IZUNA: "So The World Might Be Mended" Demon's Souls Review

From Software does it again; develop a solid game to a niche market. Demon's Souls has been recommended to me for nearly a year since its release in the USA back in 2009. Exclusive to the PlayStation 3, it is an action-RPG built to give players an authentic sense of accomplishment.

[Baliw]

It's a great game.
The only game that makes you feel great while dying.

[presto717]

I stopped playing for a while and then came back. Right now I'm trying to do an offline perfect run. And all that seems to be happening is - for lack of a better word- rape. Its just "you died" "you died" "you died" "you died" "you died". I'm like "WTF is this not the same game I played before"

I guess everything is different when you dont have two blue phatoms by your side.

[midgard227]

i played mostly alone the 2nd time, and beat it far faster, got more events to happen, and atleast 60 lvls higher than first play thru (110).

although the falsa king wud be annoying to beat alone i wud imagine lol.

first time i played i got thru 60 percent of the game not knowing how to target......man targeting helps lmao

[BABY-JEDI]

sorry, I just looked at your avatar pic. LoL ; )

[andron]

Not really a great RPG player, but I love the challenge and atmosphere of DS...

[andron]

Normally I don't care about disagrees, but what was the problem with this comment?

If people thought I meant the game wasn't that great, that's not what I meant. I love the game and I am playing it now. I was only saying that I normally don't play RPGs, except for Fallout 3 and the like...

[Donny]

HURRAH! great review, best rpg ive played ever.

[ALFAxD_CENTAURO]

Best RPG of all times.

[BABY-JEDI]

but I think Demons Souls 2 would be better ; )

[washingmachine]

the game is badazz,why havnt i got it yet? to intimidated lol

[Morituri]

Dude, would you deprive yourself of a leather clad, raven haired beauty sporting a whip if you had the opportunity? She might leave some scars, but you'd certainly enjoy the experience!

[bujasem_89]

yes one of the best games i've played , they must must must make aother one . no question about it .

and please this time make enough copies xD

[MonopolyRSV]

I could respect a 4/5, but 5/5 is simply choosing to overlook the glaring problems with the game in order to ride the hype train like everyone else. Typical.

[izuna]

I'd like to know what issues you're talking about.

[MonopolyRSV]

Lack of story, only 6 levels/environments, and lack of replayability are the main 3. 2 other smaller things include: ugly frame rate slowdown during explosions, RIDICULOUS drop rate for the Pure Bladestone that makes you want to kill someone, and of course the fact that you have to play those same 6 levels 4 times in order to get the platinum trophy. Just makes you wanna trade it in and be done with it.

[izuna]

Demon's Souls doesn't have a lack of story, it just doesn't have one the develops; for a game which focuses on it's gameplay more than its presentation it's not really an issue. But I see your point, however, due the world Demon's Souls has, personally I prefer that the player feels alone, and the only character who's significant.

I don't know what you mean by lack of replayablity; I tried to force myself through the campaign as fast as I could, and I put out 20 hours. New Game+ ensures that I can continue on, and the game gets slightly more difficult each time.

Chances are, if you're hunting for Pure Bladestone you had already put a lot of time in the game being a completionists. You have to realise that the games' main objective is to complete it's story, not acquire everything in it.

The five levels throughout actually include different environments within them, and because of the amount of work in their personalities, it would have taken a long time to create each one. The levels aren't/don't feel randomly generated; therefore I prefer quality over quantity.

Onto to the framerate drops. This is an objective issue. It is a shame, and it certainly stops the game from being perfect. But from the way I score games, as long as the game is a good game, stands out from within its genre, and has successfully utilized all aspects of its genre, it get's the highest score. The framerate drops don't bring the game down too far down, and throughout a 20 hour playthrough the framerate drops will only affect a couple of minutes max. Not to mention, the framerate drops don't add artificial difficulty to Demon's Souls, so it never frustrates the player.

[Celeras]

There's over 20 levels, 6 worlds where the levels take place.. just to clarify.

Also find it funny that you would mention lack of replayability as a flaw in the same reply that you say platinum requires too much replaying.

[PirosThe4th]

Lack of story? you probably skipped the story part...

6 levels?
you mean 6 worlds with 4 levels each?

No replayability?
you serious I have like 5 characters! And you can play the game doing different things like killing everyone or be good and kill demos to save the world...

ok so... if you lived in the time when games where all like that yet the were the greatest... *cough*super mario bros*cough* (no story, few worlds with levels, hardass)
You shouldn't even call yourself a gamer.

Only thing I agree with you is he frame-rate drops when you break stuff... it's annoying but it only happened to me on Boletaria...

just shut up
MonopolyRSV....

[MonopolyRSV]

Issues

"I don't know what you mean by lack of replayablity; I tried to force myself through the campaign as fast as I could, and I put out 20 hours. New Game+ ensures that I can continue on, and the game gets slightly more difficult each time."

Yeah but it's not a REAL change in difficulty, as if you had more enemies or smarter enemies with better attack patterns, it's just a percentage increase in enemy hit points. You are pretty much forced to farm souls anyway, so it really ends up being about time and how much of it you are willing to spend killing the same groups of enemies over and over again.

And also, that Red Hot Demons' Soul boss for example, that AI was absurd. Trap him behind the bones so he cant hit you then rock him with the Dragon Bone Smasher. I looked forward to each enemy boss being really beastly but they turned out to be scrubs for the most part.

I bought the game thinking it was challenging/difficult, but really it was just tedious. I had fun with it for a while but when I was about 2/3rds of the way to platinum I started to get bored and annoyed.

[midgard227]

ur a troll, while i respect ur opinion to give it a 4/5 ur reasons make no sense, no replayability?

if u kill 1 major demon u can use that soul to make a weapon, a miracle, magic or dark magic.....its not possible to get all of that without playing 4 times.

theres tons of character tendancy changes depending how u play aswell as missions that open up, areas that open etc. not to mention there are 2 different endings and rewards for the ending.

u can play as a warrior,thief mage, a combo of any, use spears, diff daggers, diff weapons to get, tons of armor to get.

the game has tons of replayability so i dunno wat ur talkin bout.

and um whats wrong with 6 worlds? each world has 3 stages so wtf r u talkin about???

if u dont like it thats fine but ur the minority. everything u said is coming from a person who hasnt even beaten the game.

[karl]

@MonopolyRSV dude, u r such a troll

i agree with averything midgard said

u complain about the boss not being hard yet u bug the flamelurker
that boss was the hardest and most scary of them all for me...

i was planing on defeating the game without magic and no blue phantoms.. really thought it was posible till i meet this guy..

no history? u need to look harder, maiden Astraea and garl vinland..
poor ostrava of boletaria... i felt sorry for all this guys

u need to find out a bit more about them dude..
the only problem is that u dont have a narrator telling u everything

[Morituri]

Lol! What a noob! Your first console must have been a 360.

Gamers these days are so spoiled. I remember when the best you could get was two bars on either side of a black screen and one square pixel bouncing between them...

[jack_burt0n]

zelda in hell.

great game.

[RatFuker]

this game is brilliant, i sh!t you not, just buy the game lesssss yerrrr scarrred.

[smithdown]

Man, I put 60 hours in to my first run through, and I still haven't finished it! It's not that I even suck that bad, I just like taking my time and exploring. I'm in the UK and was playing on the US servers, so there were rarely any people to play co-op or PVP with, so I have bought the UK version in the hope that more people will be on line at the same time as me.

I'm not even bothered about finishing the adventure with my all-round Wanderer (soul level 80ish). I've started a new game with a Barbarian, and am gonna build him up in to a melee beast - nothing but strength, endurance and vitality, maybe a touch of dexterity. The game is MUCH more challenging when going melee - standing back and shooting stuff from a distance is just cheap. And as for those bum-holes who appear as BPs and two-hit you with God's Wrath - SCREW YOU, COWARDS! FACE ME AS MEN!

[izuna]

You put in 60 hours, and reached Soul Level 80? My 20 hour run made me Soul Level 85.

But I guess you didn't farm those flying enemies with the Storm Rider sword, and the ring that makes you acquire more souls. ;)

[midgard229]

lol i played 28 hours and im lvl 110 :)

[DelbertGrady]

I'm thinking of buying it for a friend who wons a PS3. He's somewhat of an ADD gamer though so I'm not sure he'd appreciate it. Might get it as a stealth present so I can try it out for myself :D

[Ult iMate]

He'd appreciate it alot, belive me.

[Snakefist30]

Another Ps3 Exclusive Excellent Reveiw And A Great Game Indeed.Ive Kinda Having Difficulty With The Bosses Though.

[Gun_Senshi]

since i'm in a european country it released not long ago.

I'm getting phantom edition

[MysticStrummer]

Demon's Souls is my favorite game of this generation so far. Buy it now. That is all.

[nefertis]

lol awesome game