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Dark Souls 2 (Dark Souls successor (Demon's Souls successor))

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I tried just about every controller fix I could find this weekend. None worked. Not quite sure what options I have now!

 

 

OK! Update! I had recently purchased a Wii U pro controller adapter for PC. This actually works, however the key bindings are still slightly off to the point that its a minor irritation. However muscle memory is important and it's fucking me.

 

On the 360 controller A and B as well as Y and X are flipped compared the the Wii U pro. However the game reads the pro controller's inputs. In other words, I press A on the Wii U pro, and it reads it as A on the 360, but it's where B usually is. Gah!!! Does Dark Souls 2 offer a way to change controller bindings? I found keyboard bindings but nothing about controllers...

 

Update 2: I tried a previous fix that didn't work for the PS4 controller, but it worked for the Wii U pro. So I can totally play now! WOO! Nintendo to the rescue!

Still prefer the DS4, but beggars can't be choosers. 

 

I got in about an hour of play time last night.

 

Wow. I'm liking the start. Those enemies you face off against first are actually pretty tough. The only shield I have doesn't block 100% so I'm having to learn their attack patterns while taking a lot of damage and dying a lot. 

That leads into losing overall health when you die? Similar to the Deamons' Souls mechanic, but much harsher. I'm at the point where 2 hits from the great sword wielding guardian wipes me out. 

Finally, I don't know how I feel about the new bonfires. The fact you can fast travel to start feels odd, but it's mandatory now you need to go back to the "nexus" to level up.

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I picked this up during the Steam summer sale, and so far 3 hours in I'm feeling, kind of... underwhelmed? I have avoided reading anything about the game so far, although I'm aware the reviews were positive. I put so many hours into Demon's Souls, and the first Dark Souls, I'm not sure why I'm not feeling this one. There isn't anything I can point my finger to, and say this is a problem. I wonder if there is something about this one, or if I'm just burnt out on this style of game?

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Most people who played the first two games a lot tend to feel somewhat let down by 2. The reasons vary though.

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Are you sticking strictly solo, or dipping into co-op and PvP?  I thought it was superior online play and mechanically in general, while being poorer in a few other areas. 

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I haven't dipped into co-op and PvP yet, but I also only just defeated the first boss. I'm looking forward to checking out more of the online experience.

 

For what's it worth, I was enjoying my time with the game last night slightly more than the first day, so maybe I was just annoyed with the slow start compared to the earlier games.

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+1 this made a big difference to me as well, the controls felt "off" to me until I did that

 

FWIW, both adaptability and attunement raise Agility, which governs the number of I-frames you get while rolling.  There are several breakpoints where you get an extra frame.  The most important one is 105.  Beyond 105, it takes a huge investment to get anymore I-frames.  You can go with less, and there are some guides explaining where each breakpoint is so you're not wasting points with your build.  Mages and clerics need less in adaptability, since they are picking up some free agility points from attunement.  But attunement gives overall a lot less agility than adaptability.

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For those at all into youtube let's plays, I heartily recommend Kay. She just finished her run through DS2, which I thought was pretty entertaining. Here are her deaths:

 

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I loved that playthrough. She's so good! It's amazing how well she deals with surprises and difficult situations.

The part in Earthen Peak drove me nuts though. She came so close to burning the bloody windmill.

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I liked Matt Lees' videos. He complained that the windmill in Earthen Peak is unintuitive and I've got to agree with him. You can throw firebombs at the fabric of the sails to no effect, but holding a torch to the metal shaft works instantly...bwuh?

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I don't think that's the problem with it, as with that logic you could fire bomb the windmill before you even get up the tower. The main problem to me is that there is no logical connection between the windmill and the poison. There is no visible environmental traits to show that it's the case, making it a very esoteric solution. However, now there's so many messages in front of the dammed thing it's hard to miss.

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Even then, "try fire". The first thing I did was throw a firebomb. 

 

The main problem to me is that there is no logical connection between the windmill and the poison. There is no visible environmental traits to show that it's the case, making it a very esoteric solution.

 

Absolutely, yes.

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Okay, I finally started and put two hours into this game. At moments, it feels as good or better than the first Dark Souls, but I would definitely have noticed and complained about the number of jumping "puzzles" and multi-enemy groups even if I hadn't read it here first. I got a good groove going for a little while, then got lost and stuck in a death loop around all the crazy scaffolding. Maybe I'll come back to it after my trip.

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You must be overapplying a specific area re: scaffolding, I think. I am 150 hours or so in and the only mandatory jumping I can think of is in the tutorial and at the bottom of the well.

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Valley of the giants has that one section near the pursuer, but its just a little side area

 

Yeah, that's right where I went. I restarted after accidentally attacking Cale the Cartographer and have since realized my mistake. Having archers shoot at me while I'm jumping around is the worst, I'd maybe even have skipped it if I'd known.

 

I'm determined to go for an agile magic-using fencer this time around. So far, the starting shortsword I got has been the best, but I just put a couple points in strength to be able to use the Heide Straight Sword and the Fire Longsword I've found. I haven't got to test them out much, but I feel like I should look up the break-points for stats in Dark Souls 2, because it sounds like the forty-point rule of thumb is no more.

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I'm determined to go for an agile magic-using fencer this time around. So far, the starting shortsword I got has been the best, but I just put a couple points in strength to be able to use the Heide Straight Sword and the Fire Longsword I've found. I haven't got to test them out much, but I feel like I should look up the break-points for stats in Dark Souls 2, because it sounds like the forty-point rule of thumb is no more.

 

Yeah, it's a bit different.  The 40 point thing still applies to straight Str and Dex weapons, but scaling is in many ways not as valuable in DS2 unless you are pure melee character.  It is worth looking up the progression eventually though.  Since you can respec, it's not as vital early on though, since you can easily correct early decisions you regret. 

 

 

Yeah, that's right where I went. I restarted after accidentally attacking Cale the Cartographer and have since realized my mistake. Having archers shoot at me while I'm jumping around is the worst, I'd maybe even have skipped it if I'd known.

 

 

If you ever start again and go back through there, the easy path is actually going backwards.  You can make a long jump from the tree root/branch growing out of the top of the castle wall to the lone archer on the scaffolding, talk to Cale, then work your way back around to the middle and it is much faster and easier. 

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Yeah, it's a bit different.  The 40 point thing still applies to straight Str and Dex weapons, but scaling is in many ways not as valuable in DS2 unless you are pure melee character.  It is worth looking up the progression eventually though.  Since you can respec, it's not as vital early on though, since you can easily correct early decisions you regret.

 

I forgot about the respec option! That makes me feel a lot better about putting a point or two in a non-critical skill to test out the moveset of a new weapon.

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Edited to add: Patch doesn't come out til next Friday.

 

Holy mother of all patches Batman!  Beyond dozens of fixes for issues, they are rebalancing like half the weapons, spells and armors in the game.  A ton of things are getting buffed, a few things are getting nerfed.  Bunches of spells are getting adjustments to uses and damage (looks like quite a few things are getting fewer casts at more damage).  It also looks like the scaling bonuses on a bunch of things are being improved. 

 

Giant change to PvP is no more healing for anyone using items, though I'm guessing that spells still work.  I'm a bit split on this.  I actually think the idea of healing in PvP is fine, the problem is the sheer quantity of healing that is available to players at high level.  I'd have preferred something like each person limited to 2 Estus drinks or something. 

 

The summoning range is being extended, which is probably a net good. 

 

The only nerf I see that makes me want to cry a little is to dual wielded Channeler's Tridents. 

 

This looks like they are trying to diversify the overall weapon and armor usage, particularly in PvP.  A lot of the things getting buffed are usable now, but definitely at a bit of a disadvantage.

 

I forced myself to take a break from DS2, it was basically all I played for three months.  I may not jump right back in when the first DLC episode drops, but will definitely be back by the second one.  Looking forward to a bunch of new toys to play with. 

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Not a fan of weapon balance changes for games like Dark Souls when so much of the experience is mining information and trying out combos. Now do I have to sit down and try every combo I've used all over again?

 

On another note, I stopped playing this after seeing the king for the first time. I kinda know where to go because I read a little, but man they don't give you any direction at all on what to do at that point. I just haven't felt like going back to it since then.

 

Edit: Anywhere else I can see those patch notes? Reddit is blocked at work.

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