Revisiting, Ranking, Re-evaluating: Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin- Part 2

On a Heiding to Nothing

Is the expression punch sleeping dogs hard until they bite or am I remembering that wrong

10. How bad can those Heide Knights really be.

Well, you know where my confidence is going to get me

11. Very bad

Yup

I've always thought the Heide knights were a cool idea, and second time round my view doesn't change. They have a real presence throughout their area, and even Big Chris is somewhat intimidated. I feel really smug when I remember that they don't get up until you kill one of the bosses so I can avoid fighting them for a while, until we stumble upon one that is sadly the exception to the rule. Big Chris is outsped and slashed to bits by a spear, and we're once again back at the bonfire. The look of the area is excellent, half sunken ruins in the bright sunlight is another great aesthetic choice, and as has been the case in the entire game so far the atmosphere is top notch. I like the larger knights who still dully do their duty, stood solemnly guarding in place, they pair well with the smaller Heide Knights, who have long ago given up and sit in place, past the point of wanting to fight. Before we can venture further, I realise something is troubling Chris. It's hard to interpret the grunts, but I realise he is desperate for a bigger club. I sympathise, after all biggerer club make thing deader quicker, and we decide to make a quick detour back to the forest of Fallen Giants to see if maybe, big clubs really do grow on trees.

I just came over to tell you I hate you

12. Hey kids watch this! *Precedes to fall to my death*

13. Fool me once shame on me, fool me twi- *falls to my death again*

Pull up a bit of grass, lets talk this out round the fire

14. We did not talk it out

So, we've found every bonfire, killed every enemy, basically Big Chris has done everything*, but to no avail. There is still no bigger club. Honestly, this has been a very tough time for us, so I'll skate over it and ask for you to keep us in your thoughts.

Dumb with envy, as opposed to the normality of just dumb

The artist formerly known as Ornstein

On the left, Dragonslayer Ornstein, one half of a true highlight of a boss fight found in the best area in the original Dark souls. On the right Old Dragonslayer, optional side boss and unable to kill the dragon sat on his doorstep.

The glory days are over for the famous warrior aren't they? The band's broken up, he's no longer playing to huge crowds, and even the classics don't hit the same. Big Chris merrily thwacks away without too much difficulty, and victory is so easy I forget to take a screen shot. The Cathderal of Blue is it's own area, but I don't know why. It's small, uninteresting, and the only NPC I can talk to is rude to us. I've heard enough, and like an overprotective parent with a problem child, I quickly move Big Chris along.

Old Dragonslayer- Beaten, No Deaths

An enemy I'd dub a BBB. A basic bitch boss.

Bleh

Look I like to think I'm quite a good writer, but good enough to write something engaging and funny about this?

Dragonrider- Beaten, No deaths

A Wharf fit for No Man

As basically a caveman, fire is a particular fascination of Big Chris

15 Can someone just remove gravity from everything

16 The same ledge. If there was ever a ledge based boss I would die a lot a lot.

It's the same song in a different venue

17 No, but for real this time, I'll stop just rushing in

18 I'm going to go dance on Isaac Newton's grave

19 Another much loved classic, dying as soon as you pick up your souls

Yeah I've reacted to light like that before to mate

I would say this area is decidedly average, but the average of Dark Souls 2 areas have gone up in my estimation so I'm finding it better than I did before. Being able to light up the area to upset the H.R. Geiger knock offs is cool, and watching the ship come in is great to. The graphics aren't exactly stellar, but the art direction and concepts are both really strong which in my mind matter more. Big Chris doesn't care about any of this, he's just sadly swinging a club too small for his muscles around. I'll find you something bigger soon buddy, promise.

Drangleic has invested more into public transport than the UK has recently. (Hah thats a politics folks)

Doesn't look very Flexible to me

The boss is your standard double bodied knight that you fight in the flooding bottom of a ship. Man, the bar really is set high for these games huh. The rising water can be a problem for the less aggressive players, but I don't need to tell you that isn't Big Chris's style. Sure, we're run a little close at the end, but it's another one and done boss attempt.

I get anxious just looking at this picture

Flexile Sentry- Beaten, No deaths

I'm Lost Bastille

Right, a delicate situation, I have to treat it with care and caution

20 I'm the one feeling forlorn right now

21 Ok now the Pursuers are living up to their name

22 One more hit is another strategy that really doesn't bring much success

I have run out of jokes for this situation

A muted Big Chris makes his way into the Lost Bastille. As far as "places were humans succumbing to the curse are kept" this beats the Undead Asylum from the original for me. It's got good level design, in the sense that I'm totally lost but having a good time. The multiple Pursuer fights I also enjoy, really hammers home the fear of the curse and adds to the feel of the area. To just explain to anyone that doesn't know the lore, the Pursuers are knights who's sole job was to hunt down and kill bearers of the curse, so logically they act as sort of jailers chasing down those undead that manage to escape. Still, they're no match to Big Chris and his little club. He's got no idea why we're going through Drangleic, he's only in it for increasingly bigger and harder sticks.

Sentinels are never good guys are they

Could you not

23 Ruin sentinels? More like I'm dead!

24 Blown off a ledge running to a boss Dark Souls 2 I'm really trying to like you

25 Why must bad boss runs happen to good people

So, these lads. Definitely a bit of an upswing challenge wise, the Ruin Sentinels are not bad as far as bosses go, but they don't massively stand out from the crowd. We take them down at the second time of asking, before getting blown up by a lad in a cell before I can reach the next bonfire. Dark Souls why do you hate me so. Oh these articles, yeah that tracks

26 Exploding hurts you more than it hurts me, but it still hurts me a hell of a lot

Bring five next time you cowards! (Please do not bring five three was more than enough)

Ruin Sentinels- Beaten, One Death

CLUB BIG CLUB BIGGER CLUB THAT IS BIG CLUB CLUB IS BIG BIGGER CLUB

YES. Y-E-S. It's a bigger club? Bigger club means better club! Yessssss. Now as long as the next boss isn't unexpectedly fast and adept at dodging, we're golden.

27 Can i survive this fall?

I certainy do need a rest Sinner

This game can look exceptional sometimes, although I wish this walkway had handrails

28 Lost sinner stay lost

29 Boss runs are more dangerous than bosses

So, here we are among the Sinners

The Sinner's Rest is cool enough, feel like having another Flexile Sentry wandering around so soon after their boss fight sort of cheapens the feel though. Anyway, the area is short, and after the customary death via gravity we get right into it. The Lost Sinner having their hands bound as you fight is a really neat detail, and I have actually deliberately not looked up the lore to keep the feeling of mystery. Chris struggles slightly with his new weapon that takes five minutes to swing, but nothing can keep him down for long. Except gravity. Gravity truly does always win. Fortunately he's not fighting gravity, he's fighting the Lost Sinner, and now we have a handle on our new club, they do not stand in the way for long.

Chris has no time for your "speed" and "dexterity"

30 Definitely a low point

31 I'll explode in a minute

So, that's it for this latest article. I also beat the Belfry Gargoyles but they barely deserve this sentence so I'm not going to go into too much depth there. To sum up my experience so far.

Some would say this game is not that deep but I'd be inclined to disagree

Bar steep falls, Big Chris has taken to Dark Souls like a warrior duck to shark infested waters. It's just a good job the Shrine of Amana is a repressed memory and I am still in denial about it existing. See you next time.

STRONG BIG CHRIS STRONG. (Check out how that intelligence stat has not changed one iota)

Bosses

1. The Lost Sinner (1)

2. The Pursuer (1)

3. The Last Giant (0)

4. Ruin Sentinels (1)

5. Old Dragonslayer (0)

6. Dragonrider (0)

7. Belfry Gargoyles (0)

Areas

1. Majula (0)

2. Forest of Fallen Giants (10)

3. Lost Bastille (8)

4. Heide's Tower of Flame (2)

5. No Mans Wharf (5)

6. Sinners Rest (4)

7. Things Betwixt (1)

8. Cathedral of Blue (0)

Deaths

1 Height (9)

2. Hollow Knight (4)

3. Bosses (3)

3. Bastille Knight (3)

4. Non-Boss Pursuer (2)

4. Heide Knight (2)

4. NPC Invasion (2- Armorer Dennis 1, Forlorn 1)

4. Explodey Bois (2)

5. Explosion (1)

5. Hollow Infantry (1)

5. Trap Chest (1)

5. Vagabond (1)