Demon's Souls

Demon's Souls is a pitch-perfect example of how great risk can make the rewards taste all the sweeter. Getting killed in a single hit from a multi-storey, frog-like monster with a giant meat cleaver and a thirty-foot tongue is always going to be frustrating, but persevere and a couple of weeks later you’ll be wondering how he ever bothered you. Demon’s Souls pits you against your own incompetence and inexperience, a challenge which often feels insurmountable, but that delivers some incredibly powerful thrills for players brave enough to commit.

Demon's Souls is not a game for everyone. Actually, I take that back; it's most definitely something everyone should try, but the look, seemingly unforgiving nature and themes might be a bit off-putting. Don't let them be. Every single person that owns a PS3 should at the very least rent this game to see what all the fuss is about, and those that can remember the good ol' days when games taught through the highly effective use of intense punishment and a heavy price for not playing it carefully should scoop this up instantly.

There's a lot to discover, and the game wants you to figure it all out on your own. But while Demon's Souls doesn't serve the answers to you on a gilded platter, it gives you a number of refined and inspired tools to help you succeed, and its astounding, oppressive world will cast its spell on you. If you crave true innovation, a fair but relentless challenge, and gripping exploration in which every step has consequences, then you crave Demon's Souls.