- "Go Beyond Death"
- — Dark Souls II Tagline
Dark Souls II is a fantasy action-RPG game developed by From Software and is a follow up to Dark Souls. It was announced on December 7, 2012. The game has been published for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC by Namco Bandai Games. Dark Souls II was released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 11, 2014 in North America, on March 13th in Japan and Australia and on March 14th in Europe. The PC version was released on April 25th, 2014.[2] The game has a sequel, Dark Souls III, which was released in 2016.
Plot
The story of Dark Souls II is not directly connected to Dark Souls, though they are set in the same world.[3]
The game takes place in Drangleic, a once prosperous land under the rule of King Vendrick, which has fallen to ruin throughout the ages with the raging war between humans and giants, the sudden disappearance of the King, and the spreading of the Undead Curse. Like many others, the protagonist has come to the crumbling kingdom in search of a cure for their crippling affliction, the Curse of the Undead.
Gameplay
Similar to the previous title, players customize the gender and physical features of their character, in addition to choosing a starting class, which determines the stats and equipment that the player begins with, and a starting gift. From a third-person perspective, players explore a continuous, open world that is roughly the same size as the original game, but with more freedom in how the player can progress.[4] Akin to the notorious difficulty of its predecessor, players are confronted by a persistently hostile environment with unrelenting enemies and bosses – death is a central theme. As enemies are defeated, souls are accumulated, acting as both a form of currency and means to increase attributes. Unlike the first game, however, the player can have a voice chat with other players in their world.
Special editions
Pre-ordering Dark Souls II through either Gamestop or Amazon will allow the choice of two special editions:
- Black Armor Edition. This special edition includes a metal case, the soundtrack from the game, and early access to the following weapons and shields:
- Collector's Edition. This special edition includes a 12-inch warrior knight figurine that is in the full Faraam Set, art book, cloth map of the game area, plus the Black Armor Edition of the game. This edition was pre-sold out in some regions.
The Lost Crowns
The Lost Crowns is a three-part DLC for Dark Souls II announced on June 4th, 2014.[5] Released episodically for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC, the packs can be purchased separately for $9.99 each, or all three can be purchased through Steam, PSN and Xbox Live for $24.99.[6]
- Crown of the Sunken King - July 22, 2014[7]
- Crown of the Old Iron King - August 26, 2014[8]
- Crown of the Ivory King - September 30, 2014[9]
Scholar of the First Sin
- Main article: Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin
In 2014, From Software announced the Scholar of the First Sin edition of Dark Souls II, which is a remaster of the game for Xbox One, PS4 and DirectX 11-compatible PCs. It was also released for PS3, Xbox 360 and DirectX 9-compatible PCs, but without the features of the current-generation console versions.
Official announcement from Bandai Namco's Tumblr account:
- Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin will be launching in the Americas on April 2, 2015 on Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, and PC/Steam (DirectX 9/DirectX11)!
- Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin will include the three previously released DLC packs - Crown of the Sunken King, Crown of the Old Iron King, and Crown of the Ivory King - along with additional features.
- All versions of the game will include the following features (Existing Dark Souls II owners will receive a patch to implement these elements):
- Additional NPCs added for an enhanced story experience.
- Parameter adjustments for improved game balance.
- Augmented item descriptions.
- Improved online matchmaking functionality.
- Xbox One, PS4, and DirectX 11 versions of the game will include the following features (in addition to those listed above):
- Additional upgrades to graphics, sound, performance.
- Increase in maximum online players in single session (6 total).[10]
Galleries
Screenshots
Promotional images
Trailers
Concept art
References
- ↑ TGS: Dark Souls 2 release date announced
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Dark Souls 2 PC release date announced
- ↑ Interview with Hidetaka Miyazaki
- ↑ Interview with Yui Tanimura
- ↑ Dark Souls II - Lost Crowns Trilogy Trailer
- ↑ Dark Souls 2 getting three-part Lost Crowns DLC beginning July 22
- ↑ Dark Souls II Crown of the Sunken King
- ↑ Dark Souls II Crown of the Old Iron King
- ↑ Dark Souls II Crown of the Ivory King
- ↑ We're very excited to announce Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin!