^This is the asian cover art, but you know a game is badass hard when you are dead on the cover.

Anyone else pick this game up today, just came out? My friend imported the korean version (english translated) month's ago and it's amazing, probably one of the hardest games I've played in years. Here's a thread from SA with a shitton of awesome info for people that don't really know anything about this sleeper title.

http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3106674

PSN: Zelnasty420 if any of you wanna do coop or be evil and break into a noob's game and take his stuff.

This is harsh, evaluate me.

[Edited on October 6, 2009 at 4:33 PM. Reason : ]

[Edited on October 6, 2009 at 4:38 PM. Reason : asdf]

10/6/2009 4:31:35 PM

Oh hell yes. I first heard about this game early last year and wrote it off as a Japanese Oblivion clone from a developer I'd never heard of.

About 2 weeks ago I caught wind of the buzz the North American release was generating, and after a little research, promptly pre-ordered. Just got home and about to start playing. I'll add you, my PSN is ShrikeT.

10/6/2009 7:19:33 PM

Yea, I'll probably get on after hockey is over, but I'll be playing alot over the next couple of days, gg fall break!

10/6/2009 7:40:42 PM

Sweet, I was looking for a 3rd game to get at Toys R Us during their B2G1F sale

10/6/2009 8:08:20 PM

I will have this eventually, but I've got a backlog of games to get through at the moment. I'm also drowning in work, so it's going to be a long time before I get to this.

10/6/2009 9:39:18 PM

So yeah, this game really is no bullshit. You will die. A LOT. It's super super addictive though. The little notes people can leave around warning you about shit is such a cool idea. It's like cheating, but in a way the developers intended It's also hilarious to click on blood stains on watch people die from something stupid, like falling off stairs.

10/7/2009 9:37:56 AM

I'm completely enamored with this game. It is so fucking good and unique, and atmospheric, challenging. Pardon the rampant cheer leading......but it's what video games are ALL about. A challenging non-coddling game is rare nowadays. It isn't cheap but it's very threatening which is what makes it click. Tons of great RPG mechanics in there as well (Customization, classes, drops/loot, exploration).

A++++++++++++++++++++++

10/7/2009 12:35:15 PM

Man. I wish I had a ps3 right now. This game looks bad ass.

10/7/2009 1:21:11 PM

Quote :

"The little notes people can leave around warning you about shit is such a cool idea. It's like cheating, but in a way the developers intended "

At first, I felt the same way about it being kind of like cheating, but then I saw a few messages that were totally bogus and meant to kill you, like "jump here for reward" and you fall to your death, or "treasure in this room" and its a blue knight ready to own you right away. God I love this game.

10/7/2009 3:52:39 PM

looks sick. I haven't bought a game in forever. Maybe.

10/7/2009 4:08:49 PM

^^Haha yeah, thats why you check the blood stains !!

10/7/2009 6:20:34 PM

Has anyone gotten past the Flamewalker yet? He is the boss of 2-2 in the pillar room and is hard as fuck, I play a soldier with not too many magic abilities, how have you guys fared?

[Edited on October 10, 2009 at 2:17 AM. Reason : spleling]

10/10/2009 2:17:01 AM

You need a magic weapon to kill him, and as melee it would be pretty darn tough I imagine. Did him in with magic easily. There is a decent magic weapon in 4-1, Crescent Falchion +1, or something like that and it is close to the start point, so relatively easy to get to. Other than that, get a Flame Resistance ring, I think here is one in 2-2, and the Purple Flame Shield from 1-1.

10/10/2009 2:23:33 AM

This sounds so incredibly nerdy

10/10/2009 10:49:26 AM

haha it's super nerdy. i haven't played a dungeon crawler like this in soooooo long. amazing game so far.

I've up to 2-2 right now, although I did drop by 4-1 to get the Crescent Falchion. How are you guys building your characters? I'm going for pure dps, all my stat points into increasing my magic and physical damage.

10/10/2009 3:07:25 PM

If I loved Oblivion and Fallout, but I hate WoW, will I like this game?

10/10/2009 3:41:16 PM

^absolutely, this game is so in-depth and hard that the average b-net kiddie wow player would probably quit this game.

10/10/2009 4:46:52 PM

I am super addicted to this game.
I took a sick day off work the day it came out and played till my head hurt.

I've currently beat 1-1, 1-2, 2-1, 2-2, 3-1 and 4-1

I feel like I'm stuck now though and can't seem to handle some of the other stages.

*spoilers maybe?

The fucking manta rays in 4-1. I HATTTEEEE THEM. Died so much on that cliff leading to the boss.

Did anyone else have problems with the fat dude (same as the one in the tutorial) in the middle of 4-1? He kept killing me one hit even while blocking. I had to resort to bow and arrow which feels cheap to me.

I'm waiting till I get pure white world tendency to get that dragon slayer sword in 2-3. Shit looks badass.

*end spoilers

Either way I started as a Knight. Been pumping up Endurance, Strength and Dexterity mainly. Endurance has helped a lot because I have heavy armor on but rolling around like a thief. Dexterity has gave me some awesome boosts to my weapons especially that same Crescent Falchion someone mentioned earlier.

Now I'm trying to boost my Faith up a little so I can use the God Hands.

This game is in my brain 24/7 since I got it. FUUUNNNNN. and super hard at times.

10/10/2009 6:48:23 PM

Quote :

"The fucking manta rays in 4-1. I HATTTEEEE THEM. Died so much on that cliff leading to the boss. Did anyone else have problems with the fat dude (same as the one in the tutorial) in the middle of 4-1? He kept killing me one hit even while blocking. I had to resort to bow and arrow which feels cheap to me. I'm waiting till I get pure white world tendency to get that dragon slayer sword in 2-3. Shit looks badass."

You're pretty much were I am right now, though I have killed the Dragon God. I think you pretty much need some type of ranged attack in this game or it would crazy hard. Don't find it cheap at all.

10/10/2009 6:55:56 PM

My build is slowly changing. I've pumped up my Intelligence to 14 so I can get two magic slots and use Ward, and I've bumped up my Faith to 16 so I can equip the Meat Cleaver (which by the way does 433 damage for me when two-hand wielded). Next step is raising my Magic to 18 and my Faith to 18 so I can use the Talisman of Beasts (this lets you use Magic and Faith with the same weapon)

I probably spent 3 hours just trying to beat Maneater last night with no luck. I was getting sooooo close towards the end that I would be a few attacks away from killing him and I would fall off the stage, or run out of heals, or my ward would run out.

*spoiler if you haven't fought Maneater



The most frustrating thing is when he calls a 2nd Maneater to fight you if you don't kill him fast enough.





*end spoiler

And seriously if you can find this game and don't have it, please buy it. It's sooooooo good.

[Edited on October 13, 2009 at 9:54 AM. Reason : a]

10/13/2009 9:50:10 AM

I just started playing (I don't know how to gauge my level yet, or what you guys mean when you say you're on "4-1"-- i still have the dagger that you start with...) but I started as a theif, but i don't get where my abilities come into play.

When/how do I get magic abilities? Is it possible at all to kill that giant monster at the end of the tutorial section?

Are there "combos" or anything, other than just slashing at enemies and blocking?

10/13/2009 12:17:16 PM

1-1, 2-2, 3-1 etc are just easy ways to call the levels and their sections. If you're in the Nexus and facing away from the merchants, the levels are the world stones starting with world 1 on the left and going clockwise till world 5.

Once you beat the first part of the first level 'Boletarian Palace' things will become more clear. Also once you beat the first boss, you will be able to level up. You don't have proper levels in the game, but you have soul levels. You use the souls you collect off enemies to buy upgrades to your stats like Strength, Magic, Dexterity, etc. Every time you level up you have to pay more souls for each consecutive level.

Thief is a tough starting class because right away you have to become good at parrying, dodging and even backstabbing enemies. Once you gain the ability to level up though, it doesn't matter what class you start with, as you can level up everyone the same. The only difference lies within the beginning stats. So for example if you want to be a melee character you should start with a class that has higher Strength and Dexterity to begin with. If you want to be a Magic character you should start with a class that has higher Magic and Intelligence to begin with.

You get magic abilities as you save certain NPCs in the game. They then appear in the Nexus (which is your hub of sorts) and you can learn spells there. You have access to few magic spells at first and you can only use magic if your intelligence is at 10 I think.

It's possibly to kill that monster but extremely hard if you've never played before. You're supposed to die in the tutorial. Even if you beat him you still die. You'll get your revenge in a later stage though.

Combos consist of the timing of your attacks. If you have a smaller weapon you can usually get 4-5 consecutive combo attacks before your stamina runs out. Larger weapons take more stamina to attack and you can get just 1 or 2 good hits. Also you can combo your weak and strong attacks together (R1 + R2). It's all in the timing though.

10/14/2009 9:57:50 AM

Bah, yet another game on PS3 I wish was coming to 360...

10/14/2009 11:15:37 AM

this game was so frustrating at the beginning, but now that i understand it it's so much fun.

10/14/2009 12:41:24 PM

Okay, I switched to a soldier and finally beat the first level. After I beat the phalanx thing, a door opened up behind him and had "soul points." I'm guessing this is an optional online quest-mode kind of thing?

And so far, there doesn't be a way to sell stuff, it's this how it is?

10/15/2009 10:47:38 AM

Yeah, you can't sell anything, only store it with that dude in the Nexus. Sorta serves as your "bank", but it has unlimited space. As far as the souls you pick up from the boss demons, do not convert them to soul points, save them for use in crafting items.

10/15/2009 11:02:41 AM

how did you beat maneater? i beat dragon god, but this dude is giving me so much trouble

10/17/2009 2:48:22 PM

shit i beat him, that was literally the most stressful fight i've ever had in a video game

10/17/2009 3:06:21 PM

Okay, I just got to around level 35 and now there are these glowing red and black versions of the normal enemies everywhere, that are making things a LOT harder then they used to be... what are these things and why do they exist?

I used to be able to easily get most of the way though the 4-1 area but now i struggle to get past the first couple of guys because of these things.

11/1/2009 6:48:47 PM

theyre black phantom versions of the regular guys, theyre annoying as shit. i used to wait til they turn their back and run up and slash them up and roll away if they try to attack. but i got killed a lot by them

11/1/2009 11:01:54 PM

^ but why did they suddenly start appearing? Is it after i reach a certain soul level, or is it a player tendency thing? I haven't been able to find any info on them.

11/2/2009 1:51:56 AM

is it in 4-2? cuz i never saw those guys in 4-1. i think they show up no matter what, for me they showed up at the end of 4-2, right before maneater. since maneater is really hard tho, i had to face those guys like 40 times. maybe it changes because of your character tendency but i dont really know.

11/2/2009 11:46:19 AM

i've been seeing people play this game a lot and it looks pretty fun, haven't played a good RPG in a while and this got good reviews. how much gametime does it have? (i.e. could i get a full play-through with a rental? or is it actually worth buying)

11/2/2009 11:50:07 AM

It's not story based, it's skill based. I'd be very impressed if you could get a full playthrough during rental.

^^ they didn't start showing up for me, it seems, until I reached level 35 or until I killed the second boss of the mining level (3-2?). They now show up in all the levels for me though.

11/2/2009 12:30:19 PM

Quote :

"^ but why did they suddenly start appearing? Is it after i reach a certain soul level, or is it a player tendency thing? I haven't been able to find any info on them."

I don't have a PS3, so I haven't played it, but I thought I remember reading that based on how much you die, your world will get "darker" or "lighter". So the more you die, the darker it comes, and the harder it gets

yeah, it seems backwards, but that's what I heard

11/2/2009 12:58:40 PM

I think you guys are talking about the halloween event, they shifted everyone's world tendancy to pure black for the weekend or something, bitches be hard as fuuuuuuck.

http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2009/10/demons-souls-halloween/

11/2/2009 1:56:44 PM

hahahaha, awesome

11/2/2009 4:09:36 PM

Come to think of it, I got a pretty sweet crescent sword and dark heater over the same time period too.

11/2/2009 5:00:44 PM

lord talk about a learning curve. took me probably a dozen tries to get through 1-1 on my first go. but once i figured it out, it wasn't bad. now i'm just pissed because the 1-2 boss was damn close to death by magic and then my timing just got off and I ran out of MP. tried to go in for the sword kill didn't work out.

11/4/2009 5:16:39 PM

^ use an epehmeral eyes to get human again, then summon someone to help you.

11/5/2009 12:51:57 AM

I would save your eyes, the later bosses are WAY harder.

11/5/2009 10:38:51 PM

I just beat the archdemon on the mining world, and it was actually a lot easier than i expected.

I’m REALLY REALLY kicking myself for accidentally “spending” the Tower Knight’s demon soul, because now I can never get that protection spell from Sage Frake.

11/7/2009 11:13:06 AM

just picked this game up.. pretty excited to waste my night and suck at work tomorrow from playing all night... finished the tutorial before going to the bar.. I'm a "wanderer"

11/12/2009 10:59:32 PM

so is this game still good

12/12/2009 5:31:21 AM

yes. i pretty much bought a ps3 just so i could play this.

12/12/2009 9:52:01 AM

Demon's Souls is the shit luddy

12/12/2009 11:36:24 AM

So I just got this game as an early christmas present and I am hooked. It does take quite some getting used to, but man it feels good after you get the hang of it. I beat the first 2 bosses last night. I was kind of dissappointed with the first boss, the phallanx or whatever. I can't really think of why though, but then the tower knight fight got me all excited. It felt kind of like a Zelda boss fight... an evil, unforgiving, sadistic Zelda boss fight where getting stepped on by a giant or stabbed with a 50' long spear is instant death. That's the way it should be.

I do have a question though:

In the cutscene introducing the tower knight, is there any significance, or is it ever explained who the dancing guy is that signals/controls the crossbow guys? I kept looking for him so I could kill him. I was terrified/paranoid that he was going to swoop down from somewhere and kill me, lol.

Oh yeah and:
It looks like it's going to be a white christmas:
http://www.destructoid.com/christmas-treat-coming-to-demon-s-souls-157700.phtml

12/16/2009 1:28:36 PM

Quote :

"In the cutscene introducing the tower knight, is there any significance, or is it ever explained who the dancing guy is that signals/controls the crossbow guys? I kept looking for him so I could kill him. I was terrified/paranoid that he was going to swoop down from somewhere and kill me, lol."

He's actually no one special, just a dynamic introduction to a new monster that you will see in the next few dungeons, they shoot fire at you that hurts real bad.

12/16/2009 2:05:49 PM

Been playing this for a couple weeks now... The game is one hell of an experience, but after you beat it, the only things left to do are -

-Get platinum trophy (which consists of grinding for really tough item trophies)
-Beat NG over and over to play with other people, beating bosses that you could do in your sleep

The PvP mechanics in this game are pretty fun (but not balanced), and it's too bad that it's so limiting without any sort of matchmaking.

Also, the game becomes a ghost town once your SL is >150. So if you get too high, you have to de-level... On the other hand, at <150, there is only one alpha build - Mirdan Hammer. Range on that motherfucker is excessive.

12/18/2009 3:26:13 AM

is the monster that shows up at the end of the intro (not the training session) the dragon god? cuz if not, that monster's not in the game and i feel cheated.

12/22/2009 8:30:39 PM