Best Soulslikes With The Most Bosses

​​​​​​Over the years, soulslike games have carved out a unique niche in the gaming landscape, delivering experiences that captivate and challenge players with their dark fantasy aesthetics and grueling boss fights. Pioneered by FromSoftware, these games typically feature precision-based combat mechanics, interconnected level design, and cryptic lore. One of the key elements of soulslike games is the presence of challenging bosses that test player skill, strategy, and patience.

What makes soulslike games stand out is the sense of achievement players feel after defeating a seemingly impossible boss. Each death in these games serves as a learning experience. For players who are interested in exploring some of the best soulslike games that offer a plethora of bosses, here are some exciting games to check out.

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8 Bloodborne

Battle 20+ Grotesque Bosses With Quick Reflexes & Limited Resources

• Unique Rally Mechanic: Bloodborne develops upon the successful soulsborne formula while implementing a new rally mechanic that encourages an aggressive play style.
• Lovecraftian Level Design: The game departs from the familiar medieval setting that its predecessors are known for, and replaces it with a Gothic, Victorian-era backdrop. It weaves the Lovecraftian theme into the experience, producing a sense of unease as players navigate the narrow alleys.

Unlike its predecessors, Bloodborne features a faster playstyle and rewards players when they successfully adopt the intended combat approach. The game’s rally mechanic is a risk-and-reward system, allowing players to recover their health if they strike an enemy immediately after being hit. There are 20+ main bosses to find in the game, including the DLC, and over 20 Chalice Dungeon bosses. Bloodborne replaces shields with guns, conveying the importance of adopting an aggressive approach over defensive fallback.

7 Lies Of P

A Carefully Crafted Soulslike Experience With 20+ Puppet Bosses

• Reflexive Combat: Lies of P features a similar playstyle to Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. The player's ability to execute perfect parries ensures swift victory over enemies.
• Weapon Crafting: Parts from different weapons can be combined to create a unique weapon with distinct effects.

Lies of P features over 20 bosses, each posing a unique challenge. Bosses in Lies of P are basically puppets with robotic animations. Players may initially get thrown off by the robotic, delayed attacks, which presents the opportunity to study enemies and learn their telegraphs.

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Mastering the perfect parry is key to succeeding in Lies of P, as the dodge roll may not be as reliable as in other soulslike games. Consistently executing perfect parries breaks enemy weapons and even their posture. An enemy with a broken posture can be riposted to deal massive damage.

6 Dark Souls 3

25 Unique Bosses In The Trilogy's Most Refined Game

• Refined Combat: Dark Souls 3 improves upon its predecessors in every way, especially on the combat front, offering a fluid and responsive experience.
• Atmospheric World Design: The level design in Dark Souls 3 is the best in the series. The world features interconnected levels, hidden pathways, and danger lurking around every corner.

Dark Souls 3 is hailed as the epitome of the Soulslike formula, refining the core gameplay pillars that were established in the original game. The game delivers a combat experience that is fast-paced, satisfying, and responsive.

Dark Souls 3 offers 25 unique bosses, including the ones in the DLC, with optional mini-bosses throughout the world. Some bosses have multiple phases, and once players deal enough damage, bosses transition to a new phase, equipped with new attack patterns and mechanics. Defeating bosses in Dark Souls 3 is a significant accomplishment, and players can expect a sense of achievement and progress as they overcome them.

5 Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

25 Epic Boss Battles, Fueled By Adrenaline-Pumping Action

• High-Octane Combat: In the game's fast-paced, aggressive sword fighting system, the player's primary defense relies on their ability to deflect enemy attacks.
• Linear Level Design: Unlike other soulslike games developed by From Software, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice strays from the interconnected level design for a streamlined formula. The game naturally takes players through its campaign, where they'll get to fight bosses and mini-bosses along the way.

While many purists don’t consider Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice a soulslike game, it’s still a soulslike in spirit. The game drops the much-too-familiar stamina bar, but introduces a new posture bar. Attacks and deflects fill up the posture meter, and once it’s filled, enemies are left vulnerable to a deathblow.

To experience all the bosses the game has to offer, gamers will need to play it at least twice and pick a different ending the second time. The game also features a unique prosthetic arm that can be outfitted with a host of exciting tools. With some creativity, players can chain their katana and prosthetic tools to execute a series of cool combos.

4 Lords Of The Fallen

30+ Challenging Bosses In An Intertwined Dual World

• Dual World Design: Lords of the Fallen offers a twist with its unique dual world system. The dual worlds are Axiom (world of the living) and Umbral (world of the dead). Players can expect to find fresh challenges and rewards in both worlds.
• Challenging Combat: Lords of the Fallen offers a similar combat style to that of other popular soulslike games, rewarding patience, precision, and strategic use of skills.

Built on the new iteration of Unreal Engine 5, Lords of the Fallen offers a spectacular, rich and immersive game world, but it does so while preserving the essential core pillars of soulslike formula, including strategic combat, environmental storytelling and a sense of overwhelming adversity.

The game features a varied roster of bosses, each presenting a new challenge. The boss variety ranges from standard humanoids to behemoths that compel combat improvisation. This variety keeps players on their toes and demands critical thinking when approaching every new boss enemy.

3 Nioh 2

Master Tactics To Overcome 40+ Skill-Testing Bosses

• Yokai Shift Transformation: Nioh 2 sets itself apart by integrating the Yokai Shift ability, which temporarily transforms the character into a powerful being. In this form, players can enjoy devastating abilities and increased survivability.
• Character Customization: Nioh 2 features an exciting skill tree that allows players to discover different playstyles.

Nioh 2 retains all the essential elements of what makes a soulslike game shine, while introducing innovative gameplay mechanics. To overcome the game’s challenging bosses, players are expected to master their chosen playstyle, develop an understanding of the Yokai transformations, and familiarize themselves with the numerous skills the game has to offer.

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All bosses in Nioh 2 present a unique challenge. Learning a boss’ movesets, attack patterns, and weaknesses is critical to overcoming them. The game also rewards player skill over overpowered builds.

2 Hollow Knight

Master Precise Platforming To Challenge 40+ Bosses

• Metroidvania Exploration: Hollow Knight is a 2D metroidvania platformer before a soulslike. Players must explore the interconnected underground section of Hollow Nest to discover the many secrets and the dangers that lie in wait.
• Challenging Combat: Hollow Knight’s cozy aesthetics and beautiful art style contradict the game’s challenging and intense combat where platforming plays a huge role.

Like most soulslike games, Hollow Knight’s bosses test player skill and patience. As the game progresses, players unlock new abilities that transform the way they engage with bosses. The game’s charm system also modifies the traversal and combat experience.

Hollow Knight features over 40 bosses, including 13 main bosses, each offering a unique challenge. Since it's easy to miss some of the bosses as the world opens up, players are advised to have a guide on the side to ensure they find every boss the game has to offer.

1 Elden Ring

80+ Epic Bosses In A Vast Open World

• Open World: Elden Ring takes a bold step at going open-world, and succeeds. The large open world features numerous dungeons, hidden regions, and even missable bosses.
• Top-Notch Combat: Elden Ring borrows the base combat structure from Dark Souls 3 while introducing new mechanics that diversify the ways players engage with enemies. Players can customize their weapons with special weapon arts, and even select from a wide arsenal of spells.

Elden Ring boasts over 200 bosses, approximately 80 of which are unique encounters. Some of the most memorable bosses that players can challenge are the Remembrance Bosses, which tie in with the game’s lore and offer unique rewards upon defeat.

Boss fights in Elden Ring are truly a spectacle to witness and experience. Players can expect to go up against a diverse roster of enemies, ranging from agile humanoids to four-winged, stone-scaled ancient dragons. The open world design allows players to tackle most bosses in their preferred order, offering an unparalleled sense of freedom in the soulslike genre.

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