fromsoft's release title for the PS2, though it has it's jank, this game was way deeper than it looked on the surface. this was the first game that introduced me to day and night cycles, and the jank of this game worked to it's advantage. watching NPCs slowly meander from A to B. mixed with it's stilted dialogue gave the game a dream like quality to it, remaining in a shop after hours will cause the owner to ask you to leave followed by a loading screen and appearing outside. especially once you leave the starting hub and come across eerie castles and vast caves to explore, all coated behind fog and darkness gave every new area a chilling, spooky vibe. you even have the opportunity to create rings in the game using runes you pick up from defeating enemies. the mass variety of runes you can pick up provides the most amount of fun and exploration, as you can create rings that do anything from shoot basic fireballs, to summon tornados, to summon an elemental beast to fight beside you. there is so much fun potential here and the story is amazing