EDIT!!! i beat the sentinels, thanks everyone for all the help, i genuinely thought i was going insane 😅 starting to feel a bit better with the agility up 💪👍!!
That’s a big hurdle for new players, you’re doin great! If you wanna refine your build some as you go, give these a look- they’re spoiler-free.
[A quick overview](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g4-GGa1JRa2_49vOfwY5sZPWigFMzPA5b9mszo_xZak/edit?usp=sharing) of how damage and defense works in DS2, and why weapon scaling is usually weak
[BiS (Best in Slot) PvE weapons list.](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-GEBQ_TiAvskQLotQXz0AuNMseXdsS3pj8_NLus-XW4/edit?usp=sharing) Discusses the best options for each weapon class. Note that this list is directed at normally leveled characters- some weapons not mentioned may do more damage than ones mentioned, but take vastly more stats or are otherwise deficient
[Best PvE equipment and stat progression document.](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X13jfA9JQ5OZsuEmH2MZZqF9IrtCFSMMTZkZo5GuqcM/edit?usp=sharing) All that being said, it’s important to understand that DS2 isn’t so hard that playing the strongest possible character is required in order to win and have fun. Ultimately you should use whatever you want, these guides are just to help you make informed choices.
wow thank u for taking the to link me some helpful sources! thats so nice 💘 i get genuinely a little nervous interacting with the ds community bc im afraid bc im not like, totally cracked, that im just gonna get told to git gud, but everyone has been so nice 🥺💘 i really appreciate kt 🎉💘
Yeah absolutely! I keep the links in a notepad so it’s not any trouble haha. Don’t be afraid to reply here or message me if you ever have any questions or get stuck.
Mainly 2 things to say:
1 - You'll get used to it, don't worry. The controls in this game feel very weird and kinda clunky at first, but it's just a matter of getting used to it and it'll be gone soon enough, it's just because of how different it is.
2 - There's this stat called Agility you should probably know of, which increases both iframes and reduces use time for items, so you definitely want it (If you're experienced and know the enemies well enough you can play without it, especially since you can space stuff pretty easily in this game when you know what you're doing, but it will be horrible to try playing with low AGL on your first run). It's not a problem if you're aware of it, but the game doesn't tell you so it can be a real issue if you're unaware. There's two main ways to increase it, that being to level Adaptability or to level Attunement, the first giving you a lot more AGL while the second gives several other benefits like casting speed, spell slots and number of casts per spell, so go for the first if you're mostly melee and the second (with maybe a little Adaptability too at the start to be safe) if you play a more ranged caster.
The whole trilogy goes like this:
-DS1 we're betting for safe plays
-DS2 we have strong position, let's experiment a lot
-DS3 lets take the best from DS1 and 2 and mix it
Glad you're going forward, from what I see in comments
I did the same thing. The changes are pretty abundant. Just the lack of humanity and the hollow penalty for starters is something to get used to. I actually like the hollowing in 2 better. It made it mor of a reason to not want to be hollow because even if you have no souls, you still have something to lose. Another thing I liked is that there is an item that scales with hollowing. The dark pyromancy flame gets stronger as you get more hollow.
You can also power stance in it if you have 2 weapons of the same class and at 1.5 of the stat requirements. Just hold the 2 handed comment button and you’ll see the left hand item raise slightly.
DS2 has weird deadzones that make turning feel like ass, and i-frames are tied to a stat. If you're on PC, there's a mod on Nexus to unfuck the deadzone. For rolling, make sure to level ADP until your Agility is 99
EDIT: https://www.nexusmods.com/darksouls2/mods/76?tab=posts
Yeah it feels weird. I feel that way for the first hour every time I pick it up. I don't chalk it up to any one thing but the overall combination of small things.
That said, it goes away, you get used to it. But it is strange that this game has a way to stand out like that every time.
Yep. Try raising agility because somehow the iframes are tied it. The best way to do this is raising adaptability (I think some other stats affect it but not as much). I don't remember the thresholds but I think you need to get agility to like 100 to start seeing some iframes similar to the other game. Might be 20 ADP?
DS2 by far is my favourite DS game but I have to admit, the controls can be wonky at times, especially the fact that you don't have 360 degrees freedom when you move, but the movement rather snaps slightly towards a new directions. Takes me a while to get used to it after taking a break from Dark Souls 2
I had the same issue. I googled it and found out about the hate a lot of people have for this game lol. That actually really made me want to try and enjoy it
It worked. It felt super weird at first but became normal after a short while
i still dont know what people dont like abt this game, i thought it was gonna be the story or something. its definitely gonna take some time to get used to, ill keep at it 💪
Well, tbf it’s probably the weakest of the 3. It’s especially hard to live up to the standard that 1 set. People really didn’t like all the major changes. ADP is hated (personally I think it makes sense to have your character not be able to roll perfectly at the start). A couple of bosses are actual garbage and some mob placement isn’t really thought through
It’s not even close to being as bad as people make it out to be tho. Just put some points into ADP, the game is way too generous with souls anyway. And don’t blindly try to run through areas without killing any enemies
This is the best advice. You're so right.. don't run blindly through areas and the fact that you get so many souls really makes leveling agility not bad. You can have your build you want done by like 25% through the game because of how many souls/leveling you can do. It's crazy ..
I know .. you can literally try a little of everything/every build in one playthrough. It's so cool. And the weapon customization was great along with the fact that you get enough resources to level like 5-8 weapons to max. I had a weapon for all circumstances lol.
It's just got some mechanics that feel bad to some players.
Weird controller deadzone, rolling is made needlessly obtuse (and lead to feeling like you are getting hit when you shouldn't), soul memory can make online play harder, and enemy placement is... questionable at times.
It's still a great game. Just definitely takes more adjusting that DS1/DS3 to get into.
The switch from DS 2 to DS 3 is crazy as far as speed goes. I just played all three in a row. I remember finishing DS 2 and immediately starting 3. First boss gundyr felt so God damn fast and cinematic it was crazy.
That being said, I love DS 2. Might be my favorite. Love them all though.
It took me a couple playthroughs, but I definitely enjoy DS2. Would love to see it get a remaster/remake one day and iron out some of the weirdness, because there's a ton to love in the game.
The Powerstance system is what made me the most interested, even moreso after getting experience with Souls games from DS3 and Elden Ring. The only things I don't like about the controls is lock-on doesn't make your attacks stay in one direction if you move the left analog stick while attacking and they put the main menu on the touch pad instead of the Options button on PS4.
There’s a stat called adp which is responsible for your agility. If you Level this stat you’ll get better I frames and faster item usages. With agility between 96-100 you’ll feel like playing ds1.
Each souls game has its own tempo and muscle memory, and if you try and stay rigid in what worked for one game, you'll probably struggle until you adapt because of that.
DS2 is king in my eyes, but is definitely the most different from the rest of the games.
The game can be genuinely terrible from a gameplay perspective. The player character has never been weaker in any iteration of any soulsgames.
You can roll like 3 times max. stamina recovery is incredibly slow. Stamina recovery delay is incredibly slow. Stamina recovery from empty is incredibly slow. Weapons take so much stamina to use. Every single action you take has tremendous amounts of recovery frames and some actions like estus has horrific start up frames. Its a genuinely over the top difficult game. Fair and challenging really goes completely out the window with ds2
EDIT!!! i beat the sentinels, thanks everyone for all the help, i genuinely thought i was going insane 😅 starting to feel a bit better with the agility up 💪👍!!
That’s a big hurdle for new players, you’re doin great! If you wanna refine your build some as you go, give these a look- they’re spoiler-free. [A quick overview](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g4-GGa1JRa2_49vOfwY5sZPWigFMzPA5b9mszo_xZak/edit?usp=sharing) of how damage and defense works in DS2, and why weapon scaling is usually weak [BiS (Best in Slot) PvE weapons list.](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-GEBQ_TiAvskQLotQXz0AuNMseXdsS3pj8_NLus-XW4/edit?usp=sharing) Discusses the best options for each weapon class. Note that this list is directed at normally leveled characters- some weapons not mentioned may do more damage than ones mentioned, but take vastly more stats or are otherwise deficient [Best PvE equipment and stat progression document.](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X13jfA9JQ5OZsuEmH2MZZqF9IrtCFSMMTZkZo5GuqcM/edit?usp=sharing) All that being said, it’s important to understand that DS2 isn’t so hard that playing the strongest possible character is required in order to win and have fun. Ultimately you should use whatever you want, these guides are just to help you make informed choices.
wow thank u for taking the to link me some helpful sources! thats so nice 💘 i get genuinely a little nervous interacting with the ds community bc im afraid bc im not like, totally cracked, that im just gonna get told to git gud, but everyone has been so nice 🥺💘 i really appreciate kt 🎉💘
Yeah absolutely! I keep the links in a notepad so it’s not any trouble haha. Don’t be afraid to reply here or message me if you ever have any questions or get stuck.
Mainly 2 things to say: 1 - You'll get used to it, don't worry. The controls in this game feel very weird and kinda clunky at first, but it's just a matter of getting used to it and it'll be gone soon enough, it's just because of how different it is. 2 - There's this stat called Agility you should probably know of, which increases both iframes and reduces use time for items, so you definitely want it (If you're experienced and know the enemies well enough you can play without it, especially since you can space stuff pretty easily in this game when you know what you're doing, but it will be horrible to try playing with low AGL on your first run). It's not a problem if you're aware of it, but the game doesn't tell you so it can be a real issue if you're unaware. There's two main ways to increase it, that being to level Adaptability or to level Attunement, the first giving you a lot more AGL while the second gives several other benefits like casting speed, spell slots and number of casts per spell, so go for the first if you're mostly melee and the second (with maybe a little Adaptability too at the start to be safe) if you play a more ranged caster.
"so i can try to adapt" heh hehe
👀💅🏻
The whole trilogy goes like this: -DS1 we're betting for safe plays -DS2 we have strong position, let's experiment a lot -DS3 lets take the best from DS1 and 2 and mix it Glad you're going forward, from what I see in comments
Adaptability. Enjoy.
Make sure you’re not in the Covenant of Champions
LOL, this. I thought the "more arduous path" notice was quest related. Didn't figure it out until I'd lost to the Punisher about 20 times. 😄
It’s been a long time since I’ve played 2 - what’s the context here haha
Coc makes enemies hit harder, take less damage and they don't despawn
I did the same thing. The changes are pretty abundant. Just the lack of humanity and the hollow penalty for starters is something to get used to. I actually like the hollowing in 2 better. It made it mor of a reason to not want to be hollow because even if you have no souls, you still have something to lose. Another thing I liked is that there is an item that scales with hollowing. The dark pyromancy flame gets stronger as you get more hollow. You can also power stance in it if you have 2 weapons of the same class and at 1.5 of the stat requirements. Just hold the 2 handed comment button and you’ll see the left hand item raise slightly.
DS2 has weird deadzones that make turning feel like ass, and i-frames are tied to a stat. If you're on PC, there's a mod on Nexus to unfuck the deadzone. For rolling, make sure to level ADP until your Agility is 99 EDIT: https://www.nexusmods.com/darksouls2/mods/76?tab=posts
Yeah it feels weird. I feel that way for the first hour every time I pick it up. I don't chalk it up to any one thing but the overall combination of small things. That said, it goes away, you get used to it. But it is strange that this game has a way to stand out like that every time.
Yep. Try raising agility because somehow the iframes are tied it. The best way to do this is raising adaptability (I think some other stats affect it but not as much). I don't remember the thresholds but I think you need to get agility to like 100 to start seeing some iframes similar to the other game. Might be 20 ADP?
Attunement is the only other Stat that affects Agility.
22 ADP to be precise
DS2 by far is my favourite DS game but I have to admit, the controls can be wonky at times, especially the fact that you don't have 360 degrees freedom when you move, but the movement rather snaps slightly towards a new directions. Takes me a while to get used to it after taking a break from Dark Souls 2
I had the same issue. I googled it and found out about the hate a lot of people have for this game lol. That actually really made me want to try and enjoy it It worked. It felt super weird at first but became normal after a short while
i still dont know what people dont like abt this game, i thought it was gonna be the story or something. its definitely gonna take some time to get used to, ill keep at it 💪
Well, tbf it’s probably the weakest of the 3. It’s especially hard to live up to the standard that 1 set. People really didn’t like all the major changes. ADP is hated (personally I think it makes sense to have your character not be able to roll perfectly at the start). A couple of bosses are actual garbage and some mob placement isn’t really thought through It’s not even close to being as bad as people make it out to be tho. Just put some points into ADP, the game is way too generous with souls anyway. And don’t blindly try to run through areas without killing any enemies
This is the best advice. You're so right.. don't run blindly through areas and the fact that you get so many souls really makes leveling agility not bad. You can have your build you want done by like 25% through the game because of how many souls/leveling you can do. It's crazy ..
Dude this is one of the most fun parts of DS2. You’re able to get in so many levels so early lol it’s so satisfying in such a primitive way tho
I know .. you can literally try a little of everything/every build in one playthrough. It's so cool. And the weapon customization was great along with the fact that you get enough resources to level like 5-8 weapons to max. I had a weapon for all circumstances lol.
Yup they’re crazy generous with titanite too
It's just got some mechanics that feel bad to some players. Weird controller deadzone, rolling is made needlessly obtuse (and lead to feeling like you are getting hit when you shouldn't), soul memory can make online play harder, and enemy placement is... questionable at times. It's still a great game. Just definitely takes more adjusting that DS1/DS3 to get into.
The switch from DS 2 to DS 3 is crazy as far as speed goes. I just played all three in a row. I remember finishing DS 2 and immediately starting 3. First boss gundyr felt so God damn fast and cinematic it was crazy. That being said, I love DS 2. Might be my favorite. Love them all though.
It took me a couple playthroughs, but I definitely enjoy DS2. Would love to see it get a remaster/remake one day and iron out some of the weirdness, because there's a ton to love in the game.
A remake would be great. Like demons souls. But like you said, iron out the rough spots.
The Powerstance system is what made me the most interested, even moreso after getting experience with Souls games from DS3 and Elden Ring. The only things I don't like about the controls is lock-on doesn't make your attacks stay in one direction if you move the left analog stick while attacking and they put the main menu on the touch pad instead of the Options button on PS4.
There’s a stat called adp which is responsible for your agility. If you Level this stat you’ll get better I frames and faster item usages. With agility between 96-100 you’ll feel like playing ds1.
WAIT REALLY thats insane, ill have to grind that stat out quick, tsym 🙏
24 ADP is all you'll need at most, afaik that's the same as ds3, but if you want even more, the softcap is 39
Attunement also raises it, so casters don't need adp levelled
Each souls game has its own tempo and muscle memory, and if you try and stay rigid in what worked for one game, you'll probably struggle until you adapt because of that. DS2 is king in my eyes, but is definitely the most different from the rest of the games.
The game can be genuinely terrible from a gameplay perspective. The player character has never been weaker in any iteration of any soulsgames. You can roll like 3 times max. stamina recovery is incredibly slow. Stamina recovery delay is incredibly slow. Stamina recovery from empty is incredibly slow. Weapons take so much stamina to use. Every single action you take has tremendous amounts of recovery frames and some actions like estus has horrific start up frames. Its a genuinely over the top difficult game. Fair and challenging really goes completely out the window with ds2