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Koil
Premium Member
join:2002-09-10
Irmo, SC

Koil

Premium Member

Dark Souls 2 PC release date set for April 25

Tried to necro the old thread...wasn't happening.

»www.pcgamer.com/2014/03/ ··· me-rate/

Dark Souls 2 PC release date set for April 25, includes improved textures and frame rate

Prepare your soul for destruction: the sequel to the all-consuming Dark Souls will arrive on PC on April 25. On the one hand, praise the sun! On the other, grrr, that's six weeks after the US console launch date of March 11. Those of us hoping to plumb Dark Souls 2's depths on PC will have to hide away from videos, guides and discussion that might spoil the new world and the nefarious bosses within. I propose we form a cult, head down into Darkroot Garden and slay stone knights until Spring arrives.

There's some solace. The release date announcement on the Dark Souls 2 facebook page promises "increased texture resolution" and an "enhanced frame rate" for the PC version. "On top of that, FromSoftware have been working to perfectly adapt the game for a mouse & keyboard combo." Personally, I can't imagine playing Dark Souls without a pad, but decent keyboard controls are symptomatic of a thoughtful port.

The improvements are welcome, especially considering the state of the PC port of Dark Souls 1. If anything goes awry, the Dark Souls modding community will surely be standing by to fix any problems. DS obssessives in the office have started replaying the first game in anticipation for the sequel. How will you prepare for Dark Souls 2?

TheBionic
Funkier than a mohair disco ball.
Premium Member
join:2009-07-06
united state

TheBionic

Premium Member

I will probably pick this up once it hits. I never have the patience to complete the games (played both of the previous titles) but they are fun until my ADHD kicks in. Reading the ars write-up

»arstechnica.com/gaming/2 ··· ouls-ii/

makes me want to jump back in. Hopefully they're using the extra time to perfect the port!

TigerLord

join:2002-06-09
Canada

TigerLord to Koil

to Koil
I played the first game on PS3. Didn't like it. Didn't see what the hype was about.

The punishing difficulty was suppose to be its greatest strenght, and I agree it's not cheap difficulty, but it does not enhance the experience for me.

TheBionic
Funkier than a mohair disco ball.
Premium Member
join:2009-07-06
united state

TheBionic

Premium Member

Demons' Souls was more difficult than Dark Souls IMO, and Dark Souls had a couple of instances that I felt the AI used cheap shots to kill me. I never got that impression in Demons' Souls. But both games have excellent design and very decent RPG elements in gear and builds. Neither are impossible and both get easier as you progress; you just have to be willing to put the time into it if you're into that kind of game.

TigerLord

join:2002-06-09
Canada

TigerLord

The drop-in/drop-out MP with the red/black/blue ghosts and the tips left behind on the ground by other players was AMAZING though. Demon Soul is the first game I played that had this system. I thought it was incredibly innovative. Not sure if they invented it, but Chris Robert took inspiration from this to design the Star Citizen MP experience. Say I'm flying my Constellation and I have three NPC crewing the rest of the ship, friends will be able to drop-in the place of the NPC instantly to help during the campaign or even in MP dogfighting.

I never finished Demon's Soul, after 20 attempts at the third boss I lost patience.

Goggalor
Psychonaut
Premium Member
join:2009-06-09
Your Mind!

Goggalor to TigerLord

Premium Member

to TigerLord
said by TigerLord:

I played the first game on PS3. Didn't like it. Didn't see what the hype was about.

The punishing difficulty was suppose to be its greatest strenght, and I agree it's not cheap difficulty, but it does not enhance the experience for me.

It wasn't the punishing difficulty that was/is the series greatest strength; it is the reward of satisfaction with overcoming that difficulty. Like you said, it is never cheap (except for maybe one spot that I remember in Dark Souls) when it comes to killing you. With each new death you learn, becoming a better, more efficient kiling machine.

One of the big moments, for me, was beating the first boss in Demon's Souls the first time you meet him (for y'all that don't know, the first boss usually kills you to start the game, then you spawn in the sanctuary area). I attempted it with a new character, at least, 15 times, until I finally did it. Was the physical reward for killing the boss at that point worth it? Nope, but the elation at having done so with an undergeared, underleveled character was just plain awesome.

TigerLord

join:2002-06-09
Canada

TigerLord

My issue with games like this is that difficulty equals lots of dodging, rolling, dodging, rolling, then hitting when there's an opening, then dodging, rolling... and so on until the big HP bar is depleted.

And if towards the end you make the smallest mistake out of distraction or fatigue, you get to start all over again, from the beginning.

It's not the kind of challenge that fulfills me, but judging by the game's popularity, others think differently, and good for them and the devs.

TheBionic
Funkier than a mohair disco ball.
Premium Member
join:2009-07-06
united state

TheBionic

Premium Member

said by TigerLord:

My issue with games like this is that difficulty equals lots of dodging, rolling, dodging, rolling, then hitting when there's an opening, then dodging, rolling... and so on until the big HP bar is depleted.

And if towards the end you make the smallest mistake out of distraction or fatigue, you get to start all over again, from the beginning.

That should be on the back of the box, it's exactly right, especially at the beginning. The thing is though, you actually start to get better as you go along. It forces you to become a better player, so the farther in you go the easier the game becomes. Not because it's any less difficult, you've just improved, which drives the feeling of accomplishment Goggs is talking about. That's rare nowadays in single player video games.

I have an original NES hooked up in the mancave, and the Dark Souls series reminds me of the degree of difficulty in some of those games, except less punishing as there are saves and checkpoints (however few and far between). I play TMNT now on the NES and wonder how I ever beat it as a kid.

ekster
Hi there
Premium Member
join:2010-07-16
Sainte-Anne-De-Bellevue, QC

ekster

Premium Member

Contra is still the game that gets me every time when I look back.

You can't even really finish the game even if you finished it unless you got rank S. Otherwise you don't even know that there is another stage after that.

Considering how easily I used to be able to go through those games as a kid... I'm glad for games like Dark Souls. It forces you to challenge yourself, whether you like it or not.

So like Gogg said, getting past a certain point of the game alone is one satisfying reward.

I still need to go back to Dark Souls and finish the first one though... my gaming ADD makes me jump games too many times. :\

Goggalor
Psychonaut
Premium Member
join:2009-06-09
Your Mind!

Goggalor

Premium Member

said by ekster:

I still need to go back to Dark Souls and finish the first one though... my gaming ADD makes me jump games too many times. :\

Same here. Just this month alone, for me, South Park, Dark Souls 2, Infamous: Second Son, and D3: Reaper of Souls will all be vying for my attention, along with the huge backlog of games that I have started and need to finish. First world problems, mangz.