Cover artwork I generate from the game data. I do not use publisher artwork.
Game profile
Demon's Souls (2020)
The fully rebuilt remake of the genre's forerunner sends players into a cursed kingdom full of archaic demons. Difficult, fair combat and a bleak, decaying world define every step.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is Soulslike / RPG, set in a fantasy world. Visually it is going for realism, and the overall tone stays dark throughout. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. It rewards long uninterrupted stretches more than quick check-ins.
It is genuinely demanding, and repeated failure is part of how it is designed. Story exists mostly as background texture rather than a reason to keep going. Competitive play against other people is part of the package. It is available on one platform. It sits in the mid price bracket.
What stands out
- Genre forerunner
- Demanding boss fights
- Graphical masterpiece
This fits you if
- you are after a proper adrenaline rush
- levelling, looting and optimising a build is your kind of loop
- you can sit down for a proper long stretch without interruptions
- you want real resistance and are fine with dying a lot
- you enjoy competing against other players
- you prefer a darker, heavier tone
Look elsewhere if
- you want to relax and not be punished for mistakes
- you only ever get short bursts of play time
- you want something light and easy going
- competitive lobbies stress you out
What it costs you in time
About 33 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 6 weeks, or 17 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 92 out of 100, which puts it above 93 percent of the 1206 games here and at rank 64 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, Soulslike averages 85 points across the database, so this one sits 7 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 218 collected ratings.
Released in 2020, so it has 6 years behind it. Usually cheap by now and the rough edges are long fixed.
The facts
- Release year
- 2020
- Genres
- Soulslike, RPG, Action
- Playtime
- approx. 33 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Demanding, punishing
- Story weight
- Background flavour
- Play with
- Solo, Competitive
- Setting
- Fantasy
- Visual style
- Realistic
- Price bracket
- Mid price
- Platforms
- PlayStation
- Critic rating
- 92 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demon's Souls (2020) | 2020 | approx. 33 hrs. | 92 | Mid price |
| Nioh 2 | 2020 | approx. 45 hrs. | 84 | Mid price |
| Bloodborne | 2015 | approx. 33 hrs. | 91 | Budget |
| Dark Souls III | 2016 | approx. 33 hrs. | 86 | Mid price |
If you liked this, try these
- Nioh 2 Shared: Soulslike, RPG, Fantasy
- Bloodborne Shared: Soulslike, RPG, Fantasy
- Dark Souls III Shared: Soulslike, RPG, Fantasy
- Lies of P Shared: Soulslike, RPG, Fantasy
- Elden Ring Shared: Soulslike, RPG, Fantasy, longer
- Nioh 3 Shared: Soulslike, RPG, Fantasy, longer