Demon's Souls remake

[munchiaz]

Demon's souls started the whole "soulslike" subgenre and is considered by many (myself included) to be one of the best souls titles. The remake for PS5 is less than a month away. Wanted to create a thread that discusses all things Demon's souls, be it the remake or the original.

Its been a good 5 years since I've last played through the game, and I just beat it again this weekend. It really is a special game, and there are so many things I enjoy that aren't really seen as much in the future souls titles. Such as the boss battle. I know some people feel that a lot of them are gimmicky, but the fact that they all aren't exercises in memory and invul frames is honestly refreshing.

So what are the aspects of Demon's that you like or dislike? What are you looking forward to seeing in the remake? What would you want to change ect?

Are there things you are concerned about that the remake will mess up? Like how the first trailer showed Flamelurker and his face was totally different that the OG. Some people may not see it as major, but the way Flamelurker looks actually plays into the lore.




Also, looks like one of the new themes leaked

 

[Burning Fight!!]

I missed the game for the dumbest reasons when it was current and I still kick myself over it from time to time. Since I have only played Bloodborne (does King's Field count?) im a filthy casual in the genre so I'm probably not gonna notice anything that fans will consider egregious, guess ignorance is bliss. Will wait for a PC port otherwise it's gonna be a long while before I actually play it since the PS5 is not on my radar right now.

...this reminds me I have Dark Souls HD collection and 3 sitting on a cardboard box somewhere unplayed. Really need to jump into the series again.

 

[Tung Fu ru]

I missed the game for the dumbest reasons when it was current and I still kick myself over it from time to time. Since I have only played Bloodborne (does King's Field count?) im a filthy casual in the genre so I'm probably not gonna notice anything that fans will consider egregious, guess ignorance is bliss. Will wait for a PC port otherwise it's gonna be a long while before I actually play it since the PS5 is not on my radar right now.

...this reminds me I have Dark Souls HD collection and 3 sitting on a cardboard box somewhere unplayed. Really need to jump into the series again.

Pretty sure Demon's Souls won't be getting a PC release, since Sony is a publisher.

If you have Dark Souls and DS3, fucking play them already! Both are great, maybe skip Dark Souls 2. It's okay, but really misses much of what makes the other two and Demon's Souls so good.

 

[munchiaz]

This guy is responsible for the bloodborne 60fps mode on PS4 Pro, and hes been dropping some details about the Demon's Souls remake. It looks like the game will use two engines. The original, Blue point's own in house engine. I guess this was done for the Shadow of the Colossus remake as well.

https://twitter.com/manfightdragon

 

[roker]

Pretty sure Demon's Souls won't be getting a PC release, since Sony is a publisher.

I wouldn't be so sure of that anymore. Horizon Dawn got released on the PC and there are talks for more Sony exclusives. I don't think personally that they will go the way that Xbox did and release everything on PC but I think some of their more popular titles or things that have more of a mainstream appeal might find their way on a PC eventually.

https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2020/08/dont_panic_but_more_playstation_exclusives_will_come_to_pc

 

[munchiaz]

I wouldn't be so sure of that anymore. Horizon Dawn got released on the PC and there are talks for more Sony exclusives. I don't think personally that they will go the way that Xbox did and release everything on PC but I think some of their more popular titles or things that have more of a mainstream appeal might find their way on a PC eventually.

https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2020/08/dont_panic_but_more_playstation_exclusives_will_come_to_pc

Its possible Demon's Souls may come out on PC, but I think it would be at least a year or 2 before it did. Gotta get those exclusive sales in first

 

[ChuChu Flamingo]

I missed the game for the dumbest reasons when it was current and I still kick myself over it from time to time. Since I have only played Bloodborne (does King's Field count?) im a filthy casual in the genre so I'm probably not gonna notice anything that fans will consider egregious, guess ignorance is bliss. Will wait for a PC port otherwise it's gonna be a long while before I actually play it since the PS5 is not on my radar right now.

...this reminds me I have Dark Souls HD collection and 3 sitting on a cardboard box somewhere unplayed. Really need to jump into the series again.

You can play on RPCS3 PS3 emulator and online too provided you have a good computer.

 

[munchiaz]

Tons of news came out for Demon's Souls remake. We got a new gameplay trailer, and an interview with one of the directors at BP games. Looks like we won't be getting the 6th archstone after all, but fractured mode is new and its basically a mirror mode of the game. We also found out that the game will have 2 output modes, 4k@30 or dynamic 4k@60. What does that mean for people with 1440p monitors? Is the dynamic mode going to just change resolution based on frame rate demands? If it's 1080p will a 1440p monitor just upscale the image?

 

[Taiso]

Vaatividya dropped an excellent video on the remaster.

 

[roker]

4k@30 or dynamic 4k@60.

Kind of off topic, but my tv can only seem to do 4k 30hz. Would that still be better than 1080p 60hz?

 

[munchiaz]

Kind of off topic, but my tv can only seem to do 4k 30hz. Would that still be better than 1080p 60hz?

I would take performance over visuals every time, so 1080p@60hz IMO is better than 4k30hz.

 

[Kid Panda]

I'll wait for the pc port with DSfix.exe

 

[Yoshi]

I'll wait for the pc port with DSfix.exe

I had almost forgotten that Sekiro still needed a mod to support ultrawide. Ugh.

 

[herb]

Hopefully I can still dupe items to break the game lol

 

[Taiso]

According to Vaatividya, it's been confirmed that the duplication glitch is intentionally being left in.

 

[herb]

According to Vaatividya, it's been confirmed that the duplication glitch is intentionally being left in.

Ah that's lame but understandable

 

[Late]

I would take performance over visuals every time, so 1080p@60hz IMO is better than 4k30hz.

Same.

 

[Taiso]

Ah that's lame but understandable

I'm not sure how I feel about it. It was a glitch originally, and this was their chance to fix it.

But on the other hand, I feel as though the glitch had become a part of the game's mystique and a version without it would be missing a charming element of the identity it's developed.

There's also the fact that it's kind of funny that it's still in there. I'm amused.

 

[SML]

Pretty sure Demon's Souls won't be getting a PC release, since Sony is a publisher.

If you have Dark Souls and DS3, fucking play them already! Both are great, maybe skip Dark Souls 2. It's okay, but really misses much of what makes the other two and Demon's Souls so good.

After literal years of not finishing DS1 because I wanted to finish the DLC at a low level to stay "viable" for PVP, I finally wrapped PTDE earlier this year, then moved through DS2, Demon's Souls (Emulator + Archstones Server), and I just killed Gael a couple of days ago. Still farming around for rare drops in DS3 but I've basically wrapped the series thanks to the quarantine.

Demon's Souls is a lot of fun, but it does feel a little obsolete in terms of level design, etc. The new release feels too faithful to the original (and the live engine swapping would seem to mandate that level of fidelity) for me to want to jump right back in. If I had nostalgic feelings for it, I'd be really excited.

Dark Souls II has a different tone than the other entries in the series, though you could also turn that around and say that Dark Souls III relies too much on its predecessors. Aside from that, the criticisms of the game are pretty well documented. The world map doesn't make "sense" to the degree that it does in the other two, with the Earthen Peak to Iron Keep transition being particularly jarring. Some of the criticism of arbitrary changes in Scholar of the First Sin don't register with me because that's the only version I've played.

I'd say don't skip II because it's probably the most fun game in the series to actually play. You may not get the sense that you're in the kind of dying world that precipitates the undead curse (until the enemies stop respawning, anyway), but in exchange you get environments that are varied and colorful. The world is massive. You have plenty of opportunities to change up your build and explore different play styles. You can access ng+ content and challenges without actually starting a new game thanks to bonfire ascetics. The Fume Knight is still probably my favorite fight in the series.

DS1 is still great, but it gets away with stuff that the other games aren't allowed to. Lost Izalith is unfinished. The obscurity and ambiguity of the game, which Vaati kind of owes his career to, is harmed by the context of the other games. Most players might miss Kaathe's side of the story, but now we have an in-game Vaati in the form of Aldia to make sure you've got it. The Nameless King and the Pygmy Kings are here to head off some of the speculation you might have engaged in before. The AI tethering, which Fromsoft mitigated but never really solved, is at its worst.

Edit: Oh hey did anybody find it just a little bit jarring that in The Ringed City the characters start loudly referencing THE DARK SOUL? It's kind of late to turn a lore element into a MacGuffin, isn't it?

 

[Taiso]

Dark Souls III was the most fun to play and is, overall, the best game in the series, IMO. I loved returning to Anor Londo. I don't think anything speaks more to the idea of the series than revisiting it after some epochs of decay.

 

[SML]

II will end up being the "Season of the Witch" of the series.

Stepping out of the Carthus catacombs and seeing Irithyll Cathedral was a great moment on par with seeing the Kiln of the First Flame for the first time. Loved the mansion with the scavenged paintings. Aldrich's arena looks great. I'm always ready to pour one out for the giant blacksmith.

That said, it's putting a hat on a hat. Dark Souls 1 already felt like the end of the world, and Anor Londo already felt dead and empty. Is DS3 Anor Londo a ruin or has it been refurbished? Did Pontiff Sulyvahn just feel like repairing glass was more important than clearing rubble from hallways?

If you really want to show the remnants of old areas, Smouldering Lake and The Dreg Heap seem like better approaches.

 

[Taiso]

Anor Londo is a better ruin to return to because it was the pristine pinnacle of civilization in DS 1. Muh of its architecture remains unharmed and could be lived in, if a group of people could take it back and keep it.

It is NOT the same place in DS 3. There's no reclaiming that place in 3. If has a barren feel that puts it well beyond restoration or reclamation. Part of that is the more ruined and empty feel of the place, beaten down by the ages and elements. Another part is the meta element of returning to a place that was still so fresh in my mind and seeing it, like everything must, returning to dust. That it has survived two ages is simultaneously a testament to its majesty and its futility.

Nothing is more DS than that.

 

[jro]

Kind of off topic, but my tv can only seem to do 4k 30hz. Would that still be better than 1080p 60hz?

In a lot of genres I'd go 4K/30 but not in a Souls game. The difference in responsiveness between 30 and 60 FPS is just too noticeable.

I'm not sure how I feel about it. It was a glitch originally, and this was their chance to fix it.

But on the other hand, I feel as though the glitch had become a part of the game's mystique and a version without it would be missing a charming element of the identity it's developed.

There's also the fact that it's kind of funny that it's still in there. I'm amused.

From games, in particular IMO, kind of make the glitches part of their identity. I dunno, it's hard to describe it, but this one, all the exploits in Sekiro, various instances of cheese throughout their games, it's sort of like the game within the game.

 

[SML]

In a lot of genres I'd go 4K/30 but not in a Souls game. The difference in responsiveness between 30 and 60 FPS is just too noticeable.


From games, in particular IMO, kind of make the glitches part of their identity. I dunno, it's hard to describe it, but this one, all the exploits in Sekiro, various instances of cheese throughout their games, it's sort of like the game within the game.

Have you seen ymfah's "pacifist" run through Dark Souls? You'd *almost* swear that the perfect bugs and exploits to pull it off were deliberately left in place.

 

[jro]

Have you seen ymfah's "pacifist" run through Dark Souls? You'd *almost* swear that the perfect bugs and exploits to pull it off were deliberately left in place.

I haven't, but I'm certainly intrigued by the angle, I'll have to check it out. And I totally agree- From seems to get rid of glitches that hurt the game or don't add anything, but if they can be used to do something fun or interesting, to their credit they seem quite happy to leave them in. Like in Sekiro, when I heard about the Demon of Hatred suicide cheese, I thought oh man I gotta try that ASAP before it's taken out. Then like six months later I'm watching an all bosses speedrun and it's still there.