I spent 40 hours beating this game and not really knowing why I kept playing and then proceeded to spend an entire year thinking about it and coming to the conclusion it was amazing just to replay it in 20 hours and come to the conclusion that this game actually sucks. Highly recommend, can't wait to replay again next year.

Edit: Alright, another playthrough in the books. 30 more hours in Dark Souls II. Yea I had it right the first time, this game rules.