They seem to be making a lot of positive changes for Dark Souls 2. The new back stab is more difficult to initiate, and can be escaped from. No longer locking you into place and giving the backstabber invincibility during the animation. Dual wielding is has new moves, and is a possible starting class. The starting classes are now recommended after you spread your own stats around. Magic has new melee like attacks, and now consumes stamina. And people who played the E3 demo say the AI is a lot more aggressive.