As someone who hasn't beat any of the previous Fromsoft games although a couple of them are collecting dust in my library -- which might change at this rate, but unfortunately I see myself missing the jump button already -- and having beat this one, I had a lot of fun. I even went into NG+ to whup ass and get ass whupped all over again. I still can't quite wrap my head around every nook and cranny of lore, which is fine, because it just continues to allow discovery. Those of us that have beat it understand the gist, and some of you out there probably have an entire power-point presentation ready about every last branch on the Erdtree. Yes, the game has some problems but, it shouldn't stop you from being able to beat it how you want to, anyone who says otherwise probably popped a blood vessel already and they're no longer our problem!

So, in the end: It's a good game. Play it, have fun; don't get cocky.
Sometimes you will want to commit atrocities in a god's name, I know I have!

Stay calm, O stay calm,
So to speak, suffering required ahead.

This is what playing the original Risk of Rain felt like when I was a young kid playing in the school computer lab. They delivered so well and breathed such a massive breath of life into a cherished game, even if it isn't an incredibly deep one.

10 (12 based on when the review got edited.) years later, I can safely say, this is the best timeline.