Top 15 Favorite Video Game Final Bosses

This is a list of cases where video games manage to absolutely nail the landing, ending on fantastic final boss fights:

1. Magolor (Kirby's Return To Dreamland)
• Honestly, there are like half a dozen different Kirby final bosses I could put at #1. Sectonia, 02, Void Termina, and especially Fecto Elfilis could easily qualify. Still, it's gotta be Magolor. Magolor's betrayal absolutely stunned me as a kid. You spend the entire game traveling with him and then he just up and betrays you, forcing you to team up with what was initially assumed to be the final boss for a side-scrolling shooter segment that has you fight the exact ship you've been working so hard to build all game. Then there's the fight with Magolor himself, a multi-phase behemoth with a ton of attacks that ends with you using the game's main gimmick (the Super Abilities) on him in spectacular fashion. But that's not even the end of the fight! Magolor transforms into one final form as the best theme of the game kicks in, and the difficulty amps up even more as Kirby is left without any abilities and Magolor starts using evil versions of the Super Abilities himself. It's an impressive and lengthy final boss full of reversals and twists, while also boasting some of the best music in video game history and an impressive amount of emotional impact. It also happens to be the point where I realized Kirby might just be my favorite video game series of all time.
• Honorable Mention: Fecto Elfilis (Forgotten Land) - The fact that combat is so fun in this game makes this boss fun. It's really hard, but eventually it turns into a ballet of dodges and dives.
2. DJ Octavio (Splatoon 1 & 2)
• It's really hard for me to pick which Octavio fight I like more, since they're both great in their own ways. The first game's fight is definitely the harder one, feeling more like a test of how much you've mastered the mechanics of the game. It's also likely to be the first time you hear the amazing Calimari Inkantation, and I don't think anything can beat that moment. But then there's the fight in the second game. Sure it's not as hard, but it feels more like a one-on-one arena fight that has you dodging missiles and bombs left and right. It's a much more emotional and cinematic fight, as you get to watch Marie try to snap Callie out of her brainwashing between every phase, and the fight ends with you using the ranked-battle-exclusive Rainmaker to land the final few hits. The music is phenomenal in both fights too, solidifying DJ Octavio as one of the best final boss characters Nintendo has ever made. I can't wait to see what his fight ends up being in the third game.
3. Kaptain K Rool (Donkey Kong Country 2)
• While Donkey Kong Country's boss fights aren't usually all that good, Rare tends to really nail the final boss encounters (this won't be the only one on this list to say the least). With a whopping nine hits, the fight with K Rool is tough and lengthy, with him constantly throwing new attacks and variations on pre-existing attacks at you. From dodging his many cannonballs, to the goo that slows you down and reverses your controls, to K Rool straight-up turning invisible, this fight has so many curve balls while still be elegantly designed enough to remain perfectly fair. And of course, the music is amazing.
• Honorable Mention: King K Rool (DK64) - It may be long but it makes sure to test you on every mechanic and every character
4. Utsuho Reiuji (Touhou 11: Subterranean Animism)
• Utsuho is easily one of my favorite Touhou characters and her final boss fight is a big reason why. Right from the get-go, Utsuho establishes herself as a force to be reckoned with, as all of her spellcards kick off with a klaxon warning and giant CAUTION label plastered on the screen! With her nuclear fusion powers, the bullets Utsuho shoots out are gigantic, forcing you to carefully weave through a tight maze of intimidating projectiles. That penultimate attack with the two giant suns is especially awestriking for its scale alone. But aside from the bombastic bullet patterns, the interstellar background is stunning, the theme is one of my favorites in the series, and the character herself is both badass and oddly likable. Sure she's not the most elegant of Touhou bosses, but the sheer bombast and scope makes it my favorite.
• Honorable Mentions: 
• Okina (Hidden Star In Four Seasons) - Perfectly encapsulates the game, she uses your own abilities on you, and she wins
• Yuyuko (Perfect Cherry Blossom) - What a grand, visually stunning, and most importantly, brutal final boss
5. Badeline (Celeste)
• Does Badeline count as a final boss? She is technically the last boss of the game so I'll count it. Besides, it's too good of a boss fight not to talk about. Despite Celeste being a fairly combatless game, the fight with Badeline is intense, climactic, and surprisingly lengthy. It's a tough platforming gauntlet that not only forces you to do Celeste's usual tight platforming, but forces you to pull it off all while dodging laser beams and bullets. That final room where you have to pull off a string of Golden Feathers is especially memorable. But the fight's also great on a story level, it's Madeline finally fighting her demons in this emotional confrontation. The dialogue is piercing, the visuals are stunning, the music is fantastic, and it ends on a heartwarming note as Madeline and Badeline end up becoming friends. 
6. Asriel (Undertale)
• While I like most of the fights in Undertale, there's something about the fight with Asriel basically just being a good old-fashioned bullet hell (maybe I'm just too much of a Touhou fan). All of the attacks are colorful, memorable, and a ton of fun to avoid. And that second phase where you have to save your friends is made even more fun by the fact that it brings back attacks from all the major boss fights before this one. But while the gameplay is fun, the storytelling during the fight is also just fantastic. The fight with Asriel does the "friendship is magic" incredibly well, and the way Asriel is fleshed out throughout the fight with just the in-battle dialogue is fantastic. This isn't one of the harder fights in Undertale, but it's an emotional and exciting victory lap filled to the brim with hope.
• Honorable Mention: Photoshop Flowey (Undertale) - Speaking of good old-fashioned bullet hells, this sure is that. It's also super creepy.
7. Dialga (Pokemon Mystery Dungeon 2: Explorers Of Sky)
• The PMD series has always been an odd favorite of mine since I've always just found the gameplay to be fine but nothing amazing. It's the story, music, characters, artstyle, and emotional impact that really grips me, and the fight with Dialga perfectly encapsulates all of that. It perfectly captures that bittersweet sense of finality that you'd get from a final boss, with Dialga being easily the most imposing Pokemon you've fought yet. The battle takes place on the top of a tall tower, the music is grand and dramatic, and the looming realization that you're going to disappear once the fight is over gets increasingly clear. Then again, the fight doesn't slouch on a gameplay-level either, Dialga is an incredibly tough opponent with some very hard-hitting attacks (especially the infamous Roar Of Time).
• Honorable Mention: Champion Cynthia (Diamond & Pearl) - I love how the series just owns how infamously difficult she is
8. Baby Bowser (Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island)
• Nowadays, a final boss where Kamek turns Bowser giant might not be all that impressive, but Yoshi's Island did it first and no game has topped it since. Just an any great final boss should, it takes major elements of Yoshi's Island and turns them on their head. Since all the bosses are standard enemies Kamek just made bigger, it only seems natural that he would do the same to Bowser for the final boss. The entire game is built around the egg-throwing mechanic, so having to throw giant eggs into the background is a great twist that really pushes the hardware. And that's not even getting to how intense the fight is. Not only is the atmosphere tense, from the fast-paced music to Bowser's shadow looming in the background, but the fight itself is difficult as Bowser pursues you faster after every hit and the ground you have to stand on is continuously destroyed. Having to land that final hit as Baby Bowser races towards you at full speed is both terrifying and exhilarating.
• Honorable Mention: The Great Baby Bowser (Yoshi's Crafted World) - A surprising amount of attacks and a surprising amount of ways to defeat him
9. Ganondorf (Legend Of Zelda: Wind Waker)
• While most Ganondorf fights are great in their own way, there's something so personal about the Wind Waker fight. It's a no gimmicks, no frills sword fight that solely tests you on the essentials: Using your sword, using your shield, dodging attacks, and parrying. But that doesn't make the fight any less cinematic. Ganondorf's motivations are clearer in Wind Waker than in any other game in the series, and it makes fighting him a lot more tragic. The visuals are beautiful, as the fight takes place while Hyrule is getting flooded once again. The music is dramatic and intense, the fight itself has multiple phases that force you to change up your strategy, and even Zelda gets the chance to participate as she's the one who wields the light arrows this time around. And it all caps off with one of the coolest final blows I've ever seen in a video game.
• Honorable Mention: Ganondorf (Twilight Princess) - Not super hard but this four-phase fight is one of the most downright epic finales to any game ever
10. Serif (One Step From Eden)
• So most of One Step From Eden takes place on a 4x8 tile board with a division in the middle separating you and your enemies. But what if that division was broken? Serif is the only battle in the entire game that gives both you and the boss access to the entire board, and her attacks take full advantage of that. This is a frantic fight that has both you and the boss sling attacks at each other at an incredibly fast speed, and while that might seem a bit overwhelming, it really solidifes Serif as a boss that lives up to the hype. Her large health bar, powered-up version of Saffron's attacks, ability to break the boundaries of the game, and the fact that you need to take out the Shopkeeper (a daunting task) to actually defeat her makes for a truly difficult final boss, but one that's all the more satisfying to defeat.
11. Dark Bowser (Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story)
• This is a nearly perfect final battle, it nails absolutely everything. In terms of gameplay, the fight forces you to play as both Bowser and the Mario brothers, which basically means you're fighting two bosses at the exact same time. The Dark Star Core is definitely a fun fight, but it's really the Bowser stuff that steals the show here. Dark Bowser's attacks are intricate and a ton of fun to avoid, and that final KO punch is just legendary. Even more, the fight strikes the perfect tone. The dark and moody environment, the impact of seeing Bowser actually fight to save the Mushroom Kingdom, and of course the phenomenal theme makes for one of the most iconic moments in the Mario & Luigi series.
• Honorable Mention: Elder Princess Shroob (Partners In Time) - This fight is ridiculously brutal, probably the hardest in the whole series
12. Egg Nega Wisp Armor (Sonic Colors)
• The final boss so good, Sega copied it... twice. Sure the Lost World and Forces versions are still pretty fun final boss fights, but there's more to the Egg Nega Wisp Armor than the fact that Sonic is running for the entire fight. Because yeah, it is really cool that the entire final boss has you dodge Eggman's attacks at full speed, but it wouldn't be nearly as impactful if the attacks weren't his distorted versions of the Wisp powers you've been using for the entire game. And that's not the only bit of story-telling told through the gameplay. The first half of the fight has you knock the Wisps out of Eggman's grasp as really dour music plays in the background. But then, the music switches to a triumphant version of Reach For The Stars, as you rescue the remaining Wisps and pull off a killer final attack. So while this is one of the best Sonic bosses gameplay-wise, it's the progression and story-telling that really elevates it to best in the series.
• Honorable Mention: Perfect Chaos (Sonic Adventure) - Hands down the best Super Sonic fight in the series, entirely based on building momentum
13. Dr Weil (Mega Man Zero 4)
• Picking between Dr Weil and Omega was tough, but the former got the edge solely for being more tough. Where Copy X was bullshit levels of hard and Elpizo and Omega were a bit too easy, Dr Weil was the perfect level of difficulty for a finale. Dr Weil has two beefy phases that feel like a worthy test of your skill after four games of Mega Man Zero goodness. The first phase throws a ton of attacks at you, while the second phase gives you a time limit and tests your speed. And of course, there's also the emotional element of this being Zero's final fight, his legendary last speech before taking out Dr Weil for good, and the phenomenal music Falling Down that plays in the background. A very powerful ending for Zero's story.
• Honorable Mentions:
• Omega (Mega Man Zero 3) - A dramatic three-phase battle boasting fantastic music, a great plot twist, and amazing character development for Zero
• Sigma (Mega Man X4) - A tense and fast-paced boss that keeps you on your toes with attacks that are a joy to learn
14. Neo Cortex (Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time)
• Crash Bandicoot 4 has hands-down the best lineup of bosses in the series, but the game saves the best for last. The final fight with Neo Cortex in this game is absolutely insane, a lengthy, complicated, and very difficult platforming gauntlet that tests everything you've learned through the game. My personal favorite thing about the fight is the fact that Cortex uses all of the masks you've used throughout the game against you, a boss fight trope that I'm a very big fan of (as you can tell by my Sonic pick). The masks are utilized really well without making the fight all too gimmicky, with the antigravity section in particular being a ton of fun despite the risk of completely messing with you controls. Cortex spending the whole fight taunting you also very much makes the fight better.
• Honorable Mention: Cortex & Uka Uka (Crash 3: Warped) - Having two fights go on at the same time is a really creative concept and makes for a great final boss
15. Bowser (Super Mario Galaxy)
• Super Mario Galaxy's final fight with Bowser is my favorite out of the platformers because it's the one that feels the most like a one-to-one brawl between the two iconic characters. It really does feel like Bowser is using everything in his power to take you out, as shoots fireballs at you like mad, enters his shell and rolls around at max speed, and tries to zap you with shockwaves. It's not a super hard fight, but it does test your timing with the spin ability and is split up into three phases that each feel harder than the last. And then there's the atmosphere. I love the fact that the fight has you basically hoping around planets, and that the final phase takes place in the middle of the freaking sun! Bowser's sheer anger throughout the fight makes it feel more personal than anything else in the series, and that godly choir is just the icing on the cake.
• Honorable Mention: Fury Bowser (Bowser's Fury) - Surprisingly enough one of the toughest and most intense final bosses in the series

• Other Honorable Mentions
• Mustache Girl (A Hat In Time): This boss has so many attacks and all of them are a ton of fun to dodge, and the third phase is just glorious
• Phantom (The Messenger): While not too hard or long, it's a fun and personal dimension-shifting finale
• Nahatomb (Klonoa 1): A boss fight so epic that the rest of the series hasn't really been able to top it yet