Using Den of Geek’s 2022 base-game ranking, the Soulsborne games go from easiest to hardest as follows: Elden Ring, Demon’s Souls (2009), Dark Souls III, Bloodborne, Dark Souls, Dark Souls II, Demon’s Souls (2020 remake), and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. This is one editorial ordering, not an objective measure: a player’s build, willingness to explore, and use of assistance can change how hard a game feels. The ranking treats the original Demon’s Souls and its remake separately and excludes expansions and other additional content. (Den of Geek)
Soulsborne games ranked from easiest to hardest
- Elden Ring
- Demon’s Souls (2009)
- Dark Souls III
- Bloodborne
- Dark Souls
- Dark Souls II
- Demon’s Souls (2020 remake)
- Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
The ordering and explanations below follow Den of Geek’s 2022 assessment of the base games. It is best read as a comparison of the obstacles each game tends to impose—not as a claim that every player will find them difficult in the same order.
Why difficulty rankings differ
“Hard” can mean demanding combat timing, few ways to recover from mistakes, long routes back after death, or limited options when a boss becomes a wall. A game that allows detours, stronger equipment, or help from other players may be more forgiving for one person, while another player may prefer a focused combat system that rewards practice.
Elden Ring illustrates the difference. Bandai Namco describes its open world as offering alternate routes, tools, and assistance such as Spirit Ashes or multiplayer. FromSoftware director Hidetaka Miyazaki has said players can return to an impasse later and approach it differently. (Bandai Namco; PlayStation.Blog) But PowerPyx argues that rushing from boss to boss with a melee build and without exploits can make Elden Ring the hardest FromSoftware game. (PowerPyx) Those are different playstyles, not contradictory measurements.
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How each game fits the ranking
1. Elden Ring
It sits at the easiest end of Den of Geek’s list because players can explore elsewhere, gain levels or equipment, improve their flasks, and return to a difficult encounter with more options. Spirit Ashes and multiplayer add further assistance. That flexibility can lower the pressure without making every boss easy; a boss-focused melee run can feel punishing, especially when difficulty spikes arrive.
2. Demon’s Souls (2009)
The original ranks second easiest in this comparison. Den of Geek points to enemies whose behavior can be exploited, bosses it considers less demanding, farmable healing herbs, and effective magic or ranged options. These observations refer to the 2009 game, not the remake.
Rank #2
- This Dark Souls: The Board Game expansion. Beware the Red Phantoms, for even more than the other dire opponents you have encountered, they are not of this world
- Drawn by the lure of humanity, they pass over in search of sustaining warmth, to challenge the heroic and foolish alike.
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- The Scourge of the Broken Plains is known far and wide, tales of violence and brutality preceding him
3. Dark Souls III
Den of Geek places Dark Souls III third from the easy end, citing its faster, more polished-feeling combat and several tools for tackling difficult encounters: strong shields, flexible spell use, and weapon arts. Those options can give players more than one way to respond when a strategy is failing.
4. Bloodborne
Bloodborne lands in the middle of the list. Its rally mechanic lets players recover some recently lost health by attacking promptly, rewarding aggression rather than retreat. The absence of conventional shields and the game’s more aggressive combat make that approach a real adjustment for players accustomed to defensive play.
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Rank #3
- New Dark Souls: The Board Game adventures await in the Explorers expansion
- New enemies, new encounter cards utilising those enemies, and new treasure cards for characters to discover along their adventures
- Components for one new mini boss encounter and one new main boss encounter further enhance players’ options and provide fresh challenges.
- The Explorers expansion also includes 18 terrain miniatures to replace all of the gravestone, barrel, bonfire, and treasure chest tokens from Dark Souls: The Board Game,
- The new Mimic ambush rules mean each chest could turn into a dangerous (but rewarding) foe!
5. Dark Souls
Dark Souls ranks harder than Bloodborne in this particular ordering. Den of Geek points to dangerous groups of enemies, difficult navigation, enemies that hit hard, and boss encounters it considers tougher on average than those in the original Demon’s Souls.
6. Dark Souls II
Den of Geek puts Dark Souls II among the more difficult entries, highlighting demanding enemy encounters, slow healing, and loss of health after repeated deaths. This is an editorial judgment about the game’s pressures, not a universal verdict; players’ reactions to its combat and progression differ.
Rank #4
- Take on the role of the Herald, Pyromancer, or Warrior as you navigate the haunted ruins of The Sunless City. Your ultimate challenge?
- A brutal battle against the formidable Dragon Slayer Ornstein and the fearsome Executioner Smough.
- 1-3 players
- 100 minutes + play time
- Ages: 14+
7. Demon’s Souls (2020 remake)
The remake ranks above Dark Souls II in Den of Geek’s list. Its assessment emphasizes adjustments to some original mechanics, sparse checkpoints, and the half-health state after death as sources of added unforgivingness. The original and remake are therefore separate entries here rather than a single combined ranking.
8. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
Sekiro is the hardest entry in this ordering because its combat is comparatively focused: learning attack patterns and deflecting are central, while summons and RPG-style grinding do not provide the same routes around a difficult encounter. That narrower skill test can make it a steep challenge for players who do not click with its timing—and a more manageable one for players who do.
Best Value
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- Compatible with Dark Souls: The Roleplaying Game and suitable for use in a variety of fantasy tabletop roleplaying adventures and miniature-based encounters
- Highly detailed unpainted miniatures provide an excellent canvas for hobbyists who enjoy assembling, painting, and customizing fantasy figures
- Perfect for players, game masters, collectors, and miniature enthusiasts looking to create immersive tabletop adventures and memorable battle scenes
- Expand your collection with a variety of character and creature miniatures that bring the atmospheric world of Dark Souls to life on the tabletop
What this ranking does—and does not—measure
There is no validated statistic in the cited sources that compares difficulty across all these games. Den of Geek provides an editorial ordering; Bandai Namco and Miyazaki describe design features and intent, not a universal difficulty scale. The ranking covers base games only, so it does not compare expansions, mods, fan patches, or other added content. It also includes Elden Ring and Sekiro while recognizing that the boundaries of the Soulsborne label are debated.
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