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Watch the first gameplay from the 'Demon's Souls' PS5 remake
Vanguard looks more monstrous than ever.
Joystiq Presents: Dragon Age, Dark Souls and dominatrixes
Anthony John Agnello (@ajohnagnello) chats with BioWare Creative Director Mike Laidlaw about Dragon Age: Inquisition. They discuss the influence that From Software's Dark Souls series had on Laidlaw when crafting the developer's latest RPG. Listen to the MP3
Demon's, Dark Souls director takes over as From Software president
From Software employees are pledging their souls to Hidetaka Miyazaki, the director of the first two Souls games and now the studio's new president. Miyazaki, who only acted as a supervisor on Dark Souls 2, takes over from industry veteran Naotoshi Zin who in turn is taking on a new advisory role. While the exact reasoning for the reshuffle is unclear, it's probably tied to From Software's acquisition by Kadokawa Corporation last month, especially since the transfer was formally concluded today. Kadokawa's known in Japan for its extensive manga library but in recent years it's dipped further into the gaming market, publishing Suda51's Killer is Dead and Lollipop Chainsaw and developing games like Natural Doctrine and Demon Gaze. [Image: Bandai Namco]
PS Plus Europe explores Amalur, Demon's Souls, Ico/SotC in June
European PlayStation Plus subscribers have plenty to keep themselves busy with when the rain inevitably lashes down on Wimbledon next month. June's Plus update brings two very different breeds of RPG to the PS3's Instant Game Collection in Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning and Demon's Souls, as well the Ico and Shadow of the Colossus HD Collection. All three games arrive a wee bit early on May 29. Meanwhile on Vita, June features Rayman Origins and Coconut Dodge Revitalized for the portable. Both Vita games join the Collection on June 5. Coconut Dodge Revitalized is the next Futurlab PS Mini to get the HD treatment. As before, the self-explanatory (or not) 2D high-scorer gets leaderboards and trophies support on Vita. As ever, the revolving door that is PS Plus means new arrivals are countered by departures. Hitman: Absolution, Joe Danger 2, and Dead or Alive 5 leave the service on May 29, followed by Sine Mora on June 5, and Futurlab's Velocity Ultra on June 12.
Demon's Souls pounces on PlayStation Plus today
The malignant majesty of Demon's Souls becomes free to North American PlayStation Plus members in today's PSN update. The servers for the From Software game are staying online for the foreseeable future, so there's no reason to pass on a PS3 game we described as a "leather-clad mistress" in our 2009 review - unless, perhaps... you're scared?Less sadistic Plus entries coming this month include Zombie Tycoon 2, which heads to PS3 and Vita via PSN on April 30, Malicious and Labyrinth Legends for PS3, and PSP game Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny for Vita. There are no PS Plus ETAs for those last three.As ever, new stuff coming in pushes old stuff back out. If you want to grab Spec Ops: The Line from PS Plus, today's your last chance to do so. Street Fighter 4: Arcade Edition dragon punches out on April 9, while Anomaly: Warzone Earth flees on April 16.Finally, today's PSN update brings discounts to The Walking Dead, Rainbow Moon, and the Söldner-X series, including the first season of Telltale's zombified adventure for $14.99, a price that drops to $10.49 with Plus. For all those deals, check out the PlayStation Blog.
Demon's Souls PSN petrifying Europeans on January 23
The PlayStation Network version of Demon's Souls is bringing death and despair to Europe on January 23, Namco Bandai tells us. That means our friends across the ocean must wait a little longer for From Software's downloadable dose of role-playing desolation, following yesterday's news of it coming to North America's PSN this coming Tuesday.Namco says the game's European servers are staying online, so be sure to look out for messages telling you it's safe ahead when in fact there's a big, fat soul-loving spider who missed both breakfast and lunch and isn't really dealing with it well.
Demon's Souls goes downloadable January 8
Demon's Souls is still incredibly difficult to play, but is about to become a little easier to start. On Tuesday, Jan. 8, it'll be released on PSN, eliminating the arduous task of standing up, walking to the PS3, and changing discs. The digital version is easy on the wallet too, at $19.99.Atlus will show a bit of mercy in-game coinciding with this release, holding a "Pure White World Tendency" event through the 14th, making the game slightly easier. We've come a long way since Atlus wanted to shut the servers down: now the whole game is on the internet.
Demon's Souls servers staying online into the 'foreseeable future'
Demon's Souls will not be denied as publisher Atlus announced today that it will support the game's online features for the "foreseeable future." Unlike players in the unforgiving RPG, the servers just refuse to die!"While it originally seemed as though it would be unfeasible for us to continue to sustain the servers, a number of developments have made it possible for us to continue to invest in and support our fans as they have continued to invest in and support us and Demon's Souls," said Tim Pivnicny, VP of Atlus marketing and sales, we imagine holding a cat o' nine tails. "For all the gamers who have yet to discover the game's amazing online experience, we're happy to say you can still log on and find out why Demon's Souls is still regarded by many as one of the finest games of all time."The entry fee for electronic sadism is a mere $20 now, as the game is part of the PlayStation 3's "Greatest Hits" collection. The game's online features were intended to end at midnight on May 31, but darkness always finds a way to stay alive.
Demon's Souls to be taken offline on May 31
Atlus is shutting down the North American servers for Demon's Souls on May 31 at 11:59 p.m. PST. This will not affect the single-player mode, but will prevent players from leaving notes for other players, who appear as ghosts in remote games, and all other online activities.Atlus is holding two World Tendency events, which can alter the difficulty and perks awarded to players in-game, throughout May. Atlus invites all players to sign in for one final hoorah on May 31, Game Informer writes.Below is a heartfelt statement sent to Game Informer from Atlus VP of sales and marketing Tim Pivnicny:
Why Sony passed on publishing Demon's Souls in America
Nobody expected Demon's Souls to be the hit it was, least of all Sony, the game's publisher in Japan. When Atlus decided to publish the game in North America, it took a risk -- one that paid off. The duty of publishing the sequel, Dark Souls, would then go to Namco Bandai.Does Sony regret passing on publishing Demon's Souls in North America? Senior VP Shuhei Yoshida thinks so. He told Game Informer the company passed on the game after seeing an earlier build of the game. "What happened with Demon's Souls was until very late in the game's development, we were not able to play the game through. There were framerate issues and the network was not up and running. We underestimated the quality of the game and to be honest, the media in Japan did the same."But still, even after a few hours with the final product, Yoshida remarked that he just wasn't able to see the value in the game. "For my personal experience with Demon's Souls, when it was close to final I spent close to two hours playing it and after two hours I was still standing at the beginning at the game. I said, 'This is crap. This is an unbelievably bad game.' So I put it aside." In the end, Yoshida admitted Sony "dropped the ball from a publishing standpoint" and was not able to "see the value of the product."
Happy and hateful birthday, Demon's Souls!
Atlus sent out a little note reminding us all that today marks the second anniversary of the release of Demon's Souls, spiritual predecessor of Dark Souls. In celebration of two years of mind-numbing, controller-snapping difficulty, the publisher has some special World Tendency events lined up for the rest of the month. Starting today and running through October 17, the in-game world of Demon's Souls will switch to Pure White Tendency, which makes the game (somewhat) less difficult and even opens up certain paths and items. From October 17 through the rest of the month – just in time for Halloween – the world will shift to Pure Black which, you guessed it, makes the game even more difficult (okay, fine, it also opens up different hidden areas too). To offer up a birthday analogy, it's like Atlus is giving everyone a cake topped with beautiful white icing and a filling made of pure evil.
Atlus continues Demon's Souls server support into 2012
In an announcement timed suspiciously closely to the release of a totally unrelated game (wink!), Atlus announced that it's going to continue operating the servers for Demon's Souls "into 2012." They had previously only been ensured operation until October of this year. Thanks to this renewal, players will still be able to leave notes for one another, show up as ghosts in others' games to warn of dangerous conditions, or just become a mean-spirited invader. And with that continued support will come new "Pure White" and "Pure Black" world tendency events for unspecified dates this holiday season. Atlus PR also just casually drops the fact that Demon's Souls has an MSRP of $19.99, making it the best bargain in From Software's two-title-strong library of hardcore action RPGs.
Amazon offering Atlus catalog sale today
Radiant Historia for $28? Demon's Souls for $15 and 3D Dot Game Heroes for a measly $13.50? It's either straight up madness, or it's an Atlus-themed deal of the day special on Amazon, available for today only (spoiler: it's the latter). Perhaps PS2 classic Odin Sphere is more your speed? That's also available for $16. And we'd be remiss if we didn't mention our favorite Atlus game with "Badass Rumble" in the title -- Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble -- is marked down to $28. Just think, if you have 28 or more rumbles in Kenka Bancho, that's only $1 per badass rumble! [Thanks, Joseph R.]
72-hour charity marathon lets internet pick games, gets really tough ones
The marathon gaming team Wily Whompers was scheduled to race team Zeldathon this week, but when that showdown fell through, it decided to turn its marathon into a Viewer's Choice of sorts, asking Reddit readers to help choose which games to play for 72 hours straight. The group is also raising money for Child's Play as it streams the event -- so far it has only reached a few hundred dollars, but there's still time left to play ... and watch. The team started with a run through Mega Man 10 and then the Reddit folks showed a cruel streak, sending the players through Super Meat Boy (we're told they beat all of the Light World levels and the warp zones), Super Ghouls N Ghosts and a few other unforgiving titles before the Whompers' current challenge as of this writing: Beating the forehead-slappingly difficult Demon's Souls. We can only wish them luck -- we're hard pressed to do anything for three days straight, much less play some of the hardest games around.
Demon's Souls server operation extended until late 2011
If you've ever set foot within the cacophonous, blood-encrusted hallways of Demon's Souls, you know that sure footing isn't always guaranteed. The only assurance you'll ever have is the one from the insidiously designed RPG's North American publisher, Atlus, which has pledged to keep online servers safe until the game's second anniversary, coming up in October 2011. Before this announcement, servers weren't set to fall away until "at least" March 2011. Of course, since this is Demon's Souls, the kindness of Atlus comes at a terrible cost. While you enjoy the continuing online features and a new, Pure White World Tendency event taking place from December 20 until the beginning of 2011, spare a thought for the children sitting in a Californian basement, dutifully turning the server cranks.
Demon's Souls shifts Atlus to black profit tendency
Index Holdings, parent company of Atlus, has released its financial results (PDF) for its fiscal 2010, which ended August 31. Things are looking rosy for Atlus USA, thanks largely to the dark and depressing Demon's Souls, which the company points to as a major factor in raising profits. Index Holdings reported that Atlus USA made ¥3.299 billion ($40.7 million) in sales for the year, up from ¥2.732 billion ($33.6 million) in 2009. More importantly, the company posted an operating income of ¥407 million ($5 million), which compares very favorably to last year's loss of ¥104 million ($1.2 million). Hey Atlus, how about we celebrate by shifting Demon's Souls to white tendency for a little while? Please?
Watch Demon's Souls completed in under an hour
Sure, we liked Demon's Souls a lot, but we just wish it had been a little longer. 54 minutes of gameplay just isn't enough for a full price next-gen title. What's that? You needed more than 54 minutes (portrayed in following videos) to beat the notoriously difficult dungeon crawler? That's cute. (Warning: Don't watch these videos if you don't want the game spoiled!)
CoD: Modern Warfare, Ratchet and Clank: A Crack in Time and more added to PS3 Greatest Hits
Sony has added seven more titles to its North American "Greatest Hits" collection, each with a suggested price of $30. We knew about a couple of these already, but check out the official list after the break.
Project Dark trailer is dark, Demon's Souls-esque
There's still a lot of unanswered questions about Project Dark, the next title from the Demon's Souls team at From Software, but chief amongst them is the simple query: Is this a Demon's Souls sequel? While we still don't have a clear answer on that front, the below cam-captured teaser provides some evidence that it's at least cut from the same, blood-stained cloth. Project Dark is a PS3-exclusive in Japan, while Namco Bandai's English website lists an Xbox 360 version as well. [Thanks, thepapercut]
PS3 Greatest Hits summons Demon's Souls for $30
Atlus has announced that Demon's Souls is now part of the PS3 Greatest Hits line with a permanently reduced price of $29.99. (Of course, it's been $30 for a while now if you know where to look.) Man, the dollar-to-frustration ratio is now through the roof!
