Top 10 Video game Fire and Lava Levels

These levels are hot. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down our picks for the top 10 fire and lava levels in video games.
For this list we are looking at levels with a fiery theme, meaning lava, lots of fire or some other type of inferno. As usual limiting it to one entry per franchise and excluding any levels set in Hell since that’s a different theme altogether. Also does anyone else think its weird that so many games have lava stages?

In this classic game for the Nintendo 64, Fox McCloud must cross the Lylat system full of enemies bio-engineered by the evil Andros. None of these bio-weapons are as bizarre as the ones located on the system’s sun, appropriately named Solar. The enemies on the sun can withstand the celestial body’s temperatures of over 3500 degrees Kelvin. The Arwings however, are not designed for the extreme temperatures, as the heat constantly chips away at your shields, and the lower you fly the more damage you take.

The Uncharted series has always featured Nathan Drake utilizing parkour skills to jump onto ledges and scale walls, but that is taken to the next level when Nate finds himself in a chateau burning to the ground. Drake and Sully must navigate their way through the structure as it crumbles down around them as each step may cause the floor beneath them to fall away. All the while the two must worry about the Talbot’s goons who seem to be more interested in taking you out then getting out of the burning place themselves.

This level, which appears towards the end of the game, features platforms resembling belly dancers and columns of fire for Sackboy to traverse. Like the rest of the game, The Dancer’s Court features trippy gameplay and visuals. Of course, the level cranks up the difficulty, being one of the toughest in the game thanks to the insane moving platform puzzles. Careful not to fall, cause stuffed toys burn real easy.

Everyone’s favorite pink puffball must pass through a deadly volcano filled with pillars of lava and burning rock. As with any great Kirby game, this level is filled with; secret doors, hidden keys, and portions that must be passed using logic as well as acquiring the right enemy’s power by swallowing them. Be very careful here, because touching the lava will cause you to lose the abilities Kirby obtains by swallowing his enemies.

It doesn’t get much cooler than a gigantic fortress made of iron slowly sinking into a lake of lava. The Iron Keep is filled with danger around every corner including a number of mini-bosses and of course the big guy, the Iron King, one of the toughest and scariest fire bosses in any game. Aside from the numerous challenging enemies, they player must also battle the elements, as getting through this stage requires grabbing water whenever possible to stay alive.

This area is unique on this list as it combines two opposite elements in one level, with a lava side juxtaposed to an ice side. Originally envisioned as a strictly fire level, an ice portion was added that truly makes Halifire one of a kind. To complete the level and collect all secrets the player must travel back and forth between both sides and face the twin dragons of fire and ice. You’ll also find a forgotten 80’s videogame mascot here named Sabreman, as well as your old Camel pal Gobi.

You can usually count on video game adaptations of movies to be less than amazing, however Aladdin is one of the exceptions to that rule. There are actually two different versions of this game, one on the SNES and one for the Sega Genesis, and each with a different version of Aladdin escaping from a collapsing, molten Cave of Wonders. In both Aladdin must escape on foot, vaulting over pits of magma, and then make a dashing escape on the flying carpet while being chased by a lava tidal wave.

The Mario series is absolutely filled with classic fire levels, it basically wrote the book on them. Lethal Lava Land for Super Mario 64 almost nabbed the spot spot here, but ultimately, our pick from Mario had to be is Melty Molten Galaxy from Super Mario Galaxy. This level takes many of the elements from past Mario fire levels and vastly improves on them. The game adds fiery meteors raining down on Mario as he hops across the hot lava, and then forces to you to try to balance a ball on the inside of a lava cylinder with holes in it.

This volcanic level certainly earns its name. Although the planet is rich with minerals, which the human-like Terran arrive on world to mine, it is also incredibly deadly, with plenty of volcanos and vast rivers of lava. To make things more difficult the minerals are located around the lava deposits, which rise quickly and will wipe out any units in low lying areas. Of course dealing with the lava is only part of the problem as the planet is swarming with the Zerg, who are all too eager to tear your units apart.

Before we unveil our top pick here are a few honorable mentions:

Lava Reef Zone
“Sonic 3 and Kuckles” (1994)

Volcanic Rim
“Street Fighter IV” (2008)

Norfiar
“Super Metroid” (1994)

Volcano Stage
“Pokemon Snap” (1998)

Grumble Volcano
“Mario Kart Wii” (2008) & “Mario Kart 8” (2014)

Ocarina of Time, and the Zelda franchise in general, is filled with iconic temples for each element, and fire is no exception. This is the second temple but the 5th dungeon in the game that Link has to tackle. The iconic puzzles and enemies of the franchise are given a fiery twist here. Link goes up against walls of fire, giant boulders and shield eating slugs, all while freeing the tough but lovable Gorons. Also if you tackle this level in master quest, you’ll have to face an Iron Knuckle in this dungeon, and if you’ve played the original, you know these things are no joke.
Do you agree with our list? Which out of nowhere lava level got you all burned up? For more explosive top 10s published daily be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.