Summary
- Boss fights in open-world games can be tough, requiring mastery of skills for success.
- Challenge comes from factors like massive health bars, tricky attack patterns, and high damage.
- Superbosses like Ganon, Omega, and Malenia offer rewarding but difficult encounters.
It's natural for most open-world games to feature a combat loop that compels players to try and master core skills. After all, this mastery will prove to be quite useful in tough combat scenarios, with boss fights being the most obvious example here.
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While players may be able to walk over most boss fights, others can prove to be a nightmare to complete. Massive health bars, trick attack patterns, high damage, and a host of other factors contribute to making these boss fights take a ridiculously long time to defeat.
1 Ganondorf, The Demon King
Watching His Health Bar Reach Ridiculous Heights Is Intimidating
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
- Released
- May 12, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- Rated E for Everyone 10+ for Fantasy Violence and Mild Suggestive Themes
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Action, Open-World
Ganon is one of the most iconic Zelda enemies of all time, so it's natural for fans to feel like the encounter against him in Breath of the Wild was somewhat disappointing. Players don't even battle his human form, with the fight against Calamity Ganon being quite easy after players free the Divine Beasts from Ganon's corruptive influence.
The same doesn't apply to Tears of the Kingdom, where Ganon makes for a refreshingly tough challenge that rewards players for entering this fight prepared. Conversely, players who entered this fight expecting the same level of challenge as the previous game's final boss will be left cursing themselves for not entering this battle with a ridiculous number of Gloom healing and resistant potions.
2 The Amon Family
The Superbosses In The Yakuza Games Take Ages To Defeat
- Appears in almost every Yakuza game
Players who are diligent about finding and completing every substory in the Yakuza games will love how the game rewards them with the ultimate challenge. Jo Amon will contact the player and ask them for a fight that pushes the protagonist to his very limits.
Jo Amon is no joke and serves as a superboss in every Yakuza game. In games with multiple protagonists, multiple members of the Amon family appear to devastate players and make them rue the day they decided to complete the hardest challenge in every Yakuza title.
3 Omega
A Superboss Added In The Royal Edition Who Is Resistant To Almost Everything
Final Fantasy 15
- Released
- November 9, 2016
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Language, Mild Blood, Partial Nudity, Violence
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG
Final Fantasy 15 boasts its fair share of superbosses who can be an absolute nightmare to deal with, even if the game is pretty easy. One glaring example is Omega, an iconic enemy from numerous Final Fantasy games, who is added to the explorable version of Insomnia in the Royal Edition.
This mechanical boss is resistant to every form of damage and can only be harmed with electrical attacks or the Royal Arms. While players will have enough healing items to revive and heal their party over and over again, this doesn't change the fact that the battle against Omega can take a ridiculously long time.
4 Malenia, Blade Of Miquella/Goddess Of Rot
A Legendary Two-Phase Boss Fight That Takes No Prisoners
Elden Ring
- Released
- February 25, 2022
WHERE TO PLAY
Pretty much every challenging Elden Ring boss can qualify as a candidate here, but Malenia occupies a special place in players' hearts. The two-phase boss fight against this imposing foe is no joke and is probably the hardest challenge players will face in Elden Ring.
She may be an optional boss, but the lore makes her a tantalizing character that fans will love to seek out if they want to enjoy the full Elden Ring experience. Players must prepare for both phases and try to avoid any needless damage, which is easier said than done, given how aggressive this foe is.
5 Goro Majima & Taiga Saejima
A Dual Boss That Marks A Ridiculous Difficulty Spike
Yakuza: Like A Dragon
- Released
- November 10, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol
- Genre(s)
- JRPG
Majima and Saejima are two of the most iconic characters in Yakuza, and the fact that players face them in a dual boss fight in Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a treat for fans. However, players who spread out their expertise over multiple jobs and didn't feel the need to grind will find themselves in a hard place when they see just how challenging this boss is.
Players must grind out arenas and equip their strongest jobs to deal with this challenging boss fight, which can be pretty frustrating. After all, players have to go through the dungeon before this boss fight once again, which unnecessarily lengthens one's play time.
6 Terramorphous The Invincible
A Raid Boss So Ridiculously Hard That It's Downright Impossible To Defeat Without Overleveling Or Exploits
Borderlands 2
- Released
- September 18, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
Borderlands 2 has its fair share of HP sponges, but players who level up enough and find valuable loot will be able to get through most of these encounters. However, the same can't be said for Terramorphous the Invincible, a ridiculously powerful Thresher who can only be fought after the main story is completed.
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This monster boasts such a massive HP pool that fighting it can take hours. Unless players are at a ridiculously high level or have a bunch of buffs stacked up, this single fight can suck out all the happiness and joy fans experienced from playing Borderlands 2.
7 Adamantoise
Marketed As A Boss That Supposedly Takes 72 Real-Time Hours To Defeat
- Final Fantasy 15
During the promotion for Final Fantasy 15, developers proudly stated that Adamantoise was so hard that players would take 72 real-time hours to defeat this foe. The reality was nowhere near this long, although Adamantoise was still a tough nut to crack.
Players are advised to enter this battle at the highest level possible with powerful gear and the upgraded version of the Armiger to make things easier for themselves. The Adamantoise itself doesn't boast too many strong moves, which is why the fight can turn into a bit of a chore if players don't bring their A-game.
8 Dettlaff Van Der Eretein
The Final Boss Of Blood & Wine Is No Joke
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
- Released
- May 19, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
CD Projekt Red is clearly open to fan feedback, adding many things to make Blood & Wine the best expansion possible for The Witcher 3. Open-world side content was more varied, and the combat difficulty was increased considerably.
Nowhere is this more apparent than in the final fight against Dettlaff, who transforms into a beast and can be a huge pain to deal with. Players must keep Geralt's health as high as possible across three phases, since death means that they have to start from the beginning.
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