Demon’s Souls on PS5: Everything we know – release date, trailer, more

Meg Bethany Koepp

The beloved, yet notoriously difficult PS3 game Demon’s Souls has been remade for PlayStation 5 by Bluepoint Games, as revealed during the June 11 PS5 event. Here’s everything we know so far about the newly released remake of the title that kicked off the Soulsborne series.

Developed by FromSoftware, Demon’s Souls first released in 2009 onto the PlayStation 3. It took players to the kingdom of Boletaria. It was plagued by darkness known as the Old One, and tasked them with restoring the light. The action role-playing game is known for its difficulty spike and is definitely not something for the faint of heart.

On June 11, 2020, PlayStation revealed its PS5 console during the “Future of Gaming” event and also announced that Bluepoint Games is bringing along a remake of the first game in the Soulsborne series, much to the delight of fans.

Demon’s Souls is the spiritual successor to the King’s Field games, also made by FromSoftware.

Demon’s Souls remastered for PS5

On June 11, the announcement of DS being remade for the next-gen console sent fans crazy. The game originally was met with some criticism after its release in 2009 due to its difficulty. Since then, players grew to love it after the success of the Dark Souls series and Bloodborne.

Bluepoint Games is the studio spearheading the re-envisioning. They are responsible for other remakes and remasters such as Shadow of the Colossus and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, both of which received high praise.

The trailer for the upcoming title starts off by showing the original opening cinematic from the PS3 game in all its remade glory – including what is presumed to be the Storm King boss flying over the Boletaria kingdom with a corpse.

Locations such as The Tower of Latria and the Shrine of Storms also make an appearance. As well, enemies like the Flamelurker and Tower Knight return, too. Veteran players will remember these as one of the RPG’s best fights.

The reveal ends with the Dragon God, which is probably one of the scariest video game bosses ever, made to look even more terrifying with the new, highly improved upon graphics. You definitely wouldn’t want to see that peering over the end of your bed at night.

Gameplay & graphics

With the release of the game on November 12, 2020, PlayStation treated fans to an epic launch trailer. This further detailed the incredible graphics and love put into this remake.

After the reveal of Fractured Mode, fans previously speculated it could have something to do with the Broken Archstone. People believed the stone was in DLC that never came. It would have allowed players access to the Land of the Giants.

However, now we know it’s a way for players to face a new challenge, as the mode features a mirrored map. This might not sound like much of a change, but levels are intrinsically designed to lead you in a certain way through an experience. Reversing and mirroring that experience flips that on its head, proving a stark contrast to what players are used to.

Demon's Souls image of a woman sitting in a church
Fan-favourite bosses are returning to the fantastic PlayStation remake.

In a prior post on the PlayStation Blog, it was revealed that players are able to choose to prioritize graphics quality or framerate. This is much like PS4 games such as Nioh and Monster Hunter: World.

Release day post

On release day, Gavin Moore, Creative Director, SIE Worldwide Studios External Development wrote a blog post celebrating the new game. He said, “I’d like to say that it has been a privilege over the past three years to work on Demon’s Souls. It’s been humbling to bring new life to a PlayStation classic so that fans of the original and a whole new generation of gamers can experience this timeless legend.”

Now, the game is yours to enjoy. Get out there and enjoy the visceral remake.