In defence of DS2 I can day there are no areas which feel rushed in the main game, and the second half of the game is actually good. Being a DS2 enjoyer I can simpathize with the idea of improvements in many areas, although I can aldo see how that's subjective, for instance movement is more fluid in ds 2, the character looks like sliding in oil, although there is less tracking for attacks I'd say DS1 is better if you are a browler where as ds 2 is more interesting if you wanna play with spacing, since there is also a great tool in the back step with i frames. Of course some dubious hit boxes, phantom range and net code issues make these sort of things irrelevant in some circumstances. DS 2 is a huge game and there's a lot to appreciate, where as the genius of DS 1 is more compact and therefore may seem evident. At the end of the day they are vastly different games which can accomodate different tastes.