Demon’s Souls birthed an entire video game genre. A genre that gets strong every year. “Souls-like” titles are a great pillar of video games, and it’s all thanks to 2009’s Demon’s Souls, a game which recently received the remake treatment from BluePoint, as once again, a PlayStation exclusive title.
Demon’s Souls was FromSoftware’s innovative action role-playing game, which seemed like a niche game, to begin with, but soon found a loyal fanbase across the globe. Thanks to Demon’s Souls, gamers could experience a new challenge in gaming, one to share with friends, experience alone, or battle other like-minded players.
8 Different Environments
Archstones were the very first idea of a bonfire. Demon’s Souls features archstones throughout the game. Whether that is after the defeat of a boss, or at the location of a spawn area. These archstones are sparse, which requires the character to think and plan their journey before the boss room. Not only this, but each Archstone is home to a major world.
There are 5 worlds in Demon’s Souls. There’s the castle of Boletaria, the Stonefang Tunnels, the Tower of Latria, the Shrine of Storms, and the Valley of Defilement. Each location is unique, and different from the one before it. From the medieval castles to the desolate dunes of a rock mine. The environments look great, even after 13 years.
7 Lovecraftian Horror
The Archstone of the Tower Queen will take players to the Tower of Latria. This location features a Hellish landscape, of dim lights, green hues, and screams across the multi-layered prison cells of the humans trapped inside. It’s intensely atmospheric and assisted by the vocals of a singing woman from below.
The strangest and most interesting feature of the Tower of Latria is that of the enemy types, which roam the halls of the tower in search of any loose prisoners. These enemies, the Mind Flayer, are noticeable for their green bell and octopus faces. They are powerful spell casters, who will strike fear into the player, and deal great damage. Their design is somewhat reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu, in part to his octopus features, and skin tone.
6 Old King Doran
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A famous NPC in Demon’s Souls is Old King Doran. This character is known as “The Last Hero”, and a demigod of the ancient past. Doran was locked away in a great shrine and guarded the holy treasure: Demonbrandt, a sword of great potential. After freeing Doran, players can challenge him for Demonbrandt.
Not only is Doran a great challenge, but the reward is well worth his challenge. Even after besting him, players can continue attacking him to kill him for good. These rewards players with his attire, the Ancient King’s Set, and his Eternal Warrior’s Ring. It’s also rather fun hearing the goofy scream upon his death.
5 Old Monk Boss Fight
FromSoftware is known for its creativity. Even in the early days of their flagship franchise, Demon’s Souls was pioneering new and exciting ways to challenge the player further. Enter The Old Monk. This was the last boss fight in the Tower of Latria.
This boss cannot be understated for how unique it was. It wasn’t like the others, in the sense that an actual online player would be summoned, and become the boss. When players emerged through the fog wall, they would be faced with this black phantom that wore the Monk’s Head Collar, and it was a PvP fight for victory. It was a great boss fight, and one of many instances of FromSoftware truly outdoing themselves on creativity. The player-controlled boss could be hard, and unpredictable.
4 Patches, The Hyena
Players of Dark Souls, Bloodborne, Dark Souls3, and Elden Ring would recognize the name of the not so “trusty” Patches. This character first appeared in Demon’s Souls and has been voiced by Will Vanderpuye throughout each appearance. He is instantly recognizable for his sinister, allusive grin, and his sneering and charismatic voice.
Patches cause quite the trouble for the player in Demon’s Souls and lure them with the false promise of riches. He’s a great character that fits perfectly in these words since he is a selfish person who not only seeks his survival but he thrives in riches.
3 Innovative Gameplay
Although not as refined as the later games, Demon’s Souls gameplay paved the way for an entire genre. Often referred to as “Souls-like”, without the innovation of Demon’s Souls, many gamers’ favorite genres, and selection of gaming titles simply would not exist as they do today.
The revolutionary gameplay of rolling, blocking, and experimenting with an array of unique weapons to discover a build best suited to a specific playstyle, is all part of Demon’s Souls’ charm. Every encounter could be life and death, and the gameplay is equal parts challenging, and equal parts rewarding.
2 The Nexus
There exists a sacred place in Demon’s Souls, a location where there can be no harm, and the utmost safety to the player. As long as they respect the NPCs that seek refuge there. The Nexus is the HUB world of Demon’s Souls. It is filled with interesting characters, and the way to level up, and travel between Archstones for new locations.
HUB worlds are beyond important, to catch some much-needed breath. The Nexus is a great location and has a wonderful atmosphere for the game. It feels homey and acts as a place of safety amongst everything else that is attempting to kill the player. The player’s journey has some sense of ease, knowing The Nexus will always be there to rest with them and help them retreat and recover.
1 World Tendency
Upon first glance, world tendency can appear as a rather confusing aspect of Demon’s Souls. World Tendency is a mechanic that directly affects the world that the player inhabits. In a simplified outlook, world tendency is the “karma” or “morality” choices of Demon’s Souls, a mechanic that is largely absent in later games.
World Tendency starts as neutral, but can shift between white and black. Both have their benefits, as black tendency can add certain doors, and demon souls, but at the cost of harder enemies. The white tendency also adds certain doors and unlockables. It’s a great mechanic that makes the player have to think about their actions. Whether they will kill a certain NPC or a certain boss. It’s an intelligent act of game design that is present through Demon’s Souls.
Demon’s Souls (2009) is available on PlayStation 3.