I strongly favor Blade of Darkness combat over Demon's/Dark Souls; there's just far more depth. The "awkwardness" of the movement is actually a strength of the system once you get used to it, largely because of the added depth it gives - movement is actually meaningful and "realistic" because you have to face up to your opponent instead of the modern-game method of locking-on and "skating" around them (as in, running full speed in almost any direction). Combined with the "real" dodge mechanic (not rolling around on the ground), the movement system adds weight and immersion to the combat.
Also, I love how you have to "aim" your attacks with different strikes in order to land a hit, and where you hit an opponent has different effects - most combat games (like Souls) simply have an automatic light and heavy attack, with arcade-like combos in between. DS just lacks weight in comparison.
The other reason I prefer BoD is that enemies don't feel as scripted or predictable as DS. The combat A.I. still stands up as a great example of difficult and "smart" opponents without resorting to omniscience or other cheating methods. Every fight feels unique to a certain degree, and it's far more important to come up with a set of tactics to break through an enemy's defense rather than simple pattern memorization.
