How Elden Ring Bosses Became Acrobats: FromSoft Combat Evolution Part 3

My third installment of the combat evolution series focuses on the unique movements found more frequently in Elden Ring's boss roster than in those of previous FromSoftware games. Hope you enjoy!
#gaming #darksouls3 #eldenring #sekiro #gaminganalysis #fromsoftware

[@jermergerg]

If you like this kind of video, consider checking out my other analysis videos and subscribing to my channel. Thanks!

[@eldenlord5209]

Something I realy like is how some mini bosses in Elden ring have 2 phases It make the bosses very Replayble

[@HeyTarnished]

Great video! I hate it when people sometimes see bosses move erratically with very unique & more involved movesets in Elden Ring, they confuse them with "it's just spectacle" while ignoring the incredibly complex & how well-designed they are in general compared to DS3.

[@jermergerg]

Thanks for the kind words! I love both the games, so I'm always down to explore their awesome bosses :)

[@aayushdasgupta9754]

Exactly, I genuinely appreciate the bosses in DS3 for having one of the easier to learn set of moves for a new solo player, but I also appreciate the complexity of movesets in ER, that can spice things up for veterans while having sufficient accessibility options for players new to the series. Iirc people also shit on Sekiro initially, since they were thrown off. Idc I love all FS games, and will love them in the foreseeable future.

[@HeyTarnished]

@@aayushdasgupta9754 I agree a 100% with this.

[@austin0_bandit05]

Its also a way of resetting the fight back into a neutral state when they leap away. Gives the player breathing room and allows the boss to showcase their ranged and gap-closer attacks as well

[@x___________________]

I feel like elden ring needed another way of negating attacks like in sekiro. In sekiro defense is an offense so when a sekiro boss goes aggressive and does a combo it’s a perfect time to deflect but in elden ring you can either perfectly dodge a 8 move combo or trade damage. Elden ring asks for too much it feels like we need atleast a sidestep that enables you to do something while a boss is going crazy

[@sutarn_gamer4159]

Which attacks are you talking about? The only attacks which are 8-combo attacks are the one from Morgott and the one from Godfrey phase 2. And your supposed to get around to their backside or run away. So what 8-combo attacks are you talking about?

[@x___________________]

@@sutarn_gamer4159 it was more of a exaggeration but most bosses have a big combo that they spam and having another form of movement would’ve added more complexity to the fight and would’ve been way more fun like in bloodborne

[@ni9274]

Long combo do not happen that often in Elden Ring, and most long combo have openings, like all the crazy Morgott combo can be strafed or spaced and leave you enough time for a fully charged R2, this require good spacing and precise timing. If you try to find these openings instead of waiting out combos I'm sure you won't find it boring anymore.

[@elliottvantonder5477]

I think that the genesis of this type of movement is Artorias from DS1's DLC. His very first attack is this kind of gap closer. Following from there, Bloodborne is filled with these kinds of attacks. To me it seems like an attempt to capture the frenetic kineticism of certain Berserk panels, as many of these moves seem to draw inspiration directly from the manga. Elden Ring seems to employ it so heavily because ashes of war give players similar attacks to keep up.

[@jermergerg]

Interesting ideas here. I definitely should have covered BB more. I'm not sure I agree that there are a ton of enemies that fully use this kind of move, but I can definitely think of at least a few!

[@elliottvantonder5477]

@@jermergerg I think the earlier examples from Artorias to Gherman were more like experiments leading up to the Abyss Watchers and then Sekiro, etc. it seems like it has been a constant effort to bring these moves to life in a fun and balanced form.

[@jermergerg]

@@elliottvantonder5477 totally agree! excellent insights, thanks for your comments and for watching!

[@ni9274]

It has more to do with souls players getting better at souls games, if they made the bosses like Dark souls 3 many players would have complained about the game being too easy

[@roundninja]

Yeah, the Dark Souls 1 DLC was definitely a turning point. Before that, many bosses were heavy and lumbering, but afterwards, even the biggest bosses started leaping and spinning around. Then the removal of shields from Bloodborne really solidified the turn to acrobatic combat. Personally I actually miss the old DS1 heavy, clunky gameplay, because it feels more realistic/immersive to me, but by this point From is kinda known for fast agile combat and a lot of people would be disappointed if they reversed course.

[@ryandavid1277]

The combat summed up: Dodge roll simulator

[@danielhenington9476]

Very pleasant watch! Nice to see some well constructed Elden Ring analysis on youtube.

[@D0verking69]

What is your opinion on Morgott, he is one of my favorite fights in Souls games

[@jermergerg]

Love him!

[@BBQcheese]

You have good taste, Morgott is excellent!

[@rigorm136]

He has too little health to be considered a threat outside of challenge runs

[@D0verking69]

@@rigorm136 I know it’s such a shame, I usually use a weak weapon to give him a chance and I have a blast doing it

[@clankymocha]

Finally, good boss opinions

[@austin0_bandit05]

I find this particular essay a bit... disjointed? Like you've identified a few valid characteristics of From's boss design but somewhat conflated them. You lost me a little towards the end. I think your initial premise about boss acrobatics bleeds into other principles like the NPCs "personality". Personality, meaning how their moveset is justified and communicated to the player. I.e. in Lies of P I expect robots to move like robots and anticipate attacks being janky and rigid. You allude to this with Margit's "big guy with hammer" slam attack. The sort of archetpye of big brutish weapons and enemies being slow. I think you've realized something that few do: how the acrobatics and fluid movements of the bosses justify and communicate the different sort of attacks they can do. In other words zombies "shamble", brutes "smash", ninjas "flip", fencers "dance", etc. You're premise seems to be that the fluid movements of the bosses sufficiently communicates and justifies the carried momentum of their attacks in a way that is intuitive. Expressed as acrobatics. I think the best example you cite is the corrupted Monk. Describing her as flowing as if through water is a very succinct way to describe her. Her movements are logically consistent. She has delayed attacks while creating a flow state unique to her. Would you ever consider doing a video about the shortcomings of their design philosophy? Or about how they might evolve from here? Or about how they might hone the existing design philosophy in Elden Ring? I know its dangerous territory given the fanbase

[@jermergerg]

Well I guess it wasn't my intention to conflate them, but rather to put them in relation to one another. Can't hit it out of the park on every video tho!

[@austin0_bandit05]

@@jermergerg You did hit it out of the park tho

[@ni9274]

Margit archetype is an extremely skilled and powerful warrior, it's also established in the first cutscene that he's "acrobatic" when he effortlessly jump from the tower to the boss arena. "In other words zombies "shamble", brutes "smash", ninjas "flip", fencers "dance", etc." That's a very binary and rigid, you can have more complex characters that will evoke more complex moveset archetype, like in good zombie games there are usually very fast zombie, very slow zombie, one that can jumps. I don't see why a boss wouldn't be able to use a big hammer and be fast if that result in good gameplay and fit their character. Every single boss in Sekiro has delayed attacks, they're an essential element to give depth to the combat and do not have to fit the characterization of the boss. What matter is the different type of delayed attack and how they are animated. Most of the enemies and bosses that use acrobatics in ER have a design and characterization that fit well with it

[@austin0_bandit05]

@@ni9274 I think you misunderstand me. Im not saying something can only be one thing. I only used the zombie/brute/ninja analogy to illustrate the concept in a very simple way. Indeed, Margit exudes both power and agility. And is actually a brilliant example. He communicates both without being jarring. Another example would be the bloodhound who is both bestial but also somewhat human. That and also his exaggerated lanky form justify his clambering and leaping attacks not unlike a hybrid between a dog and a man. Edit: I would also add that the different weapons Margit uses can be seen as extensions of him giving his moveset more versatility. All of his hammer attacks are hefty and impactful, his dagger attacks are lightning quick, and his sword/staff are somewhere in between.

[@austin0_bandit05]

@@ni9274 Also, in regards to the bit about zombies. I didnt say that zombies can only shamble. And it's a bit of a false equivalency. Walking Dead zombies shamble and World War Z zombies run fast as fuck. And both have games made of them. But that isnt my point. My point is that you have to insert a line of logic into their design. The fast "runner" zombies tend to be small, slow "brute" zombies are large and bloated, etc. In Mario some turtles have spiky shells and will hurt you if you jump on them, others dont have spikes and can be jumped on. Its all about communication with the player and being consistent to that logic

[@gamezharks]

I don't mind more bosses being big bombastic and acrobatic, but I think none of them will feel as special as when Artorias started whipping out the frontflips and spinning slashes after an entire game where none of the bosses had anything even close to that.

[@Arfadoz]

It helps to make their movesets more unique and each attack instantly recognizable. In past games, humanoid bosses tended to have overlapping attacks between each other, since the animations were more basic and that resulted in attacks looking very similar (and Fromsoft obsession with making most bosses have greatswords didn't help either).

[@King55584]

I totally agree i would also say bloodborne did a pretty good job at it also with many bosses like the first hunter you encounter as a beast (i forgot his name)

[@jamesarthurkimbell]

I like these moves when they make the fight more consistent. Like with O'Rin, it doesn't really matter if you stand at a different distance or angle, you're getting the same experience anyway, because she's gonna glide over to the right spot.

[@jermergerg]

Such a good point! Wish I had thought of that haha!

[@thejake1526]

Jesus ur choice is words is soo good. Ur a really good writer.

[@jermergerg]

Thank you!

[@kurenian]

Nice. I feel about these moves the same way I feel about combos or IIAs, where they add strategy/memorization to a fight versus just reaction time. Just as Quelaag imho has the first real combos. Abyss Watchers have the first real acrobatic glides in an early game boss form.

[@ricardofonseca2165]

The only part i dislike about jumping attacks is the weird delay some have, im not a big fan of a boss pulling back an attack for a full second

[@ni9274]

Delay of a full second are present in every single souls game and in every single bosses, it's really not that long If there wasn't any delay it would just be a test of timing, with a delay it test your ability to not panick roll, your ability to understand that the attack is delayed and your ability to react to the release of the delayed attack.