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[Preview] Dark Souls II: A Peek Inside a Wonderful Wicked World
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
Earlier this week we were given the opportunity to play Dark Souls 2, From Software’s upcoming sequel to the critically acclaimed Dark Souls. For those unfamiliar with Dark Souls it is a fantasy 3rd person RPG with a punishing learning curve based on trial and error. It also features a unique and wickedly cool online mode. It was originally was released in 2011 and re-released on all console platforms as well as the PC in 2012 with a host of new content under the appropriate title of ‘Dark Souls: Prepare To Die’ edition. If that’s not enough for the uninitiated to get a feel of what Dark Souls is about, then perhaps this will help; in today’s 3 hour preview session of Dark Souls 2 I died more than 50 times, several of which were in the tutorial zone.
Read more of Ricky Marino's Dark Souls II: A Peek Inside a Wickedly Wonderful World.
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“Ancient hooded women usually mean ancient thinly veiled prophecies”
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Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
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Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
Ricky Marino
Thank you for the response. I was hoping this was on PC as the controls on the first "Dark Souls" were unwieldy.
Out of curiosity, the first dark souls seemed a bit more "mysterious" as you had to discover people here and there and make your way through a bleack landscape also discovering where to go.
this seemed, according to the review, to be more focused, "almost" quest hub like with the inclusion of the town. Is that true?
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
In the 3 hours we had with it I did meet several charcters away from the hub town that had their own dilemas and as I progressed through the area, lighting other bonfires(save points) pulls you further and further away. Though I did go back to the town at some point...I won't say why though. I don't think it will be very questhub-esque as itd not exactly a town full of people and quest givers but I do think it will have its own role to play in the wider narrative.
Ricky Marino
AN' DERE AIN'T NO SUCH FING AS ENUFF DAKKA, YA GROT! Enuff'z more than ya got an' less than too much an' there ain't no such fing as too much dakka. Say dere is, and me Squiggoff'z eatin' tonight!
We are born of the blood. Made men by the blood. Undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open. FEAR THE OLD BLOOD.
#IStandWithVic
Since when is this an mmo???
Actually... think of it like this...
The town is the only safe haven... you will actually have sidequests just like the first game
(ie. Help Siegmeyer in his adventure/Help Solaire find his son)
There are more of those in this game, because FROM Software originally planned more of these, but time constraints stopped them, so they are going all out with this one... in fact theres going to be a questline where you help a cartographer find a map of Drangleic, but with no waypoints, and just use context clues/dialogue to figure out what to do nex
There will also be quests in helping people get to the town, but remember, you don't know how to do it, infact, they are all completely missable
Give me a break. Just because you don't care for the visuals doesn't make you more of a "true gamer" than anyone else.
I have a hard time understanding this game... It's so punishing that an actual feature of it which is highlighted by everyone is... "Dying." Okay... Didn't realize dying in a game was some huge special feature that the world of gaming had never heard of before.
What else makes the game special besides dying 1000 times? I just don't understand I guess...
Smile
Well, it's essentially an open world game. You're free to go pretty much wherever you please from the start... until you run into some enemies which will OHK you. Even then, if you know where to go and how to avoid getting killed, you can actually get some nice equipment pretty early on.
The story is also told in a fairly unique way, with very little overall narrative given to you. The world's lore is hinted at through dialogue with various NPCs (whom you will encounter at varying points and times depending on your own actions), locations, and a large chunk through the description of various items you acquire. It's not just thrown at you in a book, or through conversation. You need to piece it together yourself, which makes for some really cool 'AHA!' moments when you figure out what an NPCs motivations are, or who / what certain bosses really are, or how they wound up where you find them.
Death in this game is much more of a learning tool than in others. Other than a few areas (like Sen's Fortress), if you die it's completely your fault, and was completely avoidable. Yes, it's quite difficult, but for the most part the challenge is fair. Most games these days rely on 'cheap' difficulty like QTEs or blatantly overpowered enemy abilities, and it's nice to see a game which doesn't do that.
About all I can say, really. I'm sure someone whose spent more time with the game can explain it better, but I believe I outlined the gist of it well enough.
AN' DERE AIN'T NO SUCH FING AS ENUFF DAKKA, YA GROT! Enuff'z more than ya got an' less than too much an' there ain't no such fing as too much dakka. Say dere is, and me Squiggoff'z eatin' tonight!
We are born of the blood. Made men by the blood. Undone by the blood. Our eyes are yet to open. FEAR THE OLD BLOOD.
#IStandWithVic
I know it doesn't help, but it's one of those games you just need to play yourself to get it. The immense frustration and the following jubilation are truly unlike any other RPG i've played. It will haunt your sleep.
praise the sun!
"Id rather work on something with great potential than on fulfilling a promise of mediocrity."
- Raph Koster
Tried: AO,EQ,EQ2,DAoC,SWG,AA,SB,HZ,CoX,PS,GA,TR,IV,GnH,EVE, PP,DnL,WAR,MxO,SWG,FE,VG,AoC,DDO,LoTRO,Rift,TOR,Aion,Tera,TSW,GW2,DCUO,CO,STO
Favourites: AO,SWG,EVE,TR,LoTRO,TSW,EQ2, Firefall
Currently Playing: ESO
I don't think its the punishing difficulty that makes the game enjoyable for me. I think its more the feeling of achievement that comes after navigating a particularly tough area, or killing a difficult boss. It's the exhilarating feeling you get after finally killing a boss that's caved your skull in 20 times. At least thats what does it for me.
Ricky
Ricky Marino