7 Bosses Who Got Demoted to Regular Enemies

These unlucky bosses suffered the indignity of getting demoted to a regular, rank-and-file enemy, after you kicked their butts.
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[@Nosferatu755]

The Ogres in Dragon Age Origins. They started as intimidating bosses, then got rapidly demoted to standard baddies pretty quickly

[@kurtwagner4663]

Ngl the one in this Inquisition DLC where you go into the underground (The descent? Maybe. Idk for sure) was pretty tough though

[@darkhorse989]

I was going to suggest this one. I died many times in the tower my first playthrough. But by the end of the game they were three shot by my Archer rogue.

[@kamen42]

I was expecting this one to be on the list. The first one was just "Oh what the **** is this? How am I supposed to kill it?" Later you fight several at once without bigger problems.

[@moosiefate]

This.

[@kurtwagner4663]

@@darkhorse989 ha same I was like "Oh, ogre. Cool, haven't seen them for a while, this will be a breeze" and got flatten in seconds xD

[@ironicdutchmoonshade1394]

The Capra Demons in Demon Ruins aren't actually weaker. They have the exact same amount of health as the boss Capra Demon. It's just levelling up and having more space that makes the difference

[@damp2269]

the capra demon was never the boss, the room was the boss.

[@daniellefoster6039]

Also, no dogs

[@sergentboucherie9813]

@@damp2269 So if the room was the boss, what rank does Tommy Wiseau have?

[@DankSlayer_Ornstien]

​@@damp2269 It's actually descent with space and no dogs

[@damp2269]

@@sergentboucherie9813 touche

[@Jskierka2295]

The Doomhunter from DOOM Eternal comes to mind. Watching one get rebuilt and assembled over the course of an entire level led me to believe that this would be a unique enemy. Then in the late game one pops up practically every encounter

[@madinfects]

id were pretty good at this back in the day. Knee deep in the dead's boss the bruiser brothers became normal enemies pretty quickly, the Barons of Hell. Heretic and Hexen also brought back D'Sparil's mount, the green chaos serpents. Nothing like seeing an intimidating "boss" become a normal encounter for the rest of the game.

[@sinteleon]

Inversely though, the marauder also gets the regular enemy treatment, but are just as tough as they were introduced, except as regular enemy, you get to dodge them and other enemies at the same time. :V

[@TVFlix]

Same with the marauder and a few more enemies.

[@misterbin00]

@@madinfects Baron of hell had pretty much the same treatment in the old games

[@jason4443]

I still think not having the Marauder and Doom Hunter as unique recurring characters was a missed opportunity.

[@randomstuff-qu7sh]

I thought it was fairly common for early bosses to get demoted to regular enemies. Its one of the ways a game gives you a feeling of growth. Remember this thing and what a pain it was? Now you one shot it!

[@thedeergod435]

a lot of rogue indie games do this too, with Risk of Rain and The Binding of Isaac coming to mind

[@abigailgriffin-wc3fm]

Moblins and age of calamity Marlins were these big hospital mops and now you punch them because you want more elixir material

[@CosmicNebula444]

While these cases are very much demotions for the enemy, I actually like it a lot from a game design perspective. Making a previously high tier boss into a goon can really bring a sense of improvement for the player if done right. Like this thing they worked so hard to deal with is now just a minor annoyance due to their growth (kinda like Ellie treating the Bloater as an annoyance, actually.) Bonus points if nothing about the boss changed from the initial fight, health bars especially.

[@cherrydragon3120]

Yeah it is kinda annoying the regular enemy variety of bosses often lacking the 2nd and/or 3rd phase changes. Or having alot less health or just are not the same enemy by not having certain attacks the boss version had

[@brittlekneesmgee3674]

this is literally genichiro from sekiro you fight him 3 times as a way of showing your progress in the game. the first time he kicks your ass. the second time it's an even fight. and the third time it takes like two seconds to kill him.

[@WarriorVirtue]

I love the subtle storytelling in Metroid Prime when you encounter stronger enemies when backtracking. In the case of the Sheegoths, it shows that with the resident Sheegoth dead, new ones are moving in to claim its territory.

[@RedSpade37]

Literal Environmental Storytelling. Need more stuff like that.

[@fireandash]

I always thought Big Daddies from Bioshock kind of deserves a spot too! They had such a build up and then it became basic enemies after Atlas directs you to kill the first one.

[@emmaloopra5428]

exactly i’ve already commented something like this but honestly I found myself killing them for fun or because I was mildly annoyed by their footsteps

[@PokemonButcher]

The YMIR Mech from Mass Effect 2 is presented as a “killing machine” when it’s the boss of the intro mission. The fact that it IS doesn’t change when it begins to appear too often later in the game.

[@lawrencetalbot8346]

Meanwhile in Mass Effect 3, the standard Marauder Shields gets promoted to the final boss

[@brodygray744]

Any Mass Effect 2 enemy with barrier+armor+health is a superboss on insanity

[@Living_with_Narcissists]

Dragon age origins- the Ogre The first boss fight after the origin stories, so the first one everyone will face (and often the first one people die on) becomes such a standard enemy by the end of the game, that there's an area full of ogres who each only need one hit to kill.

[@astrisperspecto4130]

I remember! They got done really a downgrade. From "I hit you from across the floor because the hell is balancing a boss fight" to "mommy I don't wanna be here anymore"

[@jonahfalcon1970]

"Enchantment!"

[@jonahfalcon1970]

Well, in Dragon Age 2 they kill your sibling.

[@19ryuusei]

​@@astrisperspecto4130 idk I kinda like it, shows you actually getting stronger. What's he point in me gaining 20 lvls and a bunch of abilities/allies only to die to the same enemy I died to lvl1. I hate that shit, I get there needs to be a challenge, but that's why u make variants. Ie "elites,champions"

[@azuarc]

I was going to bring up the Broodmother, which shows up again in Awakening, but that's certainly a better option. The first ogre is so hard to deal with, and it just becomes a normal (albeit challenging) enemy.

[@TitaRussellTrails]

I'd include the Behemoth from Kingdom Hearts, this big scary engame monster that you fight even after Maleficent and Riku... only to go to the very next world (and colosseum) and see it just chilling out in some of the rooms.

[@greenhydra10]

For a second there I was thinking of a very different Behemoth.

[@Brexcon.mp4]

Yeah, he was treated so much like a boss, got his own room and everything, but then later he is just another enemy

[@noxprobxrob3877]

Funny, I was thinking Darkside. Granted, different games, but first boss ever in the series eventually gets taken out by a few reflected shots in 0.2, catch your breath after the rest of the title.

[@sid98geek]

Unfortunately, I think 7 is their lucky number, so they would not include an 8th boss.

[@jembozaba4864]

I mean, Behemoths are still bosses. They get their own room, they get the multiple health bars, the boss music that plays, (though the name escapes me at the moment). They just become a LOT more common. But as they never just appear with normal enemies in the field, I would still call them bosses.

[@aardbei54]

There's the Trolls in Kingdoms of Amalur. One of them is the tutorial boss, with a health bar and everything. Later, in Alabastra, stronger versions of them are just kinda everywhere

[@runicknight1151]

Need to do a reverse list of basic enemies that were upgreaded to boss status. Sodier of Godrick from Elden Ring and Rick the Door Technichian from Jedi Survivor are a good start

[@gorimbaud]

Some Minish Cap bosses could qualify here.

[@flordelizapacifico4022]

(I think) by technicality, the Vigilante from Pizza Tower would be a regular enemy upgradeed to a boss, since Cheeselimes (what the Vigilante is), if I remember correctly, are literally one of the first things you fight in the game. Then, suddenly boom upgraded Cheeselime.

[@jamesmontgomery7074]

Big Daddy in Burial at Sea part 1 is another example.

[@firehedgehog1446]

The Sergeant from Warframe, he's just a random Corpus Crewman upgraded (and I use the term VERY loosely) to boss status

[@dabbingraccoons6416]

@@firehedgehog1446ehhhh, kind of

[@WilCatRhClPPh33]

The Shadows of Yharnam in Bloodborne had an even more dramatic demotion than the BSB. They went from mandatory bosses in the mid-game to regular mobs in the late game.

[@insaincaldo]

Well the Blood-starved does appear as a boss in Chalices, even sometimes roaming, so at least they have that going for them, but I wouldn't say the roaming Shadows are much more of a pushover without multiple phases then blood river blood-starved beast. Question is how is it much more starved and weak, when it literally lives in a river of blood.

[@demonsmoke1788]

The weird thing is I feel like the later version are a different enemy entirely. While similar, they lake the snake aspect as well as the transformation, which made the bosses stand out as a different type. The Blood-starved Beast encountered later I feel is the same type of enemy, just not as powerful. This is just my feel and opinion though.

[@cherrydragon3120]

My god those guys got demoted to the point where in the nightmare of mensis you encounter like a dozen of them in the Same area.

[@cherrydragon3120]

​@@demonsmoke1788 nah, the bloodstarved beast you encounter later does not add the poison effect on itself to poison you when you get close. So it does lack some features the original boss has. Mainly because it has no 2nd or 3rd phase

[@WilCatRhClPPh33]

@@cherrydragon3120 and run through them like they aren't even there. The pigs are the real threat on that level and those aren't that difficult. In hindsight, FromSoftware must have intended that to be a farming area. That's the ultimate demotion.

[@CLNCJD94]

The Ogre in Dragon Age Origins, the first one you face your party consists of your Warden, Alister, a circle mage, and a random guard. The boss battle is quite challenging but from then on out Ogres become as trivial as any other dark spawn.

[@kyleellis1825]

I always wanted to know if that Ogre had different stats than the rest in the game. Because if it's just us having shitty tier 1 weapons/armor and slaughtering the later ones with epic loot, is that a downgrade or us just getting better?

[@tyrant-den884]

Darknuts, being a boss who turns into a regular enemy is pretty much their whole thing throughout the Zelda franchise.

[@skeletorgames8641]

They were just a normal enemy in the first one

[@tyrant-den884]

@@skeletorgames8641 uh huh, but in Wind Waker and Twilight Princess?

[@felix3455]

In bloodborne the Shadow Of Yharnam are a pain as a boss but then you have an area full of them juste before mergo's wet nurse.

[@spikesagitta]

The Brutes from Mass Effect, the first time it was a boss battle, then they just start appearing as harder but still beatable mooks.

[@theprofessionalfence-sitter]

All the Mass Effect games seem to love doing this: the Krogan Battlemaster from ME1, the Praetorian from ME2, the Ascendant from ME:A, and I'm pretty sure there are a few more.

[@lord-of-roses6647]

ME3 also has the Atlas

[@faffy2632]

Vanguard with maxed cool down can just gorilla bash them to nothing without even using a gun

[@daviddaugherty2816]

Actually, there's only 2 Praetorians in ME 2: Horizon and the Collector ship. Both of them are fatally weak to playing Ring Around the Rosie around local scenery.

[@richardcaraballo1185]

I believe banshees from ME3 also qualify here too, unless I'm mixing the regular game up with the MP.

[@scottfoster8681]

The Vampire from the original Final Fantasy has the biggest fall from grace I've ever personally experienced. He's a sort of mini boss for the first of the "main bosses" in the game and the only reason he is even kind of a challenge is because there are several tough fights before you get to him and resources are limited. (literally no such thing as a Phoenix down in the NES original, someone dies you either have to push on without them or drag your ass back to town to revive them, which isn't an option in the town you just came from since the vampire destroyed the clinic) but you beat the vampire and move much further in the game and realize that not only do other versions of the exact same monster start appearing in random encounters, but there are two or three variants that are far stronger and they are all regular enemies too. The Vampire "boss" in the Earth cavern was basically Dan Habiki....constantly in search of someone weaker than himself. 😂😂😂

[@dogishappy0]

I'm just glad Tents were a thing in this game! I still remember being turned to stone the first time and not having SOFT. being able to restart at the beginning of the dungeon saved me a lot of trouble!

[@Kilthan2050]

Astos as well, the dark elf monster type is common and there are worse variants out there. And yeah, NES Final Fantasy was painfully unfair, with limited items, super limited spells, only 16 equipment spots, period, a couple of stats that just don’t work, etc.

[@scottfoster8681]

@@Kilthan2050 I thought about Astos too but he at least had that Death spell he usually threw right at the start of the fight. But yeah....there were underlings in his own castle that would have kicked his ass if he had managed to get the key from the Elf Prince. 😂😂😂

[@soultpp]

Ahh yes, Final Fantasy 1 from NES... The originator of my obsession with keeping all characters in a party at the exact same EXP so they all level at the same time. Where winning a fight with 1 party member dead or stoned meant gameover to me! Vampire definitely qualifies for this list, though I don't think Astos, as mentioned by other commenters, does on the technicality that there is never another enemy actually named Astos unlike vampires, which become so common you can encounter up to 9 at once later.

[@cherrydragon3120]

But thats in EVERY final fantasy the case. I've listed a couple in my own comment of FF13 where actual bosses had stronger varients later on that got the regular enemy treatment

[@MK-dr7dx]

Here's a two for one special: Werewolf and Minotaur in Castlevania Symphony of the Night. They appear as a boss duo when possessed Richter unleashes them on Alucard in the Colosseum. Later, they both appear separately as common enemies. As far as I can tell, they still have the same stats and attack patterns they did as bosses, but by the time you encounter them again, you'll have found so much better armor and weapons and leveled up so many times that they’re much less of a threat.

[@angelface925]

Then they drop steak and iron fist 😅

[@ernesttokes62]

Also slogra and gaibon

[@devonmcdaniel1176]

I absolutely adore Ellen and her puns. Also, there are several Dark Souls enemies that go from bosses to mooks. Pinwheel at the end of the Tomb of Giants, there's a room with several of them, and the Taurus Demon, also in the Demon Ruins

[@johndotcom9648]

She makes me want to puke. Their “jokes” are pathetic

[@stephenwong9177]

Gaibon and Slogra in Castlevania Symphony of the Night. They were the first boss fight, but you then end up fighting them as regular enemies later in the game.

[@kay_faraday]

Was gonna suggest them but you beat me to it so I'm just gonna try to boost up your comment.

[@richardcaraballo1185]

Came here looking for this exact comment. One of my favorite games of all time.

[@GetterBurai]

Also the Minotaur and Werewolf from the Arena, the Library Demon, and the Karasuman/Malphas. Castlevania digs this bit.

[@skeletorgames8641]

@@GetterBurai technically the Minotaurs and werewolves are different enemies than the boss versions. Malphas was the same enemy, but Minotaur and werewolves were different

[@Bluesit32]

In fairness, they were already normal enemies from "Rondo of Blood". So they were given a brief promotion, then returned to mook rank.

[@acoupleofschoes]

Zelda games really like having mini-bosses become standard enemies later in the game, especially the 3D games: Moblins and Wizrobes in Windwaker, Darknuts in Windwaker and Twilight Princess, Stalfos in a few games.

[@TheManofBrisk]

There was also the Moldarach in Skyward Sword- one serves as the boss of the Lanayru Mines, then another appears later in the Sand Sea as a miniboss.

[@pennysantana247]

Don't forget the Lynels in BOTW, most people first encounter one during the Zora quest and after a while they become easier and easier to kill as you get better equipment. By the time you're likely to be ready to go and fight Ganon, you've probably upgraded the barbarian armor or have farmed Royal Broadswords or have even killed a bunch of them already. Hyrule Castle then has you fight multiple, one after another, on the way to the throne room.

[@jakejohnson718]

The pursuer in dark souls 2, although he's kind of a weird example, the purseur itself while being a boss can be encountered rather frequently through the game, even before you ever encounter him as a boss, and even weirder is how each regular enemy purseur is more of a miniboss rather than a regular enemy, as each occurence can only be fought once and he's normally found guarding random loot

[@electroshockgamer2733]

For me, the Crow Tengu from Okami come to mind. I'm not sure if they count as bosses, but I thought they did when the Cutters turned into them and you have to save the sparrow girl from them, and then they just turn up wherever from that point on

[@ianbramble8182]

The Ogre from Dragon Age Origins, the first time you fight it, it’s a proper, terrifying boss but later on, it’s a common bulky enemy that you can easily stomp on

[@DILFDylF]

I personally find the ogre from Shrek to be much more terrifying

[@lykonasher5439]

Great list. You should do one where the get demoted in the sequel. Like a boss in the first one an a sub boss or regular enemy in the sequel. Love your stuff

[@cherrydragon3120]

Lol yeah i mentioned that as well. Bosses in 1 game and in the sequel being put as a regular Joe

[@FatalMasamune]

How about the Chu Chu in The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap? Really more of a regular enemy turned boss, but it turns out these guys become much more threatening when you are 1/20th their size

[@jonathanschaffer2594]

I feel like a topic like that could be it’s own video. Regular enemies turned bosses would be pretty cool

[@LucaTheStar]

Also the giant octorok in the ice temple and the giant blue electrified chu chu in the "I forget where it was"

[@Sableagle]

The centaurs used to have a breath weapon like the Sheegoth but using it was making them a little hoarse.

[@werewolf3949]

Aaaayyy🎉

[@mrherc85]

90's Beat-em-ups had tons of such instances. The Golden Axe series comes to mind with earlier level bosses becoming regular enemies in later stages (sometimes palette-swapped).

[@cherrydragon3120]

Ah yes, i am familiar with that one. Loved the Knight being a hard bossfight. Then in front of the castle and the final level before the bossfights there are 2 of the bastards and they're so much easier

[@srgntpepper625]

Silent hill 3's second boss, missionary, is a great example of this. The creature responsible for your father's death that you fight on the rooftops, in the end multiple of them just roam the hallways of the final area. (Also happens in silent hill 2 with the abstract daddy fight)

[@jaredcrabb]

I think pyramid head might even count, as one time you fight 2 at the same time, and theyre wielding spears instead of the giant knife you stole.

[@DemstarAus]

​@@jaredcrabb fairly sure you can't kill it in Nowhere. And the spear ones are still a boss fight so I don't think it counts.

[@samusx2175]

@@DemstarAus And they end up killing one another^

[@Bluesit32]

You are also free to ignore the Missionaries.

[@Korvar]

I feel the classic example is the Baron Of Hell of the original Doom - you face two of them as the Boss Fight at the end of Knee-Deep in the Dead, the first episode. After that, they just show up as standard (if tough!) enemies. And they're even relegated to set dressing for the last level of Episode Two...

[@pvpeet9374]

The grafted scion from Elden Ring also fits this list. First it’s a hulking mass of arms and legs and once you encounter them later it’s basically a major annoyance.

[@clairesincar9562]

The strigga from Blood and Wine; the first special one is a boss, but by the end you are dealing with them fairly easily wihout too much trouble.

[@joenesvick7043]

There's a striga in Witcher III 😯, ran circles around the one in the first game until the sun came up, but then The Witcher 2 got to talked about Adda as if she's still alive (must import your save for the dialogue to be different). Always thought it was odd that Adda was dead in the default world state when the entire narration said Witchers prefer to lift curses

[@willieoelkers5568]

@@joenesvick7043 A lot of games that import saves will withhold some of the "good endings" from non-important worldstates to encourage people to buy the previous game(s).

[@j.a.weishaupt1748]

That sounds like a racist villain

[@Gatorade69]

Yo, that's their word.

[@ImperialWill421]

Zaghnol from FF9. You first face it as the boss of the Festival of the Hunt in Lindblum. Later, you face a giant antlion, and that boss becomes a regular enemy in the desert around Kuja's hidden palace. Both creatures are bosses in Disc One of the Mist Continent, but suffer demotions to everyday enemies on the Outer Continent in Disc Two and beyond.

[@Tminus31]

Yes, the world needs more FF9 love

[@marneus90]

I remember the Antlion is definitely in disc 2. It's first fought in Cleyra, which is after the first disc change at the end of Burmecia

[@ImperialWill421]

@@marneus90 Derp. Been too long. Last system I had was a PS3, I don't have it on Windows, and the PS3 died. Forgot Cleyra wasn't on Disc One aside from you being able to visit beforehand and unable to climb it.

[@blainy-o93]

Don't forget all 4 of the Chaos Guardians from Memoria. They become random encounters with less HP when you get to the Crystal World.

[@fatalwaffle1715]

Awesome video. The Stalfos in Ocarina of Time is another one of them. They were kind of a miniboss.

[@tjones9097]

Cerberus, malicious face, mind-flayer and the swordsmachine from ultrakill. After their first appearances, they become common enemies that appear multiple times per level.

[@galaxy-eyesgarchomp9478]

3:17 And he still dies anyway by violent hoof stomping. Now that was hilarious.

[@michaelandreipalon359]

Lara's face immediately afterwards helps.

[@galaxy-eyesgarchomp9478]

@@michaelandreipalon359 Indeed it does

[@galaxy-eyesgarchomp9478]

The Inferno Vanguard in Devil May Cry 3 is the first boss in the game. However, it is demoted to an enemy after that first encounter. Heck, when you go fight the Inferno Vanguard in the boss rush on mission 18, they put multiple enemies and have you fight two Inferno Vanguards to make it challenging for you.

[@19ryuusei]

Almost like you got stronger right? Why complain about this, if it's a first boss, it's just going to be used to scale you. Early on with next to no abilities/lvls, or experience against it, it's supposed ro be tough. But after unlocking a few things, lvling up, and fighting it a few times, it's easy.

[@galaxy-eyesgarchomp9478]

@@19ryuusei Thank you captain obvious for your brilliant observation. You just explained the whole point of this video. Also, in no way did my comment even imply that I was complaining about it. All I was doing was explaining the details of the Inferno Vanguard's demotion.

[@daviddaugherty2816]

I don't know, I still always hated those Grim Reaper-looking MF'ers.

[@galaxy-eyesgarchomp9478]

@@daviddaugherty2816 Personally, I quite enjoyed them as a first boss. They can be annoying as enemies, but there are far more annoying enemies in Devil May Cry 3.

[@psudodrake]

Knowing that the 2nd bloater is comming allows you to prepare for it. Chucking a bunch of shrapnel bombs up there for it to trigger right when it falls in, it dies instantly when it spawns.

[@FCGroningen1987]

Vampire Survivors is full of them. Tons of early bosses like the bats, mantis and werewolf and that is just the first stage. In fact, they don't just come back as regular enemies but fill entire screens with their quantity.

[@harrisonellis4904]

The Marauder from Doom Eternal - they don't get any easier but once you realize they are here to stay you learn to pop 'em early in the fight.

[@drakensong24]

I think the Taurus Demon in DS1 should have shared the spot with the Capra Demon, they even end up in the same(ish) place.

[@azuredragoon2054]

Seconding this comment.

[@kevinlopezobrien5366]

Probably saving that and the Moonlight Butterfly for the commenter edition

[@runicknight1151]

​@@kevinlopezobrien5366 I always forget Moonlight Butterfly comes back because I always sprint through the Crystal Cave

[@azuredragoon2054]

@@kevinlopezobrien5366 I still wouldn't call the Moonlight Butterfly a common enemy because the ones in the Crystal Cave aren't hostile. That and they're still tough to beat, even if you're facing them at a much higher level than you fought the first.

[@drakensong24]

Only reason I didn't add things like the moonlight butterfly, pinwheel, ect is because they all end up pretty far away from each other, meanwhile the Capra and taurus demons end up right next to each other

[@tomodaphne]

The first boss in Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope is called Giant Wildclaw. After you beat it, you’ll find smaller enemies just called Wildclaws, and the first time I saw them, I went into fight or flight remembering what I had gone through trying to beat the boss. What’s worse is that Pristine Peaks and Terra Flora have their own Wildclaw variants, so there’s no escape. You can also get a Spark that will let you summon Wildclaws to fight _for_ you, and then it’s like, “Aw yeah.”

[@daltigoth3970]

Andore (or Andre) from Final Fight should absolutely be on this list. The banshee from Mass Effect 3 and several other enemies from Bioware games could also be on this list.

[@TrashWaav]

I feel like you could do this entire list, plus a reversed one just off of Elden Ring enemies alone

[@Relkond]

Frankly, it’s a commonly used mechanic that lets the game creators reuse assets. In the horror genre, it can _seem_ to be especially effective, but meh.

[@alexoxotv]

The tutorial boss is literally just a guy💀

[@bustinarant]

​@@alexoxotvI laughed when they show that "guy" and didn't even try to dodge or fight. The horrible grafted scion right?

[@thesnep4757]

@@bustinarant Tutorial boss would be God of Rick, also known as Soldier of Godrick.

[@bustinarant]

@@thesnep4757 Oh wow, then yeah that guy was a joke. Thought you meant the terrible scion sent specifically to kill me for the crime of enjoying these games lol

[@StraightOuttaJarhois]

Slogra and Gaibon from Super Castlevania IV suffered the indignity of being demoted twice. In their original appearance they were some of the highest ranking bosses, coming just before Death and Dracula, and at least Slogra was a proper challenge. In their second game, Symphony of the Night, they were the very first boss you faced as Alucard, and a complete pushover. Then in a late-game area, they're just regular enemies who go down if you breathe on them and do single-digit damage.

[@keithwiechart7744]

I can’t believe you didn’t include the Iron Knuckle, the mini boss of the Spirit Temple in Ocarina of Time. Or the Darknut, the mini boss of the Temple of Time in Twilight Princess.

[@samusx2175]

Well the Iron Knuckle doesn't become a regular enemy. You just have to fight 2 of them later on.

[@tubensalat1453]

I can't believe it either. This should be complete anthology vids of all possible examples and not just a handful of entries.

[@tomas_iss7469]

Those are minibosses, but while we’re in the topic of Zelda I also thought of that scorpion boss in Skyward sword that you fight as a mini boss later while on your way to that ship in the desert

[@bradstrife2211]

The Hell Vanguard in DMC3 was a fun one, has a great scream to announce itself and becomes more and more common as a regular enemy in higher difficulties.

[@Benjamin1986980]

What about the jellyfish from Prey 2006. For half the game it was treated as this massive threat and one of the leaders of the alien Armada. Then you beat it in a massive boss fight. The very next level features dozens of them. You also get a new powerful upgrade to your gun, but it is part of the story to show just how little you are in comparison, and how the villains are letting you win

[@kingspilly4381]

In the original Castlevania, the giant bat, which was the boss of the first level, becomes a recurring enemy in the final level.

[@samusx2175]

That you can mostly just avoid on the falling bridge.

[@jimmyjackson6668]

That's how Maximum Carnage (and some other games) works, there's the guys with the umbrellas and the big guys with the clubs for example. They all come back as normal encounters after being bosses. Its just to introduce a new enemy type.

[@Nova_Ghost_Gamer]

If you ever do a commenter's version of this, may I mention the reaper leviathans are SCARY at first, but after killing one in subnautica, you feel VERY confident as to what you can take on next. At least you only have to kill these mini bosses once to keep them at bay

[@jongofett]

A few more! Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order - both the KX Security droids and the AT-STs could count! Back to Bloodborne - the Shadows of Yharnam reappear later in the main game

[@tyranitararmaldo]

What about Moblins from The Legend of Zelda the Wind Waker? They are bosses in the Dragon Roost Temple, but are reduced to standard enemies in later encounters like the Earth Temple.

[@Sailor_alan]

Love this style of content. Your humour always comes across so well.

[@enderhx]

I love Ellen's puns 😂

[@heruswillyan3423]

I'd also include the Guardian Dragon from Dark Souls 2 (original version). You fight him as a boss in Aldia's Keep, and I struggled a lot... Just to take an elevator after his room and find myself at Dragon Aerie having to fight what felt like three hundred Guardian Dragons.

[@joshjohnson6891]

This happened in Final Fight, Streets of Rage and a few other beat-em-ups! The OG Doom, all of the bosses of each chapter ended up being fodder to Doom Guy until he meets Icon of Sin in Doom 2.

[@breakingqueengrace]

One of the first times I ever noticed this was actually across multiple games in a series. In Sonic Adventure 2 Battle, the first boss is a really big G.U.N. mech who takes quite a bit of time to defeat as a newcomer to the game. Then that exact same model of mech is littered all throughout some levels of Shadow the Hedgehog as basic enemies, easily brought down in only a few hits.

[@YeOldEntertainment]

The Doom Hunter in Doom Eternal. Though I feel he is equally hard every time you face him!

[@supportarts6152]

oh it's you! You've mentioned doom before, have you considered making a video about it?

[@kjm4721]

If we're not looking at the same stats as the boss, then two comes to mind: -If memory serves right, in first Final Fantasy game your path gets blocked by a boss Vampire who later became a common mob that comes at you in groups but can be easy-ish (depends on your grind I suppose) deafeated -In a souls-like metroidvania Death's Gambit, the second boss - Owlking - appeares in later location, namely Amulvaro's Observatory, as a common enemy, that can be spawned even more times by things there. Yeah, it's smaller than boss version, but moveset stays the same. It might still be a challenge if you have to fight it alongside other enemy at the same time, but it shouldn't stay hard for long

[@Herowebcomics]

"Why did i just die?!"🤣 That has to be one of the most hilarious things in video games!🤣

[@thenagito]

Ah, I remember the days of the terrifying Behemoth from Kingdom Hearts. How it could nearly one-shot you with its lightning attack and crush you every other second! ...That was, until players realized you could just climb up onto its back and only get out of dodge when it does the lightning move. Needless to say, the developers realized it too, and started shoving into most of the final late-game gauntlets as something of a godsent easy wave to give you a reprieve from everything else.

[@talionbaratheon]

If we're doing FromSoft bosses, Taurus Demon (DS1), Bell Gargoyle (DS1), Moonlight Butterfly (DS1), Dragonslayer Armor (DS3), Crystal Sage (DS3), and Shadows of Yharnam (Bloodborne) get demoted as well. You could make an argument that the Asylum Demon got demoted all the way to a non-boss enemy in DS3 in the form of the Stray Demon, too.

[@Michael_Lindell]

"I've heard Samus changed her look. She now wears black and she dyed her hair. Plus she fought an ice reptile." "Really?" "Yeah, Sheegoth."

[@galaxy-eyesgarchomp9478]

6 out of 10 pun. Too much build up for the punchline.

[@maxvel0city906]

Boo!!!!😂

[@MoonlightStrider]

BOOO!! (That was actually well done on the groan scale)

[@jaredcrabb]

Took me a few seconds to get that.

[@arkbuble]

Barons of Hell in the original Doom. Two of them were the bosses in episode 1 where your best weapon was the rocket launcher, then they become regulars with the plasma gun or the bfg destroying them.

[@thumper5555]

Big Ben from the Streets of Rage series. He slaps you silly and blows fire at you and then has the nerve to come back in later levels with friends.

[@Szymtraction]

What about Doom Eternal? The Marauder and Doom Hunter just started randomly appearing Average gamers worst nightmare!

[@MistsMagic]

How could you forget The Butcher from Diablo 1? The early level boss that yelled "AH! FRESH MEAT!" then killed you multiple times before you could beat him. Then you ran into hordes of them a few floors down!

[@daviddaugherty2816]

Even just reading the "fresh meat" line made me hear it again and sent a chill down my spine.

[@MistsMagic]

@@daviddaugherty2816 EXACTLY!

[@Bluesit32]

Those aren't Butchers. They're Overlords. They lack the cleaver needed to be as dangerous as The Butcher. They're a sturdy bunch, but they have a slow attack speed.

[@MistsMagic]

@@Bluesit32 they're just weaker versions of the Butcher.

[@grammarcop9362]

Lynels in Breath of the Wild were one of the first ones I thought of. The Ploymus Mountain one was as scary as any Guardian my first time, but they become a total pushover after a while.

[@thrilleex]

I'd make a case for Metal Gear Ray in MG: SoL, you don't get him as a stand alone boss, but sure it is presented as a fearsome enemy, a killing nuclear machine, a better version of Rex (which you do fight as a boss on the previous game), but then you get near the end of the game and you drop them easily by the dozens, making the Ray unit look as a very weak machine.

[@Jonathon_Hennessey]

in Doom Eternal the Doom Hunter and the Marauder appear as the boss of the Doom Hunter Base and ARC complex levels. After that they reappear in some of the game's later levels as a normal enemy.

[@NoMoreCrumbs]

The bird boss from Pikmin comes back as a regular enemy in later levels

[@manamaster6]

The first one that came to mind was the beetle mecha thingy from Baten Kaitos, it was a formidable boss at the beginning and then it was a regular enemy.

[@Bruno32211]

Have always loved y’all’s content, cures insane amounts of boredom every time I watch a vid. Also, an example I know of is mezuki from nioh 2. Boss of the first stage originally, ( with a banger theme btw) but was later majorly reduced to being a normal enemy in not one, but like half of the main missions. On top of that, he’s not even the main threat for most of his appearances after the boss fight

[@AngelBeatYunara]

Yesss, the centaur of attention pun! As for ex-bosses... the Executioner's Chariot in Dark Souls 2's Huntsman's Copse area gallops to mind. You'll find a non-boss one later in Drangleic Castle.

[@astralskye7868]

Grafted Scion in Elden Ring. The first thing you face and appears in various places later. But would that count as a normal enemy? Oh the knight guy you have to beat in the tutorial. I don’t recall his name since he’s pretty easy to beat.

[@MinorZero]

That tutorial one is more of an inverse, a normal enemy that has been given boss status so you learn how a boss fight works

[@synthraofficial5366]

Blood Starved Beast is also in the chalice dungeons. Several of them. I fought it at least 2-3 times down there, I think in Hintertomb and the regular story dungeons. It even has a poisoned arena down there, too! And that was just the non randomized dungeons!

[@GildedBird]

The Doom Hunter: you spend a whole level watching them build the "boss" and then they just show up everywhere after.

[@bombiegaming]

On the topic of Dark Souls 1, Pinwheel! Capra and Taurus Demon at least have like half the game until they become regular enemies, but Pinwheel is demoted to a common enemy in the very next area.

[@Zenlore6499]

I’m gonna say… Doom’s Cyberdemons turning into the squishier Tyrant, and if we want another example across multiple games, Crash Bandicoot The Wrath of Cortex features older bosses as easily avoidable level obstacles.

[@bakura131313]

Hades, the Inferno-Bomber. In the first playthrough of the game, a pair of them are the first boss event you encounter, and often most people's first death due to their very high hp compared to other enemies, unusual moveset, and area of effect attacks. Kill them, then go fight the real boss of the level, and you'll find that the next stage of the game features them by the dozens, in every room, with just as much hp and hitting just as hard. A suped up variant of them can also spawn as allies to the final boss.

[@donaldgearhart9013]

Banshees from Mass Effect 3, that intro to them was super hard and terrifying then became standard

[@jamesbrice3267]

Omega from Final Fantasy X in X-2. Still a tough random encounter I ran away from but not a boss.

[@maxvel0city906]

I don't know what series Ellen's t-shirt refers to, but it looks really cool.👍💜 Anyone know what it is?

[@Baggytrousers27]

There's always the Hell Vanguards from DMC 3. Your first boss battle against one ends with it flying away, getting jobbed in a cutscene and suddenly they're just an occasional nuisance

[@BuildinWings]

THANK YOU for including a 90s sidescrolling beatemup. Such an overlooked genre.

[@3ggztr3m3b33tz]

Ultrakill has the Malicious Face and Cerberus, both of whom turn into usual enemies after the first encounter. Don't get any easier though.

[@aenguswright7336]

Its a little different, but the Legend of Zelda has many sub-bosses which get demoted to normies. The best example I can think of being the darknuts in Wind Waker, but there is also the Moldarach which is a boss which gets demoted to a mere subboss later on in Skyward Sword

[@DivinityFallen]

I’ve been watching outside Xbox since y’all first started in like 2011/12 and yes you’ve been doing it for a long time and I appreciate you guys

[@bellarmire]

In Metroid Dread you have the Robot Chozo Soldiers. Okay, they're never complete pushovers (at least until the very end of the game), but the first one gets so much build up and is a major ramp up in difficulty, then later they can turn up as minibosses or you can even fight two at once.

[@DILFDylF]

Robot Chicken soldiers? Pfft yeah, whatever you say dude

[@arkbuble]

In Dragon Quest I (Dragon Warrior in usa) the Green Dragon guarding the princess is delegated to a normal enemy later and worse than that in the final dungeon there are stronger versions of it (palette swaps)

[@jonahfalcon1970]

Mass Effect 1. The Geth Colossus. Goes from a boss fight to getting knocked over by the Mako.

[@jaredcrabb]

Wasnt that actually just an armature? Gets dragged around even more by the Mako.

[@jonahfalcon1970]

So do Colossi.

[@jaredcrabb]

@@jonahfalcon1970 Collosi dont get dragged as much though sadly. But I think theyre actually bigger than the Mako, so dragging them at all is impressive.

[@SapphireDragon357]

The funniest thing about Lizzy and Dana is that if you do the dual-web attack to two enemies at full health, they're defeated instantly. So you just hang out on the wall until both Lizzy and Dana spawn, drop down between the two and beat them in one move (if you're lucky, since you couldn't actually control the dual-web attack...)

[@tomasserra5690]

When I saw the title of the video I thought “oh the Emperor Bulblax must be there”, and I got disappointed to not see hin in the list, he was the final boss in Pikmin 1, then turned into a regular boss in Pikmin 2 and now in Pikmin 4 is a regular enemy

[@ShiranuiLoki]

Elden Ring: Soldier of Goddrick and Grafted Scion. Both are demoted to common enemies pretty fast in game.

[@bombiegaming]

I will never forget what they did to my boy Rick. They did him dirty.

[@jamesaditya5254]

you forgot about BofA as well

[@JoshTigerheart]

Geodude and Onix from Pokemon Red and Blue. The first gym leader sends them out as bosses and, if you're a kid playing your first Pokemon game or even RPG like a lot of us playing on the game's release, they can actually be a little rough, especially if you didn't level up enough for your starter's elemental move. However, later in the games, there's caves full of both pokemon.

[@cherrydragon3120]

Ah yes brock is a tough first Gym leader, having High defense pokémon is hard if you got a charmander

[@JoshTigerheart]

@@cherrydragon3120 Also worth noting that Bulbasaur in Gen I doesn't learn Vine Whip until *level 13* which, even if you only solo with Bulba to that point, not sure you can reach without grinding. Meanwhile, Squirtle is better off but Bubble is only a measly 20 BP in Gen I and Water Gun isn't until level 15, so Squirtle can't even reliably 3-shot Onix without level grinding.

[@SerathDarklands]

Gotta mention Doom Eternal - the Marauder. Shows up as the boss of the end of a mid-game level, then returns several times to pressure the player. In The Ancient Gods, you even encounter two at once. Also, love the shirt, Ellen.

[@nyperold7530]

A couple of other bosses in Metroid Prime have this done to them: depending on what you consider a boss, there's the lowly Plated Beetle, who once guarded the Morph Ball, but then replaces the appearance of a few regular Beetles in the Chozo Ruins' Main Plaza, where you can test the effects of various beams on its bum whenever you pass through; the Chozo Ghosts start haunting several locations after you beat them a couple of times, but you don't even have to fight them in some (many has been the time when I just hopped through the Arboretum, not even stopping to acknowledge them); but yeah, the Sheegoth is probably the most imposing when you first fight her.

[@ixgamerfxi1538]

There's multiple bosses that got demoted to enemies in doom eternal. I can't exactly remember them, but I'm pretty positive. Also one or two bosses in the first ever doom that got demoted

[@Cunnysmythe]

The Barons of Hell from episode 1 and Cyberdemon from episode 2 became regular enemies but their abilities weren't nerfed