Developed by FromSoftware, this year Elden Ring used to be released to critical acclaim and made its mark as one of the greatest historical video games to date. From a mechanical standpoint, game director Hidetaka Miyazaki and the rest of the FromSoft development team have come a long way since 2009 Demon Souls on the PlayStation 3.
Both games are still worthwhile in 2022, especially with the modernized remake of Bluepoint Demon Souls. But from the world design to the character progression, there are notable differences between the two that especially newcomers should know.
Elden Ring’s Smoother Battles
It’s one of the more obvious differences, like combat in the original Demon Souls was FromSoftware’s first attempt at how its soulslike games would play. Elden Ring is definitely an evolution of those 13 years later, because it has elements of Dark Souls III and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice‘s smoother and faster combat – as well as some of the latter’s acrobatics.
The original PS3 version of Demon Souls will probably feel clunky by today’s standards for newcomers, but the Bluepoint Games remake is still a great modernization of the game’s classic methodical combat style.
World/level design
As far as obvious changes are concerned, the world and level design in both games are vastly different in scope. Demon Souls is relatively a much tighter experience, while Elden Ring blows up the developer soulslike conventions on an open-world canvas. They are both pursuing approaches in their own rights, as Demon SoulsComplicated levels are satisfying to venture through and easier to digest for those who may be overwhelmed by open worlds.
In the meantime, Elden Ring can go down in history as one of the highest gaming experiences in the open world. The open world is rich in something and somewhere meaningful to explore in every direction, detailed dungeons and an exciting sense of verticality thanks to the above and underground locations.
Overworld Traversal
As anyone would expect from an open world game, Elden Ring‘s traversal is a big change in the way players navigate the world of Boletaria in Demon Souls. The latter uses its checkpoints and hub word to travel between a level and its areas, while Elden Ring is one big, seamless sandbox.
But with that comes new mechanics for the developer about how moment-to-moment traversal works. As simple as it sounds, with a dedicated jump button in Elden Ring greatly expands the element of exploration and verticality in an open world, as well as having a mount capable of double-jumping as you venture through The Lands Between.
Character Class/Build Adjustment
While Elden Ring still retains that vintage brand of FromSoftware difficulty, part of the new layer of accessibility lies in the more streamlined role-playing mechanics. Choosing a class is more of a general template, as players can get incredibly creative with the kind of hybrid builds they can make of them.
Demon Souls offers multiple approaches to how players can tackle classes and battles, but Elden Ring expected to deepen this aspect of the game. Given the particular acclaim of the latter, it probably won’t be long Elden Ring will go down in history for many fans as one of the best modern fantasy RPGs.
Healing Mechanics
It’s lightened up slightly in the PS5 remake, but the healing methods are in Demon Souls is a difference that some fans are thankful for has evolved in the games released since then. It did not contain the rechargeable medicinal flasks introduced as Estus in dark soulsrather, they were Moon Grass items that had to be found or bought.
In Elden Ring, the former method was preserved by having a rechargeable and upgradable Flask of Crimson Tears. Upgrades include adding costs and how much health each use restores to the player.
Use of checkpoints
Given the scale of each of these games’ respective worlds, the checkpoint systems work differently. They’re almost out of it Demon Souls, so players will be sent back to the beginning of the level if they’re not careful. It’s an exciting challenge to some extent, as it emphasizes the tense atmosphere and encourages players to explore the environment to unlock hidden shortcuts.
Elden Ring is much more forgiving in that sense, with The Lands Between quite generously offering a good number of Sites of Grace. This is of course partly necessary if the soulslike formula is to fill a huge open world game.
Demon’s Souls (PS5) Dedicated Current Generation Graphics
Outside of the gameplay mechanics, the visuals are noticeably different between the two thanks to Bluepoint’s Demon Souls remake for PS5. It turned out to be a stunning visual upgrade in terms of sheer graphical fidelity, with the game’s crisp 4K resolution and excruciatingly detailed characters and environments together providing an excellent early demonstration of what the PS5 is capable of.
However, art direction is just as important when creating breathtaking visuals for a game, and Elden Ring is still a great looking game thanks to its creative use of style, lighting and environmental design.
Summons
While the summon and multiplayer components aren’t prerequisites for FromSoftware’s Souls-like experiences, they’ve always been a rewarding additional feature. In Demon Soulsincluding the remake, players can summon Phantoms for up to two players.
And in limited cases, NPCs will join the player in certain boss battles. This mechanic was fairly limited in this game, but became more emphasized by the time Elden Ring used to be issued. In addition to summoning characters and playing online, Elden Ring featured the Spirit Ash system to call upon NPC companions.
Boss Fight Complexity
It’s not a knock on the older ones Demon Souls — and its remake by extension — as by normal mainstream standards, all of FromSoftware’s Souls-esque games are difficult in their own way. However, it becomes clear to come back from Elden Ring — or even Bloodborne and sekiro — meeting boss in Demon Souls are simpler in design.
Boss battle “stages” features didn’t reach their complexity until Bloodborne further, if Elden Ring featured a wealth of unique bosses with extensive attack animations and patterns on top of stages.
Game times
It comes with the territory that it is an older and tighter game, but something that players of both games will notice is that Demon Souls is a noticeably shorter experience. It comes down to preference in the end, but players looking for something succinct will probably appreciate that: Demon Souls can be defeated – depending on the player’s pace – in 20-30 hours.
Unlike players looking for a more expansive experience, Elden Ring will almost certainly start at 50-70 hours depending on their pace and how much they want to explore in the game’s world.
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