In Defense of Dark Souls' Second Half

[@zoinksscoob5077]

Can we take a sec to appreciate that this dude traveled to every bonfire in real life for this video? that takes some mad skills

[@shivanshsenpai8742]

Nah bro it's not that hard all you gotta do is just curl up beside some eggs in a huge nest on your roof

[@dave9020]

@@shivanshsenpai8742 That's only going to take you from 1 singular place to another, leaving more than 20 other locations that it's not taking you to

[@RealFikys]

Poor boy not even undead.

[@JakobeOG]

You just have to git gud

[@averyrogers8103]

I didn’t hear a word you said because I was so distracted by the editing. it was incredible

[@noatiendoboludos]

This has to be one of the funniest edits I've seen in a while

[@SorryDaSlayer]

genuinely changed my whole opinion the editing and the music made me realize how much I really love this game

[@niceguy191]

The "second half" areas feel more tedious and gimmicky. I've created probably over 40 different characters and sooooo many playthroughs just die after the Lordvessel because it starts to feel like a slog. I'm no designer so can't really pinpoint why, but the 4 Lord Soul locations, mostly because of the gimmicks I think, feel like you never gain mastery over them like you can for all of the other areas which affects replayability. Going through Sen's Fortress now verses my first playthrough is night and day, but TOTG is still a slog several playthroughs later. I've thought about it a bit more, and maybe it's because you don't unlock progression/shortcuts in the same way? Maybe if you could light up the Tomb through progression, or make the invisible crystals visible after making it across there'd be more of a sense of progression there

[@Yagmur-nf6yh]

To be fair that sounds like skill issue. Personally I didn't have any problems mastering the second half of the game. For TotG specifically, knowing the layout and using a sunlight maggot or the light spell depending on the build makes the level a breeze to traverse. Lost Izalith, you just use the shortcut and use a good shield (i use greatshield of artorias) for the bed of chaos fight (though I will admit this fight is still the most rng part of the game). Duke's archives and new londo are pretty straightforward, they don't have any gimmicks so I don't even feel like I have to talk about them lol. If anything, sen's fortress is more gimmicky than those due to the environmental hazards. That said, yeah the second half can feel tedious because I don't think those levels are as fun as the first half of the game.

[@EPE77U]

@@Yagmur-nf6yh Once again fromsoft players and their inability to take valid criticism against their favorite game without immediately shouting "skill issue". Why is it skill issue just because they feel that "second half" is slog to play? I didn't have problem with them except with tombs of giants mainly because I didn't bother getting light source. Even then, after going for ng+ mainly because I missed dlc and wanted cooler ending, I felt a bit of annoyance after realizing I have to do 4 of those places again. They just simply aren't as fun and I'm not alone thinking that.

[@damiantorres5569]

I found the 2nd half areas to be less rewarding from a level design standpoint. There wasn’t new areas or merchants to unlock that changed up how interacted with the area/surrounding areas It was just one and done. There’s no depth in tomb of the giants it’s just push forward and nothing else. There’s no reason to go back around or a different path and it doesn’t interconnect with future areas you’ll visit. That’s why it’s forgettable

[@Shove_It_in_your_VCR]

@@Yagmur-nf6yh New Londo's Gimmcks are literally the Ghosts you can't attack (without buying an item that goes away after some time OR getting a rare weapon drop that makes it slightly easier), alongside needing to waste a ring slot just to fight the boss. Aside from Dukes Archives to Seath, the four lords soul areas have gimmicks that downright handicap you and your build. Izalith makes you waste a ring slot just to traverse through the lava to get to the biggest gimmick boss in the game. Tomb of the Giants is made worse if you didnt know about or get the sunlight maggot and you're forced to go through the area with either one of your weapon slots wasted (more than likely your shield/catalyst) for the skull lantern, or take a chance in the darkness. These areas are more difficult because you're essentially having one of your arms tied behind your back and let loose. It isn't fun, it isn't engaging. Sen's fortress doesn't force you to swap out anything to complete it, and is really well balanced relative to the generally agreed upon state of progression it's in.

[@freddymeisner]

This sums up my experience with the second half pretty nicely. I picked up the game for the first time recently. Killer editing, super funny

[@alexanderstilianov]

I always saw the 4 Lords' areas as paths that benefit different builds the most: - New Londo Ruins [pure melee users] - It houses the Very Large Ember which gives the most straightforward and simple weapon ascension: Regular, up to +15, courtesy of Andre of Astora, the most simple and straightforward of the blacksmiths and likely the first one you'll find. The Four Kings are also a DPS check and weapons are the fastest method of attacking in this game and never run out of "uses" like spells. There's no hidden weakness or trick. You just have to fight directly like a weapon-user would. New Londo Ruins is also the first you'll discover since it's right under Firelink Shrine, just like using melee weapons is the first thing you do in this game before you can attune your Fire Ball, Soul Arrow and Heal as a Pyromancer, Sorcerer and Cleric respectively. Yet, it's also the most inaccessible area, requiring you to be cursed or use a cursed weapon to fight the enemies and the Covenant of Artorias ring to even survive the Abyss to fight the boss. - The Duke's Archives is obviously for Sorcerers, housing the Large Magic Ember (for Richard to ascend Magic weapons+5 up to +10) and Crystal Ember (which isn't related to Intelligence builds gameplay-wise but it is lore-wise). The boss is literally the grandfather of Sorcery (who created the Moonlight Butterfly that can be used to create a pure Intelligence weapon) and you have to use your head (like an Intelligent Sorcerer) to figure out how to nullify his immortality. He also fires crystal beams just as a sorcerer would fight with long-ranged attacks. Cutting off his tail gives you the Moonlight Greatsword, another pure Intelligence weapon. You also find the best Sorcery teacher here, Big Hat Logan. Sorcerers have been stereotypically depicted being wise old men wearing big pointy hats. Think of Merlin and Gandalf for some sources outside of the Dark Souls universe. - The Tomb of the Giants is the Miracle user's best friend. It's basically the Catacombs on steroids: darker, more pits to fall into, bigger and more aggressive skeletons. The Catacombs, where you meet Paladin Leeroy, are also where Faith builds that use Divine weapons get to shine for the first time, blocking the necromancers from resurrecting the skeletons. All skeletons, normal and giant, are weak to weapons that do Strike damage and the Mace has been associated with Clerics since 'Dungeons And Dragons'. In the Tomb of the Giants you'll rescue Reah of Thorolund who is the best Miracle teacher in the game. Of course, you also get the Large Divine Ember here which allows Andre to ascend a Divine weapon+5 up to +10). The boss is Nito, the first of the dead the opposite of life and healing which Miracles are known to give. Divine weapons also block his skeletons from resurrecting countering his main advantage. You could also argue that there's some metaphorical connection between the "Cleric area" being dark and walking in the darkness being easier for those with "blind faith". - Lost Izalith is obviously the Pyromancer's area, both in gameplay and in lore. You find the Chaos Flame Ember here which lets Vamos ascend a Fire weapon+5 to a Chaos weapon up to +5. All the enemies and bosses here are the result of the Chaos Flame, an imperfect immitation of the First Flame. Also the Large Flame Ember (that lets Vamos ascend a Fire weapon+5 up to +10) is found in the Demon Ruins that lead to Lost Izalith. Not much else to say about these two areas, they're clearly unfinished and rushed. Their lore is fine and the most unique and doesn't really need any meta knowledge like folklore, literature or tabletop roleplaying games.

[@littlemoth4956]

Having required areas that benefit specific builds the most in an RPG is an awful game design decision.

[@tokkenn8513]

Loved the read

[@H3XXlN]

And there comes the problem. The magic resistance of Duke Archives enemies is very high, as well as fire resistance of Lost Izalith, making them harder to get through with respective builds. On the other hand, the new londo ruins is quite straightforward you can use basically anything, and tomb of the giants is way easier to complete with divine weapons. So we have 2 locations harder to the builds that them represent, one is a complete pushover for any build with damage (sry miracle builds) and one location significantly easier for the build it is representing. That's... Strange... And a bit underwhelming.

[@Ravum]

The areas that benefit specific builds are great game design decisions.

[@redpantera3595]

that was very nice to read,and well arguemented

[@Arc-coop]

I love how you’re just chillin in different areas😂 some amazing souls content!

[@GrandRegentSScratch]

Love the content man, you should do a retrospective on Dark Souls.

[@HPRshredder]

Honestly that sounds like a lot of fun

[@yeezuschrist420]

Why do the smallest channels always have the best editing? Blows my mind. Well deserved sub

[@shignificent]

I admire that you visited all the sights in Lordran to enhance the settings of what would otherwise be like a cosy conversation with a friend-- good show!!

[@Sakeenster]

Soooo much great editing in just 9 minutes!! Some of my favorite parts are little tiny baby Hpr at 04:34 , when you’re inside a clam at 06:48 and when your legs are underwater at 07:46

[@MrTerbman]

The legs underwater was so good

[@andrewvoor5814]

I love how unhinged the editing is here, absolutely perfect 👌

[@LeonIsLate]

this is the exact type of content I want to make. Very underrated channel.

[@MattyStoked]

A different one for you! The presentation is phenomenal 🤩 Absolutely crushing it, mate x

[@HPRshredder]

Thank you so much, Stoked! Hope it gave you a laugh or two

[@ryancollinsvideo]

When I got DS1 on release before the echo chamber of KZbin opinions I never thought about "a second half". I just thought "I hope this game doesnt end now" after placing the Lordvessel and found there was more Dark Souls, and I was happy.

[@HPRshredder]

I didn't want the game to end either. Luckily it never does for me. I still enjoy playing it!

[@IFinishedAVideoGame]

That was a goddamn great video. Obviously the editing was extremely creative but I loved the script. I've certainly been guilty of taking this same reductive view of DS1 but you're so right? The second half actually has some amazing moment and to be quite honest, the feeling of opening up warping and then having some more disconnected smaller zones to play around in is the perfect foil to the structure of the first half. Yeah - great stuff. Enjoyed watching and hope you've got more of these up your sleeves!

[@HPRshredder]

Thank you so much, and *I'm glad you get it* ! I don't know that I'll be plopping myself directly in another game anytime soon, but I do have plans for more alternative videos like this one.

[@acebailey2478]

Oh, I didn't know straight fire was on the menu today. But here it is, a new HPRshredder video!

[@Sloster]

I love the sitting! It's a great touch and adds to the immersion in the video

[@KusanajiKei]

Lovin your channel dude, posting here to help you blow up. Little by little I'm seeing everything, right now I wanna thank you for your Metroid, kid Icarus and Zelda 2 because I never gave them a proper chance (we could call it the avgn castlevania 2 syndrome); but also for playing unknown stuff like Kong 2 and Layla. Good job, and keep goin!

[@HPRshredder]

Thank you! I'm really glad you have been getting something out of the videos. I've got a lot more retro content on the way.

[@censr]

whenever this gets recommended to me, i always watch. the editing is so fun to watch.

[@andrewsansone9929]

Excellent video! Loved hearing a sound defence of DS1’s less popular areas. As someone who didn’t mind the latter areas of the game, I appreciate this view being put out there. Well done!

[@jonts7]

It was a genuine surprise to me to find out people dont like the second half of this game. After beating O&S I was even more invested and motivated to play the rest of the game, much more than before. Dark Souls was the best experience I've ever had playing a videogame, and the last 50% of it are definitely included.

[@Asylus]

Bed of chaos fight was the only boss I didn't enjoy fighting in the entire game. Other than that everything was awesome.

[@ragintombo]

I expected some green screen effects in the intro, not the whole darn video! *Impressed*

[@PostMesmeric]

That was super clever editing, putting yourself in the worlds that you were discussing throughout the script. Even as a relative newbie to Dark Souls 1, I do wish the second half had more interlocking paths. That's what made the "first half" so interesting to me. Still, I don't think the overall quality of the later sectors was anywhere near "bad." Great work shedding some light on this discussion. This was a great video! Looking forward to more!

[@HPRshredder]

Just an FYI - this is not the typical style of content that I make lol. So if you're expecting more like this one, it'll probably be a bit. The core of the channel though is a series called "Retro Odyssey" where I play through retro games chronologically as a first-timer. But I'm glad you enjoyed! Thanks for the comment

[@theIJPmexican]

the editing was really good on this one. great job man. I'm hoping to pick up this game next year, that and DMC

[@kaimusic7884]

Thanks for saying what’s been on the back of my mind ever since I played ds1 for the first time.

[@michaelzografos7354]

Fantastic video with a fair and nuanced take. This effort is much appreciated!!

[@apex8304]

I came here from the Analogue Pocket giveaway video and man I just gotta say, if you keep up this quality of content you're bound to blow up big someday. This is some of the most impressive editing work I've seen out of a small channel in a long time. Keep it up man!

[@Aerack]

Sick vid get the algo pumping ⬆️

[@neverchris]

Great video! Your editing is so spot on.

[@FullOvellas]

You really succeeded in making this a comfy ride! I really appreciate the calm tone even when talking about some polarizing gaming stuff. I hope you get some more eyballs on your videos because you are killing it so far!

[@HPRshredder]

Thank you, I really appreciate that!

[@siveril]

Great video and loved your editing! I have also thought that the critique of the second half has been a bit overexaggerated. My first playthrough of Dark Souls was unlike any other game I've ever played, and the second half, even amid some of its imperfections-at least in comparison to the first half-was still so amazing to me. I remember the first time I was in Lost Izalith and tilted my camera up to see how far below we the player had descended. And when we're in the Tomb of the Giants and we can see Ash Lake in the distance. I was amazed. Thanks for the video and discussion! Looking forward to more videos by you. Your channel is great.

[@MrDrBoi]

I was dying of laughter during the bird segment LMAO Also great video! As someone who just beat the game for the first time a few days ago and is just now diving into Dark Soul content, I was somewhat surprised to see many of these "2nd half" areas be hated, when the only things I did not enjoy were the runbacks for the Bed of Chaos and the Four Kings boss fights. Otherwise, I largely enjoyed the post-Anor Londo areas of Dark Souls, even if I prefer the "1st half" more.

[@hassledvania]

Great video! Will be keeping an eye on this channel!

[@Jasiuuu]

UNDERRATED CONTENT AND CHANNEL! great edit skills,good voice and reasonable takes

[@high.level.noob.]

I like the second half because after you beat Ornstein and Smough, you have basically mastered the mechanics so the game needs to get more difficult in different ways. If it stayed the same it would have been way too easy or just the typical give more HP to the enemies as you get more power so that the difficulty is the same the entire game where there is no progression. Tomb of the Giants tests how you can adapt to an environment where your eyesight is reduced and it is scary as hell going through there but once you pay attention to your environments you find a lamp and a bonfire and it’s much easier to get through. Most players just hate it because they didn’t adapt. New Londo Ruins and the Four kings tests your dps and how well you can stay focused when there are many enemies. This is another kind of scary area because you never feel safe. I love this kind of anxious feeling that I get from these areas because they are supposed to be the most scary and dangerous areas in the world of Lordran. Then in the Dukes Archives there are many enemies that are trying to snipe you so you have to stay focused and take a shield with you. I think it is a cheap trick that Seath kills you at the start but on my first time play through it was actually exciting how I needed to get out of the prison cell and I couldn’t just warp out. It was again exciting and kind of scary. Visually the place is absolutely just stunning. Then the Crystal Cave is even more stunning. I love how you need to come up with different strategies to get through the invisible floor. It is not that hard once you memorize where you need to go and I loved this area for the variety. The Demon Ruins are clearly rushed. Do I still like the area despite its piss poor design? Hell yeah I do! I love how it is full of old bosses and you need to play it smart to deal with them. It also feels empowering to destroy old bosses that were really hard and they actually work really well as enemies. The area has this mysterious vibe because there are all these demons just lying around. The lava may be a challenge but after the Centipede demon (which is an alright boss, just get the ring, reload, equip it and fight again) you can freely go around it and it feels great. The Lost Izalith is a really empty place and the Bed of Chaos is a poorly designed boss and that is the only part of this entire game that I dislike. Yeah I really can’t defend that area. I think getting the fast travel is a really good thing because the second half is more about the levels and the interconnected world would feel daunting to run across all over. I love how it still lets you decide where you want to go first and last so it is not too linear. I always pick Sif, Seath, 4 kings, Bed of Chaos and last but not least Nito in that order but if I feel like I can switch it up. I really wanted to find someone else who thinks the second half is good. I understand the hate but I think it is overblown.

[@CerealCommander]

01:45 You thought we weren't going to notice the comment Like numbers? NAHHH. Great vid and the editing, wow. Mario Kart defense is next, right?

[@TheCoOpBros]

“Hold that thought” *flies away* Great video dude!! The editing is insane, can’t even wrap my head around this hahah And we agree, never thought the second half of Dark Souls was bad. So many great areas and moments. But overall, it’s shortsighted to call it bad even if you dislike one or two sections.

[@Bum-t9x]

Honestly I still found it fun like the boss design went way up in quality and I felt like the scale of everything kept getting bigger

[@MrMegaGamerMan]

I always felt like the first half was more connected because it was more open to EVERYONE. Anyone COULD ring the two bells, but only the Chosen Undead would have the strength to be able to take the specific paths to gather the Lord Souls

[@lunaticcultist4057]

And go through the gimmicks and tedium, still did it obviously.

[@SackoYT]

Its not bad but it's not as good as the first half. Beating the great lord bosses felt more like a relief knowing I was done with them than feeling satisfied with the bosses from Asylum all the way to O&S. Four Kings was fine though. The Gwyn fight is great and underwhelming on purpose, since you're essentially fighting a deified husk that's no longer in it's prime. The DLC has the best bosses.

[@LegalHotline]

Tomb of the Giants is not challenging, it’s artificially difficult.

[@cajunmane7272]

Couldn't agree more

[@dopaminecloud]

Artificial difficulty was the worst pseudo game design buzzword to fall into public use.

[@LegalHotline]

@@dopaminecloud do you even know what a buzzword is?

[@Childofbhaal]

How though? Nothing really feels that unfair to me. Just get a light source and you’re good

[@tonin5047]

Yess

[@NAWWMANNN]

Thought this was HBomberGuy for a second. How dare u deceive me. Still subbed

[@piercecave5049]

Bro this video is great, subscribing before you blow up

[@garfieldinheat664]

damn, i can't wait for your channel to blow up, (not an if, it's definitely a when) you put a lot of effort into creating these and it shows.

[@theonlyJayn]

You touched on the what makes dark souls so fun which a lot of people still don't understand. The freedom, options to strategize, and tools to overcome challenges is what I love so much about the souls games. Thanks for this uplifting vid :)

[@HPRshredder]

Thanks for this comment! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

[@chadwolf3840]

The intro was awesome. Great stuff man.

[@joaoandrade4474]

I always loved The Duke's Archives. Big ass area with great views, good enemy variety, confusing layout (in a good way) and the music in the giant library that just evokes a sense of slowly going insane, which inspired many future soulsborne lore. For the rest, I think New Londo Ruins has all checks, it just needed some enemy variety, Izalith has cool architecture, but needed better enemy placement and exploration routes (like a full asian temple), and the tomb is a hit or miss, though it has some nice views like you pointed out.

[@theegreenone]

I’ve been saying this forever. Lost Izalith is admittedly bad, but the other 3 areas are good on their own in my opinion. Sure, they could have been better in some aspects, but trying to live up to the first 2/3 of the game (which is one of the greatest gaming experiences I’ve had the pleasure of experiencing,) was impossible. Great video!

[@itachiyy4516]

Lost izalith trash, tomb of the Gigants trash ruins of new Londo hot garbage.

[@cherubin7th]

I honestly enjoy the part after O&S more. First half was burning me out, now everything is much easier now so far. Currently in my first play though.

[@diegog1853]

Never knew the second half was controversial. I am not entirely sure what they are disliking so much, but since people are calling it the second half, after anor londo, I don't think it is precisely about the areas you explore. In terms of progression the biggest shift from first half to second half is that before Anor Londo Dark souls is a linear game with optional areas and routes, but still a linear game with just one objective to follow, which is very satisfying to follow. After Anor Londo Dark Souls opens up, you have a bunch of objectives and you have to decide where to go and find out how to get there. And... well that was my favorite part of the game, when I had to make this difficult decisions of what area looked like the easiest to start with, when every area looks like hell, there is a lot to consider for a first time player and it can be daunting. I loved that, but I also kind of get why some people would hate it, going from a highly satisfying linear adventure with enemies and bosses tailored made to your equipment and level, to more of an open world where you can get lost and feel like you are not progessing that much or don't have the ideal equipment for the circumstances up ahead, that is probably the part in which most people finally looked up a walkthrough. But yeah I don't think it is about specific areas (it could be I am just guessing). If they are so consistently mentioning as the second half, I think they are mostly talking about the changes in how progression works, because that is the only significant change I can think of from first to second "halves"

[@Taldorin]

My theory has always been that what people refer to as the "Second half" is the shift in game focus. While it's true that order variance is pretty strong in this game there is a general flow in the path average players go down that can be broken into two distinct halves in the form of the first half being much more of a straight forward path to anor londo, the second half being given the abilitiy to teleport as the game shifts into much more of an open metroidvania game. I think a lot of people preferred the straight forward path and as a result that's what we ended up getting with the next installments. If there was anything nice to say about Izalith id say the look of the city itself and the architecture is cool but man did I not enjoy myself there

[@MichaelACantrell-n7o]

Masterpiece of a vid

[@jedgrahek1426]

Thank you for saying this. I never felt like the final Lordsoul areas were "bad" at all when I played the game originally, except maybe the lava section of Lost Izalith, but that's just one relatively minor part of one very large area. They are simply "linear" in comparison to the early game, and deliberately difficult to get through playing blind, and that's exactly how final, ending areas should be. I don't even have a problem with the Bed of Chaos; a single boss in the entire game that is novel and poses a unique challenge is a good thing, and it is also thematically excellent. And back when the game first came out, all anyone ever said was that they thought the Bed of Chaos was a stupid boss. Then "parts of Lost Izalith feel unfinished" after some time had passed. And over the years, as more and more people played the game themselves for the first time, they went in with the idea of the later parts of the game being "unfinished and disappointing" firmly embedded in their minds before ever experiencing any of it themselves, and the chorus got louder and louder, spiraling into groupthink and mob mentality territory. It is truly sad, in a general, large-scale sense, how rare it is for people to truly think for themselves, and the consequences of that are horrific, insane, and ultimately very dire for our species, beyond the individual wars and evils the tendency towards mental conformity allows... and it's quite tiresome in video game (and art in general) criticism also, lol.

[@Benni-rp9or]

Are we in the minority here? I loved almost everything about DS1! I only had a few gripes and Bed of Chaos is one. Otherwise, I loved the second half of the game. There were a couple really bad boss runs, but overall the whole game was amazing

[@MrHacker303]

great video, really comfy! Would lovesome more DS from you 😄

[@trollogooglr9753]

i think the same from some years now! You make me smile!

[@glitchtabby]

Honestly and nobody can defend this. Getting to the blue slab in Crystal Cave honestly sucks. The fact that you have to navigate what I think is a zigzag invisible crystal platform while having a death barrier whenever you screw up RIGHT THERE making it so you need to quit out right away or make your way back from the Archives is SO annoying. I paused my desire to get all achievements because of it because its either that or a 0.2% base drop chance from the butterflies and you need 2 slabs for the achievements they respectively unlock. While the views in Tomb of the Giants is good, that doesn't fully defend everything else. To actually be able to realistically explore Tomb of the Giants you need 1 of 3 things: The skull lantern (found a little bit after navigating Tomb which you are likely going to fall in due to slippery physics and bad gravity), the Sunlight Maggot which requires you to go to Demon Ruins first which honestly isn't that bad if you save Tomb for last, and that one miracle which... I dont think anyone will ever use that. Nito is pretty bad as you are forced to deal with 3 skeletons if you dont deal divine damage and you're forced to take a sizable chunk of damage while Nito can hit and finish you off with his attack that he can use right away. Demon Ruins/Izaleth is actually kinda cool and super awesome in the lore. While yes the fact that it has 2 of the worst bosses as both are gimmick fights and not done well the area of these ruins placed in an area filled with lava is interesting. It makes for a fairly cool atmosphere. Demon Firesage is well... Demon Firesage (nothing new or special there). Its sad that time constrictions made these areas much worst than the rest of the game and if handled in a much different way Bed could have honestly been decent as a boss. The Kiln of the First Flame's only sin in my opinion isn't having the music "The Faithful Black Knights" playing throughout the area and only in the passageway.

[@dificulttocure]

I like that each of the four areas of the lord souls (which are 8 actually) has a distinct gimmick that the player must discover in order to easily traverse that area. The catacombs have enemies that will revive if not killed with holy damage. Tomb of the giants forces you to use a light source in order to see anything. Demon Ruins have lava that you can drain to expand the layout. Izalith is flooded with lava and forces you to use the lava resisting ring. Ruins of new londo has enemies that are invincible unless you're cursed. The abyss requirers you to equip the pact of Artorias. The archives have those changing staircases which are kinda a puzzle? And the crystal caves have invisible paths.

[@jimbo_13]

Thank you for this. Agreed on pretty much all counts.

[@randybellwood1778]

My first playthrough of Dark Souls was during the infamous "Flickering Lights Glitch" and I played entirely in Offline mode. Despite this DS1 is still one of my favorite games I've ever played. For anyone who says Bed of Chaos is an unfair boss, I challenge you to " Invisible Lava Quelaag" or Gwyndolin/Moonlight butterfly without being able to see what or when they cast. XD

[@matthewellison2988]

Amazing video, even better editing. The “second half” definite gets roasted but only because the first half is SOOOOO good. 10/10 game.

[@Thunderous333]

I really enjoyed the editing, keep up the good work, you just got a new sub :)

[@pootis.145]

I do not like Dark Souls but I watch for you, Shredder-kun

[@HPRshredder]

o7 ty Pootis

[@joelpettersson4055]

The only area that i think is noticably rushed is lost izalith.

[@TURTLE_RAY]

I love the start keep up the good work!

[@VonBoche]

It's not just that the areas themselves are worse than the earlier ones (because there's some decent ones indeed), it's also a problem of the structure of the game losing a sense of exploration and adventure. You've got your weapon, you've probably got your armor, you don't need shortcuts because you can teleport and areas are less interconnected anyway, you don't really need to explore anymore. While areas themselves are a less connected than the earlier ones, they can be tackled in any order. I can only speak for myself but it creates a weird difficulty curve that doesn't feel great where one area might be hard then the other 3 are basically cakewalks. It goes to back up the point that it's not much of a "half" which I agree with but the surprisingly on-point difficulty curve of early Dark Souls just turns into a difficulty slope for much of the end-game and that doesn't help the feeling that the adventure is dying out. So. It's not so much that it's aaaaallll baaaaad at the end of the game but there being a point where you can say "it's all downhill from here" and be mostly correct is still a sad note.

[@MunaHopi]

Excellent video, I have been watching, worth recommending

[@HPRshredder]

Glad you enjoyed it~

[@crummyclub9344]

Honestly I agree. Second half I think really only refers to those four Lord soul areas, and they constitute a small portion of the game. New Londo is also pretty good.

[@ozanozkirmizi47]

Entertaining editing... 👍

[@PoweredByFlow]

I liked when he was picked up by the crow while still doing comentary. lol

[@seneca3314]

MY BOY

[@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725]

Thank you. Very well explained. Ive been sticking up for ds1 second half for years now. Best game in the series. Maybe all time

[@Swack]

brother this is the most beautiful video i have ever seen visually, this is the peak of green screen integration

[@HPRshredder]

I appreciate that! It was a lot of fun to make, glad you enjoyed it~

[@IntrusiveThot420]

730 views? Lol this is gonna hit the algorithm soon. I had this *exact* argument with a friend spouting the "2nd half bad" argument a few days ago and it's like... not liking Lost Izalith and Tomb of the Giants doesn't make the entire back half of the game bad at all. 100% dig your points on this one and especially your editing.

[@HPRshredder]

Fingers crossed lol. I'm glad you liked the video though. There are several videos criticizing the second "half" on KZbin, but I think this is currently the only one "defending" it. So at the very least, if people search for it, they'll likely see the thumbnail.

[@Avrysatos]

I take issues about the crystal caves. I play offline and this was the first zone that really screwed with my fear of heights to the point that I had a tension headache. And making me hurt the puppy... is a big negative too. I tend to point these out rather than the whole "second half" but otherwise you make good points here. But I like dark souls 2 better than 1 so.....

[@HPRshredder]

I'm a big Dark Souls II fan. I love 1 & 2. Demon's Souls is also pretty excellent. I find 3 to be the least inspiring.

[@Avrysatos]

@@HPRshredder My favorites in order are 3, 2, 1. I found the 4 way rolling in 1 to be maddening on top of the tension headache and puppycide. 3 was the first one I played. A friend gifted it to me expecting to see me rage. Instead I accidentally parried and riposted gundyr and spent half an hour figuring out how i did that and what the timing was figured it was too finnicky to rely on at this point beat him and moved on. She had never been more disappointed in her life.

[@outlitxx]

this deserves more than 3.5 k views

[@kadimusbaratheon7352]

And here I way thinking this was a part 2 video. Then I went to his channel looking for part 1.

[@piotrwiduch9169]

I remember that on my first playtrough, when i was in Duke Archives i went out to the balcony. When i saw the garden/forest i was like "okay i know its not playable area, but cmon it looks so terrible...", and believe me i was so surprised when i found out the ladder to this "garden" :))))

[@BozzLightyr]

The editting I can ready see is on point my boy. I got something on but I'll be back to watch this later. Take this comment and like for now. Resting at the bonfire for now.

[@asiansticker7015]

Demon ruins and lost izaleth have a weird feeling to them for me. It feels like a very dark place we shouldn’t be at

[@TheCrawl]

*deep breath* *cracks knuckles* Okay. Here we go. Time to respond: …I agree.

[@trilbymctip4386]

I recently beat Dark Souls: Remastered and I agree that the "2nd Half" hate is overblown. I enjoyed Dukes Archives and Tomb of Giants. The only areas I can say I really didnt enjoy were Lost Izalith and the Great Hollow

[@mattcolewilson]

You're right!

[@samuelbaugh4952]

Gotta agree. “Second half” can be really fun because by that point nearly every weapon and spell opens up for you to play with. But I do think the ONE thing that does fundamentally change the “game feel” is Lordvessel warping. You’re no longer backtracking through a nigh-perfect intimate interconnected world as much as you are warping between “levels”, and for better or worse it does make everything feel a lot smaller. I don’t mind it, by that point the convenience is earned but a little something IS lost with that, and it won’t resonate with everybody. It’s probably why From games after don’t feel nearly as interconnected, you get warping right from the start.

[@PoweredByFlow]

Yeah its overblown, especially when Oolacile exists. When people say "second half bad" then i can only think of Lost Izalith. I mean thats where you can notice that they really went out of time there and just copy and pasted a bunch of enemies everywhere (mainly Dragon Butts), threw togethere the Bed of Chaos and called it a day. But some really great tools just came out by the modding community which is called Soulstruck in combination with Blender and lets you edit levels and even create your own, potentially even your own new enemies! I wonder how Lost Izalith could be changed to make it a lot better.🤔

[@Adum]

I don't think people count dlc when talking about the second half since people talk about how the second half feels rushed to meet the deadline which wouldn't apply to the dlc since it released later

[@PoweredByFlow]

@@Adum i think thats wrong though, because it was packed in with the full game ever since the PtdE got released. Most people only played it with the DLC.

[@DocDrowsy]

Really enjoyed the silly edits of yourself inside the game! Subbed for more sillyness

[@HPRshredder]

Glad you enjoyed it! But just know: this channel is typically only posts retro content. I have a TotK video that may drop this month, but it's still gonna be mostly retro. Glad you enjoyed though!

[@leocunha4985]

I agree, great video. Always thought the hate was like 20% justified, 80% overblown. The so-called bad "second half" is really more like last third or quarter depending on which quantity you count, and even then you can straight up complete New Londo and fight the Four Kings before ever ringing any of the bells if you have the master key. Duke's Archives was also a pretty great and fun area, Tomb of the Giants was at least interesting due to the pitch-black darkness mechanic which makes it unique (it's rare to see developers commit to an actual dark area), and the DLC areas are obviously amazing. The only legit bad ones were Lost Izalith due to it being blatantly unfinished, and arguably Crystal Caves cuz I hated those invisible walkways. Even the final area (Kiln of the First Flame) is a "second half" place that everyone likes. Don't get me wrong, the post-Lordvessel content is still worse by comparison and I'm not defending it in that regard; there is the lack of pre-Lordvessel world interconnectivity which admittedly makes it feel lesser in comparison. If they ever made a true DS1 remake in which they finished Lost Izalith and connected it to Tomb of the Giants cuz you can tell they were supposed to be linked (you can view one from the other), slightly improved Crystal Caves, and idk maybe connected Duke's Archives back to Anor Londo, then I feel like there would be significantly less major complaints about the "second half," if any really.

[@LuckerStomp]

You convinced me by showing Priscilla.

[@strangelove1434]

Take a shot every time the words “interconnected” and “second half” are brought up in a DS1 discussion

[@saikyue4462]

Im almost finished with the game on my first runthrough except Gwyn and the DLC, my main issue which keeps me from playing another runthrough is definetly Sens Fortress because u fall so many times for stupid reasons, Anor Londo because of the same Reason, archers and painting guardians. Catacombs and Tomb of the Giants same reason because those areas I felt like Skill has been set on the secondary.

[@ZaxUnderdark]

Very well said sir

[@shadypielover]

Nah when I say 2nd half it’s talking about the 5th time I beat the game, which is like half since I know what to do, I don’t even care about people who haven’t played the game anymore, or who play it for the first time, at this point I feel like everyone has played the game several times, and that 2nd half has like no actual good bosses, O&S are the peak of DS1

[@Malamockq]

The second half is where the REAL Dark Souls begins!

[@Qwertyuiopaz]

The bed of chaos is probably one of my favorite bosses from the game just due to how entertaining it was during my first playthrough. While lots of bosses like the centipede demon felt tedious, the bed of chaos was genuinely hilarious to me. Just the jankiness and unfairness made the whole fight hilarious to me. It genuinely made me feel like I was losing my sanity which somehow made it so much better. I think the capra demon and ceaseless discharge also fall into this category. (Watching the ceaseless discharge fall off the cliff is so funny for some reason).

[@leoncca]

Wow, great editing! How do you get those shots ingame, is there a mod to get them? And how do I learn to edit that well, hooot daaayum

[@HPRshredder]

I took all the shots with the binoculars in the Nintendo Switch version. I basically sat on green-screen fabric with green screen fabric behind me and shot the video just talking. I used object trackers to latch-on to certain patterns in the footage from the game and just played with it until it looked as natural as I could get it. I also added some "fog" type of effects in the foreground a few times to make me blend in, and when I zoomed in to myself I would blur the background so it looked like an actual camera would look zooming in.

[@leoncca]

@@HPRshredder Great job! I love it, very cool editing style. Thanks for the tips!

[@VBrinkV]

I have always thought this. I loved every bit of Dark Souls. Even Lost Izalith has a lot of compelling elements, for its flaws. People are too harsh on the "second half." Great points on why, HPR.

[@hamdiatasoy2456]

Cool editing very underwhelming arguments

[@giedokaziom]

A month ago I finished Dark Souls for the first time. Not knowing the game and picking the Master Key as a starting gift (because it was the only one that sounded as a good option) parts of my second half experience were Moonlight Butterfly or Capra Demon (and the whole Lower Undead Burg) + Visiting Blighttown from the second side (metal doors) - the side that is usually standard way unless you have the master key. I loved Duke's Archives and Tomb of the Giants (especially after finding out how to use the Lantern - was holding it in the right hand and expecting to work lol). During my first playthrough I was streaming the game to my friends who are DS1 fans and know every bit of the game. They were not giving me any tips though, just observing. Seeing how I was approaching the game and choosing routes, they said they don't believe me this is my 1st playthrough because I was not following "the usual" path. The beautiness behing this game for is that there is no "usual" way and it should be discovered by the player himself. The only thing that was bullshit to me was unlocking DLC - I had to finally ask for their help. I totally do not understand how can anyone find how to access the DLC without googling it.

[@dc1939]

Haha dude what ? I'm not even halfway through the second half of this 2nd Half vid & had to just pause it to comment that this is the best Souls video Ive ever seen

[@dc1939]

Any chance of followups with your takes on DS II & III ?