Board 8 > Top 20 Metal Gear Solid bosses

(+) Yeah! (+)

I recently finished MGSV, after two years of it sitting on my shelf. It's a good fucking game, arguably my favorite in the series. Okay no, but close.

So I wanted to do something to celebrate, I came up with a boss list. This will be my top 20 favorite but also hardest bosses. Although I admit favoritism plays a much larger role. Challenge will be accounted for, and that will show in some rankings more than others. Overall, don't concern yourself with the hard part, it's really more about the favorite parts.

I feel like there were some other things I wanted to mention but can't recall them now, oh well. First write-up will be here shortly.
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20. Psycho Mantis

Yeah, sorry. My first time through the game was on youtube, so by the time I played it myself I already knew the secrets. His gimmick had no effect on me, so I can only judge the fight based on how I remember feeling during the time I spent with my controller plugged into the wrong port.

But I don't remember, because the fight was over in a few minutes and didn't leave any lasting impression on me. Also it was on PS3 so there were no physical ports. My boy here was very much a product of his time.

My favorite thing about Psycho Mantis is his portrayal in Metal Gear Awesome 2.
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Funny you should say that

19. The Fury

Dude is burned from head to toe and he still wants to play with fire all day. He's just as obsessed as his comic book villain counterpart. Anyone ever hear of Firefly? Same dude.

Anyway I really do enjoy this fight. There's not a single bad fight on this list, so nobody panic. Da Fury can light up your world, which is a problem for me as I like to play in the dark. I think my initial reaction to his antics was to just blast him away with a shotgun. I got burned, but his pesky flames didn't hurt nearly as much as my bullets puncturing his astronaut suit. Won't be able to survive in space like that.

Later on I adopted a more "hide near the exit door and snipe his face" approach, which was much more my speed.
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Why would you make a topic about MGS bosses after finishing MGSV, a game with arguably only 1 very mediocre boss?
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metaIslug posted...

I love The Fury cause the arena gets progressively more and more on fire, which I thought was fucking awesome

I ain't denying that! It's a very cool setting, but fire doesn't appeal to me as much as, say, water.

foolm0r0n posted...

Why would you make a topic about MGS bosses after finishing MGSV, a game with arguably only 1 very mediocre boss?

I can't finish the last game and reminisce about my past experience with the series? Seems pretty logical to me but I dunno
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18. Solidus Snake

I did say I enjoyed every fight on this list, but I still have mixed feelings about this one and another upcoming brother. Solidus gets major credit for dual weilding katanas in this modern day, gotta respect that. Although he squanders some of that by also using rocket launching... tentacles.

Alright so, ignoring the obvious Dr. Octopus reference, I'mma just say fuck them tentacles. That's all I remember hating about this fight, otherwise it was a pretty intense sword duel. I'm a fan of swords.

Here's the first fight of the list that's ranked based on challenge. I like the fight, yeah, but it was a tough one and that's what really matters here. This was the first game of the series I played, so I was not very skilled at that point. Really, all of the bosses were a challenge for me back then. We'll get to that.

This was the point where the story got messed the fuck up. In a good way! Even after Solidus expositions for about 7 years, you're still left with a blank look of confusion as you try to stick him with the pointy end, as any good swordsman would know to do. And it just gets better after that! Oh boy.

My favorite part about this fight is, you may have already guessed, the swords! That high frequency blade is cool as fuck yo
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17. The Pain

Paaaaain, without love, paaaaain... I can't get enough.

I've heard plenty of complaints about this guy, I guess he's bland or whatever. I honestly enjoy fighting him. He won't challenge your brain mechanisms, but there's nothing wrong with a nice straightforward shootout from time to time. What? You say we just had one of those with Baby Ocelot? Yeah well he didn't have bees!

You raise a fair point though, so I'll make it up to you.

Honorable Mention: Baby Ocelot

Also known as Major Joshua "Ocelot" Keaton by nobody other than me, but I give credit where it's due. I can't mention this version of Ocelot without shouting my praise for his voice actor.

I just love Ocelot, so do you! Don't lie. Everybody wants him on their side, probably why he was playing for nine different teams. It's like the popular kid at school who's also just a really good dude, he has to divide his time up between several groups of friends. I never knew anybody like that, except my boy Ocelot here.

At this point you may be wondering why the hell he isn't in the actual top 20 bosses if we all love him so much. Not ranking the characters themselves, just the battles, silly. The fight with Ocelot isn't all that impressive. Oh he's definitely got some slick moves, and there are a couple fun ways to fuck with him during combat, but overall it's still just a straight up shootout. Nothing much more going on here.

Don't even concern yourself with the honorable mention part, it's just my method of stealth cheating.
These two fights are about equal in my eyes. The one edge that The Pain has other than bees obviously, is the scenery.

Pool of water in a pretty cave? Sign me up. For a lease, cuz I wanna live there.
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tag

Crying Wolf is probably my favorite. Really the only part of MGS4 I remember enjoying.
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I assume either the MGR bosses will take all the top spots, or MGR isn't being included because its boss would take all the top spots and that would be boring
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Oh that's what I forgot to mention in my opening post. I'm not counting Peace Walker or Rising because I've only played a little of the former and I have no interest in the latter.

Actually, I shouldn't say no interest. I had the thought the other day that I should give it a try but it's not on PS4 so oh well
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16. Metal Gear REX/Liquid

This may be revealing once again how I didn't play the first game as a kid. This fight is awesome! I'm not denying that. I just have no nostalgic connection to it and there have been way better encounters since then.

I'm also cheating again since this is technically two bosses... eh, I'm sure ya'll won't hold it against me.
REX did start the Stinger Trend, as I like to call it. If you can't figure out what that means well go face down some large machines in the first two games and then you'll see. Have fun with it, because in a game about sneaking around and being quiet, it's nice to have those moments where you instead go balls to the wall and rain hell down on a giant robot.

I like shooting missiles at giant machines. I like assaulting my brother with a classic ppk combo. This encounter lets you do both of those things and that's a-okay with me.
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15. Vulcan Raven

If I wasn't taking challenge into account, this fight would probably be lower. Once again, no emotional attachment to this fight, sorry. It's still cool, Raven is a bro. I like him. I also like firing a guided missile at his back.

The challenge, that I recall (been a long time), was trying to find a good spot to hide your body. As far as I know there's nowhere you can go that Raven can't. There's a shit ton of boxes around to cover you, but Raven moves fast. He looks fat but no, that's all muscle. He's ripped. And he'll rip you in half if he sees you with his comically large sight cone.

Oh and he has a pet bird, a crow or something. Should get a raptor instead, it doesn't need to make sense so long as it's cool and now that I think about it I really need to see Snake vs Raptor make it happen people
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Tag
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Tag
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tag. My top would be Metal Gear Zeke

probably one of my top 5 boss battles of all time
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14. Vamp

Here he is, this is the other brother I have mixed feelings about, the one I can't deny. Back when I fought him, he was the biggest challenge to me because I wasn't good at aiming. Still not, really, but I manage. Either way, this mutha fucker only achieves this spot because it was a legit struggle for me. He dances and prances along railings and... basically oxygen.

Yeah there's a big pool of oxygen right in the middle of the room so if you get tunnel vision like I do you might find yourself falling through water that isn't water.

It's fine, I learned pretty quickly not to ask too many questions because it'll all make sense in the end...

Does anybody actually like Vamp? I feel like he's generally hated or at least he's not really anybody's favorite. I'm sure someone loves him. I sure don't! He's strange, which I'm fine with but he's a little too strange, and his whole arc is uninteresting to me. I can't really hold it against him too much, his comrades weren't very entertaining either. At least Vamp put up a good fight, he's got some decent tricks, his dance moves are admittedly pretty slick. Credit where it is due, and here's where that credit ends.

Fuck Vamp. He'd probably like it though.
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AquaArcane posted...

Although he squanders some of that by also using rocket launching... tentacles.

Squander is like the opposite word I'd use
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I'd probably find it more on the cool side if I played the game today. Haven't actually gotten to the fight with Solidus in several years now so my memory is fuzzy. I just remember not liking the tentacles at the time.

Think I'd appreciate his Doc Ock cosplay more now.
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13. Harrier

This is one of my favorite examples of the Stinger Trend. You're facing down a fucking jet! It's exhilarating as all hell! Before this point it was just regular sneaking around and firing tiny little bullets at folks. What the crap are bullets gonna do, give me a damn missile to throw at some bastards.

Introduce the Stinger, aww yeah. It's trending on... social media..... fuck I didn't think this joke through. Fire the stupid missiles at the fast plane and have fun, dammit.

Sure you could argue that there are bigger machines, but they can't fly. You really gotta plan your stingers with this one because Harry is just too damn fast. Obvioulsy, he's a jet.

Still has more personality than Fortune.
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12. The Fear

The thing I truly admire about this fight is the variety. All of the bosses in this game, every section in between, they all have several different ways to achieve your objective. We all know that, praise MGS3. This fight in particular really showcases just how many different ways there really are.

He's camouflaged, so the apparent solution is to use your heat vision (not the eye lasers kind, the seeing heatwaves kind unfortunately). That works out well, you can keep that on the whole match provided you have the battery and you'll never lose him. Fire away with your weapon of choice.

Or if you actually wanna have fun you can fuck with him instead. There are a few entertaining methods. Use that handy fake death pill to lure him into one of the traps in the woods. Punch him in the face. All sorts of options!

Want to waste his stamina but don't feel like pelting him with itty bitty darts? Well then let me tell you about my favorite way of dealing with this creep. Capture a poisonous frog and toss it down on the ground for him. He'll eventually get famished and decide, like a fucking idiot, to go directly for the easy meal.

As you may have guessed, the result is his stomach exploding out through his mouth and then shortly thereafter his entire body explodes because that's pretty much what it feels like when you have food poisoning.

Feeeeeeaaarrr
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It's cool that there are a bunch of ways to fight The Fear, but he's probably the least interesting boss from a visual and character perspective in the game. At least The Pain is hilarious.
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11. Sahelanthropus

I'm not even gonna talk about how silly it is something this advanced existed in a time before something comparatively archaic as REX did. I guess we're just supposed to pretend it's the opposite.

Honestly I just go the extra mile and pretend MGSV is an alternate timeline. Multiverse theory improves many continuity mishaps in various media.

Anyway, the fight, I love it. I don't think it has anything to do with the giant beast of a machine itself though, more likely it's just that I love playing this game so much that it doesn't really matter what I'm doing in it. Being Venom Snake is just such a thrill in every sense for me. The control, it's so smooth.

I do generally prefer to be stealthy, as that's what draws me to this series in the first place. However, as I may have already hinted at several times now, I do relish in the occasional blowing shit up with a lot of rockets. This is the ultimate evolution of the Stinger Trend, because it says fuck the stinger. Sure you could use one measly guided missile on this thing with the sweet honey bee, but why fire one when you can fire like fuckin 20 of 'em all at once.

Probably won't have access to that on the first playthrough, but you still have plenty of options including regular rockets, grenades, tanks and all kinds of other shit. For me though, I had more fun decimating this colossal bitch on repeat battles because of my, uh, significant increase in firepower.

Now please allow me a moment to talk about this game at a bit more length with a nice hearty
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Honorable Mention: Mission 43 (Quarantine Zone)

I know this isn't a boss but I'm going off the rails here solely because I just really want to talk about this game. Humor me for a minute.

This mission, absolutely, destroyed me. More than any boss battle or challenge I've ever faced in any game, nothing has ever come close to making me feel exactly what the character is experiencing. I tend to play MGS non-lethally for the most part, although I took a lot more liberties in this game. Even so, I showed way more mercy on the battlefield than I did bloodlust. So I obviously wouldn't want to kill my own men.

That's what this mission forces you to do though! Once you realize there is no cure for your infected soldiers, you have to go on a full on killing spree. No tranq rounds for this situation, no putting them to sleep and whisking them away through a wormhole to be healed in the sickbay. Nope. Bullet to the head. Only solution you have. All the while your iDroid's lifeless voice constantly reminding you of a staff member dying.

Naturally I tried to turn my brain off for this at first and just carry out the mission, because at the end of the day I still know it's virtual. It's fake. These people aren't actually real.

They are though. These are people Snake recruited himself, they work for Snake on Mother Base. They look at their Boss with reverence, they salute him with respect every chance they get, they even voice their gratitude after you've slammed their face into the god damn wall. These people are friends, they're loyal to Snake. They're loyal to you.

And you have to kill them.

The first few are easy. Then they start begging, and the realization starts to sink in.

Then they start to realize the truth as well, and they stop begging. They accept their fate and you think this should make it easier.

Until you turn the fucking corner and find five of them standing, saluting, respecting whatever Big Boss, whatever you, decide to do. And it was at that point that I literally had to pause the game because I was so distraught. That has never happened. There has never been a game that made me legitimately feel every thought and emotion going on in the character I was controlling. I felt nothing but dread, and a hopeless wish to find a different solution all while knowing there was none. I was forced to fire a bullet, one by one, into the heads of these fellow soldiers. And they died with the utmost respect for me.

"The feels" could not even begin to describe the effect this mission had.

And I'm sorry for rambling on about something that's not even a boss fight. I just seriously wanted to talk about the Quarantine Zone, and I hope I'm not alone in my admiration for it.
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I also want to add that it was particularly embarrassing, in the quarantine, when I'd miss a headshot and I had to be like "oh shit sorry dude I'll get you this time"
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10. REX vs RAY

We kick off the top 10 with a heavyweight champion knockout brawl... I don't watch wrestling. I would though, if it involved 50 foot mechs. Hmm, sounds like one of those japanese animes.

If the choice was up to me, I would be piloting RAY. I understand that defeats the theme of this battle but if I can let go of my silly emotions, then I should get to test drive a giant aquatic robot.

To be fair, I wouldn't have stuck around for the fight in that case. I would have dove straight into the water and gone off on an undersea adventure.
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REX vs RAY is absolutely fucking stupid and dumb and ridiculous and I love it.

Kind of sums up MGS4 in general
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9. Laughing Octopus

This bitch.

I'm sorry, that was uncalled for. She's just misunderstood, I get it. Me too, girl. Hang in there, it'll get better. Because life won't be bothering you much longer!

Quick question, has anyone other than lust-eyes Otacon ever actually fallen for the Naomi face trick? Like, girl you still have the hideous tentacles and bullet holes from all the times you stood in my way.

My biggest praise for Octopus is how she cleverly uses the environment around her, combined with her perfect camouflage. It really flips the tables and makes this the one fight without a sniper rifle where you have to find your opponent. It's a unique encounter at least.
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8. Liquid Ocelot

This would probably be higher if I was counting the emotions involved, but I only care about the fight itself, and this one is groovy as fuck. The classic themes mixed with the newer ones, no guns or weapons of any sort, fisticuffs only, Final Destination.

Honestly it's not easy to think about this fight without feelings getting in the way. It's just so good, everything that's led up to this point and it's paid off in such a grand and meaningful way. We've heard this all before. We all love this fight.

It's real cool to me how much CQC evolved throughout the series. From a simple punch, punch, kick or choke-out to full on grapples and throws, and slamming people the fuck down. That's my signature move.
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The final Liquid Ocelot fight is one of the top gaming moments of all-time for me.

"You're pretty good..."
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Metal Gear Solid really should have ended with 4.
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MGS definitely shoulda ended with 4. Tired of the "Big Boss the real main character" crap that they pulled. It was fine for 1 or 2 games tops
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I mean it kind of does. I still feel like they made it V and not 5 for a reason.
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Right, I just pretend it's a different continuity. The gameplay is just too damn good though, so I'm glad it exists.

FOX engine so smooth
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See Ulti gets it
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MGSV's plot being bad does matter. It's why I'll never play the game again no matter how smooth the gameplay is.

Also Liquid Ocelot is the best boss fight in the series and one of the best in any game.
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You could just skip the cutscenes y'know

Plus I didn't hate the story of it, once again, multiverse theory. Allows me to enjoy the game on its own and not as part of a series. So even the stupid shit had some charm to me since I didn't consider it canon.
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AquaArcane posted...

You could just skip the cutscenes

No. I play MGS for the story, too. If the story isn't worth my time, I won't be replaying it.
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Eh, that's fair. I've always been gameplay over story, so even though I love the story of 1-4, it's considered a bonus to me. I probably wouldn't watch through any of them ever again except maybe 3.
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kevwaffles posted...

I mean it kind of does. I still feel like they made it V and not 5 for a reason.

It absolutely is V and not 5. That's the intention of the title, it's part of the mislead. If V is 5 then Peace Walker is the actual 5, making MGSV MGS6 >_>

PO, PW and V form their own separate series/trilogy. Like Resident Evil whatever Chronicles. Or how the Ezio sequels aren't Assassin's Creed 3 and 4.
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Also i didnt hate MGSV's plot, there just wasn't very much of it. Like I needed more Skull Face so he could be a proper bad guy rather than him showing up, like, twice
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Gotta love MGS. I also loved MGSV, and it's story I found well done, though minimalist and different from what we're used to in the series.

For games that may end up taking two years to beat, Breath of the Wild may be one of those for me. Played a zillion hours the first few weeks it was out, have done maybe half of it, haven't played it in six months or something. But I'll beat it for sure. Random note, to me BoTW and FF XV both felt a bit like the MGSV's of their series, where recent Western open world style of gameplay where you go up against a bunch of similar forts etc, like it was some of the more notable examples of old classic franchises trying those things out. And I dig all of those.

MGS, I agree it has the best boss fights of any series, and I think the cardboard box is the best piece of equipment ever.
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What MGS does better than literally any other series and isn't spoken about enough is the way it handled difficulty, particularly MGS2. The way the game changes in subtle ways at each difficulty level is pretty amazing - it's not just "You take more damage/enemies are harder to kill" but stuff like trap placement, guard routes, guard intelligence, where to find the bombs, how many bombs Fatman lays down...loads of cool stuff. Oh and the dog tags. It's excellent.
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Oh good I'm not the only one that enjoyed MGSV's story for what it was. How did you guys feel about the quarantine mission?
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Easily the best part of the game. Nothing else really comes close.
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7. Volgin

Now everybody calm the eff down, okay jeez. No this bastard is not a better boss than Liquid Ocelot, buuuut once again, challenge and such.

I had a lot of trouble with him back in the 60s. Those were tense times. I'm a fella who likes to hide, Volgin wouldn't allow me to use my usual tactics. He could always see me, and I didn't have a great grasp on CQC and his electric field made that too risky anyway. Laying on the floor worked for a minute, then eventually he'd wise up and stomp on my face or however he do.

Even after I got miles better at the game, he was still intimidating to me. That's the secret with a lot of these bosses now that I think about it. Intimidation is powerful. Even after I master a game, those memories of cowering in fear on my first (and second and third and so on) attempt still skews my view a little.

Besides, Volgin is a damn good antagonist. He's a fucking asshole and I hate him, and that's why I love him.
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LeonhartFour posted...

Easily the best part of the game. Nothing else really comes close.

Yes! Crazy intense.
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