Demon's Souls Interview - EDGE

EDGE: "Sony's Takeshi Kajii and From Software's Hidetaka Miyazaki, on why the dark fantasy title has captured the imagination of players worldwide."

[kratos123]

really a nice read im hoping there will be something similair to DS in the near future we need more games like this

[Active Reload]

I hope they decide to do pvp for online, to offset cost for publishers internet hosting.

[AtatakaiSamurai]

demon souls does have pvp for online... havent gotten or tried out your red stones yet?

what i'll love to see in ds2 is 1v1-5v5 pvp battles... heck, i'll love to see a whole game like ds online pvp with 100vs100. With sony and the PS3, this is shown to be very possible so pls DO IT SONY!!!

[Active Reload]

Pfft, I meant to say p2p. In the article they mentioned dedicated servers were really expensive for Sony. Which is probably why they had that article a few weeks back saying they would support DS's online until March of 2011. After that though, it'll probably be time to say good-bye.

[rdgneoz3]

The have 2 forms of pvp for online. One is people getting invaded by phantoms who come to kill them, though it can be a 1 vs 1 black phantom or a 2 (host of the level and a blue phantom) vs 1 black phantom or a 3 vs 1, depending on if the host had summoned any blue phantoms before the black phantom got to him. The other is dropping a red stone for 1 on 1 duel, where the winner gets a soul level's worth of souls from the loser. If you mean 5 vs 5 or more, then it would be interesting though too many people would ruin the feel of it.

Edit: Ah, P2P. It will be sad when online dies in March. Though maybe if people sign a petition or such they might extend it.

[AtatakaiSamurai]

i woulve never vote for a game like ds to have p2p severs. it may sound ok now but it would be fraustrating for ds gamers with lag and cheaters would have a field day.

if they somehow switch ds1 to p2p severs in 2011 instead of taking it offline altogether that may be nice for some but as long as ds2 is out i wouldn't care cause i'll be on that that instead especially with a more robust online set-up AND with dedicated servers.

dedicated servers are the way to go for gaming. we need to push developers to find ways to make this kind of service standard for gaming instead of copping out and accepting slopping out old outdated p2p. great for same shooting mechanics games sure but large and intricate battles like in ds? nah, dedicated severs ftw all day long! lol

[iHEARTboobs]

"Initially the plan was to have the game feature perma-death, where death of the character would result in the save file being erased"

lol, damn glad that didn't happen. Great read!

[ranmafandude]

i don't think anyone would have bought the game if that happened.

[rdgneoz3]

People would have bought it, just no one would play it online for fear of black phantoms killing their hundreds of hours worth of play time.

[pippoppow]

Could make for an interesting concept only if the game is easy and although you no longer play as the dead character you were playing but can continue with another character. Would add to the tension because you'd fear losing a character you like that has been built up. Losing a character and starting all over may be too much although may work for a short downloadable game.

[Chubear]

That WOULD be a welcome idea to many hard-core Demon Soul gathers. Maybe in a DS version of Elite Mode... damn, this game turns you into a gluton for pain :( lol

This game and MAG occupy virtually 80% of my online gaming time lol

[Blaine]

Easily my two most rewarding gaming experiences so far this gen.

I've platted both Uncharteds, Heavy Rain, GoW3, Batman:AA, Assassin's Creed 2, and Infamous (well, I platted DS too! MAG soon...) and I've played the hell out of both Resistances, LBP, Warhawk, GTAIV, Killzone 2, and others... All this to say I've played most of the best games the PS3 has to offer through and through, and DS and MAG are the two I look back on the most fondly.

[Veneno]

I heart MAG as well.

[TooTall19]

I play it so much it's crazy. I love Demons Souls. Did not care for mag at all.

[LiquifiedArt]

Thats why i will continue to support the Playstation brand. Sony allows innovative ideas and creative freedom on risky titles, but no other system will do what the playstation does. That risk does pay off, i'm a loyal consumer for that reason.

[ranmafandude]

Nintendo - only risk they took recently was the wii

Microsoft - nothing

sony - the ps1,ps2,psp and ps3

[AKS]

Sony kinda passed on publishing this game worldwide in this specific instance with Demon's Souls, although they later admitted it was a mistake to do that. In many other cases what you're saying is very true. Sony has been fantastic in supporting games like their Team ICO games, Heavy Rain, and Gran Turismo Forever...er, GT5. j/k ;) I'd say 90% of my gaming time is split between PS3 and PC because that's where I've found the most engrossing and unique gaming experiences. I also am a bit of an audio enthusiast and love all the 7.1 high end audio support on those two platforms.

BTW, Demon's Souls is probably my favorite game of this generation. I've played it for hundreds of hours. Sometimes I just throw my stone down in 4-1 and scrap in PVP for hours or help the newbies clear the tough bosses in 2-2 or 3-2, as I got the platinum 8 months ago. Still love the game.

[lightningsax]

Actually, a bunch of core-directed, risk-taking current gen Nintendo games are gaining a cult following. Nintendo didn't just take the motion-control risk; they've given quite a bit of support to daring third-party companies. Think about Knights in the Nightmare, which was initially just a DS game. Or that Nintendo would even think of investing their cash in Treasure to make Sin and Punishment 2 (it was almost a "second-party" investment)- heck, the first game didn't even see the light of day in the States, other "mature" titles weren't selling well, and they go for an insane shooter that's only for the shmup core gamers.

Don't even get me started that the first game shown for the 3DS was a Kid Icarus title that looks like a "laser hell" version of Sin and Punishment mashed up with a bit more melee a la God of War. That's not the risk-averse Nintendo you seem to be talking about.

Still, yeah, overall in terms of home consoles (non-portable), Sony has fostered the most creativity - I'd say through PSN more than anything. Gotta love what Q and Thatgamecompany have brought to the table. Even the PSP's overlooked stuff like Half-Minute Hero, Patapon, and Patchwork Heroes were innovative and hardly looked profitable - but were a heck of a lot of fun. Microsoft does have a little bit of risk-taking - after all, they were the ones that booked Cave (Mushihimesama Futari, DeathSmiles) to release their shmups there and not on a much more appreciated Japanese console like the PS3, first as region-free importable games, and then with full-out NA releases.

But remember, as AKS above me said, Sony didn't take the risk of bring Demon's Souls to North America. That was the venerable Atlus, who stood up for it when all the big guys, including Sony America, wussed out. Atlus has been a saving grace in bringing awesome/obscure Japanese games to Westerners this generation, and don't you forget it.

[ArchangelMike]

I love Demon's Souls!
I hate Demon's Souls... but I love Demon's Souls

There is no game out there that instills the sence of dread, than when you get the message flash up that a Black Phantom has invaded your game!

Needless to say, I got OWNED... and then I got OWNED again and agian!!!

Hated it, but loved it all at the same time!

[wissam]

I really like this game I am level 150 now and on my second play though.

[Malebaria]

Oh,what a pleasant surprise Demon's Souls was to me. I find myself still playing it quite regularly.
Fingers crossed for a DS 2 announcement at TGS!

[saint_john_paul_ii]

i F***ing love Demon's Souls

[Charlie2688]

I am currently playing the game and I LOVE it, some parts of the game are just ridiculous like fighting alone the Flameluker Boss but despite SO much punishment I keep playing :D

And there is nothing that will make you go insane quicker that fighting thru a level collecting a ridiculous amount of souls just to get killed, be revived and get killed AGAIN in your way to recover them by some crappy monster >.>

[DarkSpawnClone]

or to be killed by a black phantom and then revive your self get some blue phantoms and then black phantom joins and kills every one,and you lose over 80k souls yeah that happened to me lmao yeah the game is hard but its really not as hard as some people would say it is,you cant just rush in there trying to be -enter favorite hero/super hero here-(mines Batman)..like the dragon god most people just run right past through and try to do it the hard way and squished by a huge fist instead of hiding behind the pillars/wall and shooting arrows or magic at the stones that are in the way(when the dragon gods eyes turn red(?) he can see you)i mean you can run right through play how you want but its better to do it this way :)...i have beaten demon souls like 5 times that game is like crack,so god damn addicting i have people on my friends list that don't play any thing but demon souls rarely do they play some thing else lol.

[lightningsax]

Ohhh the Flamelurker. My slow-moving melee character was massacred by him.

Here's a hint - see the spine-looking thing to your left as you enter the area? Get him on the left side of that (near the wall), and maintain a safe distance on the opposite side of the spine. He'll run at you but fail to realize the spine's in his way, and he'll just keep running in place. Get a ranged weapon or spear and you can attack him over the spine with minimal risk of being hit. If you have magic, even better.

Sure, they made it so he's got half a brain, and he'll figure out that he needs to get out of that trap eventually, but you can lure him right back in.

As far as I'm concerned, that dude is a bloody cheater, and cheating to bring him down is just part of the game.

[Charlie2688]

I have literally gone INSANE trying to fight that fraker, I have fought against him and won while being a blue phantom and helping people but when it has been my turn to be helped my luck runs out, either the boss goes CRAZY (where instead of the classic pattern where he swings, jumps, blasts and starts again but instead he blasts, blasts or swings, swings against me ALONE NON stop) or my blue phantom pals die like flies or they...leave me as soon as the fight goes bad :S ...I still don’t understand why when I help the ultra-players appear but when I need help I am lucky to be aided by 1 guy even less luck by 2 and then they are usually quitters or guys armed with sticks >.> and finally I still don’t understand why sometimes you have the boss standing there and when you attack his back you don’t seem to do anything he doesn’t receive damage and much worse the miracle of the stun from repeated attacks and when you do the exact same thing another time you might actually do damage and stun :S

[dinkeldinkse]

But the dumbass seems to be good at getting stuck into objects when ever I run away from him to use new moon grasses, so I just put the retard out of his misery.

[nefertis]

Classic game though, I hope theres a DS2 or dlc for DS1 in the works. Im looking forward TGS.

[Fulensenca]

A Masterpiece. One of the Best Game Ever to me.

"At Sony we try to deliver games that can touch the widest possible number of users, so there was a critical decision to be made: do we to ask From Software to make the game more accessible, or do we let the team pursue the creative road it set for this project? Of course, we chose the latter and, mercifully, it was the right decision.”

Thank you SONY! Thank you once again!

GREAT read!

[jack_burt0n]

LOL

"The contrast between how we felt when the game sold 30k and broke 100k was massive."

Yeah how about when the game broke a million how did they feel then? :)

[TheColbertinator]

Congratulations to From Software and Atlus for putting so much effort into Demons Souls

[MaideninBlack]

Umbasa!

[Omega Zues]

But not to mention I would buy DLC for DS in a heart beat.

[Blaine]

It seems the development of the game was just as perilous and scary as the game itself! Uncertainty and doubt around every corner, and fear and stress with the initial response... But then it all paid off!

I'm glad I got to experience Demon's Souls, really one of the best games this gen, and an instant-classic.

[lightningsax]

As soon as I found out about the gameplay in Demon's Souls, I made a round of calls to game stores. Only found one place that was a good 45 minutes away that had it in stock, and of course I drove there immediately. Worth every mile I drove and then some. Demon's Souls is much, much more than just a game - once you're into it, it's a psychological experience.

[Drummerdude41]

Demons soul will always have a warm place in my heart. The days of farming souls and battling every boss 3-5 times will be missed and...you know what im gonna pop it in right now. Good job n4g your re kindling old flames.

[downwardspiral]

I can't believe i didn't get this game when it first came out. Its one of the best game i've played this gen. Its so addicting. I'm only up to the 3rd world, and i've already put in about 25 hours of gamplay.

[Blaine]

It's taken you 25 hours to get there now, but once you're really familiar with the game (after a few playthroughs), you get so good that you can easily beat the whole thing in less time than that. It's been a while since I last played it, but I think I was down to around 15 hours for a complete playthrough--maybe less!

My first playthrough must have been around 30 or even 40 hours though.

[dinkeldinkse]

And by my fifth(last)playthrough I was able to beat it in about seven hours on NG++++.

[Ravage27]

but this is a good interview from Edge

[washingmachine]

i still have yet to buy this,although the phanton ed was released here in uk i see that its going for way more than the normal price,but now with the standard ed. out ill have to finaly buy it. so intimidating lol

[charlie1]

Thanks to Sony for making Demon's Souls. It has re ignited my passion for video games. Thats not to say i havnt enjoyed games recently, but I had forgotten what it was like to have my life consumed by a video game.Well done Sony.

[Tex117]

Just reading that interview game me chills, and I started a new character.