Frustrating Boss Fights In Otherwise Great RPGs

RPGs usually task players with competing in a variety of battles to defeat bosses and other enemies in order to make progress. However, these boss fights can sometimes be much more difficult than what a gamer initially expects, which makes for a frustrating time that could leave a player fighting an enemy for hours.

Frustrating boss battles are not exclusive to the usual challenging RPGs or those that have been reviewed poorly, as even some of the greatest role-playing games ever made have caught players by surprise with the occasional difficult boss battle. Countless RPGs feature challenging boss battles, but some can prove to be much more frustrating than others.

Balthazar - Baldur's Gate 3

Constantly Pushed And Poisoned

Baldur's Gate 3 is an award-winning RPG that has impressed many players with its incredible story and interesting boss battles. However, one potential boss encounter that many players would prefer to avoid is the one with Balthazar, the incredibly morbid Necromancer. If players pretend to go along with Balthazar's plan to get the Nightsong, they will likely encounter him within the prison.

However, fighting Balthazar here is one of the most frustrating experiences in Baldur's Gate 3. Besides his constant poisonous clouds that can easily destroy a player's health, his multiple summoned zombies and skeletons can easily push the player's party off the edge, killing them instantly and forcing the player to restart over and over again.

Godskin Duo - Elden Ring

Two Stressful Bosses At Once

Games like Elden Ring already contain countless frustrating boss battles that can challenge the player to test themselves repeatedly in the hopes of eventually defeating the boss they are facing. The Godskin Duo of Elden Ring takes the frustration of this RPG a step further than even the Elden Beast could.

Just dealing with one of the Godskin bosses can be a bit of a challenge, but taking on both of these peculiar looking foes can cause Elden Ring players a lot more stress than usual, especially as they each have a different attack pattern and require careful tactics.

Sephiroth - Kingdom Hearts

A Thankfully Optional Fight

Kingdom Hearts is a popular franchise that features some interesting boss battles in each of its games. Though some boss battles that players must win can be rather difficult, one of the most frustrating battles in Kingdom Hearts is actually the optional encounter against the long-haired Final Fantasy villain known as Sephiroth.

The difficulty spike is instant in this battle, as players are quickly bombarded with a flurry of hits that require fast reaction speeds for those hoping to survive. Some players have claimed that defeating Sephiroth has taken countless hours of patience and testing different strategies in the hopes of finding one that works. Sephiroth has a lot of cheap tricks up his sleeve, so players will need to be on their guard at all times if they want to emerge victorious.

The Heart Of Darkness - Darkest Dungeon

Someone Must Always Die

Continuing with challenging RPGs, Darkest Dungeon is another incredible addition to the genre, though the stresses of managing the stability of one's party becomes incredibly frustrating by the time gamers meet the final boss of the game, known as The Heart of Darkness. The frustration of this boss comes from its 'Come Unto Your Maker' ability.

When meeting certain thresholds, this ability triggers and will instantly kill one or two of the player's party members. This can be incredibly stressful, especially if the targeted character is one that players have become attached to. The countless stress attacks the Heart can use contribute to how frustrating this battle can become.

The Catalyst - Sea Of Stars

A Boss That Requires Patience

Sea of Stars features a variety of bosses that players will encounter throughout the story. Some have been deemed quite a challenge, but nothing comes close to being as frustrating as The Catalyst boss battle. This is a three-phased boss fight where players will first need to destroy the defenses of the Catalyst before they are able to encounter the core of this machine.

The frustration of this battle comes from the various elements that must be attacked first before the player even has a chance of getting an actual hit. While it is much easier to deal with by using AOE spells, many players may not be prepared in this way, which can result in the battle taking much longer.

Baal - Diablo 2

Waves Of Bosses And Horrid Elemental Attacks

Waves of enemies existing before the actual boss fight is a frustrating part of countless games, and this isn't just the case for RPGs. In one of Diablo 2's more frustrating moments, players are forced to first kill five waves of enemies before the final battle against Baal can begin.

This is made even more frustrating through Baal's abilities, which include teleportation and highly lethal elemental attacks. Players must be quick with their actions, or they will risk having to deal with all five waves once more if they want to have another chance at beating Baal.

Galdera - Octopath Traveler

Must Fight Eight Whole Bosses To Get To Him

Besides waves of smaller enemies, Galdera takes it a step further in Octopath Traveler, as the player's frustrations come from having to first defeat eight bosses before they even get a chance at hitting the main enemy of the RPG. Even then, it isn't a simple fight, as Galdera will first also require gamers to defeat three separate parts of its body that each have their own skill set to make the player's life a living nightmare.

Once all these steps have been followed, players will finally be able to focus on Galdera, but that doesn't take away from how frustrating both unlocking and fighting this boss can be.

The Bed Of Chaos - Dark Souls

It's More Of A Puzzle Than A Boss

Some gamers complain that some of the most frustrating boss fights in RPGs are those that don't require skill and, instead, seem to be at the mercy of RNG. The Bed of Chaos from Dark Souls is the largest culprit of this complaint, with many players dying countless times while simply trying to get to the center of this boss battle.

Unlike other boss fights in Dark Souls, which have the player gradually depleting the health bar of their foe, The Bed of Chaos instead has two glowing roots for gamers to reach. Hitting these causes the number of attacks the boss can do to increase, which can make The Bed of Chaos an extremely frustrating battle for RPG players to take on.