The original Kingdom Hearts can be a source of debate for whether or not it stands the test of time.

Some people love the combat, while others think it’s a little clunky.

But no matter how you feel about the older combat style, I think something both sides can agree on is that some bosses can be tough as nails.

Whether it’s story bosses or hidden bosses, you better strap in for a tough time.

Here’s a list of our picks for the hardest bosses from Kingdom Hearts (including KH 1.5 Remix).

10. Anti-Sora

Starting off the list we have, well, you!

Anti-Sora can be confusing and unpredictable to fight in his small enclosed pirate chamber.

He performs similar combos to Sora, without much indication that he’s going to, so watch out for his rapid strikes.

Keeping track of him is hard when he summons several copies of himself all while sinking into the floorboards.

If you like using reflect moves, be warned: Anti-Sora doesn’t stagger from any guard attacks you do. So be ready to fight after a proper shielding.

His most dangerous attack is probably his combo of sinking into the floor and rising with an upwards strike 2-6 times. This can be unpredictable, painful, and all around a bad time.

Just keep track of the real shadow, watch out for the floorboards, and get ready to guard.

9. Cloud and Leon

Prepare for trouble, and make it double.

Cloud and Leon have arrived and are ready to pummel a child into the ground. Luckily, Donald and Goofy are here to balance the odds.

Larger than average swords clash against a larger than average key in a battle of might. Their combos and overall attacks hit heavy, so get used to dodge rolling.

Both can be a bit slow, though. So don’t be afraid to get up close and personal.

While it can be hard to keep track of what’s happening, it’s best to just focus on one of them and go all in. Cloud has the lower HP so he might be your best bet first.

Strike him while the other two focus in on Leon, and you should be golden. Make sure to watch out for their “second phase” attacks as well.

8. Cerberus

He may look cute and cuddly, but Cerberus isn’t here to play fetch.

His difficulty can be either very easy or very intimidating, depending on when you decide to fight him.

He can be challenged very early on, making him quite the formidable foe compared to what you’ve faced before. Or if you save Olympus for last, well, he’s definitely easier then.

Not only are his massively oversized teeth a scary threat, but his barrage of fireballs can really pack a punch. You’re gonna want to wait for his big roar before really attacking.

Each bite takes a quick turn at chompin’ ya, so be ready to deflect to stun him.

After his bites, you’ll find dark geysers all over the ground. Getting a good rhythm down while dodging these is easy – but then the big pup decides to also shoot fireballs at you, making your life even harder.

If you have trouble with him, you could always come back later on when you’re a few levels higher.

7. Dark Riku

After everything Riku put you through, it’s time to knock some sense into your darkness-obsessed friend.

This fight in Hollow Bastion is a one-on-one bout, so don’t expect any extra backup from Donald or Goofy.

And truth be told, this battle isn’t too difficult as Riku is pretty predictable with what moves he’s about to use next. It just can be difficult if you’re unprepared (which happens a lot on your first playthrough to Hollow Bastion).

With well-timed deflects, you’ll give him what for.

Getting good combos on him is fairly easy, too. Just watch out for any slashes or shockwaves of darkness.

While his ultimate attack looks flashy and terrifying, you just have to glide above the poor kid. Without you reflects and glides, this boss could take a while. With them, Riku is sure to understand why the Keyblade chose you instead.

6. Dragon Maleficent

If you thought Maleficent was an intimidating and imposing threat beforehand, then you’re not prepared for her massive dragon form.

Her only hitbox is above the ground. So you only have air combos to fall back on.

Not only can air combos be a little hard to pull off, but afterwards, you gotta look where you leap.

Maleficent coats the area in a painful green fire that I would not recommend getting cozy with.

Her fireballs are slowly and indecisive too. This sounds easy to avoid, but they float all which way around you, making it incredible difficult to time reflections or predict dodges.

So it might be best to wait and take your time here, rather than rushing in headfirst. Ready those combos and potions to snuff out this evil fairy’s flame once and for all.

5. Kurt Zisa

Fun fact of the day:

Kurt Zisa’s name came from a contest winner in New York! The winner must be quite proud to have their name attached to such a formidable foe.

Kurt Zisa starts off the battle by completely sealing off your magic. Fun.

If you want your spells back, then try your best to destroy the big purple orbs he’s carrying.

After you get your magic back, Kurt forces you to use it – as he creates a physical attack proof shield. At this point you’ll wanna focus on casting spells against his shield, while avoiding the sand tornadoes and the various other projectiles this snakey boi decides to throw at you.

Grit your teeth through these two repeating phases, and bury Kurt in a sandy tomb.

4. Ice Titan

This absolute beast of a titan takes up the entire Colosseum. So you better run away into the audience stands if you want to even stand a chance.

Most of the damage done to this brute is through deflecting and reflecting his ice attacks back at him.

But be warned: not all of his attacks can be reflected.

Take time to study and learn which attacks should be used, and which should be avoided.

As time goes on in this battle, the Ice Titan gets smarter and smarter.

Utilizing new moves, combining old ones, and barraging Sora into a corner with ice until he meets a chilling death.

Give him a constant taste of his own medicine to turn up the heat (and the tides) of this battle.

3. The Phantom

Nothing like taking a peaceful glide through the skies of London and glancing over to see a soulless floating ghost trailing behind you.

But we’ve all been there, right?

If you haven’t been focusing on magic up to this point, then may the stars have mercy on your soul.

The Phantom starts your clash by cursing the clocktower and putting a ticking time bomb on one of your teammates.

This doesn’t just faint your allies, it knocks them out for the remainder of the fight!

So if you don’t want your friend to perish, then you better cast your Stop spells on the clock periodically all throughout the battle.

This means you need to track both the Phantom, and the time.

To actually fid the Phantom, you’ll notice he has a colored orb within his cloak. This color indicates what spell you need to use to actually hurt him at all.

Hopefully you remember to set up a wide array of quick spells, because you’re gonna need a whole arsenal.

Prepare for this fight to take a long time to win, as there’s a lot you need to keep track of and remember.

2. Unknown

Unknown, or the mysterious figure, gives players their first taste into Kingdom Hearts 2 style boss fights.

Quick, overwhelming, flashy, and all-around powerful. That’s a good summary of this nightmare of a boss fight.

Right off the bat he launches powerful attacks that can render Donald and Goofy down to 1/3 health immediately.

Openings to hit can also be very difficult to find, as he’s relentless with his attacks and teleporting movements.

Just be wary of his giant shield walls, as a few hits on them will cause him to fly at you and strike.

His second phase involves him increasing his speed and strength, as if he needed to…

Dodging and timing is key. So it’ll take a few attempts to get his rhythm down.

Things get really dire if you manage to get his third phase. C

Constant lasers firing all around you, all while his saber strikes get unpredictable and hard to avoid. Rolling and reflecting will be your best friends here. Or maybe watch a few YouTube tutorials to get the knack for this.

Let’s hope we’ll never have to meet this man again…

1. Sephiroth

The Hades Cup is all fun and games until the Latin choir starts up.

Sephiroth is, without a doubt, the hardest boss in the game.

If you want to fight him, you’re going to have to die a few times first to understand his attacks.

You’re going to have to pull out all of the best strength and magic enhancing equipment as well, if you actually want to live long enough to stand a chance.

His long-ranged quick slashes can be timed easily. But his teleporting and flames can be hard to figure out.

One of his more powerful moves (if he manages to use it) will instant kill you and drain all of your magic. Lots of players know this as “Sin Harvest” even though that’s (apparently) not what he says – but regardless of what he’s saying, what he’s doing is just rough.

So even if you survive that attack with the Second Chance ability, you’re still going to need elixirs. A lot of ‘em.

And don’t be afraid to fight him close up, just make sure to back away and not get greedy.

The more time passes in this fight, the more chaotic it can get.

Sephiroth will use extremely cool-looking yet deadly magic, and can overwhelm you in a heartbeat.

Just maintain your cool and remember to dodge/reflect/heal, and you just might be able to win against the famed One-Winged Angel.

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