A new documentary from the YouTube channel Noclip is out now covering the extensive work that went into developing the Demon's Souls remake for PS5. Originally a PS3 title, Bluepoint Games upgraded the experience for a modern audience by re-recording music, voice lines, drastically updating graphics, and much more. The game has been largely praised for its innovation and faithfulness to the original, but as this documentary reveals, there are more differences between Demon's Souls on PS3 and the PS5 remake to be discovered.
The Demon's Souls remake documentary breaks down the making of the game into categories like the rebuilding of Boletaria, changes to camera angles and sound, and an entire section devoted to the Flamelurker boss. When discussing research behind the design changes from the PS3 version, Bluepoint shares that it looked at PlayStation trophy stats and realized that many players quit playing Demon's Souls on PS3 before the early game Phalanx boss. Souls games are typically tough to start until players get used to combat, but Bluepoint wanted to help them out a bit.
President of Bluepoint Games, Marco Thrush, talks about how the team implemented an increase to the drop rates of certain items before players reach Phalanx. Thrush says that after beating the first boss in a Souls game, everything "really starts to click" and players feel empowered after overcoming a significant challenge. Since fire is key to beating Phalanx, Bluepoint slightly increased the chance for players to get fire items from drops. Trophy stats for the PS5 remake indicate more people are now making it past the shielded blob.
Though some seasoned players may view this as an unnecessary bone thrown to struggling players who can't "get good," Bluepoint says the decision falls in line with its goal to make the game less ambiguous. Thrush discusses the classic gaming enigma of how a developer wants its game to be perceived vs. how the audience actually perceives it, and Bluepoint wanted to make more secrets in the Demon's Souls remake readily accessible for new players.
Of course, dedicated fans will always have their preferences concerning decisions made in the remake. But with Bluepoint's efforts receiving such acclaim, the studio is one to keep an eye on for future remakes and remasters of beloved games. So far the studio has three major projects under its belt in Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, Shadow of the Colossus for PS4, and the Demon's Souls remake, and with Bluepoint seemingly sticking to its guns as an independent company, it's prepared to tackle anything that comes next.
Demon's Souls is available now on PS5.
