Review of the game "Demon Souls"

Avant-garde is a huge winged demon with large curved horns and luminous eyes, capable of destroying any one blow of its ax. But attention is attracted by another - its appearance. Now it is clear to whom the Wandering Demon is like (Dark Souls). And what are the similarities between the games of the studio From Software?

Poor Bolletarians

The troubled times came in the kingdom of Bolletari, when King Allant XII decided to use the magic of summoning souls. He wanted the state of prosperity and prosperity, but did not think what consequences this sorcery would bring. A dense white fog enveloped the entire Bolataria, isolating it from the rest of the world. Since then, many times neighboring kingdoms have tried to find out what happened in the lands of Allant XII, but no messenger, having passed through the fog, never returned. Except for one person.

One of them managed to return, but what he said made us shudder. It turned out that the performed ritual awakened the great and powerful demon, the Oldest. And along with him appeared a fog that attracted to the kingdom of other demons, who immediately absorbed the souls of living people. But the worst thing is that the fog has gradually penetrated beyond the Bolletari, and if it is not stopped, soon it will plunge the whole world into chaos.

The player will have to play for the hero who managed to get through the fog and stay alive. Let not for long. After a while, he will meet the first two bosses, one of which will kill him.

After his death, he will end up in a mysterious place called Nexus, an old temple that unites five worlds, through which you can travel with the help of special Archambacones. The hero gets there in the form of a soul right after his death. There he meets the Virgin in Black - another powerful demon. And she has a plan to save the Bolletarians. However, in return, she asks to bring her the souls of all the demons that are there.

Atmosphere

What the hero sees right behind the veil of fog in the game "Demon Souls" is a complete ruin and decay. Although to be surprised, according to Boletarii death has been walking for a long time already, and gloomy scenery is her handiwork. The setting is reminiscent of the Middle Ages in its darkest times. There is not even a hint of something alive here. Here is, for example, a castle. But nobody lives in it, because it is destroyed and has long been covered with vegetation. But just try to look inside, you will understand that it is not empty. After all, the dead have long wandered through its premises.

And the Latriya Tower is an eerie place, which consists of several areas: a prison, a temple, a bloody swamp and several towers. The prison is filled with crazy prisoners guarded by creatures with strange heads. True, monsters roam in towers much worse - gargoyles, red-eyed guards and human centipedes.

To dare to visit this place, you will have to prepare properly, because any of the enumerated enemies will break the hero in a matter of seconds. Not to mention Idol the Fools - the boss who sits in one of the towers. And there are a lot of such places in the game "Demon Souls". From them for a kilometer there is a danger, but for some reason it wants to get there.

The habit of dying

Those who are familiar with other "stuffy" games from Software, know that the characteristics of the character, especially the initial ones, do not particularly affect the complexity of the game. When faced with most enemies, he will die, die and die.

In order for the hero to somehow develop, it is necessary to improve his abilities, visiting from time to time the Virgin in the Black. Her services are paid for by souls - the only currency in the game that falls out of the bodies of dead enemies.

The game process constantly makes the player afraid for the fragile life of his character. For the clarity of the picture, it is worth recalling that the "Demon Souls" can not be forcibly saved and take a pause. The process of passing is fixed only in certain places. But this is not the worst. In a place where the hero dies, all his souls are left. You can take them, but this is given only one chance, which it is desirable to use. Otherwise, you will have to say goodbye forever to your good. True, this is often the case. Especially if the cause of death was one of the bosses.

About Trends

The trend is one of the most important indicators of the game. It is of two kinds - the character's Trend and the Trend of the World.

The first affects the complexity of the game. Here it acts as karma. That is, do good - and it will be easier to pass. If you are engaged in dark matters, prepare for serious difficulties. Enemies will become stronger, and the impact force, on the contrary, will decrease. Well, scary? But this is the only way to see new enemies.

The tendency of the world is able to influence one of the five worlds. The game "Demon Souls" will become more difficult if the Trend takes a negative value. The player's actions in a particular world can only be manifested there. And all the changes come into effect only after returning to Nexus.

A pure white trend is beneficial in that it makes the opponents weaker, and even more of them have more medicinal herbs. True, the shower and valuable items will be less. The reverse situation develops with a pure black tendency - the enemies are stronger, but they drop more souls and objects. The trend shifts in a positive direction mainly for the murder of black phantoms and bosses. Therefore, it is easier to get negative. For example, death will result in bodily form or the killing of some characters.

Weapons

Weapons play a big role in the game "Demon Souls". Passage will be much simpler if you choose a good accessory for melee or ranged combat. Of course, without a certain tactic the boss can not beat even the biggest hammer. But with bare hands rushing at the enemy - this is pure suicide.

So, there are a lot of weapons in the game, from the usual to the unique. For long-range combat, bows and crossbows are represented. Staves and talismans create spells that can also act on long distances. A character can hold a weapon in both hands. But there is a small clarification: the weapon in the right hand is intended for an attack, and what lies in the left should block enemy attacks. Even a sword can repel a blow, and the effectiveness of protection will be affected by the resistance to damage to the object.

New game +

NG + - this is another feature of the game "Demon Souls". Access to it is possible only after the murder of King Allant and the choice between the Virgin in the Black and the Eldest. From the ordinary game, it is not much different. The only difference is that enemies become stronger and they leave more things. And the player still has all the items that are not related to the story of the passage.

They say that the most powerful increase in the complexity of gamers will feel after the first pass. The following games will become slightly more complicated. But after the start of the version + all keys will be lost, all doors will close, and the relationship with the characters will be reset by default.

Visual impressions

Visually, the game looks weak - that's its biggest drawback. Low resolution and fuzzy textures are noted. Demon's Souls does not use the Motion capture technology. Although why do you need animation characters, if they are almost always silent?

Special effects are also average. Yes, they are generally not enough: something like a fog in front of each room with a boss and flashes of magical spells. No damages, explosions and weather phenomena - the developers took others.

Despite the technically weak graphics, the design of the locations turned out to be outstanding. Levels have colossal dimensions and original interior. Each sound and every room keeps the player in constant tension, sending to the background graphic shortcomings.

Conclusion

Having created "Demon Souls", the review of which was higher, the studio From Software developed the ideal template for their future games. Yes, of course, many mistakes are corrected, the mechanics are perfected, and in the case of Bloodborne and above the graphics worked. But the meaning is the same as before. Therefore, for fans, the Souls series will forever remain the very first. Naturally, we are not talking about those who have never played it. By the way, it's worth thinking about, because there are rumors about restarting the franchise on the PS4. The only pity is that the "Demon Souls" on the PC will probably never appear.