5/5 ★ – MPT's review of Dark Souls: Artorias of the Abyss.

Artorias of the Abyss is probably the strongest DLC in contention for the best Dark Souls DLC, and is my personal favourite. everything in it is perfect Dark Souls. the whole concept of it is astoundingly interesting, especially if you’re interested in the game’s lore (which should be a requirement if you play the game anyways). it has you going back in time to a period of one of the series’ most iconic characters’ final moments - Artorias the Abysswalker. a significantly interesting character in the lore of Dark Souls, and linking heavily to Sif and the integral ability to traverse the Abyss in the main game, the importance of Artorias can’t be overstated, and to see him in the flesh (despite his desperate condition) is insanely rewarding. without spoiling anything, how the DLC plays with his story is great. aside from him as the main attraction, we also learn a tonne more about the effects of the Abyss itself. so from a lore and story standpoint, the DLC is top tier. gameplay wise, it’s arguably even better. the Royal Wood is a quality intro, and Oolacile, a settlement overcome by the Abyss, is a great setting to delve into to put a stop to/ halt its consuming nature: an underground, crumbling town full of newly made creatures of the darkness. this is all before venturing into the heart of the Abyss itself, a hugely interesting, exciting and harrowing experience. despite these major positives, the best thing about the DLC is the bosses. all of them are at least good, with Sanctuary Guardian being the clear weakest in the face of Kalameet, Manus and Artorias himself. these 3 bosses aren’t just good, they’re exceptional, and are some of the best produced in the series as a whole, nevermind it’s DLC. Artorias of the Abyss is an essential DLC for anyone who owns/ plays Dark Souls. it’s quality of areas, story/ lore and bosses is like no other Dark Souls DLC in terms of being consistently great. it’s an interesting, exciting, rewarding and thoroughly high quality expansion, and it just so happens to be on one of the best games ever made. so buy it.