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Frits de Laat
Level designer
An analysis of Dark Souls: The painted world of Ariamis
The painted world of Ariamis is an isolated world outside of Lordran, the fictional game world. It is said that it was created to hide Crossbreed Priscilla, a bastard child from a dragon and a god, but later most exiles took refuge within the painting as well. The area is quite well hidden and a Peculiar Doll is needed to even enter the painting, which is located inside another well-hidden optional location.
Upon touching the painting with the Peculiar Doll in hand, the player is sucked into the painting and spawns right at the very bridge that is shown front and center of the painting. The area is situated at the top of a snowy mountain, which immediately invokes the feeling of isolation. Since this is one of the most hidden areas within the game, not many players will just stumble upon it, giving the players that do find it a great sense of mystery and an incentive to explore it.
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Map overview of the Painted world
Map blueprint used from: Polygon - Recreated and repurposed by me
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Landmark as objective marker and orientation point
Section 1 - Reaching the tower
The moment the player enters the area, they are met with a vista of the new area before them. The ruins sticking out on top is the first long term goal of the player and can be used as a landmark to help them orient themselves through the level.
With planks missing from the bridge behind the player, they have no choice but to go forward towards the snowy mountain peak. Walking up the stairs, the player is met with the first and only bonfire in the area, which will act as the checkpoint for this level. Players who try to warp out of the level will quickly find that all warp locations have been disabled, leaving them stranded in the painted world, further selling that feeling of isolation and mystery.
1. Blocked door later used as a shortcut
From the bonfire, the player is met with the first enemy encounter. One melee hollow is guarding a blocked of door, while two of them are off to the right of the player out of sight, ready to flank if the player gets too close. This incentivizes player awareness, as well as good positioning to ensure enemies can be fought one on one.
The blocked door is locked from this side, showing the player that it can be opened, once they progress further into the level, to act as a shortcut.
2. Torches highlight the golden path
Once the enemies are defeated, the player has to look for a way forward, since they can not go through the blocked door. They are met with a staircase highlighted by a torch, as well as an item hanging from a rope to the right.
These torches are used throughout the entire level to help the player find the golden path if they might get lost. The hanging item can either be shot by a bow to drop it, or the player has to walk up to that balcony to hit the rope and make it fall down. With the melee option being there, it tells the player that the balcony up there is a playable area, further incentivizing the player to go up the staircase to explore and find items that might aid them in their journey.
3. Different enemy archetypes incentivizing strategy
Going up the stairs, the player will come across the second enemy encounter, being immediately shot at by an archer Hollow. Dodging the incoming fire, the player reaches the enemy, but whilst trying to take him out is immediately flanked by a melee Hollow and another archer shooting from the staircase in the back. Using these two different enemy archetypes forces the players to come up with a strategy, since they are clearly outnumbered and can not quickly take out the melee enemies without being shot by the archers and vise versa.
The archer in the back stays in its position while raining down arrows on the player, luring them towards that section of the level, progressing them forwards. Right next to the archer, there is an item, rewarding them for finishing the combat encounter, but the player is immediately met with two entirely new enemies flanking from the left. These enemies, Engorged Hollows, shoot fireballs at the player and drop a toxic cloud on death, incentivizing strategic positioning, as well as keeping some distance from the enemies to not get intoxicated on killing them.
4. Vantage point used to scout area
Players who took a look around after killing the archers would have found a staircase on the left of the entrance of the area, leading up to an optional area with some melee hollows and an item rewarding them for exploration. After picking up the item, they are met with yet another new enemy type, Harpies, which are flying in from above before landing and attacking the player. After defeating the Harpies, the player has some time to take a look around the elevation point, giving them a great overview of the area. Here they can see the next path they have to take to progress, as well as the landmark they saw at the start of the level getting closer, marking progression.
5. Light contrast of the door and item used to lure the player
After killing the two Engorged Hollows, the player continues moving forward up the staircase. At the top the player is met with two choices, going left into a small building, or going right over a small stone bridge. On the right, the player is being lured in by the contrasting torch light coming from the door entrance, as well as an item on the balcony of the second floor.
Going left to the optional area, the player will find a broken floor and an item opposite to them they can not reach. Dropping down the floor will lead the player to two White Rats, a variation from the normal rats. The item up top incentivizes backtracking back to the area with the Harpies, since the player can drop down onto that balcony from the vantage point.
Taking the main path over the bridge leads the player to the third enemy encounter, where they are first being shot at by an archer on the other side of the bridge. After crossing the bridge and reaching the archer, they find out that the archer was a lure, and two melee Hollows climb up behind the player to ambush them. If the player makes it out alive they will make it back into the big room, where they will encounter three Engorged Hollows. Two of them immediately aggro the player, while the third is shooting at them from the back of the room. This placement of the enemies provides for a bigger challenge after just having learned their attack patterns from the previous encounter. The player can choose if they want to fight head on, or fall back to take on the enemies one on one without being shot at.
6. Item location luring the player to an optional area
After killing the three Engorged Hollows, the player reaches the end of the big room and is presented with two choices. The door to the left is in high contrast to the inside environment, luring the player out to the main path. However, the two legs sticking out of the broken ceiling indicate to the player that taking the right route upstairs will reward them with some optional items if they so desire.
Taking the route upstairs will lead the player to a simple platforming section over some ceiling beams and with some jumps over gaps between the floor. The player will be met with the item on the second floor balcony from before, as well as the choice to go down a ladder, or continue to the right side towards the item shown with the two legs sticking out.
Going down the ladder, the player is met with two more White Rats and a chest containing the armor set of the Painting Guardians, which are enemies generally found around the painting of Ariamis in Anor Londo, guarding the painting. This creates some world building, linking the Painting Guardians directly to the painted world.
7. Funneling the player from a cramped room to vista for higher impact
Taking the door leading outside, the player is funneled through the small room and exit door, towards a grand vista showing the final area of the level. Funneling the player like this creates contrast which makes the reveal of the vista even more impactful.
Apart from the final arena at the end of the level, the player also sees the route towards it being blocked by something rotting and big with some items laying in front of it, luring the player towards it. The player is now also right next to the landmark shown at the start of the level, marking the nearing end of the first section of the level. The player is presented with two choices here, go left towards the large rotting corpse and items, or go right upstairs inside the tower landmark.
8. Vantage point looking down at conquered area
Going right and upstairs leads the player to a long spiraling staircase going far up. Here, the player is attacked by multiple harpies who try to prevent the player from reaching the end. After successfully defeating the Harpies, the player will find an important multiplayer item on top of the staircase, as well as a great vantage point over the entire level, where they can see the area they have just conquered, invoking the feeling of triumph and accomplishment.
9. Dragon mini-boss closing off the level's first section
Going left on the bridge towards the rotting corpse, the player is lured by the items lying on the bridge. While walking towards the items, the rotting corpse begins to move more and more, eventually revealing itself as a rotting dragon rampaging towards the player. The player quickly falls back and notices the rotting dragon is now lying in place on the middle section of the bridge, attacking the player if they come too close. Since the final area of the level is behind the dragon and there are also some items behind him, the player is incentivized to defeat this dragon mini-boss.
The combat area is divided into three platforms, the main middle section, as well as two lower platforms to the left and right, where the player can hit the arms of the dragon. Having both melee and ranged attacks, the player has to adapt quickly to both situations, and learn to read the attack pattern of the mini-boss, so they can decide whether to fall back or charge in for some attacks.
After defeating the dragon, the player is rewarded with an item drop and souls from the dragon itself, as well as the items that were blocked of previously by the mini-boss. The player can now cross the bridge towards the final arena of the level, but will find that the behind of the dragon is still there, blocking the player from continuing down that path.
With the mini-boss defeated and the new route being blocked, the player turns around to look for the next pathway. They will regain their orientation by seeing the path they came from, as well as seeing a small staircase leading down along the tower landmark
10. Player is funneled towards next objective
Going down the small staircase, having reached their first main objective, the player is funneled into the reveal of their next long term goal. When reaching the door downstairs, it states it is blocked by some contraption, making the player's new objective to find the contraption that is blocking them from advancing to the final area.
Section 2 - Open the door leading to the final area
The only way to advance after interacting with the blocked door, is turning around and going through the fog gate. This fog gate is there to mark the player's progression, showing them that they are now in the next section of the level.
11. Giving the player choice while guiding them towards golden path
When entering the plaza after the fog gate, the player is met with multiple choices on where to go. Firstly, they see a new enemy type in the middle, the Phalanx, being in their respective Phalanx formation around what seems to be an important statue. The player can choose to either engage the Phalanx or just go around them and avoid conflict.
In the back of the plaza is a big wooden door, and if the player has paid attention, they know this is the door from the beginning of the level that was locked and guarded by that one hollow. Opening up this door creates a shortcut from the bonfire to the second section of the level, finalizing the completion of the first section. This gives the player the option to go back to the bonfire, take some rest to regain their footing and spend those hard earned souls on better stats for their character.
To the right of the wooden door is a stairway leading up back into the buildings, which is one of the two routes leading to their main objective, as shown by the torch guiding the player along the golden path. The other path is even further to the right, leading into a small graveyard with a dry well at the end, from which a ladder leads the player down into a cave structure.
12. World building through exposition
One of the optional areas to the left of the plaza, is a small snowfield with hollows on spikes. A couple of these spikes have already been seen throughout the level, but here there are a lot of them. This is a piece of world building that sparks the player's imagination on why those hollows were put on spikes and who did it. Item descriptions found throughout the level vaguely hint towards answers, but the entire story of Dark Souls is build on the idea that the game presents the player with minor story beats that vaguely connect, for you as the player to fill in the gaps.
There are also some items scattered around the area with some Hollows that are still alive and will fight the player if they come close to the items. If the player has reversed their hollowing, activating the online aspect of the game, they will get invaded by an NPC invader here, named Xanthous King Jeremiah. He will attack the player with fire spells, as well as his Notched whip. Defeating him grants a humanity and his unique weapon, the Notched whip.
13. Locked door incentivizing exploration and back-tracking
The last area branching off from the plaza is a small chapel like structure, containing a door at the back. The door is locked and requires a key to be opened. Proposing this problem to the player will incentivize exploration, where they try to find the key to this door.
14. Tight corridors lead to high-tension gameplay
Back to the main path, where the player enters the well with the ladder, they will find a cave structured like a maze underneath. The cave is inhabited by pinwheel skeletons, who will start rolling at the player on sight. In these tight corridors this makes for some very tense encounters with them, having little space to maneuver and dodge their attacks.
Scattered throughout this cave system are a couple spells, soul items and the key to the Annex, which is the key that is needed for the door in the Chapel.
15. Cut-scene showing impact of actions from the player
Having found their way through the tight caves, the player is met with a larger room, containing a couple more pinwheel skeletons. When entering the room from the cave system, the player is presented with a turning lever right in front of them. After defeating the attacking skeletons, the player comes back to this lever and uses it. Then, a small cut scene plays, showing the statue in the plaza guarded by the Phalanx being turned. This in turn opens up the locked door to the final area of the level, thus completing the second section's objective of finding a way to open the door.
After the cut scene, the player can spot a torch at the back of the room, leading them back out of the cave system to the plaza.
16. World building through items and characters
From the plaza, the player can now enter the annex of the Chapel with the Annex key, which leads them up into a building structure. From here, the player can go a couple routes, all leading to some items guarded by either Engorged Hollows or Harpies. One route takes the player a bit further forward into an open plaza with a couple Harpies and Hollows. After defeating them, the player will find a statue with an item in it. Players will recognize this statue as one of the blacksmiths from the game, who has been petrified over the course of time. The blacksmith is holding the Dark Ember, an item that when given to a living blacksmith, will give the player the ability to make occult weapons.
This blacksmith is another great example of world building, begging the question as to why there was a blacksmith in the painted world, as well as why he was meddling with Occult weapons in a place like this.
Section 3 - The final stretch
Having done everything in and around the plaza, it is now time to head to the final section of the level. The player's second main objective has been completed and they are now facing the final objective of the level, which is getting to the final boss room and escape the painted world.
17. Final goal framed by long hallway, building curiosity and excitement
The path to the boss is framed with the arches, pointing right to the fog gate indicating the arena. Along the way there are a couple archer Hollows shooting at the player, which they will have to dodge and defeat running from cover to cover. Right before the fog gate, there is a Berenike Knight, a unique enemy that only appears a handful of times throughout the game, being the final obstacle before facing the area boss.
18. Choice to fight the final boss or leave her be
Entering the fog gate, the player is presented with Crossbreed Priscilla, the final boss of the area. Contrary to all other bosses in the game, she is passive and can be interacted with to get some dialogue. She will tell the player some backstory about the painting, as well as asks them to leave in peace, as the player character does not belong in this world. This gives the player the choice to either engage Priscilla or leave her be and leave the area. Another thing that can be found within this room is Jeremiah's body, with his armor set, indicating that he did in fact try to escape, but died to Priscilla in the process.
The player can now choose to either walk behind her and jump off the ledge in the back of the room, or attack her and initiate the boss fight. Jumping off the ledge will play a cut scene, teleporting the player back to the painting within Anor Londo.
Attacking Priscilla multiple times will anger Priscilla and initiate the boss fight. Priscilla will initially go invisible, and the player has to figure out where she is, based on seeing footsteps on the snowy ground. Attacking her a couple times while she is invisible will make her visible again, making it easier to read her attack moves and respond appropriately. After defeating her, the player is rewarded with her soul, which makes it possible to craft her Scythe as a weapon.
The player has now completed this area and has to walk to the ledge to trigger the cut scene that brings them back to the painting.
Level design summary:
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Great use of the torches in contrast to the snowy environment to guide the player.
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Using items to lure the player is a great way to incentivize exploration.
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The level sections are divided into three parts with a clear beginning, middle and end.
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Item descriptions and expositions are used to spark the player's curiosity, immersing them into the world and creating questions for the player.
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Great use of enemy archetypes to let the player make strategic choices on their approach.
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Features a great unexplored location that is in stark contrast with the rest of the game, sparking player curiosity.
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Not being able to get out of the level by warping imposes the feeling of isolation and mystery on the player, which is enforced by the setting of a lonely snowy mountain.
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Since the player can't leave the area by warping, the final boss is deliberately made passive to ensure all players can escape from the area, but gives players that want a challenge the choice to fight Priscilla.
Frits de Laat
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