My 10 Hardest Boss Fights I've Encountered!

[@danpantzig7266]

"If you use save states, cheat codes, or scuzzy pause tricks to beat enemies - GOOD FOR YOU! I'm glad you chose to enjoy a game on your own terms." Subbed, we need more positivity in gaming.

[@Fortefyre]

It's true, it's so irritating to see "real gamers" who gatekeep how people choose to enjoy their own lives. Save state it up, Konami code the game to death, hell, use an exploit on that final boss, you've earned the ending!

[@throwbackswiththetechnodrome]

My immediate thought was the Grim Reaper from Castelvania, I’m so happy to see it on the list! I have never beaten him, beat me like I owed him money. -Cast

[@Fortefyre]

Yeah he spanked my ass with a spatula lol.

[@erneststackhouse1133]

My wife is not a gamer but there is one game she will take the controls from me & play it & that is "Mike Tyson's Punch Out" on the NES. She is a massive Boxing Fan due to Mike Tyson & that is the only game she ever played as a kid & she can beat it no sweat in one sitting. Didn't know about the 4th circuit for this game. Going to have to check it out with her in the near future! Thanks for sharing!

[@Fortefyre]

Your wife is a better gamer than me!

[@bcsdscar]

The Yellow Devil, that bastard. He kicked my ass so many times . I remember discovering the pause glitch by complete accident back in the late 80s, we had to back then because we had no internet to help us lol. Most things were discovered by dumb luck . I never could have beat him without it . Nice video man .

[@Fortefyre]

That's awesome, I used the pause glitch in Blaster Master as well.

[@barttheraven]

Yellow Devil is still hard even when you know to pause the game. Just to align that shot took many playthroughs.

[@Fortefyre]

Yeah because he's still coming in from the left! Lmao.

[@meridianmile8033]

Yiazmat- FF12...50 million hp. Takes about 8 hours. He's nearly impossible when his health is at critical.

[@Fortefyre]

Jesus christ! Fuck that.

[@pharmcat8484]

Why did I never think of the start button for Yellow Devil? I learned something valuable today.

[@Fortefyre]

I expected you to know that one :P

[@Iohannis42]

Did you read Nintendo Power?

[@Cainb23]

1:25 aw now im sad, im sure you came out the other side stronger than ever 😊👍

[@Fortefyre]

Haha it isn't that bad I promise.

[@pjw5328]

I never beat Tyson. In fact, I never got to Tyson without using the code, because I could never even get past Sandman on a full playthrough. Boss I hated fighting the most: Malroth in Dragon Quest II. I hated this fight because it’s a total RNG-fest. If you’re lucky you can beat him. If you’re unlucky he can kill any of your characters in about two arracks. If you’re really unlucky, he’ll randomly cast HEALALL on himself right before you’re about to finish him off, and now you practically have to start the whole fight all over again with less HP and magic. I don’t even remember how many times I lost to this guy before I finally got a good pattern and was able to put him down.

[@clarafedde8674]

I was going to mention this too. Good news is that his heal-all doesn't fully heal him, and If you had bad RNG like I did, he used it every 3rd round(he does have infinite mp too)...so I grinded my lv up and he became a joke. Also in remakes they removed his ability to heal.....SIDOH!!!!!!

[@Fortefyre]

Sounds just as painful as the Dragonlord in the first game!

[@Iohannis42]

So lucky he didn't use HEAL ALL when defeating him.

[@clarafedde8674]

@@Iohannis42 lol, Street Fighter 3 boss....lucky Dragon Quest doesn't have auto-raise that Final Fantasy has.

[@jonbourgoin182]

I definitely agree with the first pick. If you don't try and conserve your ammo in that game I'm pretty sure it's possible to soft lock yourself. The OG RE games had their difficult moments but Code Veronica was not something I was prepared for back in the day. I distinctly remember having to start over halfway through and playing more strategically.

[@Fortefyre]

I feel most of us did!

[@richfutrell753]

I didn't know about that 4th circuit in Punch Out, I will have to check that out! Yeah Tyson sucks cuz of modern lag. I was able to beat his ass easily back in the day on OG hardware and CRT TV. The Yellow Devil has an easy enough pattern but it's just so satisfying to hit him with the elec beam and hit select till he's dead...Wily too...works in Blaster Master as well! The Reaper is by far the toughest fight in CV...I would argue one of the hardest bosses in the NES library.

[@iami3rian394]

I'm 43 Got punch out on launch. Knocked Tyson out every year, after the first time I figured it out. He's tough, but he's not impossible.

[@richfutrell753]

​@@iami3rian394same, I am a couple years older than you. Tyson is hard as hell on modern systems cuz of the lag. No wonder PO isn't on the Switch online yet

[@iami3rian394]

@@richfutrell753 I had my pie down to around a single frame of lag, and it's still too much.

[@richfutrell753]

​@@iami3rian394Yeah I nptice it on the Raspberry Pi as well.

[@Fortefyre]

I didn't use the start trick in Blaster Master, but one of the bosses has an area he refuses to hit you when you stand in, and I believe I did that lmfao.

[@Marc_Araujo]

Yellow Devil in MM1 (without the pause glitch); Super Shredder in the Manhattan Project; Dracula in Dracula X; Warmech in FF1; and Mike Tyson. P.S. You gotta stock up on and save those Gun Powder Arrows for the Tyrant in CVX.

[@Fortefyre]

Oh yeah, the arrows do the necessary damage to hit that threshold.

[@jamesreece9502]

I could never beat Tyson, but I watched my friend do it. I got so mad, I just gave him the game cartridge, which he still owns over 30 years later.

[@Fortefyre]

I would probably do the same thing haha

[@MichaelTaylor-qp2xf]

The first time i played RE: Code Veronica, I accidentally left all my best weapons in the metal detector security checkpoint box and forgot to retrieve them before getting up to that battle with Tyrant on the plane and I could. Not. Beat. Him. I restarted the entire game, didn't make the same mistake again and annihilated him when i got back up to him the 2nd time.

[@Fortefyre]

I had a few items, but I was beyond infuriated that they would put such a close encounter with a tyrant. Definitely affected my mood the rest of the game.

[@wjackter]

For Chrono Trigger, i find the twin golems so much harder than Lavos

[@Fortefyre]

They are certainly tough!

[@Brad2325]

#1 is definitely the king, but the final boss on Ninja Gaiden for the NES definitely deserves a spot on this list.

[@clarafedde8674]

Fail, and its back to 6-1 with you....

[@Fortefyre]

Yep. Getting sent back to 6-1 is a fiendish move.

[@Brad2325]

@@Fortefyre That, and didn't the final boss have like three different forms or something?

[@Fortefyre]

@@Brad2325 Jacquio or whatever is technically the first phase, but I think it might have been 2. I'd have to check.

[@Brad2325]

@Fortefyre Yeah, I think you're right. It's been years since I played it, but just getting through level 6-2 was hard enough.

[@Jac2Mac]

The Yellow Devil is even worse in the Sega Genesis version as you have NO way to cheese him at all.

[@Fortefyre]

I have yet to play the Genesis versions!

[@FourBudgies87]

Dr. Wily in Mega Man 7. Also Steel Beak from Darkwing Duck on NES. Those little drones chase after you nonstop and it's nearly impossible to avoid them.

[@iami3rian394]

Drake, huh? I'll check that out.

[@Fortefyre]

I haven't played either of them yet, I need to!

[@pharmcat8484]

Yeah, Lavos is only hard the first time you play him.

[@pharmcat8484]

I never knew about those different moves for Lavos. Still learning new things to this day.

[@Fortefyre]

I'm glad I could provide some insight :)

[@miamimagicians]

X-men Spider-Man Juggernaut is the hardest boss I’ve ever played

[@clarafedde8674]

This is why the megadrive version is the superior, cause you can skip the spidey tutorial...so you game over time and time again against him. That game was so merciless, but I can honestly say I beat it without a game genie...I wish I owned a game genie then

[@Fortefyre]

I'm sure he would have ended up on this list lol.

[@Iohannis42]

Good selection of bosses. I would offer the final boss of Blaster Master and Shadow Link from Zelda II. If you don't cheese those battles, of course...

[@Fortefyre]

So funny story, the final boss of blaster master can't hit you if you butt him up against the right side of the room you fight him in. I cheesed the hell out of him haha.

[@darkdeathridertv]

great video my friend i hate some bosses as well :)

[@Fortefyre]

Some bosses are just mean lmfao.

[@EoR_2B4GOT10]

My personal pic for the most brutal bossfight in a game has to go to the Moirae Sisters in Shin Megami Tensei 3. First you need to beat a puzzle in which you fight each of the sisters individually. These fights are pretty easy. One does damage, one casts buffs/debuffs and the third casts healing spells. The problem starts when you beat the puzzle and make it to the top of the tower. Now you have to fight the 3 sisters together. Now you are in deep trouble. No matter who you focus they will outlast you. They keep getting stronger and stronger with the buffs/debuffs. You can't outdamage them in the long run because the healer and damage dealer keep getting stronger. And remember this is SMT 3. It doesn't matter if your squat is at 100% health. If your main character gets targeted it's game over for you and you have to beat the whole puzzle, the 3 individual fights and the main fight again. You may think to yourself "pffff. it's a JRPG. Just grind a few levels and you will be fine." Absolutely not! When I say you can't outdamge them. I MEAN IT!!! I grinded 5 levels and still got my backside handed to me and then some! I must have lost this fight like 20 times. At one point I had the idea to try to outlast my enemy. Just staying alive and see how long I can stand in the fight. My teams healer was a Daisoujou. Not only can this healer cast strong healing spells. It can also steal hp and mana from the enemy at no cost. So I kept doing this and cast debuffs/buffs through items to stay competetive. After maybe 25-30mins my moment of triumph had come. I had my Daisoujou steal hp/mana throughout the whole fight from the enemy healer. It was always 86hp/86mana. But after all this time I suddenly only got 86hp/42mana. I stood up. looked at the screen and said "NO WAY!!!" My enemies turn came and it was confirmed. The enemy healer could no longer cast spells. She was out of mana and now the healing for my enemies was over. Now I could decimate them! Their hp wasn't that high. It was just not possible for me to get through before. I got such a massive rush from this fight that I had not felt in like forever. I recomanded this game to many of my friends who all liked it. When I asked them how they beat the sisters they all said the same thing. "I couldn't do it. So I just lowerd the difficulty." Now fair game. If you don't have fun in a bossfight and you just wanna get through just lower the difficulty if you have that option. However you potentially rob yourself of one of the most epic triumphs in gaming if you ask me. Yes Beelzebub in SMT4 is also rediculessly hard. Even if your entire squad is level 99 there is no garuntee you will win. But personally I put that fight not as high because you need to lose your entire team to game over.

[@Fortefyre]

That's certainly an in depth breakdown! One day I'll get to that. Have you played digital devil story megami tensei on the Famicom?

[@EoR_2B4GOT10]

@Fortefyre I have not. I do enjoy the series. But I have a Problem with 8bit jrpgs. Most of them are to cryptic with to many potential softlocks. So I stay away from them unless there is a modern release with enhancements to make the game more tolerable. Like with Phantasy Star 1 Sega Ages.

[@SkywarpZX]

I never beat Tyson on my NES/CRT as a kid, but I did do it two years ago on Switch Online. My 60 Hz refresh rate tv was struggling with display lag, but removing input lag by changing from wireless to wired controller was the thing that let me win. I haven't tried it on my NES classic mini console, so I can't comment on that hardware.

[@Fortefyre]

Oh wow, I know most people will struggle on principle, and the lag certainly doesn't help tilt the odds in our favor.

[@jonraymondchua2388]

Your list is legit... To this day, I have only ever beaten Tyson once and can't do it again... The Yellow Devil in Megaman gave me nightmares, and i so hate Gill from SF III that I trained myself to beat him over the years... Your stroy with Sephiroth kinda reminds me of the hiddrn boss Lapis from Legend of Legaia...

[@Fortefyre]

Oh no! I'll have to check it out if/when I play it.

[@mr.milehi9883]

Oro SF3 is my favorite. He's just so unconventional. I am very bad at this game. You definitely put the f you in fun, sir!

[@Fortefyre]

I also put the F in buffoonery lmfao.

[@spicytrashpanda]

Probably doesn't count because it wasn't a major release but Megaman from I Wanna Be the Boshy is still a nightmare that hauntd me to this day. I just have to accept it'll never happen

[@Fortefyre]

It definitely counts!

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

I say others are Wily Machine 7 final form, Kaiser Sigma, Black Devil (Mega Man X5), Violen (Mega Man X2), Nightmare Mother (Mega Man X6), Mother Brain (Zero Mission), Nightmare (Metroid Fusion), Mogenar (Metroid Prime 3), Boost Guardian, Omega Pirate, Metroid Prime first form, Fiery Gobblegut, Antasma X, Ant-Lion (Sonic 2 Game Gear), Big Arms (Sonic 3), Tails vs Eggman 2 (SA2), Inner Agent 3, Young Xehanort (Birth By Sleep and Dream Drop Distance), Terra (Kingdom Hearts 2), Vanitas Remnant (Birth By Sleep), No Heart (Birth By Sleep), Kurt Zisa (Kingdom Hearts)... Phantom Ganon (Ocarina of Time), Moldorm (A Link to the Past), Dark Link (The Adventure of Link), Dark Daroach, Nightmare phase 1 (Kirby's Adventure), Galacta Knight, Dracula (Castlevania 3 American version), Galmoth (Symphony of the Night), Blackmore (Order of Ecclesia), Possessed Takumi (Fire Emblem Fates Conquest Hard and Lunatic modes), Dark Dragon Medeus (Fire Emblem 12 Lunatic mode), and Demi-Fiend replica (Digital Devil Saga 1).

[@Fortefyre]

Phantom ganon isn't that bad :P

[@clarafedde8674]

"What is the hardest boss you ever fought?" *pulls out my nes "Pick a game, any game" My top 3 are: Sans from undertale...my broken controller is all that is left Juggernaut from Spider-Man X-man arcades revenge. You can still hear crying "please DI, please DI" in my sleep. Fester's Quest 3rd onward...there is a glitch cheat that kills bosses for a reason, but only learned this decades after spending years trying to beat this game normally. (_ _) My guilty pleasure is Blaster Master for the nes. I LOVE THIS GAME AND i really love the zero series too. Boss 5 without gun max is a pain, but is doable....also yes i know there is a glitch that prevents him from spitting, but its not as fun. Also Bionic Commando helicopter fight. One shot, small window frame, but if you nail it, you get to blow up hitler's head. Such a good reward. I can think of so many hard fights, including the shadow of the empire boss fight. The pop off was explosive and i forgotten everything about that game except how much i loathe that robot

[@Fortefyre]

Great choices!

[@mikeburkhart8336]

The final boss of Legend of Legacy on 3DS...this guy has two forms and the second one is a NIGHTMARE!!! If you're stats aren't high he'll beat the tar out of your party in seconds. Even prepared he has so many hit points it took TWO hours to beat him!

[@Fortefyre]

I've never heard of that game, might have to check it out!

[@jeffdaigle5487]

😂Lol 42 years old and I never knew the start trick for mega man. I learned something new today. Tbh though I know the pattern and will probably just stick with it.

[@Fortefyre]

Whaaaaat!

[@MichaelTaylor-qp2xf]

Lavos is tough, but not more so than any other JRPG final bosses of the time. You could swap Lavos for Kefka, Smithy, Giygas or Zeromus and say pretty much the same stuff about the multiple phases and specific powerful attacks.

[@Fortefyre]

Absolutely!

[@Riz2336]

Magneto in x-men children of the atom took me so long to beat, one of hardest boss fights in a fighting game there is

[@Fortefyre]

I REALLY want to play that at some point.

[@tuathanbashieres3262]

Loved the first two Kingdom Hearts, i would rather fight Sepheroth on nose torque than play through that damn Little Mermaid musical level

[@arkanoidaddict2125]

Cobra Triangle(NES) final boss is quite hard cause of time limit. Silkwom(NES) boss must have been one of the hardest for me cause continues won't work anymore. Wouldn't forget Dragon's lair either, the pal version is still doable but ntsc final boss is a nightmare

[@Fortefyre]

Dragon's Lair on principle is a nightmare LMAO

[@joek5882]

Pretty much every boss in Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night gave my trouble. I think since the overall map was substantially smaller than a game like SOTN Igarashi decided to pad the gaming experience by inflating the difficulty of the boss battles. But they were a roadblock and progression in the game depended upon beating those bosses instead of exploring in another direction like SOTN. I did beat the game eventually, but it's a game I have felt little interest in revisiting. I play games to have a good time and I admit I will never develop those swift Japaneese gaming skills! 🤷‍♂

[@Fortefyre]

I'm horrible at those kind of games haha.

[@d-fyant1925]

I’ve never beaten the first Castlevania. I’ve given up hope lol. Weirdly I’ve beaten 2, 3 and Super Castlevania. The original though has always been so difficult.

[@Fortefyre]

Give it another go! It's tremendously rewarding to conquer it!

[@DiabolikalRA]

Loved the video but disagree with the Vergil fight. Handled it surprisingly well first time never had an issue. However the rest of list bosses on here is pure hell hahahaha

[@Fortefyre]

Save some for the rest of us! :P

[@timboslice9071]

Don't let the end of Ratchet 1 sour you on the franchise. Going Commando and Up Your Arsenal are some of the best games ever made. Can't recommend them highly enough. They improve upon the original in every way.

[@Fortefyre]

I did beat Ratchet 2, found it to be exceptional!

[@TheShiftyShitShow]

i can legit beat mike tyson but the yellow devil i had to use save states mainly just to save time doesn't make it any easier to do

[@Fortefyre]

This is true!

[@triplestar100]

to Fortefyre= I'm aware you prefer playing games in a self-imposed order, but... if you wanna talk tough boses, look no further than fighting games on the SNK NeoGeo! Geese Howard (Fatal Fury 1 & Real Bout), Neo-Dio (World Heroes Perfect), Rugal (many King Of Fighters iterations except 96), Leopold Goenitz (the aforementioned KOF '96)... you want tough? they WILL give you tough!

[@Fortefyre]

RUGAL IS A NUTSACK. I haven't played KoF in a while, so I didn't think of that in a long time. I loved Wolfgang Krauser or whatever the Fatal Fury 2/Special boss was, the guy who says "I'll chisel your gravestone, sleep well".

[@jeffdaigle5487]

Yes sir!!! I concur and 100% agree with you... F Shao Khan!!!! 😂

[@Fortefyre]

He's such a tool haha

[@rechtehaber]

Arc The Lad Twilight of the spirits. End boss is impossible without grinding for hours. Breath of Fire III one is hard to beat if you screw up and used up too many MP healing items before.

[@Fortefyre]

I actually stumbled on the end boss of bof III by happenstance and happened to have enough items to scrounge by lol

[@fr8242]

Final boss, star fox wii u= loathe×balls in vice

[@Fortefyre]

Solve for X, x is me.

[@UstraMage]

Yup, you have said it correctly

[@Fortefyre]

#nailedit

[@UstraMage]

@@Fortefyre Ive played most of these games and ya, a lot of them are super tough!

[@pharmcat8484]

Warmech in Final Fantasy 1 Omega Weapon in Final Fantasy 8 Friendly Yan in Final Fantasy 9 Darktooth in Twisted Metal 2 Final boss of Lufia 1

[@Fortefyre]

I avoided all of these encounters at least in the ones I've played LOL

[@Waytigo]

Now do your top ten easiest bosses you've encountered. I'll make a suggestion you will agree.. EVERY Donkey Kong Country Boss!

[@clarafedde8674]

Uh...you do know there are several bosses that literally kill themselves, right? Personally I think aramov fight from first syphon filter the easiest and quickest, as she starts right in front of you, just aim and pop, she's....um and that's that, yeah nothing plot heavy afterwards what so ever

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

King K' Rool arguably is not quite that easy. Also, they improved almost all the bosses in the GBA remake. Heck, the barrel boss now requires you to actively attack it.

[@tidepoolclipper8657]

As for examples of easy boss fights; nearly every Pokemon X/Y gym leader (except Grant the first time around), Geeta (Pokemon Scarlet/Violet), Kid Dracula Game Boy bosses, almost every Super Mario 64 boss battle except final Bowser, Mario Party 8 Bowser, Super Mario Galaxy 2 final Bowser, Helios (Metroid Prime 3), Dark Missile Trooper (Metroid Prime 2), Plated Beetle (Metroid Prime), Ridley (Zero Mission), Fyrus (Twilight Princes), Wily Machine 6 (though a fun one), Quint (Mega Man II), Alien Leader (Incredible Hulk SNES/Genesis), Knuckles/Sonic (Sonic Adventure), Tails vs Eggman and Eggman vs Tails 1 (Sonic Adventure 2), Team Rose (Sonic Heroes), Egg Breaker (Shadow the Hedgehog; Cryptic Castle and Iron Jungle versions), Egg Dealer (Shadow the Hedgehog)... Negative Man (Mother 3; joke boss), Toasty (Spyro 1), Neo Cortex (Crash Bandicoot 2 remake), regular Daroach (Kirby Squeak Squad), most regular versions of Whispy Woods (one of the exceptions being Mass Attack), Wallman (Order of Ecclesia), almost every final boss of Gradius series (except Salamander 2 (surprisingly nasty final boss)), Parasite Cage 1 (Kingdom Hearts), Darkside 2 & 3 (Kingdom Hearts), Rock Titan (Kingdom Hearts), Ansem 1 (Kingdom Hearts), Demyx 1 (KH 2), Genie Jafar, Idunn (Fire Emblem Binding Blade), and Fomortiis (Fire Emblem Sacred Stones).

[@Fortefyre]

added to the list!

[@Invisiblesuntarot]

NFL Blitz had the most difficult boss, for me. Cheatin-ass game! I'm pretty sure that disk ended up in pieces.

[@Fortefyre]

I love that game!

[@BlasphemousMusic]

You speak of this monthly giveaway and firefighter stuff, where is it? Twitch, discord, youtube community? Also for boss yeah its kinda bs to add in souls games but the only one I played was Elden Ring and man...even tho its considered souls lite? F me some of them are hard!

[@Fortefyre]

KZbin community page. I needed to clear the last one. I'll put that vote up later today :)

[@fr8242]

Glass Joe's only win was Mike Tyson. Tyson could not beat Glass joe so they gave him a win.

[@Fortefyre]

FACTS

[@pharmcat8484]

Divorce sucks.

[@Fortefyre]

It does, but I ended up getting back with my ex-wife lmfao. We took a significant separation after the divorce was finalized, dated other people, and found our way back together understanding each others boundaries and expectations.

[@newmula5045]

🫡🫡🫡🫡

[@Fortefyre]

😊