Y'know, this one wasn't as bad as the Sunken King. It had some shitty moments like the boss run to Sir Allone, but that was manageable after grinding down some of those annoying knights. Blue Smelter Demon was one of my favorite boss fights in a weird way. Incredibly difficult for me, yet so engaging despite it's clockwork nature. It might be the hardest Dark Souls II boss fight for me if I'm being honest. It doesn't help that the runback for that one is a special kinda of hellish that I didn't grind down. And finally, Fume Knight was pretty fun! I actually found it to be the easiest boss fight in this DLC, but still a great time. I also loved how easy the boss runback was for this fight.
The DLC focuses on what DS2 does best, knight boss fights. It doesn't reach the heights of Artorias of the Abyss and the level design is still frustrating at times, but not nearly as bad as The Sunken King DLC. It's better than most DS2 levels or bosses, but still not enough to really kick it up a notch for me. Worth playing in some sense, but it's still DS2 at its crappy, contrarian core.

Dark Souls II's second DLC is a rather fun time much like the first, feeling more balanced and fair than the base game. Brume Tower is pretty challenging, however, each death felt awarded to me and not like a 20-1 gank fest. There are a lot of traps and the tower is decently long, but the prize at the bottom of the tower is one of the best bosses in the series, and for sure the best in DS2. Fume Knight was the first boss I found to be actually challenging and exhilarating to fight, he has a great moveset to memorize, and it took me a solid hour or so to defeat him. His design is also really awesome, and the story he contains is some of the best in the game. This is also followed up by another excellent boss for all the same reasons, Sir Alonne. The only dud in this DLC was the optional area containing a reskinned Smelter Demon, an already somewhat tedious boss. The runback is AWFUL and when it's for a boss you already fought, why even bother? I certainly didn't. Otherwise, another good addition to the game I enjoyed much more than base DS2.

Despite giving this the same score as Sunken King, I am a little bit more mixed on this one. While the level design is very unique and fun, the enemy placement makes some sections absolutely hell, especially since half the area is very linear. The runbacks to Alonne and Blue Smelter Demon are also absolutely egregious and some of the worst game design I've ever seen.

However, this DLC has probably my two favorite bosses in the game, Fume Knight and Alonne. These two perfect what DS2 has been lacking for the most part, well-made and polished bosses. They have no bs attached and are just one-on-one duels that are pretty challenging and fair.

While I prefer Sunken King, Old Iron King is still pretty solid and proves DS2 could've been so much better.

Best DLC for Dark Souls II for sure. Two great boss battles, a dull one.

It's basically climbing down a tower made of Iron. Same problem with the Crown of the Sunken King, enemies hit like trucks and have very little poise. Best option is to run.

Sir Alonne boss fight is peak. Love it. Fume Knight too, awesome. Before entering Fume Knight, try get dressed as Velstadt for a quriky surprise.