A great sequel - Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin review

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  • Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024

Комментарии • 113

  • @Aceius
    @Aceius Год назад +40

    I'm in the "love it" crowd. There's a reason the director of this game went on to co-direct Elden Ring. As for character creation, DS2 has the best random face spam in the entire series.

    • @pokimanefartcompilation
      @pokimanefartcompilation Год назад +10

      Oddly enough, I feel like DS2 was the only dark souls that I could make a normal looking person, and even attractive for that matter.

  • @funx24X7
    @funx24X7 Год назад +28

    I loved DS2 for embracing the idea of time and space being distorted by the fog in a way that the other games mentioned but never fully explored. The strange and nonsensical ways that some areas connect to each other really adds to the mystery of the world and gives it a very dreamlike quality.

    • @Domo3000
      @Domo3000 Год назад +7

      It also plays into the dementia theme. You go through a small tunnel and suddenly are much further. Like the old lady said: "one day you will stand in front of Drangleic Castle without even knowing why"

    • @inasilentway9835
      @inasilentway9835 Год назад +1

      Valid but it lacks subtlety.

    • @Dynamo33
      @Dynamo33 Год назад +2

      There's only like 2 areas that are actual nonsense connections, and everybody defending this stance just gets hung up on them as if there were a through-line in the design of the game that coincides with that. There isn't one. The rest of the game is very logically linked. Those 2 areas that don't make any sense were just bolted on because the team didn't have the time to add better transitional stages.

    • @funx24X7
      @funx24X7 Год назад +4

      @@Dynamo33 I disagree. Even without the illogical connections there are several areas that appear far off in the distance only for you to reach them on foot much sooner than expected. The entirety of things betwixt, the first place you visit, feels like an otherworldly transition between realms.
      The map of dark souls 1 all connects physically without issue, save for the entrance to the abyss in new londo ruins intersecting with the tomb of the giants. The same cannot be said with DS2 with its abundance of overlapping terrain.
      It’s unclear how much of this was intended from the start and what was influenced from issues during development, but there is definitely a conscious design through line.

    • @Dynamo33
      @Dynamo33 Год назад +1

      @@funx24X7 There is a difference between illogical connection and farcical distance. The reason for the distances being exaggerated in the skyboxes is for the sake of making Drangleic seem bigger. It supports this idea of a massive kingdom. Dark Souls 1 was able to do it without TOO much exaggeration thanks to the much less detailed rendering it used. If DS2 made a world that accommodated the size they wanted Drangleic to be, it would not have even booted up on the PS3 and 360

  • @armstrongcanon7833
    @armstrongcanon7833 Год назад +60

    Dark souls 2 walked so that Elden ring could run.

    • @dandyman2182
      @dandyman2182 Год назад +3

      Thats a terrible example considering how flawed elden ring is on a mechanical level cx especially compared to ds3 and bloodborne

    • @armstrongcanon7833
      @armstrongcanon7833 Год назад +7

      @@dandyman2182 Yeah thats true too. But still elden ring is an improvement over some mechanics...and in some it is not.
      Sekiro is still my favourite from game anyway.

    • @Dynamo33
      @Dynamo33 Год назад +1

      @@dandyman2182 It's precisely the reason why detractors (like me) call it Dark Souls 2 II. It has all the problems of 2 but bigger and more bloated. It's amazing how far they had come only to double back to a game that the main DS team never even made (Miyazaki didn't even direct 2).

    • @-SAGE-_
      @-SAGE-_ Месяц назад

      Dark souls 2 crawled it took all the hate so er could be loved

    • @pentexsucks43
      @pentexsucks43 Месяц назад +1

      Dark souls 2 ran a 3 minute mile so Elden Ring could be the world's most effective sleep aid

  • @duroprem
    @duroprem Год назад +7

    It's always great to see people give a fair chance to Dark Souls 2 instead of riding the usual hate wagon. It's my favorite game of the Dark Souls trilogy despite some of its shortcomings, and it warms my heart to see more people acknowledge its greatness.

    • @Fapnyr
      @Fapnyr Месяц назад

      Based

  • @jrizzelli
    @jrizzelli Год назад +19

    Majula and the Emerald Waifu really made me feel so cozy during my time with ds2

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +3

      Emerald waifu's always there for you

  • @Hravokh
    @Hravokh Год назад +8

    have to admit, i love this entry and can't even tell you why this is my favourite.
    great video again :)

  • @littlebaron5573
    @littlebaron5573 Год назад +13

    Dark Souls 2 is put together like a fever dream. It’s probably what we’d experience if we lost all sense of self and awoke in an unknown world. Dying over and over again. Ultimately going forward because that is the only way.

  • @Jombo56
    @Jombo56 Год назад +5

    Iron Keep was genuinely the most rage-inducing game in all the Souls games I've played. Still, DS2 might be my favorite of the trilogy.

  • @Pollymacho
    @Pollymacho Год назад +6

    Great review! Dark Souls 2 will always hold a special place in my heart, and it's cool to see you talk about it. The questlines in the game are pretty rad too. Loved how when you complete them, you would inherit some of their equipment. Also, using the Torch was really immersive, especially in The Gutter.

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +4

      Thank you! I love how the torch was used in The Gutter actually. I felt like I was slowly lighting up the entire place

  • @kireacts6026
    @kireacts6026 12 дней назад +1

    my first dark souls i played and loved it still do and im currently playing through it again.

  • @oskarszile4372
    @oskarszile4372 27 дней назад +1

    Glad to see a very nice review for a change, great vid!

  • @polnareffsaaadventure5657
    @polnareffsaaadventure5657 Год назад +4

    Been watching some of your videos and the improvements from one video to the next are clear! Keep it going, this is good stuff 🥳

  • @xNachtmahRx
    @xNachtmahRx Год назад +3

    I loved 2 for still being the most unique entry with the most changes to the mechanics and design approach! Also, I just can't get the Majula theme out of my head. The game came out during a peculiar time with constant ups and downs, but the theme always calmed me down and made me want to play the game

  • @Squiddyize
    @Squiddyize Год назад +5

    Glad that you enjoyed DS2. It gets a bit of a bad rap but honestly it was really great.
    The atmosphere is more melancholic and the story is a lot more personal. It's your own descent into obscurity, mental degradation, senescence and hollowing and yet achieving lordship and still there's your lack of choice or option in the cyclical nature of it all. Though in the DLC, getting the crowns and perhaps finding your own path outside of the cycle alongside Aldia is an option. But as i see it, it's only a choice for yourself, not the world.
    Whereas the first one was more focused on the world itself, its fading nature and the decision whether to let go of something that is dying. Quite simplistic, yet so effective.
    I think DS2 made terrific choices in evolving the nature of the game. The lore of it is amazing as well. My favourite part is the story of Alsanna and the Ivory King, one of the great gigachads of the soulsverse. It's just that mechanically DS2 is a fair bit worse for me.
    I think DS3 though did almost everything right in the next stage. Looking forward to your thoughts on that and my absolute favourite, Elden Ring.

  • @benlogan4038
    @benlogan4038 4 месяца назад +1

    Great chronicle of your journey. Thanks!

  • @mitemaximus831
    @mitemaximus831 Год назад +4

    One of the quirks in 2 was needing to swap weapons more often. When I played through it I found myself swapping between my longsword, claymore, shortbow, and the haha BERSERK sword constantly. Also yes Iron Keep was the pits blegh
    Also looking forward to the DS3 review

  • @AtreyusNinja
    @AtreyusNinja Год назад +2

    Probably one of the best video about ds2 i have ever seen

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +1

      That's a big compliment. Thank you :)

  • @kenshero2188
    @kenshero2188 Год назад +3

    great review, thanks.

  • @Feeble_cursed_one
    @Feeble_cursed_one Год назад +3

    Great job skeleton!

  • @buharibawa9485
    @buharibawa9485 Год назад +3

    Loved your review

  • @taffeylewis1176
    @taffeylewis1176 3 месяца назад +1

    Nice video 👍🏼. Thanks for creating. 🙂

  • @anthropomorphicmonster9113
    @anthropomorphicmonster9113 5 месяцев назад +1

    So nice to see someone actually enjoying this interesting game and not just nit picking it to death. I have this theory that if it was marketed as more of a King's Field game instead it would have received a lot more love among Souls fans. But yeah, some of the bosses do need some work 😬

  • @cynicamane187
    @cynicamane187 Год назад +3

    Dark souls 2 and dragons dogma are my favourite games

  • @Optimus6128
    @Optimus6128 2 месяца назад +1

    Made the same mistake with joining the covenant of champions, like if there is a covenant I'll accept joining even if I never do something with it.
    And wonder why is it so hard till someone told me.

  • @TheNickofTime
    @TheNickofTime Год назад +2

    You managed to articulate something that I’d never really consciously picked up on in DS2, with that ‘peaceful vibe’ you were talking about. Ironically for the most openly sadistic game in the series, it is also the least stressful, and therefore less of a mental commitment to sit down and play. It’s also quite pleasing to the eye, I find- maybe not in terms of graphics quality, but speaking purely aesthetically.
    I have some potential answers for a couple of the multiplayer issues brought up in this video. Firstly, hitting an invader without affecting their health can mean one of two things. Because these games’ online features are rather janky, there’s a relatively frequent bug where you can get close enough to hitting someone for the sound effect to play, but not enough for it to fully register. Or, it could also be cheaters, of which there are many, who hack their own save file to give themselves an unfair advantage while they bully inexperienced players for fun.
    Your co-op trouble might be explained by the ring you mentioned using which yields more souls from enemies. This game tries to find players on relatively equal footing to pair up for multiplayer based on the total number of souls they have ever collected, as a way to judge how far through the game they are. But if you’re constantly collecting souls at a slightly faster rate than the other players via the ring, eventually the game will see you as too powerful to match with the general playerbase for a given area. That could also explain why you had more luck in the DLCs, where most people are at high tiers already. DS2 is the only one in the series to work this way.

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +1

      I see, so that's why dealing with invaders felt off sometimes.
      And about the ring, that makes sense! Does the game count souls I've collected even when I die and lose them all? I accidentally joined the covenant that made the game harder early on, so maybe it counted all the souls I got everytime I died

    • @ehmolekkkkk
      @ehmolekkkkk Год назад +3

      @@Nekotomic yes, in the character stats there is a thing called soul memory, that record the souls you used or lost, and the game divide the players in tiers based on their soul memory

  • @The1uan
    @The1uan Месяц назад +1

    My souls games path has been so chaotic. I started with Bloodborne, then Sekiro, Elden Ring, recently I was playing both Demons Souls and DS1 at the same time. This week I’m ordering both DS2 and DS3 and when I’m done with those I’ll tackle Shadow of the Edrtree

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Месяц назад +1

      That's crazy! It must've been difficult starting with those, but I'm sure they prepared you for the Souls games. Have fun!

  • @quinocadenas
    @quinocadenas 3 месяца назад +1

    Very good and relaxing review

  • @jacob-210-9
    @jacob-210-9 Год назад +1

    Great review! I’m playing ds2 for the first time and it’s really fun so far

  • @largid
    @largid Год назад +1

    Thanks for the review. Always happy to see unaffected opinion. Very glad you liked the game, many people just compare it to other parts with a negative side.
    By the way, reason why you didn't see much summon signs is most likely because of Soul Memory mechanic.

  • @Five0one
    @Five0one Год назад +3

    I just started playing ds2 not to long ago, and the game is only “not good” if that’s what you call it if you obsess over lore. But throughout out my time so far it’s extremely fun and a new challenge to take on

  • @youloveification
    @youloveification 2 месяца назад +1

    The best in the souls series!

  • @RevanLegend
    @RevanLegend 2 месяца назад +1

    I'm currently doing my first DS2 SotFS playthrough and while I understand why some people can dislike the game I really dont' get why it was/is hated so much since overall it looks like an improved version of DS1 and I would assume that should be something positive?

  • @lanceelopezz223
    @lanceelopezz223 Год назад +2

    Ayoo. 😆
    Been waiting for this since the Bloodborne and Dark Souls 1 vids.
    PS
    The Dark Souls 2 director dude (not Hidetaka) helped out for Elden Ring. Huehue

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +2

      It took a while but I'm glad you stuck around for it :D

  • @jaybensan218
    @jaybensan218 Год назад +1

    It's funny, for all the souls games I've beaten and played, this was the last one I had beaten (before eldin ring) and while I enjoyed the game a lot, It too me awhile to really get into it.
    Played it with a friend who recorded some pretty hilarious moments, and I'm glad I got to go through it with him.
    Looking forward to seeing how DS3 treats you!

  • @nelrettodelcetaceo
    @nelrettodelcetaceo 7 месяцев назад +1

    beautiful video

  • @YureiOni
    @YureiOni 5 месяцев назад

    Crown of the ivory king is the best dlc. Loved the snowy area

  • @shootnblankz187
    @shootnblankz187 Год назад +2

    You have to play dark souls 3!!!!(but the deluxe edition with both dlcs lol) And of course Elden Ring If you have not yet... Your mind will be blown

  • @FarmerSlideJoeBob
    @FarmerSlideJoeBob Год назад +2

    I got the Souls Trilogy on PS3: Demon's Souls, DS 1 Prepare to die Edition and DS 2 not the scholar of the first sin. I enjoy classic DS2 more than DS 1 on PS3. I know the issues DS2 got but I like it anyways and much more than scholar which changed enemy placements and balancing too. So DS2 Classic isn't a bad game.

  • @johnmorris1009
    @johnmorris1009 Месяц назад

    I completed Elden Ring recently (my first soulsborne game) and then went back to DS2, a game i'd bought ages ago but never really got into.
    I did get into it for a while. The level layout and ideas have some potential, but there were so many things that started to annoy me and struck me as unfair. Poor lock on camera angles, terrible gaps between some bonfires and between bonfires to bosses, too many unavoidable deaths, enemies spamming attacks and of course, the health bar that dwindles after you die.
    Got as far as the underground ship level, died several times to mobs, and got fed up of the ridiculous lack of a bonfire. I'm done on it and going to try DS3.

  • @johnnyflannigan136
    @johnnyflannigan136 7 месяцев назад

    You have to level ADP to drink estus faster... Also helps with hitboxes.. Enemies hit you less

  • @Debatra.
    @Debatra. Год назад +1

    DkS2 suffers greatly from the Soul Memory system. In every other SoulsBorne game, online matchmaking is determined by your relative levels. In this game, it's a tiered system based on how many souls you've collected, regardless of whether they've been spent on levels, spent on items, or lost to death. That alone is a good chunk of why this game is seen as the black sheep of the family.
    Also, the Ring of Binding doesn't reduce your max health. Not sure where that came from.
    And yeah, accidentaly joining the Company of Champions has always been a very common problem for new players. It also turns off co-op, by the way.

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +1

      Thankfully I joined the Company of Champions when the servers were still offline lol. I only realized what the covenant did when I saw people online talk about how enemies despawn if you kill them enough times

  • @dodger7896
    @dodger7896 5 месяцев назад

    A big part of why It's so hard to find people in DS2 is because of soul memory. Soul memory is the total number of souls your character has collected. They are broken up into tiers, and you can only connect with players in the same bracket. For example, if i have an SM of 100,000 i can only connect with player that are from 80,000 to 120,00 soul memory.

  • @birdzs2342
    @birdzs2342 Год назад +1

    oh no, someone is enjoying DS2! REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE /s
    Also you played DS2 on hard mode by not lvl adp. APD gives you more s while rolling and make you drink estus faster.

    • @AtreyusNinja
      @AtreyusNinja Год назад

      she actually played the game in the champion covenant, that's the real hard mode, only ds2 and sekiro have an in-game option to increase the difficulty.
      ngl i play this game since day1 vanilla and i avoid that covenant. that's mean she is rlly good.

  • @Qu1ckRev1ve
    @Qu1ckRev1ve Год назад +2

    Best souls 2: Scholar of the Power Stance edition, my favorite

  • @trufreedom
    @trufreedom 6 месяцев назад

    How'd you find enough materials to be swapping armor in either DS1/2?

  • @davidrw67
    @davidrw67 5 месяцев назад

    I enjoyed ds2 the only 2 areas i didnt enjoy with my pyro only was iron keep and shrine of amana, when i did my mircal only run those areas was still a issue they was a but easier

  • @lanceelopezz223
    @lanceelopezz223 Год назад +1

    4:19
    I think that was applicable to the steam versions, since people hacked it. Hehe.
    Console versions were up and running in perpetuity, I think

  • @hotstufff7
    @hotstufff7 Год назад +1

    Dark souls 3 was first souls game

  • @johnnyflannigan136
    @johnnyflannigan136 7 месяцев назад

    Great game... People who say otherwise are clueless....though there are things to criticize for sure (level ADP)

  • @AtreyusNinja
    @AtreyusNinja Год назад

    16:05 did u get back to kill alonne?👌

  • @sueflewelling3657
    @sueflewelling3657 Год назад +1

    good video is it ok if I ask you a question?

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +1

      Sure, what is it?

    • @sueflewelling3657
      @sueflewelling3657 Год назад

      @@Nekotomic ok have you played any other souls game and have you heard of a game series called fire emblem?

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад

      I've played Dark Souls 1. And yeah, I've heard of Fire Emblem! I haven't played any of the recent games though

  • @torgo_
    @torgo_ 7 месяцев назад

    based

  • @currymunchaaka4rif730
    @currymunchaaka4rif730 Год назад +1

    Ds2 would be cool if it had a remaster still a great game overall

  • @passalapasa
    @passalapasa Год назад +1

    uhm, queen? 😳😳

  • @skhkwk
    @skhkwk Месяц назад

    que querida vc

  • @randommoosebrains
    @randommoosebrains Год назад +1

    Berserk? Berserk.

  • @YureiOni
    @YureiOni 5 месяцев назад +1

    This girls voice reminds me of that cute girl on tik tok that always slides into view and talks about how men aren’t that bad.

  • @Tarragon_
    @Tarragon_ Год назад +1

    This is one of the best and one of my favorite videos about dark souls scholar of the first Sin you broke it down so well and made one of the most resonant videos of this game I’ve ever seen impressive.

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +1

      Thank you. I'm really happy that you enjoyed my video on it so much!

    • @Tarragon_
      @Tarragon_ Год назад +1

      @@Nekotomic heck yea!

  • @celiafrostborn
    @celiafrostborn 5 месяцев назад

    Im in the hate it crowd, that said It doing things terribly gave ER what it needed to be as good as it was. I still like DS3 more then ER in nearly every way though so I won't give DS2 that much credit. It'll be known as the worst souls game that inspired one of the best selling ones for all of time. But hey, the worst of a great series is still something even if I'd only use a copy of it as a paperweight after my 1 and only playthrough. Good job DS2, you were terrible but you lifted up a much better game...

  • @jamesnesran2348
    @jamesnesran2348 Год назад +1

    I'm sick of contrarians pretending ds2 is good. it failed on so many levels. it doesnt even feel like a fromsoft dark souls game, its like another company made a soulslike

    • @AlexanderMartinez-kd7cz
      @AlexanderMartinez-kd7cz Год назад +4

      do you have an argument for why DS2 is a bad game or did you just come to pretend "it doesnt even feel like a fromsoft dark souls game, its like another company made a soulslike" means anything in terms of quality?

    • @jamesnesran2348
      @jamesnesran2348 Год назад +1

      @@AlexanderMartinez-kd7cz the arguments against DS2 have been said innumerable times, I don't need to prove 2+2=4

    • @youloveification
      @youloveification 2 месяца назад +1

      which arguments?

  • @BreezyLoveMachine
    @BreezyLoveMachine Год назад +1

    Look, you can have all the reasonable opinions you want. Dark Souls 2 is still a bad game.

    • @LonelyGamr
      @LonelyGamr Год назад +5

      Lol

    • @CT-mw8lm
      @CT-mw8lm Год назад +5

      Because? Maybe actually list some reasons instead of getting triggered someone else has a different opinion than yours lol

    • @LonelyGamr
      @LonelyGamr Год назад +1

      @@CT-mw8lm his comment is pretty funny lol. Can picture him really triggered haha

    • @BreezyLoveMachine
      @BreezyLoveMachine Год назад

      @@CT-mw8lm what? Give well thought out reasons for my dislike of a video game? And you want me to respect someone else's opinion? What is this nazi Germany? Fascist.

    • @Tomato-lr2yu
      @Tomato-lr2yu Год назад +1

      Can't tell if this is satire, bait or a genuinely bad take.

  • @SaltareObscurum
    @SaltareObscurum Год назад +3

    I cant wait for her Elden Ring Video in 10 years 😅😅 nah just joking love your Videos.❤️❤️
    DS2 was a Great Game but they allways Drive me insane bc im a total noob😂

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +3

      lol it could actually take 10 years at this point. My PC right now isn't good enough to record something like Elden Ring. Don't worry about being a total noob, i probably died thousands of times everytime I completed a Souls game!

    • @LonelyGamr
      @LonelyGamr Год назад

      @@Nekotomic what pc do you have? Mying is getting old aswell :( prices in Australia are too expensive for me to upgrade. And tbh there really isn't any game coming out I'm interested in besides maybe hogwarts.

    • @Nekotomic
      @Nekotomic  Год назад +1

      @@LonelyGamr I got a GTX 1050 ti with an i5 processor. I recently upgraded to 16 GB RAM, it helps with editing and gaming but not so much for newer titles

    • @LonelyGamr
      @LonelyGamr Год назад +1

      @@Nekotomic surprising how well the 1050ti is still going 💪.