DARK SOULS 2: The Search for Solaire's Gold

[Revising Ocelot]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

...What?!?

You're pretty good.

[Solid Snake]

Kept you waiting, huh?

[Kim]

I started up my second character. Running around without shields. Primary weapon is dual fists in power stance. Gonna infuse the fist weapons with lightning and I'll be a Hamon user. ALSO I named my character I'm Sad

[Solid Snake]

Originally Posted by Kim

I started up my second character. Running around without shields. Primary weapon is dual fists in power stance. Gonna infuse the fist weapons with lightning and I'll be a Hamon user. ALSO I named my character I'm Sad

It's moments like these when I force myself to wonder why I haven't even started Dark Souls 1 yet.
(...Then I remember everyone harping over the difficulty and the ability for jerks to enter into your game and fuck you up, and I'm like, yeah, that's why.)

[Kim]

You can play offline if you don't wanna be harassed and honestly the difficulty isn't as bad as people make it out to be. It's mostly sort of a back and forth between you and the game where you push forward a bit, it pushes back, you regain your footing and push some more. I'd actually say Dark Souls 2 is more outright difficult and unforgiving but even that is still more fair than a lot of games that sell themselves on challenge.

[Arcanum]

I finally farmed up my 50th awestone on my second character (gotta love using ascetics to reset the respawns on an npc phantom that invades 12 times per ascetic). So now he has a ring that makes his bare hands stronger than a +10 Caestus. At 50 str, 20 dex, (and ring of blades +1) Caestus +10 deals 290-ish, while my hands deal 371. It's fantastic. The only downside is I can't enchant my fists, or use resins, but who cares when you can punch smug ultra greatsword or rapier users to death.

[A Zarkin' Frood]

Originally Posted by Solid Snake

It's moments like these when I force myself to wonder why I haven't even started Dark Souls 1 yet.
(...Then I remember everyone harping over the difficulty and the ability for jerks to enter into your game and fuck you up, and I'm like, yeah, that's why.)

Here's something you have to know: Prior to Dark Souls II the difficulty was a side effect of the atmosphere the game tried to convey and it never was nearly as bad as the collective internet makes it out to be. It's definitely not a game for everyone and whether it is one for you or not isn't something that I can make a reasonable guess about. People either love it or hate it. Because of that I'd say it's definitely okay to get a used copy or buy it when it's on sale so it makes less of an impact on your wallet in case you don't like it.
Also: Playing offline doesn't really hurt the experience, had to play Demon's and Dark souls offline for the first few times. The only thing that might become an issue that you'll have more trouble finding some of the secrets because you can't see hints by other players.

[Marc v4.0]

The only places I've had to deal with invasions were Belfry Luna (fuck those belltowers, thank god they are optional) and the Rat Covenant Area. Ratbros can summon YOU into their world as a Grey Phantom, and your objective is to not get killed by traps and NPCs and make it to the next part of the area. Those have been very fun encounters so far, and each win has netted me a Lockstone.

Seriously, though, belltower guardians can go to hell.

[Solid Snake]

Oh, I own the first Dark Souls, I just haven't gotten around to playing it yet.
But, yeah, it definitely sounds like it's worth playing.

[Marc v4.0]

Doors of Pharros Rat Covies are lazy as all hell. They activate all the traps and then just idle, auto-summoning in Players and letting the traps do the work. Easiest lockstones I ever earned