User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 751 Ratings

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  1. Jan 28, 2018
    10
    Better than DS1 for sure. Some people will think i'm crazy, but everyone likes to say ''artifical difficulty'', ''bland maps'' and bla bla bla, but DS1 had worse problems like:

    Terrible PvP - A bunch of people praises DS2 for it's PvP, even after that mess that people call PvP on DS3 has come. Because it's way better balanced, more dynamic, more build diversity. DS1 PvP was a stupid
    Better than DS1 for sure. Some people will think i'm crazy, but everyone likes to say ''artifical difficulty'', ''bland maps'' and bla bla bla, but DS1 had worse problems like:

    Terrible PvP - A bunch of people praises DS2 for it's PvP, even after that mess that people call PvP on DS3 has come. Because it's way better balanced, more dynamic, more build diversity. DS1 PvP was a stupid backstab fiesta with a **** ton of glitches (do you remember backstab chain? NO!!!?? never felt it on your skin right little kid!!???), not to mention the twinks. Everyone thinks Giant Dad is hilarious, but being invaded by dudes with fully upgraded items while you have a stupid +0 weapon isn't funny.

    Terrible second half - The second half of DS1 is the most cringey thing in the entire series, seriously? the same **** Asylum Demon with another skin? an entire field of Taurus Demons? Pinwheel being recycled, should i be impressed? Anor Londo...i don't even need to say anything, just remember those stupid archers, Anor Londo isn't even difficult if you don't count those archers, phantom gank fiesta on New Londo? YAYYYYYYYY

    Broken Poise System - I don't even need to explain. Just search for poise backstab on Youtube, or watch people facetanking Four Kings to death.

    Weapons Balance - Like, some weapons are so useless you shouldn't even bother with them even on PvE, like Stone Greataxe (from the DLC, like you even need to pay more to get that, and that's not the only useless weapon from the DLC).

    FPS - Blighttown maybe the worst place in the game when it comes to FPS, but it's not like the entire game wasn't a mess with it, even DS3 has FPS problems, something you won't suffer with DS2: SotFS (at least if you're on PS4/Xbox One, fixed 60 FPS)
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  2. Jan 17, 2018
    8
    My favorite part of this game is the replayability that the other Souls games hold. Although this game does have some beautiful moments it fails a bit in the environmental storytelling and design. There is little evidence of an interconnecting world like in 1 and that follows suite for the enemies. Each area has its own little story which can be very interesting but this feels more like aMy favorite part of this game is the replayability that the other Souls games hold. Although this game does have some beautiful moments it fails a bit in the environmental storytelling and design. There is little evidence of an interconnecting world like in 1 and that follows suite for the enemies. Each area has its own little story which can be very interesting but this feels more like a well-designed AAA than a Souls game. The combat and diversity of spell, weapons and armor is very generous and interesting and this is what really keeps the game alive. The Souls combat style is still there, if not reigned in a bit in some areas that were a bit unpolished. All together a great game and a decent Souls game.

    Also, if for some reason it is still possible to get the original version of 2, don't even if this is more expensive as this has the DLC and Scholar came out with a recoordinated enemy layout, which was great btw, so this version is a lot less "artificially difficult". (and has some NG+ enemy changes too)
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  3. 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.
  4. Sep 17, 2017
    9
    Rating it 9/10 while Dark Souls 1 was a 10/10 although i think ds2 is better.

    I think is better because it is more replayable, has more content, is less linear. The gameplay is imo the bes in the saga thanks to dual wielding, the agility stats and the all the weapons and spells you can use. The story is good. The lore is meh. The level design is on par with the first game
    Rating it 9/10 while Dark Souls 1 was a 10/10 although i think ds2 is better.

    I think is better because it is more replayable, has more content, is less linear.
    The gameplay is imo the bes in the saga thanks to dual wielding, the agility stats and the all the weapons and spells you can use.

    The story is good. The lore is meh.

    The level design is on par with the first game probably, but the world design is way worst.

    Is a good game. You should try it and make your own opinion.
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  5. 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
  6. 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.
  7. May 16, 2017
    7
    Продолжение серии соулс под порядковым номером 3

    Почитав многие обзоры, у меня складывается ощущение, что существует много людей, которым эта часть ДС нравится больше, чем первая. Нет, у этой игры большое количество минусов Техническая часть Лучше: в отличии от 1ой части можно запустить без бубна и плясок. Но у неё проблемы с разрешением.. при его номинальном Full HD система
    Продолжение серии соулс под порядковым номером 3

    Почитав многие обзоры, у меня складывается ощущение, что существует много людей, которым эта часть ДС нравится больше, чем первая. Нет, у этой игры большое количество минусов

    Техническая часть
    Лучше: в отличии от 1ой части можно запустить без бубна и плясок. Но у неё проблемы с разрешением.. при его номинальном Full HD система воспринимает его как HD, отсюда все иконки рабочего стола и окна разлетаются туда, где им не место. Также у неё проблемы с запоминанием графических настроек

    Графика
    Для ремастера в 2015 году средне. На дальних дистанциях от пейзажей могут вытечь глаза, но.. это рост относительно ДС 1
    UPD. DLC Ivory King делали другие люди и глаза не вытекают от фона

    Сюжет
    В первой части его нет, тут можно даже проследить, но нет

    Мультиплеер/Ко-оп
    Из-за "относительной старости" игры я не ощутил этот экспириенс в ДС 1, тут это было здорово, особенно когда оставил знак призыва и помогал человеку, общение через жесты забавно и очень атмосферно

    Главная проблема игры - это самокопирование

    Боссы
    Нужен больший уровень прокачки, отсюда рост сложности, но уникальности в боссфайте 0 - десяток одинаковых боссов - большое разочарование, но бо'льшая проблема - это 90% копирование боссов из ДС 1
    UPD. DLC делали другие люди (2), тут хоть сложный босс есть Сэр Алонн

    Локации
    Что-то новое в плане локаций игра не превнесла, и, опять же, самокопирование. НО.. локации имеют ещё большую проблему.. ДС 1 был почти цельным миром с парой ответвлений, здесь же это куча ответвлений, без цельности. За прохождение ни разу не было ВАУ эффекта от шортката, возвращение в некоторые места в ДС 1 просто разрывало шаблоны, а тут куча срезов, которыми вы даже не воспользуетесь.. Очередной перебор с анусами подземелий, но тут хоть с наличием света проще. Одно радует - перемещение между кострами есть изначально и вам не нужно бегать 30 часов для получения такой возможности.

    Персонажи
    Колоритные NPC и забавные враги - забудьте, я был влюблён в людей-грибочков, из-за которых я когда-то купил ДС 1. Колоритом ни от боссов, ни от NPC тут и не пахнет, запомнился только Вождь Венгарл, но остальные..

    Ачивменты
    Очень расстроило то, что я не знал, что нужно было обязательно призывать NPC фантомов на бои с боссами для получения пары ачивментов. Ну етить, серьёзно?
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  8. May 1, 2017
    8
    + Longer
    + More bosses
    + Bigger variety in areas + Harder + You have to find Estus Shards to get Flasks - Still a bad port showing xbox buttons - The **** delay between pressing a button and blocking/attacking (this warrants at LEAST -2 points) - Similarily to DS1, target switch is horrible - there is none - Sometimes the difficulty is plain insane, definitely the hardest game
    + Longer
    + More bosses
    + Bigger variety in areas
    + Harder
    + You have to find Estus Shards to get Flasks

    - Still a bad port showing xbox buttons
    - The **** delay between pressing a button and blocking/attacking (this warrants at LEAST -2 points)
    - Similarily to DS1, target switch is horrible - there is none
    - Sometimes the difficulty is plain insane, definitely the hardest game I've played yet
    - gave up, way too difficult...

    This would have been a 10/10 game for me if it wasn't for the **** DELAY that makes some parts downright stupid, unfair, impossible and makes the game million times harder.
    Situations that XBOX players would be able to deal with without serious problems will murder you because you have to wait 2 seconds for your character to block or attack. You'll get
    used to the crappiness after some time, but that does not mean that you will not die because of it. You will die because of it, you will die lots.
    It's better than DS1 in practically everything, but the stupid delay makes this game fall to the same level as DS1. There is no official fix for that, unfortunately. 8/10
    A 10/10 game ruined by stupid delay and artificial difficulty in many places.
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  9. Apr 28, 2017
    6
    single player review: 6/10
    It manages to be both boring and grippy..
    One good aspect is this game has a TON of contents and areas, but it's uninspired under every aspect and mechanically behind the original. Not a terrible game by any standard, but not brilliant either. Locations are plenty and goes from just pretty to mostly predictable and unoriginal. The genious in the level
    single player review: 6/10
    It manages to be both boring and grippy..
    One good aspect is this game has a TON of contents and areas, but it's uninspired under every aspect and mechanically behind the original.
    Not a terrible game by any standard, but not brilliant either.

    Locations are plenty and goes from just pretty to mostly predictable and unoriginal. The genious in the level design of DS1(the connection from the undead parish to firelink shrine through elevator, for example) is nowhere to be found, or its a mere pale attempt of imitating of it.

    Bosses are really the worst in the series with no need for tactic or learning their attack pattern. You will kill many of them at the fist try. And like most NPC are ugly as the environment they inhabit(the colour palette is generally terrible and just too bright/vibrant for a Souls game) and are just scattered around the game with no real buildup to them.
    Enemies animations are terrible, most of the time ridiculous.

    The combat system feels slower than DS1 and just not as responsive; you'll get often swarmed by hordes of brainless, badly animated enemies and fight them in the same way over and over.
    Some design decisions are plain STUPID and BAD. Explosive barrels and poisonous vases(wich you cant recognize from normal barrels/vases)means the first playthrough will put you in situations where what matters is luck and even a perfect fight might get ruined by these objects placement.

    The game isn't bad and somehow still manages to keep you coming back; i wanted to love this... but as it is, it's just average. Also, the worst of all the Souls games.

    6/10
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  10. Mar 17, 2017
    5
    Good ideas executed very poorly. I've played all Dark Souls and this is the worst so far, weak areas in terms of design, unmemorable bosses, bad weapon/armor system and the most stupid, unnecessary traps in the entire saga. It's a must if you are interested in Dark Souls mechanics, but you won't want to go back after you finish the game on your first try.
  11. Mar 9, 2017
    10
    Waaay better than slashy Dark Borne 3. I didn't enjoy original DkS2 that much, but SotFS improves the gameplay on every level. The dlc areas are so good... They are incredibly difficult too. Honestly can recommend this game to any Souls fan. Way better than DkS3 (in my opinion), the amount of weapons and detailed setting makes this game as good as DkS1.
  12. Jan 27, 2017
    8
    Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is a difficult game and I appreciate the new challenges that FromSoftware presented before me but the overall experience from someone who played the previous title can only be described as lacking. Don't get me wrong, this game is good but bearing the Souls name and its status as a follow-up to a very phenomenal video game probably didn't help withDark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is a difficult game and I appreciate the new challenges that FromSoftware presented before me but the overall experience from someone who played the previous title can only be described as lacking. Don't get me wrong, this game is good but bearing the Souls name and its status as a follow-up to a very phenomenal video game probably didn't help with the overall reception. There's just too many retreads which may make the game a bit too familiar with longtime players and a change in design philosophy believing that "more is harder" instead of "less is more" like in the first game. The changes that they've introduced gave me a polarizing reaction especially on how they handled poise and some RPG elements. If you've adored the first game's consistency and how FromSoftware made Lordran's crumbling and desolated locales look lived in, prepare to be disappointed because the kingdom of Drangleic is a hodgepodge of geography and terrain locations. I know that suspension of disbelief is a necessity when playing video games but you've got to admit that placing an iron castle surrounded by a sea of lava above a windmill is kind of silly. Simply put, Dark Souls II is a game made to punish its players and will do anything to achieve that goal instead of inviting them to a land of strafe that's inhabited by seasoned warriors and brutal monsters.

    The situation's a lot different for newcomers though. If you're looking to get into the Souls series, this is a good entry point because it's more accessible than its two older brothers. A cleaner and better UI than the previous game, a more straightforward progression system, and an easier time to connect and cooperate with stronger people should get the going a lot more tolerable.

    Overall, I recommend this game because I enjoyed it and the difficulty is as good as ever. A lot of things didn't bode well with me but the prospect of finding new discoveries kept me playing for hours. Veterans of the Souls series might not get the same satisying experience as with the last two games, but it's still worth a try if you're meaning to test your wits once more against a cast of larger and more powerful enemies.

    And there you have it.
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  13. Dec 24, 2016
    10
    Funny, Nice and much better than buy all the DLCs.
    DS2 SoFTS its a nice idea i hope the Fromsoftware do something looks like this for DS3.
    the only problem its the servers leg.
  14. Dec 18, 2016
    6
    Having platinumed the game I think it's trash. Not even closely as good as the original Dark Souls. The atmosphere of the orginal is gone. Replaced by uninspired yellow grayish setting. 90% of the game's locations are deadly boring. In the orginal I loved to parry. In DS2 parry sucks all the way. Enemy placement cheap annoying frustrating. Poor knock off
  15. Dec 10, 2016
    8
    Newly found appreciation for Dark Souls II has been acquired with this re-work called 'Scholar of the First Sin'. Approximately two years having not played Dark Souls II and after I had moved on to Bloodborne and Dark Souls III - finally, I decided to go back to see how it has changed and hopefully improved. I have come to realise the new placement of items and enemies works way betterNewly found appreciation for Dark Souls II has been acquired with this re-work called 'Scholar of the First Sin'. Approximately two years having not played Dark Souls II and after I had moved on to Bloodborne and Dark Souls III - finally, I decided to go back to see how it has changed and hopefully improved. I have come to realise the new placement of items and enemies works way better than how it originally did. For example, I really loved the new placements for the Suspicious Shadow enemies. They were only featured in New Game+(almost certain) and that, in my opinion, was a waste. They are really fun to fight and obtaining their gear was pretty satisfying. Also, the addition of the Forlorn Dark Spirit is a good one - he has an interesting background albeit not much is known. I've been invaded five times and received his gear and scythe. I think he is fun to fight but Drangleic Castle is by far his toughest encounter; try to move to a more open room. As for The Pursuer haters, are they not meant to pursue you? It is silly to think they only have a small handful. They aren't that tough, anyway.
    The new NPC antagonist is really cool, won't spoil too much but it raises just as many questions as it gives answers. Well, maybe not even so. PvP is still pretty great besides the ridiculous lag backstabs but I don't get that so often. I am pretty surprised that I still get summoned a lot - getting the Sun Sword was easy! The DLC still remains to be the best part of this package but I'll admit that I really started enjoying this game after the halfway point - just before Drangleic Castle and onwards.

    I will keep my gripes with this game such gripes being the 'Agility' attribute - I need to phase through every attack nonsense. Not smart design. Also, 'Soul Memory' still continues to just be horrible. All in all, this is a great game and I think all Souls fans should get this and doubly so if you've still yet to play Dark Souls II in general. I bought this as a $12 upgrade from the original a while back - I don't think that's so bad. $50 is fair for full price if you've yet to play, in my opinion. However, it has been significantly discounted many times throughout the past year and a half. I would just wait a few months.
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  16. Oct 19, 2016
    9
    I didn't play the original game as it first came out, so I rate scholar of the first sin as what it is and not as what I expected it to be compared to the original version. After nearly 30 hours I can say that I like it a lot! In comparison to DS1 it seems more self-contained and accessible without losing all of its complexity, what I think is a good thing.
  17. Aug 22, 2016
    6
    Don't get me wrong i love all Dark souls series but for Dark souls 2: Scholar of the first sin not really, why? one of the biggest problem for me is with the hit boxes, one example when i fought smelter demon. i often successfully dodged all his attack but somehow the game decided it still hit me, i know his sword is big as hell but i still can see clearly which hit that i dodge and whichDon't get me wrong i love all Dark souls series but for Dark souls 2: Scholar of the first sin not really, why? one of the biggest problem for me is with the hit boxes, one example when i fought smelter demon. i often successfully dodged all his attack but somehow the game decided it still hit me, i know his sword is big as hell but i still can see clearly which hit that i dodge and which one is not. my other problem is with the lock on mode, when i lock on the enemy and then i roll tried to hit them but a lot of times it failed. either i hit on the side or behind them and in the end i'm the one who got hit. the lock on mode in this game is a joke. compare with the first the Dark souls, Dark souls 2: Scholar of the first sin kinda sucks. Expand
  18. 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
  19. 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
  20. Apr 29, 2016
    7
    After finishing Dark Souls III I wanted a little more so when I saw Dark Souls II: SotFS up for sale I jumped on it and for the most part I'm glad I did.

    First I want to talk about the port, which is great this time, the complete opposite of Dark Souls I: Prepare To Die on PC which we all know has a laundry list of issues and is only made somewhat playable by DSFix but I'm happy to say
    After finishing Dark Souls III I wanted a little more so when I saw Dark Souls II: SotFS up for sale I jumped on it and for the most part I'm glad I did.

    First I want to talk about the port, which is great this time, the complete opposite of Dark Souls I: Prepare To Die on PC which we all know has a laundry list of issues and is only made somewhat playable by DSFix but I'm happy to say that's not the case here, I was getting a locked 60fps throughout on max settings and I didn't have a single technical issue in over 40 hours. The game looks, sounds and runs really nicely.

    Content wise it's a big game with the included DLC, I actually still have two optional bosses left to kill and I've sunk 43 hours into it already so you're getting plenty of bang for your buck (I'd highly recommend shopping around, I picked it up for £9.59). On the whole the game is enjoyable in a Dark Souls sort of way, but there were a few areas that went past "Dark Souls" and just ended up being extremely tedious, not hard or challenging just plain boring and those areas did tarnish the overall game for me a bit, but thankfully there's only a few truly poorly designed areas in the game so in the grand scheme of things it's not too bad.

    I found the bosses to be on the whole too easy, the base game bosses especially. I killed every boss in under 5 tries apart from a select few. The DLC bosses are much harder in general though, and the final boss of part II is currently kicking my ass after many tries, he's by far the hardest boss in the game and one of the hardest I've faced in the "Soulsborne" universe. I haven't been using phantoms or summons either, so I imagine if you do get truly stuck using these options will help you out a lot.

    For me it's worth playing if you enjoy these types of games, I actually put it above Dark Souls I purely because of the quality of the port, it was just more enjoyable to play without all the issues, but it's a few pegs behind both Bloodborne and Dark Souls III which is the top of the pile IMO.
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  21. Apr 14, 2016
    6
    Big improvement over the last game, the game runs smoothly and game is fun to play. This is my favourite Dark Souls game out of them all.

    I don't know why people dislike this one, it's the best one I've play so far.
  22. Mar 14, 2016
    9
    For me this game takes you to places that everyone needs to discover, and i dont speak about how visually the game is great but emotionally it feels amaaaaazing, i had fun every nanosecond spent in a world full of fantasy, i got to the point that i wanted not to finish it.
    TBH i played it a bit late but it was worth it because i didnt encounter any problem on my PC ,
    For me this game takes you to places that everyone needs to discover, and i dont speak about how visually the game is great but emotionally it feels amaaaaazing, i had fun every nanosecond spent in a world full of fantasy, i got to the point that i wanted not to finish it.
    TBH i played it a bit late but it was worth it because i didnt encounter any problem on my PC , raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarely the FPS dropped but it was not a big deal it didnt affect my immersion. i was a happy child the whole playthrough ( im not a child though).
    9/10
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  23. Mar 2, 2016
    10
    The weapon durability bug at 60fps has been fixed in a patch. It was indeed an issue for a while when the game came out but this is no longer the case.
    Enemies seeming to attack faster at 60 fps was a perception option.

    This is a fantastic game with a steep learning curve that levels out quite fast too. Some people just want a "press A to win" game.
  24. 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.
  25. 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.
  26. Jan 5, 2016
    9
    I just finished Dark Souls 1 and moved onto Dark Souls 2. One--this game is easier than the first one. The reason is not because it is an easy game, but because Dark Souls 1 was hard because it was artificially hard (cheap deaths, cheap bosses, cheap level design, etc.). DS2 is a challenging and fun game--not hard, as gamers make it sound. I have yet to experience any cheap deaths (peopleI just finished Dark Souls 1 and moved onto Dark Souls 2. One--this game is easier than the first one. The reason is not because it is an easy game, but because Dark Souls 1 was hard because it was artificially hard (cheap deaths, cheap bosses, cheap level design, etc.). DS2 is a challenging and fun game--not hard, as gamers make it sound. I have yet to experience any cheap deaths (people complain about mobs--"pull them," play slower and more methodical). In short, DK2 is better--no doubt. Better enviornments, quick travel, extra slots for items and weapons, smoother animations and quite a lot more over DK1.

    I played (am still playing) on a laptop intel hd 4000 with an xbox360 controller. Game looks great and plays great. I am very pleased with DK2 over DSK1. Enjoy!
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  27. Oct 25, 2015
    5
    a disgusting milking of the fanbase and moneygrubbing practice. These improvements should have been provided through content updates and patches, only a triple A developer can get away with this kind of nonsense.
  28. Sep 29, 2015
    10
    My favourite game of all time. An amazing campaign, rounded of nicely by the perfect DLC.

    The game is fun on its own but is complemented beautifuly by the multi player.

    The DLC does make the main game feel like a walk in the park, but it is perfect for any gaming masochist out there.
  29. 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.
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  30. Aug 25, 2015
    10
    I, along with my brothers, fully completed Dark Souls 2 along with the DLCs. Then when Scholar of the First Sin came out and we found out we could receive it for free due to us already owning the original we were pretty excited. An actual story line, even though we didn't really need it now that we already knew where to go, was implemented, slightly. But the best part was the increase inI, along with my brothers, fully completed Dark Souls 2 along with the DLCs. Then when Scholar of the First Sin came out and we found out we could receive it for free due to us already owning the original we were pretty excited. An actual story line, even though we didn't really need it now that we already knew where to go, was implemented, slightly. But the best part was the increase in monsters. And with only 128 deaths on it and way too many trolls I can fully say I enjoyed duel wielding great swords and bashing my way through groups of people. If you want a game that involves 1v1 like one of the user reviews said on here, then this is NOT your game. It's you versus, pretty much, the world. Except way too many enemies and multiple bosses versus just you. And if you use YouTube or common sense from DS1 and DS (Dark Souls 1 and Demon Souls) you can find the signs for summoning for help. I didn't need any though. I killed all the help as I went along.You will die a lot for that is the main purpose of the game. But if you're like me you will survive New Game +++ with only 2 deaths. And that is a HUGE accomplishment. You just have to time your blocks, attacks, and dodges perfectly and make sure you know EXACTLY what you want to upgrade and DON'T mess up. Extremely fun game though. Hours of content that will make you want more! Make sure to play Demon Souls, Dark Souls 1 (Demon was harder than DS1 and DS2 is harder than DS1.) and Bloodborne which is the hardest out of all of them. Expand
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 8
  2. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. 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.
  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. 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.