Peak Souls II: Scholar of the Best Game.
All critique of this game is not warranted and simply boils down to pissy redditors who would give anything to taste some of Miyazaki's fine eggnog streaming from his balls. If you actually take the time to enjoy this game you'll notice the ground breaking inventions it has brought forward that also inspired the, to some, greatest game of all time, Elden Ring.
The variety in weaponry, aswell as every single weapon actually being useful unlike the vast amount of slop in DS1 and DS3, which basically boils down to you being forced to use the big bonk hammer in most cases. The Powerstancing system was genius and it's a shame that this mechanic wasn't used further up until ER.
You have to level a stat to improve a mechanic inside the game? Inconcievable! As if there weren't a billion ways to gain souls in this game, aswell as level up threshholds being so low that you could reach like level 40-60 just by killing the dragonrider and picking up all the items that are laid around the world. The game is so forgiving that [insert weapon] run videos consist of killing dragon rider and being able to get any weapon to +10 without defeating 90% of the bosses, and people still manage to complain about having to invest the already abundant souls into a single stat, and you dont even need to invest much, I've beaten this game with 15 ADP, and I started with 5, without issues, ergo if you don't level and can't keep keep up while having a low ADP level, that just means you suck and need to simply, git gud.
Too many enemies? Is the Smelter Demon runback too hawd? Then stop rushing! If you aren't ASS at this EASY yet FUN game then you should be able to clear like five enemies after taking a simple jump shortcut, that are by the way also REALLY SLOW. Once again a git gud classic.
Frankly the map discussion doesn't even deserve to be talked about, it's just ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ cope to elevate the ego of reddit mod asmongold viewers. Peak Souls 2 has laid the ground work for an open world souls-like to even exist, you are able to go into FOUR directions upon reaching Majula, so if you get stuck somewhere, you can just walk into another direction and continue there and still find plenty to do! Iron Keep elevator makes no sense? It very much does so, because if you'd use your majestic eyes, you'd notice that there are mountains around that forsaken Earthen Peak, and the stone path that leads to the Iron Keep elevator was just shortened for gameplay purposes, and also depth perception is weird in DS2. TL;DR the DS2 map critique is simply visual, and the map is incredibly well designed in terms of the gameplay loop. Now compare it to DS1, the elevator simulator, or DS3, the straight line with two ♥♥♥♥♥♥ deviating branches.
The World itself, apart from layout, also manages to convey a beautiful fantastical feeling with its music and graphics (10+ year old game). I mean Majula alone no diffs every other hub area/world, I'd much rather sit in Majula and enjoy my lack of cortisol coursing through my brain, than play the other games. Every area feels and looks completely different from the last and never gave me the feeling of monotony and boredom, and always offered a new experience. From pirate coves to castle ruins, from the depths of the gutter to the highs of dragon aerie.
While the bosses in DS2 may be easy and vast, they are a thousand times more interesting and offer alot more variety than anything the other two members of this trilogy have to offer. They are all thematically intriguing and fit their environments, aiding in immersing yourself into the beautiful world, even with being 10+ years old. The "gank heavy" bosses themselves are also not that deep, it just means you have to be a little more strategic in the way you approach the fight, instead of charging in like the thick skulled morons that most critics of this game are. Compared to "mega hard cool" bosses like Midir that's basically just chasing a flying bastard that never allows you to strike him for half an hour, or whatever ♥♥♥♥ can be found in DS1.
The DLC's are also quite awesome, as they serve to enhance and can help you alot with builds, especially the Crown of the Sunken King DLC. Crown of the Old Iron King has the Brume (/Peak) Knight, enough said. While the Crown of the Ivory King may lack slightly in area design, its' final boss fight makes up for it in its mechanic, or as critics may disregard it as a "gimmick".
To close this review off, I wish to say that unlike the other games, I have rarely felt bullshitted, unless it was done so by my own doing, aka not healing correctly or generally not playing and planning optimally, I also plan on reaching 1k hours in this game out of pure love for it, and newfound passion whilst writing this review. And perhaps to be able to strengthen my own resolve and develop even further disgust and hatred for the stinking basement dwelling rats who pledged their allegiance to the Covenant of the Rat King and play the other titles like DS1.
Praise be to Vendrick, a King ruined by an foid.
