The Secret Reward Systems of Dark Souls II | Design Dive

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In this tenth episode of Design Dive, I return to the world of Dark Souls and discuss how Scholar of the First Sin revamps the implicit reward framework of the original game in weird and interesting ways.

Music in this episode is from the Dark Souls II Soundtrack by Yuka Kitamura and Motoi Sakuraba, listed in order of appearance.
- Departure
- Fire Keepers
- The Last Giant
- Majula
- Ancient Dragon
- Royal Rat Authority
- Longing

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[rohiogerv]

“You know this is a safe place” tell that to those evil Majula piggies.

[Blade]

I loved DS2 cause it had the best fashion souls and power stances

[Jonas-obsh]

Dark Souls 2 is one of those games most people either really love or really hate.

[lobstrosity]

Dark Souls 2 is the only in the series to get NG+ right, or at least somewhat right. My mind was blown when Freja suddenly attacked me in an earlier spot or when Flexile Armor had ninja pals in that cramped room. Man I've had so much fun with this game. I know it's the black sheep and I can see why but it will always hold a special place in my heart. SotFS was fun but it felt like they rode the "omg so hard" meme with all the seemingly random adds.

[BmikroB]

I had played & finished all the FROM's Soulsborne games multiple times, but DkS2 still holds a special place in my heart, being my favorite Dark Souls game.
It might not be the best, it surely does have its issues that I hate very much, but it speaks to me on a spiritual level, thematically, the most. It invokes that surreal mix of delusion, paranoia, loss of memories, slow degradation of the very Self of a person - all this hits so hard.

[balaam_]

I want a 1 hour loop of this guy whispering ‘Drangleic’ for some epic ASMR

[isaacallison]

I love that you dont just talk about the game, but also the relationship between it and your personal life, and how the evolution of that relationship played a massive role in your opinion on the game, its mechanics and reward systems. This is the 1st time ive seen your vids, but i study AI and love games so i can tell ill be sticking around lol.

[RayanTheModder]

The worst part about Vendrick's blessing is that it doesn't carry over to ng+

[thaddeushamlet]

I think playing Bloodborne first is a good idea. Then you can see what they carried over into DS3.

[stevenf]

I disagree about the hidden enemies being a bad thing. Usually you can find them if you're vigilant, though even if you don't I think it adds a lot to the gameplay. The example you gave in the video, the enemies in Huntsman's Copse, can be spotted up on the pillars and attacked from range or fought one on one. Very few enemies just spawn in from a location you can't see. The especially well hidden ones are usually just weak hollows or stealthy enemies like the rogues in huntsman's copse or the masked guys in earthen peak, there mostly to throw a wrench into your plans without being especially threatening on their own. The enemy placement in 2, scholar especially, puts a much greater focus on adapting to changing circumstances and often turns those ambush encounters into an interesting puzzle rather than a simple test of combat skill. There's a few exceptions, the npc invaders and the pursuer minibosses being the main examples, but the invaders are well telegraphed and the pursuer encounters are very easy to escape. The increased focus on managing groups of enemies and adapting to ambushes is one of the big reasons I fell in love with 2.

[dirt_dert_durt]

I will always adore DS2 For getting me into the series. My brother was into it first. He liked the idea of a super difficult game and played it a lot. He tried to get me to play it but I had Black Ops Zombies, and I was addicted to kino. Fast forward to him being on his mission in Indiana. I missed him from time to time and without his prying eye I decided to boot up and make my first character. By the time he came back about a year and a half later I had done like 8 characters with several playthroughs each. We also managed to get bloodborne and DS3 when they came out. I tried DS1, but it was far too clunky for my tastes. I beat it once so that I could say that I had beaten it and never touched it since. DS3 is a blast though, even to this day.

[BigWillProductions]

I don't hate DS2 anymore but I do still prefer DS1 from a map design standpoint. Not being able to teleport holds the isolation that the game is trying to instill upon you. You're never quite safe and you don't know when you'll see Firelink again. When you go all the way into Hell and finally climb back up, you really do want to praise the sun. In DS2, you really just feel like you're playing a game. DS1 only gives you the right to teleport when getting around OFFICIALLY becomes a huge pain in the ass. You don't take it for granted that way and you still feel like you're being forced to survive in this strange world rather than just pushing through game levels. DS1 was SUCH a unique feeling experience for me as a freshmen in highschool. It truly changed me and it is kindof sad that the sequels don't feel anything like that. I LOVE 3 but it still isn't the same :/

[boredomkiller]

I am glad someone else called out Dark Souls 1 AI. Many enemies will literally stand there and let you arrow them to death if they have noy sighted or noticed you.

[biohazard]

Yeah I can imagine playing Dark Souls while mourning could have some adverse effects on one's mental state

[Keln]

DS2 is really cool. Contentwise, it's the best of the souls games.
Buildwise it has so many possibilities as well with how enchantement works, and vast array of different movesets.

[mathieupr]

"how serene and calming Majula can be"

*pigs have entered the chat*

Scholar of the First Sin weird. Even though enemy placement evolved throughout the game, and even between the two versions of the game, Scholar always felt a bit.... too much. Enemy placement makes sense sometimes, but every encounter has the potential to turn into a brutal melee because they were put everywhere. The first Dark Souls' placement felt a bit more, let's say "handcrafted" that the "thrown together" placement from the second. Like most places feel a bit like "oh, let's put a guy there, and there, and there, and oh why not this one there! Player will focus on these fifty dudes and get destroyed by that one", instead of "Okay, we got a dude hiding there, should put an archer here to divert the player's attention so that he can be attacked if he didn't pay attention to the growling on his left" (exagerrating obviously)
Great vid though!

[DearValentina]

12:10 "You know this is a safe place"
Hackers: Invade in Majula.
Me: *confused screaming*

[Battleguild]

DS2 is my favorite of the bunch, especially with how they handled magic in the game.

[mingingchicken]

Highly recommend You play Bloodborne first.
Firstly, because it was being developed around the same time as DSII you could compare how the DS formula evolved in a different way and compare it to DSII.
Secondly, DSIII has some Bloodborne DNA in it, so it would help you to understand why certain aspects of the game are the way they are.
But in the end, it is your choice on how to experience these wonderful games.

[ViktorKruger]

Sorry to hear about your father and how is related with Dark Souls. I had a similar experience but with Demon Souls, bought the game when my father got really ill, and a few months later I finished the game a day after he pass away. To this day listening to that menu music really brings back bitter memories, so that is why I never played again.