Atlus released a new video walkthrough for its upcoming North American release of Demon’s Souls. In this latest video walkthrough, narrated by QA lead Richard Rodrigues, we see how the game’s online components play into the game as a whole.
The game is an action RPG with a few online features. We’ve had a chance to play through the game, and the online features, like the messages left behind from other players, truly offer assistance in this otherwise grueling title.
In addition to messages, players can interact with each other through co-op play and in a PvP sense – but, the majority of the online components act as a guide for the adventurous gamer. Bloodstains on the ground show red-ghostly video depictions of other player’s deaths, essentially showing you what to expect, and what not to do.
You’ll need these messages and bloodstained-death videos to help you through each level. Make no mistake, Demon’s Souls is not for the easily frustrated gamer. When first learning the game, you will die, a lot. Needless to say, this difficulty level offers a great mental reward when you accomplish various goals.
It seems too often that games are getting easier (or maybe, as the gaming community, we are getting better). While there are other games that certainly offer up an enormous challenge, what sets Demon’s Souls apart is that when you die (and you will die), you start each level from the beginning in soul form, fighting the same demons all over again. There are ways around this, like loading a game if you are falling to your death, but by and large, the game’s difficulty rests in how each level is replayed. You can expect to play a lot of the game in spirit form.
Once you’ve mastered the gameplay elements, and learned how each enemy fights, the game starts to open up into a rich action-RPG title unlike anything we’ve played recently. If you take away the online component of Demon’s Souls, the game is still a solid RPG (and a welcome addition to the PlayStation 3), but with the added online components, the game shines, and the usual stagnant world is filled with a great sense of community. But, make sure you watch out for fiendish gamers who want nothing more than to trick you.
Look for our review of Demon’s Souls coming soon, and look for the North American release of the title on October 6.