Demon's Souls Reviews

Demon’s Souls is the standout title among the PS5’s launch lineup, combining tight gameplay, gorgeous graphics and an unforgettable setting.

To put it bluntly, Demon's Souls was worth me buying a PS5

Demon’s Souls will really click with some people who like a challenge, or for anyone desperate for a PS5 technical showcase. For Sony loyalists who already love Soulsborne games, it’s a dream come true. Bluepoint Games is the king of remakes, and it’ll take a fight as difficult as a Demon’s Souls boss before anyone can dethrone them. Inverse can’t wait to see what Bluepoint will do next on PS5, especially if it’s with a game that more people can easily enjoy.

The Demon's Souls remake on PlayStation 5 is almost the exact same experience, gameplay-wise, as the 2009 PlayStation 3 original. And considering how great the original Demon's Souls was, the Demon's Souls remake on PS5 is an easy recommendation. Imagine one of the best and most influential games ever made, but with significantly improved graphics, and that sums up the Demon's Souls remake perfectly. It's the PlayStation 5's first must-have exclusive game, and it should leave fans very excited to see what developer Bluepoint Games decides to work on next.

New genres in video games are rare, but in 2009, Demon’s Souls on PlayStation 3 managed to make that happen, bringing a new style of hardcore action RPG that presented a captivating challenge, where skill is paramount and learning from your mistakes is absolutely essential. We’d seen difficult games before, but after several years of campaigns that were almost impossible to fail, Demon’s Souls laughed in your face and forced you to “get good”. It didn’t launch in Australia origina...

Demon's Souls is an instant classic, one of those rare retellings that stands triumphantly alongside the original as an essential experience.

Beautifully remade from the ground up, Bluepoint's visual reinterpretation of FromSoftware's 11-year-old classic is a powerful launch title that brings excitement into the generation to come.

Bluepoint delivers a Demon's Souls remake that is as much its own as it is From Software's, and it shows off the power of the PS5 with it.

Despite carrying over the original’s combat system - something that should neither surprise nor disappoint fans - the remake does not improve upon the janky combat flow. Fight paces vary, with some AI attacking swiftly while others are slow but powerful. However, the game has a way of ruining what feels like sound reflexes. What seemed like a perfectly timed parry, for example, is often overridden for reasons that could be attributed to the game not registering the command given - resulting in the AI ignoring the attempt and dealing massive damage. For all the user error in the world, one enemy overriding a parry despite the same kind of foe succumbing to it - with no noticeable difference in input timing from the player - is a source of aggravation that plagued the original Demon’s Souls and continues to haunt the reimagining.

Demon's Souls is a challenging and lengthy RPG romp through one of the most difficult yet rewarding fantasy worlds ever created. Not intended for those that have a tendency to be deterred by a tall challenge.

Demon's Souls is one of the richest, most unique, and most rewarding games of recent years. The experience is unforgettable, immersive, and highly addictive. However, due to its brutal difficulty, it's not for everyone.

The music in the game fits the atmosphere perfectly. Every sound you hear from the groans of your enemies to your weapons clanging sounds great and is accompanied by a soundtrack that helps set the dreary mood and can jump up during key parts. If only the voice acting was as good. The VA’ing isn’t exactly bad, but it’s nowhere near good either. Instead of cringing at the VA’ing you’re more likely to chuckle at how bad it is. The graphics look great in this game. From Software really crafted a believable world with a western feeling. The levels are also really detailed which can also be said for the bosses which will leave you feeling disgusted at a few.

So, in the end, if you're looking for a brutally intense, difficult, trial and error filled, yet visually impressive, title, by all means, Demon's Souls delivers. Its visuals are gorgeous, the game mechanics are a breath of fresh air, a wildly fun romp in a dark and foreboding world. Unfortunately, the frustration factor may be a turn-off to all but the hardcore crowd. All that being said, whether this type of game appeals to you or not, you owe it to yourself to check it out and play it. You may love it, you may hate it, you might toss your controllers in frustration, but at least you'll expose yourself to a masterfully crafted title that gives the gaming landscape something different, something new, something surprisingly robust and attractive. That's what every title that comes along hopes to be, but, in recent memory, Demon's Souls is one of the only games to accomplish. While things might not be perfect, given the high degree of difficulty, the title definitely does deliver and is something for all gamers to aspire to try.

Do you dare set foot in accursed Boletaria? What awaits you in the treacherous, demon-plagued lands of a once-proud nation? Pain and suffering or one heck of a good time? Perhaps both?

Bluepoint’s team had the unenviable task of remaking an 11-year-old game with a cult following and making it look – and play – the part of being the very first game developed from the ground up for this current generation of consoles. And that’s exactly what they did. Demon’s Souls is breathtakingly gorgeous and plays significantly better than it did on the PS3, not only thanks to the graphical power of the PlayStation 5, but because of smart quality-of-life changes and light touches that modernize some frustrating aspects of the original, without ever sacrificing the relentless challenge, puzzle-infused boss battles, and style that made it such a landmark game in the first place.