You've almost certainly heard of Dark Souls by now, and if you have, you must have also heard that it's basically the Chuck Norris of modern video games, making grown men cry in anguish. Honestly? It isn't that hard. Sure Dark Souls II, much like its predecessors will probably be a giant kick in the face to any who have grown too accustomed to the relatively easy games that threaten to define the current era of gaming, but that'll only be because you have to learn a few things first. Dark Souls thrusts you straight out of your comfort zone, forbidding us to indulge in certain gaming tropes, which make our lives more comfortable. Your first few steps in Dark Souls II will be immensely daunting, but this shouldn't put you off, as it can really only get better for you. Everyone who has had the pleasure to try their hand at a Souls game and has lived to tell the tale knows this experience, and have thus benefited from unparalleled feelings of reward. A bit of preparation never hurt anyone, so let's do that here, because frankly, if you've spent any hours at all on modern games in the last few years, there's every chance you've picked up some unwelcome, and unhelpful gaming traits that will make you immediately fail at Dark Souls II. What follows are 10 tropes of gaming that you should really strive to banish from your expectations for when March 14th heralds the release of the first real contender for the most hotly anticipated game of 2014.
10. We Forgive You
Isn't it nice when a game basically rewards you for sucking at a particular task? When you are, say, given the option to skip to the next checkpoint if you are unable to complete the current one, or recommended to bump down the difficulty level of those mean enemies? Jesus Christ, no. It seems like a nice gesture, but anything like this is frankly insulting and does no-one any true favours. Dark Souls II will refuse to hold your hand in any such fashion: there are no extra tips given each time you die, no difficulty modifying options, no cookies offered, nothing. Death and Dark Souls go hand-in-hand; in a way, you are meant to die a number of times (remember that Prepare To Die call to arms of Dark Souls?) and doing so gives you the chance to learn and become a better player. You will come to absolutely love this element of Dark Souls 2. Your victory will be yours alone, un-spoilt by the condescension of hand-holding mechanics. It might take some time along the way, but eventually it's pretty much guaranteed. So there's that, and the fact that your maximum HP will diminish by 5% each time you die, to a minimum of 50%. Oh FromSoftware, you really know the way to the heart of a sadistic a-hole such as myself.