Gaming’s Best Superbosses

Image Credits: Square Enix

Picture this. You just finished a video game. You’ve rolled credits, and you loved the experience, but you’re not quite ready to put the game down yet. If only there was a super cool bonus fight after the final boss.

Enter the Superboss. These are bonus challenges that will test all of the skills that you’ve gathered through the runtime of the game, and for me, they’re usually the most memorable parts of a game. So today we’ll be looking at four Superbosses that left their mark on their games. 

Also, there are going to be a few spoilers in here. I’ll be sure to note when they come up.

Yozora (Kingdom Hearts 3: ReMind)

Image Credit: Square Enix

Spoilers for Kingdom Hearts 3’s DLC

I’ve always been a very outspoken critic of Kingdom Hearts 3. I wouldn’t call myself a hater necessarily. I had fun on my first playthrough, but any other time I try to play through the game I just fall off after Olympus. A year after KH3’s launch we were given the ReMind DLC, which gave us Scala Ad Caelum to explore, a new set of 13 Data Organization fights that are even better than KH2, and unquestionably the best Superboss the series has seen so far.

Our first look at Yozora came from the Toy Story world where we saw an in-game advertisement for his game “Verum Rex”. We get a brief look at his world of Quadratum, which bears a strong resemblance to the real-life city of Shibuya in Tokyo. But it wouldn’t be until ReMind when we finally get to meet the man himself.

Right out of the gate, Yozora does not screw around. There are multiple different moves that he will cycle between during the fight. These attacks include a barrage of lasers, long range sword slashes that briefly reduce your max HP, holographic pyramids that will trap and blast you, and a tractor beam that will steal HP and items from you, and he has a move where he’ll steal your Keyblade, leaving you defenseless for a little bit. All of these attacks are quick, but they can be reacted to if you know what you’re looking for.

It’s also worth noting that Yozora can steal the Kupo Coin from you. This is an item that will revive you if you lose all of your health. If Yozora steals this from you and you manage to beat him. No you didn’t. The Kupo Coin will activate and revive him. Thankfully it doesn’t bring him to full HP. I just think that this is a very funny detail that they put in the fight.

When you’ve gotten his HP low enough, he’ll enter his Desperation Phase. This is a long string of moves where he’ll begin throwing everything at you. During this, Yozora will add in unblockable blue lasers that have to be dodged, teleport fake outs, and even start sending out the robots from “Verum Rex” to charge at you. Once you’re through that, you’re in the home stretch.

Yozora’s last phase is very similar to his first. His moves have been altered to either have different timings, or to add in more unblockables. Just keep a level head throughout the fight, don’t panic, and you’ll have beaten the hardest fight in the Kingdom Hearts series.

On the whole, Yozora is just fantastic, and it features all of the elements of what makes a Superboss great. The atmosphere is incredible. The music is top notch. And the fight itself is hard, but fair. Every attempt is a learning experience, and eventually you’ll put all the pieces together for the most satisfying victory in the series.

It’s unclear what Yozora’s role in the Kingdom Hearts story is going to be in KH4, but even if he’s just a one-and-done character, he certainly left his mark on the playerbase. 

Just don’t make him another Keyblade wielder for the love of everything, Nomura.

Culex (Super Mario RPG)

Image Credit: Nintendo, Square Enix, ArtePiazza

Let’s take a step back. Back to the magical year of 1996. I wasn’t alive yet, so I don’t know what was happening, and I don’t feel like looking it up. What I do know is that Super Mario RPG released that year! I may not have been around for it, but I still played the crap out of this game when I was growing up, thanks to the Wii’s Virtual Console. The game isn’t too hard, outside of a select few fights like Bundt and Valentina.

When you get to a place called Monstro Town, you’ll find this mysterious locked door. To gain access to this door, there’s a short trade quest where you have to buy fireworks, then give those to a mole child in exchange for the Shiny Stone. Take that stone back to the door in Monstro Town and get ready for a fight like nothing else in this game.

Culex was a fight that always stood out to me. For one, his battle sprite isn’t 3D like the rest of the bosses, and he doesn’t have any animations when he attacks. He and his four crystals all just float there, menacingly. Second is the fact that this guy hits like a truck! Between him and his Crystals, he gets 5 attacks per round. But unlike a boss like the Axem Rangers, these attacks will actually leave a mark!

This fight is pretty much Squaresoft’s mark on this game. While the rest of the game is very easy as baby’s first RPG, this one fight can be brutal if you’re not prepared. There’s also tons of allusions to Final Fantasy. From the four elemental Crystals that he fights with, to the music being the FF4 boss theme.

And then the Remake happened and gave us Culex 2: Electric Boogaloo!

That’s right! After beating the game, there’s a brand new fight with Culex. This makes him the only entry on this list that could be called a Super-Duper Boss! And this new version of Culex looks incredible. No longer is he confined to a 2D sprite. No, he has entered the third dimension which simultaneously makes him look more threatening, but also kind of goofy. I liked his SNES sprite because you couldn’t make out concrete details, especially not on a CRT TV

Culex stands out for being a pretty big challenge in an otherwise easy game. There’s also just a ton of mystery to him. He isn’t mentioned anywhere in the game, beyond his boss fight. I don’t have any evidence to support this claim, but I like to believe that he may have been a scrapped idea for one of the SNES-era Final Fantasy games. Maybe a cut boss from FF6 that you’d fight inside of Kefka’s Tower. He could’ve also served as the inspiration for Safer Sephiroth in Final Fantasy 7.

Volo (Pokemon Legends Arceus)

Image Credit: Game Freak, The Pokemon Company

Spoilers for Pokemon Legends Arceus

The Pokemon series is no stranger to some hype Superbosses. Who could forget climbing to the top of Mt. Silver only to be confronted by Red, the player character from the first game. Or how about the secret fight with Steven in Meteor Falls in Pokemon Emerald? And if you think about it, the whole Pokemon World Tournament could be considered Superbosses, since you’re fighting these Gym Leaders’ theoretical best teams. But for my money, the best Superboss doesn’t even come from a mainline entry. See, those other Superbosses are fine, but what they lack is presentation!

Pokemon Legends Arceus is a fantastic spin on the Pokemon formula, and a great way to test the waters for a new style of game. Arceus also had more of a focus on story than most other Pokemon games (outside of Mystery Dungeon) tend to. 

I truly think that Volo is an interesting character in this game. Given that PLA has a lot of characters that are similar to those seen in the original Diamond and Pearl. So when the game drops this blonde guy with an affinity for exploring ruins and studying myths, the player subconsciously makes the connection to Cynthia, and views him as an ally. This makes his eventual heel turn more impactful during the end of the final act.

When you confront Volo at the top of the Temple of Sinnoh, he goes full mask off. He tells you that he wants to call forth Giratina to fight against Arceus. Then the battle begins. You hear that familiar (but different) piano playing in the background. And Volo sends out a Spiritomb as his first Pokemon. That’s right, Volo’s team is a re-run of Cynthia’s Platinum team, with the exception of Hisuan Arcanine over Milotic. Volo’s team is insanely balanced, and this fight is hard. It will be a tough back and forth between you and Volo to see who comes out on top. And once you’ve beaten him, the real fight starts.

A portal opens up and the second fight begins. This time, it’s Giratina’s time! And unlike other games where you get healed between fights, not so here. Your team’s health stays the same, so you’d better have the resources to bring them back up to fighting condition. This fight with Giratina is tough, not only because it’s back to back fights, but also because Giratina is a Legendary Pokemon. It is meant to have higher base stats than what’s on your team. But it’s not like there’s a third part to this fight. Right?

Anyways, the third part of this fight has Giratina transform back into its Origin Forme. This serpent-like form is the more offensive variant of Giratina, and you’ll certainly feel that. He’s strong, and fast, meaning that he’ll likely get two moves in for every one move that you have. All you sad clowns who say that Whitney in Gold and Silver is difficult because of Miltank. You don’t know what difficult is! 

This is essentially a 6-on-8 fight, where the odds are super stacked against you. This is the only fight since Tate and Liza in Pokemon Emerald where I actually needed to strategize and think about what a good team comp would be for this gauntlet of a fight. And that’s what makes it so memorable. The music. The story setup. The challenge. It all comes together to make one of Pokemon’s best battles.

I’m looking forward to Legends Z-A, and the crazy battles that we could get from that. Especially in a game where Mega Evolutions are back on the table

Vide (Octopath Traveler 2)

Image Credit: Square Enix

Spoilers for Octopath Traveler 2

When it comes to turn-based RPGs, I feel like it’s difficult to strike the right balance with Superbosses. If they aren’t attacking enough, it’ll be too easy to plow through them. But it’s just as easy to overtune them, making them not fun at all to fight against. All of that is to say that I did not enjoy fighting Galdera in Octopath 1. The fight pigeon-holes you into doing it one way, and if you mess up, you have to fight 8 mini-bosses to get another attempt. Thankfully the sequel came around to rectify that mistake.

The fight with Vide is the secret true final boss that you gain access to after clearing every characters’ story and cross story. After doing some more story stuff, you’ll gain access to Vidania, the seat of the final battle.

Before entering the fight with Vide, you’re prompted to create two parties of your eight characters. Then, you’re presented with the first form of Vide: a grotesque abomination that bears a slight resemblance to Anima from Final Fantasy 10, with a ribcage covering his heart that needs to be broken open to really damage him. After dealing enough damage, Vide will absorb your team, causing the backup team to move in to finish the job. Once Vide is taken down, the real enemy reveals itself. Vide, The Wicked!

When phase 2 starts you’re given the following message: “All eight travelers will join in this battle.” Yes, that’s right. An RPG that lets the whole party be involved with the final boss! This is an 8-on-1 fight, all while the most kick ass song in the series plays in the background. No holding back on this fight. It’s time to go all out!

Vide is one hell of a way to cap off this adventure. Throughout the eight character’s stories, they all found what they were looking for. Now the only thing left for them to do is stop Vide from plunging the land into an eternal darkness. There’s honestly no other way to put it. This battle is an experience from start to finish. And like the rest of these fights, it’s hard without feeling unfair.

This fight is just pure unadulterated hype, and really set a new standard for what turn-based RPGs could accomplish when they want to go all out.

Closing

And there you have it. Four Superbosses that I just needed to gush about. It feels like nowadays Superbosses are becoming a sort of lost art, but they are always a pleasant surprise. There are still countless bosses that I could pull from if I need to go back to the well for an idea. 

If there are any bosses that you enjoy, or you want to tell me how much of a Square Enix shill I am, feel free to hit me up over on BlueSky!