Dark Souls III[a] is a 2016 action role-playing game developed by FromSoftware and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

The third and final entry in the Dark Souls series, the game follows an unkindled warrior on a quest to prevent the end of the world.

Hidetaka Miyazaki, the creator of the series, returned to direct the game after handing the development duties of Dark Souls II to others.

According to lead director and series creator Hidetaka Miyazaki, the game's gameplay design followed "closely from Dark Souls II".

[10] The game features fewer overall maps than its predecessor Dark Souls II, but they are larger and more detailed, encouraging exploration.

Meanwhile, Sulyvahn, a sorcerer from the Painted World of Ariandel, wrongfully proclaims himself Pontiff and seizes power over Irithyll of the Boreal Valley and Anor Londo as a tyrant.

The Lords include the Abyss Watchers, a legion of warriors sworn by the Old Wolf's Blood which linked their souls into one to protect the land from the Abyss and ultimately locked in an endless battle between each other; Yhorm the Giant, who sacrificed his life for a nation conquered by his ancestor; and Aldrich, who became a Lord of Cinder despite his ravenous appetite for both men and gods.

Once the Ashen One succeeds in returning Lothric and the Lords of Cinder to their thrones through killing them, they travel to the ruins of the Kiln of the First Flame.

These include summoning the Fire Keeper to extinguish the flame and begin an age of Dark, or killing her in a sudden change of heart.

On arriving at the Cathedral of the Deep in the base game, the Ashen One meets Gael, a wandering knight who implores them to enter the Painted World and fulfill a prophecy to bring "Fire for Ariandel."

In keeping with previous franchise DLC, Ashes of Ariandel introduces a substantial new area, two boss fights and several new weapons, spells, and armour pieces.

In The Ringed City, the Ashen One begins their journey to an area known as "The Dreg Heap", where ruined kingdoms of different eras are piled upon each other as the world draws to a close.

From the Dreg Heap, after battling through the ruins of Lothric Castle, the Ashen One encounters the amnesiac knight Lapp, who cannot remember his past.

This transports them to a ruined wasteland of ash, which can be interpreted as either a skip forward in time or the lifting of an illusion cast by Filianore.

Isamu Okano and Tanimura, the directors of Steel Battalion: Heavy Armor and Dark Souls II, respectively, served as sub-directors for the game.

[11] The game's original score was primarily written by Dark Souls II and Bloodborne composer Yuka Kitamura.

Additional music was written by Dark Souls composer Motoi Sakuraba, with a single boss theme each by Tsukasa Saitoh and Nobuyoshi Suzuki.

A complete version containing the base game and both DLCs, titled Dark Souls III: The Fire Fades Edition, was released on April 21, 2017.

"[37] Rich Stanton of Eurogamer rated the game as "essential", calling it "fabulous" and that it was "a fitting conclusion" to the Dark Souls series.

[46] Steven Strom of Ars Technica wrote that he thought the title still had the "smooth and impressive rendering of the series' signature style" and some of "the best boss fights in any Souls game".

[41] However, criticism was directed at issues with the game's technical performance,[39] linear map design,[34][47] and Bandai Namco's handling of the Western launch.