Demon's Souls PlayStation 3

Released on 06/08/2010

• Demon's Souls - Review

  Not for the faint of heart

  Demon's Souls is a game for anyone who thinks games used to be harder than they are now - it will pummel you into submission, and scare you to death whilst doing it. In short, it's a brutal, bleak, horror-tinted action combat RPG that pits your lone character against a universe full of violent demons.

  They range from former human soldiers to agile, double scimitar-wielding skeletons, pouncing flame-creatures, octopus-headed guards, embryonic plague-carrying monstrosities, even Death himself. There's absolutely no shortage of things to kill you, and they're all intent on doing so. Occasionally you'll meet another lone survivor struggling away in the dark tunnels of a dungeon, but most of the time, you're on your own against everything the game can throw at you.
  

  Unfriendly territory

  The five massive worlds are all split into three or four different sections, each guarded by some of the most inspired and disturbing bosses we've ever seen, from the fifty-foot Tower Knight in the Boletarian Castle to the plague-ridden sludge monster in the Valley of Defilement. Demon's Souls is a beautifully crafted dark fantasy, and looks as much like a survival horror game as an RPG.

  You need varied tactics to defeat all of the evil in Demon's Souls' world, and thankfully the game doesn't restrict you by your choice of character class. You can use any weapon or piece of armour you can scavenge, from a simple sword and shield to bows and arrows, wands and healing talismans, hammers, cleavers and much else, and develop your character however you like without concentrating purely on strength or magic.

  You can creep through dark tunnels with a lance, protected by two-inch-thick body armour and a massive shield, or dart around with a dagger and a wand. You can boldly take on hideous black skeletons face-to-face, relying on your skill with a broadsword and shield parries, or take a more cautious approach, chipping away at a foe's health from a distance with long-range arrows and magic spells.
  

  No mercy

  The game involves an awful lot of dying. Every time you die, you start again at the beginning, with all the enemies you just struggled to overcome back where they were. There is no compromise. There's not even a pause button. You get better, or you get nowhere.

  Most of the time you'll be playing as an already-dead Soul, without your physical body and with reduced health. The only way to get your body back is by defeating a boss - or helping someone else to defeat one online.

  Demon's Souls' online features are truly extraordinary. Players can leave written messages on the floors to warn each other of danger ahead, or point the way towards a hidden treasure. Ghosts of other players, usually depicting their grisly last moments, appear now and then as you wander around.
  

  Starship trouper

  Demon's Souls' online features are truly extraordinary. Players can leave written messages on the floors to warn each other of danger ahead, or point the way towards a hidden treasure. Ghosts of other players, usually depicting their grisly last moments, appear now and then as you wander around.

  You can also offer yourself up to be summoned into someone else's game as a helpful Blue Phantom, working together to defeat a boss. Or, perhaps more temptingly, you can invade another's game as a Black Phantom and attempt to assassinate them for their collected souls. This makes things even more tense; once you've been invaded, you become convinced that every shadow behind every wall is your would-be murderer, armed to the teeth and with an enchanted arrow notched and aimed at your chest.

  Demon's Souls is an incredible videogame. It doesn't pander to the player at all, doesn't explain itself, doesn't make any concessions - instead it invites you to figure it out for yourself, to overcome the seemingly impossible. It's a unique and intriguing character, and if you can take the pain, it's one of the most rewarding games you'll ever play.

  

  SUPERB
  + A challenge like no other.
  + Masochistically addictive.
  + Incredibly scary.

  Down to earth
  - Monstrously difficult.
  - Unforgiving at first.
  - Stat screens are confusing.
  

• Demon's Souls follow-up to be even harder

  From Software's cult smash Demon's Souls was, by common consent, an extremely tough game - though its difficulty was one of the key features that won the RPG such a hardcore fanbase.

  So those gamers who managed to struggle through to the end will no doubt be delighted to learn that spiritual successor Dark Souls - previously titled Project Dark - is set to be tougher still.

  Website Andriasang carries a report from Japanese gaming bible Famitsu about the much-anticipated title, the mag claiming that "the difficulty has been increased greatly over Demon's Souls."

  The game has also adopted a more open-world approach, with large outdoor environments linked seamlessly by waypoints, rather than a series of levels connected by a hub area. Players will be able to head towards a landmark in the distance and reach it without the need for loading screens.

  Character classes will also be absent, with director Hidetaka Miyazaki promising an approach that caters to every play style. Presumably this means magicians will no longer be restricted to cowering behind scenery and hurling weak spells from a safe distance.
  Demon's Souls' revolutionary online setup will return in Dark Souls, albeit slightly tweaked - players will be able to both hinder and help each other, but the previous game's Tendency system is out.

  The game is set for a Japanese release in late 2011 on PlayStation 3 only. Namco-Bandai is publishing the game in western territories on both Sony's console and Xbox 360. No dates have been confirmed, but we'll bring you more news when we get it.

• New Release Round up: 25th June 2010

  This week's new GAME releases see you time shifting, demon slaying, spell casting, bone crunching and shape shifting.

  Time shifter

  
  Singularity (PS3, X360) puts you in the shoes of a US Air Force pilot sent on a mission to investigate a mysterious research base on an island off the coast of Siberia. You soon find yourself drawn into a Russian conspiracy as you fight to stop the ingularitywhich fractured time on the island from spreading to the wider world. To do so youl have to battle through a constantly shifting environment as time waves throw you back and forth between the Cold War era and the present day. Can you unravel the mystery behind this top-secret military project before time runs out?

  Demon slayer

  
  With a sword in one hand and a shield in the other, Demon's Souls (PS3) challenges you to slay an evil force that threatens to destroy the fictional kingdom of Boletaria. Youl venture across six worlds, ridding stone castles and dark caverns of the demons that lay within their walls, nurturing your stats as you go to build the combat and magic skills needed to defeat the more challenging bosses in this beautiful, immersive and challenging role playing game.

  Spell caster

  
  Based on the first four Harry potter books and films, LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (PS3, X360, Wii, DSi, DS Lite, PC, PSP) lets you experience Harry first four years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Choosing from over 100 playable characters, youl get to make potions, cast spells, solve puzzles, fly on broomsticks and explore iconic environments in this humourous, family friendly title. You can even play through the game as a team thanks to a simple drop-in and drop-out co-op feature.

  Bone cruncher

  
  Fast-paced and gritty, Backbreaker (PS3, X360) aims to set a new standard for in-game animations in the American football genre. Developer NaturalMotion technology - also featured in Grand Theft Auto IV and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed - lets your console calculate each bone-crunching tackle on the fly, meaning every challenge is unique, realistic looking and feeling. Promising to put an end to canned animations, Backbreaker real-time technology aims to ensure the gameplay never becomes stale, leading to plenty of replay value.

  Shape shifter

  
  Transformers: War for Cybertron (PS3, X360, Wii, DSi, DS Lite, PC) is an origins story set before the Transformers characters arrival on Earth. Taking you to their home planet of Cybertron, it focuses on the epic civil war that spawned the brutal rivalry between the Autobots and Decepticons, allowing you to experience the action from both sides of the conflict. Playable characters include shape-shifting favourites such as Megatron and Optimus, and you can battle through the entire campaign with friends co-operatively online.
  

  Also out this week:

  • Ballerina (Wii)
  • Club Penguin: Herberts Revenge (DSi, DS Lite)
  • Daisy Lafuente Pilates (Wii)
  • Dementium 2 (DSi, DS Lite)
  • Disciples III: Renaissance (PC)
  • Games Aid Triple Pack (PS3)
  • Naughty Bear (PS3, X360)
  • Sonny With A Chance (DSi, DS Lite)
  • Sniper: Ghost Warrior (X360, PC)
  • Trinity Universe (PS3)

  Published: 25/06/2010

• Dark Souls launching in October 2011

  Namco Bandai has announced that its eagerly-awaited new action RPG Dark Souls will be launching in Europe next month.

  The new PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 title is the spiritual successor to last year's surprise hit Demon's Souls, which has achieved fame for its punishing difficulty and old-school charms.

  Developed once again by FromSoftware, Dark Souls aims to up the ante with more weapons, magic styles and boundless character customisation, allowing players to tailor their warriors to match their own styles.

  The game will also build upon Demon's Souls' innovative online features, as players occupy the same game world and can choose to help or sabotage others on their quest.

  When Dark Souls makes its debut next month, it will be released in a special Limited Edition version that includes a making-of DVD, a soundtrack album and an artbook.

  It will also pack in a strategy guide that offers essential survival tips for rookies and experienced pros alike.

  Published: 22/09/2011

• Dark Souls debuts on PS3 and Xbox 360 this week

  One of the year's most acclaimed titles will be hitting stores this week in the form of Namco Bandai's Dark Souls for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

  From Software's action role-playing game is the follow-up to the surprise PlayStation 3 hit Demon's Souls and arrives in Europe after topping the sales charts in its native Japan.

  Like its predecessor, Dark Souls has become hugely talked-about for its extreme difficulty level, with players guaranteed to die over and over again as they slowly gain the skills they need to overcome the formidable enemies they will face.

  The game ups the ante on Demon's Souls with an expansive open-world structure, exploration-based gameplay and enhanced character customisation options.

  It also features a robust and innovative online component, allowing players to help or hinder others as they attempt to make their way through the Northern Realms.

  Carlson Choi of Namco Bandai said: "Gamers have been eagerly anticipating the release of Dark Souls ... I hope they're prepared. To die."

  Published: 07/10/2011

• Demon's Souls - Review

  
  

  

  Not For The Faint of Heart

  Demon's Souls is a game for anyone who thinks games used to be harder than they are now - it will pummel you into submission, and scare you to death whilst doing it. In short, it's a brutal, bleak, horror-tinted action combat RPG that pits your lone character against a universe full of violent demons.

  They range from former human soldiers to agile, double scimitar-wielding skeletons, pouncing flame-creatures, octopus-headed guards, embryonic plague-carrying monstrosities, even Death himself. There's absolutely no shortage of things to kill you, and they're all intent on doing so. Occasionally you'll meet another lone survivor struggling away in the dark tunnels of a dungeon, but most of the time, you're on your own against everything the game can throw at you.

  Unfriendly Territory

  The five massive worlds are all split into three or four different sections, each guarded by some of the most inspired and disturbing bosses we've ever seen, from the fifty-foot Tower Knight in the Boletarian Castle to the plague-ridden sludge monster in the Valley of Defilement. Demon's Souls is a beautifully crafted dark fantasy, and looks as much like a survival horror game as an RPG.

  

  You need varied tactics to defeat all of the evil in Demon's Souls' world, and thankfully the game doesn't restrict you by your choice of character class. You can use any weapon or piece of armour you can scavenge, from a simple sword and shield to bows and arrows, wands and healing talismans, hammers, cleavers and much else, and develop your character however you like without concentrating purely on strength or magic.

  You can creep through dark tunnels with a lance, protected by two-inch-thick body armour and a massive shield, or dart around with a dagger and a wand. You can boldly take on hideous black skeletons face-to-face, relying on your skill with a broadsword and shield parries, or take a more cautious approach, chipping away at a foe's health from a distance with long-range arrows and magic spells.

  No Mercy

  The game involves an awful lot of dying. Every time you die, you start again at the beginning, with all the enemies you just struggled to overcome back where they were. There is no compromise. There's not even a pause button. You get better, or you get nowhere.

  Most of the time you'll be playing as an already-dead Soul, without your physical body and with reduced health. The only way to get your body back is by defeating a boss - or helping someone else to defeat one online.

  Demon's Souls' online features are truly extraordinary. Players can leave written messages on the floors to warn each other of danger ahead, or point the way towards a hidden treasure. Ghosts of other players, usually depicting their grisly last moments, appear now and then as you wander around.

  

  Starship Trooper

  Demon's Souls' online features are truly extraordinary. Players can leave written messages on the floors to warn each other of danger ahead, or point the way towards a hidden treasure. Ghosts of other players, usually depicting their grisly last moments, appear now and then as you wander around.

  You can also offer yourself up to be summoned into someone else's game as a helpful Blue Phantom, working together to defeat a boss. Or, perhaps more temptingly, you can invade another's game as a Black Phantom and attempt to assassinate them for their collected souls. This makes things even more tense; once you've been invaded, you become convinced that every shadow behind every wall is your would-be murderer, armed to the teeth and with an enchanted arrow notched and aimed at your chest.

  Demon's Souls is an incredible videogame. It doesn't pander to the player at all, doesn't explain itself, doesn't make any concessions - instead it invites you to figure it out for yourself, to overcome the seemingly impossible. It's a unique and intriguing character, and if you can take the pain, it's one of the most rewarding games you'll ever play.

  GAME's Verdict

  The Good:

  • A challenge like no other.
  • Masochistically addictive.
  • Incredibly scary.

  The Bad:

  • Monstrously difficult.
  • Unforgiving at first.
  • Stat screens are confusing.

  Published: 18/06/2010

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