Most Epic Boss Fights In Final Fantasy

Highlights

Final Fantasy games offer epic boss battles, from colossal monsters to powerful villains like Kuja and Nekron.
Each game has standout bosses, like Final Fantasy 8’s X-ATM092, with unique mechanics and impressive designs.
The boss battles in Final Fantasy are visually stunning and challenging, creating memorable gaming experiences.

As a seasoned gamer with decades of experience under my belt, I must say that each of these epic boss battles stands out in its own unique way. The fight against Ardyn in Final Fantasy XV was a thrilling ride, reminiscent of an intense shonen anime battle, complete with high-flying action and devastating Armiger attacks.

As a dedicated gamer, I’ve been hooked on the thrilling world of Final Fantasy for over three decades now. While each new installment brings fresh changes, there’s a certain familiarity that fans like me have grown accustomed to. One thing that consistently sets the best Final Fantasy games apart is the epic boss battles that truly test our skills, and more often than not, push the boundaries of the hardware they were built for.

But not all boss fights are created equally. Give the player too many epic battles to fight through, and it can become a case of diminishing returns. Some of Final Fantasy‘s best boss battles are much smaller and more personal in scale, like Cloud’s and Zack’s duels against Sephiroth. That being said, each Final Fantasy game has at least a handful of epic boss battles designed to make the player’s eyes water.

9 The Weapons – Final Fantasy 7

Big And Brutal Foes That Make The Party Look Tiny

In Final Fantasy 7, many players find the boss fights particularly thrilling, but the encounters with the titans called “Weapons” are often considered the toughest. Gaia summoned these massive beings to safeguard the life force, and their enormous size makes them easily noticeable even from the game map, earning them a reputation as some of the largest bosses in Final Fantasy.

In the game, there are four formidable enemies known as Weapons that players can pursue and defeat. The Ultimate Weapon has the ability to fly and is confronted on the Highwind, while the Ruby Weapon can be discovered in the desert near the Gold Saucer. The Diamond Weapon marches through Midgar, and the Emerald Weapon lurks beneath the ocean floor. These Weapons exhibit immense destructive force in various Full Motion Videos (FMVs), with the Diamond Weapon even surviving a blast from Midgar’s massive Sister Ray cannon. Battling Diamond and Ultimate Weapons may appear exciting, but they are not particularly challenging. However, defeating Emerald and Ruby Weapons requires careful preparation (and a bit of luck) as they can easily overpower even the highest-level parties without mercy. After all these years, the encounters with the Weapons in Final Fantasy 7 remain incredibly epic spectacles.

8 Kuja And Nekron – Final Fantasy 9

Hitting The Player With A Double Whammy

Kuja and Nekron are confronted in quick succession, and they both offer grand battles for comparable reasons. To begin with, even in his standard form, Kuja stands as one of the most notable antagonists in the “Final Fantasy” series. In his transformed state, he becomes nothing short of extraordinary. His design is not only captivating but also, the battle music that coincides with him is phenomenal. Though he may not be particularly large, he unleashes visually stunning attacks, such as Flare Star – an enhanced variant of Flare. The combination of these attacks and the music creates a sense that the party is battling for the very survival of the planet.

After Kuja is vanquished, Necron unexpectedly appears on the scene. The initial skirmish leaves every member of the party unconscious before the player selects four characters to engage in the ensuing battle. This dramatic moment intensifies the epic feel of the Necron fight. Although Necron has never been previously mentioned, his appearance is otherworldly and suggests a divine adversary. The most striking aspect of the battle is undoubtedly Necron’s moves. His Grand Cross attack unfolds like a miniature movie and encompasses cosmic proportions, while his Neutron Ring maneuver is equally impressive.

7 X-ATM092 – Final Fantasy 8

A Giant Robot Spider That Chases The Party

One of Final Fantasy 8‘s most memorable boss battles comes surprisingly early on. Towards the end of their mission in Dollet, Squall and his classmates run into Biggs, who activates X-ATM092, also known as Black Widow. This is a giant robotic spider that will chase the party all the way down the mountain and through. After their first battle against X-ATM092, which is unwinnable, the player can either choose to keep running or stand and fight.

In the realm of Final Fantasy games, it’s hard to overlook the underestimated boss, X-ATM092. This early-game adversary boasts an astonishing amount of health and its Ray-Bomb attack is not just visually striking, but lethal as well. What makes this robot unique is that when it drops to 20% health, it enters a self-repair phase that swiftly restores it to full strength. The challenge lies in triggering this repair sequence five times within the same battle before X-ATM092 can be successfully defeated. However, there’s a catch – the entire sequence is timed, and if the countdown hits zero, it’s a game over for Squall and his team. The innovative design and distinctive mechanics of this boss fight make X-ATM092 one of the most epic encounters in Final Fantasy.

6 Bahamut – Final Fantasy 16

Fighting A Dragon God In Space

In its debut as a next-gen game, it’s no wonder that Final Fantasy XVI boasts some truly monumental boss fights. One of the most breathtakingly rendered is against Bahamut, a legendary dragon deity from the Final Fantasy series. Throughout the years, various iterations of Bahamut have been encountered, but the one in Final Fantasy XVI undoubtedly ranks among the mightiest. The Zettaflare attack, which supposedly has the power to obliterate a planet, is something that Clive miraculously withstands somehow.

One fantastic aspect of this boss fight is its unique mechanics, allowing players to command both Clive and Joshua while they’re transformed into their Eikon forms, Ifrit and Phoenix. Each form provides a distinct gaming experience, but the battle reaches its climax when they combine and transform into Ifrit Risen. The visual spectacle of Ifrit Risen and Bahamut clashing in space is among the most breathtaking encounters ever featured in a Final Fantasy game.

5 Sin – Final Fantasy 10

Fighting A Giant Monster On An Airship

In Final Fantasy X, Sin appears occasionally as a towering sea-beast causing distress to the inhabitants of Spira. A summoner embarks on a journey, gathers all the Aeons (summons), sacrifices themselves to vanquish Sin and usher in a tranquil era called the Calm. Towards the game’s conclusion, the group determines that Yuna’s self-sacrifice is ill-advised, so Tidus proposes they bombard Sin from above using their colossal airship instead.

The result is a really epic boss battle that does an excellent job of capturing the sheer scale of Sin. The player must use long-range party members and spellcasters to pelt attacks at Sin while periodically launching rocket barrages at the monster from the airship. It’s Final Fantasy 10‘s most unique battle, and it’s a lot of fun. However powerful the party members are, they will still look like ants next to Sin. The battle ends with the party flying into the monster’s mouth, where a recreation of Zanarkand can be found.

4 The Shinra Army – Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core

Zack Takes On An Entire Army

In the typical boss battles of most games, players engage in combat with either a single enemy or a boss accompanied by a few subordinates. However, the final fight in Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core is unique, as Zack confronts not just one boss but Shinra’s entire army. This translates into gameplay as battling relentless waves of Shinra troops, while several attack helicopters continuously launch HP-draining homing missiles at Zack from a distance.

As the fight persists, with both me and Zack growing more weary, it seems like we’re stuck in a cinematic sequence that I can interact with. A severely wounded Zack struggles to move, and my trusted DMV slots – my usual lifelines during tough encounters – start malfunctioning. No matter how overpowered Zack is or how skilled I am; this feels like an unbeatable boss battle. The conclusion, however, turns out to be one of the most satisfying endings that Final Fantasy has ever offered.

3 Ardyn – Final Fantasy 15

A Shonen Level Boss Fight

In terms of grandiose boss encounters, Final Fantasy 15 truly outshines many others. For instance, there’s the battle where Noctis engages a colossal serpent named Leviathan while soaring above the submerged city of Altissia, another where he faces off against a Titan the size of a skyscraper, and yet another where he and his companions eliminate an adamantoise that has been masquerading as a mountain throughout the game. However, the most awe-inspiring battle might just be the climactic duel against Ardyn.

After delving into the mystery of Insomnia, the battle between Noctis and Ardyn commences gradually. Initially, they engage in a brawl within the city streets of Insomnia. Ardyn displays agility and wields impressive royal weapons and martial arts moves, but nothing particularly spectacular. However, once Ardyn is vanquished in this initial phase, the genuine battle unfolds. The antagonist regenerates and ascends to the skies above Insomnia. In a combat reminiscent of a popular shonen anime, Noctis and Ardyn soar through the skies, exchanging powerful Armiger attacks. The clash is action-packed, with events transpiring swiftly, making it challenging to follow. Persist in inflicting damage, and Ardyn will eventually descend, triggering a third, brief segment of the fight that concludes with Noctis defeating Ardyn using the royal arms.

2 Safer-Sephiroth – Final Fantasy 7

Sephiroth’s Planet-Destroying Form

In conclusion, Final Fantasy 7 concludes with a progression of challenging boss encounters within the Northern Cave. Immediately following the defeat of Jenova-Synthesis and Bizarro-Sephiroth, the party confronts Sephiroth’s ultimate form, Safer-Sephiroth. Despite its peculiar name, this form boasts a striking angelic appearance and a formidable array of attacks. The backdrop, an endless abyss marking the end of the world, is appropriately grandiose.

In the game Final Fantasy 7, this boss fight is particularly challenging due to his powerful and devastating attacks that often leave you reeling with status afflictions. Among these attacks, Super Nova stands out, not just because of its sheer power, but also because it involves Sephiroth summoning a gigantic comet from beyond the Milky Way, obliterating numerous solar system planets before impact. Given his ability to potentially annihilate entire star systems with a single move, it’s no exaggeration to call this boss “epic.”

1 Kefka – Final Fantasy 6

An Evil Clown Who Is Accompanied By Beautiful Visuals And Tense Music

In Final Fantasy 6, the climactic confrontation with Kefka demonstrates that spectacular 3D visuals aren’t essential for a boss fight to be truly epic. While defeating an evil clown might not initially seem heroic (unless one has a fear of clowns), the battle against Kefka is a memory that lingers.

Initially, getting to him proves challenging since one must initially climb the Statue of the Deities. Upon arrival, Kefka has transformed himself into a divine entity, the God of Magic, due to his unending malice for all life. This transformation makes him towering in size and gives him the appearance of an ancient Greek deity with both angelic and demonic wings. The artwork is stunningly detailed, pushing the boundaries of the art style. His attacks are equally impressive, with Forsaken, his most powerful move, being expertly animated. However, what truly sets this battle apart is the background music, “Dancing Mad,” which amplifies the intensity, making the encounter feel even more nerve-wracking.

2024-08-18 08:34