Some of the hardest video games ever created were developed during the 90s, and there were definitely tough bosses in those games as well, with players encountering great difficulty overcoming them in titles like Sonic the Hedgehog and Street Fighter 2. Arcade games from the same decade were difficult, but so too were the ones present on the home console market, with both Sega and Nintendo publishing titles that did the opposite of holding players' hands. Navigating levels could often prove hard, but '90s gamers could always count on boss battles to take things to a whole other level of difficulty.
There were definitely games that had trouble balancing their boss fights and others that were intentionally difficult to near impossibility. Arcade games and home console games around this time were both susceptible to hard bosses and since many people experienced trouble during these sections, the characters began to become infamous. Custom arcade machines themed after Zelda and the like are great and have access to save states nowadays, but in an era where walkthroughs were scarce and save points were few and far between, the toughest boss fights became legendary for their move-sets and level design.
Early games had tough boss fights and in the '90s there was generally a higher tolerance for random spikes in game difficulty. However, the standout bosses from these games were still near impossible to beat for younger and older gamers alike. Getting past a hard part in a video game is still an accomplishment and many of these games had lots to enjoy - the toughest boss fights weren't always necessarily from the hardest or least enjoyable games. Regardless, these boss fights are regarded as some of the toughest of the decade and will still challenge lots of veteran players looking at Sega Genesis games on Nintendo Switch Online in 2022.
The 1990s' Most Difficult Game Bosses - Scar In The Lion King
The Lion King for Sega Genesis is notoriously hard, and its final boss typifies that. The game not only has tough boss battles - there’s also the stampede level, the tough puzzles, and the precise jumping physics that all can cause game overs during the later parts of the game. Many players may have not experienced the end of the game, but it doesn’t let up as players go up against Scar, the main villain from the film voiced by Jeremy Irons.
Somehow, though, Scar is even more menacing in The Lion King video game. The reason that Scar is so hard to beat is more due to a test of patience, even in the Disney Classic Games Lion King and Aladdin remasters for modern consoles. He’ll run away from the fight and require Simba to attempt the hard platforming the game is known for. On top of this, Scar’s hyena allies attack the player from all angles, causing the player to take extra damage during the fight. The swinging sections are still tough after all these years and the possibility to lose a life to a single pit still strikes fear into the hearts of many completionists.
Street Fighter 2's M. Bison Is One Of The '90s' Most Difficult Bosses
Street Fighter 2 was a competitive game for sure, but its single-player was how most players in the '90s experienced the game first. After defeating the lineup of ten fighters and two bonus rounds that ramp up in difficulty, M. Bison appears as the final fight in a nail-biting duel with Street Fighter's game-breaking combos. Games go to best of three, but players must break the tie, making this a much tougher fight than other games’.
While the veteran Street Fighter players nowadays will probably have an easy time with him, M. Bison still has a deadly arsenal of techniques that combos players into the ground. The double knee press will hit a player twice and has a surprisingly large range while a Psycho Crusher will deal large amounts of damage. Combined with his specials and the fact that losing meant players had to start from scratch, Street Fighter 2 gained a reputation of being hard to beat.
Wizpig From Diddy Kong Racing Is One Of The N64’s Hardest Bosses
A children’s racing game that isn't Mario Kart might seem like a strange pick especially since in a Diddy Kong Racing is older and needs sequels, but Wizpig has slowly climbed up the ranks for many retro enthusiasts to become one of the hardest bosses on the Nintendo 64. After defeating the four bosses of the game, the final boss room appears in the caverns shaped like Wizpig’s face. The boss fight that ensues is just a race, but requires knowledge of the drifting mechanics and perfect execution in order to win.
Wizpig is just impossibly fast - the goal of the race is simple, to hit all the zipper s and not fall of the track. However, the race requires every bit of speed to even catch up to the pig. There aren’t any item balloons - like Mario Kart 8's wonky item system - and there’s water around the track. Even though the game lets players continue racing if they hit the water, it’s enough of a time loss that a reset is required. This is one boss that, despite the use of save features, is still hard to beat, and will take many attempts for those returning to the game.
Sonic The Hedgehog 2’s Final Boss Is Long & Has One-Hit Kills
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is a great Genesis game but there are elements that make it tough to go back to and complete in one go. Metropolis Zone, Chemical Plant Zone, and the Death Egg Zone as a whole all have their problems which take time and can eat up lives. However, the final challenge is the Death Egg Robot, and this boss presents a challenge that players have lost hundreds of attempts to.
The problem with this boss is that it’s a two part fight. After fighting Sonic’s metal counterpart, Dr. Eggman shows up to finish the job. Along with his standard aimed attack and swinging arms, Eggman has a few hard-to-avoid one hit kills up his sleeve. When the Death Egg Robot falls down, it’s possible to get stuck next to its hands, causing Sonic to immediately die. The Death Egg Robot takes twelve hits to defeat, meaning that the final boss is much longer than the others in the game. It follows a pattern, but players must maneuver around the attacks for a long time in order to defeat it.
Bosses from '90s video games made names for themselves in all sorts of genres, but the one connecting factor is the amount of time gamers had to devote to defeating them. Starting over from scratch, using s, utilizing retro glitches like in Super Mario Bros. 3 and making notes about the bosses’ powers were all commonplace back then. The internet has definitely forced developers to be more creative when deg boss fights so that players will still find it challenging after knowing the answer, which has been great for players looking for a steady challenge. The '90s were a wild era, but the rollercoasters of difficulty that games like Sonic the Hedgehog had made them unique and burned them into many people’s minds. Even for companies that specifically aimed to make consoles and games for children like Nintendo and Sega, the mentality that “players will figure it out” reigned supreme and was true in many cases.