Hardest Metroid Bosses (2024)

Since first bursting onto the gaming scene back in 1986, the classic Metroid series has established a solid reputation for its notoriously tough boss fights. The games see players take control of Samus Aran, a space-traveling bounty hunter.

The challenging boss fights on offer have frequently been amplified by the non-linear exploration style the games typically employ. In turn, players' skills and aptitude for adapting quickly are frequently tested. The best Metroid bosses have often displayed extraordinary complexity in their designs, with multi-stage battles often requiring shifting strategies almost on a whim. Such showdowns can demand pattern recognition, timing, and a master of complex combat mechanics. Better still, the eyebrow-raising difficulty level can bring players a rewarding sense of accomplishment upon completion. Of Metroid's many iconic boss fights, the following set themselves apart on account of their thrilling difficulty.

Updated on May 29, 2024, by John Cunningham: The long-running Metroid series has produced plenty of spectacular boss fights throughout its nearly 40-year run. Among the many classic fights in the Nintendo franchise, some have garnered colorful reputations for driving players up the wall with their high level of difficulty. This discussion has been updated to include five more uphill boss battles that players have often taken a long time to finally overcome.

10 Yakuza Is An Arachnid Menace

Metroid Fusion

This enormous spider provides Samus with plenty of trouble in the 2002 GameBoy hitMetroid Fusion. Notorious for driving players up the wall, Yakuza comes equipped with three energy tanks.

To do any damage to this monster, gamers must rely exclusively on charge beams and ice missiles. However, it’s not quite as simple as generally hitting the largely invulnerable Yakuza with them. Instead, players must exclusively aim for the mouth of the creature, all while it’s approaching to do serious damage. A second-phase Yakuza will then ditch its legs to become a flying entity, making it even harder to pinpoint for attack. Overall, this powerful, projectile-hurling beast has more than earned its reputation as one of the series’ most exhausting bosses to deal with.

9 Dark Samus Is Armed To The Teeth For War In This Classic Confrontation

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

This GameCube hit provided players with an intense showdown with the sinister doppelgänger Dark Samus. Known for introducing multiplayer to the Metroid franchise, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes also won over fans and critics alike with its challenging, innovative action.

In this three-part showdown, Dark Samus will initially rely on massive energy beams and missiles to do maximum damage. The beams are devastating enough that the only survival option is to get out of dodge. Getting closer to Dark Samus will highlight both the super speed the character possesses, as well as her ability to turn invisible, making life even harder for players looking to put her down once and for all. Between the beams, the invisibility, and the timer slowly winding down in the background throughout, this high-stakes boss fight forces players to think fast if they want any shot at progressing past it.

8 Quadraxis Is A Deadly Guard To Take Down

Metroid Prime 2: Echoes

This mighty drone was initially designed for the simple purpose of guarding the Sanctuary Fortress for the Luminoth. Unfortunately, the grim arrival of the shapeshifting Ing led to the drone being repurposed for darker use.

For Samus, that means serving as a massive obstacle en route to the Ing Hive. To start things off, Quadraxis is armed to the teeth, attacking the player with missiles, anti-matter blasts, and more. Worse still, Quadraxis will frequently attempt to suck Samus in with a perilous vortex. Later phases see the increasingly volatile guard take flight after losing its legs, with the final phase of battle testing players’ patience due to the precise timing needed to finally put Quadraxis down with a killing blow. A thrilling, often frustrating boss fight, this one also leads to players acquiring the aptly-named Annihilator Beam.

7 Kraid Is A Gigantic Threat

Super Metroid

After a surprisingly conservative debut in the original Metroid, the formerly normal-sized Kraid was repackaged as a force to be reckoned with. In Super Metroid, the Crocomire clone has grown so big that it requires two screens just to see all of him.

After taking down a smaller, decoy Kraid, Samus is ambushed by the monster’s new, enormous form, leading to a wild-in-scale boss fight that requires players to constantly aim their attacks at the giant’s mouth. Over two phases, Kraid launches a variety of attacks, including claw attacks and spitting projectiles. Thanks to his ridiculous size, Kraid served as one of the most daunting boss fights people had encountered at the time of this 1994 classic’s release.

6 Dark Samus Attacks A Vulnerable Samus In This Dramatic Showdown

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

The always-dangerous Dark Samus strikes again, this time when the real Samus is already struggling with the atmospheric perils of the planet Phaaze. Much like Metroid Prime 2, Dark Samus kicks things off with a heavy emphasis on her deadly energy beams.

On top of the beams, she also has a devastating ground wave and can even conjure up enormous pillars to serve as obstacles. Between her usual attacks and her surprising elementary control of Phazon terrain, Dark Samus is in suitably frustrating form here. Later stages of the battle see Dark Samus able to regenerate injuries among other difficult features. Should players fail to stop Dark Samus before filling their Phazon gauge, the risk of turning into a new Dark Samus crops up, ensuring a grim ending for those who fall during this boss fight hurdle.

5 Phantoon Has Just One, Well-Guarded Weakness To Exploit

Super Metroid

Phantoon's speed and flight make for a hard target in one of the many great boss fights from the classic Super Metroid. Almost disappearing at will, the frustrating villain can prove to be a test of patience for players due to its unpredictability and powerful attacks.

In a testament to Phantoon's strength and durability, throttling it with super missiles simply gets on its nerves and makes it more dangerous, rather than the destructive damage one might expect from such weaponry. To finally put the dangerous creature down, players must target their attacks directly at its eye. However, this is much easier said than done as its eye is hidden within its mouth and easily guarded most of the time. Between its bizarre aesthetic, deadly attacks, and difficult-to-hit weak point, Phantoon is a tough, otherworldly boss for Metroid fans to test their skills against.

4 Mother Brain Has Many Attacks At The Ready

Super Metroid

This two-phase climactic showdown is arguably Super Metroid's most colorful and imaginative fight setpiece. The powerful antagonist largely relies on an assortment of deadly weapons to tackle Samus Aran.

The two-part encounter quickly proves to be something of an endurance test, as players must weather a remarkably difficult storm to get this closing boss fight done and dusted. Initially, Samus must contend with a litany of dangerous turrets as Mother Brain hides behind a glass model. From there, the real action begins, as the curiously named foe reveals an imposing mecha-suit of sorts to brutalize the player with. Along the way, there's a rainbow beam attack that can rob the player of a whopping 300 HP. Fortunately, Samus ultimately is not alone in her war against Mother Brain here, as a Super Metroid arrives on the scene to help. Even with the surprise ally, though, this remains one of the Metroid series' most unflinchingly tough boss fights.

3 SA-X Gives Players An Idea Of What Samus Aran's Foes Go Through

Metroid Fusion

A seemingly perfect copy of Samus' power suit and fighting skills, SA-X served as the principal villain of 2002's Metroid Fusion. Playing mind games and matching the player's firepower, SA-X is a suitably formidable, climactic rogue.

The fight takes place in the Biologic Space Laboratories research area and sees SA-X sport very few weaknesses. To take this parasitic boss down, players must utilize the power of the Wave Beam. Once initially defeated, the fearsome X Parasite returns to its Core X form for another beatdown, ensuring the boss fight is an overall exhaustive experience for players. Bizarrely, the game ends on an almost redemptive note for SA-X, as the villainous figure briefly assists Samus by taking on the dreaded Omega Metroid. It's an odd, mysterious turn of events that left many players scratching their heads considering the action-packed rivalry up to that point.

2 Metroid Prime Is A Two-Act Epic To Take Down

Metroid Prime

The titular figure of this beloved classic provides players with one of the most beloved and action-packed showdowns in the long-running series' history. A two-part battle, the Metroid Prime boss battle encourages players to strategize in the first half with the opportunity to prepare for what their powerful foe's next attack might be.

The second part, however, throws caution to the wind as players enter a big fighting pit for an all-action war that sees players forced to rely solely on the Phazon Beam to get the job done. In the meantime, players must keep Samus moving as Metroid Prime unleashes a myriad of HP-crushing shockwave attacks. Worse still, the powerful rogue will call upon a slew of Metroids to step in and help him when his health is depleted enough. Overall, it's a great showcase of the sci-fi thrills the Metroid series has long been renowned for, with players having to move quickly, think smartly, and handle a litany of threats simultaneously along the way.

1 Is Ridley Even Beatable?

Super Metroid

The monstrous Ridley is in suitably difficult form in Super Metroid, putting Samus Aran through her paces as per usual. The confrontation occurs at the Ceres Space Station after the winged beast raises hell en route to kidnapping a Metroid hatchling.

To get the better of The Cunning God of Death, players simply have to land 100 shots on the long-running foe. However, that requirement is much easier said than done, as Ridley unleashes a barrage of health-sapping attacks that can put Samus down in quick order. Relentless in his attacks and infuriatingly quick and agile, Ridley's Super Metroid appearance has come to be one of his most iconic. Presented as borderline invincible, the fight doesn't even end with him sustaining a real defeat. Instead, he flees before a self-destruct protocol finishes off his brutal work on the space station.