Since we only got a
non-review of
Demon's Souls I thought it would be nice to see some of the reviews that are coming out for this game. The first one is in Video form by GameTrailers.com:
Honestgamer: "In Demon's Souls, though, there's a difference: your hero will actually take that extra step and die for his cause. Repeatedly, he will die. Or she will, if that's the way you roll. Then, shortly after that first death, there will come a second one, and a third and a fourth... probably all before you've cleared so much as a single stage. That's just the way things work in Boletaria.
You've heard similar things said about other games, though, about other fantasy kingdoms. You've heard about this one huge boss in that one game who clobbers heroes with a continent-sized fist. Maybe you've even witnessed such things for yourself, like when you finally reached the villain at the end of Final Fantasy VII and found yourself unceremoniously squished between colliding planets because you hadn't bothered to earn the most powerful spells and equipment. Games like that are enjoyable, sure, but they're a different sort of affair. They're tough because you haven't prepared yourself sufficiently or because there's an unavoidable attack that will always drain away most of your life. In stark contrast, Demon's Souls is tough because everything is completely fair, because every disaster is technically avoidable and because every enemy can kick your ass if you let your mind wander."
Acegamez: "Demon's Souls doesn't want to hold your hand. It doesn't want to be beaten. And it definitely doesn't want to be friends. Don't expect a relaxed learning curve or well placed checkpoints: just turn the lights off, grab your PS3 pad and get ready for one of the most brutally rewarding games of the last decade. This is a game that makes Ninja Gaiden look plain soft. This is Demon's Souls."
RPGfan: "Ignore the scores to the right of this paragraph. Demon's Souls is a game that escapes being numerically defined by a scale, since it will mean so many different things to so many different people. Demon's Souls is tough, stylistically different from anything you've ever played before, and introduces gameplay elements that are at the same time both archaic and gloriously new. It's a game that some people will play time and time again and some people will absolutely abhor. Which type of gamer are you? Hopefully this review will help you figure that out, because if you're in the first group, this is a day one purchase."
Gamervision: "The enemy design is, simply put, wonderful, and so many different elements of Demon’s Souls call out to me, demanding love and affection. Sadly, I cannot return its calls. It just goes so far out of its way to be difficult that it misses some key, important elements that would have made it a vastly better game."
Metacritic is up to
89, nice!
I might get this one but I'll wait to hear gamer's feedback. Leave your comments guys they are deeply appreciated.
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Also, Dale's post today was a full review despite how humble he was about it: he played enough of the game to adequately assess it, it just doesn't have a score. It's a shame it couldn't be listed on Metacritic as a "Fresh Rotten Tomatoes"-esque review.
I mean, what happens after you die a second time in the same area and you lose your souls? Say you were close to getting to a level that would make it easier for you to beat whatever killed you, now you start back to 0 exp? (I assume you keep your current level) That just seems more sadistic and frustrating than it would be satisfying.
On your way back, you are forced to be aware of your surroundings, and you don't make that mistake the second time, when you run back to get your soul count (aka, you aren't stupid). You can check player's bloodstains to see how they died as well, and prepare yourself.
Trust me, if you die once to something, there's little chance you'll make the same mistake again. To put it into perspective, all the people who are whining it's "too hard" are basically burning themselves on a stove, saying "oh that's hot!", then promptly sticking their hands right back into the burner, only to complain again.
Souls are like XP AND currency, so it's not that big of a deal. What you're going to be doing most of the time is running into checkpoints to head back to base(or teleporting back when you earn your port spell really early on), and spending your souls on XP upgrades.
In fact, most of the game is played in soul form (with the cling ring at 75% health), and being alive is a privilege (super stats). Think of it that way, and throw conventional meanings of "alive/dead" out the door.
Protip: get a compound long bow as soon as you can, and get lots of arrows. Archery is the safest way to go, and you'll rarely die (lose souls). Dude, you'll have a blast.
@magnalon
F*** safety, I'm rolling with the buster sword!
Think of it like any racing game. You start off with the shit PT Cruiser (GT 2), but eventually, you get an ok sports car, and then the bomb ass Corvette. By the time you get the bomb car, you'll have passed your licenses, and learned the ropes.
Awesome! Can't wait to go try it at my friend's home since I don't have a PS3. How come FROM Software made Ninja Blade and Tenchu Z for xbox360 and not this!?
That said, I did die tens of times on my first character, but every time from being careless... Or getting squished by a huge dragon. Also, this is a game which would be worse if it was easier, as most of the fun comes from overcoming seemingly impossible challenges.
Lastly, Demon's Souls is fun! There's no greater reward than the rush you'll get from killing the Flamelurker after it beat the shit out of you on your first try.
PS. The level design is fantastic. I don't usually pay attention to architecture in games, but the levels in Demon's Souls tend to wrap around themselves in the most awesome way, that I can't help but notice.
I hope EB Games got the damn shipment in today as I WANT to play this!!
This game will live on for a long time and be remembered as great, I can see it already.