The Executioner in Demon's Souls: Concept vs Execution

Highlights

The bosses in Demon's Souls, like Adjudicator, are different from those in the later Dark Souls games, relying more on understanding patterns rather than fast reactions.

The Adjudicator battle revolves around a recurring gimmick: players must locate and strike a specific section of the boss's weapon before they can harm its primary health gauge. Utilizing distance-driven strategies may enhance the manageability of the Adjudicator encounter, although it fails to introduce diversity and instead remains an unvarying chore.

The bosses in Demon's Souls, such as Adjudicator, can differentiate significantly from the later titles in the Soulsborne series, despite sharing a substantial amount of DNA. This distinction sets Demon's Souls apart from both FromSoftware's other games and similar Souls-like titles from other developers. However, it also leads to some of the series' least impressive boss battles.

It is often tempting to categorize many of the bosses in Demon's Souls as "gimmick bosses" due to their reliance on understanding specific patterns rather than quick reflexes. While this may not hold true for bosses like Penetrator and Old King Allant, it unfortunately applies to time-consuming battles like Adjudicator.

The Repetitive Gimmick of Demon's Souls' Adjudicator

The worst thing a Souls-like boss can be is boring. Instead of relying on a complex moveset, bosses like Adjudicator center their fight around a central gimmick. This approach quickly leads to player disinterest. Similar bosses in games like Demon's Souls, such as the Dragon God, suffer from this same issue. However, there are exceptions, like the Storm King who revolves around the long-range Storm Ruler sword.

In the case of Adjudicator, the problem lies not in the lack of active combat, but in the repetitive nature of transitioning between preparation and damage phases. To defeat Adjudicator, players need to find a piece of the boss' weapon lodged in its belly and attack it until a damage threshold is reached. During this phase, players cannot damage the boss' main health bar. Only when the larger body kneels over and exposes the small bird sitting on top can players deal legitimate damage. While the concept of having to weaken a boss before dealing real damage is not inherently bad, it was utilized more effectively in the later Dark Souls 3 with the boss, Yhorm the Giant.

It is the lack of interactivity in the phase prior to the damage phase that renders Adjudicator one of the more monotonous bosses in the Soulsborne series. This is due to the fact that, when positioned at the necessary distance to strike the boss' vulnerable spot on its belly, Adjudicator only retaliates with a single swipe at regular intervals. Consequently, the fight does not demand decisive utilization of mechanics such as evading, blocking, and attacking, but instead devolves into a repetitive task that fails to live up to its role as the initial obstacle leading to the far more captivating Storm King deeper within the Shrine of Storms.

Alternate Builds Can Ease Adjudicator's Boredom

Although it's impossible to make the Adjudicator boss battle any more thrilling, some of Demon's Souls' builds can at least alleviate the challenge of facing these bosses. In particular, distance builds prove to be effective in transforming the arduous task of relentlessly hacking away at the boss with little indication of progress into a more manageable exchange of evasions and counterattacks. This can range from a comprehensive mage build to something as basic as equipping a bow or obtaining a supply of firebombs and throwing knives to enhance the effectiveness of fighting from afar.

Of course, combatting the Adjudicator from a distance does provide some advantages. However, it's important to note that this approach is not foolproof, given that the Adjudicator possesses a challenging tongue whip attack with a tricky hitbox to successfully evade. Consequently, the encounter still lacks diversity even when attempting to engage from a different perspective. Nevertheless, it does effectively demonstrate the strong foundation that FromSoftware had already established for the creation of future titles like Elden Ring throughout their illustrious career in the genre.

Demon's Souls

Demon's Souls, a remake of the game that propelled From Software to fame and served as inspiration for the Dark Souls series, has been released with various gameplay improvements and updated graphics. This new version allows players to embark on the original journey in a completely fresh manner, facing formidable enemies and engaging in intense PvP combat. Developed by Bluepoint Games and published by Sony, this RPG is available exclusively for the PS5 platform. With a gameplay duration of approximately 23 hours, Demon's Souls has received a Metascore rating of 92. It offers a solo experience, although multiplayer options allow for up to six players. PS Plus members have access to additional content and premium features, which can be found on the Playstation Store.