At long last, we have arrived at the end of our adventures in Boletaria and its surrounding lands. The archdemons in the four corners of the world, the Dragon God of Stonefang Tunnels, the Old Monk of Latria, the Storm King of the Shrine of Storms, and Maiden Astraea of the Valley of Defilement all lay dead by our hands.
All we have left to do is ascend to the zenith of the Boletarian Palace to take on the person who doomed the world in his bid for power by waking the Old One from his slumber: King Allant.
Our opponent awaits.
Thumbnail by Sam Callahan.
For people who have experience playing other Soulsborne games, Demon’s Souls is significantly easier than the games that came afterward. Nothing quite illustrates that point like the duel against the False King Allant. When I first played Demon’s Souls way back then, I found this fight extremely tough due to my glass cannon build and lack of experience. And now, with several games under my belt, the fight has been trivialized. There are still few things cooler than a one-on-one duel to cap off a journey like ours, so it still serves as an incredible final setpiece.
And though we missed our opportunity to fight Old King Doran, we did still make the time to take about the twin blades Demonbrandt and Soulbrandt. Lore like this is part of what makes the series. While it’s entirely possible to simply play through these games without putting much thought into the world at large, simply enjoyed the moment-to-moment play, those who desire to explore and understand the world around them are rewarded for their efforts with knowledge of the people and places they interact with along the journey, and how they interact with each other. Although Demon’s Souls is the most traditionally video gamey of the series, presenting itself as a selection of linear levels that can be tackled in any order, it too has a fully realized world waiting for players to discover it.
Having had the idea to do a series on Demon’s Souls for a long time now, I’m so glad that I’ve finally done it. Back when Sam and I were still doing Interactive Friction, we floated the idea of doing Demon’s Souls, but Sam didn’t want to be the one in the pilot’s seat and I didn’t have a good setup at the time. By the time I did, we had both gotten jobs, and all our free time was used up. Thankfully, the PS5 version of Demon’s Souls gave me the perfect opportunity to rekindle this old flame. I doubt I’ll ever play the other Soulsborne games here simply due to their time commitment, but who knows what the future holds…
…I do, of course. Next week, Acharky makes his return as we tackle The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes.
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