10 Creepiest Video Game Boss Designs

10. Giygas - EarthBound

earthbound giygas
Nintendo

Let it never be said that boss designs couldn’t be scary in the SNES era. In 1989 the EarthBound series (known as Mother in Japan) introduced the game’s main antagonist Giygas, who intended to wipe out humanity. Series creator Shigesato Itoi said the boss was inspired by a traumatising experience in his childhood and the game’s music composer called Giygas the embodiment of evil.

The weirdest part is EarthBound is a pretty bubbly game until Giygas’ wildly unsettling appearance. It may seem less than threatening due to the pixel art style but it appears as a set of contorted howling faces that drift across the screen. It babbles incoherent phrases to a horrifying soundtrack and the only way to kill it is by praying for your survival. Eesh.

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Jess has been a journalist and content creator in the games industry for over 15 years and has been WhatCulture's resident Australian import and sorry cop since 2020, upping the quotient of swearing and apologising in WhatCulture Gaming's annual blooper videos considerably. She previously worked at GameSpot for 10 years, most notably hosting GameSpot News in addition to E3 live shows, and PAX panels. She regularly livestreams a variety of games on her 'jessmcdonell' YouTube and Twitch channels and hosts the 'Do It On The Day' podcast. She has won awards for her news and feature work in gaming as well as an accolade for her comedic writing (likely an admin error). She can be found on X at @jessmcdonell and Instagram at @jessicamcdonell sharing her current videogame fixations, industry insights, and videos of her cat, Karma.