I can live with some of the weird Blizzard-style Diablo dark fantasy designs the remake introduces. I can't live with a Tower Knight battle theme without the "Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha".
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WIRED: The New Demon's Souls Remake Tries Too Hard to Be Realistic
- Thread starter hwarang
- Start date
The article is not implying that the aesthetic choices bluepoint made are not artistic, rather that the original and remake both convey different feelings
I assure you that the people who perfer the vibe of the original aren't just being contrarian. Liking nes and ps1 era graphics is totally normalized so idk why it breaks people's brains when others have an affinity for any other generational trademarks
This. The game is near perfect. Visuals. Gameplay. Atmosphere. Sound. It's an amazing experience and it's a shame the writer is too far up his own ass to enjoy it.
I feel like I've read more about Demon's aesthetic in the last few months than in the 11 years since the original came out
I'm not into Demon's Souls or anything but I actually agree. The original has this bleak, desolate look that the remake doesn't quite capture.
It's not like the old version went away though. No harm in having a new take alongside the old one.
It's not like the old version went away though. No harm in having a new take alongside the old one.
I think it does a great job of (mostly) maintaining the original's general vibe while bringing it up to today's standards. I of course have nitpicks as do most fans of the original I'm sure, but overall it's fantastic.
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Would be a lot better if the old one was easily accessible with its online servers still up.
The whole time I was reading that, I was picturing the most insufferable, gate-keepy hipster, typing away on their MacBook in a Starbucks. People making aesthetic choices based in the ability and limitations of the hardware 10 years ago was great, but people doing the same thing now isn't? Ok...
This is a great example of when nostalgia becomes little more than a blindfold.
To sit here and complain that Demon's Souls doesn't look like the pile of mud that it was on PS3 and how that takes away from the game, give me a break.
Tell them to stop whining and use one of the many filters. Even make it all piss colored again if it stops the complaining.
To sit here and complain that Demon's Souls doesn't look like the pile of mud that it was on PS3 and how that takes away from the game, give me a break.
Tell them to stop whining and use one of the many filters. Even make it all piss colored again if it stops the complaining.
I agree that devs can tend to chase realistic more than stylized while the former can look bad at times and the latter great (see games like Sea of Thieves and Borderlands that are stylized and gorgeous). However, Demon's Souls is not a great example. The aesthetics have aged super poorly in the OG and looks great in the remake. They put a lot of thought and heart into modernizing it.
Ehh, I think BP did a terrific job.
But reading this thread I'm dying to know what the original developers think about the remake.
But reading this thread I'm dying to know what the original developers think about the remake.
I agree with these points, but I would disagree with saying the game doesnt look fantastic. Like its missing something from Fromsofts art, but it still looks amazing.
It's so weird seeing people defending Demons Souls's visuals/aesthetics.
The game looked ugly as fuck and generic.
I mean, I guess bluepoint adding fidelity makes the game stop looking ugly but the genericness is still there.
The game looked ugly as fuck and generic.
I mean, I guess bluepoint adding fidelity makes the game stop looking ugly but the genericness is still there.
I have to be honest, the comment you're responding to sums up so many of the criticisms being posted in this thread to me...This article has so much wrong with it I don't even know where to begin (the Vanguard stuff is especially funny considering the original was a re-used asset), but I do love how someone can apparently think a game can look both "too realistic" and also "too Diablo-like" at the same time. Bluepoints are truly wizards!
???
Demon's Souls was 100% dark fantasy. Always has been.
....Huh?
vs...
What in Boletaria are you talking about....
I don't care how much text/dressing you put into a post to disguise it, hyperbole is hyperbole. I understand being dissatisfied with some changes but to say that the Remake was somehow the undoing of the game's original character when that character has been kept in tact or even emphasized in 95 percent of the game, is just baffling to me. It reeks of the same energy exuded from people who look at any change to a beloved piece of media as some kind of punishable crime...
For crying out loud, someone even stated that the smoother framerate made the game "lose character" and I couldn't help but remember the arguments surrounding the whole "30 FPS makes it more cinematic" meme...
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I feel like if Demons's Souls was released today as a brand new game on this level of hardware, From's vision would look similar to what we have right now. But I could be wrong.
The article sounds kind of pretentious, to be honest. I loved the visuals back in the day and I love their updated version now.
The SotC remake definitely lost a little something in the translation (though the biggest problem was definitely the protagonist's appearance), but I think the Demon's Souls remake looks consistently incredible. Are there are few things here and there that I think were better in the original? Sure. But for the most part, I think the remake is consistently an improvement.
Oof. Not wrong. I can't fathom how Bloodborne has existed for so long with zero fix. I mean didn't one of the members here have to fix their Dark Souls PC to make it perform? I think it was locked to 30 without the fixes?
in the original maybe, with the poor textures and smear filter.
The only true downgrade in the remake are the fat officials imo.
There is an unnofficial server for the original demon's souls that is active, you need to change your network settings on the ps3 to a specific dns to access it.
My ps3 is dead. By reasonable I mean either pc or ps4/ps5 port.
Ah right, yeah only other option is the emulator on pc which isn't reasonable really.
I absolutely adore the original Demon's Souls, hands down one of my favorite games on the PS3, but it was not a good looking game. It was so, so obvious that the difficulty of developing on the PS3, as well as the limited time/budget Miyazaki's team had when working on the original kept it from being even remotely close to the concept art for the game.
This PS5 version is closer to that vision of the concept art, and is beautiful.
I'm 100% convinced that a lot of the nitpicking about this remake is due to some weird purist notion of a Japanese developed game daring to be touched by Western hands. It's not like Japan Studios hasn't also contributed to this remake, but even if they hadn't, Bluepoint knows what the fuck they're doing, and the love and passion poured into this remake is clear as day.
They also benefitted from having the necessary time and budget and resources to really go all out with this game. I'm not wasting my time giving Wired the click and attention they so desperately crave with this article.
Demon's Souls PS3 was a great game, despite its shortcomings. Demon's Souls PS5 is a great game, because it manages to stay faithful to the original, while also allowing it to really live up to the promise the original could only imply. I'll always have a special place in my heart for the original Demon's Souls, and the remake can't ever replace that feeling of when I first booted up the Chinese import version many moons ago. But here's the thing: it doesn't have to. It had to not be a shitty remake, and to the surprise of no one that's been following Bluepoint's work for the past 12 years, it delivered.
One of the things I love about this remake is that, even with the shiny new coat of paint, it's still unmistakably Demon's Souls. I was hit by so much nostalgia while playing through the game (I haven't beaten it yet, as I've been taking my time with it and just soaking it all in), and I've had the biggest grin on my face the entire time while playing it.
This could have easily have been a Silent Hill HD Collection disaster, yet it's not, and some folks still bitch about it. It's unbelievable to me, to be honest. Gamers are spoiled as fuck these days...
There's nothing wrong with not liking some of the aesthetic choices made in the game (hell, there are definitely a few tiny things I prefer from the OG DS, myself), but have we really reached a point where the jank ass character models, piss filter, and over-indulgence on bloom effects is now looked at fondly? Like, really? Nostalgia goggles are a helluva drug.
This PS5 version is closer to that vision of the concept art, and is beautiful.
I'm 100% convinced that a lot of the nitpicking about this remake is due to some weird purist notion of a Japanese developed game daring to be touched by Western hands. It's not like Japan Studios hasn't also contributed to this remake, but even if they hadn't, Bluepoint knows what the fuck they're doing, and the love and passion poured into this remake is clear as day.
They also benefitted from having the necessary time and budget and resources to really go all out with this game. I'm not wasting my time giving Wired the click and attention they so desperately crave with this article.
Demon's Souls PS3 was a great game, despite its shortcomings. Demon's Souls PS5 is a great game, because it manages to stay faithful to the original, while also allowing it to really live up to the promise the original could only imply. I'll always have a special place in my heart for the original Demon's Souls, and the remake can't ever replace that feeling of when I first booted up the Chinese import version many moons ago. But here's the thing: it doesn't have to. It had to not be a shitty remake, and to the surprise of no one that's been following Bluepoint's work for the past 12 years, it delivered.
One of the things I love about this remake is that, even with the shiny new coat of paint, it's still unmistakably Demon's Souls. I was hit by so much nostalgia while playing through the game (I haven't beaten it yet, as I've been taking my time with it and just soaking it all in), and I've had the biggest grin on my face the entire time while playing it.
This could have easily have been a Silent Hill HD Collection disaster, yet it's not, and some folks still bitch about it. It's unbelievable to me, to be honest. Gamers are spoiled as fuck these days...
There's nothing wrong with not liking some of the aesthetic choices made in the game (hell, there are definitely a few tiny things I prefer from the OG DS, myself), but have we really reached a point where the jank ass character models, piss filter, and over-indulgence on bloom effects is now looked at fondly? Like, really? Nostalgia goggles are a helluva drug.
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The remake is just beautiful and COHESIVE. There is no pop in, no pixelated shadows, no graphical errors... I would buy a PS5 just for it.
Video games feel like the only medium to me that's actively hostile to the "old and busted" way of doing things - I assume because of the strong financial incentive toward iterative hardware. But like, when old movies get "the same movie but with new special effects" types of remakes, or black-and-white films get colorized, it's the sort of thing that enthusiasts roll their eyes at.
I've never played the original Demon's Souls or the new one, but like, old and ugly games have a place, you know? Silent movies have their own unique vibe. Some music feels better off of a cassette. Limitations breed creativity and "of their time" creative choices are interesting. Artistic merit isn't all about fidelity.
I've never played the original Demon's Souls or the new one, but like, old and ugly games have a place, you know? Silent movies have their own unique vibe. Some music feels better off of a cassette. Limitations breed creativity and "of their time" creative choices are interesting. Artistic merit isn't all about fidelity.
I think the Remake based on everything I've seen and played looks vastly superior to the original in its art direction and representation of environments.
It's considerably more atmospheric and distinct in how it makes you feel in each of the different areas. Eg it really makes you feel like you're in some underground mining area where the heat is engulfing. It makes you feel like you're in stormy lands with drenched mud, dirt, rain soaked ruins etc. It also makes you feel like you're in some ancient castle that's been abandoned for aeons due to this demon infestation. The original just looks bland with tones of too much bloom and overt yellows and browns.
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Cross-post from another thread.
It's all subjective at the end of the day, but I do believe as a newcomer who's seeing countless comparisons online, that a lot of this sentiment might be coming from a perspective of nostalgia goggles.
To me the original looks significantly more sterile and bland, and its colours too typically yellowy brown. No doubt a lot of how it looks is largely in part due to tech and budget limitations, but it does make the art direction far less appealing imo.
Just look at the comparison images. The one that screams atmosphere is the Remake, not the original which to me looks rather boring and brown.
It's considerably more atmospheric and distinct in how it makes you feel in each of the different areas. Eg it really makes you feel like you're in some underground mining area where the heat is engulfing. It makes you feel like you're in stormy lands with drenched mud, dirt, rain soaked ruins etc. It also makes you feel like you're in some ancient castle that's been abandoned for aeons due to this demon infestation. The original just looks bland with tones of too much bloom and overt yellows and browns.
____
Cross-post from another thread.
It's all subjective at the end of the day, but I do believe as a newcomer who's seeing countless comparisons online, that a lot of this sentiment might be coming from a perspective of nostalgia goggles.
To me the original looks significantly more sterile and bland, and its colours too typically yellowy brown. No doubt a lot of how it looks is largely in part due to tech and budget limitations, but it does make the art direction far less appealing imo.
Just look at the comparison images. The one that screams atmosphere is the Remake, not the original which to me looks rather boring and brown.
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Yeah...I don't agree with this at all, but to each their own I suppose.
The most beautiful thing about OG Demon's Souls is that Miyazaki and the team were able to hobble something together like they did and then have people now think of as being a superior vision of it's themes. It's less a knock against Bluepoint and more like praise of the OG DeS team. From Originally being pitched as a 1st person Elder Scrolls like title for PS3, to the change of creative staff in development, the infamous TGS demo that was panned just a few months before release and even Shuhei saying it was crap when he played it. The game was a high speed train wreck just waiting to happen and somehow at the final hour they were able to release a masterpiece.
Beautiful.
Beautiful.
The original Demon's Souls always looked bad even as someone who played a fair amount of it. Like, sure, a couple enemy redesigns are actively more head scratching like the Fat Officials, but the rest and the worlds? Way better in the new one. The old one is flat and very much a product of its time.
Nah.
The game is visually fantastic, full of atmosphere, and Bluepoint managed to walk the incredibly tight rope of both respecting the original creation while adding just enough QOL to match modern expectations (like sending straight to storage). The game is amazing.
The game is visually fantastic, full of atmosphere, and Bluepoint managed to walk the incredibly tight rope of both respecting the original creation while adding just enough QOL to match modern expectations (like sending straight to storage). The game is amazing.
The remake looks visually stunning from what i've seen on streams. But it does seem to have a different atmosphere than the OG. The music is too low and most of the changes to it are worse imo. Like others have said, Tower Knight/Maiden of Astrea/Penetrator themes aren't nearly as good and would feel more at home in Bloodborne. From what i've seen, the music in the Nexus is hardly even there?? Not sure. I always enjoyed that theme.The character redesigns are pretty bad as well (Fat Official/Satsuke/Old King Doran). Also, some of the rerecorded lines aren't as good either (Heart of gold).
I still think the HUD sticks out like a sore thumb. It's so flat and doesn't fit the aesthetic of the game. If they put in a toggle for the OST and maybe a redesigned old school HUD, would be a much better experience i think.
I still think the HUD sticks out like a sore thumb. It's so flat and doesn't fit the aesthetic of the game. If they put in a toggle for the OST and maybe a redesigned old school HUD, would be a much better experience i think.
from my experience playing the game with all HUD elements set to dynamic the HUD does its job perfectly in being easy to read while in the midst of playing the game, especially considering how much more is happening on screen than in the OG DeS. it's the kind of thing that still screenshots and videos can't really put forward well, but due to the dynamic HUD options + the HUD design itself i find i'm able to focus more on the environment and enemies.
Agreed. It's technically incredible, but it looks like concept art for a Western-developed game. They removed so much of the FROM aesthetic. I think people would be much more critical if it wasn't a tentpole console launch exclusive.
Good because bloom is trash.Too bad no one told Ueda and his team when they made their next game.
The overbearing bloom is literally part of the visual connective tissue that unites all three of Ueda's games. And BP just got rid of it without much major thought.
Just in terms of DeS being a weird black sheep of the souls family, I do think it's a shame that some of the remake's gothic flourishes make it look more like DS3. Not really sure there was any alternative though. They needed to add more detail to the original's sparse and generic looking architecture somehow.
