Dubai Diaries: I beat one of the hardest video game bosses of all time

There’s hardly any equivalent to satisfaction achieved from completing difficult tasks. Satisfaction holds different meanings to different people; for me, it was, as strange as it sounds, beating a videogame boss. And not just any video game boss, I beat one of the toughest video game bosses of all time. I beat Malenia - Blade of Miquella, also known as the Goddess of Rot.

Caution, the article has gaming terms and references, but you can think of it as another ‘I Did It’ story; one I am super proud of since it took me a while to slay the Demigod.

Malenia goes down in videogame history as one of the toughest bosses of all time, and if it is FromSoftware at the helm, you cannot expect any less. Malenia is a Demigod, however, she is an optional boss to beat in this year’s critically acclaimed, Game of the Year contender, Elden Ring. She’s optional in the sense that you don’t need to beat her to progress or complete the game’s main story.

Malenia, FromSoftware’s evilest creation till date comes wielding a katana and inflicts tons of damage. Not to mention her ability to ‘one shot’ (a term that means someone can kill you instantly) you, her ability to inflict ‘Scarlet Rot,’ a deadly poison that takes chunks of your health over time, or her ability to regain health on every hit she lands on you, which can possibly result in a long battle that can drain you entirely if you’re not strategic enough. Reading this, you may agree with the creators for making the boss optional.

Regardless, I did it. I beat her, though it took me just short of an hour, which is a lot less than most people did. It is a lot less than how much a 2020 version of me would take. A video game enthusiast, I spend most of my time playing video games. It is my go-to thing. And I love it.

In 2020, pandemic was here and so were the lockdowns. And while I had a job, I made sure I had time for my video games. However, back then, I was a novice to such role-playing, rage-infusing strategic games. Before I discovered FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, my toughest concerns were technical issues, mainly ping and lag, that put me at a disadvantage in multiplayer games like Call of Duty, Fortnite, or FIFA.

In Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, I have taken over 50 tries to beat a boss, that was nearly five hours of trying… in breaks. Another boss from the same game, also an optional boss, took me over around 8-10 months. No, I wasn’t playing continuously for that long; I had given up, moved on to another game, purchased the game again, and beat the boss. Perhaps, this is a better ‘I Did It’ story.

Coming back to Malenia, here’s her famous before-battle quote: “I am Malenia. Blade of Miquella. And I have never known defeat.” Hmm, that doesn’t end well now, does it?

• UAE