Platforms
- PCApr 24, 20148.5playscore8.722 Critics8.628.2K Players
- PlayStation 3Mar 11, 20148.9playscore8.936 Critics9.113.7K Players
- Xbox 360Mar 11, 20148.5playscore8.720 Critics8.527.3K Players
69 critic reviews · 28 community reviews across all platforms
Critic Reviews
- Dark Souls has a fiercely loyal fan base. They love it, and will staunchly defend that love to the last man. Dark Souls 2, for me, is an exercise in frustration. While I appreciate the skill component of combat and creativity on display, the punishing and repetitive nature of the gameplay makes Dark Souls 2 feel like a errand rather than entertainment.
Paul Sullivan · May 25, 2014 Reviewed on PCRead full review - As someone who only tends to have time to play games a couple of hours a night, I expect it will be many, many months before I'm even close to finishing the game. And my curiosity is piqued for the earlier games in the series--will I feel more positive about them since I'll already have some level of understanding and skill going in? Dark Souls II seems like a brilliant idea, but the plodding pace of the esoteric narrative and the disappointing leveling system make it feel more like a chore to be overcome than a grand adventure to experience.
Justin Haywald · May 11, 2014 Reviewed on X360Read full review - Now, don’t get me wrong. I still had a great time playing through Dark Souls 2 and would recommend everyone play it whether they are a fan of the series or not, but I felt for every step forward, it took one back. It’s a testament to the series brand as a whole to make an otherwise solid title feel disappointing, but I’ve come to expect more and I hope they find the right path through the dark in the next sequel.
Jae Lee · May 06, 2014 Reviewed on PCRead full review - Dark Souls was a brilliant game that didn't explain itself well. Many new players were frustrated even by the tutorial because the game didn't teach its secrets to them. Dark Souls 2 fixes that by giving you way more information about its items, skills, and world, liberating its designers to create even more complex challenges. It is more accessible for new players, but not at the expense of being brutal—I've died more than 150 times in 60 hours.
Cory Banks · Apr 25, 2014 Reviewed on PCRead full review - Dark Souls 2 on PC feels like a significantly more competent port than its predecessor. It looks great, runs smoothly, and comes packed with all the visual tweaks you could want. Sure, the mouse and keyboard controls are still underwhelming--but so long as you don't mind plugging in a gamepad, this is far and away the best version of Dark Souls 2.
Ryan Taljonick · Apr 24, 2014 Reviewed onRead full review - Dark Souls II respects you enough to assume you can figure things out, despite having perhaps lost some of these sensibilities by playing other titles that walk you through on tether from start to finish. As a result, the rewards and achievements are that much more satisfying. It’s only March, but Dark Souls II stands tall as a potential game of the year.
Daniel Tack · Apr 24, 2014 Reviewed on - This game is art in the good and bad sense of the word. It represents some of the best things that video games have to offer: at its most immersive, it offers a beautifully and thoughtfully rendered world to be explored that reveals itself not just through what is seen on the screen, but through the brutal and challenging experiences the player guides the in-game avatar through. The negative part of that is that the story of the game and the motivations and reasonings behind what is happening are obscure and unclear.
Pete Schwab · Apr 24, 2014 Reviewed on PCRead full review - The Souls games have rarely been about fun, but Dark Souls 2's smart tweaks and concessions brought out positive emotions even amidst the pain and exhaustion. It's still a stressful experience, but it's easier than ever to recognize the brilliance in those moments of triumph that make it more than worth the struggle.
Philip Kollar · Apr 24, 2014 Reviewed on PC, PS3, X360Read full review - If you decided to wait for the PC version of Dark Souls II before jumping in, you’ve made the right decision. It’s not leaps and bounds better than its console counterpart, but the graphical enhancements aid the immersion. When walking through the darkness, you’ll barely be able to see what’s in front of you and just the subtle nuances the higher resolution and textures allows us to better see, all accumulate to the definitive experience. It’s a significantly better attempt than From Software’s first PC port, but there definitely are some things that need to be worked out.
Adam Beck · Apr 24, 2014 Reviewed on PCRead full review - Dark Souls 2 is still a rewarding experience for those who see it through to the end, regardless of previous experience with the Souls series. There are differences, however. There’s less room for frustration in Dark Souls 2. There’s never that feeling of an insurmountable wall that made many turn away from the original game. There’s a lower barrier to entry for newcomers, and there’s more than enough of the familiar qualities of the previous games to appease long-time fans.
Bill Hess · Apr 24, 2014 Reviewed on PCRead full review
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Community Reviews
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- Rated on PC
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- Rated on PC
About the game
Trailers & Screenshots:
Dark Souls II features a new hero, a new storyline, and an unfamiliar world for players to survive in while delivering its signature brand of unrelenting punishment that players hunger for. Epic battles with gruesome enemies and blood-thirsty bosses await adventurers as they traverse through a devastated world filled with death and despair; only those who are strong willed or cunning can survive this journey to achieve great glory. Players seeking to share their experience will discover a revamped server-based multiplayer mode that puts a distinct Dark Souls II twist on the concept of playing with others.
Developer: FromSoftware