Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin

 PC
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 751 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 487 out of 751
  2. Mixed: 164 out of 751
  3. Negative: 100 out of 751

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  1. Captain_Chaos
    Jun 22, 2016
    4
    My first unfortunate brush with the Dark Souls series, and one that almost turned me off it for good. The controls in this PC version are terrible. I felt consistently hamstringed and useless, and relied heavily on my friends to carry me through the game. And frankly, I dislike several of the series' core mechanics, most notably the invasion system. The idea of a game where someone canMy first unfortunate brush with the Dark Souls series, and one that almost turned me off it for good. The controls in this PC version are terrible. I felt consistently hamstringed and useless, and relied heavily on my friends to carry me through the game. And frankly, I dislike several of the series' core mechanics, most notably the invasion system. The idea of a game where someone can come into your story and deliberately **** you over is completely asinine to me. I felt underpowered and underwhelmed through out this game and honestly, I'm amazed I even bothered to buy Dark Souls III after this. Do yourself favor and skip this game.… Expand
  2. tomh
    Jan 18, 2016
    0
    Co-op for the game is useless, which was the only reason I bought it. Add to that the fact it's a poor console port with major control and interface issues, and there's just no reason to put yourself through this kind of disappointment. I can deal with hard games, but they'd better be hard because of worthwhile challenges and not because of frustrating gameplay issues.

    Heartily NOT recommended.
  3. sabaothkelly
    Jul 30, 2020
    0
    Dark Souls 1? Masterpiece.
    Light Souls 2? What a PIECE of TVRD, ¡seriously!? There are too many enemies and bosses doing s**t that is just just random, absurd or jank. Honestly, it's just barely above "Lords of the Fallen" trash mechanics.
    Dark Souls 3? Amazing.
    Sekiro? Very Good.
  4. Silatuyok
    Sep 2, 2015
    0
    So I downloaded this game having heard that all the concerns about the last port where fixed and that I could genuinely enjoy this game that everyone is losing their **** over. Oh boy, was that a mistake.

    So apparently FROM Software doesn't have a single person who is capable of reading who also has access to the internet, because it would seem that it was never brought up that THIS IS    So I downloaded this game having heard that all the concerns about the last port where fixed and that I could genuinely enjoy this game that everyone is losing their **** over. Oh boy, was that a mistake.

    So apparently FROM Software doesn't have a single person who is capable of reading who also has access to the internet, because it would seem that it was never brought up that THIS IS A PC GAME. I mean, I tried to do it their way, but no matter how many times I press A on my keyboard it just wouldn't work. Its almost like I am not playing on an Xbox or something when I decided to try the PC version of the game. Crazy right?

    Anyway, after finally getting into the game I found that they still haven't fixed the attack delay when using a mouse; you know, like a PC gamer. I suppose I could try all the third party fixes, but when paying about $30 for what fails to accomplish what should have been released as a hotfix the first week of the original dark souls 2 port I can't justify anyone buying this game for PC.    … Expand
  5. GAGMR
    Jul 13, 2016
    2
    After playing it for more than 100+ hours combined through Steam & other means of playing it I can safely say that it is terrible & it will always be terrible. The game itself griefs you in its overall design. It's like, that **** at a party who's just there to be an **** He wants to make you have a bad time, piss you off & **** your girlfriend while you're tied down forced to watch.After playing it for more than 100+ hours combined through Steam & other means of playing it I can safely say that it is terrible & it will always be terrible. The game itself griefs you in its overall design. It's like, that **** at a party who's just there to be an **** He wants to make you have a bad time, piss you off & **** your girlfriend while you're tied down forced to watch. That's pretty much DS2 in a nutshell. A hard game for the sake of being hard & an **** for the sake of being an **** **** this game in its entirety… Expand
  6. Woodencoins
    Apr 2, 2015
    1
    In as few a word as possible:
    Graphically, i have not noticed much of a difference than the first iteration of the game, played for several hours so far and the only real difference is that everything is much brighter than before, other than certain areas which although bright and perfectly visible while looking in from outside the relevant area (i.e. through a door way) as soon as you    In as few a word as possible:
    Graphically, i have not noticed much of a difference than the first iteration of the game, played for several hours so far and the only real difference is that everything is much brighter than before, other than certain areas which although bright and perfectly visible while looking in from outside the relevant area (i.e. through a door way) as soon as you enter the area/ room all light inexplicably vanishes forcing the necessity of torches where as before torches were pretty much useless.
    Enemy placement: it seems that From Software have just increased the concentration of enemies and placed higher level enemies in lower level areas (a lot of them hidden which is no doubt going to be considered very cheap tactics but From have sort of developed a reputation for being cheap so i suppose this was to be expected)
    Pricing: The fact that From have charged anything for this (pc version) is an insult but, as more and more people are realising, these game developers don't create games to please, they develop games to make money and that is what they have and are doing.
    Ultimately, we have all been played. (people who have bought Scholar of the first Sin after buying the first version of the game.)
    Do not buy this unless you have not already purchased the original, otherwise you might as well open wide and accept almost fascist capitalism.... maybe not quite that harsh but you get the message..... hopefully.    … Expand
  7. lhmtgame
    Jun 4, 2017
    2
    2 points for Dark Souls 2 graphics, its content is junk.
    - A PC version with "controller button" display... so good, hah..! Character creation is ugly, also item graphics design.
    - No object/quest tab to follow. Leveling does not improve anything much to character.
    I love adventure game, but this bullsh*t waste time and money.
  8. Kamamura
    Apr 5, 2015
    4
    I was initially quite excited by the game until I found out the game is basically broken.

    If you do not run it on 30 fps, many things will be broken because the developers tie gameplay mechanics to frames, not to real time. Therefore: - weapons degrade faster - enemies move faster - some controls (guardbreak) do not work The only solution is to cap the game to the unaccpetable    I was initially quite excited by the game until I found out the game is basically broken.

    If you do not run it on 30 fps, many things will be broken because the developers tie gameplay mechanics to frames, not to real time. Therefore:

    - weapons degrade faster
    - enemies move faster
    - some controls (guardbreak) do not work

    The only solution is to cap the game to the unaccpetable 30fps. Hello, developers, I am not buying the game on PC only to cripple it afterwards.

    In its current state, the game cannot be recommended for purchase.    … Expand
  9. arnolddanko
    Apr 2, 2015
    0
    They tweaked lighting effects, placed enemies in new spots, and expect me to buy this game again? The new placements are lazy - you even have the dull ember in the starting location (originally mid-late game)!! Where are the graphics from beta? Where is the darkness? Where is new content? This is ridiculous, they managed to make the game even worse. Don't buy this, original DSII withThey tweaked lighting effects, placed enemies in new spots, and expect me to buy this game again? The new placements are lazy - you even have the dull ember in the starting location (originally mid-late game)!! Where are the graphics from beta? Where is the darkness? Where is new content? This is ridiculous, they managed to make the game even worse. Don't buy this, original DSII with season pass is MUCH better. Don't let these greedy slackers get money for a 10 hour work.… Expand
  10. Avadon
    Apr 2, 2015
    3
    Note: The score reflects the "upgraded" version, and not the quality of the game itself.

    There are 2 improvements that require a lot of work and would upgrade the game significantly enough to warrant the price of this: 1) Implementing the full dynamic lighting system that they showed on previews some years ago. 2) Fixing the durability issue, which they say would require a    Note: The score reflects the "upgraded" version, and not the quality of the game itself.

    There are 2 improvements that require a lot of work and would upgrade the game significantly enough to warrant the price of this:

    1) Implementing the full dynamic lighting system that they showed on previews some years ago.
    2) Fixing the durability issue, which they say would require a significant engine rewrite (I believe them).

    Even one of those things would be enough for me to pay for the game again. Unfortunately, they did neither. It doesn't matter if From or N/B are responsible, what matters is that they are charging a premium price for virtually nothing. Why? The Shadow Warrior devs offered more of an upgrade on their game than From just a few days ago, for free. They added a brand new DX11 client, which looks significantly better and is ridiculously well optimized, to the point where I can max it out and play at downscaled 4k at 80+ FPS on a single GPU. I was floored. And it was a FREE patch.

    DS2 is a good game. Not a great one, but good. It suffers from some repetition occasionally, and the world design feels a bit out of whack, but it's definitely enjoyable. The DLC is also excellent. If you already own the base game and not the DLC, this is probably worth getting. If you own both, it's definitely not worth it. If you don't own it at all, again it's worth getting, but you might want to consider limiting it to 30 FPS, so your weapons don't blow up if you accidentally touch a wall. Absolutely ridiculous.    … Expand
  11. Panopticon
    Apr 13, 2015
    0
    Doesn't support PC controls, what a waste of my money.

    Looks very pretty with the waving grass and the toothless crones babbling gibberish at you but I'm not downloading third party scripts to fix it.
  12. AthanasiosT
    Jan 14, 2016
    0
    WARNING : Bad console adaptation on PC. Controls : What are "X" and "A" buttons ? Why can't I calibrate my controls ? Camera : Where is my character and where are my enemies ? etc.etc. As I've said in previous texts, all bad PC adaptations deserve a zero and that's what I'm giving now.
  13. WilliamWesker
    Aug 2, 2019
    0
    DS 2 is not even a true "DARK" game, in order to have the title of DARK SOULS in it, the 2013 DEMO of the same is, but the final version is definitely not. It has texture with a very poor quality in all its versions, including the one of PC, especially considering that it is a game of 2014, & in 2015 there were already games like The Witcher 3, which makes DS 2 to look like a game of aDS 2 is not even a true "DARK" game, in order to have the title of DARK SOULS in it, the 2013 DEMO of the same is, but the final version is definitely not. It has texture with a very poor quality in all its versions, including the one of PC, especially considering that it is a game of 2014, & in 2015 there were already games like The Witcher 3, which makes DS 2 to look like a game of a half a decade before the 2014, because of the difference with regard to the quality of textures between the two, something that it is really pathetic & embarrassing for the DS 2 piece of work. It allows the player to warp between Bonfires from the beginning, which literally murder in cold blood a great deal of immersion & exploration in it. The enemies are very badly misplaced in the levels. The animation of the sequences in the attacks are just terrible with respect to the lack of inmercion that it causes, to a player. Its system focuses on punishing the player when the same dies, at resurrect it with less life, instead of encouraging it to self-overcome, which is one of the main philosophies of the DARK SOULS series, Hidetaka Miyazaki himself confirmed that philosophy for the series. The writing level of the game is very poor. The NPCs are extremely depressing, & constantly encourage the player to surrender during the dialogues, instead of encouraging the player not to become Hollow, as they generally should with indifference responses like on DS 3 & ESPECIALLY in DS 1!… Expand
  14. MillersWeeb
    Nov 16, 2018
    0
    Игра полная параша, филлер между первой частью и бладборном. В игре плохо практически все и играть в неё невозможно.
  15. quake2th
    May 22, 2015
    2
    lol, wtf is this game?? Bad graphics, bad controls, mostly unplayable. I really don't understand what's all this hype for From Software games, they are BAD, it's amateurish stuff! Their games are full of bugs, mostly related to stupid camera controls, that makes them unplayable! Trying to avoid bug after bug is not gameplay, there isn't much gameplay here, it's just you against some verylol, wtf is this game?? Bad graphics, bad controls, mostly unplayable. I really don't understand what's all this hype for From Software games, they are BAD, it's amateurish stuff! Their games are full of bugs, mostly related to stupid camera controls, that makes them unplayable! Trying to avoid bug after bug is not gameplay, there isn't much gameplay here, it's just you against some very stupid bug. At least in Bloodborne you can choose to play offline, here you are forced to play online, which means you will be invaded by no-life kiddies that will one-shot you, again and again, basically halting your progress. So tell me, having to pull your network cable in order to play can be considered gameplay??? wtf is wrong with From Software? This is one of the worst game ever, don't believe the hype, it's bs.… Expand
  16. Nicko_Hard
    Sep 18, 2017
    0
    Плохое управление и геймплей в целом, сложность игры зависит не от проворности и силы противника, а от тупняков главного героя и плохого управления - это бред.
  17. Izoeros
    May 30, 2022
    4
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  18. madterps
    Oct 8, 2020
    4
    Dark Souls 2 is a crappy version of DS1 and DS3. I have enjoyed the two other installments immensely, those two games were tough but fair and you can make minor progress, this one not so much. I'll tell you why:

    1. The weapons constantly have a meter, it's worse when you play on PC because of the framerate, the weapon keeps going to break soon unless you carry around repair powder    Dark Souls 2 is a crappy version of DS1 and DS3. I have enjoyed the two other installments immensely, those two games were tough but fair and you can make minor progress, this one not so much. I'll tell you why:

    1. The weapons constantly have a meter, it's worse when you play on PC because of the framerate, the weapon keeps going to break soon unless you carry around repair powder everywhere and repair powder are not infinite either until you get to the end of the game, which is utterly ridiculous and you have to farm souls to make sure you carry around enough. There never seem to be a problem with DS1 and DS3, the game will also constantly tells you that the weapon is at risk, which is not as much of an issue in DS1 and DS3. Imagine looking for a bonfire to reset your weapon meter, or getting stuck in a boss fight with a broken weapon while you're trying to swap or god forbid you made it to the boss without .
    2. Auto aim sucks as it constantly jumps around enemies, especially if you are getting attacked by a group. The damn camera goes berserk at inopportune time but you need that aim assist in order to shoot at enemies with your magic or else you pull out your binocular and sometimes it's a pain to switch back and forth, not sure why my version did not work properly when I played it with a PS4 controller on the PC. It's a chore at times to switch between sniping and regular combat when you press on the left pad and it does not switch at all and you're stuck trying to block with your shield when you have your bow equipped instead.
    3. You have to research adaptability in order to upgrade it or else your Estus flask use is crap unless you don't move, or you try to run away and then heal, but that does not work with faster enemies that have so much stamina and that is something that does not happen in DS1. Your stamina doesn't regen that quickly even with the Chloranthy Ring. Life gem is also limited until you spent like 10000 souls at a merchants shop, you have to research the Internet for that. Hell, you start off with two, count them two Estus flasks and a limited amount of life gem. DS1 was never that unforgiving.
    4. Parry and control mechanics are different than DS1 and DS3, granted I should have played DS2 before DS3, but I kind of played DS3 and DS1 before I played DS2. Shooting arrow is now tied to R2 for some reason instead of R1.
    5. The bosses are kind of forgettable, alot of them are rehashes from DS1. Old Dragonslayer is an exact copy of Ornstein in DS1.
    6. This game loves to gank you out of nowhere, enter a new room or area and six soldiers, etc will gang up on you, there is no indication either. Never had as much problem with DS1, maybe at the top of the Undead Parish, and those were weak enemies at the beginning of the game, DS1 seems to be fine, as you can draw them out carefully if you know that you are not close.
    7. Shield absolutely sucks, be prepared to take damage unless you upgrade your strength to about 30 to use a great shield with 100% physical damage. Really, 30 strength for a shield??? DS1 and DS3 never had problems with this.
    8. Hollowing sucks, unless you use the ring that only allows hollowing to go down to 75% of your max health. Hollowing here appearance wise is so much worse than DS1 and DS3 too, you'll turn into an ugly skeleton rather than having ugly marks all over your face.    … Expand
  19. KoKop0
    Aug 16, 2020
    4
    literally unplayable on PC without patches and I can't even use my controller the game doesn't even start up if I have gamepad plugged in... very poor port to PC and unforgivable cash grab for dark souls fans using PC.... Im stuck playing with keyboard and mouse and 30FPS

    I love dark souls games and I wish I could just play the game as I want to but after many tries it just won't    literally unplayable on PC without patches and I can't even use my controller the game doesn't even start up if I have gamepad plugged in... very poor port to PC and unforgivable cash grab for dark souls fans using PC.... Im stuck playing with keyboard and mouse and 30FPS

    I love dark souls games and I wish I could just play the game as I want to but after many tries it just won't work... Im very disappointed and sad!    … Expand
  20. Mileswithaz
    Jul 22, 2017
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game really hurt to finish. Really really hurt. At first, I was having a lot of fun with it. I didn't understand why it had so many negative reviews, and even though I had watched a lot of videos critiquing it, I had also heard as many reviews saying that the game isn't as bad as many had made it out to be, and that it was even good. So, I went into it with an open mind. I should have saved myself from playing it. The beginning of the game is strong, and I really liked it--or at least I thought I did. I would think to myself that the developers were trying to make an experience that's hard just to be hard. This would be fine for a casual player who probably wouldn't even beat it, but for the "hardcore" type who need to explore everything and put hundreds of hours into it (especially those who played through the first game), it will be a disappointing experience. Many areas have a very linear design with dozens of enemies placed in the player's way just to give them a hard time. In some Dark Souls I areas this is a problem too. One of the best, or worst, examples of this is in Lost Izalith, This area is extremely linear with many enemies in the way, and the area is just ugly. Lost Izalith is one of the worst areas of Dark Souls I, but most of the areas in Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin are similar to this. One complaint that many people share is that too many enemies are just humanoids in armor, but they don't explain that the reason for this issue is because the movesets are boring and unoriginal. You only need to learn the attack patterns of those in the first few areas to learn how to defeat most of the enemies, so to remedy this, the developers put many, many enemies in the levels so it wouldn't be helpful learning to defeat just one at a time. Luring them out one at a time might seem like the obvious choice, but this becomes tedious as it would take a much longer time to clear the area and if you died towards the end, you would have to do it over again. And again. And again. This isn't a difficult experience, it's an unfair experience, and those who praise Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin just because it is a "difficult experience" need to go through the game again, no matter how many hours it takes. (I put 88 hours into the game, even though I strongly dislike it).… Expand
  21. AngryBaneling
    Aug 26, 2019
    4
    "You will stand at its decrepit gate without ever really knowing why." - An old lady from the opening cinematic of Dark Souls 2.

    Basically, she's telling you how your time will be spent in DS2. You will do things without knowing why. You will kill bosses without knowing why. You will read pointless, unrelated information on boss souls without any world-building. You will seek, seek    "You will stand at its decrepit gate without ever really knowing why." - An old lady from the opening cinematic of Dark Souls 2.

    Basically, she's telling you how your time will be spent in DS2. You will do things without knowing why. You will kill bosses without knowing why. You will read pointless, unrelated information on boss souls without any world-building. You will seek, seek souls for an endgame boss fight without knowing why. You will do most of the things you do in other Dark Souls game, but only you won't ever really know why you're doing it in this game. It's devoid of lore completely. Nothing is connected and everything feels like an afterthought.

    The gameplay is fantastic but what good is that when the world itself is so depressingly empty? Watch a couple of Vaatividya videos about DS2 lore and move on. This game is an endless Arcade Mode, nothing else. If you enjoy that sort of thing then this is for you.    … Expand
  22. ZeroKing
    Sep 5, 2023
    2
    Artificial complexity and stuffiness in each location, a million homeless people in each location, graphics and technical components at an obscenely terrible level, easy and boring bosses
  23. Chalkbrood
    Dec 3, 2019
    4
    Dark Souls 1 is my favourite game. Demon Souls and DS3 are pretty fun too. Bloodborne is great. So why is DS2 so miserable in comparison?
    Because it only does one thing right and it drops several things that made Dark Souls 1 so playable
    The one thing it does better is the inclusion of making it so that any point you put in any stat increases your health, saving you from feeling bad by    Dark Souls 1 is my favourite game. Demon Souls and DS3 are pretty fun too. Bloodborne is great. So why is DS2 so miserable in comparison?
    Because it only does one thing right and it drops several things that made Dark Souls 1 so playable
    The one thing it does better is the inclusion of making it so that any point you put in any stat increases your health, saving you from feeling bad by dropping levels in the most boring stat to ever exist
    the things it does bad is everything else, this was handled by a different director than every previously mentioned game, so I think he just made this game thinking that what made Dark Souls 1 a success was that you died a lot
    while I can see how you could get that impression if you didn't care, I'm baffled as to the approach taken by a professional who was hired to deal with this game
    enemies are spammier and more plentiful, platforms are thinner, you have to return to the hub to level up which requires two loading screens each time you want to do that and boy are they not fast
    the pacing is off too, very near to the start of the game you're introduced to an area with only one enemy type, you gain an absurd amount of levels in the mid game and you can basically play three builds at once, the bosses are so easy I couldn't even tell I was at the final boss, etc etc etc

    it still sort of plays like dark souls so in that sense I can't say it's truly awful but seriously just never play this, every alternative you've heard of is better    … Expand
  24. Derildu
    Apr 26, 2020
    2
    I am going to be blunt, this game is pure garbage. DS2 is like the result of a torn condom.... a mistake.

    I played the first 3 hours of DS2 Scholar of the First Sin and I still don't know what the hell is going on. It sat me through two 10 minute cut-scenes at the start of the game, and after wasting those 20 mins, I still had no idea what the purpose of the game was. I've beaten    I am going to be blunt, this game is pure garbage. DS2 is like the result of a torn condom.... a mistake.

    I played the first 3 hours of DS2 Scholar of the First Sin and I still don't know what the hell is going on. It sat me through two 10 minute cut-scenes at the start of the game, and after wasting those 20 mins, I still had no idea what the purpose of the game was.

    I've beaten Bloodborne, DS3 and Sekiro, and I can say that, at least, after DS2, From Soft realised the massive screw up they did.

    Now lets list all the game play problems:
    1. The dodge mechanic is pure garbage. So let me help people who have never played a souls game understand this properly. THE MAIN MECHANIC OF THE GAME DOESN'T EVEN WORK PROPERLY!
    2. When you parry certain bosses/enemies (eg. Dragon Rider Boss), you won't even be able to repose them.
    3. I can chug down a 2 litre bottle of water faster than my character can drink his estus.
    4. The game only gives you one estus at the start, and instead provides a few life gems, which are not replenishment when resting at a bonfire. This is a very sad excuse for healing. This is pathetic.
    5. The hit boxes are more broken than your sanity after playing this game. While playing the game, you will take more damage from the air around the enemies weapon, rather than their actual weapons.
    6. THE LEVELS ARE EXTREMELY LINEAR FOR A GAME THAT IS MEAN TO BE SEMI-OPEN WORLD!
    7. YOUR MAX HEALTH LEVEL GOES DOWN EVERY TIME YOU DIE! This is not a way of making a game hard or more challenging. Its like saying, to make Soul of Cinder in DS3 harder you have half you MAX HP whilst fighting him.
    8. Compared to other games made in the same time span the graphics are ass. So you can't even say that even though the game is pure **** at least the graphics are nice.
    9. The platforming is pure ass.

    Story/Lore Problems:
    1. The main area of the game: Majula has no lore to it. When compared to other souls games, such as the Hunter's Dream in Bloodbrone, or Firelink Shrine in DS3, this is very disappointing and pathetic.
    2. Half the characters in he game are just there to be there. They would have very little contribution to the lore. (eg. The fat blacksmith that somehow got himself locked out of his own shop!)
    3. The bosses are all half-assed. Certain bosses (such as the Pursuer) have the same exact model and move set as a regular enemy, however they just have a boss bar.
    4. All areas and bosses in the game are very easily forgettable. There are very little memorable fights. I had to ask a friend and search up on the wiki for the names of the areas and bosses to even be able to write this review.

    I can continue writing about how bad and broken this game is forever. However, I'll sum up here, as I think I've mentioned the main problems with it (even though there are so many more minor ones). I have just one suggestion for you: DON'T BUY THIS GAME! Get DS3 or DS1 instead!

    Rating: 1.75/10 - the only reason why it gets any points is because the water texture was somewhat decent! It was the only part of the game I enjoyed!    … Expand
  25. bigjoint
    Feb 18, 2022
    0
    feels like it came out like 10 years before dark souls 1 its uninspired and clunky as ****
  26. DavidJB
    Jul 22, 2020
    4
    PREFACE:

    My initial score for DS2 would be about 4.5. Now because of the cashgrab and poor upgrade from the original, I score SotFS as 4. I played DS1 much after release and it blew my mind. I had bought the original DS2 afterwards and found the control absolutely untenable for PC so I didn't played. I decided to come back to it after DS3 because below the surface it seems that a lot    PREFACE:

    My initial score for DS2 would be about 4.5. Now because of the cashgrab and poor upgrade from the original, I score SotFS as 4.

    I played DS1 much after release and it blew my mind. I had bought the original DS2 afterwards and found the control absolutely untenable for PC so I didn't played. I decided to come back to it after DS3 because below the surface it seems that a lot of people were praising the game. I fixed my control and decided to finish the game: this is my critic. For the record, I'm not playing any PVP (only if I'm invaded), and no mods. I spoke with all NPCs I could meet, did all quests I could find, and explored every area I found (except for some subareas which I deemed worthless and the DLCs) while not using a wiki, except for 1-2 very minor thing (like being stuck in the middle of nowhere in order to check what the Blacksmith is selling back in Majula, etc.). The only "help" I really got is that there is a fire Longsword somewhere and I went to find it, and how to get the Chloranty Ring (which to be honest, was where I already was at anyway). I didn't really do the DLC(s) because at that point I had no fun.

    Also, I realized after writing this that two Youtubers made much better criticism than me regarding this. I therefore suggest looking at MauLer (very long) series on it, and also Matthewmatosis video on the subject.

    SUMMARY:
    Control, animation & movement: D (Horrible in general, my worst criticism)
    Level Design: B- (Some awesome areas (most of the end game, Cardinal Tower for early games), some insanely bad areas (all the others?), some filler areas and futile encounters cannot make this higher)
    Art Design: B+ (Solid music, visual concept, atmosphere, etc. Story a bit too cryptic even for a Souls game and graphics are vastly outdated)
    Gameplay: C- (Good core concept, i.e. Dark Souls, plagued by horrible decisions and unnecessary changes)

    Overall: C- or 4/10 (Not recommended, but with a solid remaster that fixes some metrics, animation, controls, etc. it could rise up to a B or 6/10 and would be recommended). I cannot understand objectively how this has such a high score. However, I can understand why some people like the game, and the game is not complete garbage.

    CONTROL, ANIMATION & MOVEMENT
    - Terrible computer controls, known issues, known delay
    - Weird movement and responsiveness
    - Attacked while in animation such as opening doors/chests, entering mists, performing criticals. For me this remove the control from the player and punish him.
    - Bugged catch-roll and hitbox all around (e.g. being hit while in the back of an enemy)
    - Weird weapon movement and "weight"

    LEVEL DESIGN
    + Amazing environment design and level architecture. The implementation and the encounter design does not render justice to it
    - Terrible exploration design with too many gotchas (ambush), dead-ends, useless items, difficult and boring (generally either copy-pasted or because they are monster spam) encounters, etc. that steal the fun out of exploring
    - Long sequence of bad bonfire placement. Sometimes you have two bonfire (almost) within view distance, at other time you have 25+ monsters, buildings, loops, etc. to cross to get to another one (e.g. Wharf). Generally this create more of the previous point.
    - Petrified statue blocking your way. Easy to get past them, but rarely was a positive gamechanger. It just, again, stopped exploration.

    GAMEPLAY
    + Stats are more useful (although I don't like the change to dodge and a stat related to it), more builds
    + I read that NG+ is adding and changing content. I think this is clerver to give more content for the players who manage it.
    - Boss and monster design is horrible and boring for multiple reasons. It is plagued with "big guy in armor", copy-paste, "difficult encounter" consisting mostly of many monsters at the same time (including bosses) which the control and lock-on (i.e. base Dark Souls mechanic) all doesn't support well
    - Bunch of changes that, to me, are not good (just as useless armor, invasion while hollowed, dodge frame changes, parry changes, etc.) and sometimes frustrating
    - Everything feels slow and sluggish

    ART DESIGN
    + Good music, okay sound (but in combat it's not good, it feels like hitting a sack of potato)
    + Amazing atmosphere and environment (the seacoast theme was good)
    - Even at release, graphics were outdated
    - Didn't understand most of the story even if I tried (without wiki, that is), and it's all around not engaging, especially the stream of 3 last bosses that are all "literally whos". The world building in general is weird and the level design makes no sense.    … Expand
  27. Davidnotavailab
    Nov 5, 2022
    4
    Holy **** these games increases my chances of being more easily affected by the placebo effect. It was about when i got to harvest valley that i realised this game struggles with ideas, same level design, crappy encounters repeat that for 30 hours, now to a lazy maze until u get to a mediocre boss, done. At least ds1 had a good map design in the first half. Anor londo felt so differentHoly **** these games increases my chances of being more easily affected by the placebo effect. It was about when i got to harvest valley that i realised this game struggles with ideas, same level design, crappy encounters repeat that for 30 hours, now to a lazy maze until u get to a mediocre boss, done. At least ds1 had a good map design in the first half. Anor londo felt so different from the rest. How the hell is this a 90 metacritic game, how is this must play this is one of the things i would reccomend anybody sane in the head to avoid. Critics grow some **** balls and stop giving a 10 to any game like this. It gets to a point that a game can be ridiculously bad and its consider better than something that we used to see before.Also the graphics are horror. This came out in the same year as the witcher 3 did,wtf look how that games map and design looks. Im not talking about techniques used, just how it aesthetically looks. And dont defend it with **** like oh this was meant for ps3, ac iv was also playable on ps3 and looks infintely better than this. Gta v as well.… Expand
  28. Jonny123
    Jul 29, 2023
    0
    I came in with low expectations but to me this version of Dark Souls II was a fantastic experience on par with other From Soft titles. I especially enjoyed the unique/insane weapon combinations (for example Bone fist right hand + Majestic Greatsword left hand).

    After putting a lot of time, effort and frustration into it and playing other From Soft titles there is an outstanding game    I came in with low expectations but to me this version of Dark Souls II was a fantastic experience on par with other From Soft titles. I especially enjoyed the unique/insane weapon combinations (for example Bone fist right hand + Majestic Greatsword left hand).

    After putting a lot of time, effort and frustration into it and playing other From Soft titles there is an outstanding game with a great atmosphere and fantastic gameplay hidden underneath a huge pile of annoyances like clunky menus, lack of modern features and unexplained mechanics.

    For casuals I'd strongly recommend to just play a more fun and accessible modern PC game like god of war any day or (if you are dedicated) to start your From Soft journey with Elden Ring.

    For people who are intrigued by From Soft games this is another fantastic title to spend hundreds of hours on. If I had to pick one "genre" to play for the rest of my live it would be From Soft titles - for me their gameplay and atmosphere is just unmatched. These aren't normal games this is art. I can't even tell which one I like the most because they are all playing in another league than any other game I have played over the last 30 years. And for that they deserve a 10.    … Expand
  29. space_spaghetti
    Jun 13, 2022
    4
    This was my first time playing what people call a 'souls-like' game. I found the intro mysterious and vague but it was interesting with great graphics and imagery. I liked selecting a character and getting a hint at the weird things to come by reading item descriptions. The audio is atmospheric and creepy in the best of ways...

    The gameplay though, it plays like a Crash Bandicoot    This was my first time playing what people call a 'souls-like' game. I found the intro mysterious and vague but it was interesting with great graphics and imagery. I liked selecting a character and getting a hint at the weird things to come by reading item descriptions. The audio is atmospheric and creepy in the best of ways...

    The gameplay though, it plays like a Crash Bandicoot prototype with a much more annoying camera to control in addition to your stiff character. Pillars, walls, corners and even your own body block the important things you want to see. It had me managing the camera a lot more than I wanted to and made this less than fun to play.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

76
#76 Best PC Game of 2015
29
#29 Most Discussed PC Game of 2015
87
#87 Most Shared PC Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 8
  3. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. RPG Fan
    Feb 20, 2017
    72
    Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin offers only minor tweaks to serious gameplay issues of the original game. Nonetheless, it still remains a wholly enjoyable online experience, just don't expect much from the singleplayer experience.
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  2. CD-Action
    Jun 29, 2015
    95
    It’s a freaking masterpiece! Do yourself a favor and experience it if you haven’t done it yet. [06/2015, p.68]
  3. Games.cz
    May 4, 2015
    80
    A pleasant combination of revised version of Dark Souls II with excellent DLCs offers a brutal difficulty and a fantastic atmosphere - even more intense than ever. Although the Scholar of the First Sin is not a purchase for everyone, if you try you will not be disappointed.
    Read full review
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