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. 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
  2. AlexProgresiveX
    Aug 31, 2023
    10
    I have waited years for this review, although this game suffered a lot of hate for years, it is a gem, which completely changed the souls mechanics, gave depth to a story that was not so polished in the initial version, the gameplay It's perfect, and the graphics downgrade is understandable for those stable 60fps, although it doesn't follow the same argument as DS1 and DS3, it's a jewelI have waited years for this review, although this game suffered a lot of hate for years, it is a gem, which completely changed the souls mechanics, gave depth to a story that was not so polished in the initial version, the gameplay It's perfect, and the graphics downgrade is understandable for those stable 60fps, although it doesn't follow the same argument as DS1 and DS3, it's a jewel from this studio.… Expand
  3. TheSatanist
    Aug 17, 2023
    10
    After going for all the platinums on Console and also 100% all available Soulsbornekiro-Games on PC I was actually shocked that I spent most playtime in Dark Souls 2 and had to evaluate on this unforseen outcome :D While the game clearly strays from the path of DS1, DS3 and Demon's Souls it actually has an intruiging way of telling its story and a really nice pacing. Are there some boringAfter going for all the platinums on Console and also 100% all available Soulsbornekiro-Games on PC I was actually shocked that I spent most playtime in Dark Souls 2 and had to evaluate on this unforseen outcome :D While the game clearly strays from the path of DS1, DS3 and Demon's Souls it actually has an intruiging way of telling its story and a really nice pacing. Are there some boring bosses? Hell yeah! Are the graphics a bit cartoony? Yes they are! But the atmosphere delivered is just amazing, the gameplay is a bit different from the other FS-Games but also super fun. While the vanilla game would only deserve an 8/10 the by now complete game including the 3 DLCs is a straight up 10 of enjoyment.… Expand
  4. Eyean
    Aug 5, 2023
    7
    This game really lived up to the whole "this game is the hardest thing ever" marketing that surrounds the Dark Souls franchise. The amount of awfully designed areas and bosses is impressive. That being said, the core gameplay and amazing DLC's do somewhat redeem it.
  5. 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
  6. AgentLvi
    Jun 19, 2023
    8
    Great game. The story is decent. The scoring is great, visual is really amazing, the voice & sound is also amazing
  7. nietzfk
    May 20, 2023
    9
    I love now. It's full of content. Gameplay can be troublesome sometimes, but it's all good.
  8. da_one23
    May 8, 2023
    5
    **** this piece of **** dog**** goofy ah piece of trash utter garbage cringe ah hoeless mother ****ing game. great game i reccomend.
  9. Naked_Snakee
    Apr 7, 2023
    8
    Just text (crutch) to save the game to the list. Such things. Maybe I'll do a review later.
  10. watchm824
    Feb 27, 2023
    9
    Good game. Dedicated to all fans of the genre. Who complains about the complexity - just does not understand anything.
    Addon - nothing particularly interesting.
  11. crablebable
    Feb 19, 2023
    7
    Dark Souls II feels like the twilight zone of dark souls games. This game never comes close to the highs of the other two souls games, with a different approach to level design and extremely underwhelming bosses. Some people will complain about enemy placements and level design, but I found that it made for an interesting challenge in how you approach certain areas, with this in mind, aDark Souls II feels like the twilight zone of dark souls games. This game never comes close to the highs of the other two souls games, with a different approach to level design and extremely underwhelming bosses. Some people will complain about enemy placements and level design, but I found that it made for an interesting challenge in how you approach certain areas, with this in mind, a new mechanic which drains your max hp each time you die seemed to discourage me from experimenting a lot of the time, which is something that I greatly disliked. When it comes to bosses, it feels as if they went with quantity over quality and many of them feel underwhelming and extremely easy, there are very few times where I felt I needed to think when fighting something when simply circling around mindlessly was the best approach for 90% of them. On top of this certain character attributes such as ADP completely skews with the balance of the bosses from player to player, and its unclear that such a stat is vital to upgrading in order to make the game feel "normal". Overall I appreciate what the game does with it's story, taking it in a very unique direction from 1 & 3, but its issues shine through to an unbearable degree that are hard to ignore. By itself it is a "good" game but compared to the other masterpieces fromsoft has put out it stands out and not for the better.… Expand
  12. farrrullll
    Jan 27, 2023
    8
    Dark Souls Dark Souls Dark Souls Dark Souls Dark Souls Dark Souls Dark Souls
  13. smahlt
    Jan 20, 2023
    8
    Pretty solid game, nice follow up to the first though not quite as polished.
  14. ErayTellezi
    Jan 16, 2023
    8
    Elden Ringi saymazsak ilk defa bir Souls oyununda büyü yaptım. Özellikle DLC'lerdeki boss yolları için hibrit bir karakter tavsiye ediliyordu ama neticede çok gerekli olduğunu düşünmüyorum. Çok az büyü kullandım. Elden Rİng'te de böye hibrit, kara büyü atan bir karakterim vardı ama orada daha çok büyü kullanıyordum. Bunda stamina falan da kastığım için ağır zırhlı oynayabildim ve yakınElden Ringi saymazsak ilk defa bir Souls oyununda büyü yaptım. Özellikle DLC'lerdeki boss yolları için hibrit bir karakter tavsiye ediliyordu ama neticede çok gerekli olduğunu düşünmüyorum. Çok az büyü kullandım. Elden Rİng'te de böye hibrit, kara büyü atan bir karakterim vardı ama orada daha çok büyü kullanıyordum. Bunda stamina falan da kastığım için ağır zırhlı oynayabildim ve yakın dövüşe daha rahat girdim.

    Dark Souls Remastered ve Dark Souls 3 ile kıyaslayacağım. Core mekanikler aynı zaten, farklılıklara değinmek lazım. İlk farklılık ilk oyundan sonra artık bir üssümüz var. Bazı satıcılar başka yerlerde olsa da genelde bir yerde toplanmış durumda. Oyunun lineer ilerlememesi yine ilk oyundaki gibi. Sürekli geri gitmek, doğru zamanda doğru şeyi yapmak gerekiyor. İlk iki oyunu rehbersiz bitirmek imkansız.

    Alanların ve mekanların çeşitliliği ilk oyundaki kadar olmasa da başarılı. Bölgeler bazen zorlayıcı olabiliyor. Bu durumda bazı bonfire'ların gizli duvarların arkasına koyulmuş olması saçma durmuş.

    Atmosferi Bloodborne ya da Dark Souls 3 kadar kuvvetli değil. Bunda görsel kalitenin biraz kötü olması etkili tabii. Yoksa çizimler, konseptler yine şahane.

    Düşman çeşitliliği yine epey üst seviyede. Boss çeşitliliği de iyi ama dönemin teknik imkanları nedeniyle olsa gerek, hareketleri o kadar çeşitli ve akıcı değil. İlk oyuna göre daha iyi, üçüncüden kötü. Ayrıca çok zor bir boss da yok. Akılda kalıcı değiller.

    Neticede 57 saat süren macera, yine ağzımda hoş bir tat bıraktı. Şimdiye kadar oynadığım From Software oyunları arasında bir tık zayıf kalsa da 2023 yılında bile iş görüyor.    … Expand
  15. botardi
    Jan 1, 2023
    7
    dark souls was appraised for it's fair and rough difficulty, putting you through a difficult challenge that is truly rewarding when beaten
    dark souls II is hard because the gameplay is much more limited, and very frustrating, as you're not fighting the hard bosses, but the more-than-supposed punishing mechanics that make those bosses so goddamn hard, killing the satisfaction of slaying a    dark souls was appraised for it's fair and rough difficulty, putting you through a difficult challenge that is truly rewarding when beaten
    dark souls II is hard because the gameplay is much more limited, and very frustrating, as you're not fighting the hard bosses, but the more-than-supposed punishing mechanics that make those bosses so goddamn hard, killing the satisfaction of slaying a boss and replacing it with relief sometimes
    still, this game shines on many other aspects, as the world is greatly built (not the level design) and the variety of playstyles is even bigger than on the first one    … Expand
  16. Top1saraya_
    Dec 29, 2022
    6
    ---------------------
    / My score - 6 /
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  17. r0m4n0
    Dec 15, 2022
    8
    Good Game : A lot of features & mechanics make this opus interesting !
    if u like Elden Ring, this Dark Souls II has the same spirit ...
  18. maluigario
    Dec 5, 2022
    6
    The least consequential Dark Souls game of the franchise and its spin-offs. It's an okay game, still worth playing once maybe if you like the franchise. It does a lot of what its predecessor and sequel did, but worse: worse combat, worse controls, worse boss design, worse level design, worse music, worse characters, worse lore. This game essentially exists to show that the cycle of linkingThe least consequential Dark Souls game of the franchise and its spin-offs. It's an okay game, still worth playing once maybe if you like the franchise. It does a lot of what its predecessor and sequel did, but worse: worse combat, worse controls, worse boss design, worse level design, worse music, worse characters, worse lore. This game essentially exists to show that the cycle of linking the fire from game 1 is indeed an unbreakable cycle and that humanity tries again and again to perpetuate or break it. Dark Souls 1 sets the story up better, and Dark Souls 3 concludes it better, and both of them have much cleaner visuals, much better environments, and much smoother combat. It's also the hardest one to get all the achievements for, as my 450 hours of game time should attest to compared to 1 & 3; it's the one I liked the least and the one I was forced to play the longest to keep my record of 100% all the FromSoft games.… Expand
  19. Crimson9
    Nov 28, 2022
    6
    Dark Souls II is generally a step back from Dark Souls 1. Some quality of life considerations have been made here such as more linearity and fast travel, and this takes away from its predecessors feeling of adventure and loneliness. Combat has not changed too much, but it somehow seems like a step back. It is far clunkier than the previous game, and the hitboxes are awful. The game alsoDark Souls II is generally a step back from Dark Souls 1. Some quality of life considerations have been made here such as more linearity and fast travel, and this takes away from its predecessors feeling of adventure and loneliness. Combat has not changed too much, but it somehow seems like a step back. It is far clunkier than the previous game, and the hitboxes are awful. The game also takes Souls in a meme direction, where difficulty becomes more about traps and hidden enemies that bash you in a slapstick moment rather than about managing resources and carefully fighting enemies.

    The game still nails the atmosphere though, and the story here is actually really good. Somehow it is also the best Souls game in terms of role playing and build variety.    … Expand
  20. 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
  21. Aqualonuss
    Nov 5, 2022
    8
    "Schlechtestes Spiel der Reihe, trotzdem sehr gut!"

    Ich hatte enormen Spaß, bin aber von vielen Sachen kein Fan. Bosse sind zum Teil grauenhaft und Welt hat nicht so schönes Design wie noch die Teile davor.
  22. DavidBondy
    Oct 24, 2022
    5
    I cannot recommend this game at all. Scholar is just unfun. Encounters throw waves upon waves of enemies at you, and while it is a valid skill for a game to check in a player, the overuse of this is nothing short of frustrating. Dark Souls, by contrast, rarely throws large quantities of enemies at you, making the few times that does happen feel like an actual check of my skills ratherI cannot recommend this game at all. Scholar is just unfun. Encounters throw waves upon waves of enemies at you, and while it is a valid skill for a game to check in a player, the overuse of this is nothing short of frustrating. Dark Souls, by contrast, rarely throws large quantities of enemies at you, making the few times that does happen feel like an actual check of my skills rather than a frustrating way of making the game harder. The game also has significant issues with hitboxes. That being said, Scholar has some things going for it. It's visual style is superb, and I like many of the locations I encountered. Majula is my favorite hub area of any Souls game by far. It is such a gorgeous place and feels like a comfy respite from the dark, dangerous world.

    It is worth noting that Scholar is also significantly different from the original Dark Souls 2. I have not played the original, but from what I've heard, I'd recommend playing that instead. It still has some issues with convenience and bugs, but the major issue of enemy placement and encounter design is fixed. Do not take my word for this, instead read what people have said about the original Dark Souls 2. Consider Scholar an optional hard mode.    … Expand
  23. Gliphy
    Oct 7, 2022
    9
    Моя первая часть Dark Souls, которую люблю больше прочих, но какой же это кривой кусок кода. Во всем эта игра намекает, что должна быть Demon Souls 2. В итоге мы получили, что сюжет непонятный набор концепций; локации никак не связаны, а если и связана, то ну просто крайне нелогично. Боссы очень медленные, а рядовые враги очень слабые, но их настолько много, что пердак прям разрывается.Моя первая часть Dark Souls, которую люблю больше прочих, но какой же это кривой кусок кода. Во всем эта игра намекает, что должна быть Demon Souls 2. В итоге мы получили, что сюжет непонятный набор концепций; локации никак не связаны, а если и связана, то ну просто крайне нелогично. Боссы очень медленные, а рядовые враги очень слабые, но их настолько много, что пердак прям разрывается.

    Но я люблю эту часть Душ. Люблю за ее посыл, люблю за ее персонажей, люблю за ее атмосферу и музыку. Лукатиэль навсегда останется в моем сердечке, как и Изумрудная Вестница    … Expand
  24. Danvie
    Oct 5, 2022
    6
    Очень затянутая игра, с хуёвым левел дизайном, когда вместо честных боёв 1 на 1 или 2 на 1, на тебя вечно устраивают засады минимум 5 на 1, копирайты боссов в своей же собственной игре и хуже атмосфера, нелинейность, чем у первой части.Очень затянутая игра, с хуёвым левел дизайном, когда вместо честных боёв 1 на 1 или 2 на 1, на тебя вечно устраивают засады минимум 5 на 1, копирайты боссов в своей же собственной игре и хуже атмосфера, нелинейность, чем у первой части.
  25. Zallen
    Sep 9, 2022
    9
    Лучший соус с кучей контента и добротными боссами (в семье не без уродов) - которые задают челлендж, а главное - повышение сложности для тру хардкорщиков. Из минусов откровенно прохладный лвл дизайн.
    9ть и точка из 10ти.
  26. draemato
    Aug 14, 2022
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Masterpiece society doesn't deserve.

    In community it is respectful to hate DS2 an it's fans, and tbh i also didn't liked this game at first, but when i played DS1 and DS3 i was shocked, because everyone told me that those games are masterpieces and so on, but there is nothing special in those, i mean, DS1 is really 5/10 and DS3 is Lordran but N thousands year ago. Dark Souls II is the best, people just don't get it, but it's fine, we have our cozy small community.    … Expand
  27. BoomerZoomer
    Jun 30, 2022
    8
    You know where to go next without using wikipedia and its actually fun and has most location variety of all dark souls games
  28. 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
  29. Yukhta
    Jun 8, 2022
    8
    The game is good addition to original DS2. If you enjoyed DS2 original you should play this.
    Fresh experience.
  30. Izoeros
    May 30, 2022
    4
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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.
    Read full review
  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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