Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin Reviews

Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is ranked in the 96th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
Niche Gamer
Augusto A.
Top Critic
6 / 10.0
Apr 22, 2023

Dark Souls 2 has beautiful environments and interesting philosophical questions, followed by really mediocre gameplay and an ever-present feeling of being left unfinished.

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10 / 10.0
Apr 10, 2021

For gamers of this generation, the game can also be a good choice to go back to the older time and understand the games of the generation before themselves, and perhaps I have to say they understand the meaning of a real game.

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7.8 / 10.0
Nov 1, 2017

I enjoyed every minute of it. I would have like to see the price drop a little bit over the course of the past two years but you are still getting a game that is a joy to play from start to finish here.

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RPG Fan
Top Critic
72%
Feb 19, 2017

Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin offers only minor tweaks to serious gameplay issues of the original game. Nonetheless, it still remains a wholly enjoyable online experience, just don't expect much from the singleplayer experience.

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Drew Hurley
Top Critic
9 / 10
Nov 15, 2016

Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is a phenomenal game, taking the spectacular original and giving it fresh lease of life. Creator Hidetaka Miyazaki's grim and beautiful world is truly a wonder to behold, and this new journey into that world is filled with fresh challenges that will test even the most experienced Souls players. You will die over and over and over again, but the key thing is that you will love every minute of it.

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Aug 26, 2015

But if for some reason you missed Dark Souls 2 first time around, or need a great reason to go back, this superlative edition is a nightmare worth having.

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9 / 10.0
Jun 23, 2015

Whether you're new to Dark Souls II or played it on older consoles, Scholar of the First Sin is worth revisiting. This PlayStation 4 collection features the original game, along with the three expansion packs. The result is as rewarding as it is frustrating. And thanks to substantial tweaks made to the world and enemy AI, there's more than enough incentive to suck series veterans back into one of the best adventure games of all time.

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9 / 10.0
Jun 4, 2015

Going backwards from Bloodborne feels almost archaic, and it takes some time to settle into that once familiar gameplay. However Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin offers the chance to revisit that still fantastic and familiar world with a slight twist to proceedings and a respectable face lift. The addition of the DLC makes this package more than worthwhile for any fan of From Software's catalogue, but those that already own the content on another platform may find the investment too high.

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9.5 / 10.0
May 21, 2015

The Scholar of the First Sin released as the final version for Dark Souls II and it is both an opportunity to play 3 amazing DLC's for people who haven't experienced them, as well as an opportunity for new players to dive in the depth of Dark Souls series.

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4.5 / 5.0
May 3, 2015

Overall, Scholar of First Sin can be a hard sell for folks who played the original Dark Souls 2 to death already (pun so totally intended). If you've never played its predecessor before, however, or are a rabid fan who wants to re-experience everything again on the newer consoles, this is one game you'll want to prepare to take a stab at.

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6 / 10.0
Apr 25, 2015

From Software try to right their wrongs in this next gen port of Dark Souls 2 but fail to meaningfully address the issues that many players had with Dark Souls 2.

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Drew Leachman
Top Critic
9 / 10.0
Apr 23, 2015

With the enemy placement changed, it really does offer a newer challenge to veteran players, and while the double weapon degradation is really, really annoying, it can be managed. It's just going to take a lot of backtracking.

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9 / 10.0
Apr 22, 2015

Dark Souls 2on the PS4 is as close to perfect as any game I've played this year. The game is beautiful and the mechanics are easy. The only thing that ever got to me was when I'd end up wandering around, trying to find the way to move forward. But I'm pretty sure that was intentional on From Software's part.

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7 / 10.0
Apr 21, 2015

While it's a hard sale for those that have already played the game to death, even with all the changes, but if you've never played it before, it's an easy recommendation. Pick this game up as it's chocked full of content that is still well worth your money. It's no Bloodborne though.

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4.4 / 5.0
Apr 19, 2015

It's hard not to recommend Scholar of the First Sin to newcomers and veterans alike. For newcomers, this latest version provides hours and hours of fantastic content for a great price. Meanwhile, the remixed encounters and items, the ramped up challenge, and the much-needed improvements to the multiplayer ensure that veterans also have plenty of reasons to pick this up.

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8.5 / 10.0
Apr 17, 2015

‎Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin‎‎ is a recommended edition for those who do not know the title or for those veterans who want a little more‎.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

Atomix
Jorge Diaz
Top Critic
95 / 100
Apr 17, 2015

‎More experienced players will have a good experience when visiting again ‎‎ ‎‎Drangleic‎‎, as previous save files will not serve in this version, pushing them to live this adventure with the changes in the design that incredibly refresh the journey. A definitive version that without saying it, condenses and improves a journey of pain, great challenges and at the same time great rewards.‎

Review in Spanish | Read full review

8 / 10.0
Apr 16, 2015

The game is a brilliant and complete version of Dark Souls 2, with enough fresh content and tweaks to encourage veterans

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90 / 100
Apr 15, 2015

Overall, Scholar of the First Sin is a fantastic upgrade and worth the purchase if you never had the chance to play Dark Souls 2 on PC or current gen consoles. Even if you did play through it before, the DLC alone is worth checking out. The visual upgrades are rather stunning if you haven't played on PC, and the new enemy positions offer veteran players a nice surprise.

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9 / 10
Apr 14, 2015

Following on the heels of Bloodborne, Dark Souls II is a further affirmation of From Software's immense talent.

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