Dark Souls II Preview

Considering they were the magazine that had the first feature on Dark Souls II (at least in Western countries), it’s only fitting that the more interesting preview for the game we’ve seen in a while comes from EDGE. Here’s a couple of snippets:

(Dark Souls isn’t really a game that’s going to hold anybody’s hand,) says Miyazoe. (But it’s not impossible. Just take your time, try to pay attention to the surroundings, be patient and continue to challenge yourself. From a technical standpoint, what we’re trying to do is ensure that you understand what mistake you have made. I think the new engine, the new motion [capture], the new visuals everything that has been enhanced will help the player better understand that.)

One way in which FromSoftware intends to achieve a fair balance for new players is through an enhanced Covenant system, which should also facilitate deeper roleplaying. In Dark Souls, joining a Covenant brought certain items and benefits, but this time around the groups will have new powers that inform playstyles. Similar to the Darkwraith Covenant in Dark Souls, the Brotherhood Of Blood allows its members to invade others’ games more easily. But since players in a Hollow state are no longer protected from invasions, other Covenants will play a more defensive role. When invaded, followers of The Way Of Blue will automatically summon phantom assistance from the Blue Sentinel group, for instance. Heirs To The Sun, meanwhile, functions a bit like Warrior Of Sunlight, collecting together a band of co-op-minded players who will be summoned by priority for PvE encounters as well as invasions.

Brotherhood Of Blood and Blue Sentinel apostles can even fight PvP battles within their own Covenants, though details of this system are being kept secret. Gaining superior status among Covenant brethren will result in an aura around the character, though; in the case of Brotherhood Of Blood, this is achieved by a kill streak of invaded hosts or of Blue Sentinels. And those in a fifth Covenant, Bell Keeper, will automatically invade any who wander haplessly into an area of the game where twin bells are located.

Miyazoe hints at one more Covenant that will act as a police force to hunt down serial invaders, adding an element of risk for those who would seek to prey on weaker players. Think of it as a wanted system with a bounty on the heads of griefers.

All of which may not soothe the concerns of Dark Souls players who prefer to stay Hollow and avoid PvP encounters altogether, particularly now that your max HP will diminish with each death until you restore your human form with a Human Effigy. Miyazoe is unapologetic. (This is going to sound a little bit rude, but being invaded is part of the game,) he says. (It’s like an enemy in the game that just happens to be controlled by another player. The Covenants system is a good way to be helped; that’s how we want to structure some of the roleplaying as well. So if you’re an invader, if you’re a bad guy, there always has to be a policeman who tries to get rid of the bad guys, and that element will be blended into the Covenants as well.)