Demon's Souls walkthrough and step-by-step guide to Boletaria

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Demon's Souls walkthrough Tutorial

A good Demon's Souls walkthrough is essential for your first time through this game. It's a tough challenge but one that can be made a lot easier with preparation and understanding of what's ahead. Without it you can easily spend hours trying to work out what to do and where to go. And while some people embrace that, if you want to save yourself a lot of trail and error the smallest bit of direction or guidance will save you. No one wants to spend hours trying to reach an area or beat a boss if you're just not meant to yet. Demon's Souls is full of maze-like levels, insta-kill traps and enemies that can one shot you. Conversely, if you know where a few key items and weapons are, you can make life a lot easier.

In this Demon's Souls walkthrough we break it all down in to sections and offer up an ideal route to follow that should get you well equipped and ready to tackle bosses and other challenges in the right order. Overall this is a broad Demon's Souls walkthrough that mainly covers the basics of where to go and what to do, calling out essential things but not taking you absolutely step by step. It's a guide after all, not a full explanation of everyone. However, check these links for a range of Demon's Souls guides to help you with more of the specifics.

Character creation

Demon's Souls PS5 class — (Image credit: Sony)

Before you actually start playing, there are some things you should know about character creation. There are 10 classes to choose from, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. For the most part, they’re all useful in their own ways, but for newcomers, there are certain classes that stand out above others. We suggest either a Knight, for its high strength and defense; a Magician or Royalty, for their long range magic attacks, or a Soldier, which can help you get used to the game’s melee combat system.

The important thing to note is that your class does not bind your character to certain stats or gear. Classes are just a means for giving you certain enhancements at the start of the game. A Magician can acquire heavy melee weapons and level themselves to become melee powerhouse - and vice-versa. So don’t worry too much about your class.

Tutorial

After you’ve created your character, you’ll start off at the tutorial section, which teaches you many of the game’s mechanics. Here, you’ll learn about picking up items, how to use light and heavy attacks, how to heal (and use items), and the intricacies of death.

This section is linear, so use it as an opportunity to learn how the game feels. Take out the enemies ahead, and follow the path while stopping to interact with the signs on the ground. These will give you tips for how to play. The most important takeaway is to lock onto your enemies by clicking in the right stick. You’ll be glad you did.

From here, head inside, take out the enemies, and follow the path that leads upstairs. You’ll then need to drop off the ledge to the left (this teaches you that you take fall damage), and head through a grassy area with trees. At the far end, you’ll see a sword sticking out of the ground under a roof. Use this to warp to the second part of the tutorial.

Keep following the path and in the meantime, practice parrying, switching between one-handing and two-handing your weapon, and learn how to block effectively. You’ll come to some more stairs that lead upward, so follow them and keep making your way up the tower. Enter the fog, turn left and make your up way up the stairs that lead to the first boss fight.

Vanguard boss fight

Demon's Souls — (Image credit: Bluepoint Games)

Here’s the thing about this boss: You’re supposed to die. It’s one of the many tricks the game plays on you. You can, in fact, kill it here, but the overwhelming majority of players will die and that’s okay.

If you do plan on taking it out, the best method is to stick behind it and back away when it flies up into the air. Depending on which weapon(s) you have, you may be able to attack it from afar. Otherwise, two-hand your weapon for extra damage and keep rolling through its attacks to get behind it. The boss can kill you in two hits, so you’ll have to basically play perfectly to take out the Vanguard.

Do note that if you die, you’ll be in Soul form, meaning your health will be significantly diminished - which is an excellent opportunity to learn how to get by with little health. Afterwards, whether you’ve died or defeated it, you’ll end up in The Nexus, which serves as the game’s hub world. You’ll come here to level up, upgrade your weapons, purchase some items, and deposit your gear.

When you’re ready, talk to the Crestfallen Warrior (the man with a blue aura) and then interact with the Archstone of the Small King behind him. This will send you to the first stage of the game known as Boletarian Palace.

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