Dark Souls is a series of action role-playing games that take place within a dark, medieval fantasy setting, where the player's character fights against knights, dragons, phantoms, demons, and other monstrous or supernatural entities.
The accretion, loss, and recovery of souls are central to the narrative and gameplay of Dark Souls games.
These games are linked through their setting and an overarching cyclic narrative centering around fire, and are linked through common themes and elements, including interactions with phantoms and battles with demons. At the end of each game, characters may reignite the "first flame" or allow it to fade, recurring a choice others have made before.
Dark Souls has received critical acclaim, with the first title often cited as one of the greatest in video games, with the series as a whole being both praised and criticized for its high level of difficulty.
