Lost Izalith Swamp - DS1 Cut Content

[@DagothBob]

Ever since then, Miyazaki never let a swamp area be cut ever again.

[@davidf.morais6916]

Actually, there is DS3's God's Grave ☝️🤓

[@MoonSystem-They-It]

​@@davidf.morais6916that was because Miyazaki still needs God to make his ultimate poison swamp: Poison Game. Only then can he let Him rest in peace

[@davidf.morais6916]

@@MoonSystem-They-It Sounds legit lol

[@ericbright1881]

It was a traumatic event he still hasn't gotten over, and now we all have to deal with it. Hurt people hurt people.

[@grayfox6518]

I wish he would just get it off his chest and make an entire game based around swamps. I want to spend an entire playthrough agonizing over fat rolling through sludge while eating purple moss clumps.

[@ryansandwich1086]

You know, I never found it odd that there were so many roots and branches just emerging from lava just fine, like they're made of adamantium.

[@bionicleapple1254]

All the branches seem to burst out from Bed of Chaos, the heart of the Chaos Flame and birthplace of demons. It makes sense they'd be magically resistant to fire in some way

[@adradox]

- "Mr. Miyazaki we can't make this area in time!" - "Then it's time to execute plan B." - "Plan B?" - "Deploy... dragon asses..."

[@lanocondo]

plan "B" for B U T T S

[@Ipavaiva]

This is like seeing Lost Izalith for the first time Not because it's so different, but without the bright lava i can actually see more than just red glow

[@JC-kl3uc]

My eyes (and I imagine ears as well) wouldn't have to bleed if we were to get this version.

[@deathbyslipknot]

The Sanctuary Guardian once being something called Leo Demon makes so much sense. After Taurus and Capra Demon. This kinda blew my mind

[@yewtewbstew547]

It doesn't really match the other demon's art style though. It's also only part lion, the rest is a mix of goat, bird and scorpion.

[@luna7157]

​@@yewtewbstew547At one point in time, long before the black knights were founded, Izalith was allied with Anor Londo. While I do think the Sanctuary Guardian looks more like something Seath would make, if it were actually the Leo Demon, it could imply the Witch of Izalith and her daughters were able to wield their lord soul, that which possesses powers relating to life, to modify living things. This may also be the origin of the serpent-men who guard Sen's Fortress, the gauntlet a prospective silver knight must pass to attain knighthood. Both the Sanctuary Guardian and Serpent-Men are chimeras who wield lightning, the hallmark of Anor Londo's power. If the "Life Soul" could modify existing life but not produce new life, this would provide additional context to the Witch of Izalith's decision to create the Chaos Flame, itself an ill-founded attempt to birth a new First Flame (supposedly the origin of all life, with the exception of dragons).

[@psevdhome]

@@yewtewbstew547 Would it blow your mind to tell you that those are the exact traits of, especially in modern fantasy, the manticore? A man faced lion with a barbed tail that shoots poison darts that sometimes is depicted as a segmented scorpion tail. And in modern versions it almost always has pegasus-like bird wings to allow it to fly. It makes total sense.

[@twolessba1087]

@@psevdhome manticore or chimera yes

[@kingborehaha]

@@yewtewbstew547 Sanctuary Guardian's soul item in the DLC mentions they are related to demons. But also: c'mon.

[@Ashlevon]

Izalith being a swamp would've fit in with the lore too. We hear a great many things of a "Great Swamp" which is the origin of many pyromancers, but we never quite understood why pyromancers loved swamps, or why they converged upon/come from a Great Swamp in particular. Well, if Izalith was previously a swamp, then it all makes sense. The stone city of Izalith is IN the Great Swamp. The Pyromancers come from the Great Swamp, because Izalith is there, and Izalith is the birthplace of Chaos, Flame Sorcery, and as a result, Pyromancy.

[@H20No]

Holy shit you’re right

[@Scruffy72]

I'd like to think that lost Izalith was infact a great swamp before the witches of Izalith attempted to recreate the first flame. But since then the flames of chaos engilulfed the whole region.

[@davidepastore5600]

The Great Swamp referenced by Laurentius and some item descriptions is clearly outside of Lordran, like the other places the face presets are named after (Astora, Vinheim, Catarina, etc). I do however agree that if Izalith itself was situated in a swamp, it would explain why Pyromancers would congregate in other swamps outside of Lordran, instead of volcanoes or deserts.

[@Scruffy72]

@@davidepastore5600 you make a great point

[@turtlebuttmudd]

​@@Scruffy72I also like this idea. Like, it WAS a great swamp before the creation of Demonkind, and what we're seeing is another instance of post collapse

[@rafaelbordoni516]

I've heard that the dragon asses was supposed to be just one ass, and that geographically, this ass is just below the undead dragon half in the Valley of Drakes. But then, when they were forced to rush Izalith, they didn't had the time to make better enemies so they just used the ass that was already there, ready and working and spammed it everywhere.

[@kingborehaha]

I never really bought that theory, and with the crawling undead dragon in Izalith map data + the previously large enemy variety (before they got cut) makes me have significant doubts. I would personally guess there used to be just a handful of legs to go with the torsos. Crawling Undead Dragons had some significant technical issues which are quite difficult to resolve, which is likely why they were cut in the first place. If they worked better, I imagine they would have been in the lava when DS1 came out.

[@venus_as_a_b0y]

@@kingborehaha alternative theory: the dragon legs model is also used in the centipede demon which is basically the dragon legs infected with a bunch of centipedes (like the egg carriers are). the one thing that's different is that in the centipede demon the ribs point upwards and the feet have turned into little centipede heads. centipede demon even has some animations from the dragon legs i think also. so it could be that the upper body gets separated from the lower which gets turned into centipede demon?

[@kingborehaha]

@@venus_as_a_b0y Centipede demon's legs are pretty different vs undead dragon legs if you really look at the model data, but I think that's a fun idea. More reasonable than Izalith being full of nearly 30 dragon asses for SOME reason, at least. lol.

[@nobody2416]

​@@kingborehahadoes it work for you to resolve the problems around the crawling dragon?

[@Sunborne187]

One could say... they half-assed it.

[@lixthewitch6718]

Izalith being a swamp makes so much more sense when you consider the pyromancers lore being from great swamps.

[@JacobDragyn]

In hindsight, it was a bit weird to have large roots sticking out of burning lava.

[@SgtZook]

I DOUBT YOU COULD EVEN IMAGINE IT

[@LucDeTruc]

THAT WHICH COMMANDED THE SWAMP

[@kingborehaha]

I am working on a mod that will let you play through the recreated Izalith Swamp. Look forward to it! Edit: it's out. kzbin.info/www/bejne/qorXZ36FZbaZoKc

[@BlaireBlaireBlaire]

sounds good asf you better reply when its done i gotta see that!

[@vihu2001]

hype!

[@sirbill_greebi3811]

I love how you're making people hype for a poison level in a souls game.

[@paperclip3734]

@@sirbill_greebi3811 posion level>lost isalith

[@sir.spliffalot_mobile4968]

nice, wasn't expecting you to go this far. also, since you seem to have dug farely deep into the source code, is there any hint of a former version of Bed of Chaos?

[@loot_or_die]

With the swamp, it really does look so much more like the Angkor Wat temples it was clearly designed around!

[@CausticSpace]

I think if they added some gold accents the area could've really popped out, unfortunately it's a horrible mass of grey and red.

[@Coffin1987]

I for one am glad that we got the Lost Izalith that we did. Stepping through the outer wall, after seeing a mysterious, giant round stone thingy in the Demon ruins, climbing down my way all the way from Ceaseless Discharge through the Firesage Demon and Centipede Demon arenas, and then seeing "Lost Izalith" on screen. It just clicked for me. Yes, this was the lost ancient city, this was the unmoved kingdom with "transformed" inhabitants that was laying for a thousand years under an inaccessible and impenetrable dome and cut off because of massive amounts of lava. Left to itself, to wither away, undying, with unending chaos flame energy. It fit perfectly in my head because the entire and obvious demon/chaos/lava connection. The architecture helped, too. So majestic, so mysterious, so different from every other area in the game. Yes, Bed of Chaos is lackluster. But the Lost Izalith in the final game is honestly, truly, one of my favorite areas in the entire game, and nothing will ever change that. I still feel some of the awe I felt in that moment when I stepped through the outer wall, stepping into a realm that was cut off from the rest of the universe by arrogance, and massive amounts of lava.

[@Jupiter__001_]

Also the name is mysterious and builds up the idea of Lost Izalith from item descriptions and dialogue before arriving there.

[@OldTimeyDragon]

I also like that we didn't get another poison swamp after Blighttown. It would've made both Blighttown and Lost Izalith feel less unique. And worse, if Blighttown were to not be a swamp, there goes half of that area's personality. While it could've been much better if they had more time to polish it, I do like what we got instead.

[@Coffin1987]

@@OldTimeyDragon Couldn't agree more about having two swamps! That probably would've sucked. It only made sense to me that it got more lava-intense the more you went down from Ceaseless.

[@nellyjelly1158]

The burning red swamp concept really gives aeonian swamp vibes. Caelid is the true Izalith we lost.

[@ericmurray5441]

Fucking hate souls community you all spend more time on dumb shit like this than giving your own life’s.

[@GoldenXShark22]

this makes the little basement with siegmeyer being a shallow swamp make even more sense! I always found it weird how there is no lava down there, only demons and a swamp.

[@kuroboticuse]

The fact that swamp Izalith doesn't burn your eyes with the bright as shit lava already made it way better than the original

[@martingarricks6209]

That's the magic of izalith tho, I love feeling like I'm in a deep fryer

[@letskissnow987]

If you look into the real life inspiration for lost izalith, this makes a lot more sense

[@strngr4752]

angkor wat right?

[@tect0nicssb]

Then the dragon asses make more sense. Looked up an image and saw half of a Lion statue 🤔

[@TheSilly6403]

Florida?

[@yewtewbstew547]

That would have been crazy if everything past Blighttown was also just swamp. Demon Ruins? Swamp. Izalith? More swamp. Just like 5 hours of gameplay that is nothing but dark poisonous swamp. I'd have been down for that, Valley of Defilement is my favourite level in Demon's Souls.

[@Sykroid]

- Hidetaka Miyazaki

[@LoveFor298Yen]

@@SykroidDude. I saw you a while back on an almost unknown Umineko Rokkenjima build in Minecraft from a decade ago. Now I find you here again. Plus you’re a Castlevania fan too? The internet really is a small place.

[@Sykroid]

@@LoveFor298Yen wait...I remember that video! That was way before I changed my name though, but I've kept this same unique pfp, so you must have an amazing memory to be able to spot me lol. Weird question, but are you also a touhou fan?

[@LoveFor298Yen]

@@Sykroid Of course! I love the series, especially the print works.

[@Sykroid]

@@LoveFor298Yen YES! I remember you! I think we had a small discussion about castlevania back then lol. Unless that was a different touhou/castlevania fan that I found on an obscure unineko video years ago. Which would be even more incredible as it would be the second time I've had this happen lmao

[@faerycult]

The cut at 3:02 fit so perfectly with Nito's theme. "The instant I saw them, everything became clear." *cuts to blighttown*

[@kylereichenbach4475]

Izalith being a swamp makes perfect when you consider that the structure design is based off of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, a real place in SouthEast Asia known for its sprawling swamps, Jungles, and unique architecture. This also explains the Bed of Chaos resembling more like a Tree than a Demon given the swampy background of the pyromancers and the cut content here.

[@thedarkgenious7967]

that moment you realize the toxic pit in seigmyer's quest is a glimpse into what the rest of Izalith could have been. and you know it wouldn't have been just poison, but toxic, because they would have to make the end game area more than the early game poison swamp that is lower blighttown.

[@QuintessentialWalrus]

I actually wonder if Lost Izalith was intended to be a swamp full of boiling water, considering its location and lore. That would've been a much better way to distinguish it from Blight Town than "poison, but stronger." If nothing else, my new head canon is that Lost Izalith certainly USED to be a swamp until it got filled with lava, hence the branches.

[@patriciapandacoon7162]

@@QuintessentialWalrus now I'm imagining a swamp that hurts you to walk through AND inflicts poison on you.

[@carinhasan]

​@@patriciapandacoon7162sounds like something that Miyazaki would've come up with

[@minerman60101]

Looking at images of how Lost Izalith looked on the original DS1, the buildings and background have an odd green tint. With this knowledge, it makes complete sense. (The remaster improves the lighting of this area and it is the single time it improves the lighting of DS1).

[@carlschrappen9712]

Yeah, I played the remaster before playing the original, and I think the the original's lighting is better in almost every instance. The one real exception is, as you said, Lost Izalith, primarily because the awful glare from the lava was toned down.

[@jpcsdutra]

Kinda makes me wish the final game gave some explanation of "the fake flame set the Great Swamp into perpetual fire alongside turning the denizens into demons". The magma always felt out place, but methane fire and stepping on hot shit? Now that makes sense.

[@JoshuaDOtt]

Crag Hollows said f this lava shit and took off to Brightstone Cove Tseldora.

[@Narokkurai]

I like the idea that Izalith was originally a swamp, which then became consumed by lava when the Flame of Chaos was created. The witches probably saw the abundance of life that exists within the growth and decay of swamps, and thought they could channel that living energy into a new a First Flame.

[@freedomgoddess]

not sure if i agree completely but i am glad to see another person noticing why this place needs its lava. it was a once great hub for pyromancers -- until the dearest witch ruined it. it was her experiments that gave way to chaos to emerge, the very same chaos that consumed her, turning her into what we know as the bed of chaos. to mitigate the issue of chaos taking over, the son, ceaseless, was tasked with flooding the place with lava, to protect the rest of the world from such forces... ...until you came along.

[@jackm9006]

A large swamp with branches and dragon-related enemies? They must have used this idea in shrine of amana from DS2

[@treefroggy]

and the swamp in DS3, which has tons of large branches and those giant dragon enemies.... and the Crimson Lake of Rot in Elden Ring, which has a giant dragon enemy in the center.

[@kingborehaha]

Wouldn't be the first time fromsoft took another swing at an idea that didn't work out! Or second, or third.

[@autisticbraindamagedmoron]

More like that one location from DS2 dlc. There's semi-flooded cave with weird bipedal dragon monsters that look similar to Dragon Asses!

[@alyseleem2692]

​@@autisticbraindamagedmoronShulva. Lair Of The Imperfect.

[@RengokuGS]

Incredibly written script with professional tone. "Dragon asses" Well played, hollow

[@NocturnalNick]

"it was a swamp" should probably be our baseline assumption

[@kingborehaha]

normally I assume everything was a swamp. this is the first time it actually worked

[@NoNono-o3h]

Considering how shit blightown ran on release and how its significantly smaller than Izalith, I'd say they made Izalith a swamp with enemies, discovered they couldn't even run it, and just filled the place with lava snd just ONE enemy just to be able to play

[@zeppeli1157]

ooohh the gracious swamp will finally be upon us

[@JoseViktor4099]

Well, you know what they say: Every Izalith area is personalized!

[@deathbyslipknot]

Who says that?

[@JoseViktor4099]

@@deathbyslipknot me

[@deathbyslipknot]

@@JoseViktor4099 based

[@ZalFG02]

We all need a Dark Souls Director's Cut mannn

[@arsenii_yavorskyi]

it's hilarious how much cut content explains explains the unexplainable parts of these games.

[@nuclearocean]

Izalith swamp with all the roots and South Asian style temples looks like a mangrove jungle and way cooler than the spicy lasagna we got

[@xioussquid]

Great investigation, and nice choice having Maridia track for the intro.

[@JoeFilms5420]

This is a really good analysis, I was not expecting for the video to be this informative. Well done!

[@sirdude6509]

I think it would be a cool idea if sludge from Blighttown was seeping into the lava soaked ruins of Izalith. The top part of Izalith is typical swamp, but as you get lower the sludge starts to boil as it comes into contact with the lava and you get areas with toxic gas, until eventually you find a final boss room flooded with lava. The lava could also be a side affect of the botched recreation of the first flame, hence why you have all this foliage in an area full of lava.

[@venus_as_a_b0y]

this makes izalith make so much more sense. also the area you fought centipede demon in would be filled with swamp (slows you down) rather than lava (murders u in 2 seconds) which would probably have made that fight not awful. i'm currently brainstorming for a mod of dark souls atm myself and this is such a godsend! can't wait to see more.

[@zsDUGGZ]

Considering what the Archthrones modders are doing. I hope they re-vamp Izalith in the future (Izalith deserves it the most)

[@Maervyn]

The fact Pyros originate from the Great Swamp that is now lost makes perfect sense that Lost Izalith was The Great Swamp. Anyway your visualisation of the swampy Izalith is beautiful, too bad it was never finished.

[@rudde7918]

The Great Swamp is not the same as Izalith. It's one of the lands outside Lordran that the various NPC's come from, in this case Laurentius.

[@urabraskthedeplorable725]

Now I'm imagining a Dark Souls where the progression was Blighttown>Lost (swamp) Izalith>Demon Ruins where demon ruins is the fiery, lava-filled place the Bed of Chaos burns wildly and spews demons out. I think it's a bit better than we got, considering how much of a mixed bag of quality the last half of Dark Souls is.

[@Trademark989]

Pulling on my heartstrings opening with that nostalgic Maridia music.

[@crungusbungus2519]

Finally, Loster Izalith

[@residentidiocracy7342]

What I would find cool is if it was a mix, the lava fields produced by ceaseless contrasted by a poison infested swamp in the same area

[@JDA0]

Now that deep area where you find Siegmeyer makes sense

[@chrislevack405]

This might be the most interesting DS1 video ive ever watched.

[@theleification]

I think the swamp looks cool and makes a whole lot more sense, I mean, pyromancers come from a swampland in these games. If they had layed a few out here and there, or at least kept those fire-breathing dragon statues, it would have made perfect sense.

[@equivalentexchange4918]

The lava does make the whole area way more unique aesthetically, although rushed the whole look of the area stands out more

[@HerraHissi]

The muddy underground area where you help Siegmeyer to kill Chaos Eaters makes more sense with the original design in mind.

[@Fronzel41]

I see how a fetid swamp could represent the wild, unrestrained aspect of the Witch of Izalith's Life Soul and attempt to create a new source of life apart from the first flame.

[@wepl7195]

This is amazing. I snort up dark souls cut content like crack. Thanks for the fix.

[@trainershade1937]

Clearly, we should fuse the two concepts together, making a swamp that has volcanic features! Though now that I think on that joke more, it may actually be an interesting concept to explore. You could have fumaroles appear in the map, which could make an area temporarily dangerous due to the deadly gas they emit. There could also be some magma/lava streams that could provide a very risk vs reward shortcut (get to someplace sooner at the cost of a decent amount of HP loss). The swamp itself could maybe even do slight damage when you travel through it, perhaps due to high temperatures / other hazards.

[@cerilis569]

Sounds like a sulphur swamp to me!

[@MEUAR]

Almost feels like Shulva Sanctum City drew inspiration from this, like a secret hommage!

[@rat4992]

Nearly 12 years later this community still manages to be a thriving group of dedicated people. I may not like all the soulsborne games, but man this community is unreal. GREAT video

[@ichosethishandle]

Is the Chaos Eater perhaps the 'final stage' of the Parasitic Wall Hugger? A form that King Jeremiah will inevitably reach? The Chaos Eaters are yellow with bulbous heads, seven appendages, and 'sucker' feet

[@MomBonX]

Seeing the cut content kinda restored would be really cool as a mod or something. Would love to have a play-through of Swamp Assaleth. (But seriously this would be sick as a restoration kinda thing, even if it was just the lava being replaced with the swamp water, lily pads, enemies, and etcetera.) Thank you for this video and your time 🧡

[@JC-kl3uc]

It looks so much better as a swamp and makes much more sense as well.

[@kalsizzle]

Amazing! It makes so much sense that it would've originally been a swamp.

[@warmetalpacifist]

"Imagine a swamp area. Heck, imagine two swamp areas." - Miyazaki during DS development

[@balaam_7087]

And I thought I knew everything there was to know about this game. Great video, man

[@RootVegetabIe]

A decade on and Im still learning new things about this game. Thank you

[@sir.spliffalot_mobile4968]

ok, all of this seems to work out really nicely, but miyazaki letting other ppl delete his swamp seems almost unbelievable to me. seeing what izalith is now i would have definetly liked to experience this version ingame at least once, i mean even Bed of Chaos fits into this version better thematically, and it would make "The Great Swamp" make alot more sense. But imo BoC really is the main gripe about all of izalith.

[@TheAlguien]

They manage to cut a Miyazaki swamp once and the worst part of the game is created. After that, Miyazaki uses it as justification for no swamp being removed again.

[@SkaerKrow]

Great video, thanks for putting it together.

[@souldude6344]

It makes so much sense now with Laurentious saying that his home, the "Great Swamp" was the home of pyromancy. I always thought that it was strange to refer to blighttown in such a grandios way, because truly, theres nothing "great" about blighttown at all. It all clicks with me now. Thank you for this well done video. All the peices fit into place.

[@heirapparent8217]

It would have been neat if the area started cooled off, got heated up to lava as you approach the boss, then was returned to some semblance of a swamp after you kill her.

[@polygonvvitch]

Would've been cool if in the final product there was a little bit of surviving swamp, maybe on a slightly elevated area the lava couldn't reach. Also this makes me think that the Sunken King areas in Dark Souls 2's DLC were a nod to this, since they are a toxic underground area with giant temples.

[@yaminoyume610]

this reveals an incredible amount of lore and information

[@gatto1013]

This is a huge discovery that makes a lot of sense. I love my From Soft swamps, and imagine they would have had more time to polish the area if they didn't change it later in development, so I wish they kept it as a swamp. Maybe they were pushed to include a lava area in the game by some external force.

[@lead_downpour8854]

Swamp Izalith looks so cool and it being the great swamp makes a lot of sense lore wise, but i genuinely feel like we'd really be missing out on all the cool and iconic lava stuff that's found nowhere else in the game, unlike swamps which already have blightown rep. If there was room for the lava stuff either somewhere else or only in the area between Quelag and Demon Firesage and they could make that fit cohesively then I'd be all for it.

[@stairmasternem]

An important lesson was learned here: if you want it to be a swamp, make it a swamp. Every game after was cool with multiple poison swamps.

[@Rexhunterj]

DS3 did it right, you can get poison moss before the swamp so the swamp isn't completely miserable, also in the area before and during the swamp there are armors with decent poison resistance for those brave enough.

[@aibon7070]

Very interesting! I didn't know about this. My guess is that they wanted to distinguish every area from each other, and they might felt like Izalith swamp was too reminiscent from the one in Blighttown. This precursor versión of the smouldering lake from DS3 looks cool though

[@НиколайСтадник-з8в]

Yeah, they wanted to distinguish Izalith from Blighttown so they made it nearly identical to demon ruins as if there was not enough lava areas with fire themed bosses already. 😁

[@thestabbybrit4798]

It even fits the pattern established with Demon's Souls, where you descend through a 'Blighttown' area, then cross a huge poison swamp, and finally descend to a boss fight in a toxic swamp.

[@IlliterateSorcerer]

Knowing that they had to rush to get this area finished in time makes it so much funnier that there are so many dragon asses down there. They themselves thought that the area was absolute ass lol

[@edward9674]

It'd be cool if someone restored this in a mod and all those cut shortcuts.

[@nintendawesome]

Makes sense, considering it was clearly based off Angkor Wat which resides in a wetland/swamp irl!

[@idkdontask7142]

I wonder what was the original plan for demon ruins if izaketh is a swamp. The area was very clearly rushed its the most unfinished area in the game but lava in it sort of makes sense and its also a huge area with lazily placed enemies in lines so i wonder what it was originally mesnt to look like.

[@saltlakeatrocity9771]

I like the idea of a hybrid half-swamp, half-lava infested area as per the "swamp" concept art. While lava levels and poison swamps are common cliches that players can immediately put into a recognizable box once they see it, a hybrid of the two would have possibly inspired more curiosity and exploration.

[@poncichter]

I love the editing. It feels like some divine knowledge is being unveiled for me.

[@shiroamakusa8075]

Blight Town II : Blighter Town

[@9thAvalon]

As an actual avid Blighttown enjoyer, it makes me sad that we missed such an awesome swamp area :/

[@somniloquous0]

Nahhhh, for the exact same reason I'm glad it was cut. It would have made Blighttown less special!

[@hievenhade7545]

Izalith as a poison swamp with those enemies gave it a feel of a combination of the Latria Swamp and Valley Of Defilements Stage 2 to be honest.

[@theomnitorium7476]

Wow, it looks so much better as a swamp. The architectur, the tree branches, it all just fits. However, I do understand the argument against it. Blightown is a gigabtic swamp. And from a basic visual view, the lava world is a lot more distinct. It's just a big shame there was no time to actually change it and we ended up with a half baked mess.

[@Maytag99]

I think they made a good change. A lava area works better in the final game than a 2nd swamp, which yes would have felt repetitive. Even unfinished, I think it's better the way it ended up, probably.

[@strngr4752]

dude, after many years since this game has been released, going though it several times, etc. the community is still active and discovering things like this. Really nice video man. I love this game to death.

[@felipegc_]

I just loved every detail about this video, and it is crazy that even about 12 years after the release os this game, we are still discovering shit like this

[@landladyification]

The idea of Lost Izalith bein a swamp also fits the Chaos Eater pit in which we can find Sigmeyer

[@jayjasespud]

I've always had an inkling that, since time is broken in Lordran, the Great Swamp that's mentioned as the home of the pyromancers was just Izalith before it erupted with Chaos.

[@seaj_94]

Amazing video! I love seeing their original ideas 😊 surprises me it was cut considering how much Miyazaki loves swamps 😂🙏🏻

[@EVPointMaster]

2:04 reminds me a lot of the Dragonkin Soldiers in Elden Ring.

[@LyllianaofMirrah]

in DARK SOULS 3 demon's ruins or smoldering lake actually look like a swamp.

[@Reac2]

Parasite and the name "Prince Izalith" makes me think it was perhaps the the core of bed of chaos at some point. I feel like it would fit there. Even better than the bug thats in the game proper

[@abrittishpanfish6269]

Funny how this releases alongside a new interloper episode

[@Ixxlostinabox]

Fromsoft may have changed it because of blighttown. If both places were swamps it may have been to much swamp area in a single game. The interesting bit would be if blightown was made before or after the swamp izalith. I would assume blightown came after and fromsoft thought they should change izalith to make it more distinct, but just ran out of time after making that decision.

[@tannerteddo]

I thought maybe it was similar to Demons Souls with the game branching out in the second half. There are 5 worlds with 4-5 levels in each, and world 5 is entirely made up of swamps. Perhaps "Pyro and Swamp" was similarly one entire path early in development.

[@renatoramos8834]

Doesn't excuse not having a bonfire right before the bed of bullshit. Also, the orange charred ring should simple give lava immunity

[@Muttisuri]

It's really kinda sad, knowing what awesome things From Software are capable of I think a complete post-swamp List Izalith could be one of those classic memorizable zones like Anor Londo

[@Slay_No_More]

Even the building designs and roots make sense now.

[@L1v1ngDeAdGirl]

I hope one day Miyazaki and the team can recreate DS1 in a modern engine with unlimited time to fully create the game they invisioned back in 2011.

[@spagootest2185]

I think an eventual dark souls remake is inevitable

[@jankbunky4279]

​@@spagootest2185yeah, but I doubt Fromsoft would make it. I feel they'd currently rather make new games.

[@spagootest2185]

@@jankbunky4279 i mean a la demons souls remake, done by another studio

[@theta_clips]

So it would be shit@@spagootest2185

[@unclefiend3087]

@@spagootest2185 But then it'd just be prettier, it wouldn't have anything new or fully realized which is what the original poster wanted

[@TheNewGuy21]

Yeah!! This looks great, I always love seeing content about DS1 Keep up the great work, and I hope to see even more about the lore of the game, and the behind the scenes!

[@jackstevens8071]

Another hint is the poison pool inside Izalith itself! Seriously would have been amazing if Fromsoft actually had a go at finishing the area for DSR

[@thiagojames55]

Dark Souls Info Video + Maridia Nostalgic Song = Perfection!

[@carlschrappen9712]

While it's a shame the area is so unfinished, I think I prefer Lost Izalith as a lava area. It makes thematic sense for there to be lava in such a deep underground area populated by chaos demons, and it would have been lame for Blightown to be succeeded be an area that's just the second half of Blightown again.

[@cyansung-sun1308]

I suppose you're not wrong, lore wise it panned out rather well, the home of pyromancers should be a little hot, and we wouldn't have gotten Ceaseless Discharge if it was still a swamp. But I doubt it would be back to back Blighttown.

[@tranquil3727]

Yeah I think lava theming was a good direction to take Izalith, but I wish we could've seen what Fromsoft would've done with it given more dev time. Current Izalith feels half baked in a lot of ways.

[@qwormuli77]

But the omnipresent lava acting more as a simple stage hazard than some thematic element just downgrades into a more generic 'fire level' IMHO. What if only the central seat of Izalith's past power was immersed in in fire and brimstone as the unapproachable bastion amidst the great swamp? That'd be the best of both worlds and the most fitting.

[@cyansung-sun1308]

@@qwormuli77 Hey...there's a poison swamp in that bastion isn't there, where all the toilet demons are? That's actually kind of infuriating, your idea is right, they just got the order wrong! Here's hoping they fix that if they ever remake the first Dark Souls, it would be nice to find the Toxic Pyromancy there, remake the Centipede Ring to boost pyromancy power, there's a lot of neat stuff they could do with your suggestion.

[@MGrey-qb5xz]

You're missing the point, it turned in to lava world after the witch tried to revive the flame using her lord soul