Open world games, by their very nature, generally tend to cast a wide net where approachability and challenge are concerned, and even within a single game, you can have significantly different experiences from moment to moment or area to area. A byproduct of that, of course, is areas that are much more challenging than most other parts of the game, ones that stand out in memory based on the difficulty they offer. Here, we’re going to talk about a few such examples.
NOTE: There are spoilers ahead for all games mentioned in this feature.
HALIFTREE (ELDEN RING)
It wouldn’t be entirely inaccurate to say that Elden Ring’s Haligtree is probably the first name that comes to mind for a feature like this but there’s no denying that this is easily one of more brutal areas in a game that’s by no means lacking in challenge as it is. Unpredictable enemy placements, enemy types that can easily one-shot you, the looming threat of deadly status ailments, tricky movement and platforming challenges.
