do a grab move on Wolf here,

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then it’s only going to look right if his[br]arms are actually wrapped around Wolf,

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which means that the two characters need[br]to be in the correct relative positions.

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And if they AREN’T, well,[br]then you gotta force it.

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Because for game-play purposes,

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you don’t want to make the player[br]have to stand in the EXACT

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pixel-perfect correct spot in front of the[br]enemy for that riposte animation to work.

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That would be super annoying.

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So instead, if the enemy is vulnerable[br]and the player hits the riposte button

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while standing in GENERALLY the[br]correct position and orientation,

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both characters will warp and reorient[br]themselves however is necessary

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for that counterattack[br]animation to play properly.

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It may look a little janky when you[br]slow it down, but it’s worth it.

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So anyway: the riposte.

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Once both characters[br]are position correctly,

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your character will wind up[br]with their weapon of choice,

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but the enemy fighter does[br]something kind of... weird.

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They will transition from their[br]vulnerable parried animation

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into this really neutral idle[br]pose, which I don’t love.

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It’s as if they’re intentionally[br]lining themselves up to take the hit,

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like they’re an amateur[br]stunt person or something.

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And, like, I get wanting to put them in a[br]position where the deathblow is gonna look good,

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and standing straight up[br]and unguarded like this

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does certainly makes them look super[br]vulnerable to what’s about to hit them,

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but this just makes it look like[br]they’re coordinating with you.

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Like: “Oh,[br]you intend to riposte?

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Capital! Here, let me get myself[br]all situated... there we are.

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Alright! OOF.

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Very good, sirrrr….”

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I think this would look way better if[br]the moment before the riposte hit showed

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the enemy trying to[br]defend themselves,

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like they see the riposte coming and they are[br]making a futile attempt to recover in time.

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Or maybe they could[br]see the attack coming

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and visibly recognize[br]that they are screwed,

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like a Punch-Out fighter.

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Those guys wiff an attack and you can[br]see it almost immediately in their eyes:

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the realization that they[br]are in very big trouble.

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Something like that.

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Or just keep them feeling off balance[br]until the attack lands, whatever.

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Anything but THIS.

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It is a nitpick, but still.

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Anyway,[br]on to the deathblow itself.

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The stab connects,[br]the particle effects fly,

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the camera does this great little zoom[br]and shake to emphasize the moment,

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and the drawn out finish[br]where the enemy drops and

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you kick them off of[br]your sword looks awesome.

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This is what a good synced[br]animation can get you.

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That said, you may have noticed that there’s a[br]little bit of jank to that stab animation.

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Watch the sword hand...

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You see that little hitch?

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It’s even more noticeable if[br]you track the tip of the sword…

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Now I’m not saying that these arcs have[br]to be perfectly smooth or anything,

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but this little hitch[br]in the stabbing motion

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really saps the move[br]of some of its force.

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It’s not as noticeable when played back[br]at speed, but you definitely FEEL it.

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And when I look at the stab[br]animation more closely,

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I’m actually not feeling a lot of[br]impact from the animation itself.

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At least,[br]not as much as there could be.

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It feels a little bit like the[br]character's carefully placing the sword

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in the right position and the[br]camera and the particle effects

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are doing all this work to[br]make the attack feel powerful.

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You can really see this[br]when the character is

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holding an extra long[br]weapon like this one.

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You see how soft that feels?

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It does still work,[br]but I think it would feel a lot punchier

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if the animation was[br]contributing more to the impact.

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Speaking of different weapons,[br]though, like I said before,

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there are a few different[br]versions of the riposte animation

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for the different categories[br]of weapons in the game,

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but as you play, you’re quickly going[br]to notice that the riposte animations

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they use for some of these[br]weapons seem... a little mismatched.

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At the end of the day,[br]there are a LOT of weapons in Dark Souls

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and only a handful of[br]riposte animations.

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So you are occasionally going to[br]see some very silly-looking stabs.

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But I’m not super[br]bothered about this one,

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because if your two options are to either[br]have some silly-looking ripostes in the game

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OR significantly reduce the number of[br]weapons just to avoid that problem,

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I’ll take the silly ripostes.

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This game kinda needs those[br]little dashes of levity anyway.

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Last point (and this[br]one’s pretty small, but)

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look at the player character as[br]she settles back into her idle.

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You notice that little[br]last-second twist on her limbs?

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I believe that this is a quick[br]blend from the male’s idle pose

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to their female version[br]of that animation.

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As best I can tell, both masculine and[br]feminine player characters in Dark Souls

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are animated using the same[br]animation rig and skeleton.

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As you can see here,[br]the two characters have been designed

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to not have different[br]skeletal proportions.

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Their limbs and such[br]are all the same length.

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And this would likely be done[br]because they didn’t want to have

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to make two versions of every[br]animation, which is reasonable.

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If everyone’s animated[br]on the same skeleton,

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then they can all pull from[br]the same library of animations.

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But the animators did create a slightly[br]different idle stance for feminine characters,

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just to make them feel just[br]a little different.

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And the problem appears to be[br]that all of the animations are

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designed to transition back into[br]the standard idle animation,

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not the feminine[br]variant they made.

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And so, as she finishes the riposte, we see[br]her step back into the default pose first,

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then quickly shift into the fem[br]one that she is meant to be using.

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It’s another tiny polish thing.[br]Not that huge a deal.

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Theoretically, this could be fixed by[br]having that blend start much sooner

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(like maybe here) so that by[br]the time she hits this pose,

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she’s already in the[br]correct idle stance.

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But maybe there’s some technical reason that[br]wasn’t possible for them, I don’t know.

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Alternatively, if they had some more[br]room in their animation schedule,

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an even better fix would be to[br]create some custom transitions

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so that fem characters could transition[br]directly back into their own idle

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instead of going to[br]the masculine one first.

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But I’m guessing this was considered[br]a pretty low-priority problem,

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so they just opted to accept that[br]minor bit of jank and move on.

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I would argue that just not having a different[br]idle stance for the female characters

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would be the preferable fix in[br]this case but, alright. Fair enough.

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Overall, though, I would say this[br]animation is pretty successful.

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Slightly lacking[br]in polish maybe,

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but that’s pretty par for the[br]course for Dark Souls 1 animation,

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What matters is that it feels great[br]in the moment, the clarity is good...

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Solid 4 out of 5 stars.

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But let’s move on to the[br]sequel: Dark Souls II...

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The entire structure of the[br]parry and riposte here is very different.

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Parry the enemy’s attack and now[br]they will fall on their butt.

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And from there, after a slight delay[br]you can follow up with the riposte.

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First let’s talk[br]about the good things:

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that weird blend back into the[br]feminine idle pose at the end?

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That is now fixed.

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It appears that both masculine and feminine[br]characters use the same idle pose here,

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so problem just kinda[br]sorted itself out.

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Hooray!

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And that concludes my segment[br]about the good things.

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I hope you enjoyed it. NOW...

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Let’s start with the parry. It is SIMILAR[br]to the original, but the posing is weaker.

0:10:07.611,0:10:09.923
She’s not hitting that[br]wide stance anymore,

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which was a big part of what made[br]the original parry look so powerful.

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And look at how[br]the movement ends.

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You see the way she brings the shield[br]even further around on the swing,

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all the way behind her body?

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Now on the one hand, it DOES make[br]for a wider arc on that swing,

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which could suggest more[br]power behind it, right?

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But that’s coming at[br]the cost of clarity.

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Look at the silhouette[br]here at the end.

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Now compare that to the[br]posing in the original.

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See how much more[br]clear that looks?

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You NEED that clarity[br]in Souls combat.

0:10:38.835,0:10:41.053
And I would argue that[br]the enemy’s reaction to

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being parried is a[br]pretty big downgrade too.

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The original might have felt soft,

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but seeing the enemy’s weapon get slapped[br]away by that shield felt pretty great

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AND it clearly conveyed that, hey,[br]you deflected that incoming attack.

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Good for you.

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Here, the parry reaction seems to[br]ignore the attack deflection entirely.

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Instead, they react like your parry is more[br]of a shield bash smashing them in the face.

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Which... ok, that’s kinda fun too.

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But in the heat of combat, I would argue it’s[br]just slightly less clear as a reaction.

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I’m definitely[br]nitpicking at this point,

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but those tiny clarity[br]issues can pile up fast.

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Then the guy just sits[br]there, dazed, which

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is kinda more goofy-[br]looking than anything.

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It’s like: oof, your parry just gave[br]this hollow a LOT to think about…

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And you have to wait for his fall animation[br]to finish before you can do your riposte.

0:11:28.653,0:11:31.168
Hit the button too early[br]and you’ll just attack,

0:11:31.193,0:11:33.790
completely losing your[br]riposte opportunity.

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WHICH FEELS REAL FINICKY.

0:11:35.700,0:11:37.004
AND BAD.

0:11:37.029,0:11:39.901
And the riposte itself[br]is also not great!

0:11:39.926,0:11:42.877
The characters warp into position[br]for the synced animation.

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Then comes the attack

0:11:44.034,0:11:48.076
which, to their credit, doesn’t have[br]those noticeable hitches that the original had.

0:11:48.101,0:11:51.568
But the clarity on this[br]stabbing attack is baaaaaaad.

0:11:51.593,0:11:56.774
Your weapon making contact with the opponent[br]is completely obscured by your character.

0:11:56.799,0:11:59.250
The camera still does[br]it’s zoom (which is great)

0:11:59.275,0:12:01.957
but what is there to[br]zoom and emphasize here?

0:12:01.982,0:12:03.659
you can’t see what happened!

0:12:03.680,0:12:08.880
In terms of both silhouette and[br]clarity, this riposte is Very Bad.

0:12:09.640,0:12:11.740
Maybe it looks better with an axe…

0:12:13.320,0:12:14.900
...wow, not really!

0:12:14.914,0:12:17.191
I mean, the swing itself[br]is more clear,

0:12:17.216,0:12:18.990
but something about the[br]perspective makes it

0:12:19.015,0:12:21.866
feel like it almost[br]isn't reaching the enemy.

0:12:21.891,0:12:25.736
Why DOES every one of these attacks[br]seems to be aimed at the crotch, anyway?

0:12:25.761,0:12:28.700
I’m not saying it’s not effective,[br]it’s just…

0:12:28.700,0:12:30.241
...like, right?

0:12:30.266,0:12:33.436
Listen, I love Dark Souls II,[br]like, a LOT.

0:12:33.461,0:12:37.801
But yeah, this parry/riposte[br]combo is a pretty major downgrade.

0:12:37.826,0:12:41.839
And that’s the thing, it’s not like there[br]aren’t ways to improve upon the original!

0:12:41.864,0:12:45.200
Which makes the Dark Souls III version[br]of the parry and riposte

0:12:45.200,0:12:46.814
even MORE baffling.

0:12:46.839,0:12:49.462
So Dark Souls III brought a[br]lot of the player character

0:12:49.487,0:12:52.573
animations back to the way they[br]looked and felt in the original,

0:12:52.598,0:12:55.860
so this parry and riposte are probably[br]gonna looking pretty familiar.

0:12:55.885,0:12:58.013
And there are a couple[br]of improvements here.

0:12:58.038,0:13:01.228
That little masculine-to-feminine[br]idle blend? Fixed!

0:13:01.253,0:13:04.164
And the posing on this parry is even more clear!

0:13:04.189,0:13:07.680
Just look at the snappy extension on that[br]arm as the shield comes around.

0:13:07.680,0:13:08.767
WhaBAM.

0:13:08.792,0:13:12.675
But the weird thing to me is that[br]all of the rest of the polish

0:13:12.700,0:13:16.141
problems that existed in the[br]original are STILL IN HERE.

0:13:16.166,0:13:18.640
That hitch in the stab animation?

0:13:18.640,0:13:19.529
Still there!

0:13:19.554,0:13:24.084
In fact, now there’s a even NEW hitch in[br]the upper torso at the start of the parry.

0:13:24.109,0:13:25.671
How did that get in there?

0:13:25.696,0:13:28.327
And not only that,[br]but the enemy character is back to

0:13:28.352,0:13:31.134
standing straight up in[br]anticipation of the riposte,

0:13:31.159,0:13:32.950
just waiting for it to land.

0:13:32.975,0:13:36.005
It’s like the enemy just suddenly[br]forgot you were fighting.

0:13:36.030,0:13:38.366
I don’t know what they’re going for here.

0:13:38.391,0:13:41.263
Especially because they’ve[br]gotten this right before!

0:13:41.280,0:13:43.960
Look at the riposte[br]reaction in Demon’s Souls!

0:13:45.320,0:13:49.760
You see how they hang in that parried state[br]right up until the counterattack lands?

0:13:49.780,0:13:53.109
Sure, they look a little disoriented[br]from having their attack deflected,

0:13:53.134,0:13:57.355
but they do still feel like they’re[br]engaged in the fight you’re having.

0:13:57.380,0:13:59.850
And they nailed this[br]recently with Sekiro too!

0:13:59.875,0:14:04.220
The enemy looks staggered and off balance[br]right up until the deathblow connects.

0:14:04.245,0:14:07.386
The reason this works for me is[br]because it feels like the attack

0:14:07.411,0:14:10.081
is catching them before they[br]even have a chance to react.

0:14:10.106,0:14:14.390
Whereas this looks like the character[br]IS reacting to your incoming attack,

0:14:14.415,0:14:17.486
just in a really bizarre, passive way.

0:14:17.511,0:14:19.581
Okay, to be a little[br]more charitable about it,

0:14:19.606,0:14:21.916
I’m guessing the reason they[br]brought this back is

0:14:21.941,0:14:26.287
either because they really wanted the[br]animation to feel familiar to long-time fans,

0:14:26.312,0:14:28.051
which ...ok.[br]Fair enough. I get it.

0:14:28.076,0:14:31.263
OR because they just decided[br]to re-use the old animation

0:14:31.288,0:14:33.300
and save that time for other things.

0:14:33.300,0:14:36.288
And… fine, I get that too. Dang it.

0:14:36.313,0:14:39.027
Well, at least the axe[br]riposte looks cool...

0:14:39.052,0:14:41.900
Hang on, is that a crotch shot again?

0:14:41.900,0:14:44.149
DARK SOULS. ARE YOU ALRIGHT?

0:14:44.174,0:14:45.233
You know, going into this,

0:14:45.258,0:14:48.613
I just assumed that Dark Souls III[br]was going to take an easy win here,

0:14:48.638,0:14:51.827
but looking at all these together?[br]Yeah, I’m giving it to Dark Souls 1.

0:14:51.872,0:14:54.585
Because that original animation[br]was good enough for Dark

0:14:54.610,0:14:57.916
Souls III to borrow it without[br]adding any polish on top.

0:14:57.941,0:15:03.672
And with that, I've just spent fifteen[br]minutes proving to you once and for all that,

0:15:03.697,0:15:04.380
uh….

0:15:04.380,0:15:06.480
...Dark Souls is good.

0:15:06.880,0:15:07.540
You’re welcome.

0:15:07.566,0:15:09.158
Anyway, I think that’ll do it.

0:15:09.183,0:15:12.220
This animation topic was requested[br]Dennis Bingham

0:15:12.220,0:15:13.085
(thank you, Dennis!)

0:15:13.110,0:15:16.273
and voted for by New Frame[br]Plus’s Patreon supporters.

0:15:16.298,0:15:18.769
If you’d like to take[br]part in future topic votes

0:15:18.794,0:15:20.955
or request an animation[br]for me to analyze,

0:15:20.980,0:15:25.095
consider supporting the show on Patreon[br]like all of these top notch individuals.

0:15:25.120,0:15:26.940
Look at ‘em! So great.

0:15:26.965,0:15:30.460
Anyway thanks for watching,[br]and I will see you next time!

0:15:30.485,0:15:40.619
[music]