“Demon Souls, yeah right. No pause button, no check point system, no difficulty setting, spotty dodge system and shitty targeting system. Just because a game is hard doesn’t make it good. I will say that it looks amazing. But all the best looks in the world won’t save that game from those flaws.”

You can’t pause a game that is essentially a real-time megaverse with alternate realities constantly in sync. That’s not a flaw and really I never found it to be a problem at all.

Technically Demon’s Souls has level structure that DOES count as a checkpoint system but it is innovative
enough to do it in a more creative way then simply the standard “checkpoint reached”. Once you have advanced far enough there is allways a point where you unlock a path that bypasses the area you just traversed so if you die you can go right back to that spot. But really, a difficulty setting? It can get harder
with newgame + and honestly I would not want the option to make it easier. That cheapens the experience when you know a simple tweak in the menu erases all the tribulations you go through. Demon’s Souls, unlike most other games I have played….period… give a true sense of gratification with the death of a boss. Personally I think everything you didn’t like about the game would take away from that if addressed in the manner you would like.

The game is absurdly hard but entertains you at every turn. So you die and lose your body( ie the ability to
plow through a level with two companions) well now its time to be a sidekick or maybe invade someone elses world ( a big wager since you can lose a soul level if you fail)…or maybe you’ll get summoned by
the archdemon of level 4 and actually be the boss of that level.

The dodging in the game is completely flawless and several critics have said the same

In fact all the things you listed as faults reinforced something I greatly liked about the game…The consequences for dying are REAL…which adds considerably to the immersion. REAL incentives, REAL
penalties…Challenge that is fair…It isn’t just automatically going to the “You Died” screen. When it happens, it’s you’re fault and you know it but it still happens quite a bit. This game says, slow down, smell the roses
be tactical, and realize one wrong step and you are dead. The great environments make it feel justified to be plodding slowly, yet surely along.

Amazing level design the likes of which I have not seen in a LONG time and I’m not JUSt talking about the aesthetics. World tendency. Deep stats…precise well animated combat, cool spell/miracle system, loads of classes and play styles. The multiplayers is incredibly innovative and fun from the standard PVP, the co-op and the chance to be a levels boss.

Speaking of the immersion lent by the consequence of dying….this was where I felt Bioshock fell flat on
it’s face. For a game that leaned so heavily on immersion it took ALL the tension of the gameplay away
with those stupid vita-chambers. No matter what happens you can just keep popping out of those things add infinitum. Weak. When dying does not matter you are now only about half as engaged.

I don’t get your taste. You hated pretty much everything this year but RE5 and that game was a standard
by the numbers action game. That’s not a bad thing but how is that elevated so highly above everything else? It delivered a shallow action experience for about eight hours and then bored me so I traded it. Plus
charging for a multiplayer that was not even that good? Forget it. Demon’s Souls went out on a limb
in terms of distancing themselves from conventions and the result was a uniquely awesome, riveting, gratifying, challenging immersive experience I want to play again and again.