Boss battles remain a feature of every great video game, from traditional fighting games to more contemporary fantasy series. Testing the skills players have accrued throughout the game, boss battles require players to think on their feet, using their wiles and wits to best their in-game adversary and advance the narrative forward.
While most boss battles make for a fun, if annoying, challenge, every once in a while, a video game developer will create a boss that pushes players to their mental limits. In no uncertain terms, these most challenging video game bosses cause nothing but heartache and mental anguish, with most people opting to walk away from their console rather than subject themselves to one more diminishing defeat.
Malenia (Elden Ring)
As one of the most difficult games ever released, most people can assume that Elden Ring has dozens of infuriating boss battles making up its open-world setting.
Despite the formidable adversaries that populate Elden Ring, most gamers will have their hands full when it comes to Malenia, Blade of Miquella. In addition to her relentless (and unending) offense, Malenia's successful hits fortify her health, making her one of the hardest video game bosses on record.
King Dice (Cuphead)
Like Elden Ring, Cuphead has no shortage of intense, near-unbeatable bosses filling its animated universe, from psychic carrots to boxing frogs. Even with the multitude of challenging bosses to battle in Cuphead, players won’t find a boss whose difficulty surpasses King Dice.
A secondary villain who makes for a more formidable adversary than the Devil himself, players come close to suffering carpal tunnel syndrome from all the button-mashing necessary to defeat King Dice and his sinister playing cards.
Skolas (Destiny)
The final challenge of Destiny’s House of Wolves expansion pack, facing down Skolas requires players to take on the Kell of Kells and his army of alien followers known as the Fallen.
With the chances of triumphing over Skolas and his henchmen low in solo play, players must pool their efforts in dueling with Skolas’ forces in combat. After numerous fan complaints, Bungie went so far as to patch Skolas’ boss battle, lowering his health stats and making the game a more balanced experience instead of a nonstop slaughter fest. It says something when one of the hardest video game bosses actually needs toning down.
Mike Tyson (Punch-Out!!)
How can a family-friendly boxing game have one of the hardest video game bosses?! The final opponent in this 1987 fighting game, Punch-Out!! has players spar with real-life boxing legend “Iron” Mike Tyson (I.E., one of the most formidable competitors ever to step foot in the ring).
Doing plenty of justice to Tyson’s ruthless in-ring offense, players must rely on their speed and agility to best Iron Mike, timing each of their punches in the rare moments when Tyson lets his guard down.
Sigrun (God of War)
The final Valkyrie Kratos faces in 2018’s God of War, Sigrun also acts as an amalgamation of every Valkyrie before her, utilizing every one of her sisters’ specialty attacks in combat. Compared to most other God of War boss battles, Sigrun forces players to use every gameplay feature at their disposal, from Spartan Rage to more strategic ranged attacks.
Absolute Radiance (Hollow Knight)
The new and improved version of Hollow Knight’s Radiance, Absolute Radiance, makes her original counterpart seem like an ordinary A.I. footsoldier.
Transforming herself into a bigger, faster, more unpredictable creature, most players will have difficulty landing a single blow against Absolute Radiance, never mind defeating her. With her unprecedented speed and random attacks, Absolute Radiance’s boss battle seems more a matter of blind chance than a test of players’ ability alone.
Demon of Hatred (Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice)
Over the years, FromSoftware has earned a reputation for crafting some of the toughest bosses in video game history, as seen with their latest creations in Elden Ring and the Dark Souls series.
With Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, this trait continues with a number of imposing enemies, none more so than the Demon of Hatred. A hulking creature capable of launching punishing fire attacks against hapless players, most players find themselves unable to avoid the Demon’s blazing inferno, no matter which direction they turn.
The Nameless King (Dark Souls III)
Like every FromSoftware game, Dark Souls III comes loaded with nigh-unsurpassable bosses throughout the game’s open-world design. Yet even when players consider the difficulty of Dark Souls bosses over the past three games, the Nameless King appears as a very different kind of animal.
Battling two stronger enemies in one, players spend most of the battle trying to chop down the King’s Jim Henson-esque dragon before it takes flight, raining fire down in every direction. Even when the dragon meets its end, players still have to contend with the King in a one-on-one duel, avoiding his devastating attacks, all of which result in instant death should players mistime their roll.
Orphan of Kos (Bloodborne)
The main baddie of Bloodborne’s The Old Hunters DLC, players might want to tie themselves to their chairs before brawling with the Orphan of Kos, lest they wind up bashing in their TV screen out of frustration. When dealing with this skeletal creature, it helps to stay close and dodge to the left, landing hits on the Orphan the moment it has completed its offensive attacks on the right.
Don’t worry about landing too many strikes at once – the Orphan’s nonstop attacks give players plenty of opportunity to land their own set of blows.
Emerald Weapon (Final Fantasy VII)strikes
A fitting name for a frustrating opponent, facing down Final Fantasy VII’s Emerald Weapon relies more on players' endurance and stamina than on their proficiency in combat. With a countdown clock of 20 minutes adding a newfound element of pressure, players must somehow chip away at Emerald Weapon’s gargantuan HP of one million(!). Players who make it through this boss battle without breaking a sweat deserve a medal for their valiant efforts.
Sephiroth (Kingdom Hearts 2)
Most boss battles find the bosses getting weaker as the battle draws on. Sephiroth, on the other hand, grows more powerful over time, making him a truly worthy challenger in the context of Kingdom Hearts 2. Perhaps the best strategy one can use when facing him involves stockpiling a healthy reserve of potions – because, trust us, most gamers will need it when squaring up against the One-Winged Angel.
Nemesis (Resident Evil 3: Nemesis)
Perhaps the greatest Resident Evil villain after Albert Wesker, Nemesis’s unrelenting pursuit of Jill Valentine forms the backbone of 1999’s Resident Evil 3: Nemesis. A shambling zombie assassin with some creative weapons on his person, Nemesis refuses to give up the hunt, chasing players with the determination of the T-800 or an undead Jason Voorhees.
This baddie pops up at the most inconvenient times; whenever players think they’ve seen the last of him, Nemesis bursts through one more brick wall, renewing the fight against the desperate Jill.
Dracula (Castlevania)
In 1986, most players could only dream of defeating the immortal vampire lord Dracula in the NES classic Castlevania. Combating players through his ceaseless barrage of projectiles before transforming into his nightmarish vampiric form, Dracula’s random pattern of teleportations, his cumbersome leap attacks, and his plentiful HP require players to always stay on their toes.
Psycho Mantis (Metal Gear Solid)
How many video games involve a boss reading a console’s memory card and hijacking players’ remotes? One of the best and most creative boss battles in Metal Gear Solid’s history, Psycho Mantis makes for a unique enemy to encounter in Hideo Kojima’s stealth game.
A powerful psychic who floats around the map and tosses everyday household objects at Snake, Mantis tests players’ speed, accuracy, and agility, right down to using Snake’s ally, Meryl, as a mind-controlled weapon. If she dies, the player loses; if she remains conscious, she runs the risk of taking her own life or killing the player. The trick is to knock out Meryl without killing her and to shoot down Mantis with as much haste as possible.
Goro (Mortal Kombat)
Of course,Goro makes for the deadliest Mortal Kombat opponent–the guy has four freaking arms, for crying out loud! Taking advantage of these extra limbs, Goro will try to close the distance between himself and his opponents, landing clubbing blows with each of his four fists. Even if players resort to range attacks, Goro will break out his arsenal of projectiles, wearing his challengers down before closing in for the kill.
Dark Link (Zelda II: The Adventure of Link)
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link may not rival the popularity of Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, or Breath of the Wild. However, that doesn’t make the Dark Link boss battle any less agonizing to deal with. A shadowy version of the game’s intrepid adventurer, Dark Link possesses the same fast-paced combat style as his counterpart, forcing players to battle their ultimate opponent: themselves.
Sans (Undertale)
Sans’ boss battle in Undertale may not only result in players quitting the game in rage but also leave them questioning whether they even like video games in the first place. One wrong move can leave players with unbelievably low health when navigating through several mini-games.
Of course, the longer the mini-games go on, the more desperate Sans himself becomes, leading him to throw challenges at players with increasing speed.
Bison (Street Fighter II)
The last opponent players face in Street Fighter II, M. Bison establishes himself as the most harrowing boss battle in the Street Fighter universe. Overpowered to a fault, the most basic strikes from Bison prove enough to eat away at players’ health with startling speed. The best strategy to avoid close-up attacks against this international tyrant involves maintaining distance and keeping Bison’s health down with ranged attacks whenever possible.
Yellow Devil (Mega Man)
Upon first glance, the Yellow Devil might seem… well, like a massive blob with arms. Yet when players enter combat with this mustard-colored mastodon, it becomes clear that the Yellow Devil’s simplistic appearance masks a dangerous opponent.
Taking advantage of his polymorphic biology, what makes the Yellow Devil so tricky are his ranged attacks, with the Devil breaking off pieces of himself that come soaring toward players. To beat him, one has to study these launched attacks, memorizing the projectiles’ flight patterns to avoid incurring damage.
Bowser (Super Mario 64)
After running into Bowser a handful of times in Super Mario 64, Mario faces off against his reptilian arch-enemy on a crumbling platform suspended in the clouds. In a battle where the stage sabotages players’ footing, Mario must somehow dodge Bowser’s behemoth attacks, getting behind the Koopa king to grab his tail.
Once players have done that, they have to throw Bowser with pinpoint accuracy at the bombs surrounding the platform–all while avoiding the disintegrating stage around them.
