Anor Londo

Anor Londo

An important location in Dark Souls.

Anor Londo is the name for an explorable area in Dark Souls largely comprised of the city of the same name. Though the area is named after the city, the player can only reach a few major locations in the city. There is an elevated area branching off towards the main city and the Duke's Archives, and from there, the player can make their way to a large chapel. This building houses the painting leading to the Painted World. This Chapel allows access to a movable tower that allows the player to reach every accessible area in Anor Londo, including the tomb and cathedral. The cathedral is the largest, most complex, and most important area in Anor Londo. This cathedral is where the Lordvessel is obtained, which is crucial to the progression of Dark Souls.

The grandeur of Anor Londo is highlighted by the low hanging sun shining on the polished, almost pristine stone of the city. In contrast to the worn and decrepit locations visited previously, Anor Londo is designed to inspire awe in the player. Its large scale given by both the size of the playable space and the city seen beyond makes the area seem larger than life. This is further emphasized by the large statues seen around the area. Warriors, princesses, and kings are immortalized in statues several times the player's size. Even the enemies the player first encounters in Anor Londo are huge and clad in armor as polished as the city around them. With a city of such size and riches, one would expect it to be bustling with people.

The reality is, there are only two friendly characters in the whole of the city. Aside from the small groups of enemies dotted around the area, there are no signs of life in the huge buildings or in the smaller ones seen below. There is a sense of isolation when wandering the empty area of arrival and exploring the quiet halls of the cathedral. This is clearly meant to be a place of high honor and virtue, but now it is just another area filled with monsters and forgotten treasures. The state of the city becomes even clearer when one recognizes the figures the statues depict. Lord Gwyn and his children are displayed prominently in the chapel and cathedral, implying that Anor Londo is where the royalty of Lordran made their home. In spite of this, the king is nowhere to be found, and the esteemed daughter of Gwyn that provides the player with the Lordvessel is just an illusion. Anor Londo is perhaps the place where the degradation of Lordran and the inevitability of decay is most apparent. Even the great city housing kings and their knights will one day be abandoned and fall to ruin.

Hidetaki Miyazaki

Dark Souls

FromSoftware Inc.

Damian Kortus

Video Game

Fantasy