Sephiroth is one of the most revered villains in not just Final Fantasy, but all of video games. He is arguable right up there with Bowser. This is because he was not only a menace in his main game, but he continued to be a thorn in the side of players in spinoffs and guest spots.
There are eight games that let players fight Sephiroth in a boss-like fashion. Well, more than eight actually but some of these entries will be combined. For example, even though Sephiroth has two forms in Final Fantasy VII, that entry will count as one. These eight entries then are ranked by a game by game basis.
8 The Mobile Encounters
These deserve a mention, but also one at the bottom of the rankings. Sephiroth has appeared in the numerous free to play Final Fantasy mobile spinoffs including Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia, Final Fantasy Record Keeper, and Mobius Final Fantasy. How difficult his fights are really depend on how much money one sinks into these types of pay to win RPGs. Money and a lot of time can help.
7 Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring
Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring is a PS1 fighter/wrestling game. Among the original cast, Square also lent out characters from Final Fantasy VII including Cloud, Sephiroth, Tifa, and others. This might be the weirdest combat scenario Sephiroth has ever been placed in as he handles more like a grappler than a magical swordsman. Since he is just a character and not a boss, this matchup is also pretty low on the list.
6 Dissidia Final Fantasy
Not counting the aforementioned mobile spinoff, there have been three main entries in the Dissidia franchise. That too could be argued down to one as the sequel to the first was more like an enhanced re-release. Anyway the point is like Ehrgeiz, Sephiroth is a fighter.
Unlike that game though he is complete with all of his magical trappings. Because his various encounters in the games can range in levels, placing him in this list was tricky. He is leagues beyond the last two entries, but as this is a fighting RPG, he is also well-balanced next to the other fighters. This means he is mostly on par with everyone else.
5 Final Fantasy VII
Smack dab in the middle of this list is Sephiroth’s premiere to what one could an actual boss fight. In the final round of the game he has three forms. With Bizarro-Sephiroth the party splits off into three groups to fight his various sides, which was a cool idea for a boss fight.
After that he turns into Safer-Sephiroth with the ever iconic “One-Winged Angel” playing in the background. After that Cloud has a one on one match with his “normal” body, which doesn’t really count. The two main forms are tricky depending on the gear and Materia one has. If the player possesses Knights of the Round, well, both of these encounters will be a cinch.
4 Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core
Next up is the PSP prequel, Crisis Core, starring Zack. What’s great about this game, besides Zack’s beaming personality, is that it shines a lot more light on Shinra and the SOLDIER program. This includes getting to know Sephiroth as the hero he is fabled to be in the original game.
That’s why his turn for his first boss fight is hard in an emotional sense. As this isn’t a turn-based RPG, the actual difficulty of the boss fight is raised in that player skill had to evolve from the original. This first version, along with the optional duplicate in Experiment No. 124, are tricky, demanding of good reflexes, but certainly far from impossible.
3 Kingdom Hearts II
Crisis Core came after both main Kingdom Hearts games. Sephiroth is an optional boss in both, of course both action oriented as well, and remain some of the hardest fights in both Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy.
That’s probably why Crisis Core’s encounters were turned down. That and they were main missions whereas optional content us usually given a nitro boost in difficulty no matter what game one is playing, this fight is tough, but compared to the first, it is nothing.
2 Final Fantasy VII Remake
Before this list dives into the hinted at number one slot, the remake deserves to be at the number two spot. These Sephiroth fights include fighting with the man himself as the actual last boss to fighting his gigantic, shadow forms as well.
It is a gauntlet of a boss rush with plenty of over the top, anime-like antics to get the blood pumping. If chopping through a building does not sound exciting then what does? On Easy and even Normal, the final encounter can make those palms sweat. The real challenge though is on hard and boy is it ever.
1 Kingdom Hearts
There is not a fight harder than Sephiroth’s appearance in the Olympus Coliseum in the original Kingdom Hearts. Don’t let Lance Bass, yes that was his original voice actor, make one lose their guard. This is Sephiroth at his strongest.
The trickiest thing about this fight is his speed and Sora’s inability to properly heal himself if cornered with a particular set up barrages. Master the dodging and prepare for a knuckle biting encounter because completing this match on any difficulty will be an accomplishment.