1 . Do the tutorial . Read all the messages on the ground in the tutorial area . 2 . When you get to the main hub , talk to the lady in the green cloak . Talk to her until she runs out of dialogue . Light the bonfire there . 3 . From the main hub , there are a couple of ways you can go . The standard path is to go to the Forest of Fallen Giants , which IIRC is the path that goes along the coastline . You should be fighting zombieish looking guys with crappy soldier armor . If , instead , you are somewhere where you are fighting giant bluegreen statue guys with enormous weapons and big round shields , you should probably not be in that area just yet . 4 . Dying is not a punishment so much as a game mechanic . You will do it a lot . Don ' t get frustrated and don ' t take it personally . 5 . Get all the items the glowing white things you come across . Try out different weapons to see what movesets you like . Use your upgrade materials once you have gotten the blacksmith ' s shop open , but in early stages of the game hold a couple back unless you are sure that the weapon you have is one you will love for a while . There are a lot of weapons to try out . Eventually , there will also be a lot of upgrade materials , so scarcity won ' t be an issue , but in early stages of the game you don ' t want to blow all of your materials on a weapon only to then come across something you like better and not be able to upgrade it . 6 . Level up health , strength , and dexterity at first . You want to be able to stay alive longer and do more damage to enemies while you are learning the ropes . 7 . You can do it ! Remember , don ' t take dying personally .