Summary
Studio Zero and many other internal Atlus divisions know how to put style into their video games. From the menus to the character designs, their latest venture viaMetaphor: ReFantaziois oozing with personality. Some of the coolest designs are saved for the boss battles of which there are many.
Some of the most memorable ones are also some of the most challenging inMetaphor: ReFantazio. It doesn’t help that many of these bosses are referred to as Humans which feels a bit demeaning. Is man the greatest folly? Meta-questions aside, let’s go through some of the game’s most brutal boss battles. There will be spoilers.
8Zorba
Zorba will be the first major boss that players will face inMetaphor: ReFantaziounless they check out the optional encounter with Fire Dragon Mauna within the Nord Minds. Zorba is a necromancer and one of Louis’ top men. As such, he can resurrect the dead as companions to attack players. That’s not ideal but what makes this fight truly hard is Zorba’s resistance to most attacks.
At this point with weapons, items, Archetypes, and spells, players are going to feel outmatched unless they really did some grinding for EXP in the dungeon. While technically his second form later is stronger, the limitations set on players make this encounter with Zorba more challenging.
7Homo Margo
Hard To Detect A Weakness
When players first encounter Homo Margo, one of the Human bosses in the game, he is accompanied by the Dragon God Malvirta Drako Eht. Both will be waiting at the end of the Dragon Temple on Virga Island and the pair are a force to be reckoned with. However, after its defeat, Homo Margo retreats to the surface and starts to wreak havoc on the village above. In this new boss fight, Homo Margo has grown and developed techniques to help it change alignments. For example, one minute it could be weak to ice spells and the next minute it could repeal ice attacks. This makes finding the right weakness tricky.
6Sea Horror Homo Sabara
An Unexpected Guest With Too Many Tentacles
There are a lot of Human boss battles inMetaphor: ReFantazioand to clarify, Humans are grotesque-looking monsters that look like transformed humans from our reality. They have anAttack on Titanvibeto them and the Sea Horror Homo Sabara is like a giant head with a beating heart for hair molded onto an octopus’s body.
This sea beast will interrupt the travels on the sea and unless players know the encounter is coming, it will be a surprise. That’s a challenge in and of itself but the actual fight is hard too. There are a lot of tentacles that each have their own turn and they can produce a large amount of damage. It’s best to take them out quickly to stun the main body and to go in for the kill.
5Rella And Sogne The Icebound
A Trial By Ice
Rella’s turn to the dark side is quite a surprise even though it turns out it was just a ruse. Rue or not, her boss battle wasn’t pulling any punches as she is joined by an ice-based dragon named Sogne the Icebound.
Ice-protecting armor is a must because this combo of antagonists will hit the party hard with group-based ice magic. If players manage to win, they will have to deal with another round with Sogne the Icebound as Rella will sacrifice her life to revive it.The false endingto this battle can throw players for a loop.
4Homo Luano
Solid Defenses In A Duel
Homo Luano is another Human-based boss battle or more like a mini-boss. There is a tournament held in Port Brilehaven that players can participate in. Most challenges will grant players great rewards from weapons to accessories, so it’s definitely a side quest worth pursuing.
Homo Luano will be one of the last challenges which players will have to face withWill, the protagonist ofMetaphor: ReFantazio, alone. Not only that but Homo Luano is protected against all types of magical and physical attacks. Almighty attacks are the only hope for taking this thing down and even then it won’t be easy.
3Devourer Of The Stars
The Strongest Dragon In The Game
Devourer of the Stars is similar to Homo Luano as it is an optional boss but deadlier. This is the hardest dragon in the game and might rivaltough dragons in other RPGsfromDragon AgetoDragon Quest. It too will be protected by attacks other than Almighty ones.
At least players can have their whole party participate but even then it won’t be easy. Devourer of the Stars will boost its stats like evasion, making it harder to hit and any missed attack will lessen the turns of players. Also on turns, this dragon will give itself extra and it hits hard with group attacks. It will truly be a miracle if players survive this encounter.
2Destroyer Charadrius
It’s A War, Not A Battle
Destroyer Charadrius is the final boss of the game and it is the Humanized form of Louis. In the first battle, players will have to contend with three faces: the Mask of Joy, the Mask of Mirth, and the Mask of Ire. They can gain special bonuses by eating puppets and all three faces have a bevy of spells to weaken the party from status effect to group attacks.
What’s really hard about this section is the longevity because of how much HP each face has and how high their defenses are. The second phase of Louis is easier as his defenses are lower, but it’s still two gigantic boss battles back to back without giving players any time to heal and prep. It’s the cycle of manyfinal bosses in RPGs.
1Elegy Of The Soul
An Optional Boss That Is Near Invincible
Elegy of the Soul is an optional fight and without a doubt the most brutal in the game. It looks like the main character and it canswap between the many Archetypes ofMetaphor: ReFantazioon the fly. Here’s the most bombastic thing about this encounter. If players are seemingly smart and equip their party with the best gear, they will die instantly.
Elegy of the Soul analyzes the makeup of the party and if they have any armor, weapons, or accessories equipped with elemental blocks or repellents, it will just cast a spell that does 9,999 damage on the whole party. To stand a chance, players have to equip weaker gear without many bonuses attached. If players don’t know that going in, they may perplexed about how to win, and even with that tip it’s still a rough battle.
