Campfire: Invading the Valley of Defilement in Demon's Souls

When we play games we assume we’ll be the ones saving the day, that we’ll be the hero. We hardly ever have to wonder if what we’re doing is actually wrong. When does the justice we dish out end and the road to becoming a monster begin?

This is where the Valley of Defilement from Demon’s Souls comes in. A putrid, filthy place, writhing with disease and waste. It’s where the damned make their homes. Homes formed from shoddy, rotting planks of wood that often collapse, but homes nonetheless. Before then in Demon’s Souls you were invading strongholds of the undead, soulless soldiers, and monsters with little to no shreds of humanity. Then everything changes when you arrive at the Valley of Defilement. All of that is flipped on your head. There are demons here too, but the place is a home to humans who have succumbed to sickness and have no place in society.

When I first arrived it didn’t seem like a home, but as continued through the valley it became more and more obvious. Near the swamp there’s a wooden structure built along it, almost like a small town. Deprived citizens of the swamp run out and attack from their roofs. There’s even an old woman acting as a merchant who pesters you to buy items from her to feed her hungry child. She never sold anything good though, so I never bothered to buy anything from her. I’m not a walking charity meant to help the poor, I’m a killer. There was a hint of guilt in me, but it didn’t matter, I have to do what must be done.

My character, a powerful demon slayer with a long katana wearing the robes of a cruel executioner and the ragged hat of a witch, knew nothing of such pestilence. I didn’t know anything about this suffering. I was tucked away in my cozy little Nexus. Free of the poison swamp, free of giant mosquitoes and poisonous rats. I didn’t care to understand.  I came here to kill. Anyone who got in my way, anyone who dared attack me received only death. No exceptions.

That doesn’t change the fact that I killed people, people of a lower class forced to survive in a harsh environment. They’re even self aware of that fact. The Depraved ones all seem to wear masks reminiscent of those that plague doctors wore during the black plague’s rampage through 14th century Europe. Even the archstone depicts a robed figure with a mask characterized by a long beak. So they aren’t completely crazy. Nonetheless, I did not care. They were in my way so I slayed them one after another. Even the Giant Depraved Ones were cut down despite their immense strength. They were all just obstacles. I was here for the demons. Demons like the Leechmonger, an abomination made entirely of leeches. It just so happens that the people here were in may way.

That’s what Demon’s Souls made me become, a monster casting death upon those who interfered with my plans. They were the ones who got in my way though, the ones who tried to kill me. That’s my last defense, until I learn the reason why.

The archstone foreshadows as to why, reading “the dwellers attack anyone who wanders into the valley hoping to offer soul to the woman who showed compassion”, revealing a cult aspect to the ordeal. The women detailed is Maiden Astraea, a religious women who grants hope and salvation to the crest-fallen citizens of the valley. She’s a Mother Teresa of sorts, here to spread good will to the poor and diseased.

Maiden Astraea sounds like a good person with a noble cause, but she’s the arch-demon of the Valley of Defilement. She herself is no demon, but she possesses a powerful demon soul for one reason another. Thus, she must be slain. No exceptions.

After defeating the Dirty Colossus, a monstrosity made of rotten wood and inhabited by flies, Astraea’s domain isn’t too far. Down a long ladder and through a path that leads to the deep fog, there she is. This isn’t your normal battle though, it’s a stage. A stage set to be a place of worship. You can see Depraved ones worshipping Astraea in a bowing motion like mindless cultists who have nothing else to believe in. Even if you attack them, they don’t retaliate. Below them lies a swamp filled with plague babies, demons believed to be in the form of aborted children. Now they’re just shapeless monsters infested with the plague. Then there’s Garl Vinland, Astrea’s knight in shining armor. He’s not a mindless fool ridden with disease. He’s simply a knight protecting a fair maiden. He and Astraea exist as one. Kill her and Garl kills himself because he was unable to fulfill his duty as Astraea’s loyal knight. Kill him and Astraea does the same.

Throughout the Valley of Defilement Astrea is built up as a symbol of hope to the being here, but in the end I’m forced to crush that hope. It’s the only way forward in the game. I have to kill Astraea to end it, to call forth the Old One and end the demon scourge. Even if the rest of the land is saved, the valley shall not. It will still be a disgusting, disease filled place. It doesn’t matter though, saving the Valley of Defilement isn’t something I can really do. Demon’s Souls is an impersonal game, that’s what makes the Valley of Defilement so different. It’s a contrast to the rest of the game and it’s done in such a subtle manner that nothing feels forced.