The Witcher 3 – Hearts Of Stone

The Witcher 3 is a massive game that’s brimming with quality content that would keep one engaged for hours on end, but playing the base game alone isn’t the complete experience. Both of the game’s post-launch expansions including Hearts of Stone are equally good in their own right, but we are going with the latter of the DLCs for this list simply because of the fantastic story. Set in an entirely new section of the map called No Man’s Land, Hearts of Stone is all about Geralt trying to defeat the immortal Olgierd von Everec. Hearts of Stone also introduces new Monsters, side quests, and new combat mechanics like Runewords which come together to make this expansion a surprisingly fresh experience that’s unmissable for fans of The Witcher.

Warning: There are spoilers ahead.

Queen Sigrun – God of War

In the newest God of War game we find Queen Sigurn, Queen of the Valkyries, as an incredibly difficult foe to defeat. She is only available to fight after defeating the other eight Valkyries, itself an optional sidequest. Expect a long struggle when fighting aginst Sigrun, and the mastery of game mechanics including parrying and dodging will be essential for victory! She keeps herself at range. In winning this fight, pattern recognition will be key, as she also retains attack patterns from the previous Valkyries.

A note before we begin, though, given just how many dragons we’ve all fought in games over the years, we can’t possibly include all the best ones in one single feature (unless we make a Top 100 list), so obviously, there are going to be plenty of excellent dragon boss fights that won’t be featured here. So sound off in the comments section below if your favourites didn’t make it in. Also, this list is in random order, so do keep that in mind as well.

With that out of the way, let’s begin!

DEATHWING (WORLD OF WARCRAFT: CATACLYSM)

There is a rich, captivating background of lore surrounding Deathwing, and if you ever find the time, it’s completely worth it to get lost in its numerous pages. But we’re here to talk about the boss fight itself, and that, too, is a very memorable encounter. Though this beast has appeared in the Warcraft series numerous times, we’re talking about its Wold of Warcraft: Cataclysm appearance specifically. Being the final boss fight of the expansion, expectations surrounding the encounter would certainly be high, and it’s fair to say that it doesn’t disappoint.

Dark Samus (Hypermode) – Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

Dark Samus can be quite the annoyance when you’re trying to wrap up Samus’s latest adventure. However, play on Hypermode and it’s a whole other ball game. Her attacks can be difficult to dodge, she dishes them out frequently and you then have to deal with another boss right after. Suffice to say, you better know what you’re doing when fighting her.

Nominees:

Horizon: Zero Dawn – The Frozen Wilds

Aloy’s adventure through the grand post-apocalyptic world of Horizon: Zero Dawn was full of beautiful landscapes, intense mystery and awkward sessions of arrow-flinging at rampaging robot animals. The Frozen Wilds delivers much of the same action, adding new intense beasts that are even more vicious, new weapons and gear, a heaping helping of side quests and a new story. This also takes place across the new northern wild lands area which looks downright incredible. While The Frozen Wilds won’t answer every single question you might have from the base game, it’s still a fun romp through a gorgeous open world that’s well worth the 10 or so hours it takes to beat everything.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Champion’s Ballad

Is the Champion’s Ballad the big story expansion that Breath of the Wild fans were hoping for? No, but it does offer a ton of new content with brief plot points calling back to the fabled Champions, new shrines, new bosses and even a sweet new motorcycle. Of course, there are other end-game challenges like having a weapon that one hit kills enemies but being susceptible to one hit kills yourself. It’s an invigorating challenge and a reason to dump several more hours into the large open world of Hyrule…even if there are still a bunch of mysteries to solve.

Dota 2: Dueling Fates

Valve Corporation has had a phenomenal year with Dota 2. The International saw its biggest prize pool in history with over $24 million in prizes. The game itself played host to a number of updates like the co-op campaign Siltbreaker but Dueling Fates is the one that deserves the most spotlight. It added two new heroes to the mix with Pangolier and Dark Willow and completely changed how MMR works for both ranked and unranked play (with ranked seasons now lasting six months). New hero guides have been implemented to help players find the build that suits them best. Then there’s Turbo Mode, a lightning fast, Arcade-like mode where Gold and XP flow more freely, respawn times are lowered and the action is quicker. In terms of just making the game more fun, Dota 2’s Dueling Fates is a great addition to the base game.

Warframe: Plains of Eidolon

It was the biggest update yet for Digital Extremes’ Warframe but also it’s most ambitious. After years of tight corridors and static objectives on each map, Warframe was going open world. The initial launch was a lot less ideal than many would have liked with economy issues, glitches, weird design choices and much more. However, the developer has refined the Plains of Eidolon to make its new Bounty System more rewarding and the overall quality of life more engaging. All that aside, the basic tenets of the Plains, from mining and fishing to battling enormous Eidolons, were still tons of fun. Gara may need a little more balancing and Focus 2.5 is only now getting the system on track but Plains of Eidolon is a worthy addition to one of the best free to play games yet.

Path of Exile: Fall of Oriath

Over the years, many games like Warframe and Dota 2 have been held as sterling examples of free to play gaming. However, nearly everyone seems to agree that Path of Exile is at the very top and perhaps the best Diablo-style action RPG currently available. In 2017, this was cemented further as the developer introduced Fall of Oriath. It added six new story acts with new locations and enemies, new gems and weapons, and the new Pantheon system for additional player powers. The fact that Grinding Gear Games added even more with War of the Atlas, significantly revamping the end-game maps system, goes to show how great Path of Exile is to its community.

Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City

Ashes of Ariandel wasn’t the best DLC for Dark Souls 3, especially with all the focus on PvP. The Ringed City made up for that immensely by introducing new lands to explore (including the ominous city in its name), new weapons and armour, and of course, new enemies to battle. The DLC also brought us several awesome boss fights. In fact, Darkeater Midr and Slave Knight Gael remain two of the best and most difficult boss battles in the game yet. The grim fantasy of Dark Souls 3 has always enticed us and The Ringed City leveraged that for an unforgettable last romp into misery.

Darkest Dungeon: The Crimson Court

If the level of depravity in Dark Souls isn’t enough for you, then Darkest Dungeon will satisfy that itch. This year saw The Crimson Court come into being with a new dungeon, a brand new faction of grotesque nightmares to fight, five new bosses,10 new buildings for upgrades and trinket sets for heroes offering their own set bonuses. Who are the Ancestors exactly? What is this new faction? How many more heroes will you send to die? The Crimson Court rekindled all of those burning questions for us.

Grim Dawn: Ashes of Malmouth

This seemed to be the year of “Diablo-like action RPGs that deliver way more value than Diablo”. Grim Dawn’s Ashes of Malmouth introduced its own version of the Necromancer but threw in the long-ranged, spell-wielding Inquisitor as well. This brought the game’s Masteries up significantly but we also received an increased level cap, two new story chapters spread across huge new areas, four new factions, hundreds of new items and much more. That’s only scratching the surface though and it’s crazy that Crate Entertainment offers so much for such a low price.

XCOM 2: War of the Chosen

Firaxis Games’ XCOM 2 was one of the best games of last year but War of the Chosen makes it even better. It adds the Chosen, three new enemies that can interfere in your battles, and three new factions complete with hero classes to fight them. Players will also have new environments to explore complete with new mission types, enemies, and new orders for fighting against the Chosen. You can even have certain soldiers bond to activate new abilities, add modifiers for more challenging missions or partake in community challenges for a chance at the leaderboards.

Final Fantasy 14: Stormblood

Continuing its epic saga, Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn got even bigger with Stormblood which added huge new lands to explore, two new jobs, a number of battle system changes, and two new raids, one of them taking players back to Ivalice. Of course, you also have a new level cap to grind towards, new story missions and adventures, new gear and a number of exploration options like swimming and diving. Despite a bumpy launch, Final Fantasy 14: Stormblood continues the MMO’s claim as one of the best of all time.

Winner: Path of Exile – Fall of Oriath

Grinding Gear Games has been a fairly humble developer. When Path of Exile first arrived in 2013, it was lauded for its action RPG focus, insane customization options and the freedom to play how you wanted. Furthermore, it was completely free with only cosmetic options requiring payment. These were only really for those who wanted to support the game. Then, of course, Fall of Oriath came.

Fall of Oriath isn’t just a mere expansion to the game which added new areas, enemies and bosses. It was a new path forward for what was already a stellar game, refining how one plays the it while adding a ton of new content to complete. Issues like de-syncs and lag were also majorly addressed and players had even more reasons to play their favourite action RPG than before. The kicker is that all of this content was completely free, for no extra charge. That’s simply incredible and as a result, Path of Exile: Fall of Oriath is our pick for the best DLC, expansion and content update of 2017.

Note: GamingBolt’s Game of the Year categories, nominations and awards are selected via an internal nomination, voting and debate process. You can check the rest of categories and the respective winners here.

Darkeater Midr – Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City

When a fight starts with a boss able to simply roast you from above or knock you off a bridge, you know it’s going to be fun. Darkeater Midr is a combination of all the horrifying boss tropes – he has absurd health, a weak point that’s tough to attack, the camera is uncooperative during the battle and he can insta-kill with some attacks. At least he looks metal as all hell.

Dark Souls games can be difficult- this is a known fact. They rely more on skill than they do anything else- but at their core, they are still RPGs, which means that there are still ways to cheese the game. They just require a lot of patience. Whether it is farming Souls (the currency in the game that is used for everything, including to level up), or Titanite Chunks that can come in handy later, it is possible to farm in the game, and be overequipped and overpowered for encounters or areas that may be giving you some difficulty.

If that’s what you want to do – hey, I don’t judge, I suck at games myself, and I got through a lot of Bloodborne by cheesing it – then the good news is, we’re here to help. In this guide, we show you some of the best farming spots for Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City, the newest expansion for the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=679uoNcdiu0

Dark Souls has a tradition for some of the best boss battles in the industry- with Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City being the final bit of Dark Souls content we will get for a while, it of course had to go out on a high note as far as this specific area was considered. Thankfully, The Ringed City doesn’t disappoint, and we get some rousing boss battles.

Battles that are, in fact, so complex, that you might need some help with them- and if you find yourself lost, or stuck, then that’s where we come in. In this guide, we walk you through all the bosses in the game, and how to beat them. Just keep in mind, the guide will by its very nature have spoilers- if you skip ahead of where you are, that’s on you!

With that out of the way, let’s get started:

DARKEATER MIDIR

This is a well hidden boss, and arguably the hardest boss in the DLC, also making him one of the hardest bosses in the game by extension. However, on the flip side, you get one of Dark Souls‘ most memorable bosses as a result.

SLAVE KNIGHT GAEL

The final boss of the DLC- a poignant, fitting end to the Dark Souls saga.

DEMON PRINCE

This boss fight will recall Bloodborne, and if you played that game, put all the skills acquired as you played it to the test. If you didn’t play it, then prepare for a dramatic change of pace like nothing else before.

The Ringed City being the final piece of the puzzle and last piece of content for Dark Souls 3, it’s fitting that it should bring together everything the series and developers From Software has stood for, before burning it to the ground. As probably the final piece of Souls content, it all comes together to become something of a microcosm for the series as a whole and a fitting send off for the fans.

Upon entering, the immediately striking thing is the world design itself. FromSoftware masterfully crafted these breathing, haunting worlds throughout their catalog. However, the wreckage of the Dreg Heap piles dilapidated castles and collapsing church steeples on top of each other like so much dirty laundry. Ash covered, twisted remains stretch out as far as the eye can see in a stunning grandeur that’s simultaneously awe inspiring and depressing, and probably their best work.

"Ash covered, twisted remains stretch out as far as the eye can see in a stunning grandeur that’s simultaneously awe inspiring and depressing, and probably their best work."

The Ringed City is where worlds come to die after the age of fire, and bits and pieces from the run of the series’ past kingdoms are knotted together and intertwined, yet not called out. In the grand tradition of leaving things to the imagination and attention of the player, FromSoftware’s little wink to the Dark Souls faithful takes liberally from nostalgia without cheapening the new ideas within, or the elegant chaos of the crumbling ruins to a newer player. The largely linear level design isn’t going to throw a ton of surprises, but there are some hidden walls I found, several great loopback points and set pieces to tie together the cacophony of brick and mortar into the same great web the series has weaved for so long.

Not content to lean on the lore to coax players into returning, the brutal enemies can wreck an unprepared adventurer from the first steps. Full disclosure, it’s been quite some time since my last time with a Souls game, and I entered with a level 100 character when 125 was recommended. Going in with any lower will probably result in a bad time. This is one last challenge issued to the Souls faithful by From, and they made you fight for it.

"Bosses follow the mantra of the world itself, twisting the familiar and are all great fun to die to over and over again."

The encounter design and new enemies ramp up the stakes, such as bombardiers who will keep you on your toes until you can find their corporeal body. These bombardiers stand out within a series where you’ve always been able to meet your enemy head on, and they played by all the rules you did. They serve to encourage a stealth approach, which hasn’t been tried in the series before. Though the execution of them and their deadly lasers isn’t as obnoxious as it could be within a series that has never been designed around sneaking, it never quite meshes as well as the straight combat does.

Fantastic bosses punctuate the adventure, far exceeding the previous DLC with massive demons and familiar faces ending their arcs. Bosses follow the mantra of the world itself, twisting the familiar and are all great fun to die to over and over again until you can climb the wall. The last battle is a particularly standout affair, with your foe echoing past conquests within a fight so elegant as to feel almost like a dance.

" An encapsulation of everything FromSoftware has done and learned within the last 8 years, all within a send off worthy of the legacy it created."

The twisted world design and intricate encounters are of course, backed by the fantastic symphonies and booming choirs we’ve grown accustomed to through the series. Large and bombastic for fighting, haunting and melancholy when they need to be to set the dire tone. It’s as powerful as ever, backing the journey to the end of the world as you know it, and leaving you feeling fine the whole way down.

Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City is as much a love letter to the fans of this genre creating, generation defining series as it could be. An encapsulation of everything FromSoftware has done and learned within the last 8 years, all within a send off worthy of the legacy it created. Great encounter design, great set pieces and fantastic echoes of the past all stand upon a brilliantly realized, tangled world of pure entropy that’s a delight to take in. Some of the new things they try at the last minute don’t always mesh perfectly, but it’s not enough to break the fully realized journey that FromSoftware presents, and the simple statement it offers.

Won’t you die, one last time?

This game was reviewed on PC.

Dark Souls 3: The Ringed City is the final bit of Dark Souls content we will ever get- at least if From Software is to be believed. So it makes sense that for many Souls fans, it’s important to go through it, and send the series off in style. It also helps that The Ringed City is, unlike Ashes of Ariandel, not disappointing- if this is the last bit of Dark Souls content we ever get, then at least the franchise went out on a high note.

If you want to play it for yourself, however, and figure out what you think for yourself, then you will first have to access it. That’s what this guide is for- it tells you how to do so:

Before playing The Ringed City, ensure that:

• You have purchased and installed the DLC
• Your game is updated to the latest version available
• You have completed Ashes of Ariandel

You can either look for a new bonfire spawned in Kiln of the First Flame (this is the area where the final boss fight of the game takes place), or the bonfire where the Sister Friede battle takes place in Ashes of Ariandel. Either of thee bonfires will transport you into the new area, and begin The Ringed City.