It goes without saying that FromSoftware would’ve never reached the heights it has without Dark Souls, which is easily one of the most important titles to have ever released in the history of gaming. One need only look at the sheer number of Soulslikes that have come out post-Dark Souls to understand why this is the case, with a fair number of AAA titles also trying to emulate what made this title great in the first place.
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Difficulty is certainly an inevitable part of the conversation when one talks about Dark Souls, with enemy placements and the like being dissected by many gamers who try to figure out what separates this title from the rest of the AAA industry and their bog-standard challenge. Ambushes should definitely be taken into context in this regard, with Dark Souls featuring 10 particular encounters that will surely take any new player by surprise.
10 The Skeletons En Route To The Catacombs
The first mistake that most players will make after reaching Firelink Shrine is prematurely heading towards the Catacombs, as this seems like the most obvious route to take. However, these players will be in for quite a rude awakening when the regenerating Skeletons hit them for tons of damage and show no signs of stopping their attacks.
Players will need to progress a fair ways into the game and attain a divine weapon before even thinking of venturing into the Catacombs. Before that, the only reason to even explore this area would be to make a run for it and get the Zweihander weapon.
9 The Appearance Of The Second Bell Gargoyle
The Bell Gargoyle is definitely a tough fight, but players can definitely get used to fighting the first gargoyle… before the second one decides to make an entry that most people would not really appreciate at all.
What proceeds is an absolute mauling of the player, who needs to manage both these enemies if they wish to stand even the smallest chance of winning this encounter.
8 Encountering The Black Knight At The Top Of A Random Tower In The Undead Parish
The Undead Parish is the starting area of the game, and players would obviously expect to only deal with enemies that would be scaled to their level.
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So the mere idea of climbing an innocuous tower, only to be greeted by the blade of a powerful Black Knight, can prove to quite a daunting experience indeed.
7 The Blowdart Snipers In Blighttown
The poison-infested area of Blighttown is easily one of the worst in the entire game. This is further exacerbated by these annoying enemies that cause players to go Toxic.
This status is extremely damaging and can lead to a player’s death if they don’t take care of this status effect post-haste.
6 Avoiding Numerous Traps In Sen’s Fortress
While qualifying traps as an ambush might seem like a bit much, one can’t deny that every encounter with a trap in Sen’s Fortress feels extremely nerve-wracking, especially given the enemies that are present all over the map.
The worst part is that getting knocked over any one of these traps can lead to your death — even if you managed to survive the fall.
5 The Titanite Demons At The Base Of The Fortress
While one might breathe a sigh of relief upon realizing that they didn’t die upon falling to the very base of Sen’s Fortress, their troubles are far from over.
Moving around in this sludge-filled level of the area is bad enough, but what makes this even worse is the fact that the bottom of Sen’s Fortress is full to the brim with Titanite Demons. A player who is not prepared to fight these enemies with their movement handicap will surely see the “You Died” screen sooner rather than later.
4 The Mimics Scattered Throughout The Game
Dark Souls made the idea of opening chests a dangerous prospect, and this is mainly due to the various Mimics present all over the game.
Players need to be extremely wary before even thinking of opening a single chest since one wrong move will definitely lead to a game over as the Mimic chews all of their hit points.
3 The Infamous Anor Londo Archers
It would be impossible to talk about surprise encounters in Dark Souls without mentioning the infamous Anor Londo archers, who can completely halt a player’s progress in one fell swoop.
Their massive arrows can make any player lose their footing, and gamers need to be quick if they wish to eliminate the threat of these archers for good.
2 The Capra Demon Boss Fight Is Just An Elaborate Ambush
The absolute ridiculousness of the Capra Demon boss fight is definitely an infamous Dark Souls ambush.
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Not only is the boss area ridiculously small, but the fight starts off with two dogs trying their best to chomp the player’s face off before the Capra Demon comes in with a powerful attack that can destroy the player in one go.
Players need to time their dodges to near perfection and take care of the two dogs as soon as possible before even trying to deal with the Capra Demon himself.
1 Falling Into The Lair Of The Basilisks
The Basilisks are easily one of the worst enemies in Dark Souls, even though they only appear in one part of the game. However, this part in itself can prove to be such a massive pain that most players would recommend just ignoring this area and its enemies altogether.
The main reason why these Basilisks are so feared is due to the Cursed status that it can inflict on enemies. One wrong move and the player will be forced to deal with a halved health bar as they try their hardest to remove this horrible status.
NEXT: Dark Souls 4: 5 Reasons We Need It (& 5 We Don’t)
