Plenty of video games have boss fights, but creating a truly great boss battle is easier said than done. So many details go into making a fight memorable, from the locations of the fights to the design of the boss to the music that plays during the big battle. One of the most important elements is how a boss is beaten. Some enemies can be taken down with simple attacks and have a larger health bar, but others require players to execute more complex maneuvers.
In the 80s and 90s, games had more limitations, but that meant boss fights were more creative. A masterclass example of this can be found in 1996’s Kirby Super Star, a game that delivers the most unexpectedly complex boss battle in video game history.
Kirby Super Star Pushed Players to the Limit With Milky Way Wishes
Kirby Super Star is one of the best later SNES games, and that’s partially thanks to its unique premise. Instead of delivering a standalone game, it’s divided into eight games that span a range of genres. One game, Spring Breeze, is essentially a remake of Kirby’s Dream Land for Game Boy, while The Great Cave Offensive plays like a Metroidvania. The longest of these games is Milky Way Wishes, a surprisingly intense game that will test players’ skills in more ways than one.
In Milky Way Wishes, Kirby journeys into space after a jester named Marx asks him to stop a battle between the sun and the moon. The gameplay sees him traveling to different planets and fighting bosses from other Kirby Super Star games, but there’s a twist. Kirby can no longer copy abilities by inhaling enemies and needs to collect stars that will grant him the skills he needs to get through the game’s increasingly challenging levels.
Once Kirby plays through all seven planets and collects all of the stars, he can summon the giant comet Nova and make a wish. Kirby plans to wish for the help he needs to end the fight between the moon and sun, but the moment Nova appears, he’s stopped by a challenger who wants to make a wish of his own.
Marx Is the Most Epic Boss in All of Kirby’s History
Just before Kirby can make his wish, he’s knocked out of the sky by Marx, who reveals that he tricked the sun and the moon into fighting so that he could get Kirby to collect stars on his behalf. Marx proceeds to wish to rule over Planet Popstar, a wish that Nova agrees to grant. Nova begins to head towards Popstar, but he’s stopped by the sun and the moon.
With the help of these entities, Kirby is able to damage Nova’s core. From there, he travels to a nearby planet to confront Marx and put a stop to his plans. While Marx initially appears to be a cute and tiny jester, he’s much tougher than he looks and has all kinds of powerful moves at his disposal.
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During the boss fight, Marx can split apart and create a black hole, and even plant poisonous vines that immediately grow and harm Kirby. It’s an uphill battle for the pink puffball, and Kirby will have to use all of the copy abilities he’s gained to defeat Marx. Once Kirby beats Marx, the rogue jester flies into Nova, which destroys both him and the comet. After this intense battle, Kirby is shown sleeping, but it’s not clear if he dreamed the whole thing or is just exhausted from fighting.
The Kirby and Marx fight has a ton of soul, and it genuinely catches players off guard, which is why it’s remembered fondly to this day. Players have to memorize how each copy ability functions to beat Marx, so it’s a battle that really tests the muscle memory of players. It helps that the fight is accompanied by incredibly intense music from composer Jun Ishikawa.
The Marx Boss Battle Has Stood the Test of Time
29 years later, the fight between Kirby and Marx is still considered to be one of the best boss battles in the entire Kirby franchise. Not only was this fight included in 2008’s Kirby Super Star Ultra, an enhanced remake of the original game, but the developers added a new layer to it. This time around, the last boss battle in the game mode The True Arena, has Kirby go up against a more powerful version of Marx called Marx Soul.
There were plenty of incredible boss fights on the SNES, from the battle against Kefka in Final Fantasy VI to the fights with Ridley and Mother Brain in Super Metroid, but Kirby Super Star‘s Marx battle can go toe to toe with all of them. It’s the perfect mixture of simplicity and complexity, and figuring out Marx’s weak spots is incredibly satisfying. With Marx appearing in Kirby Air Riders, it’s clear that this fight will never be forgotten, and it deserves to be rememberes of one of the greatest boss battles of all time.