Gaming Demon’s Souls (PS5 Exclusive)

Kaos said:
This does seem easier than the others soulsborne games, especially the bosses - most of them have predictably telegraphed attacks. I also see that the old tactic of sticking to their butt and abusing i-frames still works wonders.

Magic seems ridiculously overpowered though, so I'm going full strength build for the rest of the game.
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As you know, magic is always "easy mode" in these games, but yeah especially in this one it's ridiculous at times :lol:

Overall it's not that difficult a game, the bosses are pretty formulaic. It's the frustration when you die and temptation to try to speed through that kills you more often than not ;)
 
Redlambs said:
As you know, magic is always "easy mode" in these games, but yeah especially in this one it's ridiculous at times :lol:

Overall it's not that difficult a game, the bosses are pretty formulaic. It's the frustration when you die and temptation to try to speed through that kills you more often than not ;)
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Honestly, the hardest thing about it all is the lack of bonfires found in the other games. The path to the bosses are often more challenging than the bosses themselves. In 1-2 I feared the bunching of the archers and blue-eyed knights guarding the entrance to the Tower Knight more so than the boss itself who for the most part was a bit of a joke,
 
Kaos said:
This does seem easier than the others soulsborne games, especially the bosses - most of them have predictably telegraphed attacks. I also see that the old tactic of sticking to their butt and abusing i-frames still works wonders.

Magic seems ridiculously overpowered though, so I'm going full strength build for the rest of the game.
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Bluepoint clearly didn't want to make any balance changes at all. As such, magic is ridiculously broken but fun. And world tendency is as obscure as ever - they really did stay loyal to the spirit of the original.
 
Really loved the game. It was the only one I had never played previously. Also got the platinum

Would rank their games as follows

Bloodborne
Dark Souls
Sekiro
Demons Souls
Dark Souls 2
Dark Souls 3
 
How does Sekiro compare to this game? Been thinking to jump straight on to that once I'm done with this game. I've heard its more mechanically challenging since you can't cheese-grind your way through the game and there's no shields. But I also heard its more generous with checkpoints?
 
Kaos said:
How does Sekiro compare to this game? Been thinking to jump straight on to that once I'm done with this game. I've heard its more mechanically challenging since you can't cheese-grind your way through the game and there's no shields. But I also heard its more generous with checkpoints?
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I think its harder as you cannot summon in Sekiro. I think learing curve is also steeper in Sekiro, but once you get good at it its a much more fluid and faster game.
 
Siorac said:
Except Dark Souls 3 where it's a bit underwhelming and forces you to give up some of your Estus for it.
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Good point, they really tried something to balance it in DS3. It's still easier though, just less so.

Reditus said:
Really loved the game. It was the only one I had never played previously. Also got the platinum

Would rank their games as follows

Bloodborne
Dark Souls
Sekiro
Demons Souls
Dark Souls 2
Dark Souls 3
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DS3 at the bottom? Even below DS2? Are you mad??? :lol:


Kaos said:
How does Sekiro compare to this game? Been thinking to jump straight on to that once I'm done with this game. I've heard its more mechanically challenging since you can't cheese-grind your way through the game and there's no shields. But I also heard its more generous with checkpoints?
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You can't grind as such, but you can cheese. In fact using the prosthetics (their "magic" as such) is intended to make the game easier and many are OP against the big enemies/bosses.


But yeah it's a top game, the mechanics aren't really massively different if you play DSbourne games with parrying anyway, but it's a very fun and needed change to the formula. I think the decision to not have weapons/armour and levelling was interesting, but ultimately hurt the game more than it helped though as it does drag on a bit with nothing new to play with or try. Also, it's built more like DS2 than the others in terms of cheap enemy placement/Archer AI and even at times level design. But overall it's definitely a must-play if you like these games, it's maybe not as good as the souls games themselves in many ways, but it is different enough in it's own to be on the list and it's certainly a lot better than any of the souls clones (maybe with the exception of The Surge games).
 
Kaos said:
How does Sekiro compare to this game? Been thinking to jump straight on to that once I'm done with this game. I've heard its more mechanically challenging since you can't cheese-grind your way through the game and there's no shields. But I also heard its more generous with checkpoints?
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I think it's the hardest game From Software put out because this one genuinely tests your reflexes. The Souls games are more strategic: watch the opponent, learn its moves, bring the best tool against it, execute the plan.

Sekiro, however, is really fast and really demands that you find the right rhythm of the bosses. You can cheese with the prosthetics but they're situational and don't always help (their use is also limited). But if you find a fight too difficult, you can't just go away and level up to come back stronger, you can't pack on extra armour or try an additional weapon. You just have to learn the fight.

I love it because the gameplay flow is exceptional and its atmosphere is brilliant - but it is tough as nails.
 
Reditus said:
Huh, news to me. I always thought it was quite popular
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It's generally regarded as the weakest but it has a very vocal fanbase who feel it's unfairly maligned.

I personally dislike it. When watching someone else play it I sometimes get the urge to go through it again but spending about ten minutes with it reminds me why I don't actually do it. Especially when I reach the Emerald Herald and realise once more that Adaptability exists.
 
Siorac said:
It's generally regarded as the weakest but it has a very vocal fanbase who feel it's unfairly maligned.

I personally dislike it. When watching someone else play it I sometimes get the urge to go through it again but spending about ten minutes with it reminds me why I don't actually do it. Especially when I reach the Emerald Herald and realise once more that Adaptability exists.
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It is unfairly maligned as a game, as it's still way ahead of most of the clones, but yeah I completely agree that every time I go through it again I'm reminded of just how bad it can be.


I'm not sure how someone can put BB top, yet DS3 (which infuses the best of DS and BB) can be at the very bottom? I respect the opinion, I just don't think I can ever understand the logic behind it!
 
Redlambs said:
DS3 (which infuses the best of DS and BB)
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Disclaimer: I love DS3. I have about 300 hours in it and I think it's magnificent.

Having said that, I'm not sure I agree with the quoted part. It does contain some elements of the best of BB and DS but at some points it misses what makes either of those games great. Bloodborne's great strength is that it's a completely new, unique world, absolutely dripping with atmosphere. It's fast-paced, and both the gun parrying and the rally mechanic really help with an aggressive, on-the-move playstyle. The whole things just fits together.

In DS3, it often feels like the enemies are at Bloodborne speed but your character is stuck at a Dark Souls pace. You can't be as aggressive as in Bloodborne but nor it is as measured as Dark Souls (and Demon's Souls). Parrying, in my opinion, is the least satisfying (and outside of certain boss fights, the hardest to pull off) in this one. And let's face it: it's the third game in the series and didn't really bring anything that we hadn't seen before. It goes in on the fan service a tad too hard at times. There's little that is really original about it - and because of that I understand why someone might absolutely love Bloodborne and be indifferent towards DS3. At one point you can get sick of cathedrals, after all.

Where it really shines, in my opinion, are three things:
- The bossfights: the best in the series apart from the Old Hunters DLC. Abyss Watchers, Twin Princes, Slave Knight Gael, Dancer of the Boreal Valley - brilliant fights (and these are, at least, mostly original and creative).
- The music. Obviously highly subjective, but it's my opinion.
- The best PC port of the three. Beautiful (well, for a 2016 game), runs well, stable, has some absolutely filthy hitbox porn.
 
Siorac said:
Disclaimer: I love DS3. I have about 300 hours in it and I think it's magnificent.

Having said that, I'm not sure I agree with the quoted part. It does contain some elements of the best of BB and DS but at some points it misses what makes either of those games great. Bloodborne's great strength is that it's a completely new, unique world, absolutely dripping with atmosphere. It's fast-paced, and both the gun parrying and the rally mechanic really help with an aggressive, on-the-move playstyle. The whole things just fits together.

In DS3, it often feels like the enemies are at Bloodborne speed but your character is stuck at a Dark Souls pace. You can't be as aggressive as in Bloodborne but nor it is as measured as Dark Souls (and Demon's Souls). Parrying, in my opinion, is the least satisfying (and outside of certain boss fights, the hardest to pull off) in this one. And let's face it: it's the third game in the series and didn't really bring anything that we hadn't seen before. It goes in on the fan service a tad too hard at times. There's little that is really original about it - and because of that I understand why someone might absolutely love Bloodborne and be indifferent towards DS3. At one point you can get sick of cathedrals, after all.

Where it really shines, in my opinion, are three things:
- The bossfights: the best in the series apart from the Old Hunters DLC. Abyss Watchers, Twin Princes, Slave Knight Gael, Dancer of the Boreal Valley - brilliant fights (and these are, at least, mostly original and creative).
- The music. Obviously highly subjective, but it's my opinion.
- The best PC port of the three. Beautiful (well, for a 2016 game), runs well, stable, has some absolutely filthy hitbox porn.
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I agree with all that (bar the sluggish character? I found it too easy/fast to control and move at times, but that's a playstyle thing), perhaps I should have said "SOME" of the best elements :lol:

DS3 isn't my favourite either, but I do have it above BB. Although I love BB, the setting, the lore, it's a majestic game I do also hate the performance on the PS4 (even pro), I think the 'parrying' is way too easy and I wasn't a fan of the big reveal and where the story went. I also don't like the lack of weapon choice and the armour sets all being pretty much about look and little more. Having said all that, it's one of my favourite games of the last gen and my PS4 exclusive pick (even above GOW which I personally thought was a great, if flawed, game too). I know, so many critiques and yet I still rate it that highly, who'd have thought eh? ;)

DS3 felt like a proper end, it was never going to be as great as 1 (it needed sales and so they were never going back to the measured combat sadly), but it did wonderful things with the enemies/bosses and occasionally lore. In any case, my point stands, how it can be at the bottom of the list is baffling to me!
 
I didn't like DS2 all that much, definitely feel it was the worst of the Soulsborne games I've played. I wasn't a fan of the level design and felt the difficulty was handled quite superficially by just swarming you with enemies and cheap ambush/ganks. But again it was the only one not directed by Miyazaki so not entirely surprised.
 
I agree with the criticism of DS3 regarding the speed of the bosses. The problem wasn't necessarily the speed of your own character, which was by far the fastest of any DS game (though not as fast as Bloodborne), but more the lack of the shorter dodge and rally system of BB. Those two elements allow you to be much more aggressive in BB. As a result, several of the DS3 bosses became a roll-fest and dragged a bit, at least for me. Still a great game though, and I loved some of the bosses, like Dancer and especially Slave Knight Gael.
 
Redlambs said:
I wasn't a fan of the big reveal and where the story went.
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The end goal is to kill a baby, what's not to like?

But seriously: story in Souls games is... we have a difficult relationship. During every first playthrough, I religiously read all item descriptions, trying to piece it together... and then at the end I just go online and google what the feck was it about because I only have a vague idea. Bloodborne is actually the very best example for this - I was in a fine haze as Gehrmann said.

I kinda enjoy it though, it adds to the atmosphere that I only vaguely know what's going on, with undecipherable vestiges of the world's history all around me.

Actually I still don't know what was going on in DS3 DLCs (base game story is quite simple admittedly),or in DS2. Vendrick went hollow and there was something about giants and then Nashandra was a massive bitch? I don't know.
 
I seem to be in the minority but I find it relatively underwhelming. I’m literally playing the exact same PS3 game I played 10 odd years ago with fancy graphics. I know it’s technically a remake but it’s really as if it’s a remaster with upgraded graphical systems.

It looks spectacular and is a marvellous technical showpiece but I always liked Demon’s Souls the least of all the Souls games and nothing has changed that - keeping the grass healing, rather than implementing an Estus type mechanic was a bad choice IMO and the worst thing about the design for me is the sheer length between checkpoints, which even for a Souls game just makes the boss battles far more infuriating than if they were just difficult. I’ve never got why once you get to a boss, you can’t just try again from outside the fog gate...forcing you to replay the same bit multiple times. Maybe people like it but for me, it offers nothing but frustration.

I think they made the wrong decision to stick so close to the original and should have used it as a base for a ‘proper’ remake. It’s relative of course - a ‘bad’ Souls game is still highly enjoyable but I think it’s a missed opportunity.
 
I’m a little stuck on the Fool Idol. I’m playing a high endurance build, which is designed to absorb the enemy blows on the shield but I’m very vulnerable to magic attacks which makes this battle a real pain. I’m quite easily getting to the latter part of the battle but I get caught in trap and then shot down with the soul arrows. I beat this game 9 years ago with the standard beginner build but have gone something a bit different so is a bit of a different game now.
 
siw2007 said:
I’m a little stuck on the Fool Idol. I’m playing a high endurance build, which is designed to absorb the enemy blows on the shield but I’m very vulnerable to magic attacks which makes this battle a real pain. I’m quite easily getting to the latter part of the battle but I get caught in trap and then shot down with the soul arrows. I beat this game 9 years ago with the standard beginner build but have gone something a bit different so is a bit of a different game now.
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Not sure if you beat her in the end but I found you can hit the imitation idols with arrows and they go away, then get to the real idol without them interfering and deal her some damage and repeat.
 
Shark said:
Not sure if you beat her in the end but I found you can hit the imitation idols with arrows and they go away, then get to the real idol without them interfering and deal her some damage and repeat.
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Yeah cheers I did in the end. I did a little of what you did and played a little more aggressively with my endurance to try and get rid of her quicker.

Ive done 1-1, 1-2, 2-1, 3-1,4-1 and 5-1. Don’t really know the best place to go next. I still have nightmares of getting past 4-2 and 5-2 so want to leave them if possible and after giving them a go, am well out matched. I hate the flamelurker with a passion so am tempted to go after the man eaters, as I’ve basically steam rolled through 3-2 and beat the old monk afterwards.
 
So I've put a few hours into this now, and I got to say I'm not feeling it at all. I loved Bloodborne and Sekiro. Platinumed the both of them, Bloodborne is probably my favorite PS4 game. Liked Dark Souls 3, too. And I know Demon's Souls is very different from Bloodborne and Sekiro, but they're FromSoftware games, so you know what I mean.

But I really don't like this one. I just find the levels and the world less exciting and the sense of exploration just isn't the same. Don't like the combat. Also, I find that there's a lot more bullshit generally in this one than the others. These games need to grab in order for you to persevere. You can't just cruise through them like a lot of games without thinking, and this game ain't grabbing me at all. I don't even think it's particularly that difficult. Sekiro is way more difficult than this (as is Bloodborne for that matter), I'm just finding myself really bored by it.

This surprised me to be honest because I thought I would love it.
 
Finished it today.
Found the game enjoyable and a lot of fun, especially since I never played the original.

I do think it got a undeserved reputation as a difficult game, especially since the last bosses on every archstone were a joke, bar old king allant who wasn't exactly difficult himself.

Maneaters & Flamelurker seem to be the only bosses with any real difficulty, and both are very easy to cheese.

Next up will be Ys 9 and then the pathless. :)
 
I completed Demons Souls today, this has to be the easiest one in the whole series, still thoroughly enjoyed it, on to NG+.
 
I just started the Soulsborne series proper around November and have really like each game. Desperate to play this if/when I get a PS5 as i'm wondering how it compares to the others.

I think these are games that you can reassess with subsequent playthroughs. I started off liking DS3 more than Bloodborne but my perspective has totally flipped on my second play through of both games. DS3 just lost a bit of its magic toward the end of the game and it became a bit of a chore to finish. BB i'm liking a lot more this playthrough.
 
Irwin99 said:
I just started the Soulsborne series proper around November and have really like each game. Desperate to play this if/when I get a PS5 as i'm wondering how it compares to the others.

I think these are games that you can reassess with subsequent playthroughs. I started off liking DS3 more than Bloodborne but my perspective has totally flipped on my second play through of both games. DS3 just lost a bit of its magic toward the end of the game and it became a bit of a chore to finish. BB i'm liking a lot more this playthrough.
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I don’t think I’ve actually disliked any of them, I’m going to play BB again though as I played it when it first came out endlessly and haven’t tried it again since, was great the first time round though.
 
Irwin99 said:
I just started the Soulsborne series proper around November and have really like each game. Desperate to play this if/when I get a PS5 as i'm wondering how it compares to the others.

I think these are games that you can reassess with subsequent playthroughs. I started off liking DS3 more than Bloodborne but my perspective has totally flipped on my second play through of both games. DS3 just lost a bit of its magic toward the end of the game and it became a bit of a chore to finish. BB i'm liking a lot more this playthrough.
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Did you get the DLC's for both games? Personally I wouldn't know which one to rate the highest. Bloodborne is obviously more original, but I felt Dark Souls 3 perfected the souls formula. I find the Chalice dungeons in BB a chore. Would love to replay both with upgraded graphics on the PS5 though whenever I get one.
 
Shamana said:
Did you get the DLC's for both games? Personally I wouldn't know which one to rate the highest. Bloodborne is obviously more original, but I felt Dark Souls 3 perfected the souls formula. I find the Chalice dungeons in BB a chore. Would love to replay both with upgraded graphics on the PS5 though whenever I get one.
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Yeah I have the DLC for both but I didn't play the Souls DLC whereas I finished the DLC for Bloodborne. I think i'm just exhausted by the time I get to DS 3's ending that I just want to move on, despite really enjoying the game too. Bloodborne's DLC was a bit a like the Witcher 3's in the sense that it elevated the game even further for me.
 
Vidyoyo said:
I beat this game earlier today. It was really disappointing and rubbish.

maybe
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I'm struggling with this a bit. It looks gorgeous but as a fan of Bloodborne and Dark Souls 1, 2, and 3 I can't seem to get into this as much... and i'm pissed off at fighting that armored spider boss :mad:

Had the same problem with Bloodborne at first though so things could change.
 
The run backs in this game are OUTRAGEOUS. The actual feck were they thinking in a modern game? Even from software themselves don’t do it.

the bosses aren’t even that hard but the ridiculous run back to tower night makes me want to not play this Cnut of a game anymore.
 
Massive Spanner said:
The run backs in this game are OUTRAGEOUS. The actual feck were they thinking in a modern game? Even from software themselves don’t do it.

the bosses aren’t even that hard but the ridiculous run back to tower night makes me want to not play this Cnut of a game anymore.
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not sure what you mean?
 
Massive Spanner said:
The run backs in this game are OUTRAGEOUS. The actual feck were they thinking in a modern game? Even from software themselves don’t do it.

the bosses aren’t even that hard but the ridiculous run back to tower night makes me want to not play this Cnut of a game anymore.
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You do realise the runbacks are exactly as they were in the original Demon's Souls, made by FromSoft? Calling it a modern game isn't exactly accurate either, it's an almost exact remake of a 2009 game, warts and all you could say. Visuals, animation work, performance and loading times are the key upgrades here, all the rest is simply 2009 Demon's Souls.

As for the Tower Knight runback, I've never timed it but I'm sure I could get back there in under a minute, just ignoring most if not all enemies. I've always taken my time to kill the dragon first though, using 150 or whatever arrows.
 
Ainu said:
You do realise the runbacks are exactly as they were in the original Demon's Souls, made by FromSoft? Calling it a modern game isn't exactly accurate either, it's an almost exact remake of a 2009 game, warts and all you could say. Visuals, animation work, performance and loading times are the key upgrades here, all the rest is simply 2009 Demon's Souls.

As for the Tower Knight runback, I've never timed it but I'm sure I could get back there in under a minute, just ignoring most if not all enemies. I've always taken my time to kill the dragon first though, using 150 or whatever arrows.
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I should've been clearer, they don't do it in their modern releases.

Fair enough if it's a like-for-like, I would've thought they could have modernised it a bit in some ways, though.

Run backs are still run backs even if they're a minute or less. None of Bloodborne, Sekiro, or Elden Ring had anything close to that, as I recall.
 
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