10 Best Video Game Final Bosses Of All Time

9. Giygas - Earthbound

ODIN God of War Ragnarok
Nintendo

Earthbound is the logical endpoint of the JRPG trope of fighting rats at the beginning and then fighting GOD at the end. The first real boss of Earthbound is a fly named Frank. The last boss of Earthbound is, uh... this thing.

Its name is Giygas. True to its Lovecraftian nature, no one is entirely sure where the hell it comes from, but it's been with Earthbound's world since the beginning. Giygas is one of the most unknowable and frightening villains in gaming history, so it only makes sense that its fight would be much of the same.

Ness and pals travel deep into the past to fight him, having to transfer their consciousness into robot bodies to make the trip. And the fight that ensues is harrowing, with attacks that are outright stated to be impossible to perceive but hit like trucks.

The trick is to realize that you literally cannot kill this thing. It has maxed-out stats and infinite HP. The only way to win is by singing/praying, which prompts everyone you've helped on your adventure to join in, ultimately beating back Giygas with the collective power of prayer. 

 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

John Tibbetts is a novelist in theory, a Whatculture contributor in practice, and a nerd all around who loves talking about movies, TV, anime, and video games more than he loves breathing. Which might be a problem in the long term, but eh, who can think that far ahead?