10 Best Boss Fights Nobody Saw Coming

Now it's usually pretty obvious whenever a video game is about to spring a boss fight on a player

Whether it's by entering a massive room which proceeds with a checkpoint alongside a generous helping of resources

or by arriving at a pivotal point in the game's story, an imminent boss fight is usually so well telegraphed that it's almost impossible to miss the signs

But there are some games that like to mess with this formula and spring a boss on you that leaves you just going

wait, what? What's going on here? Oh god, I'm dead. Fantastic. So let's have a chat about them

As I'm Jules, this is WhatCulture.com, and these are 10 of the best boss fights that nobody saw coming

10. Flying Dragon Agil – Elden Ring Alongside its many stunning vistas, Elden Ring's Lands Between is likewise b with countless enemies that can quickly put an end to players' adventures

Even in the opening area of Limgrave, developers from Software did not pull any punches

In addition to being home to Margit the Fel Omen, who makes a particularly challenging first main boss

This picturesque area also contains a brutally difficult tree sentinel and crucible knight that are just tucked away in an everjail

However, a bigger surprise awaits players while exploring Agheel Lake in the east of the area

Just north of the ominously named Dragon Burnt Ruins in the centre of the lake

a large dragon swoops down out of nowhere and wipes out a group of enemies that are sitting at a bonfire

Without any time to register what happened, the epic soundtrack kicks in and players find themselves in a fight against Flying Dragon Agheel

one of a handful of dragon bosses in the game. With Akhil able to annihilate low-level players

with a single breath attack, trying to fight them early on in the game is a recipe for death

The game teaches players that sometimes it's better to just come back later, but there is nothing more satisfying than finally felling this powerful dragon

9. Donkey Kong Punch-Out 2009 Originally released in 1987, Punch-Out of the Nayyaz is best known for its notorious final

boss fight against Mike Tyson. Although Tyson didn't reappear in the 2009 Wii game of the same

name along with the rest of the colourful roster of returning fighters, this title had a rather

unexpected special guest to make up for it. After completing both the career and title defence modes

players will unlock Mac's Last Stand, a boss rush in which protagonist Mac must fight an endless

onslaught of opponents until he loses three times, at which point the character retires and the

player's save file will be disabled. Although players will predominantly face off against

boxers from the title defense mode here, it is possible to go toe-to-toe against a secret fighter

that contender being none other than Donkey Kong. This classic Nintendo character is as strong as

he looks. Able to knock players out in a single blow, Donkey Kong is easily one of the hardest

bosses in the entire game. Given that all opponents in this mode are chosen at random

it's entirely possible to play this mode without meeting Kong in the ring. Those lucky enough to

see him though are in for a delightful surprise and an incredibly tough fight

8 Laura The Evil Within Tango Gameworks is visceral survival horror The Evil Within is full of many nightmarish creatures that range from the chainsaw sadist to the horrifying keeper

However, none of the creatures that players encounter in this game are as unforgettably terrifying as Laura

With her razor-sharp nails at the end of their spidery limbs, her long black hair draped over her face and ear-piercing shriek

everything about Laura's appearance lets players know that she is not to be trifled with

And even scarier than this reoccurring boss's design, though, is her introduction

At the end of Chapter 4, players will find themselves in a short hallway with a pile of bodies laying at the end

Upon getting closer to the corpses, Laura will make her unannounced arrival by bursting from them in a heart-pounding jump scare before players must then flee from her

As if this jump scare wasn't harrowing enough, she makes a further two sudden arrivals in the game

and features in the title's most nerve-wracking boss fight in which players must defeat her by luring her into an incinerator

Laura was so iconic that she even made a brief appearance in the sequel where she once again caught players by complete surprise

7. Rick the Door Technician – Star Wars Jedi Survivor Now one of the best aspects of Star Wars Jedi Survivor was how it made players feel like a powerful Jedi

This was partly thanks to its satisfying combat system which combined souls-like mechanics with stylish limb dismemberment to gleeful effect

Like the previous game, the combat shone the brightest within the selection of boss fights

Whether it was facing a ferocious rancor or locking lightsabers with the Sith

each boss encounter was a thrilling high point in this excellent sequel

But one boss that nobody expected to meet during their adventure was Rick the Door Technician

After fighting your way through a heavily defended hangar on the Imperial base of Kobo

players will encounter Rick in the next hallway where he valiantly challenges Kal

With his health bar appearing on screen, players will believe that they're in for one last epic fight

However, despite this trooper's courage, Rick is no more powerful than any of the hundreds of other standard enemies that players have faced at this point, and is defeated in one hit

The boss fight was a fantastic punchline designed to relieve the tension after surviving the tough hanger fight

Though Rick isn't the most challenging boss on this list, he's nevertheless become a firm fan favourite and one of the best surprise boss fights in gaming

6. Stray Demon – Dark Souls Now Dark Souls doesn't waste any time throwing players in at the deep end

Before players even have a chance to get a proper weapon, they're ambushed by the Asylum Demon, the game's first boss

It was a shock that gave players a taste of what to expect from this notoriously difficult game

but this wasn't the only time that players were greeted by an out-of-nowhere boss fight

After defeating the Asylum Demon and arriving at Lordran, players can travel back to the Undead Asylum by climbing into Snugly the Crow's Nest

Once there, they can make their way back to the arena where they fought the first boss. Although there no longer a giant demon waiting to pounce on unsuspecting players walking into the center of the room now causes the floor to collapse and players will find themselves facing the Stray Demon A much tougher version of the Asylum Demon this boss hits harder and has a devastating area of effect attack that deals massive damage Moreover players will also take a chunk of damage from falling into the arena which puts them at a disadvantage before

the fight even begins. Only a game as devious as Dark Souls would have two surprise bosses

in the same room. 5. Gene No More Heroes Ultra-stylish cult classic No More Heroes follows protagonist Travis Touchdown as he climbs through

the ranks of an elite association of assassins by slicing his way through hordes of enemies

with his lightsaber katana. It is bloody cool. With its over-the-top level of blood-gushing

violence, collection of ridiculous characters, and bizarre plotline, this game is outrageously

insane in the best way possible. After achieving the number two spot, the time comes for Travis

to take his place as the highest ranked assassin by defeating Darkstar. However, before he has a

chance to lock swords with the final boss, they're suddenly killed by a woman named Jean

who is the real final boss. Not only is this the first time that Jean is mentioned, but it's revealed

that she is actually Travis's half-sister and the one responsible for killing his parents

Moving fast and hitting even harder, defeating Jean will put players' skills to the test in what is

easily the hardest fight in the game. While an out-of-nowhere boss fight usually makes for a

rather anticlimactic finale, the unabashed silliness of this encounter is all part of

what gives No More Heroes its rather roguish charms. 4. Guardian Ape

Sekiro Shadows Die Twice Although Sekiro Shadows Die Twice put a refreshing spin on the Soulsborne formula

by giving players a grappling hook alongside, putting an emphasis on stealth and deflecting attacks

this game was still full of From Software's notoriously difficult boss fights

And one of these fiendish foes is the Guardian Ape, who will serve as the final boss at the end of the Sunken Valley Passage

A gigantic primate, this boss hits with devastating force and moves with great speed

After learning their attacks, though, players will soon succeed in taking this boss down

decapitating it with the sword that is embedded in their neck. With the words Shinobi Execution displayed on screen, players will feel victorious in their accomplishment

But this feeling is short-lived. In a cruel trick from the developers, this boss has a surprise second phase

Picking up both its severed head and sword, the Guardian Ape is even more difficult than before

Not only does it have an arsenal of powerful sword attacks, but its head now emits a blood-curdling scream that inflicts a massive amount of terror damage

Reaching its climax when severing a grotesque centipede that the titular shinobi pulls from

inside the ape's body, this is an exhilarating fight that players won't soon forget

3. Forma. Control. The oldest house in Remedy's sensational control is bursting with all sorts

of strange and powerful artifacts the protagonist Jesse encounters while exploring the labyrinthian

building. An anchor, an antique mirror, a rubber duck, and even a thermos from Alan Wake, there are

dozens of wonderfully weird things to find while playing this underrated masterpiece. But one of

the most unusual items that players can discover is a fridge Located within the containment sector it revealed that someone must be constantly watching this unassuming appliance to prevent it from deviating It unclear what the fridge is capable of or how it managed to turn the agent on fridge

duty into a gory pulp when players weren't looking, but things are not looking good

Normally, all it takes for Jesse to subdue an altered item is to touch it, but interacting with

the fridge, however, sends players into an otherworldly dimension where they must battle

an entity known as Forma. Dealing high damage and able to destroy chunks of the arena's floor

this is one of the hardest fights in the game, fitting of its placement within the game's first

DLC pack, The Foundation. An utterly unpredictable turn of events, the Forma is just one of many

many memorable moments in this quintessentially remedy game. 2. Masato Aizawa Yakuza 5 The long-running Yakuza series has more jaw-dropping twists

and turns in its intricate plot as there are ridiculous side activities for hardened

protagonist Kiryu to take part in during his spare time. Despite the series' proclivity for

pulling the rug from under the players' feet with its extensive list of betrayals, those who played

Yakuza 5 were still taken aback when Masato appeared at the end of the game as the final boss

Alongside being a former ally, what really makes this double cross especially shocking to the

players is that they were told that Aezawa had been killed earlier on in the game. Moreover

it's also revealed that Aezawa is the son of the antagonist and revered Yakuza leader Kurosawa

and aims to take the power for himself. After a lengthy exposition dump where he tells Kiryu everything

Ayazawa rips off his shirt and the pair engage in a brutal and extended fistfight

Containing plenty of stylish QTEs and paunchy violence, this is one of the most memorable boss fights in the game

ending the fifth title in the series on an unforgettable high note. From its slick action and bombshell revelation

this boss fight encapsulates everything about what makes the Yakuza series so great

1. Chakravatin – Azura's Wrath In the bombastic anime-inspired outing that is Azura's Wrath, players take on the role of the eponymous demigod

as he sets out to defeat those responsible for kidnapping his daughter and imprisoning him

By the time that Azura has beaten the final of the seven perpetrators and rescued their daughter

players are led to believe that the hero's story is over. However, in an unforeseen turn of events, the game's true ending is contained within the final four episodes which were released as DLC

Now while hiding the finale behind a paywall was a controversial move from developers Capcom

those who picked up this expansion were in for a treat, as the plot went in a wild new direction

In a twist that nobody could have predicted, the final real boss was Chakravartin, the creator of

the universe. It's revealed that he was the golden spider who appears throughout the game and was

pulling the strings behind the scenes the entire time. Lasting a whopping 45 minutes, this boss

fight against him is so epic. It's as epic as the game gets. There are huge story revelations

eye-widening visuals, and over-the-top QTE events that make the rest of this game

look tame in comparison. Boss fights really do not get any grander than this