Daily Debate: What is your Favorite Final Boss in the Zelda Series?

Bosses in video games are meant to  challenge the player, to test the abilities and skills that they’ve developed in the game up until that point. Bosses in Zelda usually go a step further to test the player’s adaptability by making them use whatever item they’ve found in the current dungeon, or in some cases just their general swordplay ability. Final bosses in Zelda are usually the most difficult fights in their respective game, sometimes requiring multiple items to be used and sometimes using mechanics not seen at any other point in the game. 

The most frequent final boss in the Zelda series is generally an incarnation of Ganondorf. However, other games such as The Minish Cap, Majora’s Mask, and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link choose to have other villains take up the mantle of final boss, such as Vaati and Dark Link. Probably one of the most consistent aspects of each final boss is the feeling of triumph they give upon completion. 

Personally, Ganondorf from Twilight Princess takes the place of my favorite final boss in the Zelda series. Although it’s not my favorite game in the series, the multi-stage boss starting from Puppet Zelda and ending with a one-on-one showdown with Ganondorf himself in an arena of light, before using the finishing move taught by the Hero’s Shade to deal the final blow. It’s a fight that tests your swordsmanship, horse-riding ability, and even your problem-solving prowess as each stage of the fight takes a completely different strategy. It’s an amazing finale and the sense of triumph I felt from defeating him at the end of the game is something I still remember over a decade later. 

What do you think? What’s your favorite final boss in the Zelda series and why? Let us know in the comments below!