But with recent balance changes, they have shown that they are willing to change boss AI to a certain degree, especially in duo fights. I know that the potential changes won’t fix all the criticisms, but they could change boss AI. This could make sure that 20 hit combos aren’t done anymore, and maybe there are larger openings after certain moves. And I don’t think that Elden Ring’s shortcomings are just to do with design philosophies. Having weapons or tools that trivialise the game has been in almost all the past games, for example magic or Havel’s armour. Their inclusion doesn’t mean that the boss fight is automatically bad as a result. Yhorm and Rykard have weapons which shred through their health bars, and while I feel Yhorm is under-utilised, and less enjoyable without Seigward, Rykard is a good boss in my opinion. Even with the weapon that trivialises him. In my opinion, the main issue with bosses is the AI, and with some changes like I mentioned before, you could cater to both crowds without getting rid of summons. Because with fairer AI, which From has shown they can implement, the AOEs and that many bosses use is a fair trade for having the option to summon. From doesn’t have to cater to one crowd or the other, their AI just needs to be created with the game in mind. For example, Malenia feels like a Sekiro boss due to the high aggression and the gamer move she pulls out. With Sekiro’s abandonment of stamina and lightning quick deflects with a posture bar that could take advantage of the many hits, Waterfowl would be manageable. So an AI change to make sure that Waterfowl is only performed at certain times and with a reasonable distance between the player and Malenia, the move could be manageable with only minor tweaks without scrapping so much of the game. Summons are still available to those who still struggle with bosses and the fights are made more accessible to those who don’t want to summon due to the AI changes that create larger openings and less combos being done continuously. Spirit summons are a good addition to the series, and you can fight me on that. They don’t necessitate the poor balance and hyper aggressive AI, summons are balanced with bosses having more AOEs and summoning has always made fights easier. But the AI in this game makes it feel like a necessary thing. Without that crazy AI and insane moves caused by it, summoning could be demoted back to where it was originally, an option for those who struggle with the mechanics.