Highlights

  • Final Fantasy bosses that receive hate don't always deserve it. Some, like Necron in FF9 , fit the theme of god-like final bosses.
  • Final Fantasy 10's final boss, Yu Yevon, may seem easy, but its appearance as a parasite reflects the game's themes.
  • While the combat against Titan in FF15 may be simplistic, the spectacle and visuals of the battle are still impressive.

Final Fantasy is a legendary video game series that needs no introduction, with each entry in the series pushing the JRPG genre to new heights. The fact that the latest entry is an all-out real-time action RPG that forsakes a lot of gameplay tropes present in past Final Fantasy games is a testament to how hard Square Enix tries to help its flagship franchise evolve in a new direction.

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A big part of Final Fantasy is the many bosses that players encounter during the time they spend exploring the overworld, exploring dungeons, or furthering the main story. While players have their favorites when it comes to these imposing enemies, there are times when players feel that these enemies don't do justice to the moniker of being a boss, which is a shame. Some bosses that are hated, or not talked about all that often, don't deserve this hate at all.

Spoilers Ahead

5 Necron

Final Fantasy 9

Necron in Final Fantasy 9
Final Fantasy 9

Platform(s)
PS4 , Xbox One , Switch , PS1 , Android , iOS , PC
Released
July 7, 2000
Developer(s)
Square Enix
Genre(s)
JRPG

Final Fantasy 9 is considered by many to be one of the best entries in the series, which is why people are so frustrated when it comes to the game's final encounter. After a grueling battle with Kuja, the antagonist that has been hounding them for the vast majority of the game, an all-powerful entity called Necron comes out of nowhere to steal his thunder as the true final boss of the game.

While the complaints against Necron are justified, the encounter does fall in line with a Final Fantasy game where a godlike being ends up being the final boss that players need to defeat to save the world. The fight itself is one of the more challenging final bosses in the series' history, with Necron boasting the ability to destroy unprepared parties with a wave of powerful attacks and status effects that can be a pain to deal with.

4 Yu Yevon

Final Fantasy 10

Yu Yevon in Final Fantasy 10
Final Fantasy 10

Platform(s)
PS2
Released
December 17, 2001
Developer(s)
Square Enix
Genre(s)
JRPG

Braska's Final Aeon is a climactic boss encounter with a pulse-pounding soundtrack, with the boss taking on the appearance of Tidus' father and forcing the players to either defeat this challenging foe or face a game over. After beating Jecht's Aeon form, players are whisked over to another battle where they must do battle with the fearful Yu Yevon. However, while players were expecting a tough encounter for the ages, what happens is that Yu Yevon looks like a pathetic parasite and can't kill the party because of a permanent Auto-Life buff on each participating party member.

Some people were disappointed with this easy final boss fight, but it's precisely in line with the themes of Final Fantasy 10. Yu Yevon looks like a parasitic tick because that's exactly what it has become, using Sin as a way to force the people of Spira into a perpetual state of fear and devotion that it feeds off of. Once all this set dressing is taken down, what remains is a pathetic being who can't do anything to defend itself, with the party whittling its health down until it's toast.

3 Titan

Final Fantasy 15

titan-final-fantasy-15
Final Fantasy 15

Platform(s)
PS4 , Xbox One , PC , Stadia
Released
November 9, 2016
Developer(s)
Square Enix
Genre(s)
Action RPG

Final Fantasy 15 was a huge step forward, leaning heavily towards real-time action gameplay in a first for the series. A huge part of the game is recruiting the help of several Astrals to fight back against Niflheim and Ardyn. The first Astral that players fight in the game is Titan, but this encounter may not be as engaging as most people would've hoped. Despite being so massive, all players do is parry his massive hand, dodge his sweeping attack, and attack his arm whenever the opportunity presents itself.

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This can seem underwhelming to some, but they can't deny that the sheer spectacle of this battle is still quite impressive. Players will be dazzled by the visuals as they go toe-to-toe against this massive Astral, and the cinematics are certainly quite engaging, as long as players aren't too fixated on the simplistic combat present in this boss battle.

2 The Rursan Arbiter

Final Fantasy Type-0

Rursan Arbiter in Final Fantasy Type-0
Final Fantasy Type-0

Platform(s)
PS4 , PSP , Xbox One , PC
Developer(s)
Square Enix
Genre(s)
Action RPG

One of the better Final Fantasy spinoffs that fans owe it to themselves to check out, Final Fantasy Type-0 is an excellent real-time action game that combines established tropes in the series with new gameplay elements to make for a fresh and engaging game. The game's massive cast and expansive lore can be overwhelming for some, but people who are interested in what this game strives to achieve will be more than pleased by what Final Fantasy Type-0 brings to the table.

The final boss of this game involves the members of Type-0 sacrificing themselves one at a time in a painful farewell to the cast that players grew attached to over the course of the game. The battle itself isn't anything special, but the thematic importance of the class members of Type-0 laying down their lives to save the world makes for a heartbreaking conclusion to an underrated Final Fantasy spinoff title.

1 Humbaba

Final Fantasy 6

Final Fantasy 6 Humbaba Fight
Final Fantasy 6

Released
October 11, 1994
Developer(s)
Square Enix , Square
Genre(s)
RPG

Unlike most underrated Final Fantasy bosses who are targeted a bit too much by fans, what makes Humbaba underrated is the fact that players never even mention this boss when talking about the many memorable moments in Final Fantasy 6. This is quite puzzling, especially given how important a role this monster plays in Terra's character development.

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The boss is pretty challenging, and most players won't even be able to take out Humbaba when they encounter this challenging foe for the first time. After realizing that pacifism won't save the children she's protected in a world ruined by Kefka, Terra channels her powers and aids the party in taking out Hunbaba, joining the group for one final assault on Kefka to save the world from its ruined state.

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