Final Fantasy: 25 Greatest Villains 

A decade on from its release, Final Fantasy XIII, for all of the plaudits bestowed upon its battle system, is still widely considered to be something of a mess. Its excessively convoluted plot was one of the main subjects for which it received heavy criticism upon release, which limited the impact of the villainous Barthandelus. This was despite the effectiveness of his manipulative ways to have the party destroy the world and summon the maker to him.

Sequel XIII-2 addressed the criticism by going completely non-linear. Its story was still overly complex to follow, but through the employment of Caius, it at least had a central villain that served as a constant threat, opposing Serah and Noel across time and space.

Immortal and entrusted with the guardianship of Yeul, Caius is tortured by having to constantly watch her die, be reborn and suffer in an endless cycle, believing it to be unjust on both her and himself, losing a loved one over and over again and being powerless to either stop it or end his own pain by dying.

Duelled on a number of occasions, Caius is a formidable opponent, but an effective lynchpin in the latter parts of an often-confusing trilogy of games. With noble if twisted intentions, it was somewhat joyful to see him given a redemptive happy ending without having to sacrifice himself in the process.