The video game community as a collective has waited patiently for decades, painstakingly poring over ideas, theories, rumors, and articles, and as of April 10, 2020, we finally got what we wanted. The Final Fantasy 7 remake even hit store shelves a few weeks early and has since been met with rave reviews, and, for some, even reached the expectations of their wildest dreams.

The popular installment made a name for itself based on its thrilling story, deep characters, and unique bosses, and enemies. In this list, we’ll be taking a look at some of the toughest bosses you’ll encounter throughout the game.

Updated November 29, 2021 by Ryan Bamsey: Final Fantasy 7 Remake introduced a whole new generation of gamers to this classic story, and allowed veterans of the series to revisit old encounters and experience new ones. We’ve compiled a list of the hardest bosses and we’ve made sure it’s suitably intimidating!

12 Ghoul

  • Chapter 11: Haunted

A newcomer to the world of Final Fantasy VII, the battle with Ghoul can be a difficult one if you haven’t focused on upgrading your magical materia. It will constantly switch its immunity between magical and physical damage throughout the fight, so you’ll need to set up in a way that will allow you to dish out both types of damage.

Its AOE stuns can quickly and easily catch players off guard if they’re not careful, so you’ll need to stay alert to what he’s doing at all times. He can be especially difficult if he catches you with Incorporeality, which will remove one of your party members from the fight until he is stunned. Do not sleep on the Train Graveyard Ghoul.

11 Roche

  • Chapter Four: Mad Dash

Roche is a difficult opponent as he’s the first example of two different battle types in the game: Motorcycle bosses and duel bosses. It can be frustrating getting the controls right when trying to fight on two wheels, and Roche doesn’t make it easy.

On foot, however, Roche is a fun opponent to duel - if difficult for newbies. This fight really encourages you to play methodically and this may present a particular problem if you’re used to smashing through humanoid enemies with Cloud’s huge Buster Sword.

10 Eligor

You’ll encounter Eligor at the Train Graveyard and should be prepared for another tricky battle, especially if you’re playing on Hard Mode. It comes just a few moments after the battle with the Ghoul and so can sometimes catch players off guard, but there are some things that you can do to make the battle a little easier for yourself.

The best approach is to hit him hard early on to prevent him from flying up into the air, although a few successful casts of Aero can bring him back down even if he does. Pairing an orb of Ice materia together with an orb of Elemental materia in Cloud’s weapon can also speed things up, but you’ll need to be wary of getting hit by his status afflicting physical attacks, or simply set up the party to protect against them.

9 Whisper Harbinger

  • Chapter 18: Destiny’s Crossroads

The Whispers are one of the most notable additions to Final Fantasy VII Remake and arguably one of the most controversial. Their inclusion ultimately makes some fairly significant alterations to the plot which not everybody was happy about, although the battle against them is generally considered to be quite a good one.

It’s broken up into multiple stages and includes some fairly unique combat mechanics that only show up here. A lot of its difficulty is derived from the length of the battle, which is considerably longer than any other in the game. As is often the case with JRPGs, it’s a case of one false move and you’re back to square one and so you’ll need to remain focused if you want to avoid repeating the battle multiple times.

8 Rufus And Darkstar

  • Chapter 17: Deliverance from Chaos

This battle is hard mostly because you only have one party member with which to fight it: Cloud. You’re outnumbered by two very quick opponents and it’s all too easy to take a few too many hits and fall prematurely.

The best strategy for this fight is to get Darkstar down as soon as you can and then focus on learning Rufus’ attack patterns. Punisher mode is very useful in this fight, so use it to your advantage as much as you can.

7 Airbuster

  • Chapter Seven: A Trap Is Sprung

Shinra’s secret weapon that takes you on during the second mako reactor bombing sequence. Although the enemy is a returning one, the remake of Final Fantasy 7 brought with it a few changes to the Airbuster fight that actually make it a little easier than it was in the original version of the game.

While progressing through the reactor you have the option of removing some of its parts to make the battle less difficult. You can always choose to not remove any of them to add an extra layer of difficulty, however, the fact that its an option arguably cheapens the fight quite a bit.

6 The Valkyrie

  • Chapter 15: The Day Midgar Stood Still

Much like Airbuster, the threat of The Valkyrie looms for quite a while before the battle actually begins. Not only does this help to build up tension, but it should also give you a fairly decent idea of what you’ll be up against and allow you to prepare accordingly.

A lot of its attacks are projectile-based and so you’ll need to remain on your toes to avoid taking unnecessary damage. Blocks, dodges and rolls will be your best friend here, as too will your Wind and Lightning materia. The third phase of the battle can be particularly tricky as you’ll need to lure the enemy into its own attack to break its shield, but providing you keep moving you should be able to get through it relatively unscathed.

5 Jenova Dreamweaver

Now we begin to move up the ladder into the more dangerous category, where a couple of misplaced moves can spell certain defeat. Jenova follows a specific pattern, so be sure to follow it because you can quickly get caught off guard with her more powerful attacks like rejection and vengeance.

While it’s far from the most difficult battle in the game, it’s definitely a test of the skills you have acquired throughout your playthrough. Her invulnerability stages can be particularly frustrating as you’ll need to cut through a seemingly endless wave of tentacles before you can deal any damage to her. Thankfully, Cloud’s Triple Slash ability can really help in this regard.

4 Sephiroth

While you don’t fight the one-winged angel in the original game until much later on in the story, the remake decided to use him as the final main boss. It’s a fight that truly showcases the beauty and fluidity of the battle engine, and makes for one of the most fun and exciting battles in the game.

All of his moves pack a punch and you must go through three phases of the battle in order to complete it. The difficulty lies in being patient and waiting for opportunities to attack, defend, and heal yourself and your party members, if you get too aggressive you can fall into a string of deadly attacks and have your back against the wall. While it’s an exhilarating battle, the difficulty is the true challenge.

3 Pride And Joy

  • Shinra Combat Simulator

When it comes to secret boss fights, the Final Fantasy series is no slouch, they have been in the franchise since the beginning and the Final Fantasy remake is no exception. The secret super boss can only be accessed in the game’s hard mode and is only available after beating Don Corneo’s coliseum and the other fights in the Shinra combat simulator.

It is an intense five-round gauntlet where you face off against all of the summons you’ve encountered throughout the game. While the Pride and Joy Prototype itself is fairly simple, it’s the battles that your party must endure without the use of items that will have you pulling your hair out. It’s worth the effort though, as beating it will reward you with an accessory that will make your quest through Hard Mode much easier.

2 Hellhouse

  • Chapter Nine: The Town That Never Sleeps

The mysterious house from the original which you would routinely encounter in the Sector 5 area returns in an even more glorious fashion. The Hellhouse battle ranks towards the top of the toughest battles in the game. Its weaknesses are constantly shifting throughout the fight, and it has a strong defense against physical damage, and the fact you only have two party members for the fight adds another layer of difficulty to the encounter.

It can deal a hefty amount of damage in all three of its phases, so it’s best to take your time and focus on its shifting weaknesses, try to dodge its attacks, and have a large stock of potions handy. If you’re playing on Hard Mode, you’ll need to worry about conserving MP as well, so it’s best to only use first and second-stage offensive spells until the very end. The only exception is Bioga, which you should cast as soon as the fight begins to inflict Poison.

1 The Arsenal

There are a number of things that make the battle with the Arsenal challenging, the main one being that you’ll lose both Cloud and Tifa shortly before it begins. This effectively leaves just Barret and Aerith at your disposal as Red XIII is pretty useless not just in this fight, but throughout the entire game. Then there’s the small matter of the enemy’s constant barrage of powerful attacks, which can quickly wipe out your party if you’re not careful.

It’s a fight that gets progressively harder, with the final phase giving you a fairly short window of time to wrap things up. Exploiting its weakness is the aim of the game here and also targeting its main cannon whenever you can safely do so. Dealing enough damage to the weapon will cancel a lot of its bigger attacks and will greatly increase the speed at which you’ll be able to stagger it.

NEXT: Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Details You Never Noticed About The Shinra HQ Museum