Over the decades, there have been plenty of video game enemies that have caused anger and frustration, resulting in gamers shouting verbal profanities at their screens. However, there are some enemies that come along which truly make players question their own sanity. Here are some of the infuriating enemies in video games which make us ask the question, “What did I do to end up at this point in my life?”
1. TANK – LEFT 4 DEAD
You know an enemy is tough when they have their own theme.
Left 4 Dead’s bullet sponge, the Tank, seems to always show up right at the worst moments. Not that there is any good moment for him to appear, but every time he appears, it seems to be right as I am in a tight narrow corridor or something.
This absolute behemoth packs an insane punch, being able to shred your health down to nothing in about two to three hits. Not only that, but the hits send you flying across the map, most often to devastating results when surrounded by hordes of zombies and other freak zombies which pummel you in your recovery to get up. Don’t bother trying to outrun them either, as they are sure to catch up to you before you have the chance to barely progress forward. Your best chance is to hone in all of your team’s fire (granted it hasn’t already wiped them out) and try to kill it before it can do more significant damage.
Could give The Hulk a run for his money.
And yes, whilst the argument could be made that the Witch is a more infuriating enemy, at least she is an enemy that can be completely avoided if left alone, whereas the Tank just randomly appears out of nowhere. If you managed to become the tank in the online versus mode, you were lucky, as it is probably one of the biggest tide changers in any multiplayer game I can think of.
I just hope you managed to hold on to a first aid kit and painkillers.
2. DEATHCLAW – FALLOUT
You best have managed to stockpile some Stealth Boy’s because if you run into this creature, it will likely only end in one way: your death. Appearing in every single Fallout game to date, Deathclaw is a word that is sure to send shivers down the spine of any player who has likely encountered one throughout their playtime, and for good reason.
The Deathclaw is known for its monstrous appearance, which terrified me (and I’m sure others) in my youth. They also deal a tremendous amount of damage even for higher level characters, however, if you encounter one at a low level, you might as well just sign your death certificate because there is no way that you’re escaping that battle.
Oh my, what sharp…everything you have.
Again, the Deathclaw can move at quite a fast pace and is quick with its attacks. Their sharp claws also mean that they have access to a particularly brutal death animation in Fallout 4. To this day, I still have nightmares about the time that I first discovered the Deathclaw promontory in Fallout: New Vegas and got killed after just one strike.
3. PLAGUE FERAL – STATE OF DECAY 2
Of all the infuriating gaming enemies on this list, State of Decay 2’s Plague Feral is without a doubt the one I despise the most.
Oh, where to even begin? As if the regular Feral wasn’t bad enough, Undead Labs then decided to make life even more miserable by introducing this demon from hell in State of Decay 2’s Heartland DLC.
For starters, actually managing to hit this thing is extremely difficult, as they move ridiculously fast, much faster than the previous two entries on this list. If you do manage to hit this Feral, the chances are you hit its body, which won’t suffice as you need to hit its head to actually kill it. Not only that, but because it is a mutated form of the original Feral, it now requires multiple headshots to actually kill it.
HOW DO YOU ALWAYS DODGE MY CAR!?
Due to it also being a plague form of the Feral, it also means that if it does hit you, it will fill up your plague infection meter, which is extremely quickly on higher difficulties. Not that it would matter, as if you manage to get hit by a Plague Feral on a higher difficulty, it will kill you before the infection even has the chance. And if that wasn’t bad enough, it also has a unique scream which attracts nearby Plague Zombies. I can’t tell you how many survivors I have lost thanks to Ferals alone.
I know what you’re thinking: “why not just run it over with your car?”. Oh if only it were that simple. Fans of the franchise will know that trying to run over a Feral can be more fidgety than trying to thread a needle with no hands.
If you are unlucky enough to encounter more than one Plague Feral, TURN BACK IMMEDIATELY! Encountering one Feral is already annoying, two Ferals is very tricky, but two Plague Ferals!? Nope, I’ll take a full refund, please.
4. BASILISK – DARK SOULS
In most cases when you fight an enemy, the worst thing that can happen is that you die and need to restart at your latest checkpoint. This isn’t the case with the infuriating enemy, the Basilisk from Dark Souls, however; this frog-like creature roams sewer areas and usually in great numbers.
Whilst these enemies aren’t that threatening in terms of physical attack damage. They do have one feature that makes them unique to other Dark Souls enemies. That being that they have the ability to curse the player with toxic gas, killing them instantly and blocking off half of their health when they respawn. In a game like Dark Souls, this is the last thing you want.
Wait, you’re not Kermit.
The curse can only go away if cured by certain items that can be found around the world or bought by specific vendors. What’s more, this is a scenario in which specialising in ranged attacks will definitely pay off, as the last thing you want is to get too close to these.
In Dark Souls 2, they also have new physical attacks in addition to their already frustrating curse, making them even more tricky and punishing than before.
5. CREEPER – MINECRAFT
What would a list about infuriating enemies be without the iconic symbol of inconvenience: the Creeper.
The chances are that this silent but deadly monster from the wholesome Minecraft universe has blown up yourself and probably your building structure on more than one occasion. There isn’t much to be said about the Creeper. All they do is roam around and look for players to blow up, usually resulting in some hard-worked progress being undone in the process, causing you to curse at your tv screen for not having time to react until it was too late.
You maniac! You blew it up!
I won’t lie, I have taken some enjoyment in the past from luring a Creeper over to a friends building in response to some back and forth friendly competition and then watching their world crumble, literally.
What enemies do you find infuriating? Let me know if you have any suggestions in the comments!
(Video by gameranx.)
