Demon’s Souls Bosses Ranked

The Souls series is well known for its painfully difficult boss battles. You slog your way through an entire level, just be slapped straight back to the start by a giant tin man. It’s a daunting task for new players, and when they tackle it, they sometimes forget to take in the quality of the bosses design. Demon’s Souls has some fantastic bosses, bosses that are enhanced further by the recent remake on PlayStation 5. Rather than focus on their difficulty, let’s rank the bosses on their overall presence.

18: King Allant

What is this… thing? The final boss of Demon’s Souls, unlocked only after beating all the other bosses, hides in the depths of the Nexus. Despite an epic setup for the encounter, players are greeted with a grotesque hunk of flesh. It’s an ugly blob on the floor. Worst of all, it’s not even a challenge to fight King Allant; you actively have to try and die here. What an underwhelming end.

17: Adjudicator

This bumbling oaf is, seemingly, controlled by a bird. Inspired by a combination of Shrek and a Licker from the Resident Evil series, the only interesting quirks about Adjudicator is the bird on its head and the sword through its belly. Outside of that, it’s a plodding pile of blubber.

16: Leechmonger

Moving away from Lickers but sticking with the Resident Evil series, we have ourselves an Uroboros cosplay in Leechmonger. This boss is really just a load of leeches all forming a single super leech being. It edges out Adjudicator because it’s more creepy than a fat bloke with a bird on its head. Only just, though.

15: Dirty Colossus

A disappointing end to one of Demon’s Souls most frustrating and difficult areas. Dirty Colossus is the second boss of the fifth Archstone and is essentially Leechmonger without the leeches. Much like the three bosses listed before, Dirty Colossus is a filthy, bumbling pile of dog faeces. Literally and figuratively.

14: The Old Monk

Despite Tower of Latria being my favourite Demon’s Souls Archstone, its final boss struggles to live up to the hype. The Old Monk is probably the seventh most interesting thing you fight throughout the Archstone and you struggle to see it as more than a basic NPC. It lands in 14th spot due to its interesting quirk: the fact it can be controlled by another human player. Outside of that, it really isn’t more interesting than anything you’d seen up to this point.

13: Phalanx

A pile of mush with some shields really, but acts as a great learning tool for newer players. The great thing about Phalanx’s design is how it teaches the player to use a variety of items to defeat the beast, rather than spamming attacks. Visually, it lacks appeal but the mechanics of it really help a player's ability to grow in the early stages of Demon’s Souls.

12: Vangaurd

The basic tutorial boss we’ve come to know and love in the Souls series over the years. There’s nothing massively appealing about the Vanguard demon, but it sets the dark, heavy atmosphere for Demon’s Souls very well. It’s grotesqueness is a guide to what you can expect to see throughout your stay in Boletaria.

11: Maneater

The game's most notorious boss. Many souls have been lost to the Maneater, Demon’s Souls chimaera-like beast. In fairness, it isn’t so much the beast design that holds these two back, but the arena you fight them in. As the action takes place across a tight bridge, with these untamed beasts flying around, it’s hard to take in just how awesome they both look as you constantly scramble to fight the world's true enemy: gravity.

10: Storm King

Not too much fanciness to the Storm King’s design, but it’s one of the most epic battles in the game. This titanic demon flies above, around 100-feet long and you’re tasked with bringing the demon down. The battle is made more colossal once you retrieved the Storm Ruler sword, allowing you to use the power of the storm to help fell your foe.

9: Fools Idol

Likely the third boss you encounter in the game, Fools Idol is the boss that’ll make you start using your head a little more during combat. This demon projects multiple versions of themselves as you battle them in a confined hall. Her finest trick to fool you, is punishing the players who did not explore the Prison of Hope enough, meaning she can be constantly revived.

8: Old Hero

A tense, atmospheric battle opens up the top eight. Old Hero is a Herculean-sized man who can destroy you with one or two hits. Luckily for us, he’s also blind, meaning he’ll be wildly swinging to find you - as long you as you can remain quiet that is. It’s a consuming battle, requiring focus and patience like nothing before it in the game. Despite having every possible advantage over Old Hero, you still can’t help but fear the guy.

7: Armor Spider

The first real moment of terror and likely the second, post-tutorial boss you face in Demon’s Souls. It’s a spider, it wears armour and it’s horrifying. It’s an intimidating beast, whose fear is amped up by being confined to a tight space in a cave. It’s a grim adventure and likely where the ‘true’ Demon’s Souls experience will begin for some players. It’s an encounter that’ll likely have you wondering what you need to do to be victorious to win.

6: Tower Knight

This towering demon is an iconic figure in Demon’s Souls. Arguably the biggest bipedal boss in the game, the player feels dwarfed by this mountainous figure. An impenetrable shield and sword long enough for us to assume he’s compensating for something else, Tower Knight is a daunting task. Nothing has ever made me feel smaller in a videogame than having to legitimately prod at the ankles of the thing in front of me until it falls down. Only then can you actually bring the boss's health down completely.

5: Penetrator

Penetrator may not seem too troublesome and he has a most unfortunate name, but his overall design is wonderful. For me, it’s not just the armour being the most gorgeous in the game, but also the elegant way he moves. Attacking the player at speed, Penetrator is one of Demon’s Souls most fluid bosses. An absolute horror to fight, yet will always look gorgeous slicing you apart. You feel like you’re defeating a king's final line of defence with Penetrator, which is exactly what he is.

4: Flamelurker

This humanoid fire demon is agile, yet punishing. An intimidating boss for a lot of players, Flamelurker is so erratic in behaviour, it’s almost unpredictable. A wrong step in his boss' arena will see lava take you out. The whole thing is a stressful, chaotic mess that’ll leave you feeling untouchable on the other side of victory as you slay the fiery demon.

3: Dragon God

A very easy boss fight once you know what to do, Dragon God places so highly for the sheer spectacle of the battle alone. Chances are, if you’re a new player, you’re probably coming here late. You traverse the fog, running down a tunnel. Suddenly you see these 12 glowing eyes and a dragon hand cave in the walls. The adrenaline rush as you run from pillar to pillar is always exhilarating the first time you do it. The magic of the fight does wear thin after you’ve done it a few times, however that doesn’t take away from that initial first impression. Plus it’s a massive dragon, everyone loves dragons.

2: Old King Allant

Seemingly, the epic final battle. You’ve prepared for this for the entire game. Starting off with a slow elevator ride up, you traverse the fog into the shattered remains of the Bolteria Castle throne room. The Old King looks regal, throwing almost everything imaginable at you. From wind attacks to devastating AOE attacks, Old King Allant can even drain the player's Soul level. It’s a gruelling, yet rewarding finale that will push you to your limit, all whilst presenting one of Boleteria’s most beautiful scenes. Finally taking down Demon’s Souls most regal boss edges to within an inch of completing the game. The only disappointment is this epic encounter doesn’t close out the game.

1: Maiden Astraea

In the filthiest pit of Boletaria, players will find the only good, pure soul in all of Demon’s Souls, Maiden Astraea. A beautiful, yet heartbreaking backstory, the final boss of the fifth archstone is not difficult to defeat in terms of skill, but will leave a moral battle lingering in the players head until they end their playthrough. Defended by her loyal guard, Garl Vinland, this boss battle alone tells the story of hope and tragedy, as you either assassinate the Maiden or defeat the loyal guard, forcing her to give up her soul to you. Ultimately, you’re left with a sense of confusion, wondering if you’re truly the good in this situation. If there ever could be such a thing in this world.