When I became aware of the buzz surrounding Demon's Souls, and PS3 exclusive Action Role-Playing Game (ARPG) it had already been released. The word was that it was really, really hard, which I, and apparently many others, found intriguing. I even remember seeing a poll on a gaming website that asked something to the effect of “How hardcore is Demon’s Souls?”. I don’t remember all of the options, just my favourite: “Demon’s Souls is so hardcore I died in character creation.” I thought this was a joke.
Amidst the ubiquity of save/check points in gaming these days, the message is clear: the gaming industry has become massive; bigger than the movie industry, and it doesn't want to scare off its valued customers with a controller throwingly frustrating game. Thankfully, the Japanese development team 'From Software', along with SONY's Japan Studio, did not, apparently, care about popularity, and went ahead with Demon's Souls: the game you love to hate.
Against all odds, it seems, the game sold rather well. It hasn't released in Europe yet, and has sold just over 600,000 copies in Japan and The Americas thus far. If it is released in Europe, that number will undoubtedly surpass one million, which (for a new IP (Intellectual Property), ie. NOT a sequel), is deemed a great success. Either way, the game has already surpassed sales expectations, which is good news for any developer who was afraid that pissing off gamers was no longer profitable.
Now on to the game. The story is, well, essentially non-existent. The evidence of this is that I can't confidently say what it is. The game is set in a crumbling medieval world of warriors and magicians (end everything in between; the class options are great). A once great kingdom toyed with a power it couldn't control (soul power) and, unexpectedly, I'm sure, things got out of hand. Now the whole place is infested with demons and it is your job to liberate it from them. Throughout the game you are given a few cutscenes to set the stage and kind of clue you in, but you are left a 2-dimensional agent of demon destruction. I didn't mind this, personally, because the settings are so atmospheric and desolate that the lack of story and depth of your character is quite isolating, adding to the mood (if you like that kind of mood), and better serves to let you "be" the character you are playing as. No one, however, will feel this kind of "I'm there" sensation until they put in at least 4 hours, and that's with a guide to spare you the immense frustration which is at it's highest at the beginning of the game. I recommend the Demon's Souls wiki online, it has everything you need.
So, I hear you asking, why should I fork out 70 dollars just to get enraged? Because, mon vieux, this kind of rage is the rage that emboldens the brave and reduces the cowardly to their constituent parts. The answer is glory. I kid you not, I have already heard from three different sources of people that have bought the game, and sold it back to the game store at a loss or simply given it away, which makes one a champion, by comparison, simply for playing the game. Furthermore, the difficulty is high, but fair. The game mechanics are such that when you die, it is practically always because you screwed up. If you have a decent plan, and play accordingly, you will succeed, once you beat a stage once, it never causes you the same problem again. It's like figuring out the strategy for practically every boss in the Zelda series, find the pattern and exploit its weakness. Finding the pattern, I'm afraid, takes numerous deaths, but the process of besting an enemy or boss by both strategy and nimbleness of thumb makes each encounter something of an action puzzle (often with numerous solutions, I'm happy to add). When you succeed in
Demon's Souls, it is you who succeeds, it is not accounted for by a bout of luck, or by mad button mashing skills. The win is attributed to you and you alone, which makes for a satisfying game experience.
There is more to say about Demon's Souls, there really is, but this is less a review than an endorsement and bid to get you to check out the game for yourself. Just google "gametrailers demon's souls review" and you'll get a concise video review of the game. Until then, this bad-ass game gets a nine out ten from me. Oh, and I almost forgot: Boss design is amazing, and the game has an epic original score composed and performed by, get this, real japanese classical musicians.
You might not be able to believe this, but Dark Souls is a pretty tricky game on the PlayStation 3.
Dark Souls and its antecedent, Demon's Souls, changed the gaming industry, but some games came away with the wrong lesson.
I’m not at all saying the souls like games are bad. The fans speak to how good the games are, but those games just bore me to tears. It’s just combat combat combat. I know the worlds are interesting and there is lore if you search for it, but there just aren’t enough lulls in all the fighting to enjoy any of the art and lore. Wish there were more story elements.
Are you saying people can't have a preference towards story-driven games?
My wife is, frankly, not very coordinated, and that's a big reason she gravitates towards easier gameplay and more story.
And having many people (gamers) who have many different preferences and opinions is very good for the gaming industry.
You don't have to understand, but you certainly should be thankful and respectful, because diverse interests bring variety. That's a great thing to have for anyone who loves games.
I’ll try to explain. Not everyone wants to only do combat for 50 hours. Lack of combat doesn’t mean boring to some people. I never said I didn’t want there to be combat, but when there is a beautiful intricate open world with lore it would be nice to have the time to explore it and have some down time. In the souls games there is very little in the way of narrative, cutscenes, or exploration other than just finding the next boss. Too much of any one element can be boring. Sorry if that is too big of a concept for you.
"I never said I didn’t want there to be combat, but when there is a beautiful intricate open world with lore it would be nice to have the time to explore it and have some down time. In the souls games there is very little in the way of narrative, cutscenes, or exploration other than just finding the next boss."
These games are quite well known for their lore and narrative, it just isn't spoon fed to you. I really appreciate that the games aren't out to insult your intelligence and trusts you to read item descriptions, explore locations, meet NPCs, and put the pieces together. The macro level narrative is easy enough to understand, but it's when you want that granular understanding of the lore that you need to explore, talk to people, find items, play the DLC, etc etc. It often invites multiple playthroughs. It's one of the unique qualities about these games where you don't have to learn what happened/what's happening in detail, but it's a lot of fun. Reminds me of reading the diary entries in Resident Evil titles.
Yes, there's a ton of combat (who would've thought in a broken world of miserable vagabonds and corrupt abominations, am I right?) but they do a great job of varying it: you can play defensively, aggressively, evasively, from a distance (bows, spells, pyromancies), with various weapons, and any combinations thereof while incorporating secondary weapon effects like elements, toxicity/poison, bleeding effects. The combat isn't stagnant. If you find it boring, you might not be exploring your possibilities very well.
"Too much of any one element can be boring. Sorry if that is too big of a concept for you."
You don't have to be condescending about it. I don't take issue with you not liking these games or finding them boring, but I also think your take is a bit myopic.
I don’t understand why people like Fortnitre ,CoD etc. I enjoy story driven games but love souls games too. We all have different tastes though
That's what people love about it. It's all about the Gameplay, challenge, world building. What more do you want from a game.
I though Gameplay was one of if not the most important aspect of a game? What's your idea of a better souls like game then?
"What's your idea of a better souls like game then?"
World building isn't the only element of story that people care about. That user said, "more story elements (plot, characterization, story growth, etc) and less combat."
It's perfectly healthy for people to express why they don't like From Software games, because a new dev might create a new, amazing game that bridges those dislikes into the genre for something new.
It's also great that you love all the aspects that Souls have brought to the gaming industry. Enjoy what you enjoy and let others do the same.
Some people prefer games where you spend more time watching than playing, and that's okay. Everyone doesn't have to have the same tastes.
Are CBR so desperate to generate clicks to their articles that they've got obviously spam accounts leaving random positive comments? sakshi97978 & arpitachowdhary9797 in case they've been marked as spam by the time you see this comment.
I thought I was the only one that noticed the spammish nature of those accounts. Glad to see I wasn't the only one
The spirit of each game ripples into the next, and Demon’s Souls was the trailblazing catalyst.
'Helped' shape? I mean this is the blueprint that the rest are built on. I often see many claim Dark Souls as the revolutionary entry in the series and responsible for the Soulsborne genre, but when I ask what Dark Souls did that Demon's Souls didn't, the only answer I get is 'it had a connected level design rather than separate levels'. Something that could be in most genres of games. The truth being that Dark Souls is the first one they played or the first one that came to their platform, it has a special place in their heart, and they want to give it more credit than it deserves.
Replies(4)Replies(2)
No, King's field was the blueprint that layed the foundation for future FromSoftware RPGs and Demon's Souls built on it. Environmental storytelling, difficulty, weapon degradation, strategic combat where every move counts and that opressive atmosphere of loneliness were all present in King's Field.
"Environmental storytelling, difficulty, weapon degradation, strategic combat where every move counts and that opressive atmosphere of loneliness were all present in King's Field."
These alone do not make a Souls game or else playing Fallout 3 with a hardcore mode would be a Souls game. To be a Soulsborne, you need to be a 3rd person action RPG. You need the death mechanic where you're gambling your XP (essentially) 'souls\blood echoes\runes' with one chance to win that progress back if you return to where you fail, this risk-reward element is essential. You might also need the co-op mechanic that allows you to be invaded and turned into PvP.
"These alone do not make a Souls game" I didn't say it did. I said that King's Field layed the foundation for future FromSoftware RPGs and that Demon's Souls built on it. The things I mentioned immediately come to mind when I think about the experience I had with Demon's Souls and I would bet that most people that played it think the same as well.
"The things I mentioned immediately come to mind when I think about the experience I had with Demon's Souls"
That's cool but my point and what this article is about is what shaped the 'soulsborne' franchise. Soulsborne is a distinct genre, Demon's Souls did all the heavy lifting for what we call Soulsborne today. King's Field contributes nothing unique to that genre.
Agreed. I personally enjoyed Demon Souls much more then the Dark Souls series for whatever reason, and it definitely served as the blueprint for those games and most of Fromsoft’s other IPs to current date. They found their “style” of game making Demon Souls.
Replies(1)
I remember playing demons souls on ps3 when it was released(not popular yet during that time), I didn't expect to be mind blown. Can't forget the feeling. Without it no DS1, 2, and 3 for sure.
I havent touched any rpg's in years, but got this game solely on the incredible reviews and rants such as this one! A little backgruond of my gaming: I'm a 43yo, and have been gaming since 1972! Yes I have missed the old school "vibe" we gamers got playing games without save points and auto saves! DEMONS SOULS hits that sweet spot perfectly IMHO! And your review was also spot on! I will beat this game EVENTUALLY! Having a BLAST dying ;) 9.5!
Got it! Yes, I'm bragging. I've never been a trophy kind of guy, but decided to get all the trophies on this game because I enjoyed it so much. The game gets significantly harder on your second cycle, but is even more rewarding once you've finished it. This is a very good review of the game and I would encourage anyone who is interested in this game to pick it up. You will not be disappointed. I pre-ordered the premium version and got the walkthrough, a CD, a case and some little graphics book for an extra $10. This has been the only time I've ever bought a premium version and it is the only one that I think is worth it. Get this game!
... and have stayed up too late every night since. Very good review.. spot on from what I've experienced so far.
<------ still a pud.