Despite much controversy, From Software have released an updated and enhanced version for Dark Souls 2. The catch is that this is not a free upgrade for existing users, rather a completely separate purchasable title. Yet it is a cause of much chaos and confusion since the update is titled as Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin, and the original as simply Dark Souls 2. But there exists a package called Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin which has the standard non-enhanced game and DLC bundled together. Confused? I was too, so let’s try to break this down below.
Two versions of the game exist, the new version, which we will call “DS2 New” and the original “DS2 Old” from here on. Both the games have completely different Steam pages.
First let’s look at the changes in the new version
– Dark Souls 2: Scholar of the First Sin is a “Director’s Cut” of all Dark Souls 2 content that includes additional features.
- Content from all DLC packs is included along with the original game.
- New enemy placement, map shortcuts, and gameplay design.
- Graphics, sound, and performance upgrade.
- New weapons and armor for players to experiment with.
- New NPC invading player’s world.
- Max online players up from 4 to 6.
-Updated graphics, with minimum requirements demanding:
- OS: Windows 7 SP1 64bit, Windows 8.1 64bit
- Processor: AMD® A8 3870 3,6 Ghz or Intel® Core ™ i3 2100 3.1Ghz
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce GTX 465 / ATI Radeon TM HD 6870
- DirectX: Version 11
Note: Users on Steam have reported very minimum changes to the graphics of the game, with textures being the most notable. However the upgrades are almost comparable to free mods for the old game. You can find many texture patches and gameplay mods at – http://www.nexusmods.com/darksouls2/?
Important notes before upgrading
- The servers for the update and original are different so you will not be able to cross play with friends if both of you are on different versions of the game.
- The servers for each console and PC are different. So no cross play between devices.
- Irrespective of whether you own DLC for DS2 Old or not, upgrading to DS2 New gets you all the DLC’s.
- You will not be able to transfer your save files from the old version to the new.
Purchase options: Price & Links
- DS2 Old – http://store.steampowered.com/app/236430/ – No longer purchasable standalone.
- Upgrade DS2 Old to DS2 Old with DLC – http://store.steampowered.com/app/284450/– $24.99 USD
- DS2 Old with DLC – http://store.steampowered.com/sub/58135/?snr=1_5_9__403 – $39.99 USD
- Upgrade from DS2 Old to DS2 New / Upgrade from DS2 Old with DLC to DS2 New – http://store.steampowered.com/app/335300/
> Below the buy option for the game there is an Option to upgrade to DARK SOULS II: Scholar of the First Sin (DS2 New).
> Buy this if you own Dark Souls II on Steam for the upgrade price – $39.99 USD - DS2 New – http://store.steampowered.com/app/335300/ – $49.99 USD
