Here's a list of my Top 10 boss fights. Thought I'd do one since my bud EightBitWarrior did the same. Blah blah blah exposition here it goes!

10. Dracula (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night)

Hydro Storm! Hydro Storm! Hydro Storm! Hydro Storm! Supposedly you couldn't die in this first sequence of the game, but how would I know? I used hydro storms with holy water and a full set of hearts my first time through. Don't even get hit at all really. One of my favorite moves in all video games, great soundbyte too!

09. Reptile (Mortal Kombat)

Reptile is a secret boss character that you can only find under certain conditions. I believe you had to have 2 million points, as well as get a double flawless victory on the pit stage, not use block, and end with a fatality while not using block. Or something like that. The battle itself took place at the bottom of the pit, and reptile could use both Sub-Zero and Scorpion's moves. More fun than the actual battle were the cryptic hints Reptile would leave randomly before a match ensued, such as "Tip Eht Fo Mottob". It had kids at the local arcade cracking down on the specifics for months!

08. Gi Nattak (Final Fantasy VII)

This boss was painfully frustrating, being someone new to Final Fantasy, and RPG's in general. It was only after I managed to beat him legitimately that I found out, he is an undead enemy, and thus can be killed with healing items. Yep, that means a single X-potion or Phoenix Down dropped him. Son of a b----.

07. Freya (Star Ocean: 'Till The End of Time)

If we're talking bosses with insurmountable odds, this would take the cake. A little refresher: Star Ocean is a game about really, really, high numbers. Hell, your characters max level is 255. Even though there's a cheap stun-bomb trick to employ, on 4D difficulty (the hardest), Freya had 60 million HP. That was kind of a big thing back then.

06. Nemesis (Resident Evil 3)

Although I liked the chase sequences with Mr. X more (trenchcoat guy in Resident Evil 2), those weren't really boss encounters. The cool thing about Nemesis, is he persists through the whole game, chasing after you. You can have as many encounters as you like with him, and can "defeat" him at various points. So while this is a cop out and it's technically 300 boss battles or whatever, I don't care. It was also pretty dang scary when he came around. The change in music and when you hear "STARS!" is frightening.

05. Yiazmat (Final Fantasy XII)

Among the Final Fantasy super bosses, Yiazmat is probably my favorite. Sure you have your Ruby, Emerald, Ultima, Omega, Ozma, and Penance...but they don't compare. 50 million HP, an excrutiatingly long battle, and the ability to buff and heal 500k in seconds...A true classic. It also helps that I LOVE the battle system of FFXII, so even setting up the gambits and getting your stats and items in line is a battle in its own!

04. Agni & Rudra (Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening)

The point where Devil May Cry 3 (non-special edition) went from hard to super balls hard, was as soon as I ran into Agni & Rudra. These two giants coordinated their attacks and did so much damage, and on top of that, if you killed one off too soon, the other would get super strong. I had to level up my reaction time and strategy in playing games, but the satisfying moment where you finally understand everything, and beat them like a baws...it's amazing. Makes the rest of the game incredible.

03. The Sorrow (Metal Gear Solid 3)

The realization of how The Sorrow's "battle" works is pretty great. I use quotations because you don't actually directly fight him, and if you try to touch him, you just die. All you do is walk down a river, and see spirits of enemy soldiers, listen to some back-story, then the sequence ends. When I was doing a no kill run, I noticed something weird. There were no spirits materalizing and attacking me at all. I thought it was a bug or something until I realized that it was based on all the enemies you've killed, they even display the ways that you killed them! Even the animals you kill are seen as floating carcasses. But man...Seeing that one enemy spirit at the end sucks. You know that you failed your no-kill run, and have to start all over again. FML

02. Elmdor & Assassins (Final Fantasy Tactics)

Wiegraf was hard enough, employing the "you can't reach me but I can hit you" tactic. But right after that battle, you go right into a battle on a rooftop with Elmdor & company! If you're under-leveled and lack movement during this sequence, you will have a hard time getting to Elmdor, and will have to go through his assassin friends. They have the ability to inflict stop or instantly kill if they feel like it. Seems they usually feel like it. By the way, you have to protect a girl named Rafa, and at low levels this is near impossible as they will kill her on the first turn. This battle is made harder if you're trying to steal Elmdor's special katana. What a headache, but I love it for some reason?

01. Psycho Mantis (Metal Gear Solid)

Metal Gear Solid is full of top-tier boss battles. But this is head and shoulders above the rest. The battle itself is typical, where Mantis uses his Psycho powers to levitate furniture, and he attacks you with it. The real treat is the fourth wall-breaking experience. HE KNOWS YOU LIKE TO PLAY CASTLEVANIA, AND HE CAN MOVE YOUR CONTROLLER ACROSS THE FLOOR! Sure, in actuality he was reading for Konami games on my memory card, and was just triggering the motors in my Dualshock controller...but at the time, I thought it was crazy voodoo magic. To add another layer to this battle, he would frequently black the screen out with the words "Hideo", which would allow him to get an advantage on you...but Colonel Cambell offers the advice over the codec to switch your controller to port 2 to avoid mind control! What an incredible experience.

Here's a list of my Top 10 boss fights. Thought I'd do one since my bud EightBitWarrior did the same. Blah blah blah exposition here it goes!

10. Dracula (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night)

Hydro Storm! Hydro Storm! Hydro Storm! Hydro Storm! Supposedly you couldn't die in this first sequence of the game, but how would I know? I used hydro storms with holy water and a full set of hearts my first time through. Don't even get hit at all really. One of my favorite moves in all video games, great soundbyte too!

09. Reptile (Mortal Kombat)

Reptile is a secret boss character that you can only find under certain conditions. I believe you had to have 2 million points, as well as get a double flawless victory on the pit stage, not use block, and end with a fatality while not using block. Or something like that. The battle itself took place at the bottom of the pit, and reptile could use both Sub-Zero and Scorpion's moves. More fun than the actual battle were the cryptic hints Reptile would leave randomly before a match ensued, such as "Tip Eht Fo Mottob". It had kids at the local arcade cracking down on the specifics for months!

08. Gi Nattak (Final Fantasy VII)

This boss was painfully frustrating, being someone new to Final Fantasy, and RPG's in general. It was only after I managed to beat him legitimately that I found out, he is an undead enemy, and thus can be killed with healing items. Yep, that means a single X-potion or Phoenix Down dropped him. Son of a b----.

07. Freya (Star Ocean: 'Till The End of Time)

If we're talking bosses with insurmountable odds, this would take the cake. A little refresher: Star Ocean is a game about really, really, high numbers. Hell, your characters max level is 255. Even though there's a cheap stun-bomb trick to employ, on 4D difficulty (the hardest), Freya had 60 million HP. That was kind of a big thing back then.

06. Nemesis (Resident Evil 3)

Although I liked the chase sequences with Mr. X more (trenchcoat guy in Resident Evil 2), those weren't really boss encounters. The cool thing about Nemesis, is he persists through the whole game, chasing after you. You can have as many encounters as you like with him, and can "defeat" him at various points. So while this is a cop out and it's technically 300 boss battles or whatever, I don't care. It was also pretty dang scary when he came around. The change in music and when you hear "STARS!" is frightening.

05. Yiazmat (Final Fantasy XII)

Among the Final Fantasy super bosses, Yiazmat is probably my favorite. Sure you have your Ruby, Emerald, Ultima, Omega, Ozma, and Penance...but they don't compare. 50 million HP, an excrutiatingly long battle, and the ability to buff and heal 500k in seconds...A true classic. It also helps that I LOVE the battle system of FFXII, so even setting up the gambits and getting your stats and items in line is a battle in its own!

04. Agni & Rudra (Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening)

The point where Devil May Cry 3 (non-special edition) went from hard to super balls hard, was as soon as I ran into Agni & Rudra. These two giants coordinated their attacks and did so much damage, and on top of that, if you killed one off too soon, the other would get super strong. I had to level up my reaction time and strategy in playing games, but the satisfying moment where you finally understand everything, and beat them like a baws...it's amazing. Makes the rest of the game incredible.

03. The Sorrow (Metal Gear Solid 3)

The realization of how The Sorrow's "battle" works is pretty great. I use quotations because you don't actually directly fight him, and if you try to touch him, you just die. All you do is walk down a river, and see spirits of enemy soldiers, listen to some back-story, then the sequence ends. When I was doing a no kill run, I noticed something weird. There were no spirits materalizing and attacking me at all. I thought it was a bug or something until I realized that it was based on all the enemies you've killed, they even display the ways that you killed them! Even the animals you kill are seen as floating carcasses. But man...Seeing that one enemy spirit at the end sucks. You know that you failed your no-kill run, and have to start all over again. FML

02. Elmdor & Assassins (Final Fantasy Tactics)

Wiegraf was hard enough, employing the "you can't reach me but I can hit you" tactic. But right after that battle, you go right into a battle on a rooftop with Elmdor & company! If you're under-leveled and lack movement during this sequence, you will have a hard time getting to Elmdor, and will have to go through his assassin friends. They have the ability to inflict stop or instantly kill if they feel like it. Seems they usually feel like it. By the way, you have to protect a girl named Rafa, and at low levels this is near impossible as they will kill her on the first turn. This battle is made harder if you're trying to steal Elmdor's special katana. What a headache, but I love it for some reason?

01. Psycho Mantis (Metal Gear Solid)

Metal Gear Solid is full of top-tier boss battles. But this is head and shoulders above the rest. The battle itself is typical, where Mantis uses his Psycho powers to levitate furniture, and he attacks you with it. The real treat is the fourth wall-breaking experience. HE KNOWS YOU LIKE TO PLAY CASTLEVANIA, AND HE CAN MOVE YOUR CONTROLLER ACROSS THE FLOOR! Sure, in actuality he was reading for Konami games on my memory card, and was just triggering the motors in my Dualshock controller...but at the time, I thought it was crazy voodoo magic. To add another layer to this battle, he would frequently black the screen out with the words "Hideo", which would allow him to get an advantage on you...but Colonel Cambell offers the advice over the codec to switch your controller to port 2 to avoid mind control! What an incredible experience.

Pretty nice list. I would have added some dark souls bosses because they are amazing and I hate myself.

@Sackmanjones said:

Pretty nice list. I would have added some dark souls bosses because they are amazing and I hate myself.

Not a big Dark Souls fan, unfortunately.

Nice list. I spent my whole winter break one year during high school before my brother and I beat Yiazmat. Not sure, in retrospect, if it was worth it but good memories nonetheless. Totally agree with The Sorrow pick, as well

i thought that The Sorrow was glitched when i first played it. it just kept going and going and going and going until somebody had to clear it up that it's based off how many people i've killed. had i known, maybe i wouldn't have slit the throat of every soldier that i saw.

I love the fact that tri-Ace put Valkyrie Profile characters in Star Ocean 3 as bonus bosses, but man, I just could never bring myself to finish the game. The big plot twist took the wind out of my sails.

But man, Psycho Mantis is a hard one to beat. The fight is full of gimmicks, but they absolutely work for both the character and the game in general.

Yeah Pyscho Mantis was a pretty epic boss fight.

Kinda hard to argue with that being number 1.

That Agni and Rudra fight in DMC 3 is utterly fucking ridiculous. Took me a year of on and off playing to finish those fuckers. Then I got to the first fight with Virgil and never played the game again.

Hmm interesting, I've never once even thought about fighting Gi Nattak without using an X-Potion, though I guess that's a pretty awkward stage of the game for character strength so I can see how it'd be tough.

Oh fucking Agnis and Rudra. I HATE THOSE ASSHOLES. They broke my young mind over and over... Finally beating them is one of the best goddamn moments in my life.

I didn't know Gi Nattak was undead. Though I never really found him especially hard either.

Is Star Ocean worth playing? Those ridiculous numbers tickle me the right way.

@lordofultima: You had me at Reptile.

This is now promo'd on the front page.

@TobbRobb said:

Is Star Ocean worth playing? Those ridiculous numbers tickle me the right way.

If you can get past the horrible writing and stories, they aren't so bad. I'd say the Tales games are a better overall experience if you want a similar game, or if you want to play an actual good Tri-Ace game, both Valkyrie Profile 1 and 2 are outstanding (The DS one is pretty average), and they have big numbers too!

Haven't played a single game out of those ten...

@Hailinel said:

I love the fact that tri-Ace put Valkyrie Profile characters in Star Ocean 3 as bonus bosses, but man, I just could never bring myself to finish the game. The big plot twist took the wind out of my sails.

But man, Psycho Mantis is a hard one to beat. The fight is full of gimmicks, but they absolutely work for both the character and the game in general.

Star Ocean 3 is the only (J)RPG where I cared fuck all about the plot. I loved the combat so much, I hiked all the way through Sphere 211. Freya can fuck right off with her bullshit though.

Yiazmat was a really great challenge. I died on its last bar of health (well over an hour of battle) before defeating it on the next go around. I remember it taking something like 2 hours on my successful attempt. Unfortunately it made the rest of that game's story and battles pitifully trivial.

Obviously I'm also a fan of Ozma, but that's more because it's a giant sphere.

Great list, first time I beta Pycho Mantis I used the controller in port 1...yeah, took me like an 2 hours

@lordofultima: It might just be me, but all of the stuff said about Agni and Rudra coordinating their attacks really well and the survivor getting stronger if you killed one first could be said almost unaltered about Ornstein and Smough from Dark Souls. I don't know about anyone else, but i think there may have been an inspiration for Dark Souls in that DMC fight.

Great post

To this day I still have a seperate memory card with my 4D save on it.

You know, just in case.

This is a pretty good list.

Can't believe no one has mentioned The End from MGS3?! Amazing boss battle!!

Lots of good stuff. Agni & Ruda was an awesome battle that kicked my ass many, many times. Though I preferred all the Vergil fights on the narrative side, these guys were probably some of the most fun.

Great list!

Great post, although I never had the difficulty with the Eldmor fight in FFT for some reason. I probably died a dozen or so times in the Wiegraf fight though, before I learned how to properly run away while buffing myself.

My favorite boss battle is probably the fourteenth colossus in Shadow of the Colossus. It's the only Colossus that is actually fast, and running from it while trying to elaborately knock pillars down on it was a pretty great rush. The final, final boss fights in Chrono Trigger and Golden Sun: The Lost Age are also among my favorites. There's nothing especially unique about the fights (Aside from the Fusion Dragon's odd tendency to grow stronger with the fewer heads it has), but they're both perfectly balanced in difficulty, offering a great final challenge in games that are otherwise relatively easy.

While i think Agni and Rudra is a great choice, i just for the love of the world cant think of a reason why you would choose that over any of the 3 dante vs vergil fights at all, or why none of them are on the list.

Great list! The boss fights in Tactics are why I will always forever be stuck in some Ivalician Library watching poor Ramza eat it from a Zodiac and 6 hostile Dragoons. :(

I was having a bitch of a time with Gi Nattak back in the day. I think I actually restarted the game to be more prepared for him. Then, my friend got the FF 7 strategy guide for his birthday. I think the section on Gi Nattak said "He's undead, so use an X-potion" and my jaw droppped. Booted up the game immediately and tried (as I'd been stuck on him for a while) and it fucking worked. Then I got stuck on the Safe boss in the Mansion for a while.

@Red said:

Great post, although I never had the difficulty with the Eldmor fight in FFT for some reason. I probably died a dozen or so times in the Wiegraf fight though, before I learned how to properly run away while buffing myself.

My favorite boss battle is probably the fourteenth colossus in Shadow of the Colossus. It's the only Colossus that is actually fast, and running from it while trying to elaborately knock pillars down on it was a pretty great rush. The final, final boss fights in Chrono Trigger and Golden Sun: The Lost Age are also among my favorites. There's nothing especially unique about the fights (Aside from the Fusion Dragon's odd tendency to grow stronger with the fewer heads it has), but they're both perfectly balanced in difficulty, offering a great final challenge in games that are otherwise relatively easy.

WIegraf and Elmdor were the two choices for that game, both were great. But Elmdor made me facepalm after finally beating Wiegraf, having to deal with Rafa dying and crap. lol

@Ninja_Welshman said:

Can't believe no one has mentioned The End from MGS3?! Amazing boss battle!!

The End is also amazing for the ways you can kill him, or just have a huge drawn out sniper battle. But it didn't leave the same impact as Sorrow for me.

@Jethuty said:

While i think Agni and Rudra is a great choice, i just for the love of the world cant think of a reason why you would choose that over any of the 3 dante vs vergil fights at all, or why none of them are on the list.

I'm not sure I agree with you, I don't remember anything about those battles, they didn't stick with me. It's pretty much that one or Beowulf, just for being an all round fun battle.

@Red said:

Great post, although I never had the difficulty with the Eldmor fight in FFT for some reason. I probably died a dozen or so times in the Wiegraf fight though, before I learned how to properly run away while buffing myself.

My favorite boss battle is probably the fourteenth colossus in Shadow of the Colossus. It's the only Colossus that is actually fast, and running from it while trying to elaborately knock pillars down on it was a pretty great rush. The final, final boss fights in Chrono Trigger and Golden Sun: The Lost Age are also among my favorites. There's nothing especially unique about the fights (Aside from the Fusion Dragon's odd tendency to grow stronger with the fewer heads it has), but they're both perfectly balanced in difficulty, offering a great final challenge in games that are otherwise relatively easy.

I was invested in Shadow for the story, but I didn't enjoy the bosses so much. Ico's final boss on the other hand was really moving in ways other than the mechanics to me. A runner-up.

@TobbRobb said:

Oh fucking Agnis and Rudra. I HATE THOSE ASSHOLES. They broke my young mind over and over... Finally beating them is one of the best goddamn moments in my life.

I didn't know Gi Nattak was undead. Though I never really found him especially hard either.

Is Star Ocean worth playing? Those ridiculous numbers tickle me the right way.

Yes it is, absolutely. 2 and 3 are great games, I think they're much more interesting than the filler Tales offers. Stay away from 4 though.