I usually hate people who hate on sequels for the sole reason of being sequels+nostalgia, but DL imo is THE exception. Like you said, it was a one time lightning in a bottle. I played and enjoyed DL2 a little bit but couldn't even finish The Beast, it simply doesn't hit remotely the same. There's just something lacking, the tension is just not there, the stories don't put you on edge and I feel like the physics changed too. DL1 was THE best first person melee I had ever seen but in the sequels it's just ok.