Dark Souls 2: 10 Reasons It's Your Ultimate Test As A Gamer

7. The Multiplayer Is Still Brutal

If you didn't know, Dark Souls 2 (and the games that came before it) had a rather unique multiplayer system. If you want to play against human opponents in almost any recent multiplayer game you would most likely go into a multiplayer menu, start matchmaking, wait for a match to join, die a lot, then start the whole process again. The Souls series do things a little differently. Players can invade and challenge other players directly by using an in-game item or being a member of a certain covenant, with the player being invaded not getting a choice in the matter, as they can't progress in their game until someone has won the fight. Previously you had to be in human form to be invaded, yet now you need only be online. Sound frightening? It should be. To even the odds, you can join covenants such as the Blue Sentinels to protect other players by being pulled from your game into theirs, helping to defend as soon as they're in need. There is also an in-game item which will make the enemies in an area rally against an invader too, just to level the playing field slightly. However, the most brutal (and genius) use of multiplayer in Dark Souls 2 is the Looking Glass Knight boss. He carries a huge mirrored shield, which at points throughout the battle will slam it into the ground only for another real player to burst through the glass and attack the host, suddenly making the one-on-one fight into a two-on-one. It's an absolutely genius idea, changing the dynamic entirely, and it's just one of many things that elevates the time you'll spend with Dark Souls into entirely new realms of enjoyment and astonishment at what FromSoft were able to create - should you be able to handle it.