7 Hardest Bosses That Frustrated SNES Players

The Super Nintendo is one of the best systems of all time, giving players dozens of excellent games across nearly every genre. While developers were slowly starting to leave the quarter-eating difficulty we’d seen in the previous generation, the SNES was still home to some incredibly tough bosses. The fights listed below are among the hardest you can tackle on the platform, but more than that, they have frustrating mechanics that can kill any gaming session. We’re talking one-shot kills, annoying room layouts, and much more. These fights likely led to a few extra controller purchases, as players had to replace their broken ones.

Here are the seven most frustrating bosses on the Super Nintendo.

7) Moldorm – The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

Moldorm isn’t just the bane of many A Link to the Past players’ existence; he’s downright rude. Sure, once you lock into his timing and patterns, he’s not that difficult to take down, but the room layout at the top of the Tower of Hera is among the most annoying work Nintendo has ever done. Moldorm might not outright kill you, but it’s very easy to fall off its small platform. When that happens, you’ll not only need to climb back up to the top of the tower, but Moldorm regains all its health. It’s agonizing.

6) M. Bison – Street Fighter 2 Turbo

I’ll be honest, if Super Street Fighter 2 Turbo had been ported to the SNES, Akuma would take this spot. He is just as fast and powerful as M. Bison, but SNES players never saw him. Don’t get it twisted, M. Bison is still a major challenge; he just pales in comparison to the unfair difficulty of Akuma.

At greater difficulties, M. Bison’s speed can be too much for even veteran players to deal with. He’s a demon on the battlefield who will easily wipe the floor with your corpse the first few dozen times you face him. I have him as slightly tougher than Mortal Kombat 2‘s Shao Kahn, who is also nearly impossible to beat, but it’s a close fight between the two.

5) Culex – Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars

Culex is almost unfair to rank. He’s a hidden boss in Super Mario RPG that was specifically created to be a near-impossible challenge. The thing that makes Culex such a frustrating fight is that he has a massive health pool. Even if you’re fully powered up, you’ll have to strap in for the long haul. He doesn’t go down easy.

If you don’t come into the Culex fight fully loaded with health items and Rock Candy, you might as well not bother. This fight is a marathon, which means preparation is key. It also means you’re going to lose a significant chunk of your limited time on this planet fighting an optional boss.

4) Sardius – Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts

The Ghosts ‘n Goblins is no stranger to near-impossible challenges. That did not change with Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts. The entire game is likely to leave you begging for mercy, but the final fight against Sardius takes things up a notch.

Not only do you have to beat Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts twice to even face Sardius, but the slow-moving giant mixes a rash of projectile attacks with a small hitbox, making this fight a slog. Once you learn the patterns, it’s not too tough, but getting to that point might drive you off a cliff.

3) Dr. Tongue – Zombies Ate My Neighbors

Like Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts, Zombies Ate My Neighbors is one of the toughest games on the SNES. In fact, most players likely never saw Dr. Tongue’s final form back in the day, having tossed the game aside before they ever reached that point.

If you do make it through the first 39 levels, you’ll have to take on his spider form. Technically, you would have already faced this boss on a previous level, but Zombies Ate My Neighbors ups the challenge for the finale, giving the spider more room to dodge your attacks and you more webs to clean up if you want to take it down.

2) The Bruiser Brothers – Super Punch Out!!

Nick and Rick Bruiser aren’t quite as tough as Mike Tyson, but don’t think they’re pushovers. Rick comes first and is much more aggressive. He’s also a dirty fighter, using his elbow after a few of his uppercuts for extra damage.

Meanwhile, Nick brings pure power to the match. His uppercut can absolutely devastate you, and his Jumping Haymaker attack will put you on the mat in a hurry. Both brothers can also deal an attack that disables one of your arms, meaning you can’t even fight back until a timer runs out. Fighting them back-to-back and coming out on top is no joke.

1) Sigma – Mega Man X3

Look at that screenshot above and keep in mind that the only place Sigma takes damage is his tiny head. Nothing else does anything to him, so you have to master finding that sweet spot, or you might as well give up.

On top of that, his attacks deal a ton of damage. If you don’t come in fully equipped, he’ll send you to the grave almost instantly. Combine all of that, and you have a boss fight that’s equally difficult and tedious, making it a relatively easy choice for the top of this list.

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