Dark Souls 2 (should I bother?)

[Pink Gregory]

it's one of those little hairy gnome figurines that people had in the 60s

[Noodle Lizard]

I've been looking up the differences between vanilla DS2 and the Scholar edition and it seems I may have been fonder of the original! Some of the decisions for Scholar are just baffling, and I'm tempted to believe the theory that it was just a lazy way of repackaging and selling the original game again.

[druss]

I've been looking up the differences between vanilla DS2 and the Scholar edition and it seems I may have been fonder of the original! Some of the decisions for Scholar are just baffling, and I'm tempted to believe the theory that it was just a lazy way of repackaging and selling the original game again.

Having played both, I don't think there is a clear winner. If I could play the original with better graphics (I only have it on PS3) then it would probably just edge it, but I'm happy that both exist as it's a very interesting, if flawed, world that I enjoyed going through with two different experiences. Scholar is definitely not a clear loser though and there are things that are better about it.

[Thursday]

There's parts of Scholar that make more sense and improve areas, and there's other changes that feel like a Randomizer mod, or just harder for the sake of it. It's overall the better package though I think.

[Schlippy]

Bit like Donnie Darko innit, the old DS2. The director clearly didn't know what the fuck he was doing and was winging it the whole time, the changes made in Scholar often feel like downgrades or change for changes sake. The only real reason to plump for Scholar over the base game is the inclusion of all the DLC.

[The F Bomb]

I've been looking up the differences between vanilla DS2 and the Scholar edition and it seems I may have been fonder of the original! Some of the decisions for Scholar are just baffling, and I'm tempted to believe the theory that it was just a lazy way of repackaging and selling the original game again.

It was also a next-gen upgrade, 60fps on PS4. That, and the additional lore stuff, were the main appeal to me at the time. I wish I could still play the original but I never owned it digitally and I gave away all my physical games many years ago.

[madhair60]

i didn't enjoy either version of Dark Souls II but all the praise it gets makes me think I'm just a few sessions from it "clicking" and ending up loving it, or maybe there's some build I didn't try that will enhance it immeasurably.

[Thursday]

Nah, don't bother. I wouldn't disagree mechanically it feels worse, that enemy placements through the world often feel bullshit, but it's more just about a general atmosphere and vibe that connect with people.

[madhair60]

Okay!

[Noodle Lizard]

I went in with low expectations, and they were mostly met. It's often ugly, frustrating and sometimes outright baffling. However (and it's a big however), a lot of the jank didn't bother me nearly as much as I'd expected after the initial shock.

Things like the HP reduction upon death and having to level ADP in order to dodge are unquestionably bad mechanics, but rarely actively frustrating once you're in the swing of things; you get the Ring of Binding to offset the HP reduction very early on, and levels are abundant enough that getting ADP up isn't too much of a hassle.

The art design, while occasionally striking, is significantly weaker than any of the other games. A lot of character models (including your own) look cartoonishly ugly, I didn't find one decent-looking set of clothes, and a lot of the areas are filled with blank, boring rooms and hallways like something out of a PS1 game. Going back to DS1 now, it made me appreciate how much care had been put into making sure each area in the early game felt real and lived-in.

The combat is also weaker than any other entry, no doubt about it (I've heard magic builds are good in this one, but I never use magic on a first playthrough). It's weirdly weightless and often just doesn't work properly - I'm looking at you, roll-R2! This has the weird effect of making mobs very difficult to manage, but bosses disappointingly easy for the most part. The best approach in many boss fights is to strafe around getting one hit in at a time, which isn't very fun. There are easy bosses in the other games, but usually they're distinct or imaginative enough to be memorable - a lot of these ones just blend together.

As you may have guessed from this thread, my biggest complaint is about area mobs. I think the developers put too much emphasis on making it br00tal and difficult, but not always in a way which feels like a satisfying challenge. The ranged enemies in Iron Keep and Shrine of Amana basically necessitate standing back with a bow and slowly whittling them down if you're to stand a chance, and other sections require some really tedious choreography with no apparent alternative. There are obnoxious mobs in the other games, but they can usually be ran past on repeat attempts, and in fact they're sometimes there to teach you that that's an option. Some areas in DS2 feel like they were designed with that mentality, but then tweaked to make that option impossible: a terrible combination.

That all being said ... there's something appealing about it: enough to make me want to overcome its flaws and finish it, but perhaps not enough to make me want to replay it in a hurry. It's ambitious and sort of charmingly shit in some areas, and I appreciate that the story isn't quite as grimdark as the Miyazaki-led entries whilst attempting to reach similar philosophical and emotional resonance. I thought Lucatiel was a touching storyline, arch though it may have been, and the reveal of sadsack Vendrick was great. I appreciated that the questlines were seemingly quite straightforward and evolved naturally, compared with the sometimes obnoxious obliqueness of the other entries. It has its fair share of fun and spectacle too, but I almost wonder if those parts stand out more just because of how uncharacteristic of the bulk of the game they are.

I didn't really intend on rambling for so long, sorry about that. In short, horse.

[Thursday]

Demon Souls and DS3 have straight health reductions when not in human form anyway, in DS2 it's just a more gradual degradation, so it's more forgiving if anything. Can understand it's still annoying to people, but I respect it as a mechanic that's there's to reinforce the theme of amnesia and people losing their purpose.

[Noodle Lizard]

Demon Souls and DS3 have straight health reductions when not in human form anyway, in DS2 it's just a more gradual degradation, so it's more forgiving if anything. Can understand it's still annoying to people, but I respect it as a mechanic that's there's to reinforce the theme of amnesia and people losing their purpose.

I know Demon's Souls has it, but I genuinely didn't know DS3 did and I've played that several times!

[The F Bomb]

Namco Bandai definitely leaned into the Prepare To Die hard game for tough guys stuff in the marketing for DS2, and the attempts to address some of the stuff players learned from DS1 can be very clumsy - stuff like the Heide knights being able to instantly attack 180 degrees behind them to prevent backstabs and the tortoise shell fellas. Also loads of enemies that have hit boxes which require particular weapons to consistently, successfully attack. None of that bothers me, filthy apologist that I am, it's all part of the awkwardly malevolent charm. When I'm nearly dead and gone, just play the Majula theme and I'll happily be on my way to stare at the black oily ocean for eternity as the golden setting sun warms my errant soul.

[Thursday]

I know Demon's Souls has it, but I genuinely didn't know DS3 did and I've played that several times!

You have more health while "embered" although I think that's only 25% while Demon's and DS2 can go down to 50%

[druss]

I remember him saying he had played it before but didn't like it so can't see this lasting.

Glad to be wrong, has been good fun watching the old baldy enjoyig himself with this.

[Harpo Speaks]

Glad to be wrong, has been good fun watching the old baldy enjoyig himself with this.

Sounds like it's his son that's played it, possibly with him chipping in for the odd part. Seems like he's enjoying it anyway, though you never know when the bin will beckon.

[Schlippy]

EDIT: wrong thread, d'oh