Summary
TheGod of Warfranchise is beloved for a number of reasons, like its dynamic combat that forever changed the hack & slash genre, or its legendary storyline about revenge and redemption. That said, there’s no denying thatits many epic boss fights are one of the series’ biggest selling points.
Over the course of eight games, Kratos has managed to take down many gigantic bosses. Whether they are mythological beasts or actual gods, these encounters are always impressive spectacles that push Sony’s hardware to its limits. While there are obviously a lot of big bosses inGod of War, the following 10 are the absolute largest ones yet.
At first, it seemed like 2018’sGod of Warwas seeking to scale back the spectacle of its bosses, and that Kratos’ and Atreus’ new journey was going to be more subdued. However, this new tone was completely changed when the duo was suddenly attacked byHraezlyr.
With its sheer strength and massive size, this dragon could break through a mountain’s bedrok with ease. As a result, Hraezlyr ended up starring in one of the most epic and memorable boss battles inGod of War, not to mentionthat it was the biggest creatures that Kratos encountered in his first Norse adventure.
The giant soulless wolf known asGarmwas one of the most dangerous threats that Kratos and Atreus had to deal with inGod of War: Ragnarök. He’s huge, strong and, worst of all, he has the ability to create tears that allow him to travel between realms.
When Kratos fought Garm, it was immediately evident how huge this beast actually was, and his powers made the battle all the more difficult for the former Greek god. However, Atreus ultimately found a way to transfer Fenrir’s soul into the giant wolf, which completely tamed him and turned him into a friendly pup.After this unprecedented event, Garm/Fenrir became one of Atreus’ biggest allies.
TheKrakenis one of the most iconic creatures in Greek mythology, so it was inevitably going to appear in aGod of Wargame, and it happened as early as the second installment. This ferocious aquatic monster suddenly appeared before Kratos and almost managed to squeeze him to death with her giant tentacles.
After freeing himself from the Kraken’s grasp, Kratos engages in battle against the creature. He even managed to climb up her gigantic tentacles and sever them one by one. He eventually finished her off by activating the mechanism of the bridge she was standing in front of, in a satisfying moment that proves how incredibly huge the Kraken ultimately was.
Kratos is no stranger to taking down immense aquatic monsters like the Kraken, the Hydra, or Scylla, but one of the more forgotten xamplese isCharybdisfromGod of War: Acension. This creature is not too different from its brethren, as it’s a monstrous mass of teeth, tentacles, and sheer strength.
Charybdis attacks Kratos on several occasions during his journey across the Island of Deios, until it is eventually revealed that this is actually the monstrous form ofAlecto,one of the three Furies and the main antagonist ofAscension. As a result of this revelation, Charybdis becomes the final boss of the game, in a glorious battle that was made possible thanks to the impressive technology of the PlayStation 3.
6Colossus Of Rhodes
A Real-Life Giant Statue That Came To Life
At the beginning ofGod of War 2,Kratos is constantly attacked throughout the first level by theColossus of Rhodes, an enormous golden statue of Helios that was brought to life by Zeus. The God of War had to fight the Colossus many times, dealing with its huge body parts and almost impenetrable gold skin with the help of the environment.
Kratos could only damage the statue after absorbing the power of the Sword of Olympus, which proves how resilient and powerful it truly was. But that wasn’t enough. He also needed to destroy it from the inside, and its interior was as big as a building and basically functioned as a mini-level on its own. The eventual destruction of the Colossus of Rhodes was as satisfying as it was epic.
Before the Colossus of Rhodes,there was theHydra KingfromGod of War, the first boss that players ever had to face in this franchise. This terrifying aquatic beast attacked the ship that Kratos was traveling on and tried to viciously attack the Ghost of Sparta on numerous occasions.
Thanks to its overwhelming number of heads and its incredible size, the Hydra King managed to completely destroy the ship. While every single one of its heads was large, the main one was absolutely massive, which was especially impressive for the PlayStation 2. Kratos eventually managed to finish the Hydra King by impaling it onto the ship’s main mast, properly setting the tone for the rest of the franchise in the process.
4Aegaeon The Hecatonchires
His Hand On Its Own Is Already A Huge Monster
At first glance, the first boss ofGod of War: Ascension,Aegaeon, seems to be quite big, but nothing too special when compared to other creatures of similar size. However, as Kratos travels across the Prison of the Damned, players slowly find out that the beast they have been fighting was merely the hand of an even bigger being.
Aegaeon the Hecatonchires was turned into a living prison by the three Furies as a form of punishment, and then Megaera used her parasites to control and mutate him, resulting in this immense boss. The ensuing battle between Kratos and the giant is one of the most shocking and epic in the entire franchise, since the Ghost of Sparta looks so small in comparison.
Out of every huge and multi-faced boss that Kratos encounters at the beginning of his adventures, there’s no denying thatPoseidonand hisHippocampiare the largest ones yet. This is because he faces them at the start ofGod of War 3, the long-awaited third entry in the franchise and the first game in the series to be developed exclusively for the PlayStation 3.
Kratos’ third adventure immediately kicks off with this epic battle against the God of the Seas, who not only turns into this massive water form, but is also assisted by the Hippocampi, huge mythological creatures with tentacles and claws. If all that wasn’t enough, most of the fight takes place atop of Gaia, the primordial Goddess of the Earth. The massive scale of this fight is more ambitious than anything players had experienced in previous installments.
2Ares
The God Of War Was An Intimidating And Destructive Giant
Kratos spends the entirety ofGod of Warwith one goal in mind:To take revenge onAres. He eventually managed to face him thanks to the power of Pandora’s Box, which turned him into a massive giant that could go toe-to-toe against the original God of War. However, he also needed to wield the Blade of the Gods to even stand a chance.
Ares is so massive that he could easily obliterate entire cities with just one attack, and his fight with Kratos shows off how destructive and massive his terrestrial form was. What’s especially interesting is thatGod of War 2features another version of this intense encounter from another angle, when Kratos goes back in time with Atropos. This moment perfectly displays how incredibly huge Ares and Kratos were during their final clash.
1Cronos
A Level In One Game Became A Massive Boss In Another
The leader of the Titans,Cronos, was originally featured in the firstGod of Waras the backdrop for Pandora’s Temple, since he was carrying the structure on his back as a form of punishment. This was quite an impressive technological achievement for the time, and an example of how this entire game pushed the PlayStation 2 to its limits.
Everything changed inGod of War 3, whenplayers actually got to fight against Cronos in what is undoubtedly the most epicand jaw-dropping battle in the entire franchise. Kratos looks like an ant in comparison to the titan, especially when Cronos tries to crush him between his two fingers. This difference in size turned out to be a major advantage for Kratos, as he climbed up the titan’s large body and slowly dealt damage to his different limbs, which included violently tearing off his fingernails. This is a spectacular fight, and no other boss in the series has ever managed to rival Cronos’ massive size.
