As almost everyone is aware of, From Software and Namco Bandai have changed the way the online mode operates.

Specifically, Demon's Souls, the first game in the "Souls" series, operated on dedicated servers. The outcome of this was that people of each region were grouped together on the region's dedicated server, thus it was pretty easy to find people to play with. But, in Dark Souls, this has changed completely. From and Namco have changed the dedicated server method to the P2P (peer to peer) method. That means, the host player's console acts as a server, thus the host player is a server provider and a player, and the other people that join the session connect to that console. Almost every time, the speeds used by the public are not even close to matching the speed provided by dedicated servers, who are used for the sole purpose of being there for people to connect, and are independent. Therefore, the P2P system is significantly inferior to dedicated servers, at least with the current configuration.

Long story short, this new system is very limiting, since there are more factors affecting your experience, making it more difficult to use the online part of the game. What we want is the P2P system to be, somehow, changed, so that online play is more accessible, or for dedicated servers to make a return. A good start would be the increase of number of people in each P2P lobby (the amount of people in your "world"), to make it more likely for people to see each other's signs, summon and be summoned, invade and be invaded more often and easily. Also, the ability to choose a lobby would be ideal, not ruining the Souls theme, and making it easier for everyone. The Covenants are a great touch to the game, but we just haven't experienced what most of them offer, due to these problems.

We have thought of a number of ways that may help From Software configure the current P2P system, and will include them in a mail to Bandai Namco's support. To all the people who are going to sign, keep your signatures polite and civilized, please.

Yours sincerely,
Crash Okami, of the Dark Souls community

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