Namco on Dark Souls 2 marketing: "treating it as a massive AAA title, would be nice to attract Skyrim players"

[F0X]

C'mon now. Other recent entries in hardcore JRPG franchises have survived the addition of options that make the game more accessible.

Something as simple as a mode that lessens the penalty for death would be a way to make the game more accessible without changing the actual level design or how combat works.