Hardest Summons To Unlock In Final Fantasy

Key Takeaways

Unlocking powerful summons in
Final Fantasy
games often requires completing challenging tasks or defeating tough bosses.
From Anima in
Final Fantasy 10
to Bahamut in
Final Fantasy 7 Remake
, these summons are worth the effort for their power in battle.
In games like
Final Fantasy 8
and
6
, players must complete complex quests or challenges to unlock the most powerful summons like Eden or Crusader.

As a seasoned Final Fantasy player with countless hours spent navigating the intricate worlds and challenging battles of these games, I can attest to the formidable nature of the bosses and GFs that have been carefully crafted by Square Enix. Each game offers unique challenges, and some of these challenges are so daunting they’ve left lasting impressions on my gaming journey.

As a dedicated gamer, I can’t help but marvel at the timeless charm of the Final Fantasy series. Unlike many other games out there that follow a linear narrative, this franchise doesn’t have an overarching plot that ties all its games together. But what it lacks in a traditional storyline, it more than makes up for in themes and elements that are consistent throughout the series. One of the most iconic aspects of these games is the use of summons to boost our heroes in battle. This feature has been a part of the franchise since the release of Final Fantasy 3 back in 1990, and it’s almost impossible to imagine the series without these powerful creatures at our side.

The summoning mechanic has evolved a lot throughout the series, but one thing has never really changed. While most summons are unlocked via the story, Final Fantasy‘s most powerful summons are usually a real pain to unlock. They’re either locked behind a long list of chores, hidden away in hard-to-reach areas or require beating a superboss or two. Thankfully, they’re normally worth the effort, and few things feel more rewarding than one-hitting a boss with an overpowered summon.

1 Gilgamesh – Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

Complete Treasure Hunts, Battles, Minigames, Puzzles, And More To Get This Might Summon

Hardest Summons To Unlock In Final Fantasy

As a devoted fan, I’ve found that for the majority of cases, summoning characters in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth isn’t too challenging. Most of them are either granted as the narrative unfolds or can be unlocked by besting them in Chadley’s combat simulator. However, there’s one notable exception – Gilgamesh the weapon master. Known for his recurring appearances across various Final Fantasy games, this character is particularly renowned.

To engage in battle with Gilgamesh, the player must first finish an assortment of Protorelic quests spread across Grasslands, Junon, Corel, Gongaga, Cosmo Canyon, and Nibel regions. Chadley offers these missions through his Phenomenon Intel, and luckily, they’re quite enjoyable. Instead of being monotonous fetch tasks, the challenges are diverse, with the reappearance of Fort Condor minigame being a standout feature. Once all these quests have been wrapped up, players can set sail for Gilgamesh Island. A few more quests await them there before they’re given the chance to face off against Gilgamesh. It’s undeniably a challenging path, but the reward of battling Gilgamesh makes it all worthwhile, even if he cannot be upgraded.

2 Anima – Final Fantasy 10

Let’s Go Treasure Hunting

In Final Fantasy 10, when the group initially encounters Anima, she is under Seymour’s control and serves as a formidable, even terrifying, adversary. The design of Anima is downright chilling, and she deals significant damage. Many players of Final Fantasy 10 in 2001 were unaware that they too could summon the immensely powerful Anima without consulting a guide.

Obtaining Anima wasn’t a walk in the park. Players needed to discover all the secret artifacts hidden throughout the game, and these could only be obtained by utilizing every destruction sphere within the Cloister of Trials. Unfortunately, if players failed to collect them during their initial visit to each temple, they would have to come back later but would encounter formidable dark aeons in the process. Once they had gathered all the required items, players had to return to the Baaj temple and conquer Geosgaeno, the colossal fish monster. After overcoming all these challenges, players could enter the temple, earning Anima as their prize. With such a powerful summon like Anima, it’s no surprise that Yuna is one of the most formidable summoners in Final Fantasy.

3 Jumbo Cactuar – Final Fantasy 8

Powerful And Irritating

In the game “Final Fantasy VIII”, entities known as Guardian Forces, or GFs (not to be confused with girlfriends), play a significant role in the narrative. There are numerous optional GFs hidden within the game that can be quite challenging to unlock, and it seems that a majority of them could have been included on this list. Compared to some other GFs, unlocking “Jumbo Cactuar” is relatively straightforward; however, the process can still be quite frustrating.

To defeat Jumbo Cactuar in Final Fantasy, navigate to Cactuar Island on the world map and engage with the small, jumping Cactuar. Battling against Jumbo Cactuar may not be enjoyable due to its high health points and potential for instant-kills. Although it’s not one of the bosses with the highest HP, it can still deplete resources quickly. It also boasts a high speed stat and frequently uses 10,000 Needles, which can eliminate at least one party member instantly. An underprepared party might find themselves eliminated before even damaging the giant cactus. The optimal strategy involves using abilities like Slow and Meltdown on the monster, followed by Squall’s ultimate move, Renzokuken. Keep in mind that when Jumbo Cactuar reaches 5% health, it will attempt to escape, requiring you to restart the entire battle multiple times.

4 Bahamut – Final Fantasy 7 Remake

Doing Chadley’s Chores

The remake of Final Fantasy 7 did many things correctly, but its summon system could use some improvement. While the game boasts some of the series’ most memorable summons, the process of unlocking them lacks the satisfying payoff. Some are subtly hidden within the world, while others are unlocked through story progression or completing mundane tasks for Chadley. Among all the summons, it is particularly challenging to obtain the legendary dragon Bahamut.

To defeat Bahamut in the game, the player must conquer every VR battle and finish all of Chadley’s Battle Intel missions. The VR battles can be manageable, but some of those intel reports need a considerable amount of grinding. As a result, many players may not unlock Bahamut until they play through again (New Game Plus), as they might not want to grind so much during their initial gameplay. Once the player has completed all of Chadley’s tasks, they will gain access to a challenging battle against Bahamut himself, which demands careful preparation if they wish to unlock the summon. Although he wasn’t included in this list, Gilgamesh from Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth requires a similar amount of work to be unlocked.

5 Crusader – Final Fantasy 6

Slay The Dragons

In discussions about the top-tier Final Fantasy titles, it’s often mentioned that Final Fantasy VI (or VI) stands out due to its significant impact on the turn-based JRPG genre and impressive battle system. This game is a fan favorite for many reasons, including the powerful Espers it introduces as summons. Among these Espers, the most formidable one goes by the name of Crusader.

To gain access to Crusader, the player must embark on a challenging journey through the World of Ruin, not merely vanquishing a single formidable foe as that would be overly simplistic. Instead, they are tasked with defeating all eight mighty dragons scattered throughout the game. Although some of these battles aren’t incredibly tough, others can prove to be quite challenging. To make matters worse, Crusader’s attacks impact both the player’s party and their adversary, rendering it less helpful compared to other Espers despite its impressive power.

6 Knights Of The Round – Final Fantasy 7

Breeding Chocobos

Obtaining Final Fantasy 7‘s strongest summon isn’t straightforward, but it’s worth noting that you don’t necessarily have to conquer any of Final Fantasy 7’s toughest bosses for this. Instead, the challenge lies in mastering Chocobo genetics and the whims of Random Number Generation (RNG), as the player must breed a Golden Chocobo.

Rearing a Golden Chocobo is likely to require some patience as it might take time, but the effort is well worth it since these birds can transport players to parts of the game map otherwise unreachable, such as Round Island where the ‘Knights of the Round’ materia is hidden. For those unwilling to wait, defeating Emerald Weapon will yield a Golden Chocobo; however, this task is easier said than done, especially without mastering the game’s strongest attack, which requires careful planning and strategy.

7 Chaos – Final Fantasy 12

Requires A Lengthy Quest

Final Fantasy 12 could be among the top-rated Final Fantasy games on Metacritic, yet some of its concealed features can be challenging to uncover. The game contains a few optional summoning entities called Espers that are difficult to acquire, but achieving them is usually laborious. Unlocking Chaos, one of the game’s strongest Espers, necessitates finishing a lengthy and somewhat monotonous mission, Three Medallions.

In this adventure, the player is tasked with spending a significant period searching for hard-to-spot items, characters, and concealed pathways. Once they’ve gathered everything necessary, they journey to the Cloister of Distant Song within the Necrohol of Nabudis. Here, they employ the medallions to open and engage in battles with two rather challenging bosses. Overcoming these adversaries will unlock a third boss, named Chaos. Chaos possesses high health, can impose status effects, and tends to amplify its own damage output. If they successfully navigate all these stages, players earn the privilege to acquire Chaos’ license as their reward.

8 Ark – Final Fantasy 9

Completing The Pumice

Unlocking Ark may prove challenging, but the game offers multiple strategies for players to summon Final Fantasy 9’s strongest entity, Ark. To obtain Ark as an Eidolon, players must secure the Pumice item, which can be acquired through two distinct methods. The first method involves defeating Ozma, one of Final Fantasy’s most formidable ultra-bosses. However, success in this endeavor relies heavily on luck, and even then, it isn’t guaranteed that a full Pumice will drop. Moreover, accessing the boss requires completion of two lengthy side quests.

Option two involves creating Pumice by merging Pumice Fragments, although this isn’t an easy task to accomplish. Firstly, you need to overcome Hades, a formidable optional boss, to gain his cooperation in allowing you to use his synthesis facility. Once that’s done, the process involves gathering two Pumice Fragments. One can be obtained from Ark, a storyline boss himself. The remaining two pieces can either be taken from Ozma (which isn’t enjoyable) or by completing the Chocograph minigame. Obtaining Ark might take some time, but given that he is one of the lesser-known summons in Final Fantasy, it’s definitely a worthwhile endeavor.

9 Eden – Final Fantasy 8

Exploring Under The Sea

In the game Final Fantasy 8, Eden is considered the most potent GF (Summoned creature). Getting hold of it requires a challenging process. Initially, you need to locate the Deep Sea Research Center, a well-concealed spot on the game’s map’s edge. This optional dungeon is one of Final Fantasy’s finest, specifically crafted to test players’ abilities. Right from the start, Squall’s group must triumph over Bahamut, a battle that’s not a walk in the park.

To descend into the dungeon’s deeper layers, the player needs to solve a sequence of math-based puzzles disguised as plumbing tasks. These lower levels brim with challenging random battles that can deplete the party’s strength. The ultimate test is battling Eden, a formidable opponent with an enormous health pool, the ability to instantly knock out characters with Light Pillar, and the capacity to inflict massive damage with Meteor. In this fight, the player must employ the Draw ability on the boss, sacrificing at least one turn to obtain the GF. Another option is to draw it from Tiamat in Ultimecia’s Castle, but doing so so late in the game makes it less advantageous.

10 Zodiark – Final Fantasy 12

A Really Unfair Fight

In contrast to the lengthy process of unlocking ‘Chaos’ in ‘Final Fantasy 12’, unveiling ‘Zodiark’ is considered more challenging. To initiate this, players need to amass at least ten Espers first, and then journey to Jahara where they engage with Geomancer Yugelu to open up a new location.

Following their journey through a tough, unfamiliar region, the player will uncover the Secret Graveyard Dig. Upon examining this location, players will ultimately encounter Zodiark, one of the game’s most challenging and frustrating adversaries. Known for being among the franchise’s toughest bosses, battling Zodiark often feels like an unfair challenge. He has the ability to inflict instant death and blindness not only at the start of the fight but also throughout it. To make matters worse, many of his attacks can only be withstood if characters have surpassed their HP limit. Throughout the encounter, Zodiark grows stronger, deploying more instant-death abilities and eventually becoming invulnerable to physical attacks. The battle may seem like an unfair cheap shot, relying more on luck than skill to persevere.

11 Magus Sisters – Final Fantasy 10

Gotta Catch Them All

In the realm of Final Fantasy, the Magus Sisters stand out among the coolest and strongest summoning options available, but unleashing their power requires a significant effort from the player. To summon them, one must embark on various side missions, such as conquering most of the Battle Arena, which can be quite tedious, and gathering all other summons in the game.

In simpler terms, achieving Yojimbo isn’t only about locating and purchasing it; it also involves securing Anima (a task we’ve previously discussed) and overcoming Bahamut at the Remiem Temple. Once these objectives are met, the player needs to revisit the chambers of the Remiem Temple while possessing the Blossom Crown and Flower Scepter. This action will grant access to the Magus Sisters, who possess powerful yet challenging abilities.

2024-10-10 02:55