9 RPG Boss Attacks That Were Utter BS

Those EXACT moments you got screwed.

The humble boss battle is, in many ways, the perfect microcosm of a game’s design philosophies, mechanics, and narrative culmination.

This is especially true in roleplaying games where the stories are dense, and boss battles are landmark encounters that punctuate your adventure by demanding mastery of the game’s systems. Of course, just because these fights are capital B, capital D, Big Deal, doesn’t necessarily mean they’re always an easy win for our heroes or always fair.

In this list we’re taking a look at nine bosses in RPGs that had one attack that was total bull. Whether because it dolled out far too much damage for you to reasonably survive, an uncounterable combo, or an attack you couldn’t possibly have prepared for, these bosses left us rolling our eyes and chucking controllers.

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Contributor
Contributor

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.