Games will almost always pose some kind of a challenge, whether that's in the form of engaging tactical combat or mind-boggling puzzles that can be an absolute pain to figure out. Regardless, it's this level of challenge that ensures just how invested a player is going to be when it comes to the game, with players slowly getting accustomed to the game's mechanics and delivering some truly memorable gameplay moments.
However, there are times when games take it too far when it comes to their difficulty in certain sections. This can prove to be rather detrimental to the gameplay experience, although most players who manage to get through these tough parts of the game will definitely have the skills required to breeze through the rest of the title.
10 The Fight Against Lady Yunalesca (Final Fantasy 10)
There's no worse feeling in video games than having to sit through an unskippable cutscene before fighting a tough boss. This is the case with Final Fantasy 10 and the clash against Lady Yunalesca, where a single misstep will lead to the player's death and a repeat of this cycle of torture once again.
It speaks volumes when one of the strategies in this fight is to keep a negative status effect that Yunalesca has infected the party with. Without Deathproof equipment, Yunalesca can absolutely destroy players, which feels rather unfair given that the game wasn't nearly as hard up to this point.
9 Facing Off Against Braccus Rex (Divinity: Original Sin)
The first Divinity: Original Sin is a pretty excellent game in its own right, one that deserves a ton of plaudits for being such a deep and engaging role-playing experience. The second game might be considered by many to be vastly superior, but there's still something about the first title that many fans adore.
The first proper boss fight in the game comes against the tyrant Braccus Rex. If players are grouped together during this fight, then they'll probably be wiped out by his very first AoE attack, that hits for massive damage.
8 Entering Blighttown (Dark Souls)
Dark Souls is a pretty hard game as is. However, the difficulty reaches totally unfair heights when players enter Blighttown, which is one of the most infamous areas in the game for a reason.
The enemies in this area can toxify players, with the poison swamps and hordes of annoying enemies being pretty grating in their own right. To make this worse, the original release of Dark Souls on the PS3 saw the framerate absolutely struggle in this area, which made navigation even more annoying to deal with.
7 The Dreaded Kunikazu Okumura Boss Fight (Persona 5 Royal)
For the most part, the changes made by Persona 5 Royal actually serve to make the game easier in many ways. However, this isn't the case when it comes to fighting Okumura's father, which is easily one of the longest and most annoying battles in the entire game.
Along with a timer of 30 minutes, Okumura's boss battle sees him bring out lackeys that need to be taken out all at once before he can be damaged. If even one employee survives, Okumura replaces them with another batch of enemies and players have to start the entire process again.
6 The Infamous Turbo Tunnel Level (Battletoads)
Most people may argue that the entirety of Battletoads is a difficulty spike when compared to other titles in the same vein. However, for what it's worth, the first two levels are still manageable, to an extent.
All of this changes with the advent of the Turbo Tunnel, where players need extremely fast reflexes to beat the Speeder Bikes section of the game. A single mistake can lead to death and the fact that the speed of this stage increases significantly with each phase makes it even more challenging.
5 The First Boss Fight Against Barrett (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)
Deus Ex: Human Revolution was a return to form for one of the most groundbreaking immersive sim series of all time. However, there was one part of the game that was universally reviled — its horrible bosses.
The first boss, Barrett, is easily the worst of the bunch. He hits like a truck when players get too close, has a seemingly endless supply of both bullets and grenades, and is one of the worst bullet sponges in gaming history.
4 A Chariot Race Followed By A Boss Fight Against The Twin Warriors (Prince Of Persia: The Two Thrones)
Prince Of Persia: The Two Thrones was a step back in the right direction after Warrior Within turned the series into every edge lord's wildest fantasy. The game featured a more focused level approach, including the addition of Chariot segments that can be pretty challenging indeed.
However, the second Chariot segment is even worse, since it leads directly into the hardest boss fight in the game. The Twins are no joke, and players need to have near-immaculate dodging skills to avoid serious damage throughout this lengthy and grueling encounter.
3 Exploring The Forbidden Woods (Bloodborne)
Most people would argue that Bloodborne's difficulty spike comes with the fight against Father Gascoigne. However, while this fight does a great job of forcing people to adapt to Bloodborne's playstyle, it's far from being the biggest difficulty spike in the game.
That honor goes to the Forbidden Woods, which is one of the game's most challenging levels. The dark aesthetic of this area, coupled with the multitude of ambushes that players can face makes it a tough area indeed. To top it all off, this area ends with a fight against the Shadows of Yharman, which is one of the tougher boss fights in the game at that point.
2 The True Final Boss Of The Game (Octopath Traveler)
.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=740&dpr=1.5)
Most JRPGs use the hardest bosses in the game as some kind of an optional challenge. However, Octopath Traveler goes against this norm by making the true final boss of the game an incredibly hard superboss that is an absolute chore to defeat!
Galdera is no slouch, with players needing the might of all eight characters in their party to even stand a chance of winning. It's a long and grueling boss fight that is miles ahead of any challenge that's present in the game up until that point.
1 Fighting The Hell House (Final Fantasy 7 Remake)
The Hell House is one of the most iconic enemies in Final Fantasy 7, and fans were wondering how this odd enemy would make an appearance in Final Fantasy 7 Remake. This was done by making the Hell House a memorable boss fight.
The Hell House is incredibly sturdy, and players need to exploit its ever-changing elemental weaknesses to even stand a chance of staggering this boss. It's an incredibly long and challenging boss fight, and players will need to throw everything but the kitchen sink to even stand a chance of winning against this fearsome foe. Playing in Hard Mode amplifies the difficulty tenfold, too.