Nintendo's Kirby series debuted in the early 90s. In the three decades since then, the series has featured over a dozen mainline installments as well as a multitude of spin-offs. Among these games are some of the most epic battles in 2D platforming history.
Many of these Kirby bosses are story-driven. In addition to being powerful menaces, simply hitting the Start button will reveal lore attributed to them. Readers should keep in mind though that this will only focus on the mainline platforming series and Canvas Curse.
Updated April 11, 2022, by Tom Bowen: Having originally been designed to be accessible to everybody, the Kirby games aren't really known for their depth or difficulty. That's not to say that neither are present throughout the franchise, however, with some boss fights requiring players to memorize attack patterns and perfect counter timings. This is once again the case in Kirby and the Forgotten Land, which many consider to be the best Kirby game in recent memory, if not of all time. Its main antagonist also provides one of the best final boss fights in the Kirby franchise, which is high praise indeed given the strength of some of its predecessors.
14 Kirby's Dream Land - King Dedede
The big bad of the first game stole all of the fruit from Dream Land. Kirby engages him in a boxing ring, where he flew around and attempted to slam Kirby. It was certainly a spectacle, but left a little to be desired.
While Kirby and Dedede became allies after, Dedede would still fight Kirby with similar abilities. Also, it's worth noting that Kirby Super Star would retell the events of Dream Land as well as the beginning of their rivalry at the end.
13 Kirby: Squeak Squad - Dark Nebula
Kirby spends the entire entirety of Kirby: Squeak Squad chasing perceived villains over a slice of stolen cake. The treasure chest lifted from King Dedede and Meta-Knight housed the powerful Dark Nebula being.
Possessing the main antagonist Daroach, Kirby would eventually free him and engage the star-shaped creature in a final battle for Dream Land. It was an epic battle, but far from the best that the pink puffball has been involved in over the years.
12 Kirby and the Amazing Mirror - Dark Mind
This massive eyeball creature was behind the mirror dimension and Dark Meta-Knight in Kirby and the Amazing Mirror. While this floating eyeball creature does not possess any storyline relation to Dark Matter, the resemblance might be a reference.
Dark Meta-Knight would later reappear as a boss in Kirby Triple Deluxe. As for Dark Mind, players are yet to see him since, though many players still have fond memories of Kirby's fight with him all those years ago.
11 Kirby Canvas Curse - Drawcia
The only non-traditional Kirby platformer in this list, Kirby Canvas Curse sees Kirby save his world from the sorceress, Drawcia. This demented witch would transform into a sphere-shaped blob with an evil scream and a twisted theme.
While Drawcia did not appear afterward, her sister, Paintra, appeared as one of the bosses in Triple Deluxe. Furthermore, another of her family members, Claycia, appeared during the events of Rainbow Curse.
10 Kirby's Dream Land 2 - Dark Matter
The beginning of the Dark Matter in the Kirby series, this big, floating eyeball began as a flying swordsman. Despite the limitations of the hardware, its design was incredibly distinctive and helped to give the fight an ominous feel.
In one of the hardest fights in the series, Kirby had to fight back with projectiles while staying away from the creature at all costs. Dark Matter would later appear as a cameo fight in Kirby: Planet Robobot.
9 Kirby's Adventure - Nightmare Wizard
When Kirby finally confronts Dedede, he learns that the latter tried to protect everyone from the Nightmare within the Fountain of Dreams. It's a nice twist, which helped to further strengthen the relationship between the two long-time enemies.
The Nightmare Wizard flies around space to attack Kirby with projectiles. When they fight on the ground, this shades-wearing magician teleports around the screen firing stars at Kirby. Nightmare Wizard would later return in Super Kirby Clash.
8 Kirby's Dream Land 3 - Zero
The progenitor of Dark Matter, this massive, white floating eyeball possessed King Dedede during Kirby's Dream Land 3. When Kirby reduces his first form's life to zero, the bloody red eyeball casts off its shell in a disturbing sequence.
Both visually and thematically, the fight with Zero remains one of the most memorable in the Kirby series to date. Granted, Kirby's Dream Land 3 hasn't aged all that well, but the impact and legacy of Zero can still be felt in the series today.
7 Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards - Zero-Two
Seeking payback after being defeated in Kirby's Dream Land 3, Zero evolved into an angelic form. Teamed up with Ribbon, Kirby would fly up against Zero within the Dark Star and engage him once more.
Zero-Two now bled with every strike, making the whole fight feel much more epic, not to mention a lot more high-stakes. Since the defeat of Zero-Two, Dark Matter has scarcely appeared in the series, though it remains an important part of Kirby history.
6 Kirby Super Star/Ultra - Marx
This little jester fiend tricked Kirby into using Nova in order to become powerful and take over Dream Land. He would appear at the end of the Arena as well in what would ultimately be one of the more memorable fights in Kirby Super Star.
In Super Star Ultra, the dead Marx would be revived by Nova, being transformed into the zombified Marx Soul. This much harder boss fight included an ear-piercing, blood-curdling scream of death at the end of the fight.
5 Kirby Triple Deluxe - Sectonia
This queen of bugs from Triple Deluxe believes only in beauty and self-gratification. Sending her minion, Taranza, to take over Dream Land, Kirby ends up chasing them to her hive and engages her in combat. The resulting battle really is top-notch.
Sectonia willingly gave up everything just for the world to acknowledge her beauty. In that sense, she's very much a tragic villain, though players shouldn't allow that to distract them from how deadly she really is.
4 Kirby: Star Allies - Void
At first, Star Allies revolves around a cult attempting to summon a god. When Void comes to fight Kirby, its facial features resemble both Kirby and Zero, making it feel a little like a grudge match.
Perhaps the most surprising thing of all is that the lore confirms that Void is both the beginning of a Kirby or Dark Matter. It also showcases that the influence on its heart will determine what it becomes, suggesting that Kirby could very easily have been a force of evil rather than a force of good.
3 Kirby's Return to Dream Land - Magolor
Magolor is a special case for not being the sudden appearance of a villain. Similarly to Marx, he used Kirby to gain the power of a crown before setting off to destroy Dream Land once and for all.
Following Super Star Ultra, Magolor would begin the tradition of having a "Soul" form in the True Arena mode. Despite his villainous beginnings, Magolor later reappeared as a friend of Kirby and even a salesman in Super Kirby Clash.
2 Kirby and the Forgotten Land - Fecto Elfilis
There's a strong argument for Kirby and the Forgotten Land being the best Kirby game of all time. Sure, it's not without its problems, but it really is a whole lot of fun and features some amazing gameplay moments. The story is pretty good too thanks in large to the threat posed by Forgotten Land's final boss, Fecto Elfilis.
Like the rest of the game, the fight with Fecto Elfilis is visually stunning and requires a fair amount of skill to overcome. Of course, it's no Dark Souls or anything, but, for a Kirby game (which are renowned for their simplicity), it manages to be one of the more challenging boss fights in the history of the Kirby franchise, not to mention one of the most enjoyable.
1 Kirby Planet Robobot - Star Dream OS
Planet Robobot features perhaps the most tragic story of them all. Main antagonist, Haltmann, wanted to take over Dream Land and summon Star Dream. Originally known as Nova in Super Star, the creature functioned the same way. He did so in order to bring back his daughter, Susie.
This epic battle included both a shoot 'em up segment in space as well as a boss fight similar to the Nova battle in Super Star. This gargantuan enemy was larger than the planet Pop Star and required the Robobot-powered Halberd to defeat. However, Star Dream gained sentience, took over Haltmann's mind, and forced Kirby to kill them both.