Dark Souls 2 is Criminally Underrated

Dark Souls 2 is a good game guys, c'mon. Really though, give it a shot. It's definitely different, but that's okay. This game shouldn't be ignored.

Tags:
#darksouls2 #darksouls

Vaati and Lenny:

Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
01:36 - NG+
05:11 - Bosses
09:15 - Story
13:25 - Extras
16:29 - Outro

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Dark Souls 2 ate my son

[Kumire_]

Majula's theme will never leave my head for as long as i live, DS2 may have been weaker compared to the others but it has some of the most memorable places in the Souls series.

[zxbmgqu]

Fun fact: fragnant branches and phaross lockstones, are actually items from king's field 3, they serve the same purpose in that game, and even look simillar

[spandytube]

"None of the issues matter if you actually enjoy the game." I wish I had heard this in all the years I've spent trying to defend my love for DS2 in spite of it's flaws. Since this was my first Souls game I never had an issue with the "balance" issue of lifegems and adaptability; those were just minor parts of a thing that, to me, worked.

[johno]

11:59
Aldia actually wants us to NOT be a part of the cycle of kindling the flame or ushering in darkness. There is one where you can just take the throne and not kindle. The aldia route is just him saying "do your own thing". Also i like how his theme takes a motif from Gwyn's theme

[Coldgloom]

Dark Souls 2 was different in that I was able to actually understand the story and not lay awake at night wondering about unresolved questions.

[ehmolekkkkk]

About the endings, taking the throne means to accept your place as a part of the cycle, when you reach the flame your character either link it and continue the age of Fire, or let it die and start the age of darkness, but the game doesn't show the choice your character make

the ending that aldia unlock is basically refusing to be part of the cycle, you won't rekindle the flame, you won't become the lord of Darkness, you basically ignore the flame and move on with your life

[papalovex]

I remember buying this game as my first souls like and not having the slightest clue what these games are like besides frustratingly hard and I came off of Dark Souls 2 loving it a lot (my favorite bit in this game are the real and fake moonlight greatsword)

[shrike]

I think the whole games more focusing on the curse of hollowing and the first sin being linking the fire, and what the characters make of it, is the most interesting narrative in the series.
Aldia and Vendricks stories, as well as how the other Kings dealt with their respective problems (and the curse) is the highlight of the game.

Also Aldia's ending isen't about becoming the Dark Lord. It's about refusing to take part in the cycle and seeking something else. Maybe another solution to the curse or simply indifference.

[Mr_Sunday_Gary]

I love how “the bosses fit their area” is a plus and not the bog standard.

[alyantza]

Most replayable dark souls, Ng+ was actually different. The animations alone make me come back due to how smooth they feel, especially the roll. I wish they didn't do away with mocap'ed animations in ds3 and elden ring. I rather like it when my roll looks like a move that I could actually recreate in real life and still have my ankles intact. Also running out of breath when your stamina is low, or slouching when you're injured. These little things make your character feel more alive.

[Greywander]

My take on the story is that it can be divided into two parts. The first part is the themes of the loss of memory and self as you become more and more hollow. You see this happen in real time with Lucatiel and a few others, but this is also happening to your character as well. This is why the intro cutscene is so confusing. It's because your character is themselves confused. You came to Drangleic to... what? You don't know. The Emerald Herald instructs you to Bear Seek Seek Lest, but is that really _your_ goal, or a goal that someone else has imposed upon you? You never actually find out for sure.

The second part of the story is the story of Vendrick, Aldia, and Nashandra. Aldia, the Scholar of the First Sin, was trying to find a way to break the undead curse that was created by Gwyn (this is the titular First Sin). Vendrick was helping him as best he could, and refused to link the fire in the hopes that Aldia would prove successful. In the end, it was a failure, and Vendrick sealed himself away to prevent Nashandra from reaching the First Flame. I think Aldia may have been able to break the curse for himself, and Vendrick's blessing if you get all the crowns will also break the curse for you, but they weren't able to break the curse for all humans.

At the end of the game, your choice is to either take the throne and usher in an Age of Fire _or_ Dark, or if you finish Aldia's questline you get the chance to take a third option.

While DS3 does feel like more of a direct sequel to DS1, and DS2 feels like more of a spinoff, the story of DS3 makes a lot more sense with the additional context that DS2 provides. DS3 is all about Prince Lothric refusing to link the fire, and the Lords of Cinder doing the same, but it's not made clear why. DS2 was the first game to feature a character refusing to link the fire and explained what the reasons were. DS3 really highlights that advanced state of decay of the world after linking the fire countless times, validating Vendrick and Aldia's refusal to link the fire and seek an alternate way to end the undead curse.

[ivanjovic]

Something different in ds2 is the protagonists ( the character you play as) goal. In ds1 and ds3 you are a chosen one who will supposedly link the flame anew. In ds2 tho your character is looking for a way to cancel or negate his own curse and thus lore wise the correct ending would be to leave the final throne room and continue searching for a way to fight the curse. Something close to it is by getting all the dlc crowns and talking to Vendrick who gives you the immunity to hollowing.

[superbigpaul]

Recently started another ds2 playthrough, I don’t know why but it’s a lot more fun than I remembered. Of course there’s some bs stuff, but it’s very satisfying once you get through it! Just like challenge runs

[KarlRock]

Interesting. I’m just playing Dark Souls 1 for the first time now!

[preknopreguntesporqueminom]

One thing I loved about this game was the sense of adventure. Each area felt different, and they were fairly varied. Combining this with the presentation really left a good taste in my mouth, even if their design is at times slightly or notably worse than other games

[miz]

Nice to get DS2 some love. It will always hold a special place it helped me during my darkest point in my life. But the will to never go hollow kept me going. Anyone reading this never go hollow life gets better ❤

[allybiggs]

Agreed wholeheartedly it holds a special place in my heart. Majula is just so mesmorizing just to watch the ocean and that music takes me to another world.

[rafaelbrito]

Soul vessel, simplified upgrading paths, bonfire warp from the start, torch mechanic on places like no man's wharf, all the different and truly unique weapon move sets even within the same weapon class, the amazing armor sets that give you so many different fashion souls looks, powerstancing unique moves (bonefist, majestic greatsword), the most cozy hub in the series with one of the best themes (majula), shulva is one of my favorite areas in the trilogy, fume knight, sinh, mirror knight, smelter demon, sir alonne.
And if that wasn't enough the pvp is so much fun and satisfying, it's actually what made ds2 the one I sank most hours in of all trilogy. I love ds2

[Sigdowner]

I want to defend Dark Souls II enemy placement and tracking. Dark Souls II is a game that is wonderful at teaching you focus and patience. If you fail an area you have to do it again from the top and kill the things, just running through is hard. When I played it, I thought this was intentional and genius, and is one of the aspects that kept me coming back, the "breathe, don't rush, do it again better this time", clean the area, attempt the dragon. The area is the challenge, not just the dragon. I love Elden Ring but I hate the fact that you can pretty much ignore 99.9% of the enemies and bosses with no punishment.

[samfish]

My friend championed me trying this game after ds3 and elden ring and eventually offered to gift it to me. I'm on my second dlc now and I think that this game may be my favorite from the game yet.