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Davey Cakes · Oct 20, 2017

Transistor said:
The world progression is really just kills DS2 for me. With the exception of Majula, there weren't really any memorable areas. Plus, if someone could explain to me how the Iron Keep exists above a windmill fortress, I would appreciate it.

I found some of the areas relatively memorable, but the problem is definitely that the world lacks the interconnected structure of DS1 and feels a lot more random. A jumble of ideas branching from a central area that comes off as a bit nonsensical.

I'm reminded of the Metroid Prime games. If you look at Metroid Prime, you can see that its world really doesn't make much sense in terms of the layout, but it gets a pass because Tallon IV very much resembles a 3D take on Zebes from Super Metroid. Now, Metroid Prime 2, while it follows much more of a "hub with branching paths" structure, still makes a bit more logical sense in terms of geography.

Imagine if you transplanted MP1's areas onto MP2's layout. You'd get something even more scatterbrained than MP1 and the "world feel" (or whatever you'd like to call it) would not be far off from Dark Souls 2. I could see why such a thing would break immersion for some players.

banjoted · Oct 20, 2017

DS2 is the best game in the series, IMO. Although all three are great in their own right, the second is the one that gets the most right. Terrific game.

Carlius · Oct 20, 2017

Best souls game HANDS DOWN.

Drillary Clinton · Oct 20, 2017

Dark Souls II is a great game. Fuck the haters.

Wink · Oct 20, 2017

I did, it's mediocre. I like the idea of reshuffled enemies in NG+ and stuff, but for that to matter the game itself would have had to be actually good enough to keep me playing. I eventually stopped after another tunnel level and another armor boss that all I needed to do was circle strafe around to defeat. No thanks.

SledGod · Oct 20, 2017

Never played any of these games but I have DS2: Prepare to Die. Is this port any good, and does it still have an active community?

zenosparadox · Oct 20, 2017

Transistor said:
The world progression is really just kills DS2 for me. With the exception of Majula, there weren't really any memorable areas. Plus, if someone could explain to me how the Iron Keep exists above a windmill fortress, I would appreciate it.

I agree with your sentiment.

Dark Souls II was the first and only entry where I considered dropping the game because of how much a chore it was to get through it. I will admit that Dark Souls III was the point where series fatigue started to set in, but it was still a much better game than Dark Souls II.

Vilix · Oct 20, 2017

Not for me. I don't like overly hard games with no ability to change the challenge mode.

Toxi · Oct 20, 2017

Nev said:
Build variety/power stance
'Huge'
PvP/Covenants

-

Good combat
Good level design
Good bosses

=

Worthless features because bad gameplay.

People keep saying this when it isn't true. Dark Souls 2 has fine moment to moment level designs in many areas, and the DLC areas have fantastic level design. Tons of creative shortcuts, new gimmicks that reward backtracking and exploration, and enemy encounters that promote novel approaches to combat.

There are examples of lackluster level design... But this was also a major issue in Dark Souls 1 past the glorious first half.

140.85 · Oct 20, 2017

Already did. Wish I could have that time back to play something else.

Gator86 · Oct 20, 2017

It's fine, but nothing special. It benefitted a lot from having "Dark Souls" on the box. It's the worst Souls game out there.

Sweet Bellic · Oct 20, 2017

Loved it. Don't know how someone could love the other Soulsborne games and hate DS2. Not even sure it's the worst Souls game (I'm getting the impression that's Demon's, but I still need to play more of that one, which has been rough). There are some design decisions about it that annoy me, like how the game punishes you for dying, and how the armor seldom looks like armor, but it still provided me with an addicting 50 hours of gameplay on my first playthrough, which puts it up there with the greats.

Arkanius · Oct 20, 2017

Transistor said:
The world progression is really just kills DS2 for me. With the exception of Majula, there weren't really any memorable areas. Plus, if someone could explain to me how the Iron Keep exists above a windmill fortress, I would appreciate it.

I can
They forgot to include the mountain that there was supposed to exist behind the Windmill.
You can see the mountain where the Red Keep is supposed to be in the thumbnail before you teleport to the Windmill.

The placement was still retarded

Toxi · Oct 20, 2017

Arkanius said:
I can
They forgot to include the mountain that there was supposed to exist behind the Windmill.
You can see the mountain where the Red Keep is supposed to be in the thumbnail before you teleport to the Windmill.

The placement was still retarded

The idea was fine; they wanted Iron Keep to be sunken into a plateau-top caldera.

That doesn't really work though when you forget the plateau.

But for how bone-headed and immersion-breaking this is, Iron Keep ends up being one of the more fun areas of the base game.

Mr.Deadshot · Oct 20, 2017

Bloodborne > Demon's Souls = Dark Souls 1 = Dark Souls 2 = Dark Souls 3

The Soules-games are all equal for me. Everone has it's individual strengths and weaknesses. I love them all. Bloodborne ist better than all Souls games.

Killer Queen · Oct 20, 2017

Mr.Deadshot said:
Bloodborne > Demon's Souls = Dark Souls 1 = Dark Souls 2 = Dark Souls 3

The Soules-games are all equal for me. Everone has it's individual strengths and weaknesses. I love them all. Bloodborne ist better than all Souls games.

.... Bloodborne IS a souls game

Griss · Oct 20, 2017

If you like PVP, covenants and quantity over quality, Dark Souls II is your game.

If you like good single player levels, pacing, good boss battles and quality over quantity, try any other game in the series.

Me, I'm the latter. Couldn't give a shit about PVP or covenants, so Dark Souls II was a disappointment to me. The only game is the series I don't love.

Yam's · Oct 20, 2017

Its level design is definitely weaker than the other Souls, however I enjoyed the different type of sceneries and it's the only Souls where I tried so many different builds.

However the fact that the coop/pvp/troll possibilities were so fun helped a lot. I didn't enjoy it as much when I replayed it playing exclusively for the campaign. The online aspect was a huge part of my enjoyment during my first playthrough.

j0hnnix · Oct 20, 2017

PartTimeWarrior said:
Spotted the From Software employee

Luigiv said:
Counter argument: Don't waste your time. Play Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, Dark Souls 3 or Bloodborne instead.

ToxicPhantom said:
Uh, nah! Thanks though.

Just needed these..

Played it and was scarred. Play DeS and DS then BB, enjoy the DS3 DLCs which are amazing.

JetSetRadio · Oct 20, 2017

Scholar is best souls. The only one I'm ever going to replay if I felt the need to.

Surfside · Oct 20, 2017

Griss said:
If you like PVP, covenants and quantity over quality, Dark Souls II is your game.

If you like good single player levels, pacing, good boss battles and quality over quantity, try any other game in the series.

Me, I'm the latter. Couldn't give a shit about PVP or covenants, so Dark Souls II was a disappointment to me. The only game is the series I don't love.

Seeing as i played the game solo, i can't agree with this. Other than the Covenants, which were too multiplayer focused, yes. But everything else was very good single player content. Also the boss battles were great, especially the Pursuer. I don't know what everyone has against humanoid bosses.

shimon · Oct 20, 2017

Liked it more than DS3. Enjoyed it quite a lot.

Berserking Guts · Oct 20, 2017

Dark Souls II is the one I have the fondest memories of. It also has THE best hub music of them all.

Cyanity · Oct 20, 2017

It really is the best dark souls, and I'll fight anyone who disagrees with me to the grave.

Toxi · Oct 20, 2017

Griss said:
If you like PVP, covenants and quantity over quality, Dark Souls II is your game.

Folks keep saying this like those who like Dark Souls 2 just enjoy the game because it has a lot of stuff.

People enjoy the quality parts of that quantity. Nobody is raving about how Dark Souls 2 has more bosses than any Souls game when the majority of them aren't great, but they do like the good bosses like Fume Knight and Sinh and Darklurker.

Killer Queen · Oct 20, 2017

Surfside said:
Seeing as i played the game solo, i can't agree with this. Other than the Covenants, which were too multiplayer focused, yes. But everything else was very good single player content. Also the boss battles were great, especially the Pursuer. I don't know what everyone has against humanoid bosses.

It's not just that they're humanoid bosses. They're really boring humanoid bosses.
Nameless King
Gael
Soul of Cinder
Twin Princess
Artorias
Ornstien+Smough
Dancer of the Boreal Valley
Abyss Watchers
Pontiff Sulyvahn

All humanoid bosses, all more interesting, varied and better fights than any in Dark Souls 2.

I

Nyx · Oct 20, 2017

I tried Demon's Souls and Nioh, and now know for sure that the 'Soulsborne' genre isn't for me.

Too much frustration and I don't want to spend my time gaming being frustrated. I do recognize the appeal though, as trying over and over and eventually beating a boss/level is a great feeling, but it's just not for me (anymore).

Toxi · Oct 20, 2017

Killer Queen said:
It's not just that they're humanoid bosses. They're really boring humanoid bosses.
Nameless King
Gael
Soul of Cinder
Twin Princess
Artorias
Ornstien+Smough
Dancer of the Boreal Valley
Abyss Watchers
Pontiff Sulyvahn

All humanoid bosses, all more interesting, varied and better fights than any in Dark Souls 2.

I

Fume Knight, Sir Alonne, Darklurker, and Ivory King are damn good humanoid bosses. Darklurker did the whole making a clone of himself thing wonderfully, Ivory King has the cool dueling armies aspect, and Sir Alonne and Fume Knight are just mechanically tight and badass.

Ornstein and Smough, Artorias, and the Dancer would rate higher for me than any Dark Souls 2 boss, but those are a very high bar to clear.

Social · Oct 20, 2017

I tried, i died.

DarknessTear · Oct 20, 2017

Not a fan of DS2's artificial difficulty. I beat the game, but some stuff was just ridiculously dumb. I don't know if anything changed much after launch but...

These guys? Yeah, they're bullshit. Bad design. Period.

ZangBa · Oct 20, 2017

All of the Souls games are great and only Lords of the Fallen is truly bad.

PapaEmeritus · Oct 20, 2017

I will say DS2 is the one my wife most enjoyed watching me play. So that's the one I get less grief for taking over the TV for

Surfside · Oct 20, 2017

Killer Queen said:
It's not just that they're humanoid bosses. They're really boring humanoid bosses.
Nameless King
Gael
Soul of Cinder
Twin Princess
Artorias
Ornstien+Smough
Dancer of the Boreal Valley
Abyss Watchers
Pontiff Sulyvahn

All humanoid bosses, all more interesting, varied and better fights than any in Dark Souls 2.

I

Dark Souls 2 has so many bosses, that everyone should be able to find some that suit their taste.
I for one loved the fight with the 3 Ruin Sentinals because it made the fight unpredictable. Though i understand that's not everyones cup of coffee, being ganged up on. But i like it hectic.

shmoglish · Oct 20, 2017

Luigiv said:
Counter argument: Don't waste your time. Play Demon's Souls, Dark Souls, Dark Souls 3 or Bloodborne instead.

!

I ve tried many times to have fun with DkS2, but imo it is a terrible game.

Benzychenz · Oct 20, 2017

Sure it has a lot of stuff, but it also has the worst enemies, boss fights and areas in the series.
Y'know, the parts that actually matter.

Toxi · Oct 20, 2017

Surfside said:
Dark Souls 2 has so many bosses, that everyone should be able to find some that suit their taste.
I for one loved the fight with the 3 Ruin Sentinals because it made the fight unpredictable. Though i understand that's not everyones cup of coffee, being ganged up on. But i like it hectic.

The Ruin Sentinels are a guilty pleasure for me.

They have some awful hitboxes and fit the Dark Souls 2 boss stereotype of "generic guys in armor", but the fight is still really fun and I love the way it evolves from fighting one Sentinel on a small platform to two in a huge area.

pretty done · Oct 20, 2017

heringer said:
Only play it if it's PC version so you can mod the shitty analog movement.

Does the mod enable dead angling attacks? Strangest omission from DS2.

jesu · Oct 20, 2017

I got to a village where little pig things kept killing me. I couldn't kill them
By avoiding them I got to a guy who was sick on me? I could't kill him.
I ran past him and reached a giant brute that one hit me I think. I couldn't kill him.

I tried all that over and over again for a while then gave up.

Josman · Oct 20, 2017

Damn, some people really hate the game, despite being the worst souls game IMO, it's still miles above most RPGs and a must play

Dusk Golem · Oct 20, 2017

Hey everyone, this is Dusk Golem aka AestheticGamer. I have posted on NeoGAF since 2011, and have decided to resign. I have enjoyed posting about horror games here for years, but I no longer wish to support the site and will be leaving for good. I will still be around the internet, I go by AestheticGamer on YouTube, I make games on Steam as Yai Gameworks, and I plan to go by Dusk Golem on other forums. I'll be joining an off-set of the GAF community leaving to try other ventures like ResetEra (Official Twitter for that here: https://twitter.com/reseteraforum ). I hope some of you who read this may consider it, and I plan to try to expose more people to horror games in the years to come. Just not here.

I hope you all are having a good day, and know I always loved the community, and in the end it's the community I'm going to stick with, not the site itself. If you want to follow me, my official Twitter is here: https://twitter.com/AestheticGamer1

itchyass86 · Oct 20, 2017

Twinblades from DS2 are something I wish the other Souls games have.

My only regret is that I could never find the Uchigatana early on in the game (at least from what I know of). AHAHA!

Shrine of Amana will always have a special place in my heart as one of the most memorable settings I've ever experienced. It looks gorgeous to me. It also brings me back to plenty of childhood observations that have nothing to do with gaming at all.

Budi · Oct 20, 2017

ElFly · Oct 20, 2017

Toxi said:
The Ruin Sentinels are a guilty pleasure for me.

They have some awful hitboxes and fit the Dark Souls 2 boss stereotype of "generic guys in armor", but the fight is still really fun and I love the way it evolves from fighting one Sentinel on a small platform to two in a huge area.

Ruin Sentinels are great. Spent many hours helping people get past that, and it was always a riot whenever the host would get pushed off the first platform and you had to rush to defend him underneath

same with Last Sinner, particularly in NG+

Robot Pants · Oct 20, 2017

What kind of crappy opinion is this?
Game is by far FAR the worst in the series. How you can single it out as THE ONE to play is ludicrous.

shnurgleton · Oct 20, 2017

SotFS is the absolutely least newcomer-friendly souls game and I would absolutely not recommend it to anyone outside of those wanting more souls having played at least 2 of the other games. With the vastly more difficult enemy placement, the floaty feel, and awkward level design, it doesnt come close to topping any of the other series entries.

Toxi · Oct 20, 2017

Benzychenz said:
Sure it has a lot of stuff, but it also has the worst enemies, boss fights and areas in the series.
Y'know, the parts that actually matter.

Sure, but it also has some really good enemies, boss fights, and areas.

And it's the most free-form of the games in how you can build and play your character. It's really satisfying being able to say, "Huh, you know what would be cool? Dual-wielding Halberds" and then having the freedom to actually do it in a way that feels natural.

I'm not denying Dark Souls 2's flaws, because it has many. The hit visual and sound effects feel off. The aesthetic style is really uneven, and many areas have their atmosphere robbed by the flat lighting. There are some really noticeable bad hitboxes. Adaptability is a decent concept to tie stats to playstyle, but in execution it just feels bad to have a shitty roll at the start of the game. There are some great NPCs like Lucatiel, Vengarl, and Gavlan, but there are way too many superfluous ones. The final boss of the vanilla game is extremely underwhelming, and the final boss of Scholar of the First Sin is not much better.

Also fuck that gauntlet leading up to Sir Alonne. Seriously, fuck it. The worst boss run in the series.

But Dark Souls 2 has some really good ideas and mechanics and moments. It's just the most uneven game in the series by far.

Alo81 · Oct 20, 2017

pretty done said:
Does this piece of shit really deserve any better tho?

What a damn joke boss. There's just way too many joke bosses in DS2.

When I fought the Flexile Sentry for the first time I was much greener. I still turtled, cautious, sword and boarded. Its a "joke boss" but if the punchline hits, it hits really hard. The desparation I felt when I realized "Shit, this room is FILLING UP AND I CAN'T ROLL OH GOD" was unparalleled. After you know that, and you're buffer and you can just hammer through it you're right the impact dies down. But conceptually (And when everything plays out how they expect) that fight is actually really cool.

Surfside · Oct 20, 2017

Toxi said:
The Ruin Sentinels are a guilty pleasure for me.

They have some awful hitboxes and fit the Dark Souls 2 boss stereotype of "generic guys in armor", but the fight is still really fun and I love the way it evolves from fighting one Sentinel on a small platform to two in a huge area.

Yes, i fell down the first time (well many times

).
I like how patient you have be here, with your attacks. Get too greedy, focusing only on one then the others will make their presence known to you.
I just like fighting humanoids, i guess.
Though there could have been different phases to the fight, like in Dark Souls 3.

DooMAGE · Oct 20, 2017

so much better than DS3 :/

J2d · Oct 20, 2017

It's strange, I have completed the rest of the soulsborne series probably 40 times but I have never been tempted to play part 2, I watched someone play through it and that felt like enough :/

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