So the World Might Be Mended.
Demon’s Souls is the game that gave birth to the trend of ultra-hard action-adventures. You won’t find any hand-holding or destination markers here—just your wits and reflexes to rely on. To celebrate this great game’s PlayStation 5 remake, we’ve compiled a list of Demon’s Souls bosses ranked in order of difficulty.
But first! If you haven’t picked up Demon’s Souls yet, make sure to get some PSN gift cards. Whether you’re new to Souls or are a series veteran, this is one PS5 launch title you don’t want to miss!
Now, on to the list!
18) True King Allant
True King Allant is the Magikarp of Demon’s Souls bosses. He’s so easy, some don’t count him as a boss at all.
After a hard-fought victory over Old King Allant (who’s much further down this list), you find yourself face-to-face with a sentient pile of muck whose two abilities are vomiting out world-building lore and an underwhelming ram. He can’t hit you from range, doesn’t have much HP, and moves at a snail’s pace. A few hits with a spear or ranged weapon should put him out of his misery.
17) Adjudicator
Hmm… I wonder where his weak spot could be.
The Adjudicator is a massive creature clad in armor your tiny human weapons have no hope of piercing. Luckily, he has a bright, glowing weak spot on the crown of his head. Really—you can’t miss it.
There are a few strategies for taking out the big guy, but we prefer the one where you run at him, sword swinging. Get up in his grill and really lay into him. After a few knocks, the Adjudicator will fall over, and you can go to town on his exposed weak spot.
Don’t worry about him hitting you. He does have a few attacks that can really hurt you, but the wind-ups on them are so long that dodging becomes trivial.
16) Storm King
Have you got a bow? Good—you’ve already won.
Storm King is a blown-up version of the manta rays you encounter leading up to this boss fight. He has a set of skills that can be lethal, but you don’t have to worry about that; hide inside the nearby house and take out his manta minions. Once you’ve killed enough manta rays, the Storm King appears. Just blast him with arrows or magic spells and he’ll die.
15) Phalanx
Use fire attacks against Phalanx and watch him burn.
This enormous blob of slime doesn’t actually have any attacks of its own. Instead, it’s taken control of a phalanx of shield-bearing fighters to do its dirty work.
For those running through Demon’s Souls for the first time, Phalanx can cause a bit of trouble and even lead to a few deaths. However, if you spend some time exploring the area right before the fight, you’ll find a ready supply of Turpentine and Fire Bombs—the two items that make Phalanx a pushover.
14) Leechmonger
Set Leechmonger aflame with Turpentine and a few hefty swings of your melee weapon.
Leechmonger is a wriggling, writhing mass of leeches with a collection of moves that are easy enough to dodge. None of its attacks can do much damage but beware its leech ball throw. A hit will cover you in leeches that slowly (and rather inconspicuously) drain your health. It’s easy to get caught up in the heat of battle and find yourself suddenly dead by loss of blood due to these leeches.
Its weakness is fire, so use Turpentine to add fire damage to your melee attacks. Then, all it takes is a bit of button mashing to beat Leechmonger.
13) Old Monk (NPC Version)
The strategy here is simple: Use your shield to block Old Monk’s attacks, then hit him back.
There are two versions of Old Monk: PvP and NPC. The PvP version of the fight takes place between you and another player. Since both players can heal, this fight can go on for a very, very long time.
Here we’ll be talking about the NPC version where you face off against an AI-controlled Black Phantom. The Black Phantom’s AI seems underdeveloped—perhaps because From Software was hoping you’d face off against a real person instead. All he does is rush at you and attempt attacks at close range. Just block and counterattack until he’s dead.
12) Dragon God
This has got to be one of the most boring fights in all of Demon’s Souls.
It’s all about staying hidden. Destroy any rubble that stands between you and the Dragon God, then dive behind pillars before it finds you. Sneak your way to the ballistas located in the room’s corners, then fire bolts at the Dragon God to watch it go down. From there, the dragon will just sit there while you lay into him.
11) Dirty Colossus
No fancy footwork necessary here. Just circle around him and strike him from behind.
Dirty Colossus is a forgettable fight that simply involves getting behind him and hacking away at his backside. His only gimmick is that he can cover you with garbage and flies that slowly eat away at your life. Just run over to the torches in the boss area to be rid of them and get back to wailing on him from behind.
10) Fool’s Idol
She just sits there… until she doesn’t.
The Fool’s Idol will sit and stare at you for much of the fight. Occasionally, she’ll throw magic spells at you, which can really do some damage. If you pay attention, there’s a character off to the side whose sole purpose is to heal up the Fool’s Idol, so shave a few seconds off the fight by taking him out first. Later in the fight, she’ll duplicate herself to confuse you. You can identify the real one by locking on to the one with a health bar.
9) Vanguard
Redemption tastes so sweet.
Vanguard acts as the tutorial boss, and is a tough fight. That’s only because he one shots you, so the challenge comes from not making a mistake. But because the tutorial version is supposed to be a scripted death, most players end up facing Vanguard for real in World 4-1, Shrine of Storms.
The rematch is pretty straightforward overall. Vanguard has a big predictable axe swing, and an equally predictable butt smash. Both attacks are easy to see coming, so just step back out of range, wait for the attack, and move back in to punish.
The only reason Vanguard’s this high is because of the environment. While fighting him, you’ll have to deal with flying manta-rays that shoot spears at you. These spears will hit-stun you, taking away your openings. What’s more, there are piles of stones on the ground that will trip you up.
8) Maiden Astraea
The real boss is the Maiden’s guardian, Garl Vinland.
Technically, the Maiden doesn’t actually do anything but sit there and get hit. However, there’s an NPC, Garl Vinland, who protects her, and he’s a real nuisance. His attacks all do serious damage, and he can even perform parries, which can be lethal. On top of this, Garl Vinland has the ability to heal himself.
7) Old Hero
Old Hero is the archetype for Souls-like bosses.
The developers probably had no idea when they first named Old Hero that he’d become the template for Souls-like bosses: Learn the pattern and work around it. That doesn’t make it an easy fight by any means; you’ll still need to be on your game if you want to avoid being smashed to a pulp. However, once you’re used to his pattern, Old Hero becomes a straightforward fight that’s enjoyable in its simplicity.
6) Armor Spider
Of course there’s a giant spider boss.
The Armor Spider isn’t the kind of boss that waits for you to come to it. Instead, it starts peppering you with fire magic from the get-go. Dodging fireballs while maneuvering around this boss’s spider webs will really test your dexterity with a controller.
Once you’re within melee range, Armor Spider becomes your standard Souls-like boss with a rather predictable pattern. Figuring out Armor Spider’s pattern and defeating it is like graduating from Souls-like college.
5) Tower Knight
This guy is as tough as he looks (unlike some of the other bosses on this list).
The Tower Knight fight is like a souped-up version of the Adjudicator fight. Like the Adjudicator, the Tower Knight can only be damaged in his weak spots, but unlike the Adjudicator, he actually has an arsenal of abilities that’s dangerous from all distances. On top of his deadly skills, he’s got a squad of archers raining down arrows throughout the fight.
The key to winning this fight is to target his Achilles (found on the back of his feet). However, getting inside of striking range is the hard part.
4) Penetrator
Patience is the key with this one.
The Penetrator is a great fight that feels like a duel between warriors. He hits for a ton of damage, and can easily break your guard if you aren’t using a shield with good stability or don’t have high endurance. He also has a brutal grab animation, in which he pierces you with his sword, lifts you up into the air, then throws you across the arena.
When it comes down to it, though, all of his attacks are extremely telegraphed. Once you learn them, they’re relatively easy to dodge. So while he’s one of those bosses that seems brutal at first, with enough patience, you’ll beat him without even getting hit.
3) Old King Allant
This is hands down the best boss fight in the game.
Old King Allant (also known as False King Allant) is an ultra-aggressive speed demon who’s just as frightening from range as he is up close. This boss fight plays out almost like playing a rhythm game—once you’ve figured out his tempo and patterns, dodging and countering Allant’s attacks makes you feel like a god. He’s tough as nails but so, so satisfying to fight and the best boss battle in the game.
2) Flamelurker
RIP framerate.
As proof of just how powerful Flamelurker is: The fight begins with him bursting through the fog wall. Yeah, those fog walls that you usually retreat into for safety when a boss is tearing you apart? They’re nothing to Flamelurker.
You’ll need a lot of patience to win this one. Keep your shield up and bide your time, avoiding his attacks until he prepares for a pounce. When he leaps at you, roll below him and give him all you’ve got before he turns back around.
We’re making it sound a lot easier than it is. Have fun tearing your hair out.
1) Maneaters
One of these guys is bad enough; too bad you’ve got to take down two!
This boss pair is ridiculously hard. Even worse: They’re no fun to fight. At least with Flamelurker you don’t feel cheated out of victory every time you find yourself lying wasted on the floor. You start off fighting only Maneater, but after some time a second will appear to ruin your day. If you haven’t beaten the first by the time his buddy shows up, prepare for a very, very long fight.
All of their hits hurt, and they can snipe you from range or cause havoc up close. Your only hope is to draw one Maneater in, then slowly take him down through careful counterattacking. Avoid drawing the attention of the other Maneater before the first is defeated—you don’t want both of these jerks trying to chomp your face off at once.
Final Thoughts
Demon’s Souls is one of the best games out there and we can’t wait to play the remake. Hopefully these bosses don’t get dumbed down and we get to experience the full exhilaration and stress of battle as we did before. What do you think? Which boss fight is your favorite? Let us know in the comments below.
Want more Souls content? Read up on the best game mechanics and best games of the PS4/Xbox One generation.
