Dark Souls II – reviews of 'gripping' video game sequel

What you need to know The sequel to supernatural role-playing action video game Dark Souls has been released in the UK. Reviewers are calling Dark Souls II, by Dark Souls and Demon Souls developer From Software, "astonishing" and a "masterpiece".

The new game is set in Drangleic, the same nightmarish world as Dark Souls. Players take on the role of a cursed undead character who must search for a cure for their curse with the assistance of souls who help them maintain their humanity while fighting demons.

From a third-person perspective, players explore a hostile environment battling remorseless enemies and accumulating souls to use as currency and increase their powers.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

What the critics like The uncompromising sequel to Dark Souls is an "extraordinary" game, says Simon Parkin in The Guardian. Huge, brutal and astonishing, Dark Souls II offers perhaps the greatest sense of discovery, victory and, at times, frustration of any video game yet made.

"Like its predecessor, Dark Souls II is a complex, demanding opus," says Oliver Cragg in The Independent. It's the perfect refinement of the gripping experience and as this current generation of consoles 'prepares to die' Dark Souls II becomes its final masterpiece.

The latest Dark Souls offering is "a stunning example of world-building, adventure-finding and boss slaying", says Ashton Raze in the Daily Telegraph. The bizarre, mournful, and sometimes humorous characters are wonderfully realised, and the stories are consistently interesting.

What they don't like "If you are a veteran of the series then inevitably Dark Souls II is not going to have the same impact as the first [instalment]," says Roger Hargreaves in Metro. But the only real disappointment is the visuals, which, in trying to offer a greater variety of locations, struggle to do justice to some ideas.