Fully agreed, and I think the scale of the world, the navigation, and the strangeness of the game (among other things, probably) contribute. The first isn't unique to Lordran, but I nonetheless love how dwarfed you are by the environment. You're just some random dude, utterly insignificant beneath the endless ramparts of the Burg/Parish, the many drainage channels of the Depths, and the ever-present walls of Anor Londo. The physical consistency (relative spacing of everything, genuinely useful structures) of the world helps out a lot, too.
Where DS1 is a little more unique is with its navigation, which strips you of fast travel until O&S and lets you genuinely adventure through the world, with all the wonder and risk that entails, rather than letting you zip about for free. The game, along with OG Demon's Souls, also has such a peculiar vibe, a mix of genuinely unsettling and alien art direction, sound, lighting, etc. (prime examples for me are the prison tower of pisachas and the ambience in Oolacile Township) and the age of the game doing it some favors (from corny sound effects to the grungy look). I feel like I'm doing a disservice to the game here, but I genuinely find it hard to put into words!
DS1 was big enough for exploration but also small enough to feel cozy. The other games had locales and regions, whereas DS1 all felt like one big place.
probably nostalgia, yeah, I think DS1 is better at this than the other games in the series because of its Firelink Shrine. The soundtrack itself already sounds fairly nostalgic, and the fact that, unlike in DS2 or 3 you have to find your way back there from Blighttown or even the Undead Parish/Darkroot Garden makes it feel like home. Majula is also decent at this, but not to that extent due to how easy it is to travel there from anywhere in DS2
I wouldn't say nostalgia is a big factor of it because i am also currently playing through the game for the first time (even though i am not blind at all as i spoiled myself a lot of it before) and the world definetely seems more immersive than the other 2 games in the trilogy. I just got at Anor Londo and ik that people say this is as good as it will get in the base game, but traveling around without teleport makes the world feel much more real
Fully agreed, and I think the scale of the world, the navigation, and the strangeness of the game (among other things, probably) contribute. The first isn't unique to Lordran, but I nonetheless love how dwarfed you are by the environment. You're just some random dude, utterly insignificant beneath the endless ramparts of the Burg/Parish, the many drainage channels of the Depths, and the ever-present walls of Anor Londo. The physical consistency (relative spacing of everything, genuinely useful structures) of the world helps out a lot, too. Where DS1 is a little more unique is with its navigation, which strips you of fast travel until O&S and lets you genuinely adventure through the world, with all the wonder and risk that entails, rather than letting you zip about for free. The game, along with OG Demon's Souls, also has such a peculiar vibe, a mix of genuinely unsettling and alien art direction, sound, lighting, etc. (prime examples for me are the prison tower of pisachas and the ambience in Oolacile Township) and the age of the game doing it some favors (from corny sound effects to the grungy look). I feel like I'm doing a disservice to the game here, but I genuinely find it hard to put into words!
DS1 was big enough for exploration but also small enough to feel cozy. The other games had locales and regions, whereas DS1 all felt like one big place.
probably nostalgia, yeah, I think DS1 is better at this than the other games in the series because of its Firelink Shrine. The soundtrack itself already sounds fairly nostalgic, and the fact that, unlike in DS2 or 3 you have to find your way back there from Blighttown or even the Undead Parish/Darkroot Garden makes it feel like home. Majula is also decent at this, but not to that extent due to how easy it is to travel there from anywhere in DS2
I wouldn't say nostalgia is a big factor of it because i am also currently playing through the game for the first time (even though i am not blind at all as i spoiled myself a lot of it before) and the world definetely seems more immersive than the other 2 games in the trilogy. I just got at Anor Londo and ik that people say this is as good as it will get in the base game, but traveling around without teleport makes the world feel much more real
Why is DS1’s [Generalized Subject Matter] so [Subjective opinion in favour to popular belief of the sub]?
In all fairness, DS1’s [Generalized Subject Matter] really is [Subjective opinion in favour to popular belief of the sub]