This game hates you but you will love it.
| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| PlayStation 3 | 9.50 |
| Overall | 9.50 |
|
Demon's Souls is flat out one of the most unique games to come out in a long time. In an age where every game tries to guide you with an invisible hand Demon's Souls slaps you across the face and says you figure it out! The freedom is refreshing, it hearkens back to the old days when players had to figure out the game world on their own. If you don't know what Demon's Souls is please read up on it cause I don't want to spend this review explaining it. I will say that this game is more action game than it is RPG which is maybe why I like it so much. The combat is a bit slow and clunky when compared to true action games like GoW but those games don't have massive worlds to explore, characters to upgrade, weapons to find, nor do they offer multiple combat styles. Like any good RPG DS allows you to be the solider class where you will specialize in beating enemies to death with a weapon or a magician where you use spells to take out enemies at a distance. You can even use some stealth as backstabbing enemies gives massive damage bonus, of course you can be an archer as well. It all combines to create a solid combat system that is well beyond combat system of other titles in the same genre, like say Oblivion. I think the reason why the combat system works is cause the enemies act like action game enemies. There are a huge variety of monsters to battle and almost all have their own attack patterns and weaknesses. Some will out right run at you, others will try to use spells to incapacitate you. The best part is you never know what they will do until you approach them. Exploring the worlds and having that fear of not knowing what the next corner will bring, how powerful will that next enemy be is exhilarating to me. It almost has a survival horror type feeling to it. The boss fights are incredible, some of the best of any genre. There are boss battles so genius that I would expect it to appear in a MGS game not some weird action RPG. Part of why this game is so different is it's strange take on online gaming. This is not like a PSO where you form a team and run out into the world to do battle with monsters. Instead you are playing in your own game but you can see other players as ghosts playing through their game. You may leave messages to other players to help them out, this becomes an almost in game user FAQS. Other players can invade your game which makes for some exciting PvP combat or you can team up which makes for a great co-op experience. The problem is that the co-op is almost impossible to set up with friends. There are so many restrictions and randomness to it all that to actually setup a game is way too frustrating. If they fleshed out the co-op aspect I felt it could have been even better, something to work on for the sequel. Demon's Souls is not for everyone, it is a brutal game that goes out of it's way to make it hard on the player. This is a game that kicks you when you are down, when you die it gets even harder. On the other hand the satisfaction of completing this game is on a level few games this gen have reached. Just when I thought I have played everything this game comes along and reminds me that gaming can still surprise me even in genres that seem played out. |
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Posted by Dvader Mon, 28 Dec 2009 22:53:16
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phantom_leo (5m)
"Demon's Souls slaps you across the face and says you figure it out! "
Sounds like my parents