For the sake of getting a pulse going in these particular forums, I figure I'd post some information I've learned about Dark Souls 2 for you folks. I'm sure there's some fans of the Souls series around here, and maybe they don't know or haven't heard of some of the recent developments. So here's what's new. This mostly concerns PvP and online elements, but some major changes in the game as well. For starters, Backstabs have been nerfed somewhat. They still do a good chunk of damage, but not enough to outright demolish an enemy at full health. The other big change is, drumroll please, [u]you can now be knocked out of the backstab animation.[/u] This means that you will only do partial damage instead, and makes backstabs a risky play when dealing with large crowds. Parrying now has a windup time. You don't press a button and simply parry. You've got to get your shield ready, and then parry. Which means you'll have to time your parries well now. A theory of mine is that the heavier the shield, the longer your parrying "ready" animation will take. Lighter shield, faster parries, heavy shield, slower parries. Humanity is no longer in the game, instead you recover it by using what looks like some kind of stone. And now, a big change. When you die in hollow form, you lose 10% of your maximum health. It isn't known how far this goes, but it doesn't simply stop at 10%. Die again, and another 10% is chipped off. This is also in conjunction with another new feature. You are no longer safe in hollow form from invasions. Yep, that's right, you can invade, and be invaded while in hollow form. So now that we're on to the multiplayer stuff, let's talk about gankers. You know, those lovely people in the forest and other areas that beat on you together in groups? Well, your phantom buddies now have a timer concerning how long they can stay in your world, and killing an enemy, be it invader or other, shortens the timer. So gank fests may be short lived now. And as for sunbros, guess you'd better hurry on up to the boss if you want to get something accomplished. There hasn't been much revealed on covenants, but they play a much bigger role now in the game than they did before. [u]Wheel Skeletons have returned.[/u] Sorcerers can now use shields as catalysts for casting spells. Fire spells are in the game, which suggests it's a prequal rather than sequal, as the Demon Firesage was the first, and last being to know of ancient fire sorcery's. Elemental effects are now effected by stats. Depending on what pool your pour stats into, you'll be better with certain elements than others. And that about wraps up what's been happening lately. The north american beta test started up a little while ago, so if you want some more information, take a look around for those videos. Each one is different, and always has a surprise or two. So basically, Dark Souls 2 is shaping up to be really, really mean. I think "Only the dead know peace from this ride" would be an appropriate summery of how the game is shaping up.