Dark Souls I and II?

[Anomaly1964]

Should I play them both?

I have heard they are very hard, what makes them so hard?

I don't like LIE DOWN games so I am interested...

 

[futurefields]

sure play them both

 

[Nebor]

I played the first one for about 20 minutes. Got to the first boss and quit. He kept throwing things at me and was hard to hit. I mostly play LIE DOWN games though. I like a gaming experience to be like a movie where I occasionally press some buttons.

 

[IGemini]

They're hard because you fight a lot of overpowered enemies and even more powerful superbosses. Expect to die multiple times. I've beaten the intro on DS1 but haven't gotten parrying down well enough to get past the first black knight/giant skeleton yet.

 

[EDUSAN]

great games both

i liked the 1st a ton more though

 

[cbrunny]

If you dig the hard-ness, they're supposedly awesome. I spent probably 10-15 hrs in Demon Souls (spiritual predecessor to Dark Souls). Very punishing game.

My brother is big into them though - he loves the challenge. But he is a glutton for punishment - he managed to get 5 stars on Through the Fire and the Flames in Guitar Hero 3 on Expert.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

supposedly there's a new version of dark souls ii coming out. it's a seperate game. might want to hold out for that and just play the first one in the meanwhile.

 

[tential]

Should I play them both?

I have heard they are very hard, what makes them so hard?

I don't like LIE DOWN games so I am interested...

The mobs are hard
The controls are bad
The environments you fight in combined with the bad controls means you'll die when a better controller scheme would hav eallowed you to live easily.
You'll get 1 shot killed randomly "Just cause" when you walk into a new area sometimes, then have to run back and get your souls (not remotely hard, just phucking stupid, happens a handful of times in the game).

 

[smackababy]

The mobs are hard
The controls are bad
The environments you fight in combined with the bad controls means you'll die when a better controller scheme would hav eallowed you to live easily.
You'll get 1 shot killed randomly "Just cause" when you walk into a new area sometimes, then have to run back and get your souls (not remotely hard, just phucking stupid, happens a handful of times in the game).

Pretty much the opposite of this.

The controls take a bit to get used to (and Dark Souls has a input queue problem), but they aren't clunky in terms of effectiveness and use.

I'd recommend Dark Souls and Dark Souls 2, but the first is much better on subtlety than the latter. If you don't want to spend hours reading items to decipher lore and the full picture of what your quest entails, the second is much more straight forward.

Also, remember, you can only roll, swing, jump, juke, jive so fast and so many times.

 

[Revolution 11]

If you want the true Dark Souls experience, play the first game before Dark Souls II. The second game is more polished, looks better, and has better production values. Dark Souls 2 will ruin you for the first game.

But Dark Souls 1 is actually more like a real world where the second game is more like a central hub with spokes of levels radiating from the hub. There are occasional connections between levels but the first game was truly continuous. You could run from any level to any other level without going through a central hub.

And Dark Souls 1 is harder than Dark Souls 2. It is closer to the ideals of Dark Souls. You will enjoy Dark Souls 2 more. You will rage at Dark Souls 1 more.

 

[tential]

If you want the true Dark Souls experience, play the first game before Dark Souls II. The second game is more polished, looks better, and has better production values. Dark Souls 2 will ruin you for the first game.

But Dark Souls 1 is actually more like a real world where the second game is more like a central hub with spokes of levels radiating from the hub. There are occasional connections between levels but the first game was truly continuous. You could run from any level to any other level without going through a central hub.

And Dark Souls 1 is harder than Dark Souls 2. It is closer to the ideals of Dark Souls. You will enjoy Dark Souls 2 more. You will rage at Dark Souls 1 more.

The fact that they managed to make a worse game with Dark Souls 2 is baffling to me...

 

[TheSlamma]

DS1 and DS2 are great games, they are not for lie downs (glad to hear that term is coming back again)

Scrubs who go out of their way to complain about these games either

A: suck at them
B: suck at them
or
C: it's just not their genre of game and shouldn't play it then

Give these games some time, there is a learning curve to them. 1 hint I'll give you, don't try to make a jack of all trades, if you want a magic guy put your skills to that don't try to evenly distribute and have a fighter/rogue/mage type class.

 

[tential]

DS1 and DS2 are great games, they are not for lie downs (glad to hear that term is coming back again)

Scrubs who go out of their way to complain about these games either

A: suck at them
B: suck at them
or
C: it's just not their genre of game and shouldn't play it then

Give these games some time, there is a learning curve to them. 1 hint I'll give you, don't try to make a jack of all trades, if you want a magic guy put your skills to that don't try to evenly distribute and have a fighter/rogue/mage type class.

I thought the game was simply poorly made? Like really poorly made.

Seems every person who doesn't like the game must therefore "suck at them". I've played difficult games before, it wasn't hard.
The game was just poorly made in so many aspects in my opinion. I was BORED the whole time. I never at any point in the game felt like "Wow, I really am enjoying this." It just bored the living day lights out of me.

OP may get enjoyment out of the game, I fell asleep playing it and watching my brother play it every time we did.

I mean, I picked up the Zweihander and used it the WHOLE GAME. An RPG where I use the first weapon I pick up the whole game? Wow, so much fun. I'm really excited to find junk gear all game!

 

[Mandres]

DS2 was the best rpg I've played in years. I'm looking forward to going back and playing the original after the holidays.

 

[TheSlamma]

I thought the game was simply poorly made? Like really poorly made.

Seems every person who doesn't like the game must therefore "suck at them". I've played difficult games before, it wasn't hard.
The game was just poorly made in so many aspects in my opinion. I was BORED the whole time. I never at any point in the game felt like "Wow, I really am enjoying this." It just bored the living day lights out of me.

OP may get enjoyment out of the game, I fell asleep playing it and watching my brother play it every time we did.

I mean, I picked up the Zweihander and used it the WHOLE GAME. An RPG where I use the first weapon I pick up the whole game? Wow, so much fun. I'm really excited to find junk gear all game!

Where do we start.. the fact that you missed option C which was clearly yours?

Or that you played a game all the way through you were so bored of?

Edit: so you went the route that sword worked for you, there isn't that much "junk" in the game, people can make many of the weapons work for them for their play style.

I'd also love to see a few of your "like" well made games

 

[Anomaly1964]

How does is compare to Skyrim Elder Scrolls?

GMG has the legendary on sale for 13.99

 

[TheSlamma]

How does is compare to Skyrim Elder Scrolls?

GMG has the legendary on sale for 13.99

I liked both games for what they were, they really have nothing in common at all.

Skyrim is a sandbox game with a difficulty slider that you can change at any time (lame) that makes you take more damage. So you can adjust how far you "lay down"

 

[tential]

Where do we start.. the fact that you missed option C which was clearly yours?

Or that you played a game all the way through you were so bored of?

Edit: so you went the route that sword worked for you, there isn't that much "junk" in the game, people can make many of the weapons work for them for their play style.

I'd also love to see a few of your "like" well made games

Huh? Where did I state that this genre isn't one I like?
I loved this genre, hated the game.
Guess reading comprehension wasn't your strong point.

Edit: I was expecting difficulty of ninja gaiden 2 in an rpg format with how the pc community hyped this up. Instead, game wasn't hard, combat system consisted of me zweihanding everything with r2 r2 win. And I found no weapon better than the first weapon I picked up which defeats the purpose of looking for a new weapon. They could have added better 2 handed swords...
It had already been easy enough using my starting mace as well....

How does is compare to Skyrim Elder Scrolls?

GMG has the legendary on sale for 13.99

Different game completely but it's pretty cool with mods. That said, you want something that will be more fun than just a pretty landscape. You'll prefer dark souls more.

 

[smackababy]

I mean, I picked up the Zweihander and used it the WHOLE GAME. An RPG where I use the first weapon I pick up the whole game? Wow, so much fun. I'm really excited to find junk gear all game!

And? This game isn't geared around loot collecting or grinding hoping to get that weapon to beat x boss or y mob. The RPG aspect isn't about grinding, it is about environment and story. Something sorely lacking in today's games.

And, the Zwiehander is certainly not a weapon one just picks up and thinks "now, this is something I could go the whole game with!" on their first playthrough. In fact, I highly doubt you did that because it is a rather unwieldy weapon. Not only does it require high stats, it is slow and has a lot of recovery between swings. Something that will get a noob destroyed by the most basic of enemies. It requires a certain style of play that people might not enjoy. Some prefer a more standard sword and board, while others like katanas or spears. Only experienced players end up with ultra greatswords and polearms, as they rely a lot on you dodging and precise timing to not get wrecked.

 

[tential]

And? This game isn't geared around loot collecting or grinding hoping to get that weapon to beat x boss or y mob. The RPG aspect isn't about grinding, it is about environment and story. Something sorely lacking in today's games.

And, the Zwiehander is certainly not a weapon one just picks up and thinks "now, this is something I could go the whole game with!" on their first playthrough. In fact, I highly doubt you did that because it is a rather unwieldy weapon. Not only does it require high stats, it is slow and has a lot of recovery between swings. Something that will get a noob destroyed by the most basic of enemies. It requires a certain style of play that people might not enjoy. Some prefer a more standard sword and board, while others like katanas or spears. Only experienced players end up with ultra greatswords and polearms, as they rely a lot on you dodging and precise timing to not get wrecked.

I used a mace as I stated until I could use the zweihander. Then I used it hated it then went back to my mace (since I loved the stagger on it) . Then showed the zweihander to my bro and realized it was easy as hell to use if I stopped using r1 and only used r2 as it staggered just like my mace but did a ton of damage.

It's a game, of course I'm good at precision or games wouldn't be fun...
Edit: But enough on my experience, OP I recommend you just get DS1 and if you like it get 2. If you don't well, whatever. Just don't be afraid to die is my only hint at the Dark Souls series.

 

[DucatiMonster696]

If you dig the hard-ness, they're supposedly awesome. I spent probably 10-15 hrs in Demon Souls (spiritual predecessor to Dark Souls). Very punishing game.

My brother is big into them though - he loves the challenge. But he is a glutton for punishment - he managed to get 5 stars on Through the Fire and the Flames in Guitar Hero 3 on Expert.

IMHO, the Dark Souls series is necessarily hard as much as it is unforgiving of failure if you are careless or just plain old don't think through your actions or think through a situation before acting.

 

[artemicion]

And? This game isn't geared around loot collecting or grinding hoping to get that weapon to beat x boss or y mob. The RPG aspect isn't about grinding, it is about environment and story. Something sorely lacking in today's games.

And, the Zwiehander is certainly not a weapon one just picks up and thinks "now, this is something I could go the whole game with!" on their first playthrough. In fact, I highly doubt you did that because it is a rather unwieldy weapon. Not only does it require high stats, it is slow and has a lot of recovery between swings. Something that will get a noob destroyed by the most basic of enemies. It requires a certain style of play that people might not enjoy. Some prefer a more standard sword and board, while others like katanas or spears. Only experienced players end up with ultra greatswords and polearms, as they rely a lot on you dodging and precise timing to not get wrecked.

Not to mention the fact that, Zweihander +15 is a superior weapon to vanilla Zweihander and cannot be obtained until endgame, so that blows the whole "best weapon can be found at the beginning" argument clear out of the water.

Dark Souls is more about knowing how your weapons and moves work, knowing how your enemies' moves work, and being able to read and react. It's similar to Punch-Out in that regard. It is NOT a game about progression grinding your way through content. There's plenty of Youtube videos from good players who can clear the entire game with their bare fists or a dagger or some other crap weapon because it's all about reading and reacting to what moves are being telegraphed by the boss.

Honestly, if you liked Punch-Out, I think you'd like Dark Souls. Both are kind of pointless endeavors because it's all about learning to master the game.

If you're the type of person who is like, "What kind of idiot spends 100+ hours of their life to master Dark Souls/Punch Out?" You won't like Dark Souls.

If you're the type of person who spent 100+ hours to master Punch Out and exclaimed "I DID IT!" (PRAISE THE SUN), you might like Dark Souls.

Edit: And for those of you who played and enjoyed Dark Souls, I recommend watching Edge of Tomorrow. It is pretty much "Dark Souls: The Movie."

 

[tential]

Not to mention the fact that, Zweihander +15 is a superior weapon to vanilla Zweihander and cannot be obtained until endgame, so that blows the whole "best weapon can be found at the beginning" argument clear out of the water.

Dark Souls is more about knowing how your weapons and moves work, knowing how your enemies' moves work, and being able to read and react. It's similar to Punch-Out in that regard. It is NOT a game about progression grinding your way through content. There's plenty of Youtube videos from good players who can clear the entire game with their bare fists or a dagger or some other crap weapon because it's all about reading and reacting to what moves are being telegraphed by the boss.

Honestly, if you liked Punch-Out, I think you'd like Dark Souls. Both are kind of pointless endeavors because it's all about learning to master the game.

If you're the type of person who is like, "What kind of idiot spends 100+ hours of their life to master Dark Souls/Punch Out?" You won't like Dark Souls.

If you're the type of person who spent 100+ hours to master Punch Out and exclaimed "I DID IT!" (PRAISE THE SUN), you might like Dark Souls.

Edit: And for those of you who played and enjoyed Dark Souls, I recommend watching Edge of Tomorrow. It is pretty much "Dark Souls: The Movie."

Um no shiit? Any vanilla weapon is worse than it upgraded? I clearly upgraded my Zweihander when I could as I progressed.

Why in god's name would it take you 100+ hours to clear Dark Souls?
The main story took like 40-50 hours to beat?

I'm seriously thinking you guys did some extremely stupid things in that game to make it feel so hard or are just not used to learning mechanics or something.

Pick a weapon with a stagger mechanic (Great Sword, Spear, Mace, etc.) and molest every enemy in the game? I rarely hit R1 at all in that game. I just heavy attacked every enemy to death.

Edit: Did you guys not play this game? We're talking about an AI that if you just ran past an area with a ton of cliffs, 90% of the enemies would kill themselves chasing you because they took a linear path rather than following the road or whatever. The AI was borderline retarded.

 

[Hinda65]

The beauty of Dark Souls, IMO, is being dropped into the game and it's up to you to figure out where to go and what to do....you'll get subtle hints along the way as to your next objective/area but its up to you to choose your route. It blew me away how the different areas tie together...it really is a cool world.

Dark souls is going through some updates....GFWL support is shutting down and the game is moving solely to steam which, in theory, is good. there are some community made fixes that are being updated as well(dsfix 2.3 is what you'll want for graphics updates). if you play with a controller you'll be fine. If you plan on playing with keyboard and mouse, there is a mouse fix that I don't believe has been updated yet...maybe someone can confirm this?

 

[tential]

The beauty of Dark Souls, IMO, is being dropped into the game and it's up to you to figure out where to go and what to do....you'll get subtle hints along the way as to your next objective/area but its up to you to choose your route. It blew me away how the different areas tie together...it really is a cool world.

Dark souls is going through some updates....GFWL support is shutting down and the game is moving solely to steam which, in theory, is good. there are some community made fixes that are being updated as well(dsfix 2.3 is what you'll want for graphics updates). if you play with a controller you'll be fine. If you plan on playing with keyboard and mouse, there is a mouse fix that I don't believe has been updated yet...maybe someone can confirm this?

DSFix makes this game look great. I'm sad my GPU at the time (9800M GTS) was unable to handle it. Powering up the game with DSFix I really did enjoy the visuals a lot. I probably would have enjoyed the game more if I could have used more of the enhanced visuals of DSFix. Not a lot more or anything, but I love nice visuals what can I say.