Ranking Every Souls Boss
#79 - #60
The boss fights within the Souls series are some of the most compelling, dynamic and challenging in the industry. Many of them demand excellence when approached. They do not give quarter and we, the player, expect none. You must master the mechanics, persist through death, and, above all, learn from your mistakes in order to come out victorious. Regardless, some fights were clearly superior to others and, in order to make my opinions a little more balanced, I devised a five category, 50-point system to rank each of the bosses. The categories are Gameplay, Lore, Originality, Challenge, and Entertainment. Below, I go into detail about each category which I encourage you to read because it informs the bosses point totals. For example, Challenge is not just about how difficult it is but also about whether or not the difficulty is organic and fair (looking at you Ancient Dragon). Additionally, I'd like to note that I'm not including the Chalice Dungeon bosses on this list. Thanks for reading and please enjoy full list!
Gameplay
This encompasses the actions that you're taking during a boss. Are you frantically trying to avoid attacks and desperately chuggin Estus or are you trying to dodge randomly falling platforms that will instantly kill you. The way that a fight utilizes interesting mechanics will increase this score such as the tense Executioner Chariot battle while poor design choices will hurt this score like the Bed of Chaos falling platforms.
Lore
Lore takes a few aspects of a fight into account. This include the quality of the backstory of the character, the amount of investment you have when facing them, and overall environment and aesthetics of a fight. Are you fighting some random dude in a nondescript cave with no pertinence to the story or are battling a legendary figure of old in a glorious cathedral? Much of the time, the quality of the location and relevance of the story can be enough to elevate a boss into excellence.
Originality
How original is the concept for this boss? Is this the same design that From Software used before or is it something fresh? A unique design goes a long way in making a boss memorable. Large dudes with big swords and growling, burning demons are fairly commonplace but can set themselves a part with interesting mechanics or move sets.
Challenge
Not only does this score take into account the actual difficulty of a boss but also how 'fair' it is. What this means is whether or not a player can anticipate and counter a bosses attacks, no matter how difficult they are. The best bosses are demanding in terms of reaction time but never unfair in either their move set or how much damage they do (looking at you Ancient Dragon).
Entertainment
This score is more about gut reaction to a boss. How much fun did I have when fighting it? Was it exciting and interesting? Did I get a rush of adrenaline when defeating it or was it merely a roadblock before getting to the better battles? It's hard to define and tabulate what gives certain encounters that elusive magic but some have it and some don't.
Without further adieu, here's number 79 through 60 of the best bosses in the Souls series!
79. Dirty Colossus
Gameplay - 7.4 * Lore - 5.0 * Originality - 4.5 * Challenge - 7.2 * Entertainment - 6.5
Total - 30.6/50.0
I must admit that I had to look up a video in order to remember the mechanics of this fight, indicating that the fight wasn’t all that memorable in the first place. Regardless, the boss battle is relatively straightforward, with hefty swings from his front arms and ranged, poisoning attacks. While these are easy enough to avoid, if you are struck by one of the poisoning attacks, it becomes a much more difficult fight as the poison will not only continuously damage you but also restrain your movement. It’s a fun battle with a bit of tension though experienced Souls players should find little difficulty taking him down
78. Phalanx
Gameplay - 4.8 * Lore - 4.3 * Originality - 8.5 * Challenge - 7.1 * Entertainment - 6.1
Total - 30.8/50.0
The first, true boss fight in the history of Souls, Phalanx forces players to consider their movements and item selection carefully. The boss itself deals no damage but instead surrounds itself with shield bearing blobs that can stab the player with their spears. Cleverly, Demon’s Souls pits you against one of these blobs in an earlier area and gives you the tools to deduce that they are weak to fire. If you’re able to discover this, you’ll then be able to use the Turpentine that you found in the same area to deal immense damage to Phalanx. This sort of environmental instruction and progression really elevates this encounter, allowing you to discover the secret to success in a naturalistic way. Otherwise, the battle itself is fairly mundane, slowly cutting down blobs until you get to the bigger blob.
77. Curse-Rotted Greatwood
Gameplay - 5.1 * Lore - 6.8 * Originality - 7.6 * Challenge - 5.7 * Entertainment - 5.8
Total - 31.0/50.0
A lot of boss lists for Dark Souls III have this boss significantly lower but I don’t really understand why. Sure, it’s pretty annoying trying to find weak spots and not altogether challenging when doing so but it’s got a lot of positives going for it as well. First off, the imagery of a massive tree coming to life to destroy you is startling and epic, especially when it rolls its vast bulk across the entire arena at you. The gimmick is fairly easy to understand, popping the herpes bubbles, but the whole execution of the fight was well done. From the atmospheric praying of the villagers during the initial awakening of the Greatwood and to the floor-smashing arena switch and the growth of new, gnarly limb, I enjoyed the concept and execution of this fight despite it not being all that challenging or diverse.
76. Blood Starved Beast
Gameplay - 6.2 * Lore - 6.8 * Originality - 6.2 * Challenge - 5.8 * Entertainment - 6.2
Total - 31.2/50.0
As one of the early game bosses in Bloodborne, Blood-Starved Beast can certainly present a potent challenge to new players. Emitting a high-pitch wail, her disgusting meat flaps flop around in a fittingly disturbing way, intimidating anyone unused to her vile representation. Eventually, she'll become poisonous, detonating certain areas with a poison cloud, slowly deteriorating your health bar. However, once you 'get' the fight, she becomes vastly easier. Literally all you have to do is hug her left side and all of her attacks miss you. Every single one sweeps right by you allowing for an easy hit on her back. It's so easy that I can confidently say that she is the easiest boss in the entire game for me at this point, deteriorating her lasting appeal and significantly reducing her overall score.
75. Taurus Demon
Gameplay - 7.2 * Lore - 6.0 * Originality - 5.0 * Challenge - 6.5 * Entertainment - 6.9
Total - 31.6/50.0
The first, true difficulty hurdle that every Dark Souls player must overcome comes in the form of the Taurus Demon. Intimidation is the key here and, for new players, the Taurus Demon does this expertly, jumping down to the narrow castle wall that you're following and charging you with vicious swings from a gargantuan greataxe. The music does a ton to sell this fight as well with a boom orchestral piece blasting in the background as you narrowly avoid his attacks. Appropriately, this fight will really demonstrate your mastery of Dark Souls when you return in NG+ because the Taurus Demon telegraphs all of his swings, offering plenty of time to dodge and avoid. So despite the incredible location and gauntlet for new players, the Taurus Demon simply doesn't hold strong in the long run, becoming a normal enemy by the end of the game.
74. Moonlight Butterfly
Gameplay - 5.6 * Lore - 7.8 * Originality - 8.3 * Challenge - 4.5 * Entertainment - 5.7
Total - 31.9/50.0
It's quite a sight to first see the Moonlight Butterfly descending. Ethereal and majestic, it's leagues apart from the twisted Demon bosses that you have faced thus far in your journey. The music softly helps imbue the creature with a sort of magic, delicately weaving piano rhythms back and forth. It feels strange to try and kill such a thing but you do and it's really not much of fight. With a grand total of three attacks, you can easily dodge two of them, while the third is aggravatingly difficult to avoid. By all appearances, the boss 'battle' of the Moonlight Butterfly is more about the experience than the combat itself and, in that respect, the Moonlight Butterfly succeeds.
73. Centipede Demon
Gameplay - 6.8 * Lore - 6.1 * Originality - 6.2 * Challenge - 6.3 * Entertainment - 6.8
Total - 32.2/50.0
Devilish in design and borderline unfair in execution, the Centipede Demon has one of the most diverse appearances in the Souls series for a demon boss. Not a lumbering brute with horns and a giant weapon, this demon instead has tentacle-like arms shaped like centipedes, crawling legs and all. Not only that but, you can actually sever these appendages and they will become miniature insect enemies that will chase you around the arena. That design is just plain awesome. However, the location where you battle this monstrosity, a lava filled cave, actually detracts from the overall experience because it forces you to battle on thin, lava-less surfaces, unable to truly engage with the boss. Without the ring, an excellent fight becomes little more than a slog of waiting and dodging and waiting and dodging until the boss finally decides to join you where you can strike it.
72. Old Monk
Gameplay - 5.0 * Lore - 5.0 * Originality - 10.0 * Challenge - 5.0 * Entertainment - 7.5
Total - 32.5/50.0
Obviously, this boss is difficult to rate since it also depends on whether or not you do battle with a human opponent or not. If you don't, the NPC invader is not all that difficult and it sort of saps the pleasure from the fight. If you do though, the fight can truly be something glorious. It's also important to note how revolutionary this idea was. This had never been done before. Have a player become the final boss of an area? That's crazy and inventive and exciting. The easiest 10.0 that I've given was to this fight and originality. Really more of an exercise in creativity than a definable boss but the sheer ingenuity of it deserves serious props.
71. Ruin Sentinels
Gameplay - 7.4 * Lore - 5.1 * Originality - 4.7 * Challenge - 7.8 * Entertainment - 7.6
Total - 32.6/50.0
One of the first challenging encounters in Dark Soul II, the Ruin Sentinels attack as a trio if you immediately drop down or as one then two if you kill the first one on the initial platform that you drop down on. Fighting three of them is extremely difficult and not that rewarding but fighting the one then the other two feels natural, allowing you to learn the moveset of the first one to apply to the second half of the fight. Using a shield and managing your stamina correctly become huge parts of this battle and it punishes those without self-discipline, just like it should. I'm a fan of this fight from a purely mechanical structure with each boss figure spending enough time recovering from their attacks to get in a few, solid counter hits. As for the lore and look of this boss, it's pretty sparse. Their thin, spindly stature is relatively different from the majority of bulky knight bosses but their armor is nondescript, the arena is a shabby, stone room, and you fight these same enemies later in the game as regular enemies. So, despite how much I appreciate the combat, it's tough to enjoy it as much as I could have.
70. Nashandra
Gameplay - 4.3 * Lore - 8.7 * Originality - 7.6 * Challenge - 5.6 * Entertainment - 6.5
Total - 32.7/50.0
Right off the bat, let's get it out of the way: In terms of gameplay, Nashandra is a dissappointing final boss for Dark Souls II. However, her spooky skeletal design, her immense lore significance, and the completely badass way that she enters the arena should you fight the Throne Watcher and Throne Defender at the end of the game all work to carry her a little higher. During your first visit to Drangleic castle, you'll meet her human form and she will encourage you to continue on your quest, seemingly an ally. But the hints are everywhere regarding the true nature of Nashandra from her portrait that will curse you should you get to close to the ghostly stewart describing the 'peace' that she brought to the king and how it was akin to the Dark. During the fight she'll summon destructible orbs that will curse you, fire off a slow moving laser attack at range, and swing her scythe at closer distances. All of these attacks are fairly easy to dodge and cursing doesn't autokill, decreasing your health by only a small amount. It's a disappointing engagement particularly considering all of the build up that Nashandra got prior to it.
69. Cleric Beast
Gameplay - 6.8 * Lore - 7.4 * Originality - 6.5 * Challenge - 5.4 * Entertainment - 7.1
Total - 33.2/50.0
Going from the final boss of Dark Souls II to the first boss in Bloodborne feels emblematic of each games overall boss quality. The Cleric Beast is a great example of a boss that's not only challenging to new players but also not boring for old hands. The ebb and flow of striking back with the regain mechanic make this fight feel like knock-down drag-out brawl, constantly trying to watch your health and replenish as much as you can. Additionally, the plethora of hidden ways that you can defeat the Cleric Beast, such as molotov cocktails and headshots with the pistol, make this a continoually entertaining event. As an oversized werewolf that attacks relatively slowly, the fight is not overwhelmingly challenging or unique in the world of Bloodborne which keeps it from greatness but a fun battle nonehtheless.
68. Mergo's Wet Nurse
Gameplay - 5.3 * Lore - 8.2 * Originality - 8.4 * Challenge - 5.4 * Entertainment - 6.1
Total - 33.4/50.0
Wow, does this boss look awesome! Shredded, flowing robes hide a formless body with six arms each holding a crescent-shaped blade. Slicing and dicing with an almost balletic grace, Mergo's Wet Nurse glides towards you menacingly, leaving you wondering when you can get a hit in. Well, as it turns out, it's not that hard to get a hit in since the nurse really only has one dangerous move in her first stage: a sweeping uppercut that deals significant damage with decent range. Other than that, you can punish with little worry of death as her other swipes simply don' t do enough damage to worry. The second phase of the fight really ratchets up the tension though with a thick fog descending and her spawning a teleporting copy of herself who will harass you for about thirty seconds before vanishing. The intensity of dodging both versions is actually quite high but since it's possible to kill her before this even happens, it's a bit of a let down how little health she has, especially considering she's Great One given the responsibility of bringing up Mergo, one of the few successful children born to the Great Ones and humanity.
67. Gaping Dragon
Gameplay - 6.5 * Lore - 6.3 * Originality - 8.7 * Challenge - 5.8 * Entertainment - 6.4
Total - 33.7/50.0
Everyone's first reaction to seeing the Gaping Dragon cutscene, "Oooh, what is it? Is that a snake? Or, wait a crocodile? Looks like a crocodi-. Wait a second... oh jeez, oh that's huge! What the hell is that?" That's the Gaping Dragon ladies and gentleman, an everlasting dragon that was so gluttonous that its mouth extended down the length of its body. The genius of Miyazaki and From Software's creature design is on full display here, perfectly tying lore with game design. Massive and lumbering, I believe that the Gaping Dragon is the largest boss in Dark Souls, and also, quite possibly, one of the easiest. Despite having a gigantic health pool, the Gaping Dragon uses it's charge attack so much that you can easily sidestep it and either bash his face or tail while he recovers. When he doesn't spam the charge attack, he can actually be much more difficult with a leaping ground slam, a vicious tail swipe and a disgusting vomit pool that can break equipment.
66. The One Reborn
Gameplay - 6.2 * Lore - 8.8 * Originality - 8.6 * Challenge - 4.5 * Entertainment - 5.7
Total - 33.8/50.0
Speaking of disgusting vomit pools, watching this pile of wriggling limbs fall out of the moon is one of the grossest and most memorable moments of Bloodborne. The One Reborn is reminscent of the Tower Knight battle in Demon's Souls since in both battles you have to go kill the ranged attackers along the parapets before truly engaging the boss. It's a fun homage and it makes since in the lore since the bell-carrying women were the devotees of Mensis that summoned the boss in the first place. The fight itself unfortunately relies far too heavily on random attacks with piles of gore occasionally falling on you or random, flailing limbs whacking you out of nowhere. It's tough to truly enjoy the One Reborn outside of the epic spectacle of it with the fight being far too chaotic and uncontrolled to allow you to 'git gud' at it.
65. High Lord Wolnir
Gameplay - 5.3 * Lore - 8.3 * Originality - 7.8 * Challenge - 5.6 * Entertainment - 7.0
Total - 34.0/50.0
While we're on the topic of spectacle over substance, the emergence of High Lord Wolnir in that abyssal cave is truly a jaw-dropping moment in Dark Souls 3. Out of nowhere, the lights flicker on show that you're directly underneath a massive, crowned skeleton. It's a gimmick fight, which ranks slightly higher to me than an uncontrollably chaotic one, and the gimmick is fairly obvious. His glowing bangles are just begging to be hit and they only take a few hits to go down. Still, this fight shouldn't be taken lightly as you can still be rapidly murdered by Wolnir's poison fog or his summoned minions. Just a solid and enjoyable gimmick fight with a big, initial wow-factor.
64. Old Demon King
Gameplay - 7.6 * Lore - 5.9 * Originality - 4.7 * Challenge - 7.8 * Entertainment - 7.6
Total - 34.1/50.0
Here we are, half way through the list and we're already into some pretty damn good fights. As one of the few demonic fights in the base game of Dark Souls III, the Old Demon King is a bruiser through and through. He hits hard, he punishes those who stay too close to him for too long and he has massive AoE blasts that take some time to get accustomed to. Much more of a hit and run boss than a spam attack boss, this guy takes some time to defeat properly and you couldn't really ask for a more interesting arena. Piles of dead demons litter the ground, giving the impression that the beast before you might actually be the last one there is. So, up until the end, the boss is an enjoyable if expected romp against a Dark Souls demon boss. But then, at the very end, you'll notice that his legs give out on him and he loses most of his moveset, instead sadly swinging his hammer in vain. There's a strange melancholy about the scene. He may be the last of a generation, the last vestige of the Bed of Chaos and the witches of Izalith, and he's reduced to this pathetic rubble. It's a great moment that gives the boss a wordless depth and I appreciate that sort of little detail.
63. Iron Golem
Gameplay - 7.7 * Lore - 6.3 * Originality - 6.2 * Challenge - 6.6 * Entertainment - 7.5
Total - 34.3/50.0
The Iron Golem stands vigilant as your last challenge before the hallowed halls of Anor Londo. Perched at the top of a narrow bridge, he wields an axe infused with wind, able to knock you straight off of the arena. Your only choice is to get close to him where he will violently try and smash you into dust. It's an intense experience, trying to watch your footing, get some hits in, and dodge his devastating attacks. If you're able to get enough hits on his ankles, he'll stagger allowing you to keep knock him down on his back, getting some serious damage in. There's a few facets of this encounter that I really do like. I like how the game basically teaches you to explore before fighting the boss as not killing the firebombing giant on the roof opposite the arena will rapidly lead to your death within the arena. I'm also a fan of the whole more health but can be staggered mechanic. However, with such a narrow arena, sometimes you'll randomly get killed by bizarre hitboxes and getting pushed off the edge.
62. Demon of Song
Gameplay - 6.5 * Lore - 6.5 * Originality - 9.6 * Challenge - 5.2 * Entertainment - 6.7
Total - 34.5/50.0
Alright, I know that this boss isn't the most lore-conscious nor the most palm-sweatingly difficult but I have never, in all of my years of gaming, seen anything like this horrendous abomination. A giant slippery, slimy frog body with a head that hides a grimy human face and arms under rolls of impenatrable skin only emerging to try and kill you. Ewww. Disgusting, horrible, and exactly what I wanted from the studio that brought me such terrors as the Gaping Dragon and Centipede Demon. The battle with him is clear cut as you cannot strike his unexposed areas and must instead wait for your time to strike his exposed face. Not challenging by any serious measue considering how long it takes for him to 'emerge' and 'retreat' giving you ample time to heal and strike. Nonetheless, the atrocity known as the Demon of Song deserves to be here based almost solely on his mesmerizingly disgusting design.
61. Darkbeast Paarl
Gameplay - 7.5 * Lore - 5.7 * Originality - 7.1 * Challenge - 6.7 * Entertainment - 7.6
Total - 34.6/50.0
Little is known about the darkbeasts in the lore of Bloodborne with Archibald being the only real link but they are a prevalent force in the game. No better example of this exists than Darkbeast Paarl, a beast who seems to be guarding the entrance to Yahar'gul from Old Yharnam. Veins of electricity burst through is scraggly fur, patched on to a skeletal frame. If given a moment to breathe, Darkbeast Paarl is relentlessly aggressive, slashing at you with his sparking claws and leaping from one area to another. However, the trick here is to be overly aggressive yourself. Smashing into this foe as fast and as hard as you can will allow you to knock him down and stun him. In fact, that's really the only way to be consistently successful at this fight because, left to his own devices, the Darkbeast will get a ton of chip damage through, no matter how skillful a dodger you may be. The one-sided strategy of defeating him kind of hurts his standing but he's still a terrifying and engaging battle.
60. Old Iron King
Gameplay - 6.7 * Lore - 9.3 * Originality - 5.0 * Challenge - 7.0 * Entertainment - 7.0
Total - 35.0/50.0
The Old Iron King is one of the four Lord Souls that you must accumulate in order to access Drangleic Castle and, at first glance, he appears to be one of the most dangerous. Emerging from the lake of lava, he lumbers towards you, only his winged torso protruding out of the fire. His entrance is quite a sight and considering that you're stuck on a small stone outcropping, the fight becomes all the more tense. Spewing highly damaging fire and laser attacks, he'll also try and smash you with his massive claws. Navigating such a tiny area while avoiding these attacks raises the adrenaline level quite a bit. However, his slow recovery time on a few of his attacks leaves him open for too long, allowing you to deplete a quarter of his health each time, draining some of the danger. The lore of this king is excellent though, telling the classic tragedy of a king fooled by a demon. The iron king, in his hubris, erected a glorious iron castle that was so heavy and unwieldy that it broke through the earth and sunk into lava, releasing the waiting Smelter Demon.
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