Since I've gotten into Dark Souls, I've seen a lot of people complaining about the reuse of assets in the game, especially regarding the Demon Ruins. I'm not going to talk about the Capra and Taurus demons but want to focus on the three bosses I listed. Each of them is pretty much the same save for a change of weapon and coloring in the case of the Firesage. I really don't mind them reusing these as it most likely was due to time constraints but it also makes sense in lore.
First, let's look at demons in a lot of other games both video and tabletop. In Doom, save for bosses, you will pretty much be fighting the same type of demon over and over again as you rip and tear through the game. This leads to the assumption that, while there is a variety of demons, some have a near endless amount. In Dark Souls, we only get to explore part of the rest of the Demon Ruins which is where those varieties might exists. There is logic in saying that Taurus and Capra Demons are commonplace, low level expendable. But this can also lean into showing the power and prestige of the Asylum Demons as the Firesage is supposed to be one of the first. They are powerful and loyal to their charges which allowed them to be used to guard the undead asylum and make sure none escaped to fulfill the prophecy and usurp Gwyn and potentially end the Age of Fire.
I've seen people complain about how both the Asylum Demon and the Firesage are mandatory, but only Asylum is. Firesage doesn't drop anything important unless you want its catalyst, and getting around it is possible if tricky and a bit tedious if you don't like grinding. Join the Chaos Servant Covenant and offer 30 humanity to the Fair Lady and you can open the shortcut to Lost Izalith and skip both the Firesage and Centipede Demon. The fact that the Firesage can be ignored and skipped makes part of the argument moot as you don't ever have to fight it if you're willing to put in a little time with the gold serpent ring and a couple rats.
I'm also surprised people don't complain about the two gargoyles in Anor Londo. Another reused asset in a place that, in some ways, doesn't really feel like they belong. With the giants, flying demons, silver knights and painting guardians, the gargoyles feel a touch out of place. None the cathedrals of Anor Londo seem to have gargoyles that look similar to the enemies so it just looks like they were summoned and dropped in. They look so different to the bright and shining heaven of Anor Londo with their dark stonework looks.
Now, it is my understanding that there were some time constraints on the producing of Dark Souls which most likely caused these bosses, but I think there's for more damnable things to go after. The lackluster fight that is Seath the Scaleless is the top for me. I had more trouble with the Capra Demon than I did with Seath who I killed on my second try. Seath is an imposing and impressive figure not to mention carrying a bequeathed lord soul shard, so you expect him to be a tough fight like Nito, but I'd say he's the easiest of the Lord Souls to obtain. But I also understand that he was not fully made, but I think it fits in with the lore of his madness that he's not as powerful as he should be. He's something more to complain about that reused assets, if you ask me.
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