Dark Souls II for PlayStation 3 Reviews
Dark Souls 2 was my first Souls game, so keep that in mind as you read this. As a person who had avoided the Souls series at all costs due toDark Souls 2 was my first Souls game, so keep that in mind as you read this. As a person who had avoided the Souls series at all costs due to the seemingly rabid fanbase it had acquired over the years, I was skeptical about delving into what was supposedly only for «harcore» gamers. And the marketing campaign certainly didn’t help. However, one day I chinned up and went «screw it», and picked up Dark Souls 2, and I never went back.
Dark Souls 2 isn’t as good as the original Dark Souls, I’ll put that right out there just to be completely uncontroversial, however, in and of itself, it is still a fantastic game overall. I could go on and on about how I took my first tentative and frightened steps into the Dark Souls world, facing death at every turn, dying over and over again and wanting to give up all the time. But that’s the thing. I never did. I didn’t give up, even though at times I wanted to. The game is just as gripping as the first, refusing to let me go and telling me that I’m better than that. It’ll gut punch me then say «you can take it», because I damn well could, even when I thought I couldn’t, and it took me taking it to prove it, time and time again.
The game’s level design is… lacking. They’re basically straight lines, let’s not kid ourselves, here. But they still do look rather nice. Some places look downright gorgeous, so much so that I didn’t really mind the fact that they were just straight gauntlets of enemies. Despite that, Dark Souls definitely did have better level design. Larger, open ended, and shortcuts abound. You won’t get that here.
Combat is more refined, that’s for sure, for better or for worse. Dark Souls combat worked in a way, and Dark Souls 2’s combat works as well, just in a different way. Veterans of the first game will say it feels awkward and someone like me, who went from 2 to 1, will say that Dark Souls’s combat feels awkward.
However, I do prefer 1’s combat to 2. It feels more refined for what it’s made for. It works better for what it’s built around than 2’s is for what it’s built around… if that makes any sense. Also, PARRYING IS POSSIBLE IN 1.
Bosses are… forgettable. If I had a dollar for every dude in armor boss in the game, I’d have at least 13 bucks or so. There is just one boss in the main game that I can remember off the top of my head. Even the final boss wasn’t anything special. And the boss music is just as forgettable. I don’t even hear the boss music in most cases… all cases, because it’s just so boring and generic. Dark Souls 1 had amazing boss music that I can just listen to even when I’m on wikia or, oh, I don’t know, writing a review for Dark Souls 2 on Metacritic, just to give a purely hypothetical example.
Mechanically the game is fine, save for the two points I’m bringing up the mechanics for, and that’s the completely broken hitboxes and the auto-tracking overheads.
They say Dark Souls also has terrible hitboxes, but if that’s true I didn’t notice them nearly as much as I did here. Some enemies will hit you from the next room over a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. I’d get flattened by a sword the size of a double-decker bus and I’d clearly see the sword a good 3 in-game feet away from me. If you’re playing without a shield, God help you. And then there’s the auto-tracking overheads, which approximately 100% of enemies, including bosses, have. When an enemy raises their huge impractical stick to whack you with, they will swivel like they’re on a turntable in order to hit you while you’re strafing, something I though was physically impossible because by then you’d just be performing a horizontal swipe, wouldn’t you, turtle knight? But nooooo. It’s actually not possible to strafe to avoid attacks in this game like it was in 1. You HAVE to dodge. No exceptions, they will hit you even if they have to spin right round, baby, right round to do it.
The multiplayer is the Souls multiplayer. You know what that’s all about, and the story is just as cryptic as ever, and does offer a different take on the Dark Souls lore. However, it’s not quite as gripping as the first game’s plot was, and I never really found myself engrossed in the lore when a lot of it just felt… forgettable. How forgettable? I’VE FORGOTTEN!
All-in-all, the game is flawed, yes, but did I still have a ton of fun with it? Oh, Lord, yes, I did. For a Souls newbie, this game was the perfect entry point. It introduced me to the world, the combat, the nature of the game itself, the brutal bosses, and though not as complex as Dark Souls in any regard that I can think of off the top of my head or given several hours to come up with one, I’m still grateful to it for what it taught me, and giving me the confidence to go to Dark Souls 1 and give that a try. Without it, I would’ve never gotten into the Souls series and I would never have gotten to experience some of the best gaming moments I have ever had.
… Expand
Dark Souls 2 Review (PS3)
Just over two years ago, gamers around the world put themselves up to the task of trying to get through one of the most punishing and rewarding games to come out in modern gaming, Dark Souls. Now, From Software are back with a successor to the title, with Dark Souls 2, a game the has somehow found a way to be even more unforgiving than the first.
Much like its predecessor, Dark Souls 2 revolves around a character who becomes cursed by being an undead and needs to find a cure. Past that, the story is still something that only comes in mild glimpses and drawn out exposition that feels a bit oddly developed. This means that instead of a direct narrative, Dark Souls 2 treats the story as an afterthought to staying alive, something that just adds to the games confusion by design motif.
This indirect methodology is something that is at the core of Dark Souls 2, as very little in the world is explained from the start and won’t be for some time.
All of this seems to be a part of the greater scheme to push players into a situation of feeling like a lost soul themselves, wandering an unknown world, looking for answers. Conceptually, this a great idea, but having to overcome the game’s almost non-existent tutorial and steep learning curve will leave new players with the challenge of learning to walk before they can attempt to swing a sword.
One of the biggest changes to Dark Souls 2 is that, for better and worse, it has decidedly moved away from its more Gothic and drab color pallet it was known for. Now, vibrant grasslands, sprawling seasides and advanced lighting techniques permeate the world of Drangleic. Yet, no matter how lush the world looks, the air never leaves you feeling more than a few breaths away from death, especially as you dive deeper into the game. This wonderful design of atmosphere is sadly broken by moments where stark contrasts in quality can’t be missed.
At times, certain character models or things in the world simply won’t stand up to the same standards set by other areas of the game.
Hidden under wonderfully designed armor, a roughly textured face and a low poly body will constantly remind you that not everything is as it seems. Thankfully, even though you may be torn out of the experience at times, Dark Souls 2’s crushing difficulty remains intact and will easily be able to make you forget about the game’s polygon count.
This, of course, is why people set out to beat a title like Dark Souls 2. Much like a gaming equivalent to climbing a mountain, you will be pushed to your very limit at almost every turn and be forced to deal with your mistakes and move on, or fail and go back home (or to Gamestop). Of the changes, none have a greater effect than the way death is handled this time around. When you die (and you will), you now lose a fragment of your available life (down to 50%, unless you sin) and can only access the lost portions by using a rare item called a Human Effigy. Making each attempt through a difficult area all the more challenging, as each time you set out, you will be worse off than before.
Combat is pretty much the exact same as it was in the previous title, as you can die within a few strikes, much like most normal foes, and bosses are generally defeated by being whittled down by using the correct strike and roll pattern. This construct normally works well, as it is always just a matter of timing and positioning, but is also the reason why some of Dark Souls 2’s more mundane issues become stark problems.
Between the camera’s inability to pass through walls, and a simple change in combat mechanics, From Software have designed a game that will kill you and there will be almost do nothing you can do about it. This is mainly due to a change in the targeting system, long gone is the auto-aim mechanic when using the target lock, attacks will now only attack in the exact direction you are facing.
On top of that, there is now the ability to free run while in lock, so the ability to face the wrong direction is all the more possible. This only becomes more of an issue, as the camera will zoom directly in on your character if you get too close to a wall, cutting off visibility almost completely, which will pretty much nail your coffin shut.
Between balancing your characters almost robotic sense of direction and having to dance with a camera that is also set out to kill you, Dark Souls 2 just feels more like a game (and a dated one at that) than its predecessor.
If this sounds like Dark Souls 2 is a bad game, it isn’t. It is simply cut from a different cloth than most other games. It’s still a deep game with countless hours of content, replayability, and even a New Game+ option with even more content. Gamers looking for a challenge will find it here in spades. Each move will be more rewarding than the last, and regardless of how challenging something is, there is always the knowledge that no matter how alone you feel in the world, there are other people dealing with the same problems.
Sadly, one change that was not available by the time of this review, was that Dark Souls 2 will now be using dedicated servers to add a more robust level of interaction between players, so I cannot comment on how well those aspects work in conjunction with the rest of the game.
Ultimately, this has been the most difficult review of my career. Not because it was a difficult game, not because I wasn’t able to complete it before having to review it, but because it is the only game that is beautiful because of its ability to piss me off. Almost every subtle issue I can take with it has a reasoning behind it. Every change I could want seems to only go against its devil-may-care construct. It is a world of subtle truths that seemingly removes the designer’s guiding hand, leaving a world that is not only cold and unforgiving, but one that is rewarding in its most pure form. It is a magical recipe of pain and frustration that seeks to make you a better player by the end, simply breaking you down step by step, until you feel like you have personally leveled up more than your digital avatar, and that is something not a lot of games can do.
|
8. |
|
|
5 Tags: Dark Souls II, From Software
Share this article on facebook
SHARE
Share this article on twitter
TWEET
Review Dark Souls II PS3
“Perhaps you have already seen this … perhaps in a dream:
dark, abandoned lands. A place where souls can heal yours
restless mind. You lose everything once you’re branded
a symbol of damnation, a seal of darkness. Lose the past, the future…
himself. Everything that happens will lose its importance and meaning, worries
will remain somewhere far behind, and you yourself, by that time,
stop being human. You will become a soul-devouring creature
whose name is Hollow.
Once upon a time, far north, the great
the king created a mighty kingdom — Drangleic. Perhaps you know about
it… although, from where?.. But one day you will find yourself at its dilapidated walls.
For what? You yourself will not know this. Like a moth, drawn
light, you will rush there, but like that moth, you
will burn. But not with flame, but with suffering. This is your destiny» — these
greets us with a stunning and stylish introductory
CG movie Dark Souls II , a new work from Studio From
Software, in which the players, as well as the hero, have one fate —
fight for your life and die. Many times.
Despite the number «II» in the title of the game, the new Dark Souls is not
is a continuation of the first part, rather its spiritual and
deadly heir. Storytelling in Souls games is
her visiting card and no less peculiar component than
game design and process. We are not presented with kilotons of texts, not
explain many details of the world, there are no boring dialogues
and long speeches.
Everything is very compressed, sometimes jerky, filled
hopelessness, pain and dullness, through which, at times,
the bright rays of the sun are breaking through, illuminating Majula (the so-called
the main «hub» of this game, an analogue of the Nexus from Demon’s Souls) and local
Anor Londo. However, I highly recommend that everyone communicate with each
encountered by the character until he starts repeating
the same phrases around. In the future, this may open a new
way or some secret. Moreover, it seems to me that
character designs have always been a strong point of the Souls series, even in
their understatement has some special charm. However, as in this
series in general.
At its core, the gameplay of Dark Souls II has remained virtually
unchanged, the developers have made a variety of technical changes
into the engine, which had a positive impact on the behavior of the character and
combat system. To put it simply and more honestly, it was simply polished.
The essence, which is, approximately, the following: “better study the enemies
and learn something new with each death, so that it does not pass
gift, remained unchanged. In the new game, we have expanded the possibilities
equipment, now each hand can take three weapons or
shield, and not two, as it was before, and only four rings,
instead of two. Equip spells, magic, pyromancy and
curses, as before, depends on the number of cells pumped
using the «scholarship» parameter. Armor remained unchanged and
consist of four units — torso, bracers, greaves and a headdress.
Equipment weight, as before, affects mobility and speed
rolls of our hero, but does it not so stubbornly. If in
Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls personally, I’ve always tried to keep the weight in
within 25% to move as fast as possible
class thief / scoundrel / horns, then in Dark Souls II there is a tangible difference between
25 and 40 percent do not. In any case, the gameplay
absolutely not felt.
It might seem to someone that this makes the game easier.
in some
at least it is, but veterans of the series will notice not only this
«relief». For example, now there is no need all the time
travel on foot, because the gods of Dark Souls II have become more
responsive to their adherents and allowed them to move between
bonfires. In fact, this is a very correct decision on the part
developers, since the new game is significantly larger than their
predecessors. Its locations are more diverse and distinctive, which,
in terms of entourage, makes this game closer to the «fragmented» Demon’s
Souls than to the geographically more cohesive Dark Souls. For someone
this is a plus. For some, it’s a minus. It seems to me that this is normal
and the right step forward. The developers, although they are already proven
path, but do not forget to wander into its various branches and
experiment. Not critical. And just as much as it
needed to feel fresh. The beginning of the game may also seem
someone too easy, and it really is. The game is gaining
revolutions gradually and smoothly, so that it is easier for beginners to enter into
previously unfamiliar world of hardcore and death.
But, I can assure you, even
veterans of the series will swear loudly in dozens of gaming
moments, because From Software knows how to show indulgence to
beginners, and once again give a sniff of gunpowder to those who are thirsty for the past
hardcore.
If, suddenly, the passage seemed easy to you, you can do
a few things to fix it: join the covenant «Squad
Champions», by increasing the difficulty of the game, burn the coal of enmity at the stake and
human figure, thus strengthening the enemies and limiting communication
between worlds. Although, upon joining the mentioned covenant, the last
is not required, since it is not customary in the «Squad of Champions» to ask
help from others. This covenant disables co-op play. Yes you
previously not read, it is to burn. Now at the stake
«sacrifice» not only a piece of humanity, here
represented by a human wicker figurine, but also various
items. The same Ember of Enmity increases the difficulty of nearby enemies
campfire to the New Game+ level.
And be sure to note that this
the effect will carry over to the next playthrough. That is, if you burn
two coals on one fire, it will become equal in complexity to the “New
game++». But at the beginning of the «New Game +», this very fire will already be with
three pluses. You can take risks and overestimate your strengths. Dark
Souls II will not forgive this. But not all incinerated objects have
negative impact on the game world. For example, if burned at the stake in
Majule refined bone dust, you can make Estus in a flask more
saturated. That healing bottle. By the way, the number of times
application depends on the number of fragments found in the game world
Estus, with the help of which the flask is strengthened at the Emerald Messenger,
keepers of the flame of Majula. What else is very, very happy, so
this is finally the added ability to reshape everything
characteristics of the character, in an instant turning a hand-to-hand warrior into,
for example, a wise magician. This requires a special item,
«Vessel of the soul», which must be brought to the old woman in the Interworld, herself
first location.
But despite all the relief and tweaks, caution and
individual approach to most opponents, from simple knights
to the bosses, is still the heart of this game. One wrong
a step, a blow taken at the wrong time, or an incorrectly timed
casting a spell, and the result can be disastrous. And the more
once you die in Dark Souls II, the more deplorable your
position, because with each death the character loses about 5% of his
maximum health, and after a dozen deaths, he will have
it’s only half. Half! Maybe it’s not so scary
knight or blockhead, with a maximum value of 2-3 thousand points
life, but for magicians, clerics and robbers who spend souls in
mainly on intelligence, learning, faith, stability (endurance)
and agility, leaving hit points at about one thousand,
such a penalty is extremely unpleasant. Ruthlessness of opponents and bosses,
their stunning and sometimes nasty design, the intricacies of gaming
locations where a careless step or an incorrectly placed block with a shield
can lead to a fatal fall — all this remained in the game,
Friends.
So you don’t have to worry, the infection of “casuality” is not
struck From Software and their works.
In addition to reworking the engine, the game classes have been changed.
A new type of spell has appeared — curses or witchcraft. They
allocated to their own elemental class, which means they require
goals of a particular protection indicator. In this regard, in addition to
good old rings that increase protection against fire, poison and magic,
added a ring that increases protection from darkness. Generally rings in the new
the game has gotten bigger. I highly recommend reading carefully.
descriptions of the rings, but unusual ones, such as «allowing you to hear voices
enemies”, I advise you to buy and carry with you, just in case. Eat
times when they might be useful. Appeared in Dark Souls II and
new melee class — swordsman. This is a swordsman capable of
fight, wielding simultaneously two swords, maces, axes and
etc. In general, hand-to-hand weapons. In the people such characters
commonly referred to as «dual wilders», or double-handed
fighters/swordsmen.
Dual-wilding here is a very
peculiar and you need to get used to it, after observing
certain rules. For example, I recommend that in case
dual-wielding your hero had 50-60 percent strength
higher than required to use the selected weapon.
For example, a sword requires 14 strength and 15 dexterity. Therefore, for
high-quality dual-wielding, the character must have 21 units
strength, dexterity, it is enough just to meet the requirement. Also
with double-handed fencing, do not forget about the special power
a stance that can be entered by holding Triangle. Character
slightly change the position of the blades in his hands. Not to be confused with
by wielding a weapon equipped in the left hand! Important
— for dual-wielding, you need both weapons to be approximately in the same
weight category. When I started the game, I chose the swordsman class, but
it’s hard to kick old habits out of yourself, so in the end it’s all the same
turned out to be a robber …
Also, I had a little setback.
Possibly due to
early access, but most likely just by an unpleasant coincidence
circumstances, my current character does not work
cooperative mode. That is, the network functions of the game work
excellent, almost to the maximum he pumped the covenant of bell ringers and successfully
I travel to other worlds, but deliberately call on a friend
or put your call sign — I can’t. By creating a new character
they managed to pull it all off. Old — no. Damaged themselves
saved data. Perhaps the developers will fix the problem. So
here, because of this, absolutely all the bosses of the game I had to immediately
pass alone, so I decided to resort to the already proven
ten passages to the class. However, I also indulge in dual-wilding,
occasionally. Speaking of network functions, I can not help but note that
that now the connection has become much more stable and faster than in
Demon’s Souls and Dark Souls. Also added voice chat to the game,
which can please a lot of players. As before, participation in
covenants has its benefits — for example, being in a covenant
ringers, for defeating the violator the player receives a fragment of titanite
for pumping weapons.
And in the covenant of the rat king — keystones
Pharros, opening special mechanisms.
Since I remembered about pumping weapons. I don’t see it as a relief to the game.
but we were clearly pitied in terms of farming. Definitely Dark veterans
Souls remembers how they killed hundreds of butterflies for blue
titanite, made runs into the cave of skeletons, near Nito’s lair,
to knock out white titanite from magicians, or even in Demon’s Souls
hundreds of times killed the black skeleton in the secret door of the fourth
of the world, to receive the coveted pebble. All primary weapons are now
Dark Souls II, pumped using regular titanite (various
caliber, of course) up to +10. And then you can add weapons
a certain attribute — fire, darkness, poison, magic, stupidity, simplicity and
etc. at the blacksmith, after delivering to him the found dim
coal. Weapons traded from merchants for the souls of bosses are upgraded
already rarer stones, like dragon ones. As it was in the first
parts.
Assigning any attribute to a weapon is wise, because
there is always some kind of penalty. Either performance will go down, or
importantly, the direct influence of some characteristic
for damage. For example, I worked a sword with a blunt stone, and felt
stupid already. Because by increasing the indicator of physical damage,
this «upgrade» reduced the effect of agility on damage dealt.
Which, at 50 agility, is somewhat… more noticeable than a 20 agility gain.
units of physical damage.
While Dark Souls II has not actually changed graphically since
time of Dark Souls, having undergone a small facelift,
technically the game has clearly grown. There are frequency subsidences here
frame changes, leading to slowdown of the game, but the claimed
reworking the Havok engine benefited the project. These same
drawdowns have ceased to be so annoying and critical, here
no more hellish brakes that most players experienced
in, for example, Blythetown from the first part.
Fps drops have become less significant, on average, the loss
is approximately 5-7 frames, that is, unpleasant, uncomfortable, but
not fatal.
Also, the processing of the engine had a positive effect on
moving the main character, who stopped sliding on
level ground and make unnecessary movements that could lead to
falling from a height (rare, but this happened in Demon’s Souls and
Dark Souls), as well as on the combat system, which has become more friendly and
smooth. Did not remain without cosmetic changes and the interface —
now the character menu has become somewhat more convenient and informative.
There were more all sorts of elemental statuses, among which
lightning, fire and darkness. When changing equipment in the right corner
a small window appears, which shows not only the general
character’s workload in local kilograms, but also the percentage of this
the workload itself. Comfortable.
The sound and music in the game is amazing, the voice acting of the characters, like them
unsaid, unrevealed to the end images, works for the good
the general entourage of a gloomy fantasy tale, readable in a bad way, but
still familiar language.
This time the game is translated into Russian
language, which will certainly please domestic players. voice acting
untouched, the translation touched only the text part of the project, and
it’s done pretty well. There are typos and some semantic
errors, but they are few. No more than most translated
games. Definitely pleased with the somewhat increased interactivity of the project
— we can interact with a large number of objects
environment. For example, you can hit a stone with a rope tied
at the well, and raise something from its depths. Or, with the help
key-stone to open the cache … or maybe an ambush! Left in the game
a large number of various caches and secrets, among which
hidden walls, enemies to talk to (if not kill
them) and much more. Speaking of hidden walls — some of them
is now opened by pressing the «Cross» near a suspicious place on
wall. Attacks don’t always work. Trophy difficulty in Dark Souls
II is approximately the same as the previous games in the series, that is, to receive
platinum cup will take a lot of time and probably not even one
passage, especially if you do not use all sorts of
guidebooks.
I don’t think this is the right game for them.
address.
Many verdicts can start with
the words «if», combined «you are a fan» and so on. But not in
this case. It seems to me that any fan of games in general, early
or later begins to strive to find some kind of test in
virtual world. A series of «soulful» games from From Software, part of
which is the Dark Souls II reviewed here — it’s just
a diamond for such a player that I don’t miss
recommend under any circumstances or «taste
features.» This is a true work of art that
forces the player to truly compete for victory. For what else can
just adore Dark Souls II, so it’s for the lack of reference points,
because of which you can go to hell, fight a hundred times with
the same boss, cursing everything in the world, scolding the developers
for «such a hard second/third boss», on 101st attempt
to defeat him, and only after tens of hours to discover for himself that
the fact that this boss was far from being the second or third, and that according to
«chronology», it was necessary to go to him that way only now, and even then not
sure.
.. Dark Souls II is millions of dead nerve cells,
this true feeling of euphoria with each defeated boss, this …
indescribable, intense and full of the most contradictory and sincere
emotion adventure.
Review based on the PlayStation 3 version provided by
our website by the publisher.
Review of the game Dark Souls 2 Scholar of the First Sin: familiar faces
It would seem that quite recently I wrote a review of the new Bloodborne game for PlayStation 4, and then another release appeared, which by no means can be deprived of attention. I’m talking about the re-release of the game that has already become a living classic of the RPG genre — Dark Souls 2. The original game was released for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 in the spring of 2014. And now, exactly a year later, its updated version was born with some corrections and additions, which will also be able to play the owners of the new consoles Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
I talked about the history of the creation of the Souls series, as well as about the person who is its author, in my previous review.
I strongly recommend that you check it out. And today we will focus on what the subtitle Scholar of the First Sin brought to the Dark Souls 2 game. After all, the developers had a whole year to please those fans of this wonderful role-playing game who managed to acquire next-generation consoles.
Let me remind you that the plot in the games of the Souls series is not the same as we are all used to seeing and perceiving it. It is heavily veiled and presented to the players in tiny portions. In other words, you yourself will have to find out what the hell is going on here. This is one of the hallmarks of these games: no one will come to your aid, no one will tell you which direction to go or where to get weapons to defeat the strongest boss.
The game takes place in the kingdom of Drangleic. It was once ruled by the powerful King Vendrick along with his wife, Queen Nashandra, who is also the reincarnation of one of the main bosses of the first Dark Souls game. Yielding to the persuasion of his wife, Vendrik stole one of their sacred relics from the giants living overseas, which provoked a bloody war.
As a result of the conflict, the kingdom of Drangleic fell, its inhabitants turned into undead, and the king, after a long depression, fell into insanity, having previously imprisoned his treacherous wife in a castle-prison.
Nashandra is trying with all her might to break out of her dungeon and seize the royal throne, and the protagonist of the game is obliged to prevent this. He has no choice but to defeat the mad king and his demonic consort, and then ascend the throne, taking control of the once-greatest kingdom in his own hands. This will not be easy to do, given that the Souls series of games is notorious for very inhospitable, if not sadistic conditions for players.
I won’t go into the gameplay of the original game, as it could take me hours to complete. Instead of repeating what you all know very well without me, I will tell you how the new Scholar of the First Sin differs from the original. So, in the new game, everything is very similar to what we saw in Dark Souls 2, but the longer you play, the more clearly you feel how everything has become unusual.
Monsters and objects have changed their usual locations. Some bosses may appear in completely unexpected places or even several times during the game. Completely new items have been added to the reissue. Such as Forlorn’s Greatsword, Forlorn’s Scythe, Forlorn’s Armor, and a unique ring that absorbs souls instead of its owner and allows the player to control the difficulty level in online matches. All this you can buy from one of the sellers for local currency — the souls of the monsters you killed.
The so-called «Lore» of the game, or the description of its world, objects, monsters and characters, has also changed a lot. The developers at every opportunity make a number of changes to the text descriptions, so this time the changes affected more than 30 items and weapons. Among other things, the game received an additional «dark ending», which can only be opened by those players who defeat the new boss.
As the name of the game implies, a new NPC has appeared in it — Scholar of the First Sin, or the Scholar of Original Sin named Aldia.
It first appeared back in patch 1.10 for the original Dark Souls 2 game in February of this year. And now it has migrated to the re-release, which also includes all three DLC released to date: Crown of the Sunken King, Crown of the Old Iron King and Crown of the Ivory King. Each of these additions will offer the player an additional 4-5 hours of play.
Some game parameters have been adjusted to improve balance. The most experienced players who have spent more than one hundred hours in Dark Souls 2 will immediately feel it. Even if you are incredibly experienced and know every corner of the Drangleic kingdom by heart, this will not necessarily save you from an inglorious death. Issues with «cheat items» (such as the Ring of Life) have been resolved in the game, so there will be no more freebies. True, along the way, a few not very pleasant moments were discovered. For example, your weapons began to break much more often, which I don’t remember in the original game.
The network component of the game, by the way, was heavily reworked by From Software studio specialists.
The matchmaking system responsible for the selection of players for PvP has been significantly improved. The number of players who can take part in a single game session has been increased to six people.
The good news for the owners of the original game was the fact that they received an updated version of it for free in the form of patch 1.10. So if you have already purchased a game for PS3, Xbox 360 or PC and have not turned it on for a long time, you can simply install the update and get all the innovations for free. Plus, you can even use your old recording files to pick up where you left off last time. This is a great opportunity to return to your favorite fantasy world.
Owners of the same PS4, Xbox One and PC with support for DirectX 11 will be able to enjoy the updated graphics component of the game. The lighting system has been completely redesigned so that surfaces and textures now look much more attractive, and in some rooms you will inevitably have to use torches due to the fact that the darkness in the game is now much thicker.
The frame rate has been increased to a stable 60 fps, making the game feel completely different. The game camera now moves more quickly and smoothly compared to what we saw in the original. The resolution of the console version of the game has been increased to 1080p, which is very pleasing to the eye.
The game is by no means a remake, but it feels like a very holistic, harmonious and well-tailored addition to the original. It is felt that the developers have devoted a lot of time to improving the already great game mechanics, which fell in love with millions of players around the world.
Pros:
- Before us is the same magnificent Dark Souls 2.
- The game has become prettier in terms of detail and lighting.
- Increased image resolution to 1080p and frame rate to 60 fps.
- The movements of the main character and the camera have become faster and smoother.
- The game will surprise even experienced players.
