Screenshots & trailers
What players say
Why the number is what it is: aspect mentions counted across 352 sampled Steam reviews (287 positive / 65 negative), recent and most-helpful. Plain keyword counting, fully reproducible; nothing here is written by a machine.
What positive reviews talk about
- World & exploration8% mention it
- Story & writing6% mention it
- Combat6% mention it
- Difficulty & balance6% mention it
- Multiplayer & servers5% mention it
What negative reviews complain about
- Story & writing9% mention it
- Multiplayer & servers9% mention it
Satisfaction by hours played
Same score, different games: see how sentiment holds up the longer people play.
Under 5h
75%
24 reviews
5-15h
79%
33 reviews
15-40h
70%
100 reviews
40-100h
88%
130 reviews
100h+
91%
65 reviews
Review sentiment over time
Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (OpenCritic) | – | 87 | 14 |
| All-time Steam reviews | 84% | 78 | 1120 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 79 | 68 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | 78% | 73 | 193 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 300 reviews sampled · 552 total reviews in window · weighted 183.5 up / 50.4 down · computed 3h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (63)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 90
“This is the ultimate edition of Dark Souls II, which is superb. It is not only the more than necessary visual enhancements, but the included downloadable contents and many fixes which make an even greater game. Even longer and challenging, and of course as deep as ever. ”
read full review ↗ - 90
“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.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“Following on the heels of Bloodborne, Dark Souls II is a further affirmation of From Software's immense talent.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“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.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“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.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“More, tighter, better, harder? I think it is these words that best describe scholar of the First Sin... But you have to know that this is not a game without flaws...”
read full review ↗ - 80
“With Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin, From Software and Bandai Namco have done a good job crafting an interesting remastered for both the veteran Souls fans and the newcomers. The different locations of the most of the enemies, the new content linked with the original lore, the new final boss and a bunch of extra challenges make Scholar of the First Sin the true incarnation of Dark Souls II. ”
read full review ↗ - 90
- 80
“Even if it's only been a year, time has not been kind to Dark Souls' sequel and this remaster does little to help the situation, even if it 's a hugely engrossing game in its own right.”
read full review ↗ - 60
“Dark Souls 2 has beautiful environments and interesting philosophical questions, followed by really mediocre gameplay and an ever-present feeling of being left unfinished.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“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.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“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.”
read full review ↗
Cubed3
Push Square
LevelUp
ZTGD
PPE.pl
Eurogamer
GameSpot
Metro GameCentral
Niche Gamer
GamingBolt
Gamefa…and 51 more tracked reviews.