The 10 HARDEST Bosses in Platformer Games
10 Hardest Bosses in Platformers
Welcome to MojoPlays, and today, we’re taking a look at 10 of the most difficult bosses we’ve ever faced in platformer games.
Eigong
“Nine Sols” (2024)
If you’re into 2D platformers that are about as tough as, say, “Hollow Knight”, you probably need to hear us mention about the obscene difficulty spikes the game inflicts in some of its boss fights. Eigong is perhaps the worst of “Nine Sols’s” entire lineup of bosses…which was admittedly expected given she is the final boss of the game. But she boasts three whole phases and spends a good majority of the time dashing around like a Super Saiyan. Anticipating her attacks becomes a challenge in itself as you’re trying to land parries or dodges. The whole fight just feels very weird, but once she’s finally downed…you’re likely going to feel a wave of frustrated relief instead of a satisfying relief.
Toc-Man
“Pac-Man World 2 Re-PAC” (2025)
For some reason, Toc-Man is really steamed at Pac-Man. In fact, he’s so steamed that he’s bringing down the hammer extremely hard. While the rematch against Spooky was sweat-inducing, Toc-Man is the toughest boss in “Pac-Man World 2 Re-PAC”. Despite his clunky size, his aim is almost impeccable as he’ll land tons of close shots on your across all three phases. But what makes the fight even more stressful is that most of his attacks inflict an insane amount of knockback. This will sometimes lead to you getting insta-killed. Take it from yours truly as I spent nearly two hours straight fighting this boss and lost more than SIXTY LIVES!! It is by no means a “fun” boss fight.
HAG-1
“Banjo-Tooie” (2000)
There are days where we’d really wish we knew what Rare was thinking when coming up with this final battle against Grunty. The witch and her sisters use the HAG-1 as a final resort to take down Banjo and Kazooie, and this drilling machine comes with some lethal gimmicks. You’ll have segments where Grunty tries to fire spells at you and can only take damage from eggs. Then, you’ll have to avoid attacks coming from the HAG-1 itself before being forced to answer a question. But the trickiest part of this whole fight is at the very end when the witch encapsulates the arena in poisonous gas, forcing you to try and end the fight quick before you run out of health. And suddenly, it's not super hard seeing why some folks weren’t too keen on “Banjo-Tooie”.
Arcane Golem
“The Messenger” (2018)
“The Messenger” is already a pretty tough game, almost in a way similar to the classic “Ninja Gaiden” and “Shinobi” games. Case in point, the Arcane Golem. This isn’t even the final boss in the game, but it is widely considered the hardest given its tricky attacks. Though it sets itself up to be attacked rather easily, these openings come at the expense of possibly getting counterattacked instantly. You have to be super precise with your positioning and movements in order to make it out of this one alive. Yes, we know - easier said than done.
Isidora
“Blasphemous” (2019)
Much like “The Messenger”, “Blasphemous” is already known to be a challenging game, often cited as “2D ‘Dark Souls’”. By the time you reach Isidora, you might end up questioning your life choices as she is the most grueling to endure. Her telegraphs are super short, giving you very little time to react accordingly. One move that’s caused many players to drop the game is her sneak attack where a ball of fire rushes at you along the ground right before she reappears with an uppercut. And if that doesn’t bring the hammer down on you, her final phase summons pillars of hellfire to take up massive amounts of the stage. Good luck!
Raven Beak
“Metroid Dread” (2021)
It should come as no surprise that the final boss of “Metroid Dread” is among the most difficult bosses ever made. You just spent a dozen hours running from relentlessly pursuing androids. This should be no problem, right? Oh, if only… Raven Beak has ways of forcing you to get closer to him and boasts a fairly tight parry window. And if you do manage to widen the gap between you two, he will quickly close the distance with some wide-ranging melee attacks. Oh, and he’ll also be able to fly and shoot later in the fight. At least his final form was essentially a quick-time event.
Chef Saltbaker
“Cuphead” (2017)
There are plenty of other bosses that players will deem the hardest in “Cuphead”. Grim Matchstick, Rumor Honeybottoms, Dr. Kahl’s Robot - take your pick. But when the “Delicious Last Course” expansion dropped, Chef Saltbaker was the toughest of the bunch. Across each and every phase, you’ll have hazards flying at you from almost all directions. Really, “overwhelming” does not begin to describe the assault on display. Your best option is to just play with a calm, patient mind, and try to focus on being defensive. And maybe bring the homing bullets.
Dr. Wily
“Mega Man 7” (1995)
Of all the times we have ever fought Dr. Wily, “Mega Man 7” made him more absurdly powerful than the other installments. The first phase of the fight is no big deal - just shoot at Wily and slide underneath him when he closes the distance. It's the second phase where the fight becomes utter nonsense. Teleporting, shots that track (albeit in bursts), shocking the ground with electric orbs… It all becomes increasingly annoying to deal with, and the fight can take way longer than it should because of how long he’ll stay hidden.
The Death Egg Robot
“Sonic the Hedgehog 2” (1992)
The Death Egg Robot will forever live on as one of the most notorious bosses in “Sonic” history. And it isn’t just because of some of the tricks and trappings it’ll employ throughout the fight. This fight is a major problem because of two reasons. One: you already have a boss fight before this one in the form of Mecha Sonic. Two - and this is a BIG one: you start the fights with ZERO rings and cannot obtain ANY rings for the entire level. You have to beat both Mecha Sonic and all phases of the Death Egg Robot without getting hit a single time. What the hell, SEGA?!
Absolute Radiance
“Hollow Knight” (2017)
Absolute Radiance is an absolute pain through and through. Like, if you’re saying “Silksong” is hard, how many of you played “Hollow Knight”? Genuinely, from start to finish? Because we should all know the Appalling Radiance for its ludicrous amounts of control over its space. You get such a limited amount of room to move about in and land attacks that the fight feels borderline impossible. And this goes without mentioning how many projectiles will launch from offscreen. It is so anxiety-inducing, so frustrating that you have to wonder which poor soul on the Team Cherry staff had to test this for bugs.
What’s the hardest boss fight you’ve endured in a platformer? Let us know down in the comments, and be sure to subscribe to MojoPlays.
