According to this thread at reddit http://www.reddit.com/r/DarkSouls2/comments/23sobt/glitch_in_the_undead_cryptditch_bonfire_area/

I've tested it myself in that area and it does work! provided that you don't have your brightness too high you will really need a torch in order to see the environment, unfortunately it goes away after awhile.

Kind of weird to exploit a glitch that makes you have to use something you don't want to.

Torches, while not necessary, are still useful in The Gutter. They are also used for 2 boss fights, of which one it is fairly necessary to use. You can also use them on the enemies in No Man's Warf who are afraid of it. There are more uses for it (I killed someone in PvP with it once), but it's all optional.

Personally I was really looking forward to it, I think having to use torches instead of a shield in dark areas would've made for a much more exciting and challenging experience. The character glow totally takes away the absolute necessity to use them.

Game would've been so much better if every area was Tomb of the Giants, I agree. Doom 3 is the greatest, most visually impressive game ever made. Also missing from this game: Poisonous swamp, sewer level, the ending cutscene of MGS4, pretentious Ken Levine plot twists, and Michael Bay.

There is always 2-handing and dual wielding if you're looking for ways to get off without a shield. And although this is an exhausted argument I have to say, carrying a torch in a lot of areas does enhance visibility. It's not absolutely necessary but it really helps. In fact running out of torches already sucks, and there isn't a merchant that sells them or anything. If half the game was pitch black you could find yourself unable to progress if you ran out of enemies to farm for torches.

You know that would be a better ending. You walk up to the Throne.... all seems clear..... then there is a roar! You turn and look around "Metal Gear?!?!?!?!"

YES YES YES.

I can't tell if you are being facetious. While everything sounds dumb, having Michael Bay direct this game would've, obviously, made it the best game ever.

I don't see why this is a big deal at all.

They've always been useful for me. Dont understand that because something is useless for you its useless for everyone? I've only used my flasks for healing, making the other healing items completely useless for me, are they universally considered useless?

Thought this silly notion had died already....

I've found hidden ledges while carrying a torch, but apart from a few enemy types I rarely found them useful.

@kaos999 Depends on the situation. Popping a life gem will still allow you to move while healing which can be very handy.

Using ENB on PC makes the game pretty awesome.

@Mic

Not for me as it's much quicker to down a flask than to go through that slow walk animation at 115 agility. Seriously. Dont understand why adp gets ignored as even when my dodge timing is off I still get missed 95% of the time.

That being said I still wouldn't discount the healing items just because they are useless for me. That's all I was saying.

I like the torch how it is. The places where it gets used seem meaningful and fun. Using it everywhere sounds tedious.

It also creates an issue with the limited time of the torch. I'm sure there are some people who would think it adds more tension except it really just means, "Well I guess I have to go farm more," if you happen to run out of time on it. I haven't checked, but over the course of my last playthrough I built up roughly 3 hours of torch time, but probably spent far more than that in dark areas.

I've been cranking the contrast on both my graphics card and monitor to make the brights brighter and the darks darker. It makes the game look a lot less washed out. Not only does it make things moodier, it also serves to make the game more exciting since I'm sometimes surprised by what's lurking in dark areas. It makes the torch a useful tool at times, and I find myself going out of my way to light those sconces.

It's never as dark as the Tomb of the Giants. Nothing is ever pitch black, nor do I want THAT. I just like it to look closer to the contrast level of the early DS2 footage.