Episode 200

Dark Souls II (with Ryan Batie - Lightning Strikes Thrice)

January 28th, 2026

2 hrs 36 mins 2 secs

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About this Episode

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Every beloved series has its black sheep- Mario has Sunshine, Zelda has the DS games, and Dark Souls has Dark Souls 2. But to me, the things that make Dark Souls 2 divisive are the things that make it interesting. Not every new decision is a home run, but they're all ripe for discussion. And hey, good thing we have this podcast! And it's episode 200!

Guest info: Ryan Batie (they/them)

TIMESTAMPS

  • 0:00 Title Card
  • 0:15 Introductions
  • 7:18 Our Histories with Dark Souls
  • 11:19 Opening Thoughts about Dark Souls 2
  • 18:51 Story and Themes Setup- Memory, Hollowing, World Design
  • 30:26 More Theme Setup
  • 35:51 Vibes, Atmosphere and Music
  • 43:37 Examining Gameplay Changes
  • 1:22:18 DLCs, Multiplayer and Comedy
  • 1:31:42 Closing Thoughts and Recommendations
  • 1:34:25 Lightning Strikes Thrice Podcast & Pitch Drop Network
  • 1:39:33 Spoiler Wall and Patron Thank-Yous
  • 1:41:18 Spoiler Section- Trouble Areas
  • 1:52:00 Spoiler Section- Vendrick's Story and Connections to Dark Souls
  • 2:11:59 Spoiler Section- Aldia and The First Sin
  • 2:21:56 Lucatiel and the Giants

Music used in the episode is credited to Motoi Sakuraba, unless otherwise noted. Tracks used: Main Menu, Majula, Ruins Sentinel (Yuka Kitamura), Milfanito, Fire Keepers, Fume Knight, Remains

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Cover art by Jack Allen- find him at https://linktr.ee/JackAllenCaricatures

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