Dark Souls 2
Dark Souls 2 PC was released on 25 April.darksouls ii

Dark Souls 2, which was recently released for PC, has been bogged down by problems that were not seen when developer From Software and publisher Bandai Namco launched the game for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Bandai Namco is now developing workarounds for some of the issues listed. The company acknowledged the issues with the game's PC version, and confirmed it is working on problems like crashes and controller issues. It has also stated that the PC version will soon get a patch that will fix many of the issues in the "next few" days. (See: Dark Souls 2: New Workaround for Start-up Crash in Game's PC Version) (See also: Dark Souls 2: Game Gets New Graphics Mod from Modder Who Improved Darks Souls PC Port)

The publisher posted on the Steam Community Page, thanking players for identifying problems and promised that the company will investigate all problems that affected the game. Here is a list of issues which have been highlighted by the publisher and their fixes:

  • Game crashes on startup: A fix is in the works and will be deployed in the next few days. Possible workarounds can be found here.
  • Inability to play previous VAC banned players - The issue has been moved to relevant parties. This space will be updated.
  • Not taking inputs from controller, not recognizing it - Try this when there are problems: "Open up Device Manager and under Human Interface Devices, right click and disable all HID-compliant game controllers, and if you have a G13 disable the Logitch G13 Joystick. Restart the game and it should work. You may also need to disable any virtual HID-compliant game controllers as well."
  • Pre-order bonuses: "Should be located in "x:SteamSteamAppscommonDark Souls 2DARK SOULS 2- DIGITAL EXTRAS" if you have it. Make sure you have the preorder content listed under the game's DLC as well."
  • Other issues: If you are experiencing any other technical issues with Dark Souls II, please get in touch with the support team.

Apart from the list by Bandai Namco, Reddit Support Thread has also listed some problems faced by the players, and also some possible fixes and reasons:

General game problems

1. Crashing on startup.

2. Invisible bloodstains, messages and items - Some cases seem to be caused by DS2, using an integrated graphics card, rather than the primary graphics card.

3. Game may occasionally minimize to desktop - Possibly caused by other programs trying to update. Disabling java/flash auto-updates may solve the problem.

Input and control problems

1. Significant mouse input lag.

2. Double click not registering properly.

3. People having trouble with saving keybinds.

4. There is no "two hand left weapon" option.

5. Input equivalents.

6. Stuck blocking/running/walking Constant blocking can be toggled with the 'lock guard' keybind.(default m) 'Auto-walk'(default z) and 'auto-dash'(default x) toggle walk and sprint, respectively.

The game was released for PC on 25 April with 720p resolution. 

(Ed: VP)