This is a follow-up to the thread where I was debating getting this game. To recap my situation: I've completed Demon's Souls, Dark Souls and Bloodborne — including all 10 chalice dungeons in Bloodborne. Now I'm hungry for more. I was worried that going from BB to DS2 would be jarring, for a number of reasons. I know there are many BB players who found themselves unable to stick with DS2 for one reason or another.
Well, I'm happy to report that I'm loving DS2 so far. I'm playing the SotFS edition on the PS4. Anyone sitting on the fence, give it a try!
PROGRESS SO FAR:
I started playing last night. I'm a knight, currently wearing the Drangleic armor, gauntlets and leggings, and the falconer's helm. I'm wielding a broadsword, handaxe and club. I'm finding the club most useful so far. I think my starting gift was a human effigy.
I've defeated the Last Giant and Pursuer at the Cardinal Tower in the Forest of Fallen Giants... I had to strip off all my clothes to handle Pursuer, lol... From there I flew to the Lost Bastille, defeated Pursuer AGAIN, and brute-forced my way past mobs of sword-toting soldiers to find the Ruin Sentinels... But the path there is too much at the moment — I'm struggling to deal with the throng of enemies leading to the boss. So I went to Heide's Tower of Flame, where I defeated Dragonrider. I've now reached No Man's Wharf... Last time I played, I lit countless torches in the place, taking down each and every enemy, until some strange beast killed me.
I could've leveled up several times with the amount of souls I dropped and failed to retrieve. But hey, at least the torches are lit!!
IMPRESSIONS:
First things first: This game is gorgeous! I didn't expect much, based on the screens and video I had seen, but at 1080p 60fps (unless my eyes deceive me, this appears to be the performance on PS4), there is a lot of crisp, clear detail that really pops onscreen, and the lighting feels so warm and real.
I vividly remember each location so far. There's the seaside sprawl of Majula with its patchwork structures glowing in the sun... The mossiness of the Forest of Fallen Giants, the twisting roots pulling apart the battements... The skyscraper-sized statues overlooking the ocean near Cardinal Tower... The giant sword impaled in the ramparts... The lighthouse of Heide's Tower of Flame, and nearby Cathedral of Blue, overlooking a cobalt sea under a cobalt sky... The damp cove of No Man's Wharf with its black water, abandoned taverns and sullen ships... Many places are bright and colorful, and the dark areas feel lived-in but clean. The world of Drangleic is positively airy after the darkness and decay of Yharnam.
The handling is fine. Yes, there is a slight deadzone issue, and when I started playing I felt a bit imprecise running along narrow pathways. Now I've adjusted and I don't even notice the controls. They're weighty and grounded, fast and responsive. They're comfortable, and I feel fully immersed. The only struggle is rewiring my brain from Bloodborne — I keep hitting Start to bring up my equipment and inventory, but in this game that brings up the gestures!
I've been leveling up Adaptability, bringing my agility to 100+. This puts my dodging i-frames on par with other Souls games. SotFS is indeed difficult in how your dodging ability is reduced at first. But the game is clearly designed around this limitation — the fact you level up 4-6 times after each boss means it's easy to level up Adaptability without compromising other stats.
Also, I think this might be the most difficult Souls game, relative to where I am right now. Or at least, it might be the Souls game where resource management is most important. Since your estus flask starts with one charge (I've since upgraded to three), you rely heavily on life gems, which start refilling your HP when used. This is a neat mechanic, since you have to find space to use them, and then you have to survive long enough for them to take effect. The estus flask has its own catch — at least right now, my character drinks very slowly. I wonder if there's a way to increase drinking speed...
Combine this with the hordes of enemies, and you can quickly find yourself feeling overwhelmed. Seriously, there are enemies everywhere! They're still thoughtfully placed, though — sometimes sadistically so! You really have to manage your resources and take the levels slowly, focusing on one enemy while dodging the other, luring them into areas where you won't attract new enemies. If you're expecting two enemies in the next room, there are probably four, five or six. Sometimes the best strategy is to run away and regroup. It's a new challenge for a Souls vet like myself... I'm already strategizing how I'll clean out No Man's Wharf, which is teeming with hidden enemies.
I'm really enjoying everything so far. I'm relearning some things after Bloodborne — for example, equipment weight is now a factor, so I find myself taking my clothes off and putting them back on, depending on how much speed I want. At 100 Agility, with nothing equipped except my weapon and some rings, I feel even faster than I was in Bloodborne. So there are many approaches you can take. And while Miyazaki has said he was hands-off with this title, it still has his sensibility all over it. The attention to detail, the mystique, etc. — it's all still there. At the moment, this is every bit a worthy title in the Souls/borne series.
Well, I'm happy to report that I'm loving DS2 so far. I'm playing the SotFS edition on the PS4. Anyone sitting on the fence, give it a try!
PROGRESS SO FAR:
I started playing last night. I'm a knight, currently wearing the Drangleic armor, gauntlets and leggings, and the falconer's helm. I'm wielding a broadsword, handaxe and club. I'm finding the club most useful so far. I think my starting gift was a human effigy.
I've defeated the Last Giant and Pursuer at the Cardinal Tower in the Forest of Fallen Giants... I had to strip off all my clothes to handle Pursuer, lol... From there I flew to the Lost Bastille, defeated Pursuer AGAIN, and brute-forced my way past mobs of sword-toting soldiers to find the Ruin Sentinels... But the path there is too much at the moment — I'm struggling to deal with the throng of enemies leading to the boss. So I went to Heide's Tower of Flame, where I defeated Dragonrider. I've now reached No Man's Wharf... Last time I played, I lit countless torches in the place, taking down each and every enemy, until some strange beast killed me.
I could've leveled up several times with the amount of souls I dropped and failed to retrieve. But hey, at least the torches are lit!!
IMPRESSIONS:
First things first: This game is gorgeous! I didn't expect much, based on the screens and video I had seen, but at 1080p 60fps (unless my eyes deceive me, this appears to be the performance on PS4), there is a lot of crisp, clear detail that really pops onscreen, and the lighting feels so warm and real.
I vividly remember each location so far. There's the seaside sprawl of Majula with its patchwork structures glowing in the sun... The mossiness of the Forest of Fallen Giants, the twisting roots pulling apart the battements... The skyscraper-sized statues overlooking the ocean near Cardinal Tower... The giant sword impaled in the ramparts... The lighthouse of Heide's Tower of Flame, and nearby Cathedral of Blue, overlooking a cobalt sea under a cobalt sky... The damp cove of No Man's Wharf with its black water, abandoned taverns and sullen ships... Many places are bright and colorful, and the dark areas feel lived-in but clean. The world of Drangleic is positively airy after the darkness and decay of Yharnam.
The handling is fine. Yes, there is a slight deadzone issue, and when I started playing I felt a bit imprecise running along narrow pathways. Now I've adjusted and I don't even notice the controls. They're weighty and grounded, fast and responsive. They're comfortable, and I feel fully immersed. The only struggle is rewiring my brain from Bloodborne — I keep hitting Start to bring up my equipment and inventory, but in this game that brings up the gestures!
I've been leveling up Adaptability, bringing my agility to 100+. This puts my dodging i-frames on par with other Souls games. SotFS is indeed difficult in how your dodging ability is reduced at first. But the game is clearly designed around this limitation — the fact you level up 4-6 times after each boss means it's easy to level up Adaptability without compromising other stats.
Also, I think this might be the most difficult Souls game, relative to where I am right now. Or at least, it might be the Souls game where resource management is most important. Since your estus flask starts with one charge (I've since upgraded to three), you rely heavily on life gems, which start refilling your HP when used. This is a neat mechanic, since you have to find space to use them, and then you have to survive long enough for them to take effect. The estus flask has its own catch — at least right now, my character drinks very slowly. I wonder if there's a way to increase drinking speed...
Combine this with the hordes of enemies, and you can quickly find yourself feeling overwhelmed. Seriously, there are enemies everywhere! They're still thoughtfully placed, though — sometimes sadistically so! You really have to manage your resources and take the levels slowly, focusing on one enemy while dodging the other, luring them into areas where you won't attract new enemies. If you're expecting two enemies in the next room, there are probably four, five or six. Sometimes the best strategy is to run away and regroup. It's a new challenge for a Souls vet like myself... I'm already strategizing how I'll clean out No Man's Wharf, which is teeming with hidden enemies.
I'm really enjoying everything so far. I'm relearning some things after Bloodborne — for example, equipment weight is now a factor, so I find myself taking my clothes off and putting them back on, depending on how much speed I want. At 100 Agility, with nothing equipped except my weapon and some rings, I feel even faster than I was in Bloodborne. So there are many approaches you can take. And while Miyazaki has said he was hands-off with this title, it still has his sensibility all over it. The attention to detail, the mystique, etc. — it's all still there. At the moment, this is every bit a worthy title in the Souls/borne series.
