Board 8 > Board 8 Ranks the Dark Souls Bosses and Areas - THE LIST

(+) Yeah! (+)

BOSS
3. Sif, the Great Grey Wolf
http://darksouls.wiki.fextralife.com/file/Dark-Souls/Boss_0025_Great%20Greywolf%20Sif.jpg
SCORE: 267
1 First Place Vote

Ulti - 1
Altma - 2
CPU - 2
Prof - 2
Cata - 3
Kokoro - 5
Tazzy - 5
Angel - 7
Sorozone - 7
TV - 7
Axl - 9
Robazoid - 11

Ulti
I don't care if this thing is called a "wolf". Sif is a Siberian Husky, also known as the best dog breed in the world. Anyone who knows me should have already known this would be #1 for that alone. I have a ton of sentimental attachment to Sif, and so does the game itself. The saddest part of Dark Souls is if you go through some spoilers, then get the special scene before fighting Sif on a replay. He and Artorias have the best lore in Dark Souls.

Oh, and Sif is a great boss fight, too. On my first replay I did a little too much exploring, found this guy, and fought him while underleveled. The best accomplishment in one of these games is figuring out how to kill something you have no business killing, so I have sentimental attachment there too. I've played three games in this series. Sif is my favorite character from any of them so far.

Prof
This is so incredibly sad. Even more so if you save Sif during the DLC first. The way Sif looks sad but chooses to fight you anyways because she doesn’t want you to fall to the abyss like Artorias did is just amazing. This is easily the fight I hated doing the most from a lore perspective but it is really fun as a fight so that made it both a ton of fun and extremely sad. The way that giant sword moves is just so good.

Tazzy
Miyazaki really knows how to tear your heart out. Each Souls game he worked on has a sad boss. DeS has Astraea, Bloodborne has Gascoigne, DaS3 has Yhorm, and this one has Sif! Sif is Artorias’ loyal pup, and she guards her master’s grave in order to prevent other warriors from seeking, and eventually being consumed by, the Abyss. But such is our task, and we must fight this poor, magnificent beast for the ring that allows us to traverse the Abyss and gather the Lord Soul from within. Sif’s actual battle is a ton of fun for me. She’s a giant dog that can wield a blade, so that enough is pretty badass. Her moveset is quick and fun to dodge, so it’s always a pretty fast-paced battle. Just kill her before she starts limping. It’s too sad :(
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AREA
3. Sen's Fortress
http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/darksouls/images/2/21/Sens_fortress02.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20130128014642
SCORE: 256
3 First Place Votes

Angel - 1
Kokoro - 1
Tazzy - 1
Prof - 2
Altma - 3
Axl - 4
CPU - 4
Cata - 5
TV - 5
Sorozone - 6
Ulti - 6
Robazoid - 21

Angel
The most Dark Souls of Dark Souls areas. It can be extremely punishing, but it feels amazing to figure it out the first time.

Tazzy
This is such a brilliant level. The very first thing it does is show you a floor trap. This lets the player understand the way this level is gonna work. You’ve got to be careful and observe your surroundings. Next, you fight a single Lizardman on a thin walkway above a massive pit, with swinging blades threatening to knock you as well. This isn’t too hard if you relax, but the situation is a bit distressing. Once you’ve learned that, you get a third challenge: A ranged user whom you must fight by crossing through swinging blades on a thin walkway while avoiding or blocking magic. These three obstacles in the first room lay the groundwork for the entire level. The rest is just applying these concepts in unique ways. It’s f***ing brilliant. After many deaths, you learn how the level works. Maybe even use it to your advantage, as the traps will kill enemies as well. It’s one of the most satisfying things to finish in the franchise.
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My Top 2 for both areas and bosses are in the Top 2. Board 8 has great taste with Dark Souls :)
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I would've contributed to this ranking, but simply ran out of time and couldn't find the spot to get it done.

Don't know how much I would've affected things though. As we can see from the top 5 of both categories, sometimes quality is very objective.

Would like to say a few things first though, before we get to the inevitables:

Ceaseless Discharge: Why do people dislike him so much? Either you take advantage of the environment to kill him, or you take advantage of the environment to fight him. Actually fighting him can be really cool, because it's "this is how you can trick a giant". The cheese way is kinda lame, but it feels like it fits the lore.

Tomb of the Giants: Too high. What an awful area. Hated it so much.

Four Kings: Difficult boss that deserved more praise. I actually think they're way easier on NG+... go Havel and just tank.

Sanctuary Guardian: Easy joke boss. Too high.

Blighttown: I didn't really have the framerate issues, so I don't rate it nearly as low as some people. I think the design is really cool, because this calls to attention maybe better than any area the interconnection between the beginning zones of Dark Souls. You just keep going down, and down, and finally you're at the bottom. You look up and you're like "woah, I came down here". AND YOU CAN GO FURTHER DOWN! So cool. The bottom isn't as great, nor is the small sewer area, but the rest of it is money.

Sen's Fortress: Best part of this place is how it is an ascent - climbing and climbing. Get to the top, look behind you, see the Parish, etc. You climb and always risk falling. That's what I loved about this place.

I'll finish with Bell Gargoyles: The only boss I got help on my first playthrough. Kinda wish I could go back, but honestly, I was really close to quitting without beating them. Gargoyles really defined my Souls experience to me.

At some point months ago, my girlfriend ended up with two toy hippos that she found and gave them to me. I put one on top of my bedside table, and one on the ground below, naming the bottom one Quelaag and the top one Bell Gargoyles. She regrets giving them to me :P
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I just realized I've been the highest or lowest ranker for sixteen different things so far. Apparently I have crazy Dark Souls tastes
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HanOfTheNekos posted...

I would've contributed to this ranking, but simply ran out of time and couldn't find the spot to get it done.

Don't know how much I would've affected things though. As we can see from the top 5 of both categories, sometimes quality is very objective.

Would like to say a few things first though, before we get to the inevitables:

Ceaseless Discharge: Why do people dislike him so much? Either you take advantage of the environment to kill him, or you take advantage of the environment to fight him. Actually fighting him can be really cool, because it's "this is how you can trick a giant". The cheese way is kinda lame, but it feels like it fits the lore.

Tomb of the Giants: Too high. What an awful area. Hated it so much.

Four Kings: Difficult boss that deserved more praise. I actually think they're way easier on NG+... go Havel and just tank.

Sanctuary Guardian: Easy joke boss. Too high.

Blighttown: I didn't really have the framerate issues, so I don't rate it nearly as low as some people. I think the design is really cool, because this calls to attention maybe better than any area the interconnection between the beginning zones of Dark Souls. You just keep going down, and down, and finally you're at the bottom. You look up and you're like "woah, I came down here". AND YOU CAN GO FURTHER DOWN! So cool. The bottom isn't as great, nor is the small sewer area, but the rest of it is money.

Sen's Fortress: Best part of this place is how it is an ascent - climbing and climbing. Get to the top, look behind you, see the Parish, etc. You climb and always risk falling. That's what I loved about this place.

I'll finish with Bell Gargoyles: The only boss I got help on my first playthrough. Kinda wish I could go back, but honestly, I was really close to quitting without beating them. Gargoyles really defined my Souls experience to me.

At some point months ago, my girlfriend ended up with two toy hippos that she found and gave them to me. I put one on top of my bedside table, and one on the ground below, naming the bottom one Quelaag and the top one Bell Gargoyles. She regrets giving them to me :P

Ceaseless discharge is an awful boss. He literally has one attack. Other than the way to gimp him, it's a completely lazy design.

Tomb of the giants is a brilliantly designed level for the most part. Of course it's frustrating, but it's supposed to be, that's kinda the point.

Four kings is pretty much objectively harder in ng+.

Sanctuary guardian, while not too difficult, is another well designed boss. Fun battle.

BOSS
2. Dragon Slayer Ornstein & Executioner Smough
http://darksouls.wdfiles.com/local--files/bosses/ornstein-smough-large.jpg
SCORE: 269
1 First Place Vote

Axl - 1
Cata - 2
Tazzy - 2
Kokoro - 3
Prof - 3
Sorozone - 3
Angel - 4
Ulti - 4
CPU - 5
Altma - 8
Robazoid - 14

Axl
Still remains unmatched in its level of challenge and exhiliration in the Souls series to date.

Tazzy
I don’t even really know what to say that hasn’t been hammered to hell and back before. This is pretty much THE Dark Souls battle. The most iconic one that everyone references when talking about the game. Hell, I knew who these guys were before I knew what game they were in. The agile Ornstein and the sluggish Smough compliment each other really well, allowing the player to slowly read the attack patterns of each and how to dodge them. They rarely sync their attacks at the same time, so once you learn to exploit it, it’s a matter of patience and skill. Of course, once you kill one, the other powers up, creating an arguably bigger challenge. The second phase isn’t really as cool as the first phase, mainly due to the two not being as fun to fight on their own (Proven further in DS2), and they can get a bit spammy. Still, this is a brilliant fight, and I’m not sure From has ever really been able to replicate this kind of battle since. Darklurker was amazing too, but that was pretty different, and I won’t bother going into that yet for obvious reasons...

Prof
The transformation! It is so good both ways no matter which you kill first. It is great fun and really difficult if you don’t summon someone to help.
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wait why is my name not on that list for o&s
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wow this is a surprise
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HanOfTheNekos posted...

wow this is a surprise

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I'll be curious to see if the result changes if you drop Robazoid's ranking.
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AREA
2. Anor Londo
http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/darksouls/images/5/53/Anor-Londo1.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20120608040006
SCORE: 272
4 First Place Votes

Axl - 1
Prof - 1
TV - 1
Ulti - 1
Altma - 2
CPU - 3
Kokoro - 3
Tazzy - 3
Cata - 4
Robazoid - 6
Sorozone - 7
Angel - 8

Axl
Top notch style and setting (and an amazing boss to cap it off) which makes it easier to deal with the fact that the game is Metroidvania no longer.

Ulti
Not just the best place in Dark Souls. It's the best area of a video game. Ever. Period. Game designers spend countless hours and millions of dollars trying to create things like immersion, atmosphere, and scope. I've been playing video games since the 1980s. Outside of one boss fight in Final Fantasy 15, nothing else does this better than Anor Londo in my near 30 years of playing games. You spend almost the entire first half of the game trying to ring two stupid bells for some unknown purpose, then you enter a fort that tries to kill you. When you finally get to the top, you get Tower Knight flashbacks. When you get through THAT, your character gets kidnapped.

And dropped off in front of THIS: http://cdn2us.denofgeek.com/sites/denofgeekus/files/2016/09/anor_londo.jpg

Good luck, kiddo.

It's both massive and beautiful. Well lit, but creepy. Warm, yet chilling in every way. Then you start going through the place, and OH MY GOD EVERYTHING IS HUGE. You're like an ant revolting against a lawnmower, but the only way to finish your mission is moving forward and stabbing that lawnmower in the foot until you win. You'll walk on rooftops and through castles, each one creepier than the last. You'll uncover secrets, and ultimately, your purpose in Dark Souls is revealed inside of Anor Londo. You'll fight one of the best boss fights in the series. You'll uncover one of the best plot twists in gaming if you look hard enough. It all happens right here, in a beautiful scenery that's unmatched by anything else I've ever played. Forget the Dark Souls series. Anor Londo is the pinnacle of video game design
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TVontheRadio posted...

wait why is my name not on that list for o&s

s***, sorry

BOSS
2. Dragon Slayer Ornstein & Executioner Smough
http://darksouls.wdfiles.com/local--files/bosses/ornstein-smough-large.jpg
SCORE: 269
1 First Place Vote

Axl - 1
Cata - 2
Tazzy - 2
Kokoro - 3
Prof - 3
Sorozone - 3
TV - 3
Angel - 4
Ulti - 4
CPU - 5
Altma - 8
Robazoid - 14

Axl
Still remains unmatched in its level of challenge and exhiliration in the Souls series to date.

Tazzy
I don’t even really know what to say that hasn’t been hammered to hell and back before. This is pretty much THE Dark Souls battle. The most iconic one that everyone references when talking about the game. Hell, I knew who these guys were before I knew what game they were in. The agile Ornstein and the sluggish Smough compliment each other really well, allowing the player to slowly read the attack patterns of each and how to dodge them. They rarely sync their attacks at the same time, so once you learn to exploit it, it’s a matter of patience and skill. Of course, once you kill one, the other powers up, creating an arguably bigger challenge. The second phase isn’t really as cool as the first phase, mainly due to the two not being as fun to fight on their own (Proven further in DS2), and they can get a bit spammy. Still, this is a brilliant fight, and I’m not sure From has ever really been able to replicate this kind of battle since. Darklurker was amazing too, but that was pretty different, and I won’t bother going into that yet for obvious reasons...

Prof
The transformation! It is so good both ways no matter which you kill first. It is great fun and really difficult if you don’t summon someone to help.
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BOSS
1. Knight Artorias
http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/darksouls/images/2/29/Artorias_03.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20130327190733
SCORE: 289
6 First Place Votes

Angel - 1
Cata - 1
Prof - 1
Sorozone - 1
Tazzy - 1
TV - 1
Axl - 2
Kokoro - 2
Altma - 3
CPU - 3
Ulti - 6
Robazoid - 13

Angel
and all of that was with his off hand.

Prof
What a beautiful fight. I love the way you see him having fallen into the void during the phase when he start gathering the void around him. The lore around this fight is also amazing with realizing that you now have to pretend to be Artorias due to the timeline once you start fighting him. The combat style of Artorias is easily the one I have the most fun with fighting against.

Tazzy
Probably the greatest boss battle ever made.

Axl
Best DLC fight in the series hands down. Only other contender for the title would be Orphan of Kos if you include Bloodborne.

Ulti
I'm positive I have this guy overrated compared to everyone else, just because the fight is so easy, but he and Sif have the best lore in the entire game. That has to count for something. He's a once noble knight that gets corrupted and starts attacking everyone with purple/black stuff. If you know me, purple + black color schemes is all I need to think you're cool. Artorias, Sephiroth from Kingdom Hearts, Ganondorf in Melee, you name it.
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AREA
1. Painted World of Ariamis
http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/darksouls/images/7/74/Painted_World_of_Ariamis_01.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20130720053403
SCORE: 283
2 First Place Votes

CPU - 1
Sorozone - 1
Axl - 2
Cata - 2
Robazoid - 2
Tazzy - 2
TV - 2
Ulti - 2
Angel - 3
Kokoro - 3
Prof - 3
Altma - 5

Tazzy
It helps that I love the aesthetic and lore, but this level also happens to be pretty brilliant! This harkins back to Demon’s Souls, where every bit of the level feels necessary. This has been a recurring issue since those days. There are so many parts in the best areas of the game that honestly feel pointless or unused. This is largely due to the general non-linearity I think. However, Painted World is split off from the rest of the game. There’s no reason to worry about it’s connecting points, or how it fits into the entire world design (This is also why Anor Londo and Sen's Fortress are amazing btw). Nothing here feels wasted, and there are so many branching paths that lead to cool loot and battles. The well with the bonewheels will always be one of the most memorable parts in the game for me. That spot was so intense. f***ing great level.

Ulti
I overrate ice/snow/water levels. Sue me.

Angel
The only reason I don't have this at the top is because the other areas are "more Dark Souls like" than the painted world. The level design here is arguably some of the best in the game, and there's a lot of interesting lore behind it too.
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HanOfTheNekos posted...

I'll be curious to see if the result changes if you drop Robazoid's ranking.

Doesn't look like it! I was equally an outlier for both of them

I'm wondering if I should participate in the DS2 ranking at this point, I hadn't expected to be so divergent and it probably screwed with the rankings a bit
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No reason not to! I'd rather this project not be a hivemind void of dissenting opinions. They mix the pot up and make it more fun tbqh.
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https://youtu.be/CjmTL39l9fM

Fun stuff, fitting for this topic.

Anor Londo in particular is nuts, so much work for no real reason.
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SPOT-ON LEADERBOARD:

Sorozone - 12
Angel - 9
Kokoro - 9
Tazzy - 9
Prof - 8
CPU - 7
TV - 6
Cata - 5
Altma - 3
Axl - 3
Robazoid - 3
Ulti - 3
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good job with the list! i don't think that highly of the sif fight, but this is still a pretty great top 3 list for both areas and bosses. predictable, but still great.

dark souls 2 ranking will probably be all over the place in contrast!
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Yeah, I already know of one of my top 10 (Possibly 5) bosses that will get slammed in the rankings. Areas will probably be a bit more controlled though.
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UltimaterializerX posted...

I love Painted World, but the enemy set puts it below Londo for me. I'd rather fight giants than "k you're toxic now".

Thought you meant bonewheels.

Murphiroth posted...

https://youtu.be/CjmTL39l9fM

Fun stuff, fitting for this topic.

Anor Londo in particular is nuts, so much work for no real reason.

Dammit I'll be watching these all weekend.
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