Demon's Souls

[prfsnl_gmr]

I spent some times with a few of the King's Field games, but I never beat any of them (or made it that far before giving up, honestly). Demon's Souls is very different from King's Field. IMO, it plays much more like an unforgiving 3D action game with very heavy RPG elements, and - perhaps surprisingly - the combat actually reminds me a lot of Tecmo's Ninja Gaiden Black (Xbox).

Also, and based on both your recommendation and how much I am enjoying Demon's Souls, I plan on diving into KF: The Ancient City at some point next year.

[MrPopo]

I was never aware of either

I am genuinely surprised to hear that, considering how well versed you are in RPGs.

You should give them a shot someday though. Unless you're not hardcore enough. ;p

On topic I do own Demon's Souls and both Dark Souls games. (I swore to myself I wouldn't play them until I finished the KF and ST series first though... I'm getting there.)

Hey now, I still have ARMA Cold War Assault to get through first.

The main platform I was versed in RPGs on was the SNES because I had found a good collection someone had put together of every worthwhile RPG on the system for emulation (so a bunch of fan translations as well as good retail releases). We were a Nintendo household so outside of Final Fantasy I wasn't really aware of RPGs on the Sony and Sega consoles. I got a PS2 in college and picked up the Sony Front Mission games since they were entries in a series I already knew (Front Mission on the SNES), but I didn't really start exploring what I missed until I started my career.

[Exhuminator]

Demon's Souls is very different from King's Field.

From footage I've seen, I believe that. The Souls games seem much more action-oriented than the perhaps more exploration-oriented King's Field series.

I plan on diving into KF: The Ancient City

Oh man that would be awesome, just to read your thoughts as you played. The trick with that game (and all KF really) is to just get past that first awkward hour. There's a distinct moment where it suddenly just clicks and you find yourself sucked inside the game's world.

We were a Nintendo household so outside of Final Fantasy I wasn't really aware of RPGs on the Sony and Sega consoles.

Ah, well that explains things. (I was a Nintendo and SEGA and PC kid growing up. By the time PlayStation became a thing I was living on my own though.)

I didn't really start exploring what I missed until I started my career.

I'm reading that as "out of college / total control of my free time / suitable financial resources to buy whatever I want".

Off topic personal aside...

I spent so much time as a PC-only gamer (from 1997-2007 basically), that I'm still playing catch up on console games and will be for a long time. My console queue is crazy, only just this year did I start getting into 360 and PS3 stuff for example, and it had nothing to do with not being able to afford it. I could go out and buy a PS4 and Xbox One right now if I wanted no problem, but I just don't have the time to play them and everything else I already have. I'm still playing PS1 and PS2 games that are brand new (to me) for example.

[MrPopo]

I didn't really start exploring what I missed until I started my career.

I'm reading that as "out of college / total control of my free time / suitable financial resources to buy whatever I want".

Off topic personal aside...

I spent so much time as a PC-only gamer (from 1997-2007 basically), that I'm still playing catch up on console games and will be for a long time. My console queue is crazy, only just this year did I start getting into 360 and PS3 stuff for example, and it had nothing to do with not being able to afford it. I could go out and buy a PS4 and Xbox One right now if I wanted no problem, but I just don't have the time to play them and everything else I already have. I'm still playing PS1 and PS2 games that are brand new (to me) for example.

Pretty much. Amazon pays quite well and I went on a spree of buying every console I didn't own growing up and then started buying a bunch of games to justify those purchases. Hell, that's how I found Racketboy; I needed a way to play the translated versions of the Shining Force III scenarios.

I was PC-only in high school and college mostly because in high school I couldn't keep a TV in the dorm and in college the Gamecube had been purchased with my brother's money, so he got to keep it. But I didn't do much looking into the past PC games other than what I had on a PC Gamer 12 Classic Games disk, which included such jewels as Wing Commander, X-COM, and Star Control 2.

[Xeogred]

I'm playing a bit of King's Field (US, II J) and Shadow Tower Abyss lately. My friend tells me that Souls is closer to Shadow Tower, there's the no music thing going on, but it's got the wacky NPC's of King's Field.

I like what I've played of both so far. Abyss is amazing and cool to see because it's the closest thing to Demon's time wise, so it's cool to see their first person format refined to perfection. Has a very weird and dark setting that I'm loving too, reminds me of Thief. Love that King's Field has BGM though. I love Ultima Underworld, System Shock 2, etc that sort of thing, so yeah pretty sure I'll enjoy most of these.

Demon's Souls is probably my #1 favorite game of the PS3/360 gen, by miles. Got the plat, it's timeless, and still my favorite up against Dark Souls 1, 2, and Bloodborne, and I don't say that lightly. Basically my favorite post 16bit games period. They are basically the ultimate evolution of real time action JRPG's like Secret of Mana etc, to an extent. Down to the core of it, they're basically Metroidvania dungeon crawlers with 99% focus on gameplay. Just doesn't get any better.

Anyways no, I never knew much about From Software outside of Armored Core until Souls hit. It's quite fascinating that they've been around since the 80's and are still their own studio.

[Exhuminator]

I'm playing a bit of King's Field (US, II J) and Shadow Tower Abyss lately.

I myself finished the second King's Field for the first time this year. It was the third game in the series I'd completed. I did not think it was as good as the first or fourth game, but I still enjoyed it quite a lot. I'm planning to go through King's Field III: Pilot Style* and King's Field III both in January.

I have Shadow Tower Abyss ready to go in English, but haven't played it yet. I have heard that it is easier than the original Shadow Tower, and I've only seen positive reviews for it. The original Shadow Tower is too hardcore for most folks, but I'm looking forward to trying it out later next year.

Abyss is amazing and cool to see because it's the closest thing to Demon's time wise

Yeah it's interesting that the Shadow Tower series actually has guns, with Abyss also having enemy limb dismemberment.

Has a very weird and dark setting that I'm loving too, reminds me of Thief.

The strong and unique atmosphere is my absolute favorite thing about From Software's first person games. You really start to feel like you are there.

Love that King's Field has BGM though.

Me too, but that was one thing I didn't like as much with King's Field (US) AKA King's Field II. Both King's Field I and King's Field IV had far better music IMO. Especially King's Field IV, its OST is seriously outstanding.

Demon's Souls is probably my #1 favorite game of the PS3/360 gen, by miles.

You owe it to yourself to play through King's Field IV. Just trust me on this one! If you play through it and are disappointed then feel free to never listen to me again. But for me Ancient City was the ne plus ultra dungeon crawler.

It's quite fascinating that they've been around since the 80's and are still their own studio.

They survived because they've always had their own uncompromising vision and refused to partake in typical Japanese design and aesthetics... thus harboring a strong cult demographic. It's bittersweet that From Software had such a big hit with the Souls games, because now that seems to be all they make. From Software used to make horror adventure games, action platformers, CCG RPGs, mech combat and other genres along with action dungeon crawlers. But all that seems to be forgotten now to focus solely on the Souls-type stuff.

*King’s Field: Pilot Style is a mini game whose story takes place in the period between King’s Field 2 and King’s Field 3. Pilot Style was given away as a promotional item at a game show in Japan and went relatively unnoticed. It only takes about an hour to complete. http://www.romhacking.net/translations/1994/

[BoneSnapDeez]

I've decided I'm gonna import the original King's Field.

[Exhuminator]

I've decided I'm gonna import the original King's Field.

Fantastic. If you missed it back in September of 2014, here was my review of the game:

http://ardentexhuminator.blogspot.com/2 ... eview.html

An excerpt:

As you can tell, I enjoyed my time with the original King's Field. I did not expect this game to offer anything outside of scholarly insight concerning From Software's origins. To my surprise though, the original King's Field is actually a solid dungeon crawler experience to this day. It just goes to prove once again that though technologically impressive graphics do dwindle with age, good game design remains eternal. I'll admit, King's Field is an acquired taste. But once you acquire it, you'll be feasting upon a meal fit for a king.

[BoneSnapDeez]

Good post. I do recall reading it some time ago. What happened to the blog tho? No updates since 2014? Get on it!

[Exhuminator]

No updates since 2014? Get on it!

Eh, I never got comments on the blog, so I didn't think anyone was actually reading it. So I quit writing it.