Compared to later entries in the Soulsborne franchise, Demon’s Souls is a bit light when it comes to story and side quests – or so it seems. Because of World Tendency’s many nuances, seeing every character & quest in Demon’s Souls can be a genuine challenge. While BluePoint Games’ PS5 remake has given Dark Souls’ predecessor new life, those just getting into Demon’s Souls will need some direction in order to see everything the action RPG offers.
Demon’s Souls side quests are subtle, quiet, and inform the world around the player while rewarding useful gear, weapons, or spells. A few of the game's quests are hiding in plain sight – much like Dark Souls – while others demand an understanding of how to influence Tendency between White & Black, and where exactly to explore within each stage.
10 Jade Hair Ornament
Stockpile Thomas’ side quest is a strong introduction to how Demon’s Souls approaches side content. There’s no trigger for a side quest when talking to Thomas. He simply tells the player how he left his wife and daughter to die before offering to store equipment. In the very first stage, players can find their corpses stringing from a balcony in the first watchtower with a shortcut.
By cutting their chains, players can then loot their bodies on the ground. The next time they interact with Stockpile Thomas, he’ll request his daughter’s Jade Hair Ornament. In exchange, players will have completed their first side quest, earned Stockpile Thomas’ trust, and gotten a Ring of Herculean Strength to hold more items – even more useful than in the PS3 release, as Grass now has considerable weight.
9 Rescuing Yuria, The Witch
All of Demon’s Souls’ side quests are subtle, but they’re not always as passive as Stockpile Thomas’. Rescuing Yuria in 1-2 is a lengthy process that’ll require players to hunt down Fat Officials between both Boletaria Palace and Stonefang Tunnel. After finding all four pieces of the Fat Official gear – Cap, Gloves, Clothing, Leggings – players must then get the Iron Ring of Keys from a Fat Official in 1-3.
After that, the locked door in the final watchtower in 1-2 can be opened. By wearing the full Fat Official set, players will be able to sneak into Yuria’s cell. A Fat Official will lower a staircase down to the player, where they’ll be able to escape the dungeon and confront the Fat Official. Upon killing them, Yuria will return to the Nexus in order to teach the best magic in the game.
8 Biorr Versus The Penetrator
In the same dungeon where Yuria is being held, players can also rescue Biorr, of the Twin Fangs – an important character in Demon’s Souls’ lore and a valuable asset when tackling both 1-3 and 1-4. By killing the first Fat Official in the dungeon, players will be able to pick up the Bloody Iron Key and unlock Biorr’s cell.
Biorr will thank the player and fall asleep, doing nothing of note until the fight against Penetrator in 1-3. If Biorr has been saved, he’ll rush through the fog gate and fight the Penetrator himself. On a first playthrough, Biorr will be strong enough to kill the boss himself. Should he survive the fight, Biorr will return in 1-4 to stall the Blue Dragon before the final fight with King Allant.
7 Dragon Slayer
On the subject of dragons, it is possible to kill both the Red and Blue Dragon even if Demon’s Souls never calls for it. Melee characters will need to look elsewhere, as defeating both Dragons requires either abusing arrows or magic from afar. The fact of the matter is that hitting either Dragon from up close just isn’t an option.
The Red Dragon can be confronted anytime in 1-2 from the top of the watchtowers. As it wreaks havoc on the bridge, players will be able to comfortably snipe the Red Dragon from afar. The Blue Dragon can be fought in 1-4, either at its first rest stop on the bridge (where it’ll fly away at half damage) or right in front of the Palace entrance (where it can be comfortably killed from the top of the stairs.)
6 Latria Rescue
The Tower of Latria is arguably Demon’s Souls’ standout area, a haunting prison that morphs into an underworld that could stand as its own depiction of Hell. The Prison of Hope, Tower of Latria’s introductory stage, features two prisoners who can be rescued and brought back into the Nexus – both of which offer the player valuable rewards.
Lord Rydell is found on 2F, where only a key found via Pure White Tendency can unlock his cell. Once freed, Rydell will give players the Dull Rat’s Ring. Sage Freke can be found on 3F, locked in a cell that can only be opened with the Special Key (found by the Dregling who enchants the Fool’s Idol.) After he returns to the Nexus, Freke will teach the player advanced magic spells in exchange for boss souls.
5 Selen Vinland’s Quest
Selen Vinland is an obscure character and one very few players will actually end up seeing. Found exclusively in 5-2 (notoriously the game’s hardest level,) Selen only appears when the Valley of Defilement is either in Pure White or Pure Black Tendency. When spoken to in Pure White, she’ll reveal that she’s looking for her brother Garl, one of 5-3’s two bosses.
To complete Selen’s quest line and bring her peace of mind, players must fight Garl Vinland’s Black Phantom in 5-3 (only after Astraea has been defeated and only in Pure White World Tendency.) Garl will drop the Crest of Vinland upon death which can be given to Selen in exchange for a Ring of Devour Prayer (for those with more than 10 Faith) or a measly Dark Moon Grass.
4 The Temptation Of Mephistopheles
Like Selen, Mephistopheles is a fairly obscure NPC, but she’s tied to one of the most in-depth questlines in the game (and one of the most narratively revealing.) Charged by the Order of the Soul to kill anyone with knowledge of Soul Arts, Mephistopheles will appear in the Nexus only if players kill Yury (found initially in 3-2) and have Pure Black Character Tendency.
Mephistopheles will offer the player different rewards as she offers hits on the game’s multiple NPCs. Following this questline does mean killing several vital characters in-game while ostensibly clearing the Nexus out most life, but her rewards, the fights against NPCs themselves, and the end of Mephistopheles' arc make her quest a standout.
3 Playing With Patches
Fans of Dark Souls will already be familiar with Patches, the Hyena, FromSoftware’s resident trickster. Patches can be found in 2-2 and 4-2, both times he’ll lure the player into a trap and kick them down a hole. While it makes sense to target Patches in retaliations, it’s better to keep him alive as he sells valuable items in the Nexus. Simply keeping Patches alive means having immediate access to: Half, Late, & Full Moon Grass, Fresh Spice, and Shard of Archstones for easy warping back to the Nexus.
2 Ostrava, Of Boletaria And The Prince’s Plight
Ostrava has the most dynamic character arc in Demon’s Souls, his quest starting in 1-1, moving to both 1-2 and 1-3 before ending in 1-4. Ostrava’s story set a precedent for tragedy that FromSoftware would make use of in each subsequent Souls game. King Allant’s son, Ostrava wants nothing more than to reason with his father and bring peace back to Boletaria, but his fate is a tragic one.
Ostrava must be saved from enemies in 1-1, 1-2, and 1-3 before he’ll appear in 1-4 as a Black Phantom. Upon death, Ostrava will drop a Mausoleum Key that leads to the secret boss along with his sword & shield. In the interim between stages, Ostrava can be chatted up in the Nexus before death takes him.
1 Death Of The Old King
Fighting Old King Doran will likely be the last side quest available for players in Demon’s Souls, only challengeable after Ostrava drops the Mausoleum Key. Doran is found in the Mausoleum in 1-1, guarded by a Red Eye Knight. Although Doran can be fought and defeated with all builds, he’s significantly harder for anyone playing a melee character.
Doran hits hard, fast, and generally shows no restraint. Mages, however, can pop Death Cloud on top of him and watch as the Old King suffers a slow death. Doran not only drops the Ancient King set – the best armor for Body Type B in the game – and the Demonbrandt, a blade awarded to any players who bring him down to 2/3 health.