From Software debuted some Dark Souls 2 gameplay footage on IGN yesterday. Let's get this hype train rolling.
If you're bothering to read a Dark Souls 2 article I'm going to assume you tuned into IGN yesterday at noon, or you at least caught the video one way or another. Maybe you missed it , or maybe you're just curious. If you haven't seen the gameplay video yet, I've got your back. Here it is for your drooling pleasure:
Well, that was neat. Looks like From got good use of the concept art that was released back in December. I'm sure this video has been broken down ad nauseum several times over by now. I'll just pick out three things that stood out to me: dual wielding doesn't seem to suck, you can move and shoot arrows at the same time, and you can't cheese enemies just because there's a wall between you and them. I'm sure the Maneater from Demon's Souls is jealous. One last thing: battle axe baseball looks fun... and I want the backstab-proof armor... and I hate the bright lock-on reticle. Okay, that's more than three things. I think I'm done, for now.
I'm a little bummed about the lack of any information on multiplayer, which was a huge component of both Dark Souls and Demon's Souls. An information sheet provided by Namco Bandai (via Kotaku) lists four player multiplayer, but that's it. The fact sheet does mention "Evolved Multiplayer: Updated multiplayer system enables improved online interaction to bring forward cooperative and competitive play." Whatever that means. I'm sure the summoning and invasion mechanics will be present in one form or another, I just hope they make it easier. Hell, just the other day someone figured out how to facilitate summoning your friends in the PC version of Dark Souls. As soon as we know more information on co-op, we'll be sure to share it with you.
A moody new trailer dropped yesterday, as well. Titled "Despair," if features very little in the way of combat, as in, no combat, but it does manage to show off several different locations, some appearing more familiar than others. You can also see Tim Curry from Legend at the 54 second mark.
Dark Souls 2 will most likely support three player online co-op. It will be available on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. A release date has not been announced, but I'm hoping for sometime this year. Maybe October.