Demon's Souls Post-mortem Interview

To celebrate the game's digital re-release, the European PlayStation Blog has an interview with director Hidetaka Miyazaki on Demon's Souls, which more or less encapsulate the game's design philosophy. Hopefully Dark Souls II won't lose what made the game special:
Since its release, the series has slowly snowballed into one of the biggest new franchises of this console generation. Why do you think it has taken off so dramatically? And why has it proved such a hit in the West when many Japanese titles have struggled in recent years?

Hidetaka Miyazaki: This is difficult to answer, since we can't fully analyse the result perfectly. However, one thing I could possibly say here is that, this game was designed and created to directly focus at the core essence that lies within .ame lovers' that commonly exist all around the world, instead of focusing on matching gamer preferences according to markets such as Japan, US, Europe or Asia. Creating a game aimed at this sincere element in gamers was one of the policies I have put efforts to maintain throughout the development process.

The PSN release is of course the same version that was originally released in 2009. However, if you could go back in and change anything about the game, what would you alter?

Hidetaka Miyazaki: Apart from obvious bugs, there are currently no intentions to modify the game. I do not believe that Demon's Souls is perfect, but one remarkable thing is that all games have a living aspect and a tendency to fit the generation in which it was born. Demon's Souls is not an exception. That is why I would like to cherish the Demon's Souls that has been enjoyed and grown along with the fans. I do have some regret, and points that could have been improved on, but I will keep this in mind for any additional future opportunities.