'Tis an entry that did naught but cement itself as one of my favorite videogames of all time. It's downright impressive how consistently these games tip perfection.
One of my favorite things about Dark Souls II is the way the game paces and structures itself. Drangleic manages not only to fully (and I do mean fully) encapsulate my attention and curiosity as it brims with life, or has just enough of it for me to feel its death. In stories, a kingdom's fall stales quick if it couldn't be interesting enough during its rise and peak. And Drangleic's? It's fascinating.
Dark Souls II's technical quality is just unimpeachable; going off atmosphere alone, very few experiences come close to this. There's just something about the visual effects, aesthetics and textures that hit a strong balance between realism and dark fantasy. This game is gorgeous. In multiple occasions I found myself just... having to stop and take it all in. Majula is, of course, the first example that comes to mind when illustrating Dark Souls II's inherent capacity to make me be one with its world. Its soothing beauty and calmness trully feel like the light beyond the tunnel, a genuinely tranquil haven whose quality perpetuates throughout the entire game.
My throat thralls at the sheer magnitude and beauty so many areas in this game manage to convey. And the surprisingly rich amount of variety certainly helps to hammer home how credible Drangleic is as a nation: it has a capitol, port, prison, military settlements, villages and more! Not to mention how since Drangleic wasn't as ancient as Lordran during Dark Souls 1's events, it is easier to imagine what Drangleic was at its peak, seducing my imagination all the more.
Whereas Dark Souls had an emphasis on grander philosophical theses, political tramas and such, I feel like its sequel's themes are more personal ones. And before I get to dissect them, I'm urged to commend yet again the game's world-class structure, because it doesn't get more idyllic than when blooming its themes. Y'know, I very much enjoy when a work of art takes inspiration from the real world and turns it into an important piece of its own story. Why I'm bringing that up? Because Dark Souls II not just referenced some occult belief or piece of real-life history--no, it turned the wheel on itself and used from the first game's own lore as metaphors to enchance its narrative. I doesn't just expands on the first game's lore, it gives it a new meaning and that is brilliant.
Also, Dark Souls II is a surprisingly poignant game. By placing more focus on characters rather than ancient history, II managed to have a more compelling cast and, by extent, more tragedy as the morally-gray decisions made by some of them can be felt more intensely (as well as its consequences). And given that, I'd like to stress again how great it was to experience a game with so much depth and emotion centering it. Even without the connections to the first game this is great. When II has but its own feet to stand on, it hits the kind of excellency that's impossible to unshackle my mind from. The reason why I love videogames is because I love exploring different worlds and having my imagination and critical thinking provoked, of course, but it is also because of the intense emotions that these fictional characters and moments are capable of causing me to feel; the awakening of "sides" of me I didn't even know I had and reminding me of what kind of person I want to be. Dark Souls II does all that and then some.
No eye is too keen, no thought too deep; I feel like I could replay Dark Souls II forever and keep finding details and references. The deeper I'm in its iceberg, the harder I fall in love with it. From the very second I click my final dot in this review I'll hop right onto III because I'm just that content with From Software games.
One of my favorite things about Dark Souls II is the way the game paces and structures itself. Drangleic manages not only to fully (and I do mean fully) encapsulate my attention and curiosity as it brims with life, or has just enough of it for me to feel its death. In stories, a kingdom's fall stales quick if it couldn't be interesting enough during its rise and peak. And Drangleic's? It's fascinating.
Dark Souls II's technical quality is just unimpeachable; going off atmosphere alone, very few experiences come close to this. There's just something about the visual effects, aesthetics and textures that hit a strong balance between realism and dark fantasy. This game is gorgeous. In multiple occasions I found myself just... having to stop and take it all in. Majula is, of course, the first example that comes to mind when illustrating Dark Souls II's inherent capacity to make me be one with its world. Its soothing beauty and calmness trully feel like the light beyond the tunnel, a genuinely tranquil haven whose quality perpetuates throughout the entire game.
My throat thralls at the sheer magnitude and beauty so many areas in this game manage to convey. And the surprisingly rich amount of variety certainly helps to hammer home how credible Drangleic is as a nation: it has a capitol, port, prison, military settlements, villages and more! Not to mention how since Drangleic wasn't as ancient as Lordran during Dark Souls 1's events, it is easier to imagine what Drangleic was at its peak, seducing my imagination all the more.
Whereas Dark Souls had an emphasis on grander philosophical theses, political tramas and such, I feel like its sequel's themes are more personal ones. And before I get to dissect them, I'm urged to commend yet again the game's world-class structure, because it doesn't get more idyllic than when blooming its themes. Y'know, I very much enjoy when a work of art takes inspiration from the real world and turns it into an important piece of its own story. Why I'm bringing that up? Because Dark Souls II not just referenced some occult belief or piece of real-life history--no, it turned the wheel on itself and used from the first game's own lore as metaphors to enchance its narrative. I doesn't just expands on the first game's lore, it gives it a new meaning and that is brilliant.
Also, Dark Souls II is a surprisingly poignant game. By placing more focus on characters rather than ancient history, II managed to have a more compelling cast and, by extent, more tragedy as the morally-gray decisions made by some of them can be felt more intensely (as well as its consequences). And given that, I'd like to stress again how great it was to experience a game with so much depth and emotion centering it. Even without the connections to the first game this is great. When II has but its own feet to stand on, it hits the kind of excellency that's impossible to unshackle my mind from. The reason why I love videogames is because I love exploring different worlds and having my imagination and critical thinking provoked, of course, but it is also because of the intense emotions that these fictional characters and moments are capable of causing me to feel; the awakening of "sides" of me I didn't even know I had and reminding me of what kind of person I want to be. Dark Souls II does all that and then some.
No eye is too keen, no thought too deep; I feel like I could replay Dark Souls II forever and keep finding details and references. The deeper I'm in its iceberg, the harder I fall in love with it. From the very second I click my final dot in this review I'll hop right onto III because I'm just that content with From Software games.