Why Dark Souls & Other FromSoftware Games Have Fog Walls
One of the first things that come to mind when people think about Dark Souls and other FromSoftware games are their spectacular boss fights. Each one is a climactic event that challenges the skills of players, with some even becoming infamous due to their difficulty, like Ornstein and Smough from Dark Souls, or the Orphan of Kos from Bloodborne. One of the things that helps set the stage for these magnificent boss fights might actually be one of the easiest to overlook, as many of FromSoftware's bosses, as well as their game areas, can only be entered after passing through a fog-like barrier. Besides these fog walls serving as a means to divide sections of the game though, what other purposes might they serve?
Another well-known aspect of FromSoftware games are that they often depart from traditional storytelling methods, relying on item descriptions, environments, and vague NPC dialogue to build their narratives. This provides a sense of mystery to FromSoftware games like Dark Souls and makes boss fights more than just challenging events, as these bosses are often near-legendary figures that players have heard about throughout their playthrough. A great example of this is the Great Grey Wolf Sif from Dark Souls, as it is often considered to be one of the more tragic boss fights in FromSoftware's games and is a great example of how the company often uses bosses as another means of storytelling. Fog walls play an important role in this form of storytelling, as they not only set the stage for important moments like boss fights, but they're often used to separate a game's environments too.
There are likely many reasons for FromSoftware's use of fog walls in their games. The division between various events and locations they provide could be one such reason. Besides how these fog walls contribute to FromSoftware's narratives, they also serve an important purpose on the tech side of things too. A great example of this would be how fog walls work in Dark Souls' multiplayer, as they prevent other players from entering areas and boss fights without the host. Dark Souls 3's Firelink Shrine is another example of the technical uses of fog walls, as it would use them to prevent the player from walking outside, likely only disappearing once everything had loaded in. The technical and storytelling benefits of fog walls are already easy to see, but could they also serve a purpose in improving gameplay?
As mentioned before, FromSoftware is well known for being somewhat secretive with information in their games. This is why something as simple as a fog wall can actually provide players with a lot of information. After all, if someone hasn't managed to explore an area entirely, then a fog wall might be the perfect indicator that they should turn around and keep looking around. They also provide players with an interesting ultimatum that works perfectly with FromSoftware's brand of difficulty. On one hand, a fog wall might be concealing a new area that potentially has a nearby rest spot. On the other hand, a boss fight could be on the other side, which could be bad news if a player is running low on resources.
Fog walls serve many purposes in FromSoftware titles. They help them run smoothly, provide vital information to players, and even contribute to the narratives of games like Dark Souls by serving as transitions between environments and scenes. Their appearance and uses have changed throughout the games, though, with Sekiro being the latest example, as it had ghostly fog walls and didn't even need them for multiplayer, as it's a single player experience. Since they existed in Sekiro, Bloodborne, and Dark Souls though, it'll definitely be interesting to see how, or even if, they are implemented into Elden Ring, FromSoftware's upcoming title that is as mysterious as it is intriguing.