RPGs Where the Final Boss Isn’t the Main Antagonist

Twists are something that helps cement a game’s story in the minds of players. It could involve memory loss leading to a character revelation, a death, or maybe it will switch out the final boss. In RPGs, this latter twist seems to happen a lot.

Players could go through an entire game believing one villain to be the mastermind only to be duped at the last minute. It happens a bit too often and can be a bit cliche now. These examples, while they may be cliche at times, are all memorable though. They’ll be ranked according to their shock value and how much they change the game. There will be spoilers.

8 Mario & Luigi: Brothership (Reclusa)

A Reclusive Villain

Mario & Luigi: Brothership is a recent example in the series. Instead of Bowser being the top turtle like in all of the main platformer entries, a mysterious stranger known as Master Zokket leads an army to unlink islands in another dimension. Mario and Luigi spend the majority of the game linking the islands back and when they finally make it to Master Zokket and fight them, they’re in for a shock. Master Zokket was being controlled by an otherworldly being known as Reclusa who turned into the final boss after one more dungeon.

7 Dark Cloud 2 (Dark Element)

A Dose Of Moon Magic

Dark Cloud 2 is about two young heroes, Max and Monica, traveling through time and rebuilding towns after Emperor Griffon destroys their societies. He is the main antagonist of the game who commands an army of flunkies and looks a lot like Ganondorf from the Zelda series. When the two heroes finally make it to him and fight, evil is unleashed from within. Emperor Griffon was actually from the moon and reverted to his more timid rabbit form after the fight. He had mutated into his beefier form via a spirit called the Dark Element, who looks like the Grim Reaper and becomes the final boss.

6 Ni No Kuni: Wrath Of The White Witch (Zodiarchy)

The Power Of Twelve

Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch has the supposed main villain in the title, The White Witch. Throughout the adventure, players are treated to cutscenes of her planning the demise of the hero, Oliver, alongside her council in a very anime-like tradition. When Oliver and his comrades confront her, she too has a come to Jesus moment wherein it is revealed The White Witch is being controlled.

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The White Witch’s real name is Cassiopeia and she was cursed by a spirit known as the Zodiarchy. The Zodiarchy becomes an amorphous blob of parts after Cassiopeia is freed and this leads to the real final confrontation.

5 Parasite Eve (Ultimate Being)

Baby Got Back

Parasite Eve is a low fantasy game that takes place in New York City during Christmas. A cop, Aya, chases down a monster called Eve who keeps mutating humans and animals throughout the city. Eve is the main antagonist until she is revealed to be pregnant by the end and gives birth to what she calls the Ultimate Being. This final boss involves fighting a floating baby who morphs several times like Frieza in the Dragon Ball anime. It’s unsettling, to say the least, but a memorable final battle nonetheless.

4 South Park: The Stick of Truth (Princess Kenny)

YOU Killed Kenny

South Park: The Stick of Truth was the first good game based on the famous adult cartoon series since it began in 1997. It starred a player-created character, The New Kid, who led familiar characters into turn-based battles. The kids are pretending to be playing in a medieval fantasy setting so Cartman is a wizard and Kenny is known as Princess Kenny. Kenny is a party member throughout but betrays the group in the end out of nowhere, dies, and then gets resurrected as a Nazi Zombie. The main antagonist changes in the game from several kids to the U.S. Government to Nazis, so this is a bit of a weird example but it still fits because Princess Kenny as a Nazi Zombie comes out of nowhere.

3 Final Fantasy 9 (Necron)

Move Over Monkey Man

Final Fantasy is a series known for pulling the old switcheroo with their villains. Of the many, Final Fantasy 9 takes the cake. Queen Brahne begins as the arch-villain but it is revealed that Kuja was behind it all, whispering in her ear.

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In the final confrontation with Kuja, a wormhole opens up to reveal an angelic entity known as Necron who exists out of time and space. It just wants to see the world burn, so players have to take it out. It’s such a weird turn since Kuja is barely connected to it.

2 Dragon Quest 11: Echoes Of An Elusive Age (Calasmos)

A False Ending To End All False Endings

The Dragon Quest series typically has some evil demon or wizard behind the plot. In Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age, Mordegon is the evil wizard in question. When players defeat him, they may feel at a loss like something is missing. However, the game technically does end there but players can continue where they left off as a new area opens up which happens a lot in post-game content for this series. Here, players can go back to an earlier spot in the journey to replay a pivotal scene via time travel. This will reveal that Mordegon was not the real final boss at all but an entity known as Calasmos. This opens up a secret third act in the game leading to one heck of a true final battle.

1 Pokemon Gold/Silver (Red)

Facing Yourself

Pokemon Gold and Pokemon Silver were the next games in the Pokemon generation which introduced more creatures, a new region with Johto, and more gameplay mechanics. It was a bigger sequel in every way and yet it was still a journey about a young kid going from town to town to fight Gym Leaders. Once eight badges were collected, players could challenge The Elite Four to become a Pokemon Master in a final epic battle. That’s what the game was leading to but after this victory, players are informed they can go through the entire region from the first generation too, Kanto. It is rumored in Kanto that the champion of that region, Red, resides in a cave somewhere. This twist for a final battle is huge because players are essentially fighting themselves from a past entry.

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