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Top 5 Video Game Bosses

Yoshimitsu

Former Moderator
5. FF8 - Abaddon

Random boss that comes from NOWHERE. I like him because he's a nice surprise, especially if you're new to the series and don't know about Undead monsters, you're in for a nice surprise. He has a fairly neat design too, tall or short. Better than other abaddons I've seen.

4. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow - Dimitrii (i think)

The guy who copies attacks. It might not be Dimitrii, but whatever. He's a fairly challenging boss if you don't know what you're doing (giving him your amazing skills? Wow, I did that at first. Whoops) but fairly easy if you DO know. He also provided a crucial plot element which makes the game refreshing and interesting, imo.

3. Kingdom Hearts 2 - Xigbar

YOU CLEVER LITTLE SNEAK i mean what. Anyway, Xigbar is a great boss for where he is in the game. He's a good challenge, and he has more unique attacks than the other bosses. After a lot of hack-n-slash bosses so far, it's nice to have a boss you have to think about whether to attack or defend before continuing. Plus, his voice actor is great and his appearance is so contrasted with the 'perfect' appearances of the other 13.

2. Sephiroth fight 2 - Crisis Core; Final Fantasy 7

TOUCH THE END AND YOU DIE. Nice, high stakes there. Plus, if you're underlevelled or have the wrong materia equipped, you're already dead. I liked the high stakes in the battle more than anything, knowing that re-raise wont save you. Even if the game's difficulty is so low any newbie could play it, it was an enjoyable fight.

1. Gilgamesh, both fights - Final Fantasy 12
FOOLS! YOU FACE THE MIGHTIEST SWORDSMAN IN ALL IVALICE! YOU FACE ME, GILGAMESH! LONG HAVE I SOUGHT THE BLADE OF LEGEND! SCOURED HAVE I THE FURTHEST MARCHES EAST AND WEST! NOW MY SEARCH BRINGS ME HERE, TO YOU! YOUR WEAPONS ARE FORFEIT TO ME!
 
Ok I dont have a top five but I have a number one,

1:BOWSER
I mean legendary, he's like epic. He's been around since the first Mario game (I believe) and still today he manages to steal Peach away from Mario, take that plumber boy!
 

Rex

Resident Furry
5. Final Fantasy VIII - Bahamut
The so called "King of GF", found on the Deep Sea Research Center. His Mega Flare attack ignores the Spirit stat, and can be very damaging. That is, when he actually uses it. Doomtrain ruins Bahamut, inflicting Vit 0 (which lowers Vitality and Spirit to zero) and Blind. A Blinded Bahamut can't hit anyone with his main attack, "Claw Swipe". Vit 0, meanwhile, makes him extremely vulnerable to all attacks. Not to mention his HP tops at ninety-thousand, extremely low for a Optional Boss, this is why he is so low.

4. Final Fantasy VIII - Tonberry King
The Tonberry King is an optional boss, accessible only after killing about twenty normal Tonberries. He's at least five times the size of regular Tonberries, and has a quarter of a million HP points at max level. His "It's Sharp" attack takes damage for the amount of enemies the character he attacked has kicked times thirty. The reason he isn't higher on the list is that he is too easily taken down by Renzokuken spamming, and since while "It's Sharp" instantly kills Squall without a doubt, it might not do much against the other teammates, and as long as the party's average level is above 30, Full-Life and Curaga can be draw-casted from him.

3. Kingdom Hearts II - Sephiroth
An optional boss in Kingdom Hearts, Sephiroth is a deadly enemy. He uses a multitude of dangerous attacks, and has a huge amount of HP. To make it worse, you fight him one-on-one. Sora will need to be equipped with some of the best equipment in the game to really have a chance at beating him, and being high-leveled and using the Ultima Weapon Keyblade is probably the most you can do against this guy. Sephiroth will destroy an inexperienced player, but he would fall easy enough to an experienced player who knew what they were doing.

2. Skies of Arcadia: Legends - Elcian
The strongest Looper in the game. It has more HP then any other Looper, ten-thousand, massive for this game. Its standard attack can do more then two-thousand damage regularly. It's attacks also have a high chance of casting Fatigue on the receiver. To make things worse, the monster uses powerful magic and has a high-dodge rate like its other Looper brethren.

1. Resident Evil 3: Nemesis - Nemesis
Resident Evil is known for it's High Octane Nightmare Fuel. The very idea of Nemesis, for example: he is a Body Horror-infused Implacable Man with both Combat Tentacles and the brains to use heavy weaponry. His sole drive, overriding everything, even pain and any instinct of self-preservation, is to hunt you down, and kill you. Not to mention he has an epic Badass Longcoat. You'll see him a lot during your run through Raccoon City, and he will quickly make you paranoid.
 
Hmmmm, I don't exactly have a top five either. Though I really like GLaDOS from portal. The dissembodied computerized voice that guides you through each test chamber in a lighthearted and humorous manner. At least, that's how it starts. From "accidentally" sending you through a live fire course. >> To the small but distinct change in tone after you discover that the cake is indeed a lie, this boss is great up to the boss fight, wherein she makes you even more angry by going on and on and on. Though there are still funny points in it. Favorite quote from the battle: " You think you're doing some damage? 2+2 is *computing...* ten. IN BASE FOUR. I'M FIIiIiiiInE. xD
 
5.- Lexeus- Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories
As my favorite member, I'll say I really liked the fight between him and Riku. He shoots rock spikes (I know they have an official name, but I can't remember what there called :p) and can go Super Saiyan on you at any point in the fight. If he does that...well, your basically f*cked.

4.- Henry- No More Heroes 1
How many of you guys have ever fought your Irish twin brother (voiced by Quinton Flynn no less) in the middle of a hotel parking lot with lightsabers? No? Only me? Oh well.

3.- Ganondorf- LoZ: Wind Waker
I might be the only one to get hyped up about this, but Ganondorf gets this far up for the sole reason that he dies in the most bad-ass way possible: getting stabbed through the forehead and turning into stone. Oh, and the fight's cool too.

2.- Glados- Portal
When I first went up to fight her, I expected her to be armed and dangerous. And I was half-right. She had a rocket launcher, but you use it to your advantage to smack her right in the face to then burn her piece by piece. Not to mention her dialog gets fuinnier as she malfunctions more.

1.- N. Gin- Crash Bandicoot 2
This was really hard to pick, but if you had to sqeeze my arm, I'd have to say the N. Gin fight right before facing of Cortex once again. This fight consists of shooting his cannons and missiles with woompa fruit, which is WAY easier said than done. He can even vaporize the 3 small platforms you stand on if you aren't carful. Finally, who can argue that N. Gin has a completely awesome voice with a metallic sound to it.
 
This is actually quite a hard list for me to compile, much like my hardest zones/levels/games (which is still unfinished, btw); however, I am going to do my best to complete it. So here goes nothing.

5.) Pyramid Head (First Encounter) - Silent Hill 2
If you didn't shit yourself when you got locked in a five-by-five space with Pyramid Head in Silent Hill 2 then I don't know what exactly is wrong with you. As the first boss in the game he isn't all that hard, but it is a very challenging and nerve wracking fight. For this, Pyramid Head takes the fifth place spot in my top 5 video game bosses.

4.) The Mermaid Princess - Rule of Rose
I'm not going to lie- Rule of Rose has the most terrible, clunky controls that any game could ever have. However, the stunning music, graphics, and storyline made me fall in love with this game. The second boss, The Mermaid Princess, makes my top bosses list because she is definitely not a pushover. Taking a lot of skill to time side steps and back stabs, The Mermaid Princess easily takes 20+ minutes to defeat. If you're not careful, you'll fall prey to her vomit-y wrath.

3.) Scarlet - Silent Hill: Homecoming
I'll admit that I've never actually fought Scarlet before and that I've only witnessed the boss fight via Youtube. However, the intensity of the fight and sheer concentration that you need to defeat her gives her the third spot on my list.

2.) The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - Blizetta
I just love this boss, to be honest. This is kind of what this list is coming to but, all-in-all, I am appeased with that. At least you all will know what games I like and which of the bosses are my favorite. What makes this fight one of my favorites is the fact that you must use the ice below you to see what is above you. I thought that was a very cool and fun mechanic. Plus the temple was quite challenging as well.

1.) ?
 
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KoL

Expert FPS Player
Staff member
Moderator
In no particular order, except the No.1 boss:

5. Icon of Sin, Doom II. "To win the game, you must kill me, John Romero!" The Icon of Sin is the final boss of Doom II, and he definitely lives up to expectation as his level is the hardest one in the entire game. In terms of gameplay, the Icon of Sin is quite lazy in terms of battling style, since it never moves and the only thing it ever does is summon hordes of its demonic minions to attack you, a horde comprised of most of the regular enemies you meet throughout the game. The boss can only be killed by firing rockets into its exposed brain, through a tiny hole in the front of its head, a hard target to hit given that Doom II doesn't allow you to look up or down. It only takes 3 hits to kill the boss, but getting those hits is difficult, and the ever-growing horde of monsters at your back summoned by the boss will decimate you in seconds if you aren't careful. Limited ammunition doesn't help your chances either, and this guy definitely stands as one of the toughest final bosses I've encountered.

4. Adolf Hitler, Wolfenstein 3D. This battie is pretty epic, given that you get to go one-on-one with the Fuhrer himself, an opportunity very few WWII-based games grant players, and the battle is definitely a pretty fun encounter to say the least. After fighting through a rather small level you finally meet Hitler himself, armed with a gigantic mecha-suit with four chainguns attached to the arms - I wasn't aware they had technology that advanced back in 1945. Once you've done enough damage to "Mecha-Hitler," his suit falls off - this doesn't seem to bother him much though besides causing him to curse audibly, as he manages to retain two of his four chainguns and proceeds to try and mow you down with them. Overall, Hitler's not that hard to beat really, but the fact that you actually get to kill Hitler himself in a proper boss fight is pretty sweet, and the epic nature of the encounter earns it a spot on the list.

3. Nightmare, Metroid Fusion. This guy may not be anywhere near as epic as the Hitler or the Icon of Sin bosses, but he makes up for it by being harder than both of them combined. He's not too bad to start off with, his laser attack is easy to avoid even when he increases the gravity to slow you down, but once his gravity system is destroyed and his mask falls off to reveal a hideously grotesque face, he gets more than a little pissed off. On top of his lasers, he'll now begin to fly quickly around the room in attempts to ram you, and while this may sound like a rather generic and uninspired attempt to kill you, the way the boss does it is anything but generic - the AI will constantly attempt to predict your movements and intercept your path as you move around the room, which is what earns this boss the No.3 spot - a great challenge of a boss, thanks in part to a fiendishly intelligent AI that can punish you brutally with surprisingly effective prediction skills. If only Pokemon NPCs could do that...

2. Braska's Final Aeon, Final Fantasy X. The grand finale of Final Fantasy X and the boss considered by many to be the "true" final boss of the game (since the actual final boss is impossible to lose to) makes for a fitting and challenging end (unless your team is horribly over-levelled) to the game. The boss looks pretty damn awesome to say the least, the music in the background kicks ass, the environment you battle in looks ominous, dark and very impressive overall, the challenge is good and the battle is extremely significant in terms of the story...this battle has everything. What on earth could top all of that?

1. Mother Brain, Super Metroid. Answer to that question would be Mother Brain in Super Metroid. Although the difficulty of the encounter isn't that great, which is disappointing given how brutally difficult Mother Brain was in the first Metroid game, the encounter is such an epic and memorable one that it steals the No.1 spot with ease. At first, the encounter seems to be the same old Mother Brain battle as it was in the first Metroid, the only difference being that Mother Brain apparently drops dead to your firepower ridiculously quickly. However, it's all just a ruse, as Mother Brain rises up from the ground with an enormous, bipedal body attached to her brain before preparing to annihilate you herself. The music playing in the background is amazing, and as I mentioned in a previous thread, the music basically says "YOU'RE SCREWED!" which only adds to the atmosphere provided by battling this hideous monstrosity. Indeed, it does appear that you are screwed when Mother Brain attacks with her eye laser, crippling Samus and leaving her defenseless as Mother Brain proceeds to finish her - luckily, the Metroid that was stolen by Ridley at the start of the game saves you, attacking Mother Brain and sacrificing its own life to save Samus, giving her the Hyper Beam weapon in the process and allowing Samus to waste Mother Brain and avenge the Metroid's death.

...after all that, the planet decides it'll explode in three minutes - how pleasant. The fact that this battle alone seems to be a major plot point in Metroid Other M just goes to show how memorable it really is.
 
My top 5...
5. Ridley - Metroid series (punk never dies and who can say no to an awesome dragon bent on ending the bounty hunter's life)
4. Dr. Wily - (an endless amount of hard robots to beat down just to fight all over again)
3. King "Bowser" Koopa - SMB Series (How can you deny the king of nintendo's arch nemesis?)
2. Albert Wesker - Resident Evil Series (No way in hell can I deny this monster)
1. Ganon/Ganondorf - Legend of Zelda series (This guy is truly evil, no matter what the game is)
 

Jhan Garc

Formerly AkenabeShiro
No one will say it? Fine.

Dark Bowser/Dark Bug Fawful! The music! It's...it's...AWE-INSPIRING! Just the music gave me the strength to win,which is good,since I was level 29...


Vaati's forms from Minish Cap: I didn't expect his third battle. I was like "at last!",but then,the maniacal laughter...

Shadow Sora Team/The big Heartless from KH:Re Coded: These guy were a pain in the keyhole!

Cackletta from SuperstarSaga: EEEHHHHYYYYEEEE!!!! Bowser's belly looks like the underworld. Why is that?

Elder Princess Shroob: I betcha pervert otakus would love to see her and Peach for...reasons...*gets slammed by the admins*
 

AzureEdge

✧luzrov rulay✧
I have too many, but I'll list a few~
1) Kratos Tales of Symphonia- I loved playing with him as a character, and it was nice to teach him a lesson. He's still one of my favorite characters, ever.
2) Chopin Eternal Sonata- I taught him a lesson too.
3) Shadar Ni No Kuni- I loved the back story behind him, but I still remember how I beat him, using Swaine, and shooting at him at low health, which did one damage, but killed him.
4)Hein FFIII- Getting to him was impossible, but turns out, he was a coward, and changed his weakness every 2 or three turns. It was really fun.
5)Sekundes Tales of Eternia- Although this boss was totally optional, he was fun to fight against. He had the same elements (and design) of Dhaos from Tales of Phantasia, (And if you look at the name, it's literally pronounced Sec-ond-dhaos. So it's a Cameo.) He had the same moves as Dhaos, and was a bit tougher.
 
5. Otar the Mad, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
This is my favorite because it was the first boss I ran into on accident. I barely remember it, but I had my battlemage Imperial trekking through the Reach and I went into this to the tomb Ragnvald. It was a harsh fight, but eventually I was able to take him down. It took using my staff to depletion, but it was worth it for the mask.

4. The Rebellion's Flagship, FTL: Faster Than Light
This was fucking hard. If you've ever had the chance to play FTL, you know what I mean- After surfing through the galaxy, trying to build your own flagship, once you get to the end...
You battle the Rebellion's Flagship. It takes loads of hits, and can send twice the firepower. Your best bet is either a strict turtle defense, or having high evasion and cloaking. The best part? You have to beat it THREE TIMES.

3. Bowser Jr., Yoshi's New Island
This was a really fun battle for me. It had a lot of tension going on at once, you had multiple things to think about, and it was just...amazing. I dunno, I liked it a lot.

2. Valus, Shadow of the Colossus
You drop into the game. You see the cutscene. You travel around. Use your sword to find shit. You find a colossus. Thing is a bajillion times bigger than you. Have fun battling that.

1. The Winning Civilization, Sid Meier's Civilization V
But Spax, You say typing your responses. That's not a boss. That's just some other player in multiplayer. Well first, *cough* screw you *cough and secondly, it certainly feels like a boss, doesn't it? You, gathering your armies, preparing for a strategic push onto your enemy. When you charge your units into battle, it feels amazing- Like you're a really charging in with your loyal men shouting in honor and courage.
 
Senator Armstrong (Metal Gear Rising Revengeance)
I chose him because he's the last somewhat memorable boss I've beaten.
Watch the fight here.
The entire fight with cutscenes and stuff stretches to about 40 minutes. Great boss with personality, awesome moves and badass attitude while also being somewhat challenging to beat.

Now that I think about it, Metal Gear had many good bosses, Ocelote in MGS4 comes to mind.
 
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My favorite bosses come from the Souls series, so my top 3 will probably be from them.

1. Sif, the Great Grey Wolf.
This was my most memorable boss fight, with a creative boss and fighting style, as well as a few touches that made this boss fight unique. Perhaps the most memorable was the way in which Sif started limping after losing a certain amount of health, and since I had unlocked his intro where he recognizes the player, killing him actually made me sad. Overall, a masterfully created boss.

2. Orenstein and Smough
Probably like everyone else who has played this game, I found these 2 the hardest to beat, especially since I saved Orenstein for last since I wanted his armor.

3. The Pursuer.
A f*****g bad**s boss, bad*ss design, ba**ss weapon. b****s fighting style. Overall a *ad*ss fight.

(What's the rules for use of the word bad*ss anyway?)
 

StellarWind Elsydeon

Armblades Ascendant
Staff member
Administrator
Since this thread was necromanced to hell and back and it still has some discussion value, I biomerged it with another thread on the subject matter that existed and WASN'T necromanced to hell and back. There we go.
 

Tailon

Gryffindork
So, round 2, it's been about 6 years since my original list, I've played a ton of great games since then and just generally changed my opinion so here goes. I'll restrict myself to one per franchise because otherwise this would be all Kingdom Hearts bosses. SPOILERS AHEAD

5. Shadow the Hedgehog (Sonic Generations)

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There's something to be said for a boss that can match the player character toe to toe (which is probably going to end up being a theme). Shadow is the second of three "Rival Fights" in Generations, which is incidentally my favorite game in the franchise.

Befitting their rivalry, Shadow challenges the Blue Blur to a contest of speed and power, both of them blitzing around a circular loop of Final Chase from Sonic Adventure 2, crashing into each other and otherwise attempting to hinder as they chase down orbs of Chaos energy which allows either of them to unleash a powerful attack, Shadow making use of Chaos Spear to turn the track into a minefield, while Sonic charges forward to shatter scattered meteorites in order to slow Shadow, using his Boost to drain away Shadow's rings, ending the battle.

Even on Hard Mode, this battle isn't very difficult, but it embodies everything that could make Sonic great if Sega would stop screwing around.

4. Colossus #5: Avion (Shadow of the Colossus)

Shadow-of-the-Colossus-SOTC-Wallpaper-Avion-Delta-Phoenix-07.jpg


On the other end of the size disparity spectrum is Avion, the Delta Phoenix, seen here with the game's protagonist, Wander, hanging off of its wing, looking roughly roach sized.

Avion's battle is incredibly memorable, being the first of the two flying colossi. While Phalanx, Colossus 13, serves as a chilling reminder of the game's theme of obsession, Avion is more than happy to show you what it means to do battle with a tremendous bird. Before you can even engage Avion, you'll have to make a precise shot, hitting it in midair to provoke a dive. Once the great bird dives, Wander must leap directly into its still moving wing and cling on for dear life, climbing all over Avion in mid flight in order to attack its weak points (for massive damage).

Avion exemplifies the best aspects of Shadow of the Colossus's core mechanics, especially climbing and smart use of the bow, for a truly excellent battle.

3. Twilit Fossil: Stallord (The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess)

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"Boy, the Spinner sure is a dumb item, what would I ever use this for- HOLY SHIIIIIT."

Can you tell I like fast paced action shit yet? In the first phase of the battle with Stallord, king of the Stalfos and Stalchildren, Link zips around the arena on Spinner tracks, forced to find an opening between Stallord's minions so he can charge in and use the Spinner to break one of Stallord's vertebrae.

Once Link has done this three times, Stallord's head separates from the rest of him, dragging Link to a new arena, a massive spiralling tower of Spinner tracks. As the two careen down, Link must carefully time his jumps in order to approach the flying skull without falling to the floor, striking it down so that he can land hits to the weak point (for massive damage).

2. King Asgore Dreemur (Undertale)

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I have some issues with the design philosophy behind Undertale, but it really is an excellent little RPG, with vibrant characters and a fantastic take on RPG combat.

Asgore is the penultimate boss of the Neutral Route, King of the Monsters and a powerful magician, Asgore is forced to challenge Frisk in hopes of acquiring their soul in order to free the monsters from the Underground.

Even having just met him, this battle quickly becomes emotional as the player realizes that Asgore is the only opponent in the Neutral Route that cannot be spared, Frisk must do battle with Asgore, using all their skill to avoid his attacks and ultimately strike him down.

1. Roxas (Kingdom Hearts II)

8n1R5fH.jpg

Roxas is my favorite character in Kingdom Hearts. His story is tragic, yet ultimately hopeful, he's one of the most skilled and powerful warriors in the franchise, and he provides the greatest boss battle I have ever played.

The battle with Roxas or his Data Replica is perfectly timed, it has a rhythm to it as Roxas unleashes all of his emotions and power on his Somebody counterpart, lashing out with two Keyblades and tremendous light based magic. His attacks are lightning quick, powerful, and starkly beautiful. He challenges Sora on equal footing, and in defeat, provides the mighty Final Form, which renders all but the mightiest foes jokes.

Roxas is my favorite boss battle of all time.
 
1. Petey Piranha (Super Mario franchise)
He's a funny, goofy character. I loved battling him in Super Mario Sunshine, it was fun and had a killer theme song. He's one of my most used characters in the Mario Baseball games.
2. Ganondorf (The Legend of Zelda franchise)
He's got some of the most enjoyable boss battles of any game I've played, especially the Ocarina of Time battle. He's a great character in Smash as well.
3. Dr. Eggman
A cool character, one of SMG4's funniest characters. His boss battles have always been fairly enjoyable. I think he would also make a great character for Smash.
4. Ghetsis
A great theme, difficult, and he tries to kill you. He is the greatest boss in Pokemon.
5. Bowser
How can't you like the big guy? All of his boss battles have been very enjoyable, with great themes as well. He is always my pick for Mario Kart and team captain on Superstar Mario Baseball.
 
5. Asgore (Undertale, Pasifist route)
He was a dick, but kicked my ass.

4. Rainbow Road (Mario Kart)
I count the Rainbow Road a villain because it is a villain in my heart.

3. Undyne (Undertale ALL routes)
I know a ton of people that reset after fighting and losing against her so I guess she can be a "final boss".

2: Omega Flowey (Undertale Pasifist Route)

Notice how I tend to repeat the same video games whoops

1. Sans (Undertale Genocide Route)

While I refuse to kill all my friends in a video game, another friend of mine made me watch her fight sans.


She never did beat him.
 
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