If you have the patience and are willing to give the game a chance, Dark Souls II becomes a masterwork of player empowerment goodness. After several hours grinding through the opening hours and learning the cold, brutal ways in which the game operates, you'll find yourself yelling victory chants and...

+Familiar yet refined and satisfying gameplay; +Great level design; +Fantastic art direction; +Varied enemies and environments; +Hours upon hours of gameplay; +It never gets old; +Great sound design that adds to the empowering gameplay

-Buggy AI; -Disappointingly "safe" at times; -Presentation is a little lacking

The best way to play Dark Souls 2, address many of the shortcomings found in the base game with its three amazing DLC areas.

This game is truly amazing. It's so refreshing to find a gameplay experience that is well suited to an adult gamer. It has nothing to do with the vulgarity of the content but everything to do with the challenge and design of the game systems.

"Legend has it that in the deepest reaches of the Black Gulch, behind a door locked from the inside, is a magnificent city built for a great sleeping dragon." This was part of the description that I was given for a peculiar dragon talon that would open a door to Shulva, the first area of the Crown...

New and challenging areas; Great boss fights; Now featuring puzzles

Added difficulty sometimes feels cheap; The new puzzling element is pretty simple

In Drangleic, a land where souls are used both as currency and consumed for power, you're told to seek misery. Misery will lead you to larger, more powerful souls. You've found your way here, as all cursed folk do, because these souls can cure you of your undeath and the madness of going Hollow --...

Over sixty million and the game hasn't even been out a week. That little factoid should tell you much of what you need to know about Dark Souls II ; like its predecessor, it's a brutal, unforgiving, nightmarishly hard game.

Dark Souls 2 is the excellent sequel to Fromsofts RPG franchise Dark Souls. Priding itself with its tough-but-fair difficulty, amazing character customisation depth, and thriving multiplayer community, Dark Souls 2 is a strong contender for Game of the Year 2014. It is the perfect game for RPG fans.

will kill you over and over again, but each death is a learning experience taking you one step closer to your goal.

For those who either didn't enjoy the first game that much or are yet to try out a Souls game, it will be tough to get used to this and may prove more of a challenge. As I was prepared for the way in which the game worked, I felt like the challenge wasn't as great as when I first stepped into...

As someone who is very fond of From Software's Dark Souls , and indeed due to many people of the world's love of this now legendary Action RPG from Japan, the sequel has a lot to live up to. Dark Souls 2 continues the heritage laid down by both Dark Souls and From's debut, Demon's Souls .