Every year gives us a new terrifying boss encounter, and these stand out among the pack. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're taking a look at the scariest video game bosses across each year, from 2000 to 2024.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're confronting the faces of terror themselves as we look
00:16over the most terrifying bosses in video games from the year 2000 all the way to the present
00:21day.
00:312000 Steve Burnside Resident Evil Code Veronica
00:35Ugh, poor Steve.
00:45Without Chris's immense bulk or Leon's flawless hair, he was never going to survive the events
00:50of the game compared to the franchise's other leading men.
00:53He does however get the honor of becoming one of the gnarliest bosses this acclaimed
00:57side story ever produced.
00:59Infected with the T-Veronica virus, Steve goes from skinny kid all the way to a hulking
01:04mutant wielding a giant axe.
01:06There's no besting Steve in this state, only getting the hell out of Dodge before
01:10Claire is sliced and diced.
01:202001 Pyramid Head Silent Hill 2
01:31The pointy face of the franchise, Pyramid Head's legacy is one of horror and punishment.
01:37Born from the guilty mind of James Sunderland and manifested into Silent Hill as a roaming
01:41executioner, every part of Pyramid Head's mythos is unsettling.
01:45From his design to the great knife he wields, all the way to the less than PG-13 antics
01:50he gets up to with the other creatures occupying the fog-covered town, Pyramid Head isn't
01:55so much a monster to be bested as it is a haunting reminder of one man's sins come
02:00to life.
02:042002 Lisa Trevor Resident Evil
02:17The remake of the first Resident Evil game didn't only bring a lavish coat of paint
02:22to the visuals, but also threw in a few nasty surprises for Jill and company.
02:27Namely, Lisa Trevor.
02:28She may not be the most difficult infected that the S.T.A.R.S. operatives have encountered
02:32in their time, but she is one of the most disturbing.
02:35A human research subject, Lisa was essentially Umbrella's go-to guinea pig for their original
02:40experiments leading up to the mansion incident.
02:43Despite being nothing more than a long-limbed husk, the implications of her years of torture
02:47combined with the fragments we see under her hood is more chilling than a million tyrants.
02:562003 Split Worm Silent Hill 3
03:09Whether it's the phallic imagery, or the mere fact it's a giant worm with monstrous
03:13sized teeth, everything about this boss is revolting and a hell of a nasty way for Heather
03:18to begin her descent into darkness.
03:20Shuffling between various openings across the stage, the Split Worm certainly makes
03:24for an easy target to blast bullets into.
03:27Doesn't take away from the fact that it'll make your skin crawl each and every time it
03:31re-emerges to take another bite out of you.
03:402004 Walter Sullivan Silent Hill 4 The Room
03:52While by no means the most magnetic of villains, at the very least this psychotic serial killer
03:57does have a final boss battle that will make you shudder.
03:59No, we're not talking about Walter's ghost that'll lash out at you.
04:03We're talking about the giant conjured creature lurking in the background that's beyond unholy
04:08to look at.
04:09A manifestation of Walter's monstrous nature and traumatized childhood, the entity may
04:13not be able to harm you, but getting up close to stab it with spears doesn't make it any
04:18less unappealing.
04:232005 Osmond Saddler Resident Evil 4
04:41One look at the mutated form of this infected cult leader and trust us, you'd be reaching
04:45for the rocket launcher.
04:47Embracing the Las Flagas virus, Saddler goes from a manipulative messiah to a tendrilled
04:52abomination made of flesh and blades.
04:54The eyes, the spider-like movement, the reach of his attacks, everything about this fight
04:59made us want to take our chances with the ocean below.
05:02Given that you can't move while shooting due to the original Resident Evil 4's built-in
05:06mechanics, you're gonna spend a lot of time getting up close and personal with this walking
05:11nightmare.
05:182006 Adam the Clown Dead Rising
05:39What's worse than having to deal with a clown at the mall?
05:41How about one that's gone batshit crazy and juggles a pair of chainsaws?
05:46Turns out the zombie apocalypse did a number on all Adam's psyche, so now he spends his
05:50days making himself laugh by carving up anyone he comes across.
05:54Clowns have already made a name for themselves as some of the most sinister foes to be found
05:58in gaming, and we'd like to think Adam is part of the reason for their infamy.
06:02Whatever you do, do not get on that ferris wheel.
06:152007 Dr. Steinman Bioshock
06:19Admittedly, after you start unlocking plasmids and get yourself plenty of armaments, exploring
06:32the undersea hell of Rapture is more of an action thrill ride instead of a horror experience.
06:37Early on, however, there's an encounter that will have you constantly on edge.
06:41Making your way through the medical wing, we're introduced to Steinman, one of many
06:45influential and talented individuals brought to Rapture, free to pursue his practice without
06:50fear of moral constraint.
06:52The result of this is the good doctor going utterly insane and performing fatal surgeries
06:56on countless innocent women.
06:58His pursuit of true beauty is sickening to behold, worse than anything a big daddy could
07:03ever do.
07:082008 Leviathan Dead Space
07:22The Necromorphs are truly some of the most horrifying enemies to be found in both sci-fi
07:27and video games.
07:28Mutated remnants resurrected into a variety of grotesque and dangerous forms.
07:33Any can easily prove to be the death of Isaac at any given time.
07:37But none have quite captured interstellar terror quite like the Leviathan, a wall of
07:41flesh and tentacles that you're forced to battle in zero gravity.
07:45While the remake gives it an equally hideous visual palette, the original has you get dangerously
07:50close in order to flush it off the ishimora for good.
07:53And whatever you do, don't stop firing.
08:052009 Leechmonger Demon's Souls
08:16It was only a matter of time before the Souls bosses started to show up.
08:20A simple yet effective concept, especially when it comes to making us feel sick to our
08:25stomachs, the Leechmonger is a sentient vortex of bloodsuckers that will flay your health
08:29if you get too close, while also using pieces of its collective body as projectiles.
08:34While you can lacerate it with fire-coated weapons easily enough, that doesn't take
08:38away how you have to wade through a sea of leeches to get the job done.
08:42Understandably, the remake made this encounter a million times more gross.
08:512010 The Spider Limbo
09:07You would think with its lack of distinguishable features due to being rendered completely
09:11in shadow, a giant spider set in this black and white world wouldn't carry the same
09:15fear factor as other iterations.
09:17Oh, how wrong you would be.
09:19In many ways, Limbo's take on the colossal arachnid might just be the scariest of the
09:23bunch.
09:24The way it appears out of the darkness without a sound, how much distance it can cover with
09:28every stride, there's no rhyme or reason to its existence other than to once again
09:33make you fear the dark.
09:35And damn if it isn't effective.
09:422011 Chaos Witch Quelaag Dark Souls
09:47Sure, if you're just looking at the top half, your undead eyes would be met by the spell-binding
10:01visage of an enticing maiden.
10:03But if you peer an inch lower, you'll spy that her bottom half is that of a spider demon,
10:08with eyes and flames aplenty.
10:10You'll have no time to feel disgusted before Quelaag is all over you, spewing lava and
10:15lashing out with her ravenous spider's maw.
10:17This was but a glimpse as to how creatively depraved Drumsoft could be with their boss
10:22designs as well as their love for spiders.
10:292012 Leap of Titsa Resident Evil 6
10:41Granted, this is also the game that features a villain that becomes a mutated zombie dinosaur
10:51before evolving into a giant fly.
10:53There wasn't a lot of old school horror to be found here.
10:56That being said, there's still something genuinely off-putting about the Leap of Titsa.
11:00Essentially a walking hive, this humanoid will shirk around unleashing fumes from its
11:05numerous pores that can instantly turn civilians into infected.
11:09The fact that you have to fight it twice in confined spaces is the closest that Resident
11:13Evil 6 comes to capturing the spirit of what made the franchise great, in a way that will
11:17have you feeling very unclean.
11:312013 Chris Walker Outlast
11:45As the world's weakest journalist, practically any enemy within Mount Massive Asylum has
11:49a high chance of ending you.
11:51But among the ranks of the tortured and crazies, none quite terrified us like Chris Walker.
11:57Despite his size, this variant is dogged in his pursuits, chasing you all over the facility
12:01with the sole goal of ripping you apart.
12:04The guttural growls, how he refers to you as pig.
12:07When Walker waddled onto the scene, that's when shit got real.
12:10We'd take the wall rider any day over him.
12:172014 Laura The Evil Within
12:29Overrated survival horror, or understated master of the genre.
12:32No matter your thoughts on this franchise, there's no denying that the boss designs
12:36are truly nightmare-inducing.
12:38Especially Laura.
12:39What was once an innocent girl tragically killed in a fire, has been reborn in a simulated
12:44world.
12:45Now as a mass of claws, rage, and murderous intent.
12:49And we're trapped in a room with her.
12:50Unlike other bosses, shooting does nothing.
12:53Your only hope is to set off explosions to give her a second baptism of fire.
13:022015 Ludwig the Accursed – Bloodborne
13:18The old Hunters DLC was rife with many of FromSoftware's most insidious creations
13:23to date.
13:24Though few can hope to match the Lovecraftian fever dream that's Ludwig.
13:28A god-of-night turned beast, the Accursed is a screaming, festering creature that bears
13:33little resemblance to the once-noble Hunter.
13:35At least until he rekindles a sense of himself upon rediscovering his beloved guiding moonlight.
13:41Of course, this inspires a new kind of dread for us.
13:44Since we now have to face the same creature, only now he's got a giant sword and seriously
13:49knows how to use it.
13:572016 Heart of Darkness – Darkest Dungeon
14:18The horror here is two-fold.
14:20For one, just look at it.
14:22It's a giant, cosmic heart responsible for all the monsters that have awoken in the Hamlet.
14:27It's the very epitome of evil, with a design that's as grotesque as it is otherworldly.
14:33The second reason why you should be deathly afraid of this boss is that he can and will
14:37instantly kill a member of your party, more than once.
14:41The fear of having to whittle down its health while also having to strategize who to sacrifice
14:45is another layer of anxiety to an already brutally tense bout.
14:542017 Marguerite Baker – Resident Evil 7 Biohazard
15:08The Baker family each bring an aspect of horror with them as far as boss fights go.
15:13By and far, the most insidious is the matriarch of the family.
15:17After all, there's nothing worse than having to battle an elongated, mutated housewife
15:21who's able to produce a swarm of killer insects from her every orifice.
15:26Everything about Marguerite will make you want to wretch.
15:29From the way she crawls around, ducking in and out of windows, to that disgusting hive
15:33lurking between her legs, you'll never feel more thankful for a flamethrower in your life.
15:422018 Krull Mauler – Fear and Hunger
15:53The only thing more nauseating than the creature designs in this turn-based trip to hell are
15:58its death animations.
16:00Never before has pixel art been so gruesome.
16:03This is especially true of the Krull Mauler.
16:05Once dead-set on clearing out the dungeon of monsters, he in turn became one.
16:10Now a boss that's all too happy to either peck you to death or use its new club arm
16:14to smash apart your party.
16:16An encounter with him guarantees a bad time and a possible foul end to what might have
16:21been a promising run.
16:292019 Exposito – Scion of Abjuration – Blasphemous
16:42Bosses inspired by the cruelty and iconography of the Spanish Inquisition were always bound
16:47to be both surreal and savage, and none complement the motif quite like a battle against a colossal
16:53wicker woman, who also happens to be carrying a giant, blind, and bloody baby.
16:58If you think it can't get any weirder, just wait until it attacks you by summoning
17:02a snake with a human's face attached.
17:05Symbolism be damned, this thing will make you think twice about parenthood.
17:132020 The Rat King – The Last of Us Part II
17:29Just when you thought the clickers had already reached their apex, along comes one that makes
17:34the other infected look like harmless mushrooms.
17:37An unholy mesh of various subspecies, the Rat King is what happens when the Cordyceps
17:42virus is left to run amok, creating a hybrid that's just as hard to kill as it is to
17:47look at.
17:48Trapped in an incredibly tight space, the only chance you have at making it out alive
17:53is just to keep running, because once the king gets its claws in you, it's a done
17:57deal.
18:022021 The Baby – Resident Evil Village
18:20Taking on the likes of lycanthropes, fish monsters, and Lady Dimitrescu certainly added
18:25more of a folklore edge to this Resident Evil outing.
18:28It was beautifully done, but the action was clearly winning over the horror element here.
18:33That is until we encountered the giant murderous fetus.
18:37The entirety of House Beneviento's level was a masterclass in building dread, with
18:41it culminating as Ethan being confronted and subsequently fleeing from this unborn monstrosity.
18:47You can't fight, you can only run, hide, and hope that it doesn't catch you.
18:51They really didn't hold back here.
18:562022 Reikard – Lord of Blasphemy – Elden Ring
19:18While none of the demigods are exactly lookers, none have a candle on Reikard.
19:23As for his heresy and eagerness to devour the gods, Reikard went from zealot to serpent,
19:29sharing his body with a giant snake while using its belly to hoister his sword forged
19:34of bloodied remains.
19:35Slithering down the uncanny valley while lashing out with the souls of the deceased at his
19:40command, Reikard left an undeniable impression as one of the true terrors of the lands between.
19:542023 Cynthia Weaver – Alan Wake 2
20:08Yes, Sam Lake can even make a screaming old woman one of the scariest encounters in modern
20:14gaming.
20:15After being consumed by the dark presence, Cynthia turns a retirement home into the house
20:20of hell, dragging Saga into its watery depths where she'll not only bombard you with live
20:25action jump scares, but also hunt you through the water like a fantastic shark.
20:29With ammo scarce and plenty of life left in her possessed bones, bringing down Cynthia
20:34is no easy feat, even if you're immune to the jump scare recoil.
20:502024 Abstract Daddy – Silent Hill 2
21:09Don't get us wrong, this shockingly awesome remake did Pyramid Head justice.
21:19He was imposing, sinister, and iconic in every scene he was in.
21:23It's just that the update to the Abstract Daddy is next level.
21:27Depicting two entities layered together in a compromising position, bound to both bed
21:31frame and flesh, it's about as unsettling a depiction of sexual trauma as you can get.
21:36And now it's a boss that James has to blast away before it breaks him.
21:40The beautifully grim aesthetic combined with the heartbreaking truth of Angela's pain
21:44all lend themselves to perhaps the darkest encounter in a remake already dripping with
21:49gruesome moments.
21:59Which one of these bosses stripped you of sleep?
22:02Let us know in the comments.