DARK SOULS™ II: Scholar of the First Sin Review Summary
Last updated: 2026-06-22
- Great atmosphere and visuals
- Interesting dual-wield system
- Large content volume
- Enemy placement poorly designed
- Controls imprecise and janky
- Bosses too easy and forgettable
Emotions
Archetypes
Hardware
Windows <8GB VRAM / <16GB RAMpositiveWindows 12-15GB VRAMmixed
- Sample precision
- Helpful reviews
- 77%
- Unhelpful reviews
- 22%
- Protest reviews
- 1%
- 0%Helpful reviews with positive sentiment
- 100%Helpful reviews with negative sentiment
- Positive points
- 74
- Negative points
- 523
- Gameplay points
- 48
- Perf. points
- 13
- Rec. points
- 70
- Misc points
- 0
| Point | Description | Importance |
|---|---|---|
Great atmosphere and visuals
| Multiple players praise the attractive atmosphere, visuals, and art design of Dark Souls 2, including the unique fantasy vibe and the stunning areas enhanced by the lighting engine. | 24% |
Interesting dual-wield system
| The dual-wielding system, especially power stancing, is highlighted as an interesting mechanic that expands playstyles and build potential, allowing varied movesets. | 12% |
Large content volume
| The game has a lot of content, being the longest base game with complete DLCs, offering high replayability despite potential grinding. | 10% |
Majula is beautiful hub
| Majula is repeatedly praised as the most beautiful hub in the Souls series, with a strong atmosphere and clear artistic vision, comparable or better than Firelink Shrine. | 10% |
Convenient bonfire travel
| The ability to warp to any bonfire from the start is a convenient feature, along with bonfire ascetics that allow converting areas to NG+ and refighting bosses. | 10% |
Good build variety
| Players enjoy the build variety and freedom for interesting builds, with power-stancing and dual wielding providing viable options. | 10% |
High quality cinematics and story
| Cinematics are high level and the story has an epic feel with connections to Dark Souls 1, though it is a good story for a Souls game. | 10% |
Excellent weapons and armor
| The variety and quality of weapons and armor are praised, including wonderful designs, effective damage types, and unique weapon types like twinblades. | 8% |
Interesting unique mechanics
| Unique mechanics like hexes, incense system, stone dudes, and charcoal of enmity are appreciated and noted as missing in later entries, adding depth to the game. | 8% |
Fun miscellaneous features
| Small enjoyable features include quick ladder climbing, satisfying lock-on, and amusing character creation (like Ryan Gosling), adding to the fun. | 7% |
Convenient respec feature
| The ability to re-spec character stats is a welcome addition for build experimentation, paired with bonfire warping for convenience. | 5% |
Increased Pursuer encounters
| The increased number of Pursuer encounters is seen as a silver lining, adding more challenge and variety to the game. | 3% |