Yeah, it's developed by a Korean company.

No, there're some key differences between the genres, pretty enough for those terms to be valid: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_differences_in_role-playing_video_games

BTW Demon's Souls isn't a jRPG, being developed by japanese studio doesn't automatically make a game jRPG, the same goes for wRPGs.

But playing through the title, you know it's a Japanese RPG. There is noticeable Japanese influence on the game.

Anyone who thinks Demon's Souls should be classified as a WRPG hasn't played the game.

Both rooted from the same genre. Look at Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Phantasy Star, and you wouldn't dare to call them a different Genre from Wizardry or Ultima. It wasn't until the snes and more significantly the PS where they started to differentiate. Back then they were called Console RPGs and Computer RPGs. I think it is easy to tell why this eventually became Jrpg and Wrpg. If you can't, I'll just say that back then almost all console developement was in Japan while PC developement in the West. Anyway Computer RPGs headed toward real-time and adventuring gameplay, making it more akin to Action-Adventure games, and Console RPGs kept the old turnbased but made it deeper, therefore making it like Strategy games. Later Japanese games tried to go real-time, but instead of focusing on Adventuring they are more focused on Action, similar to Hack N Slash games. The genres are starting to merge again, and the only difference you can see really is story. So I would say that it is better to just make a general RPG genre and specify its gameplay type(i.e Adventure, Action, Strategy, Traditional, Turn Based, Real Time) than to say where it was developed. Demon Souls is a game of neither genre, and seems more similar to when the genre's were one, having aspects from both.

Noticeable, yes. There's noticeable japanese influence (through Chrono Trigger) on Anachronox and such games as Jade Empire entirely based on Asian (in this case Chinese) culture. But those are wRPGs.

Here's the best analogy I could think of... imagine two nations and two different languages, each has own system known as grammar and each has own vocabulary known as lexicon. Two nations that live in neighbourhood are likely to adopt words from another language pretty easily and fast, but to adopt some grammar changes may require very strong and prolonged influence. The same goes for game genres if we look at those things like cultural anthropologists. Themes and storylines are likely to change, while core gameplay mechanics won't change that easily.

@sc94597

True, they're rooted from the early adoptions of paper-and-pencil RPGs into computer games. So it's safe to say that wRPGs and jRPGs (to some extent those are better terms than computer and console RPGs) are both dericatives from p'n'p RPGs. Those terms are relative, of course, as well as any other cultural phenomena, but from what I've learned playing Demon's Souls so far it definitely plays like wRPG though borrows a lot from what we know as japanese. But, you know, there's nothing in this fast growing world that could be considered pure, free from othet cultural influence.

Okay, I have some first impressions of the game, now 4 hours into it. So far, its fairly enjoyable.

The first thing I thought of when I started the game is that like most JRPGs, I'll hate the protagonist. Yeah, I was kinda right too. The first line he said, and the first time I heard his voice, it is extremely reminiscient of a stereotypical JRPG protagonist, though to be fair the Voice acting is better then most JRPGs. Though that isn't saying a whole lot. Juto differs in personality only slightly from, say, Fayt Leingod or Sora. He differs in that he realizes his mistakes and the better choice of action far sooner then most protags, though he usually goes about correcting them in the same way other JRPG protags do. Its nice that they didn't make him a carbon copy of the sterotype, but more badassedry in his persona would have helped immensely, especially considering his fight with the Guardian. Oh, and of course he has amnesia. Originality flying out of him, to be sure.

The graphics are charminly good. Obviously nothing too flashy, but the art style keeps it interesting. Still, the lack of any really vibrant color in the environments is a let down. The cities look detailed, as do the characters. The characters art style if great, especially Juto's new set of armor. Too bad you can't dual, triple, or quadruple wield all those swords though. *sigh*

The music is what I love best so far, especially the city music. The island music, eh...not too much.

Gameplay looks like it has  some good potential. Its been fun so far, though not really standoutish at this point.

Rememeber I'm barely 4 hours in. I'll post more as I play more.

As usual with all of these threads, are you just talking about 'consoles' or 'overall'?  As with the majority of these threads, you seem to discount the vast majority of 'JRPGs' because the vast majority of them have been on DS and PSP.  So if you really are just focusing on JRPGs that have been on consoles since Tales of Vesperia, then its probably not hard to say Magna Carta 2 is one of the best.  As it was one of the few.

Also to add to the 'debate', yes, JRPG and WRPG were terms created by people on the internet.  And perpetuated by reviewers and game developers (in the west) who wanted to single their product out from the more prevalent and popular Japanese side.  Its much like what happened with the terms 'hardcore' and 'casual' and then the terms became negative and a cause for debate.

Shouldnt it be called a Krpg since its made in Korea?

But Demon's Souls still has a focus on story is like Suikoden in some ways as far as getting characters to help and choosing which area to tackle first.