The Official "Demon's Souls" Thread

[WastedJoker]

Demon's Souls

About the game:

Demon's Souls is an RPG/Adventure from Fromsoft, the makers of King's Field and Echo Night. Players start off in this action-RPG with a "dark fantasy" theme by creating their very own character, setting name, gender, hair style and other areas. They then set off on a journey deep into the heart of Voletaria, a kingdom of warriors that was destroyed with the appearance of beasts and demons. Players face off against huge beasts, some many dozen times the size of their character, making use of a variety of weapons. Depending on your weapon of choice, the feel of the action will change accordingly. Even individual weapons will offer play style changes depending on if used with one or both hands.

Trailers:

The best quality ones are here: http://www.gametrailers.com/game/demons-souls/10372

Screenies:

Trophies:

Source: http://www.ps3trophies.co.uk//showthread.php?t=13791

Platinum - Strong Soul

The One to obtain all trophies.

Gold - The One to connect the world

Guiding the beast of spread back to slumber once more, you have stopped and connected the World.

Gold - Wise

The One to acquire all the magics.

Gold - Saint

The One to acquire all the miracles.

Gold - Hidden One

The one to obtain all rings.

Gold - Soldier

The One to obtain all valuable equipment.

Silver - Incarnation of the King

Overthrower of the Demon "Incarnation of the King".

Silver - Storm King

Overthrower of the Demon "Storm King".

Silver - Yellow-rob Elder

Overthrower of the Demon "Yellow Robe Elder".

Silver - The Maiden Asutoraea

Overthrower of the Demon "The Maiden Asutoraea".

Silver - God of the Dragon

Overthrower of the Demon "God of the Dragon".

Bronze - Old king

Conquerer of the old king Doran.

Bronze - King`s Flying Dragon

Overthrower of the Demon "King`s Flying Dragon".

Bronze - The One to Master Hardness

Obtained the best hard stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Sharpness

Obtained the best sharp stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to understand the difference

Obtained the best Minagi stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Shock

Obtained the best Nibi stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Cutting Attack .

Obtained the best cutting stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master the Viscous Bow

Obtained the best bow by the steel spider`s thread.

Bronze - The One to Master Poison

Obtained the best mercury stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Fire

Obtained the best dragon stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Blood

Obtained the best sucking stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Life

Obtained the best medulla stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master the Moonlight

Obtained the best moonlight stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Moon Shadow

Obtained the best moon shadow stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Blessing

Obtained the best dim light stone weapon.

Bronze - The One to Master Shade

Obtained the best thin cloud stone shield.

Bronze - Phalanx

Overthrower of the Demon "Phalanx".

Bronze - Knight of the Tower

Overthrower of the Demon "Knight of the Tower".

Bronze - Battened Knight

Overthrower of the Demon "Battened Knight".

Bronze - The Judge

Overthrower of the Demon "Judge".

Bronze - Old Brave Warrior

Overthrower of the Demon "Old Brave Warrior".

Bronze - Idol of the Idiots

Overthrower of the Demon "Idol of the Idiots".

Bronze - Man Eater

Overthrower of the Demon "Man Eater".

Bronze - Hill Accumulator

Overthrower of the Demon "Hill Accumulator".

Bronze - Impure Giant

Overthrower of the Demon "Impure Giant".

Bronze - Takaashi Armored Spider

Overthrower of the Demon "Takaashi Armored Spider".

Bronze - The One Hidden in the Flames

Overthrower of the Demon "The One Hidden in the Flames".

Reviews:

A small review which highlighted the mixed views:

Famitsu and Dengeki, two of Japan's top gaming publications, have published their reviews of the upcoming Sony exclusive, Demon's Souls. The former gave it a mixed review, scoring it a 9, 7, 7, and a 6 for a pretty average 29/40. This score is remarkably similar to that of White Knight Chronicles, which was branded with an equally average 28/40. White Knight would go on to become the best selling HD JRPG to date, despite it's lacklustre critical reception.

Dengeki's review, however, tells a completely different story, giving the game an 95, 85, 85, and 85.

Unfortunately, outside of the scores, not other information is available at this time. Demon's Souls is due out in Japan on February 5th, exclusively for the PS3.

Something more indepth and in line with my opinion having played the game:

Well, here we are; I FINALLY received the Asian English version of Demon's Souls from Hong Kong and this is my review of the game. Many people claim that the PS3 is nearly devoid of truly great RPGs and for the most part, I can't disagree. We have some true 'new' roleplaying classics on the system, but not in the true sense of the word.

We have Folklore, developed by Sony's JapanStudio which was a decidedly different experience. More an action/adventure game than RPG, it was a different venture for originals on the PS3. While it wasn't bad

Folklore suffered from some setbacks that kept it from becoming a true classic. There's also been others; Disgaea 3, while being good for Disgaea fans, RPGamers who don't follow the series are kind of left out in the cold. The SDTV graphics coupled to gameplay that is so complex you almost need a PhD in strategy to get along in it.

And then there's the critically lauded Valkyria Chronicles, a J/SRPG for just about everyone. The game couples wonderfully detailed, watercolour-style graphics to great sound. The game even includes a Japanese dialogue track so you can get past the awkwardness of English voices in a clearly Japanese-style game. The game is clearly one of the best tactical roleplaying experiences on the PS3, and will go down in history as this generation's Final Fantasy Tactics, which, in it's time was also under-appreciated.

By and by, this article speaks about unique Japanese RPGs, and more specifically, Demon's Souls, and what it brings to the table as a game. Pardon, the rather lengthy nature of my first paragraph; I wanted to compose it somewhat long to illustrate some of the RPG action available on the PlayStation 3. My review will ultimately be kept shorter and more to the point.

Now all in all, there are Japanese roleplaying experiences available on the PS3, I've tried to list a few of the more positive experiences. But, yet there has to be a truly classic JRPG on the PS3 that is not available anywhere else. This is where Demon's Souls comes in. A game from the makers of the fantastically classic King's Field games on the original PlayStation and PS2. From here is where I begin my breakdown of this game and it's positives and negatives. I know this is a verbose and long article, but please bear with me and try to follow along on this RPGamer's journey through this new JRPG only available on the PlayStation 3. So if you'd please indulge me, let's begin!

Graphics

Let me begin by saying you won't be blown away by the visuals. Demon's Souls is a game that has less than HD textures to start. But the game runs smoothly, with little slowdown present. The graphics are detailed enough that you can see the creepy atmosphere of the game. My early impressions of the larger enemies are overwhelming. In Boletaria Castle, you must cross a bridge that has a big dragon belching fire at you that you must cross. The size and detail of the dragon is quite impressive, and the audio representation in surround sound imbues you with a true sense of dread and survival; it can kill you very fast. After finishing off the first boss and moving into the second main area, the dark aura is maintained. You move through an industrial/mining area that is even darker than the first castle. Fire and heat become additional foes that can easily finish you off if you're not careful. The graphics are detailed and dark as is appropriate to a game in the spirit of the King's Field games on the original PS. The camera works for the most part and never seems to hinder the player. Also to note, is that the art style present in the King's Field games is also present, which rocks. The King's Field games were a revolutionary experience for me 12 years ago on the original PlayStation and I'm glad FROM Software kept the aesthetic quality of their older games.

Graphics: 8/10

Sound

Well here we are in the age of HD, not only in visual but audio as well. Demon's Souls is the first dark RPG from these guys that employs true Dolby Digital surround. You'll hear surreal audio everywhere around you, and it'll make you quake as to where the sounds are coming from, even if no threat is present. Some of the enemies have vocalisations that will make you question your sanity. Some are easily overcome, and some are dread-inspiring. There is very little music in the game, which is kind of disappointing to me as a King's Field fan. The music in the old games was great, but with the lack of audio stimulation, it's almost wrong. The sound effects are present and very relevant, and you'll find the voice acting well done. A combination of UK accents, and speech patterns pervade the game. Various accents are heard, old English, Scottish, and Irish are present as is the norm. Overall, the sound is great, despite the lack of music.

Sound: 8/10

Control

Heh, not many RPGs have a reliable control scheme, some are over-complicated. Demon's Souls has a very playable scheme that is unchangable. But failing that, it works. Equipped items and weapons are selected through the D-pad. You can use healing items with the square button, sheath your left handed weapon/shield with triangle, and access equipped weapons with the left and right inputs from the D-pad. The equipment controls are done through the D-pad, but battle controls are flexible. You attack with the R1 button and defend with L1. You can procede to a run/stab motion with R2, and then follow up with the regular attack with R1. Circle makes you dodge attacks from enemies with input from the left control stick, and clicking R3 causes you to lock onto the closest enemy. If an enemy charges you, and you choose to stab that enemy rushing at you, extra damage is done if the enemy gets hit by the attack. The final point is that the control scheme works very well, and if you die in the process, then it's your own fault.

Control: 10/10

Gameplay

Well, Demon's Souls is a rather unique experience on the PS3. Fundamentally, the game is a dungeon crawler as were the King's Field games back on the PS1 and 2. You meander your way through the areas encountering enemies and reacting to their attacks. So far, in my experiences, there are environmental hazards you must overcome. The first area, the castle of Boletaria, there are bridges you must cross, but included in this experience is the peril of a large dragon flying over the bridges as you cross them, breathing fire up your ass. You'll get severely injured if you're not ready. And the experience of the dragon is best enjoyed in surround sound as you can hear the beat of the dragon's wings coming up behind you as you try to rush to the other side. You'll hear the inevitable roar of the dragon behind you as you're rushing to reach the other side unscathed. The game takes place in third person view and you guide your self-devised character through the game. A different experience from FROM Software, as most of their RPGs in the past were all first-person viewpoints with zero customization. But they present this game very well. The gameplay overall is grand and you can experience a great variety of enemies through the levels you go through. It's smooth and never seems to stale. There is a passive online mode in which people can leave messages warning you of upcoming dangers, and it's a great feature. In the Pantheon, you can see other gamers' levels and progress. The longest game I've seen so far is 171 hours. Also when you're online, you can touch other peoples' Bloodstains, and witness how they died. You'll also see various "ghosts" running around as they're imprints of other people playing the game, occasionally.

Gameplay: 10/10

Challenge

So here we come to just how hard is the game? Well suffice to say, it's HARD. Not challenging, not kind of difficult to get through. It's just plain HARD. You can get through enemies with a bit of strategy, but you WILL die. And you will die repeatedly. Trying to cross the bridge with the dragon is hard in and of itself. On the third bridge that I spoke of before, you not only have to heal from the dragon breathing fire up your ass, you have to contend with 3 archers firing arrows at you, and just beyond them, is a high level swordsman, waiting to kill you. This is the single most hardest RPG I've yet played this generation, but it is richly rewarding. The ability to explore your environs is a great asset.

Challenge: 11/10 :cry:

Fun Factor/Final Notes

Demon's Souls is a true action RPG. It is basically Oblivion meets King's Field. It is singularly the hardest RPG I've found this gen. Despite that, it's addictive. You are always looking for ways to improve your character so you can survive the next area. The game is a blast of exploration as you never know where the next threat is coming from. It's a great game that has a lot of thought behind it's development and should be appreciated as such. Is it fun? Unequivocally. The game is addictive as you never know what's coming next. This is the future from SCE and I embrace it as a true roleplaying experience not available on any other console. The final note asks, "is it fun?". The final answer is a resounding, YES. This is a game that RPGamers should treasure for a long time come. I know I will. I won't call the game "epic" as the term is thrown around far too much for my taste. I would prefer to call it a large game of immense proportions. If you're a hardcore RPGamer like I am, then you'll enjoy this, no question.

Fun Factor: 10/10

The above review is pretty much spot on, in my opinion. I've not played some of the games he refers to (King's Field) but it's not quite as deep as Oblivion in terms of having an immersion-filled world full of characters and story - I'd put it more akin to Severance: Blade of Darkness (the monsters and medieval-style setting) meets Soul Calibur (the huge swords!) meets Heroes of Might and Magic (demons and fireballs ftw) but with better graphics, a really nice and friendly control system which masks great ability, a VERY atmospheric environment - the reviewer criticises lack of music but it only adds to the eerie atmosphere and the sounds of the demons.

My favourite touch is seeing the ghosts of other online players but I've not witnessed that yet - hope it's not because I'm playing in the UK :(

The one aspect the review is 100000% correct on is the difficulty - it is super super super hard. If it's released over here I susepct the game difficultly will be tweaked - I seem to recall Japanese games are often set more difficult than Western counterparts.

I paid ?50.99 for it via eBay and it took two weeks to arrive - very much worth the expense and the wait:cool::

[Waylander]

this looks quite good, any idea about the eu/us release date? if not any time soon i might be tempted to order it from yesasia next time i order some blurays

[WastedJoker]

UK release is TBC but various sources have been quoting anything from 18 months to 3yrs. Not sure what to believe.

[Waylander]

thats quite a delay for localization, ordered the asian version as its supposed to have english audio/subtitles not sure about the menus though

[AbandonedTrolley]

The above review is pretty much spot on, in my opinion. I've not played some of the games he refers to (King's Field) but it's not quite as deep as Oblivion in terms of having an immersion-filled world full of characters and story - I'd put it more akin to Severance: Blade of Darkness (the monsters and medieval-style setting) meets Soul Calibur (the huge swords!) meets Heroes of Might and Magic (demons and fireballs ftw) but with better graphics, a really nice and friendly control system which masks great ability, a VERY atmospheric environment - the reviewer criticises lack of music but it only adds to the eerie atmosphere and the sounds of the demons.

My favourite touch is seeing the ghosts of other online players but I've not witnessed that yet - hope it's not because I'm playing in the UK :(

The one aspect the review is 100000% correct on is the difficulty - it is super super super hard. If it's released over here I susepct the game difficultly will be tweaked - I seem to recall Japanese games are often set more difficult than Western counterparts.

I paid ?50.99 for it via eBay and it took two weeks to arrive - very much worth the expense and the wait:cool::

The question is though, how playable is it? Are you having to guess what to do next or is it all subtitled?

[WastedJoker]

^^^ No, the game has full English voice-acting and menu's.

[AbandonedTrolley]

^^^ No, the game has full English voice-acting and menu's.

Will put it on a list of wants then, sadly talk of possible redundancies here at work to be announced next week so expenditure could be down for a while :(

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Will put it on a list of wants then, sadly talk of possible redundancies here at work to be announced next week so expenditure could be down for a while :(

Hope you get left alone (Y)

Want to play this, I've heard it's good, long and very challenging. Plus the online mode is suppose to be quite unique.

[WastedJoker]

Just to clarify: There are two versions of the game - Asian and Japanese. For English-speakers, the Asian version is the one you want as it comes with English voice-over and subtitles. However, the manual is in Korean/Japanese.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Eurogamer just reviewed this at 9/10

Demon's Souls is a brutal, bleak action combat RPG that pits your lone character against a universe full of violent demons. They range from former human soldiers to agile, double scimitar-wielding skeletons, pouncing flame-creatures, octopus-headed guards, embryonic plague-carrying monstrosities, even Death himself. The game's five worlds - all massive - are split into four different sections, each guarded by a horribly large and hardcore boss monster. Everything in the entire world is designed to kill you, quickly and often without warning.

The only safe place is the Nexus, a haven for tormented souls. It acts as a hub from which you can access the five worlds, or buy and upgrade your character's weapons and abilities to give them a slightly better chance of survival. It is one of the most difficult modern videogames in existence, refusing to make even the slightest concession to your happiness or mental well-being. For this reason, developing a devotion to Demon's Souls has been the gaming equivalent of falling in love with an emotionally stunted, occasionally violent sociopath.

There's unrestricted scope for developing your character in different directions. You can play it as a nimble magic user with an assassin's dagger, or hide behind a heavy shield and two-inch-thick body armour whilst skewering things in the dark with a lance, and you can switch between these two strategies at will by changing your equipment.

That flexibility prevents the game from ever getting stale and equally prevents you from falling into easy habits or closing off interesting options from yourself through your choice of class. You're constantly forced to change your approach, if not by choice then by the sheer variety of aggressive enemies that the game throws at you. No one strategy works against all of them.

Precisely because the odds are so stacked against you, precisely because the game sometimes seems to hate you with every fibre of its being, when you do finally kill the ****** f***-off enormous boss monster that ended you within half a minute the first time you approached it, the resulting heart-in-mouth euphoria is the purest kind of gaming thrill. Demon's Souls is about facing up to the impossible, and winning.

Demon's Souls is absolutely compelling; dark, detailed, unforgiving, creatively cruel. It gets under your skin and becomes a personal obsession, daring you to probe further into its worlds, fall for more of its traps and overcome more of its impossible challenges; it slaps you in the face with your own incompetence and dares you to overcome it.

It's stoic, uncompromising, difficult to get to know, but also deep, intriguingly disturbed and perversely rewarding. You can learn to love Demon's Souls like few other games in the world. But only if you're prepared to give yourself over to it.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/demons-souls-review

3 page review.

Hope this gets a EU release at E3, I can't afford to import it just now :(

ps. Was this the seller you bought it from? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PS3-Demons-Souls-Jap...p3286.m63.l1177

Edited April 23, 2009 by Audioboxer

[Sethos]

Never heard of it, sounds interesting.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

The "online mode" sounds quite interesting

Integrated into all of this,there's a unique system of online play, the game's most forward-thinking feature - though like everything in Demon's Souls, it's a double-edged sword. Assuming you have your body, which is an achievement in itself, you can call upon other players to help you, and they can join your game as blue phantoms to fight alongside you.

It's a way to even out the odds a little, or progress if you're completely stuck, though you often find yourself running after more experienced players as they rush through a section of the game they've seen 40 times. Players can also leave helpful messages for each other on the ground (?WATCH OUT FOR THE GIANT FALLING BOULDER?).

The downside? Playing the game online opens you up to invasion from Black Phantoms, other players who force their way into your game in order to assassinate you for your souls. You've no control over when this happens.

The best you can hope for, as an invaded player, is that your opponent isn't smart enough to stalk you, manipulating the level to make things harder for you before appearing at the most unwelcome possible moment to dispatch you, and instead rushes straight up to you in search of a quick kill. Then, at least, you have a chance of outmanoeuvring them in a face-to-face fight instead of panicking that every shadow behind every wall is your would-be assassin, armed to the teeth and with an enchanted arrow notched and aimed at your chest.

The prospect of playing as a Black Phantom yourself, of course, is seductive, once you have the ability and skill. But you always run the risk of being defeated. Besides, everything that you do online affects the world around you; defeating boss monsters and invading players shifts the World Tendency of a level towards white, whereas becoming a Black Phantom yourself shifts it towards black.

Black tendency makes a world's monsters more aggressive but increases the rewards for killing them, white tendency does the opposite, and both trigger events in the levels themselves, opening up previously locked doors or dropping in unique NPCs to help or hinder you. The tendency system is so complex that players haven't yet figured out all of its implications. Whichever way you choose to use Demon's Souls' online play, though, there are consequences in your own game.

[Brad.]

Demon's Souls is absolutely compelling; dark, detailed, unforgiving, creatively cruel. It gets under your skin and becomes a personal obsession, daring you to probe further into its worlds, fall for more of its traps and overcome more of its impossible challenges; it slaps you in the face with your own incompetence and dares you to overcome it.

:drool:

[ahhell]

I'm confused by the title.

It's called Demon's Souls. Does that mean there is one demon with lots of different souls or is this just a case of bad engrish?

It looks like a cool game but I'm not a big fan of games that try to be hard just for the sake of being hard (like Ninja Gaiden).

[AbandonedTrolley]

The more I read the more I want. Looks like I will be importing it though with no solid EU release date :(

[gigatexel]

It sounds like I need this game. The only problem is that it'll ship out on May 22 from yesasia. :/

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

I'm confused by the title.

It's called Demon's Souls. Does that mean there is one demon with lots of different souls or is this just a case of bad engrish?

It looks like a cool game but I'm not a big fan of games that try to be hard just for the sake of being hard (like Ninja Gaiden).

It doesn't sound like it's cheap, just it's challenging.

One problem I had with NG2 is when you're fighting a cluster of bad guys and there's 2/3 of them off screen throwing stuff at you and you have no idea where they are.

Most people in this topic http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=350591 talk about the difficulty as a good thing about the game, not so much a "it's just hard for the sake of it, it should be dumbed down".

Some of the bosses you fight are ridiculous, if they weren't hard it would look silly :p

Look at the size of the dragons

Then there's the Tower Boss

[Waylander]

Eurogamer just reviewed this at 9/10

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/demons-souls-review

3 page review.

Hope this gets a EU release at E3, I can't afford to import it just now :(

ps. Was this the seller you bought it from? http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/PS3-Demons-Souls-Jap...p3286.m63.l1177

thats the jp version not sure if that has english menus like the asian/chinese version. the ebay seller i ordered from has none left so no point me linking you but he does have asian afrika which is also in english, tempting for ?30ish

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Dunno how good Afrika actually is :/

Also the seller I listed above has the Asian version also, I emailed him.

[Waylander]

Dunno how good Afrika actually is :/

Also the seller I listed above has the Asian version also, I emailed him.

average is 71 for afrika on metacritic but it would be nice to see some comments about it from people who have played it rather than just professional reviews

[WastedJoker]

^^^^^ gamesconsultant was the guy I bought from. Reliable and uses channeladvisor.com for checkout etc and allows tracking.

As for the difficulty - it's actually not THAT bad. It can get frustrating though but not to the point where I want to murder my PS3 joystick.

[The Teej]

Holy ****, this game looks immense!! I'll definitely have to pick this up.

Does it have an eventual UK release, or is it staying in Asia?

[Waylander]

whats the simplest/fastest way back to a physical body?

[WastedJoker]

whats the simplest/fastest way back to a physical body?

There's no simple way that I've found - when you die you become a phantom with less health and to regain your body you have to fight your way back to where you died to restore your physical self.

Die again as a phantom and you lose everything - all the equipment, all the souls, all the money. Then you have to start from the beginning. Harsh but rather satisfying at the same time.

If you make it back to your physical body, you're fine. But you'll probably have to avoid what killed you in the first place and come up with a new tactic to kill it.........

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

There's some boss you can kill and loot a ring off of that lets you have 75% of health as a phantom instead of 50%.

Man I wish this wasn't sold out everywhere, the ebay source I linked to earlier mailed me to say sorry out of stock :(

Damn Sony Asia.