A hero for our times: Elden Ring Nightreign boss becomes unbeatable by refusing to show up

“I am going to screw on my happy cap and try to find some upbeat/quirky news, because I feel like we could do with a bit,” I declared to the RPS Slack just now, after writing our eighth layoff/cancellation post this week. The very next thing I click is a link for a game about building hell. Not today, Satan. “Amnesia flying meat orb! Amnesia flying meat orb!” suggests James. James, you are not helping. Why are you never helping. Oh, what’s this? An unbeatably broken Elden Ring Nightreign bossfight? Perhaps this is the champion who will lead us out of our endless technofeudal apocalypse. No seriously, I think Animus, Ascendant Light is really onto something, here.

The misfiring FromSoft bossfight in question is Nightreign’s enhanced Everdark Sovereign edition of the Sentient Pest, which is actually three bosses in one. The basic version of that fight pits you against two huge insects. The enhanced edition adds a massive red moth which swoops in when you kill one of the other two and possesses it, reviving the creature in a powered-up state.

You can damage the red moth by attacking the revived critters. The trouble is, Animus has been going AWOL. Despite a hotfix this week, players continue to report cases (thanks Gamesradar) of the battle extending indefinitely because the third boss refuses to show up. The trigger condition for this issue appears to be killing both the original bugs at the same time, but the situation remains murky. A permanent solution is forthcoming.

I enjoy this partly because it suggests Animus is refusing to play favourites between the two other pests, and partly because it feels like Animus has been taking notes from Da Share Zone – and who could blame a From Software boss for wanting to Just Walk Out, Skeleton (co-op player battles if your quick). These magnificent creatures have been getting their faces kicked off for a decade, with Youtubers dedicating whole careers to their dissection, and Nightreign specifically is a live service mincing machine. You could fill a kaiju birdfeeder with all the Sentient Pests players have chopped and shredded so far.

So good on Animus, I say. Good on it for washing its proboscis of the whole stinking debacle. Good on it for divesting from the GaaS industry. I am going to follow in its footsteps by refusing to come to work tomorrow. That’ll teach the status quo who’s boss.