PlayExclusive: Demon Souls

Console: PS3
Language: English Voice/Sub, Japanese Voice/Sub.
Genre: RPG, 3rd person slash em up
Players: 1 (Online 1-4)
Rating: Teen 16+

King Allanti the twelfth, in search for power and prosperity, channeled the power of souls. He brought unprecedented prosperity to his northern kingdom of Boletaria. That is, until a thick black fog covered the lands outskirts, cutting out the kingdom from the outside world. Those who entered the fog never returned...


Story
After dying on an adventure in the cursed kingdom, your character's spirit is rescued, and tethered to a place called The Nexus. As your demise will only lead you back to this place time and again, you may step forth into Boletaria without fear of death!


In this Dark Fantasy setting, most of the story is revealed at each chapters end with well voiced slides and in-game cinematics, letting characters concentrate on just attempting to survive whatever awaits them behind every dark corner!


Gameplay
The gameplay may remind players of Monster Hunter with it's combat system, being able to block, roll and use a variety of attacks to destroy all manner of creatures that roam the lands. In return of each monster they slay, players receive the currency of the game, Souls, needed for spells, upgrades and buying items.


While simple in concept, the biggest challenge is not just in getting the souls, it's also in surviving, as death forces you to drop any souls you currently have, and places you back at the start of the stage!

Thankfully, you can always regain the souls you lost if you touch the spot where you died, assuming you can get there safely. Die again, and you'll lose it forever!


It's online mode is more of a hit and miss system, since players place down a Blueeye stone marker for other players to find, so you can join their group as a Blue Phantom.While this is a simple way of doing things, it also makes things difficult for those who want to group up together as there is no way to simply invite someone to your group, and sometimes the marker doesn't appear to other players.

Even worse, other wandering players may just snatch up the invitation, further worsening the situation.

It seems the only foolproof way to ensure you can all join up as a team, is to place your markers in a remote location, and have the host relog in that same spot, so they can see all the markers leading to plenty of wasted time trying to form a group with friends.


Despite all of the annoyances that attempting to form a group brings, the rewards of playing online are sweet indeed, as playing on other players groups allows you to replay boss battles and gain more souls and trade equipment with other players.

And for those that don't play so well with others, there is also an unlockable PVPmode, where a player can invade someone else's multiplayer game, and steal their hard earned souls! Of course, the obvious disadvantage is that more often than not, the invader will be outnumbered by their prey, but that won't deter those looking for fast gains and the most intense battles they'll have yet!


The host seems to decide the connection speed for all other players in the group as well, and with the E-Speed 3.5 Mb line, the game seems to flow smoothly with a full group of 4.

Graphics & sound
The sharp graphics for Demons Souls come in at a decent 720p, with well detailed dungeons, from massive castles to ancient temples and other equally impressive stages. Just as impressive, are the many well detailed creatures you'll come across, from ghouls to knights, and gargantuan bosses more than triple the size of your character!


With such beautiful graphics, there is some toll on the PS3, as it does lag when plenty of breakable objects shatter at the same time.

Strangely, Demons Souls is devoid of soundtrack, save for boss battles, leaving players with only ambiance and the sound of creatures in the dark for most of the game. What is truly surprising for a game that won't actually be released in North America, is it's excellent voice acting, which is on par, or even surpasses some English language games these days.

Overall
Without hints or checkpoints, and it's harsh penalties for death, Demons Souls is an unforgiving, yet fair game that the truly skilled gamer must try!



Review by Johar Aston, TheLAG

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Copyright 2009 Johar Aston, TheLAG