GameSpot - Dark Souls II prepares to inherit the flaming mantle of death from its punishing predecessor without a hint of remorse.
Dark Souls 2 remains a divisive entry in the landmark RPG franchise, but Hidetaka Miyazaki believes it led to the success of Elden Ring.
DS2 was fine. While there was a bit of recycling assets or ideas for bosses, it was a bigger more open Dark Souls. The Fume knight boss is one of the hardest bosses in the series until Sekiro and Elden Ring were released.
The problem with Dark Souls 2 was the same problem when a different director takes over for a sequel to an outstanding movie. It typically (there are exceptions) doesn’t have the feel and vision of the previous movie.
I wouldn’t say Dark Souls 2 is terrible. Had Dark Souls 1 never been a thing and we got this, I think it would have been praised more. The problem is it didn’t have the Miyazaki touch to it and felt pretty derivative. The soundtrack is a banger though.
And it will happen in the future when he doesn’t touch them as he is planning on.
I like DS 2, might even be my favorite of the 3. But it's a hard sell, there's so many obscure things you need to do to make it an enjoyable experience. So always find it hard to recommend, but it is worth the trouble.
TheGamer writes, "Some weapons resist the test of time."
The Nerd Stash: “Whether you’re here to gloat about your victories or to see what the fuss is about, we present to you the hardest bosses in the Souls series.”
I beat them all with my fists and no hits were taken. What do you mean you don't believe me? I used a guitar hero controller!!!
All the bosses are only from Dark Souls. No Bloodborne, Sekiro, Elden Ring, or Demon Souls
Well this came to mind...
Prepare to Die
I love how Dark Souls II gives me that Demon's Souls vibe! I really hope that some of the level designs are similar to Demon's Souls with some of Dark Souls open level designs... In all honesty I am not worried at all for this game, I'm actually more excited about it after the trailer!
i died already just by reading this article :(
I wouldn't be surprised if they made Dark Souls 2 a little more mainstreamed and easier, to grab a larger audience.
It already happened with Dark Souls, which was slightly n00bified with the Bonfires. There were just too many of them and to frequent.
There really should have been 1 for each 'area'. So that first bonfire - Firelink Shrine, should be the ONLY bonfire until after you ring the first bell - gargoyle bosses.
Instead they spread quite a few between that area, not to mention the ability to increase your flasks.
With the introduction of this, I knew they were heading down this path.
I would hope in Dark Souls 2 they would make the bonfires a lot less frequent.