I've had this PS3 game Demon's Souls for a few months now and am finally getting the hang of it. Its the first rpg dungeon crawler type game I've ever really tried and it really is starting to grow on me. The story in Demon's Souls is simple enough and similar to plenty of other games out there. The kingdom of Boletaria has been overrun with seemingly unstoppable hordes of evil monsters and creatures and it is up to you to single-handedly slay each and every one of them without breaking a sweat in the process. However, this is not just another Dante's Inferno or God of War type hack n' slash button masher(Although I love those types of games just as much as the next guy).
Demon's Souls forces you to really think about each strike and attack. If you don't strategize in combat the game will kill you and keep killing you till you learn what to expect and how to take it down. I know this sounds really frustrating but it is actually one of the game's strongest points. Because of the high difficulty there is a great sense of accomplishment when you finish an area and slay the boss demon. For that briefest of moments you actually feel like you just rid the world of some horrible evil. Then you remember it is just a video game of course and move on.
A few other great aspects of the game are the multiplayer element, the bloodstains, and the message system. As long as you have an internet connection the game is already set up for multiplayer when you start the story mode. You can see other players moving about in ghost-like spirit forms as they play their own games. Every time a player dies they leave a bloodstain that any other player can activate to get a glimpse of that player's last few moments. This sometimes gives you hints of hidden enemies or traps. In addition to this, players can leave messages for other players to read. These can be very helpful at times if you are stuck. You also have the ability to summon other players to join your game. This is a lot of fun and makes for some exciting(and much less frustrating) boss battles when you can team up with a few other players to fight. There is no way to verbally communicate with your teammates but it is by far one of the greatest parts of the gameplay.
Now every time you slay an enemy in Demon's souls you obtain souls. Souls are the currency of the game and can be used to buy items, upgrade items, and level up your character's stats. Tragically though, every time you die you lose all of your souls and are transported back to the Nexus, a staging area beneath Boletaria. This can be very painful especially if you have collected a great amount of souls and then lose them all in an instant. Like other rpg games you decide what type of character you want to be whether that is a soldier, magician, hunter, etc. I started out as the hunter just because he had a bow and a big axe and I thought he looked cool. I then moved onto the soldier who was a little more balanced since he had a nice shield and a long spear. Finally, I started all over again with the magician and I really like him even though I haven't leveled up enough to use the bigger swords and shields yet. I can, however, hurl balls of fire at my enemies with my wand and thats just cool. This game will keep me coming back for quite a while and I have to hand it to the developers for creating an adventure experience unlike any other game I have ever played.
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