Found a solution on the Steam game hub..
http://steamcommunity.com/app/211420/discussions/0/882959061668056366?insideModal=1

Also, a more detailed source..
http://segmentnext.com/2012/08/24/dark-souls-pc-crashes-low-fps-fix-controls-errors-freezes-and-gfwl-fixes/

The trick is to disable any of your devices listed as an "HID-compliant game controller". No need to uninstall. I created a system restore point JIC.

Control Panel > System > Device Manager > Human Interface Devices >> [Disable all of your devices listed as an "HID-compliant game controller"]

Remember to restore them when you're done. Quite a pain :|
All things considered, its working now and that's fine with me until its patched.