The 10 HARDEST Metroidvania Bosses

10 Hardest Metroidvania Bosses

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most difficult bosses to come out of one of gaming’s most popular subgenres.

Shriek

“Ori and the Will of the Wisps” (2020)

Ori just has the worst luck when it comes to gigantic, murderous birds. The final bout against Shriek demands the player show off their skill when it comes to both combat and traversal. While dodging incoming charges and out landing those spiritual sword swings might sound easy enough – that all goes out the window when Shriek erases the floor and forces you to fight mid-air. From there, you’d better hope you're near an incoming attack to parry as well as use it as leverage to keep yourself afloat, otherwise it's curtains for Ori.

Bahamut

“La-Mulana” (2011)

This isn’t the Final Fantasy dragon you’re used to. Instead, this speedy little bastard likes to stay underwater until they decide to leap out and barrage you with projectiles until you’re six feet under! For the most part, this game has you whipping deities as an Indiana Jones style explorer in typical Metroidvania fashion, but that all changes when you’re put on a boat, and have to navigate Bahamut’s seemingly never ending volley of attacks. The change in gameplay style completely throws you for a loop, as will the minimal time given you’ll be given to swerve out of the way before you’re dragged to a watery grave.

Alfred

“Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night” (2019)

Why…won’t…you...stay…still! Even amongst the plethora of monsters Miriam has been forced to confront, the most infuriating, and dangerous, boss she faces is this crackpot magician! Why? Because the old coot won’t stop running around! He’ll bolt past you and throw out an endless slew of status effects that will cause you to trip, become poisoned, suspended in time, all the while he piles on the damage. Even the giant hell hydra we fight at the very end didn’t come close to the bombardment this guy put us through. How many times do we have to teach you this lesson old man!

Menolias

“Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown” (2024)

If you thought you knew what you were getting into with this archer, think again. Sure, the sheer amount of projectiles he can unleash can be a hassle, especially when they turn into homing missiles, but it’s nothing a few well timed dodges and parries can’t overcome. But then – THEN – he reveals that he’s actually a martial artist, one who comes with a crazy counter that will do serious damage to Sargon if you aren’t careful. So now he’s a threat both at long and close range! Hope you’ve got your timing down, otherwise you're likely to get impaled with either a divine arrow or an unholy fist!

Blackmore

“Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia” (2008)

Shanoa may not be a Belmot or have the infamy of Alucard, but she does have a rogue’s gallery that is particularly harrowing to overcome! Chief among them being Blackmore, who prefers to let his shadows do the fighting for him. Cornered, Blackmore’s dark duplicate will lash out with claw strikes and bursts of dark magic that will fill up the screen. While you’d think being able to spam light and fire spells might make quick work of it, the second phase’s sheer ferocity will ensure you’re kept on your toes!

Witch of the Lake

“Salt and Sanctuary” (2016)

Now we understand why magic users get so much hate – especially when they spam moves like this! While at first glance you’d think the Witch to be rather feeble when compared to the staggering size of the other bosses roaming the land, she has one thing they don’t – homing balls of magic she is all too happy to repeat ad nauseum. Unless you get insanely lucky with your dodges, you’re liable to get overwhelmed by her bombardments, which will inevitably trip you up and leave you wide open to be smothered by even more of her crazy kill animations.

Eviterno

“Blasphemous 2” (2023)

Papa Penitent takes no prisoners. The leader of the Archconfraternity is a true menace when it comes to this spectacular sequel’s final encounter. His first phase, while a little on the hectic side, is wholly doable. We dare say it's one of the easier boss encounters…and then phase two begins. Trading projectiles for a sword, Eviterno goes berserk, unleashing swings that take up nearly the entire screen, all of which come in rapid succession. Combine that with his trickly to telegraph move list, and it's fair to say you’ll be clashing blades with this ancient sentinel for quite a while.

The Emperor

“Aeterna Noctis” (2021)

Don’t let that mustache fool you, this guy is no joke! His first phase alone is enough to make you sweat, what with him teleporting around the arena, launching his blade, using wide swings and unleashing sunbeams down from every direction. But then it gets infinitely worse. Not only does the rate of his attacks go up exponentially, his sword starts to bounce around like a buzz saw, taking up huge portions of your view. So not only do you need to constantly be aware of that little annoyance, but find time to counter attack as the Emperor continues to teleport all over the damn place while peppering you with attacks that also happen to be wide in scope. Hurry up and abdicate already!

Raven Beak

“Metroid Dread” (2021)

Turns out that not only does Samus have a father, but he’s also a giant mechanized bird man with one of the toughest boss fights in recent memory. Raven Beak is as ferocious as they come, whether it’s unloading waves of energy from his arm cannon, lashing out with combos that will send Samus flying, or unloading miniature sun into her face. And that’s all before he grows wings of his own, so he can rain death down from above. It’s a true gauntlet, so you can imagine the joy we felt watching Samus melt Raven Beak’s face off after she leveled up into her Metroid form!

Absolute Radiance

“Hollow Knight” (2017)

The final bout of this seminal Metroidvania was no easy feat, what with you not only having to battle through the titular Hollow Knight to reach the god-moth, but then had to endure her never-ending onslaught of attacks. It was rough. And then along came the Godmaster DLC, where it introduced us to a stronger version of the Radiance. We didn’t even think that was possible, and yet, here we are. Blisteringly fast whilst always having two to three attacks on the go at once, Absolute Radiance demands Absolute Perfection if you want to walk away the victor. So…best of luck!
Which of these bosses made you swear of Metroidvanias forever? Let us know in the comments!