Top 20 Hardest Final Bosses in Video Games

#20: Hades

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“Hades” (2020) The god of the underworld who lends his name to both his realm and the game, Hades will do his utmost to ensure that Zagreus never leaves! Not only does he do a ton of damage over a wide area, but Hades can also hit you with skulls that will make you way more susceptible to hits! Ranged weapons tend to work best against him, and using dashes and the environment to keep away from him will be essential. Bring as much Death Defiance as you can, learn his patterns, and be prepared for pain, because Hades has two phases, and you probably won’t get them through the first time! And if you fail, you have to restart at the game’s beginning! No pressure!

“Super Smash Bros. Brawl” (2008) This ethereal being is the endgame villain of the Subspace Emissary campaign, and will put you through your paces! Tabuu may be a big question mark when it comes to motivations, but players’ most pressing question about him is why he’s so difficult! The strange entity can teleport around the arena and several of its moves hit a wide area and/or can be instant kills, depending on the difficulty. Thankfully, you get 5 different characters as single stocks, so if you get knocked out, you get 4 tries. Be careful though, this is the creature that pimp slapped Master Hand - a literal glove!

#18: Shadow Queen

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“Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door” (2004) The final bosses of “Mario” games are generally pretty easy, but the Shadow Queen is the exception. A shadowy fiend that possesses Princess Peach, the Shadow Queen has multiple phases and can easily destroy you if you’re not prepared! Her attacks ignore your defense, and can steal your HP and restore hers if you don’t block. Her multiple hands can make things tricky too, since they can regenerate, even if you take them out. The Shadow Queen’s strongest move is quite nasty too, but thankfully you can avoid it with Vivian’s Veil ability. If you can hit her hard and fast, and take advantage of the free healing you’ll get in her second phase, you’ll be able to end her reign for good.

#17: Mr. X

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“Resident Evil 2” (2019) The T-00 Tyrant, or Mr. X, is an implacable mutant supersoldier in a trench coat that pursues the player throughout “Resident Evil 2”’s remake. Unfortunately, you’ll be stuck facing Mr. X in the finale of Leon’s campaign - in an elevator. The Tyrant will come at you with his claws in the enclosed space, which can be tough to avoid. One of his attacks is basically guaranteed to kill you too! Shooting his exposed heart can damage him, and the more he’s damaged, the more rubble will fall, giving you cover from his attacks. If you have enough powerful weapons and/or you’re a good enough shot, you’ll eventually receive a rocket launcher to finally, FINALLY, finish him off.

#16: The Devil

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“Cuphead” (2017) If you dance with the Devil, you’re gonna’ get burned! The grinning goat-like demon can make this battle figuratively and literally hellish for you throughout his four phases. The Devil will throw plenty of attacks your way in the first phase, frequently shapeshifting into several tough to dodge forms, with his minions proving an annoyance too. The next phases are set on progressively fewer sets of platforms as the now giant Devil throws attacks, minions, and poker chips that you must dodge and shoot through, while also attacking his eyes. Invincibility and the Smoke Bomb Dash are essentials here, and if you can endure, you’ll wallop the Devil and get your souls back!

#15: Doctor Neo Cortex

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“Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time” (2020) “Crash Bandicoot” games have some brutally difficult platforming, and the boss fights are no exception. The final confrontation with Crash’s mad scientist nemesis Dr. Neo Cortex sees the villain take all your Quantum Mask power ups and use them against you. You must jump between disappearing platforms, leap or duck over/under lasers, and throw his own assistants back at him. Oh, and you have to do all this while dealing with the effects of the masks, which include turning your world upside down! The doctor may be trying to change the past, but there’s no way to undo our many failures in this fight!

#14: Raven Beak

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“Metroid Dread” (2021) This power mad Chozo leader is the definition of challenging. Raven Beak goes all out right from the start, with strong attacks and an aura of lightning. He also has 4 phases to get through. While some of his attacks, namely the ones shaped like spheres, can be destroyed for health and ammo, in general, you’re going to want to hit him with missiles as much as possible. Oh, and counter every chance you get! If you haven’t gotten that down by this point, this won’t go well for you! If you’re persistent and learn his patterns, this terrifying metal bird man will eventually get his grand comeuppance courtesy of a power beam to the face!

“Octopath Traveler” (2018) The “Octopath Traveler” games go all out when it comes to their high fantasy final bosses. While it was tempting to discuss the Wicked God Vide from “Octopath Traveler II,” our choice goes to the first game’s big bad. Not only is this a tough, multi-stage boss, but you also have to fight each stage with a different set of four party members, so if you didn’t level up everyone equally, your chances are pretty abysmal. Additionally, you have to fight Galdera after a gauntlet of 8 bosses, and if you lose, you need to fight them all again! And that’s not even touching on his obscenely powerful attacks and ability to become randomly immune to some of his own weaknesses! What a nightmare!

“Nioh 2” (2020) Given the bar set by the rest of the bosses in this game, and those of the games that inspired it, Otakemaru certainly lives up to the standard. This powerful Yokai can shift between the same forms the player can, making his attacks faster or more powerful and his own body more durable. While he loses this ability at around half health, Otakemaru then gains access to powerful elemental attacks. If that weren’t enough, his last phase has huge swords that can insta-kill you. A protracted battle is definitely going to favor him, so if you can, try to take him down as fast as possible.

#11: Zero

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“Drakengard 3” (2013) For most of “Drakengard 3,” it alternates between either hack-n-slash or rail shooter gameplay. The final boss in the final timeline is…neither of those! Instead, Zero is “fought” through an elaborate rhythm game sequence. Timing the button presses can be excruciatingly difficult, even after practicing dozens of times - and considering you have to restart the whole thing if you mess up, you’ll be playing it at least that many times! It’s a sad commentary on the difficulty of this boss fight when the best advice the internet has to give on beating it, is to cheat by syncing up a video while playing!

#10: Nyx Avatar

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“Persona 3” (2006) There are a lot of multi-stage final bosses. But Nyx Avatar puts most of them to shame! To beat this personification of death, you need to plow through 14 different phases! Fourteen! The absolute grind it can be to get through them all can take up to several hours, and if you’re underleveled, they’re going to be stressful ones! It doesn’t have any major exploitable weaknesses either. Plus, its final phase has a lot more HP, and if it charms your party members, they’ll attack each other. Nyx Avatar is a marathon of a final boss, but it can be rewarding. After all, “the Arcana is the means by which all is revealed…”

“Punch-Out!!” (1987) The game may label this battle “the Dream Fight,” but getting into the ring with Kid Dynamite in this old school NES game feels like a straight up nightmare! Mike Tyson is the last bout in “Punch-Out!!” and it’s a good thing too, since anything tougher than this would have us swearing off the game for good! The fictional version of the real-world boxer will uppercut you so hard you’ll be knocked out instantly if you’re not blocking! Add in some rapid fire punches, and you’ve got a recipe for a classic boss fight that still gives gamers PTSD! Your best bet, besides a lot of trial and error, is to hit Tyson while he’s blinking.

“Final Fantasy IX” (2000) The embodiment of dread and death, Necron can be one of the most difficult boss fights in any “Final Fantasy” game - since it lives up to its reputation. Really, it just comes down to luck and what you have equipped. This is due to its wide variety of high damaging moves, as well as Grand Cross, which can have a random effect on your whole party. Abilities that protect you from statuses can help, as can auto abilities, since they provide passive buffs. Necron may be as inevitable as death, but that doesn’t mean you have to fear it!

“Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance” (2013) This boss battle may be packed with more memes than you can shake a nanomachine at, but it’s also punishingly difficult! The warmongering senator will throw a Metal Gear at you before taking you on with his own enhanced body in a fight that lasts several phases. The timing to parry his attacks can be tricky to get down, but if you’re patient, you can master it. Dodging certainly helps too. Given enough effort, you may get your chance to slice and dice the ripped politician and ensure he never holds office (or anything else) ever again!

“Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening” (2005) Dante’s brother is devilishly difficult whenever you encounter him, but the final battle of “DMC3” is arguably the hardest, and a serious contender for the most difficult in the series. Vergil can teleport, which is never not annoying in a boss, deflect your bullets, and swing his sword faster than you can blink! And then he has his own Devil Trigger form, which you should avoid like the plague! However, after he uses his, you can use yours to get in a good counterattack. In fact, countering is pretty much the name of the game here. Time to get motivated.

“Mega Man 7” (1995) Dr. Wily really outdid himself this time! This floating vehicle is infamous for a number of reasons. It can disappear and reappear in various positions across the screen, which can make hitting it difficult. Not only that, but it's one weakness, Spring Man’s weapon, Wild Coil, is hard to hit with and barely does any damage! Honestly, you’re better off using Freeze Man’s weapon, since at least you can shoot that diagonally to hit the capsule up in the corners. Lastly, its attacks are fast, hard to dodge, and can freeze or burn you! Given how tough it is, we have to wonder why Wily bothers with Robot Masters at all!

#4: The Radiance

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“Hollow Knight” (2017) “Hollow Knight”’s pantheon of bosses are absolutely brutal, and they saved the hardest for last. The Radiance is a luminous moth that may look heavenly, but she’ll put you through hell! She’ll rain attacks on you from nearly every direction, so keeping on your toes is essential. Unfortunately, she generally stays so high up, that it’s hard to hit the Radiance consistently. Made all the worse by the fact that should she smite you, you’re going to have to fight your way through the Hollow Knight in order to reach her again!

“Undertale” (2015) You’re gonna’ have a bad time with this boss fight. Sans is the infamous final boss of the Genocide Run of “Undertale.” While killing most monsters in this run is fairly easy, Sans unleashes a devastating opening salvo that will obliterate you if you aren’t expecting it! Then, he’ll dodge nearly every attack you throw at him and force you through brutal platforming segments. The onslaught of attacks never lets up, and Sans will even attack you while you use the menu! It’s a good thing his song is such a banger, because you’ll be hearing it for as long as it takes for you to master this sinfully challenging fight.

“Elden Ring” (2022) It was only a matter of time before we got to a FromSoftware game. The enormously popular “Elden Ring” also has an enormously difficult final boss. Radagon has a wide variety of deadly and unpredictable moves at his disposal. Dodging is absolutely your best strategy in this fight, although bringing protection against Radagon’s holy attacks and using fire, one of his only weaknesses, certainly don’t hurt either. And just when you’ve finally beaten him, you have to fight the Elden Beast immediately afterwards, who is no slouch in the difficulty department!

“Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice” (2019) Oh, you thought we were done with FromSoftware? Not on your life! Right off the bat, the fact that you must fight Isshin directly after another boss, Genichiro, sets the bar high on difficulty. But the swordmaster himself is no walk through a field, even if you have to fight him in one. Isshin has three surprisingly long phases, a ton of moves that are hard to anticipate, AOE techniques, and other changes to his fighting style as it goes on. Defeating the Sword Saint requires saintly patience and dedication, and rest assured, he will break you!