[quote name='animalspinners']Demon's Souls has more emphasis on RPG... it is more stat oriented in addition to the weapon / armor customization.
They are kind of similar in terms of game mechanics and general ideas... I haven't played Tri yet (just got it) but it is focused more on weapons, there are no stats, it's more about you vs a monster and learning the patterns if older Monster Hunter's are anything to go by.
Demon's Souls is also you vs a monster, but like I said earlier, you've got to worry about padding out all your stats and levels as well. Demon's Souls is also level oriented as well, you get level 1-1, 1-2, etc with a boss at the end of them.
The multiplayer in DS is also either co-op, or going into someone elses game (or them in yours) and attempting to kill them. Multiplayer in MHT is just co-op only.
Can't go wrong with either game, to be honest. I played a fair bit of DS and it's an awesome game in its own right. There is definitely 100's of hours of gameplay in Demon's Souls, similar to MHT, because there are different classes, different builds, tons of armor and weapons, and a good deal of secrets to discover. As for which one is more polished, that's probably down to personal preference.
I guess it all depends on how in depth you want to get, Demon's Souls throws a ton of values at you at all times, Monster Hunter not so much.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the comparison! I'll get both of these eventually, but I'm itching for some monster killing this weekend. I may get MHT just for the controller.