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For Forgotten Realms and D&D fans this game RULES!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 33 / 36
Date: September 29, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Now, alas, we meet three interesting heroes in what I think is probably the best D&D inspired hack'n'slash I ever saw. Better than Two Towers, or Return of the King this game is so well done it will leave you astonished.

Demonstone has:
1) Awesome graphics - characters are really detailed. But what will leave you astonished are the backgrounds... things go on, and you seem to be part of it. Ex: first stage you are involuntarily part of an Orc vs. Goblin raid. As you kill all you see to get yourself out of such mess and to save villagers, in the background you will see a dragon setting all ablaze, other scores of monsters battling each other, explosions, etc...
2) Great control system, easy to learn and use. Fun combos for devastating effects.
3) THERE IS ACTUALLY AN ORIGINAL STORY!!! Written by, nonetheless, R.A. Salvatore!
4) Voice overs from the various actors are really.
5) It is a bit short, but I prefer going through 8-10 hours of REAL FUN than 20 hours divided into 4 hours of fun and 16 hours of crap.
6) In one of the levels you play as Drizzt do Urden, the famous hero, as he defends Mithril Hall from a horde of trolls. Those who read the books will know which part of the Forgotten Realms timeline I'm talking about. Drizzt was never as fun to use. With twinkle and Icingdeath in your hands you will deliver incredible amount of damage in the most catlike and dexterous fashion!

BUY THIS GAME!

Expecially if:
1) You are a rpg or D&D fan.
2) You read and liked the R.A. Salvatiore Books.
3) You liked EA's titles for LOTR.
4) You are a Drizzt do Urden fan.
5) You know games. This is a great one, a must have.

A Diamond in the Rough

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 16 / 18
Date: September 19, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone is a good game. However, it could have been great. More on that later.
The game is gorgeous to behold. Visually stunning, with a great soundtrack and wonderful music, it unfolds like an interactive fantasy movie experience.
You are thrust into a war in Damara in the shoes of Rannek, a fighter. Soon, you meet a rouge named Zhai and a sorcerer who goes by the name of Illius. The three characters have a great interplay with the dialogue and the subtle ways that they interact, be it in a cutscene or in the midst of battle.
The script has been penned by R.A. Salvatore (my reason for buying it) a great writer and a master of the genre. The story is cohesive and held togetther by little tidbits and information that is revealed as you progress through the levels.
The story is told in chapters, and there are 10 in all, after completing a chapter, you can unlock bonuses like concept art and backstory for the game.
Now on to the stuff that wasnt so great. While the game was awesome in the graphics department and ease of control, it fell short in a few areas. First and foremost, the game was way too short. I beat the whole thing in 9 hours. Super short, and that leaves one feeling short-changed, especially at the current price for the game at 49 bucks.
While the controls were easy to master, most of the time it felt like I was just button mashing. In fact the whole game, I never used Illius' charm spells to hold monsters or make them fall alseep. While you can switch between the players on the fly, I found myself confined to the role of Rannek most often...the fighter needed to constantly save the other characters from battle. Another thing that kinda irked me was the level upgrade system. If you got a good ability or spell, it would be overwritten the next time you leveled up, and you could not use it again. Example: Once Illius learns lightning, you cant cast a fireball anymore. Minor, but it adds to the overall experience of feeling cheated.
Dont get me wrong, I LIKE this game, I am a fan of Salvatore, and that is the main reason that I bought the game, I just wish it had been longer and more involved than it was. Sometimes I get a little tired of button mashing and fighting a boss monster for like 30 minutes straight.
The game held up nicely to my attention span, mainly because of the storyline, I know that I keep stressing the storyline...but in all honesty that is what holds the whole game together and saves it from being a total loss. The ending is nice and heroic, but obviously left open for a sequal or two...lets hope the next games in the series are longer and dont have the problems of the this first outing. If Atari and Stormfront play thier cards right, they could have a killer franchise on their hands.
Buy this game if you are a fan of Salvatore or Forgotten Realms in general (you will see some familiar faces) but if you are a game player looking for a fantasy game, rent it first. See how far you get and how long it takes you to get there...let that be the basis of your decision wether to buy or not. Mixed bag folks...give it a spin...you will like it despite its shortcomings. And thats a good thing.

A dissapointed fan

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 11 / 13
Date: September 25, 2004
Author: Amazon User

(Also posted on Gamestop and elsewhere)

Lets start with the good. The voice acting is superb. Having Michael Clark Duncan and Patrick Stewart as Ygrol and Khelben lends talent and recognizability to the voices, and it pays off.

The environment, graphics and overall appearance of the game is also excellent. At first, the way the camera scrolls to emphasize things happening in the background is obnoxious, but once you are used to it, it's like taking your own part in a movie.

The story by Salvatore, and the familiar D&D personalities and places is very enjoyable, and the story is as original as can be expected in the fantasy genre.

Now, the bad. I beat this game in 8 hours, on normal difficulty. It can probably be done in less. As there is no multiplayer option, the character development system is rather limited, and the ability to explore the game maps mostly non-existant, the game has very little replay value. Is it worth the $50 dollars for 8-10 hours of entertainment? You decide.

The combat is very unimaginative, and, due to the difficult camera angles, sometimes very frustrating. I found aiming in melee difficult if not impossible, and when I could actually see what I was doing, it was just button mashing. You learn to live with the camera, but, the combat never does become more exciting.

Character development is the bread and butter of these D&D games, and is what lends an otherwise short button-masher replayability and depth. The options for character development are too limited, especially you can't play again with different characters. The three you have to start are all you will ever have, and accordingly they should have more complex and challenging management choices.

In summary, Demon Stone is a great looking, well acted button masher, with a great story. However, its very brief length, sometimes boring combat, and limited development system really take away from what is otherwise a great game.

I'll try to be quick

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: October 05, 2004
Author: Amazon User

The game is pretty much three characters slashing through hordes of enemies. Simple concept that makes for a fun game.

The leveling up your weapons, arms and skills in between levels was a nice touch. Some items even change your characters appearance.

Is this game worth the money?

The game is fairly short so on average most people will beat this game with in 4 days.

A Simple Masterpiece

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: January 09, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Yes iI Like this game, a lot. Yes I am a fan of Dungeons and Dragons, and finally yes i am a huge fan of both R.A. Salvatore and Patric Stewart. That being said lets look further down the road and see if it all comes together nicely?
Quite Simply Put YES! The Graphics are Supreme (even in the time of the PS3 yet the Graphics hold up against any Dark alliance or Chamions game quite well with a twist.
and that twist is you do not just choose only one character even though you only start with one. you Must use all 3 to Completely Master the Game (not beat it Master it) with the fairly standard fighter/rogue/wizard setup it looks like another repeat.. no wait this was Before some of them well then how come the Graphics are so good and yet havent changed in the new games much? (things that make you go Hrm) The Storyline by R.A. is Perfect with Patrick stewarts Shakespearian acting and a cast of other voiced characters that work quite well and believe me if you like hack n slash with combos and a variety of weird hidden objectives. (example as the game begins and if you are silly enough to skip the intro DIRECTLY INTO THE ACTION YOU GO! I was amazed its been a long time since a game has suprised me yes its a quick game 7-10 hours avg. but its because of its Huge amount of action and the interactive backgrounds are quite interesting and the results of using them can be Quite Satisfying! >:} this game is a must own for any fan of d&d, R.A. Salvatore, Drizzt, or Excellent Gems that tend to vanish when its just overlooked due to the top games eating up all airtime etc. I am writing this review not to say all thats already been said, but to say that YES the game wistands the test of time quite well and is Ownworthy for any diablo/ultima/Insert isometric view rpg'r out there this game is a true diamond in the rough!

Pros: Voice Acting 5 of 5
Graphics 5 of 5
sound 4 of 5
how much fun is it? 5 of 5
what if i do not know the actors nor the writer? Buy this game.

Cons: umm.. it may be as several have said its a tad short but as another said "id rather a short game thats stuffed full of program goodness then gangpiled full of boring "go toss this switch so you can get that item so you can blah blah" other then that there is a few camera angles that could have been better but seeing as LOTR did as well as it did. this game should have shined, it did LOTR battle BETTER then LOTR!
and thats "That Review Guy's" opinion
camera flaws are few and so minute I Doubt you will notice.

-Power currupts, absolute Power corrupts Absolutely-

Demon Stone has +4 Coolness Affinity.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: September 20, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Ok this is my first review for amazon so bear with me if it's bad. First off, this game is quite good. The plot is true Salvatore material, and is the highlight easily for getting it. That and being able to play as everyone's fave drow Drizzt doesn't hurt either. Plus the graphics are well done and tie with LOTR: Return of the King for best looking adventure game.
But with all this, the game does have it's dark spots, mainly it's length and the upgrade system. As cool as it sounds to give your guys better armor and whatnot, you'll more than likely just go with the autobuy option and skip it. Sure you can fine tune what elements your weapons are imbuned with if you go in and do the shopping yourself, but it's all rather meaningless. Also, i beat the game in one afternoon..not the best length for a $50 game. Plus there is one other gripe..and that's the lack of co-op. If this game had co-op it would easily be better than ROTK. Nevertheless, if you are a fan of epic adventure games in the vein of ROTK, then you owe it to yourself to get this game.

No replay value

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: November 18, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This game was fantastic!! but only the first time through. the game has no replay value. you do not participate in the story, there is no gathering of information, it is a hack and slash game.

For that reason, i recommend renting this on a five day rental and playing through it a couple of times (takes about six hours to beat it on the most difficult setting).

However, I do recommend renting this game at least once, as it is extremely fun the first time.

forgotten realms=easily forgotten game

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 4 / 6
Date: July 10, 2005
Author: Amazon User

After a thorough inspection of all the games the local hollywood video had to offer, i decided to invest 5 dollars into this "promising" gaming experience. After reading what this game had to offer on the cover/back of the box, it seemed it had alot going for it: voice acting of jon stewart, beautiful graphics, intuitive character development and a decent storyline. Im sad to say, however, that each of these dreams thoroughly decayed as the game unfurled before my eyes.

Ill start with the pros of this game, because it does have some good aspects. The graphics are amazing. anywhere from the detail of the jungle, the burning rubble of a peasant town, and the entertaining backgrounds consisting of npc's duking it out with a dragon or what have you. Along with these graphics, i experienced absolutely NO GLITCHES amongst the 7 hours of play. Along with the graphics were the tight controls. i never found myself frantically shaking my controller like a british nanny in hopes that the game will realize its err. Targeting enemies with ranged weaponry couldn't be easier, and utilizing what skills/spells that were available were simple.

Alas, this is where all that is good ends. The mini cinemas cannot be skipped. this will frustrate and anger you as you see the same cinema for the 27th time when you are stuck in a situation. Normally this isn't that big a deal, except what the main characters say can get really annoying. Between the three heroes eerily mourning out loud to the villagers "run to safety! run! this place is in danger, get out! RUN" (normally i'd write this sarcastically, but this is honestly how the game speaks), pointing out the blatantly obvious "that dragon is in the way! we must defeat it!". THis lame speak often annoyed me during gameplay. an example of this situation would be like a battle with enemies on the other side of the river pelting you with arrows. The game has the characters say "OH NO! WE ARE BEING ATTACKED ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RIVER! wizard, use your ranged attack to get them! thats the only way!", and "fighter, use your new power of breaking objects to use! there is a log right in front of you that is blockin our way" (this is maybe 2 minutes after the game has a small cut screen explaining the skill and when to use it). I'll end this rant on the auditory and open it up to gameplay. its a watered down version of "lord of the rings". you do the same combos over and over again, with the same result against all the enemies (say the fighter has a combo that you can impale their spine. he does this with all the enemies, from small undead elf to slaag). Most of the time i found myself wailing away at X, since there was never a need to have to parry, break a shield, push enemies away, etc etc.
The a.i., oh man. God knows how many times i found myself playing the warrior with maybe 12% health left, running to the health potion in the middle of the field, but found that the rogue with 99% health ran to get the health potion before me. so many times i was swarmed by enemies, and found the other two characters in the corner picking on the weaker enemies. so many times, so many annoyances of getting knocked down by an attack i cant avoid, almost in a "stun lock" situation.
The upgrades are very unsatisfying. the only difference i really noted when i spent alot of money/experience was a slight change in visual armor, but increased damage, more spell damage, etc went unnoticed.
the gameplay got repetitive, very repetitve. They threw in a "sneaking type" scenario every other level, but that in itself is a watered down version of those stealth assassin games.

If you are a fan of DandD and the like, maybe RENT this game, but dont buy. I had this game for 2 days, got to stage 7 of 10, and pretty much gave up since there was nothing really to play for. very dissappointed

Great Game - Highly Recommend

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: October 05, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I got this game last weekend, and while I am only on Chapter 3, I have to say that its a great game and I recommend for others to get it. I really like the story line- any R.A. Salvatore fans. Its also great graphics..like there are many levels and there are these things called "Danger Zones" in which you can push people off cliffs. The other thing that I really like is that you can switch characters on the fly...changing from one of the three to another character.

Great but Short

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: November 15, 2004
Author: Amazon User

The graphics, storyline, and voice acting is superb for this title. However, the story itself is way too short. I expect RPGs to take at least 20 hours of my time -- this took maybe 10. The fighting mainly consists of slashing your way through monsters and would have been better served by a turn based system. However, this is one of the better D&D games for the PS2, so I would recommend it as a rental.

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