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Version-Exclusive Final Boss - TV Tropes

  • ️Sat Aug 03 2024

Version-Exclusive Final Boss (trope)

Video Games, much like most mediums need to move with the times or be consigned to the dustbin of history. Some games may be ported over with minimal changes or may have a few bells and whistles added to it, some may rebuild the game from the ground up or give it a fresh coat of paint. For some games, when the Updated Re-release rolls around, they may do more than simply add in a few quality of life features, cosmetic changes, extra challenging secret areas, soul crushing hidden challengers or a gruelling gauntlet of past foes to test your combat skills as incentives for older fans of the original games to try out the new version of their old favourites.

Other games may even go as far as to change up the Final Boss and/or True Final Boss fights. This tends to go two ways: The character is the same, but they fight differently depending on the game, or they're replaced by a different character entirely. In the latter case, they may gain or lose phases or have their entire fight reworked from the ground up. In the latter case, the original Final Boss and/or True Final Boss may get replaced, demoted to Pre-Final Boss or promoted to Superboss status, The Unfought may end up getting their own fight, The Man Behind the Man gets to make their grand debut as a spectacular True Final Boss, or your previous foes may come back swinging in a Boss Rush. Regardless of the reasons, the Final Boss and/or True Final Boss tend to be in one or more of the following categories:

  • Platform Exclusive Type: The Final Boss and/or True Final Boss tends to differ depending on which platform you play the game on (e.g Nintendo DS or Nintendo Wii), in some cases due to being a Reformulated Game, a Video Game Remake, copyright restrictions etc.
  • Region-Exclusive Type: This version of the Final Boss and/or True Final Boss may differ based on the national region the game was released in. Depending on the boss, this can either be considered a Regional Bonus or a Bad Export for You, though Difficulty by Region is in effect regardless.
  • Technical-Exclusive Type: Tends to appear in a Reformulated Game either due to difference in developer teams or due to technical limitations of the platform the game is available for. This one tends to overlap with Platform Exclusive Type due to how a Reformulated Game is often designed to compensate for limitations of weaker hardware.
  • Update Exclusive Type: These ones tend to be added as content updates or ports and remakes of an older game either as a means of making the fight more unique, adding aspects that were originally intended for the battle, fixing any problems that fans had with the original fights or simply to give the player a new challenge etc.
  • Variant Exclusive Type: Games that are built around One Game for the Price of Two may have their own unique final boss to further differentiate each version of the game from the others.

Due to this trope's inherent nature, all spoilers will be unmarked. You have been warned. Furthermore, this only applies to official games. Fan-made remakes or mods will not be counted as their own entries, though if an individual entry for an official game warrants it, they may be acknowledged in context notes; fan-games are allowed because they're aren't a remake of an official game and are considered their own game.

Additionally, minor changes such as music, design changes and/or a Palette Swap cannot apply on their own, though they can be part of the overall changes to the actual boss fight; for the sake of simplicity, final bosses exclusive to Another Side, Another Story modes or Downloadable Content, and not the main game will not be counted.

Compare: Difficulty by Region, Final Boss, One Game for the Price of Two, Reformulated Game, Regional Bonus, True Final Boss, Updated Re-release, , Version-Exclusive Boss and Version-Exclusive Content.

Contrast: Bad Export for You, No Final Boss for You, Route Boss, The Unfought

Examples:

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Action Adventure 

  • Each platform for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban has a different final boss. The source material (whether it's the book or the film) doesn't really have a straightforward final boss confrontation (Voldemort doesn't appear, and the actual villain Peter Pettigrew runs away when things get worse with Lupin's lycanthropy), and each platform came up with its own solution to that problem. In the console version, the final challenge is flying Buckbeak up to the tower where Sirius is imprisoned, so there is no final boss unless you count the swarm of Dementors that Harry had to fight off earlier. In the PC version, the final boss is one last confrontation with Peeves. However, this Peeves fight is bypassed if you've achieved 100% Completion prior to that point. In the GBA version, Draco Malfoy jumps Harry and Hermione at the end for no explained reason.

Action RPGs 

  • Dark Souls II: The Scholar of the First Sin adds in a True Final Boss fight with Aldia, Scholar of the First Sin. The fight itself is unlocked by speaking to Aldia in the final primal bonfire room, the first bonfire room in the Undead Crypt and the bonfire room in Dragon Shrine in that order. After completing those encounters, kill Vendrick then Nashandra, which unlocks the fight with Aldia.
  • Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories: Both versions of Marluxia have you fight him and after defeating him, a door is unlocked for the final battle. In the original GBA all boss fights are 2D side-scrolling fights and Marluxia's Specter is the final opponent you face in the GBA version. The Playstation 2 remake Kingdom Hearts: Re:Chain of Memories changed the entire game to be 3D like Kingdom Hearts and its sequel Kingdom Hearts II yet the basic setup for Marluxia's fight is the same. However the final battle adds a new final phase against Marluxia atop the Specter after the Specter itself is defeated, and if the player dies they have to start from the Specter fight again.
  • Mega Man Battle Network 6: Cybeast Gregar and Cybeast Falzar: The Cybeast you get to fight at the end of the game depends on what version you are playing. If you are playing the Gregar version, Gregar will be the Final Boss, while Falzar remains The Unfought (due to being absorbed by CircusMan). And vice versa if you are playing the Falzar version.
  • Monster Hunter: The majority of installments preceding the fifth generation have had expanded versions with new monsters fought in a higher-tier quest rank, including a new Final Boss. This applies for both the single-player campaigns and the multiplayer (whether online, local or both) ones:note 
    • Monster Hunter (2004): The original game has Monoblos as the single-player final boss and Fatalis as the multiplayer one. The expanded version Monster Hunter G has Azure Rathalos as the single-player final boss and Crimson Fatalis as the multiplayer one.
    • Monster Hunter Freedom 2: The original game has Shen Gaoren as the single-player final boss and Akantor as the multiplayer one. The expanded version Monster Hunter Freedom Unite has Akantor as the single-player final boss and Ukanlos as the multiplayer one.
    • Monster Hunter 3 (Tri): The original game has Ceadeus as the single-player final boss and Alatreon as the multiplayer one. The expanded version Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate has Ivory Lagiacrus as the single-player final boss and Dire Miralis as the multiplayer one.
    • Monster Hunter 4: The original game has Shagaru Magala as the single-player final boss and Dalamadur as the multiplayer one. The expanded version Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate has Rusted Kushala Daora as the single-player final boss and Gogmazios as the multiplayer one.
    • Monster Hunter Generations: The original game has Glavenus as the single-player final boss and Nakarkos as the multiplayer one. The expanded version Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate has Valstrax as the single-player final boss and Ahtal-Ka as the multiplayer one.
  • Tales of Phantasia: The original SNES version of the game has you fight Dhaos in his main form and then goes One-Winged Angel into a giant monster called Phaser Dhaos. Starting from the PSX version and onwards, the final boss fight adds a third final form called Plume Dhaos, an angelic form that heavily contrasts with his previous monstrous form.
  • Tokyo Xanadu: The final boss of all versions is Shiori, with the Nine-Tailed Fox serving as the True Final Boss of the original game. Tokyo Xanadu eX+ adds The Twilight Apostle, who appears in the After-Story, and is therefore the True Final Boss of the game as a whole.
  • Xenoblade Chronicles X: The original game's story was broken up into twelve chapters and culminated in a four-stage boss fight with Luxaar, the genocidal leader of the Ganglion. The Definitive Edition Updated Re Release extended the story with a thirteenth chapter and added a new final boss fight against the Ganglion's godlike founder, Void, who was The Ghost in the original version of the game.
  • Ys IV was never consistant with who its final boss is, Ys IV: Mask of the Sun is the only version of the game to have Eldeel as the final boss. Ys IV: The Dawn of Ys has Arem fulfill the role as Gruda killed Eldeel there due to the latter no longer being needed after the return former's dark master was set in stone. When Mask of the Sun was remade for the PlayStation 2 and mobile phones by Taito, Gruda has Adol face a Cores-and-Turrets Boss he sics on him. Ys: Memories of Celceta, the canonical version of the game has Gruda himself function as the last boss instead.

Beat 'em Up 

  • Double Dragon II: The Arcade version of the game has the Shadow Clone as the final boss. This is changed in the Famicom/NES and PC Engine CD versions so that the Shadow Clone is demoted to a Pre-Final Boss with the Mysterious Warrior being the final boss instead. The conditions to unlock the battle with Mysterious Warrior differ depending on the version of the game, though noticably the PC Engine CD version will have him escape after the first phase on the easiest difficulty settings and mock the player for their failure to defeat him unless they play on harder difficulties.
  • Splatterhouse: The final boss of the first game Hell Chaos is a rotting head that emerges from the ground and attacks with either its rotting hands or throwing rocks at you. The remake of this game Splatterhouse (2010) reduces Hell Chaos to a cameo and replaces it with The Overlord, a giant Body of Bodies that sends its minions to attack Jenny, and is eventually defeated through several quick time events.
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time: The arcade version of the game ends with you fighting Shredder who attacks with sword slashes, a kick and firing green arrows. The SNES port changes the fight so that Shredder changes into Super Shredder who moves faster, can fire ice arrows, jets of flame and a green energy ball that can One-Hit Kill the player. The Reshelled remake is more like the arcade version, who can slash, kick and fire arrows with the addition of being able to fire a dark energy ball.

Fighting Games 

  • Digimon Battle Spirit: The Japan-exclusive Battle Spirit 1.5 added a new True Final Boss that could be unlocked if you completed a playthrough without losing a single match on Normal difficulty or higher will cause Millenniummon to digivolve into ZeedMillenniummon for the final battle.
  • Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U: For the most part, most of the phases with Master Core are the same between both versions, ending with you finishing off its core. The Wii U version adds in a unique phase between its Master Shadow and Core forms called Master Fortress, which appears on Intensities 8.0 to 9.0. The Master Fortress requires you to go inside of the stage-sized creature and destroy all 4 of its mini-cores while avoiding its minions, its acidic walls and the biological acid on its floor.

First-Person Shooter 

  • Doom:
    • Doom: The original PC version concludes with a Final Boss fight against the Spider Mastermind in Episode 3. After the game's release in late 1993, it was ported to various systems, including four (namely Atari Jaguar, 3DO, Sega 32X and much later Game Boy Advance) which, due to technical reasons, lacked the boss characters except the first episode's Barons of Hell, and thus replaced the original final level with what was originally the second episode's Secret Level (Fortress of Mystery, now borrowing the name "Dis" from the removed final level); as a result, all those versions conclude with a Wolfpack Boss fight against four Barons of Hell and ten Cacodemons, and you don't even have to defeat any of them (doing so simply makes the process to reach the exit easier). In the PlayStation and Sega Saturn versions, the last level is Tower of Babel (originally the last level of the second episode), which makes the Cyberdemon the final boss instead. The only non-PC version that averted the trope back in those years was the SNES one as, while it features many big differences from the PC version due to technical reasons, it does have the Spider Mastermind which reprises her role as the final boss.
    • Doom II: In the original PC version as well as that of the Game Boy Advance, the Final Boss is the Icon of Sin. In the PlayStation and Sega Saturn versions (where the game is embedded as the second Story Arc of the product, following up the the first game's four episodes), the final boss is the Spider Mastermind (the Icon of Sin is absent altogether).
    • Final Doom: In the original PC version, the Icon of Sin reprises its Doom II role as the Final Boss for both campaigns (TNT Evilution and The Plutonia Experiment). The PlayStation version, which is a Reformulated Game that only features a small handful of levels from those two campaigns (though it also adds some maps from the Master Levels expansion of Doom II), the final level is one of the Plutonia maps (Onslaught, originally its 10th level), which adds a Cyberdemon. It doesn't guard the level's exit (it actually appears early on), but it's the strongest demon present in it.
    • Doom 64: Played with. The Final Boss in the Nintendo 64 is the Mother Demon. In the Updated Re-release released for several consoles as well as PC in early 2020, an extra episode called The Lost Levels was added, and its final boss appears to be the Mother Demon once again, but she's actually her twin sister (the Resurrector) who wants to kill Doomguy as revenge. She behaves (and is defeated) the exact same way otherwise.
  • Quake II: Expansion Packs and DLC notwithstanding, the usual Final Boss is the Makron, who has two forms, the beefy Jorg suit and its regular self. However, the Nintendo 64 version replaces it with a Boss Rush where Viper fights instead two empowered Tanks, and then two special Hornets (one after each Tank is destroyed) with different attacks than the PC and PSX version. A Winner Is You still applies, though.
  • The Final Boss in Quake III Arena is usually Xaero, a humanoid alien with a robotic implant and high accuracy. However, in the Playstation 2 version, Quake III: Revolution, the Final Boss is instead the Vadrigar, the Arena Lord himself and the actual announcer of all the III games.
  • REKKR: In the original version of the game, the last level of the fourth and final episode consists of a fight against two Skelly Bellies (the flesh-less version of the Former King boss from the second episode) assisted by many eyeball enemies (and the Skelly Bellies can also summon their own eyeball mooks); fittingly, the level is called Eyebrawl. A later version of the game replaces the original Episode 4 with another one called Sunken Land, whose final level presents a brand-new final boss, the Gardien.
  • Serious Sam 2: At the end of the final level in the PC version, all of the walls lower and the towering Mental Institution is revealed to have treads as it starts moving in an attempt to crush you on the other end of the map, forcing you to get in a hover bike to take it out. This final boss battle is completely absent in the Xbox port, so the game just ends right then and there.

MMORPG 

  • Dragon Quest X: The base version of the game has Nergel as its final boss, with each update adding an expansion to the overall plot, complete with new final boss, with the final bosses so far being: Maldragora the Worldbreaker (Version 2), Nadraga (Version 3), Kyronos (Version 4), Jagonuba (Version 5) and Jia Red Genos (Version 6).
  • Final Fantasy XIV had new final bosses added with every Expansion's finale: The now unplayable 1.0 version had Nael van Darnus, 2.0/A Realm Reborn has the Ultima Weapon & Lahabrea, Heavensward has King Thordann, Stormblood has Shinryu, Shadowbringers has Hades, Endwalker has the Endsinger, and Dawntrail has the Queen Eternal. All of them (minus Nael) are still in the game itself and are still mandatory to defeat if you want to progress through the expansions, however.

Platformer Games 

  • Batman: Return of the Joker: The final boss of Batman: Return of the Joker is always The Joker but the battle differs between versions. In the Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis versions, the Joker pilots a giant robot that resembles something out of Metal Gear. The Game Boy version has you fight The Joker mano a mano while avoiding a giant magnet. The Super Nintendo Entertainment System version has you fight a giant mechanical Joker head with The Joker inside it, and then a fight against The Joker piloting a large clown mecha.
  • Bionic Commando: The NES game had the player fight Master-D (aka Hitler) who is piloting the Albatross, and afterwards gets to blow up his head with a bazooka. The remake Bionic Commando Rearmed makes the Albatross into the final level and changes the final boss so that Master-D fights you in his helicopter instead, culminating in his head exploding just like in the original game.
  • Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse: Downplayed. Dracula's difficulty is different between JP and US versions of the game. In the US version, Dracula's teleportation is slower, and he reappears after his large flame pillar fades away; the JP version allows him to teleport while the large flame pillar is still on the field. During Dracula's second form, its skeletal heads block projectile attacks and cannot be defeated by Alucard in the US version, whereas this doesn't apply to the JP version. Dracula's final form can fire longer lasers in multiple directions in the US version whereas the JP version can only fire them at a downward angle.
  • Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter: The Wii and DS versions differ in a lot of ways, and that includes the final boss. The DS version starts out as a Hopeless Boss Fight against Wilfre's cloud throne before the fight begins proper. The Wii version instead has you fight a monster created from Circi's failed attempts to remember what her ex-boyfriend Wilfre looked like.
  • Kirby:
    • Kirby Super Star: The SNES version has Marx as the final boss due to him being the final opponent of The Arena, and therefore the final boss of the game overall. The Nintendo DS remake Kirby Super Star Ultra added in several new sub-games, one of which is The True Arena. Because of this, Marx's regular self is no longer the final boss of the entire game, with that position now being taken by Marx Soul, the True Final Boss of the game.
    • Kirby Star Allies: The final boss of the game is Void Termina, who has a stronger version known as Void Soul fought in the Soul Melter difficulty of The Ultimate Choice. Several post-release updates added in several new playable characters, a new mode (Heroes In Another Dimension) and most notably Soul Melter EX, an updated difficulty of The Ultimate Choice that had you refight all of the bosses from Heroes in Another Dimension, Morpho Knight EX and Void Termina, True Destroyer of Worlds. At the end of it was Void, the strongest version of Void Termina in the game that came packing with powerful attacks, some of which were references to previous final bosses in the series.
    • Kirby's Return to Dream Land: While the final boss of the Deluxe version's regular and Extra Modes are the same as the original game, the True Arena changes things up in regards to Magolor Soul. The creepy ominous music playing in the True Arena rest area before the fight is a warning that this fight isn't like the others. Magolor Soul's battle arena is now darker in, with the fight itself being much more difficult in comparison to his Extra Mode fight. Once Magolor Soul is defeated, the player can grab a healing apple before the Master Crown takes full control of Magolor Soul, commencing the second phase. In this second phase, he can use two dark super ability attacks based off the Sand and Mecha abilities added to the remake, and also harder versions of his existing dark super abilities.
  • A Koopa's Revenge: Earlier versions of the game had a Brutal Bonus Level and accompanying True Final Boss which could only be accessed when playing the version of the game on the creator's website. It's a rematch against the giant Mario mech, but with additional hazards added to the arena.
  • Mega Man:
    • Mega Man Powered Up: The Wily Machine 1 plays rather differently to its NES counterpart. It now has a new first form that makes it resemble a tank and uses the weapons of the Robot Masters on Normal and Hard difficulties, instead of just firing energy shots (though it still does this on Easy mode and Old Style). The second form closely resembles its NES design but is still a Final-Exam Boss like its previous formnote , and even has a unique attack depending on if you're playing as Mega Man (or his Slide or Charge variants) in New Style or any of the other characters in Old Style.
    • Mega Man X: The final boss consists of Sigma, his pet wolf Velguarder and then Wolf Sigma. The remake Mega Man: Maverick Hunter X changes a few things such as Sigma gaining a new attack on Hard Mode where he can perform a diving stab if X is below him. Wolf Sigma no longer has Floating Limbs, his Hand Shock can no longer be avoided by just standing on the edge of his paw, and has 3 new attacks, the latter two of which he only uses on Hard Mode (A row of lasers that rain down on the arena, a grab attack which forces the player to button mash if X is caught, and an electric shock which briefly electrifies the floor).note 
  • Metroid
    • Metroid: The final boss of the NES version is Mother Brain, who is a head in a jar protected by a hallway of cannons that fire lasers and fire rings, with the boss herself protected only by lava and the aforementioned projectiles. The remake Metroid: Zero Mission changes the fight with Mother Brain to make her Boss Room shorter and having it fires more projectiles. Once the player reaches Mother Brain herself, the area behind Samus is walled off and they have to make do with standing on tiny platforms while dodging the aforementioned projectiles and blue energy shots from Mother Brain. Despite the increase in difficulty, Mother Brain was merely demoted to being the penultimate boss due to the new final area being the Space Pirate Mother Ship. In that area is Zero Mission's final boss: Mecha Ridley. This robotic facsimile of Ridley has several attacks such as crushing Samus with its claws, fire breath, shooting lasers from its eyes and homing missiles from its back hatch.. Interestingly enough, if the player got 100% Completion by obtaining all the Missile and HP upgrades, Mecha Ridley's HP is tripled and their attacks deal far more damage.
    • Metroid II: Return of Samus has the Metroid Queen which can fire energy balls, bite Samus and use its head to bludgeon her. The remake Metroid: Samus Returns updates the fight by adding attacks where it can send out slow moving electrical orbs, or firing a red laser to cover the back wall with flames them then exhaling a gust of wind to send Samus into the flames. However, despite the increase in power, it's still demoted to penultimate boss status; Samus still has to deal with Ridley, who is still regenerating his organic body after the events of the Metroid Prime Trilogy, in a battle that is split into 3 phases.
  • Rayman:
    • Rayman: The final boss fight in most versions of the game is known for not actually having a fight with Mr Dark himself, instead pitting you against several fusions against previous bosses (who may or may not be Mr Dark himself). The Game Boy Colour version is different in that you actually get to fight Mr Dark himself, who boasts a unique moveset and doesn't resort to summoning hybrid henchmen to attack you.note 
    • Rayman 2: The Great Escape: In most versions of the game, the final boss consists of fighting the Grolgoth on the mast of the Buccaneer, then a second phase in the heart of the ship where the player is now a One-Hit-Point Wonder who has to grab ammunition to make the Grolgoth fall into the lava. The Playstation 1 version however changes the second phase into a rail shooter where the Grolgoth uses its full arsenal of attacks, and you have to defeat it by shooting at it normally and by sending its bombs back at it.
    • Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc: The console versions of the game had the fallen champion Reflux, pitting the player against a Sequential Boss whose first 3 phases have you use almost every Laser-Washing Powder in the game to overcome Reflux's new Leptys-induced powers, ending in a Rail Shooter that alternates between breaking down Reflux's barrier and destroying his newly born Hoodlums to prevent him from healing himself until the fight ends with Reflux shattering to pieces. The N-Gage and GBA versions barely had anything to do with Rayman 3, with the Grolgoth once again being the final boss. The first phase had you avoid its attacks and sending its bombs back at it, and the second phase forced you to be a One-Hit-Point Wonder while using Deadly Dodging to send the Grolgoth's homing missiles back at it.
  • Sonic the Hedgehog:
    • Sonic Unleashed: The fight with Dark Gaia differs depending on if you're playing the PS2/Wii or PS3/Xbox 360 versions of the game. The PS2/Wii version has you slug it out with Dark Gaia by having the Gaia Colossus use its fists to attack Dark Gaia. After Dark Gaia is defeated, you play as Sonic who must navigate the ruins of the Gaia Temples in order to reach Dark Gaia's eyes, with Sonic needing to do this 3 times. The PS3/Xbox 360 has you play as the Gaia Colossus who must dash towards Dark Gaia while avoiding its molten rocks or guarding against its laser beam. Once approached, the Gaia Colossus must deal damage through quick time cutscenes before you play as Sonic and navigate through the ruins before attacking one of Dark Gaia's eyeballs. Unlike the PS2/Wii version, these two phases alternate until Dark Gaia is defeated, and the Sonic sections are under a time limit where Dark Gaia will One-Hit Kill Sonic with its dark laser.
    • This also extends to Dark Gaia's One-Winged Angel form Perfect Dark Gaia. In the PS3/Xbox 360 version, Super Sonic needs to attack several serpents to take down Perfect Dark Gaia's shield while avoiding its attacks and making sure that it doesn't kill the Gaia Colossus who is there to divert the boss's attention away from you. After the shield is down, Super Sonic needs to finish the fight by freeing the Gaia Colossus from Perfect Dark Gaia's clutches through several quick time events. The last quick time event has you press the X button 60 times in rapid succession before having Super Sonic dash into the boss to finish the fight. In contrast, the PS2/Wii version is far more straightforward in that you gather rings while avoiding the boss's attacks before dashing towards Perfect Dark Gaia and striking one of its eyeballs to damage them.
    • Sonic Colors: The Egg Nega Wisp fight has the same premise but plays on differently on the Wii or DS versions of the game. The Wii version of the final boss has 2 arms and requires you to use the homing attack on the arms before striking the cockpit to deal damage to it. It can also use dark versions of the Blue Cube, Cyan Laser and Pink Spikes, in addition to combining its existing Nega Wisp powers. The DS version of the Egg Nega Wisp lacks arms, and instead has an elongated tail. Its tail or the cockpit can be attacked depending on which attacks it uses. It can also use dark versions of Red Burst, Orange Rocket, Cyan Laser, Yellow Drill and Violet Void. In both cases, the Final Colour Blaster sequence is also different in each version; the Wii version has Sonic use a Wisp powered homing attack to finish the fight whereas the DS version has Sonic merge with the Wisps to counter the Egg Nega Wisp's final laser attack before destroying the machine with a Wisp powered Boost. Additionally, the DS version also has a True Final Boss fight against the Nega Mother Wisp if the player collects all 7 Chaos Emeralds, which the Wii version lacks.
    • Sonic Generations: The console and 3DS versions of the Time Eater fight play out differently with each version having different attacks and even slight design changes. The console versions of the Time Eater has multiple detachable arms, allow you to switch between Classic Super Sonic and Modern Super Sonic at any time, and requires the player to get up close to strike its core. The 3DS version of the Time Eater has only two arms and a set of wings, with alternating phases where either Classic Super Sonic or Modern Super Sonic takes the lead while Time Eater uses a set of attacks before its core can be attacked.
    • Sonic Lost World: The Wii U and 3DS versions of the Super Eggrobo have the same design, though the fights do have some differences. The Wii U version is similar to the Egg Nega Wisp fight due to sharing the same laser attack and method used to deal damage. The Nintendo 3DS version has the Super Eggrobo's power level shown between attacks, requires you to lock onto the legs, arms and cockpit at the same time to deal damage, and uses a unique set of attacks based on the 3DS version's Color Powers. Furthermore, the 3DS version has three additional variants of this fight, one for Hard Mode, and another as Lava Mountain's Extra Zone, and the Hard Mode Extra Zone fight.
  • The Simpsons Game: The DS version of the game differs from every other version of the game in that the player must navigate their way to the top and shoot God's DS stylus several times. All of the other versions of the game involve an Unexpected Gameplay Change where you defeat God in a Rhythm Game based off DanceDanceRevolution.
  • The Sponge Bob Movie Game: The console versions of the Final Boss fight against King Neptune require you to rotate the tables so that when King Neptune fires his laser beam at the frozen Mr Krabs, the tables will reflect the beam and stun the brainwashed king, allowing you to strike them with the Sonic Wave Guitar. In addition, King Neptune also attacks with with a flamethrower and a green set of rotating beams that also sends a pulse wave outward. After he Turns Red, King Neptune smashes the floor and summons mooks to assist him, though he'll stop using the flamethrower in favour of using two variants of his electrical pulse waves. The GBA version is a 2D sidescroller and by complete contrast is far more straightforward. King Neptune's only attacks are to fire a laser beam from his trident and charge at Spongebob and Patrick, the latter being a chance for the duo to jump on Neptune and damage him.
  • Wario World: The initial NA version of the game had only a single, underwhelming phase for the final boss fight against the Black Jewel. When the game was polished up for the JP version, it added a second phase halfway through the fight where the Black Jewel gains cracks on its body as it takes damage, gains several new attacks, and even has the games E3 2002 Trailer playing as a Near Victory Fanfare.

Puzzle Games 

  • Catherine: The original game's final boss is Dumuzid, though the Updated Re-release Catherine: Full Body adds a new bonus level called "Close Encounter" complete with a new True Final Boss called The Archangel, who is the brother of Rin (aka Qatherine), a character added to the remake who has their own unique route in addition to the Catherine and Katherine routes from the original game.

Roguelikes 

  • The Binding of Isaac: The game is known for having multiple final bosses as a result of multiple updates that added in a new final boss to supplant the previous one. When the game got a remake called The Binding of Issac: Rebirth, it added The Lamb as a new final boss, and Mega Satan as its True Final Boss. The next few updates after that then added a new final boss: Hush, and Ultra Greed/Ultra Greedier (Afterbirth), Delirium (Afterbirth?), and Dogma, the Ultra Harbingers and The Beast (Repentance).

Shoot 'em Up 

  • Bullet Hell Monday: The Steam port of the original game adds in a True Final Boss that is unlocked by beating the Stage 5 boss on Normal or higher difficulties.
  • Danny Phantom: Urban Jungle: The final boss fight plays out slightly differently in the GBA and DS versions. The backgrounds are differentnote  as is the battle music. In both versions of the game, the player fights Meat 'n' Potatoes first, then alternating between Lunch Lady Ghost, Undergrowth then Lunch Lady Ghost again (GBA version) or Undergrowth, Lunch Lady Ghost then Undergrowth again (DS version).
  • ESP Ra.De. has the player fight Ms. Garra as the final boss. The Updated Re-release ESP Ra.De Psi changes the final boss so that you fight Alice Master after Ms. Garra, with the True Final Boss being a harder version of Alice Master.
  • Mushihime-sama Futari: The final boss of Mushihime-sama Futari Queen Larsa is a boss who has a reputation as one of the hardest video game bosses ever. Mushihime-sama Futari Black Label goes further and adds in a True Final Boss against Spiritual Larsa if you beat the game on God Mode with no continues.
  • Space Harrier: The Arcade version had no proper final boss, and the final stage was simply a Boss Rush against the previous stage bosses. Various ports of the game add in Haya-Oh, a pair of flame dragons whose unlock requirements differ depending on if you're playing the Master System, PS2, Nintendo 3DS, SEGA AGEs, or Genesis Mini 2 version of the game.

Sports Games 

  • Punch-Out!!: Downplayed. The original version of the NES game released in Japan ended with a fight against Super Macho Man in a title bout in World Circuit. The overseas version known as Mike Tyson's Punch Out!! added Mike Tyson in a special fight known as Dream Match, while later worldwide versions known as Punch Out!! Featuring Mr Dream replace him with Mr. Dreamnote  due to Mike Tyson's contract expiring.

Stealth Based Game 

  • Metal Gear: The MSX2 version of the game has you fight the titular Metal Gear followed up by Big Boss; the NES version replaces the Metal Gear with a super computer, though Big Boss is still the same. In effect, the NES version's Antagonist Title becomes a Non-Indicative Title, because the Metal Gear doesn't appear at all in that version of the game.
  • Splinter Cell: Double Agent: The final fight against Emile Dufraisne is different depending on which version of the game you play. In Version 1, he is pretty much akin to a normal enemy, albeit he is accompanied by a few Elite Mooks and a bomb that you have to defuse in time. In Version 2, you have a Puzzle Boss instead, due to him having a machine gun and Sam having lost his pistol inside a maze of laser tripmines. The latter is more similar to a traditional Boss Fight.

Survival Horror 

  • Resident Evil 2 has a twist in that while it's still William Birkin as in all versions of the game, on the Tiger Game.Com it's only his second form that Leon faces at the end, instead of Birkin's bulbous fifth form in every other version of the game due to technical limitations.

Third-Person Shooter 

  • BIONICLE Heroes: The console and GBA versions have Vezon and Fenrakk as the final boss whereas the DS version (a First Person Shooter) consists of a Boss Rush against the Piraka instead. The console and PC versions of the final boss (Vezon's Awakening) consists of Vezon and Fenrakk towering over the player and consists of dodging attacks and shooting Fenrakk's legs, tail and head when their health bar turns from silver to red.note  After Fenrakk's head is destroyed, the remaining part of the fight consists of fighting Vezon, who now has to pick up the slack now that his steed has fallen. The DS version (Temple of Light) due to being depicted in Three-Quarters View plays out differently. Vezok and Fenrakk are much smaller and are a Final-Exam Boss who can change their elements, requiring the player to use the correct element to deal damage. They can also summon mooks to attack the player, teleport and use a power from each of the fallen Piraka bosses. Once enough damage has been dealt, Vezon dies and you have to finish the fight by killing Fenrakk.
  • Transformers: The Game (DS): The Autobot version has Megatron as the final boss while the Decepticon version has an Allspark empowered Starscream as the final boss.
  • Transformers: War for Cybertron: Unlike the console versions, the DS versions split the Autobot and Decepticon stories into separate games, ensuring that Trypticon and Omega Supreme were exclusive to their respective games as final bosses.

Turn-Based RPGs 

  • Five Nights at Fuckboy's:
    • The first game had Golden Freddy as the final boss, though the Final Mix update added in Puppetmaster B.B as the True Final Boss, which is still retained in Five Night at Fuckboys: Complete Collection.
    • The second game has B.B who has 2 phases, the second of which is a homage to Giygas; the Save Import Scenario pits you against Sephiroth B.B who requires the player to form 4 different parties to take him down.
    • The third game's final boss was altered in Five Night at Fuckboys: Complete Collection. Hybrid B.B's moveset had been altered, and even has a new form that has an elongated door-like jaw. The final form Leviathan B.B had his entire moveset thrown out in favour of a single attack "End of Everything" which deals 9999 damage.
  • Dragon Quest:
    • Dragon Quest IV: The original NES version has Psaro the Manslayer as its final boss, and ends with Psaro's death. The Playstation 1 and Nintendo DS versions adds a 6th chapter taking place after Psaro's death, leading to a journey to resurrect Rose — whose death drove him to villainy — and then Psaro himself. After this, its revealed that Aamon survived your first battle with him, and that he intended to get the Secret of Evolution for himself, cementing his position as the True Final Boss of the remakes.
    • Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2: The True Final Boss of the original game is Rigor Mortex, a red gear-like monster who was responsible for corrupting Leonyx. The Professional edition upstages them by introducing a new True Final Boss called the Sitting Lion Beast (Hihyurude), and its One-Winged Angel form Evil Beast (Hihyudorado).
  • Final Fantasy:
    • Downplayed by the Japan-exclusive Easy Type version of Final Fantasy IV: while the final boss, Zeromus, is technically still the same character as in the other version, its design has been changed completely from a nondescript mass of bones and flesh with multiple glowing eyes to a red four-legged creature with a humanoid bust wielding a sword. The Easy Type design was later used as a Superboss in the Game Boy Advance remake and its Playstation Portable port under the name "Zeromus EG" whereas Zeromus himself retains his original design.
    • Final Fantasy VII: Downplayed. The fight with Safer Sephiroth is more difficult in the original Japanese version of the game due to him using a different AI, and Supernova not being a percentage based attack that reduces the party's HP by 15/16th of their current HP like in overseas versions; instead dealing a high amount of damage and also lacking the Overly Long Fighting Animation that was added to overseas versions of the game. In addition, he also had Death Sentencenote , Flarenote  and Slownote  in the JP version which were replaced by Heartless Angelnote , Shadow Flarenote  and Wallnote  respectively.
  • SaGa (RPG):
    • Final Fantasy Legend II: The GB version of the final boss Arsenal involved fighting two identical machines, the player facing one while the Goddess Isis took on the other by herself. The DS version initially starts similar, with the party fighting only the black Arsenal while Isis fights the white one, but once you've finished your half, Isis instead loses her battle with the other Arsenal, and it absorbs both her and the Arsenal you defeated to form a Combining Mecha.
    • Final Fantasy Legend III: The DS remake gives Xagor a new final form where he merges himself with the Pureland water entity and attacks the party as a monstrous water giant. Then if you fulfil certain conditions, you can unlock the True Final Boss, who is Borgin aka The Wanderer.
    • Romancing SaGa: In both the original and Playstation 2 versions of the game, the final boss is Saruin. However, Saruin's final form is completely different between versions, most notably in how his Minstrel Song version can be offered your Fatestones; after giving him all 10 Fatestones, Saruin becomes the strongest boss in the game bar none.
    • SaGa Scarlet Grace: The final boss is Firebringer who possesses a total of three forms. In the Updated Re-release Sa Ga Scarlet Grace: Ambitions, if the player acquires all 20 Celesta Quintstones by defeating all Scarlet Fiends twice, they can fight a stronger version of Firebringer's final form called Firebringer Prime. Firebringer Prime has far higher stats and retains only his strongest attacks, ensuring that the player will need to defeat him quickly or suffer a Total Party Kill.
  • Kinder: The remake Re:Kinder changes the final boss to prevent him from being unwinnable if you don't have Aya or Hiroto in the party to prevent Yuuichi Mizuoka from inflicting a Total Party Kill with one of of his attacks. Additionally the player can now obtain the Eternal Force Blizzard, which inflicts a One-Hit Kill on Yuuichi and allows you to bypass his most dangerous phase. The original two phases are merged into a single phase which means that he starts the fight in his One-Winged Angel form instead of using it during the second phase; the remakes phase 2 is now a Clipped-Wing Angel who only uses Campanella to paralyse your party every turn.
  • Live A Live: The original SNES version had you fight both forms of Pure Odio, and depending on your decision, you could either kill Oersted for the bad ending or spare him and fight a Boss Rush against all the main bosses of each chapter for the good ending. The Nintendo Switch version changes it so that recruiting every single protagonist will unlock a new True Final Boss fight against Sin of Odio after completing the Boss Rush gauntlet.
  • Lufia & The Fortress of Doom: The final boss Guard Daos actually has more attacks in the Japanese version of the gamenote , befitting of his status as a fusion of Gades, Amon and Daos. The US version nerfs him by reducing his moveset to only Figual (which confuses the entire party) and Flood, both of which can be reflected with Mirror. Unsurprisingly, this means that the player can absolutely cheese the fight against Guard Daos in the US version because he has no physical attacks that he can use against your party.
  • Lunar
    • Lunar: The Silver Star: The Sega CD version of the game has the first fight with Ghaleon in his normal form, ending with him bleeding out on the floor. He then later returns and goes One-Winged Angel, transforming into his true demonic form. The remakes change the first fight so the party are Fighting a Shadow with the final fight being against Ghaleon himself -no transformation included — who has had several new attacks added to make him a harder fight.
    • Lunar: Eternal Blue: The Sega CD version has you fight Zophar then a two phase battle against Omni-Zophar. Omni-Zophar's hands have the same amount of his HP as his body, dragging the fight out if you decide to take them out alongside the body. The PS1 remake gives Zophar's forms different designs and gives Omni-Zophar's first form 2 additional hands which heal the main body, though as a tradeoff, the hands have far less HP than the main body. In both versions of the game, Omni-Zophar's final form is a Clipped-Wing Angel that isn't very threatening.
  • Persona:
    • Persona 3: The final boss of the original and Portable versions is Nyx Avatar, a Sequential Boss fight known for its sheer length. ''Persona 3 FES'' added a new True Final Boss called Erebus unlocked after completing everything else in The Answer.
    • Persona 3 Reload due to being based off the original game instead of FESnote  has Nyx Avatar as the final boss again. Their movesets are changed to make them more challenging, which involves them keeping only their strongest elemental spellsnote , and several of their phases now use a Signature Attack from other Full Moon Operation bossesnote  or are greatly changed so they're completely different from the original games.note  During the Emperor Phase and onward, Nyx Avatar's sword becomes charged with energy, and their final phase Death red eye-like patterns on their wings, no longer uses Moonless Gown and instead will use Apocalypse on the first turn, then Night Queen before using the attacks of the other Full Moon Operation bosses.
    • Persona 5: The original game had Yaldabaoth as the Final Boss; Persona 5 Royal demotes him to a Pre-Final Boss, with only his Sword of Conviction getting any changes (i.e repels Gun attacks). Though if the player didn't didn't max out the Councillor confidant, Yaldabaoth still serves as the final boss. If they did max out the Councillor confidant, an entirely new post-game chapter opens up, taking place after Yaldaboath's defeat that has Takuto Maruki and his persona Azathoth as the final boss instead.
  • Pokémon:
    • Pokémon Red and Blue: In all versions of the game, Blue's team differs depending on your starter Pokemon. In the original GB versions, Blue's team changes depending on if you picked Charmandernote , Squirtle note  or Bulbasaur note  Pokemon Yellow changed his team lineup, with his team depending on if your Eevee evolved into Flareon note , Jolteon note  or Vaporeon note  whereas his teams in the Video Game Remake Pokemon Fire Red and Leaf Green are the same but with different movesets and changes inherited from Gen III's changes to the series formula. However, Blue does gain new teams during his post-game rematch that once again depend on if you picked Charmandernote , Squirtlenote  or Bulbasaurnote  as your starter.
    • Pokémon Gold and Silver: The champion Lance has a team consisting of Gyarados, Aerodactyl, Charizard and 3 Dragonites and this also applies to the remakes HeartGold and SoulSilver; however, Lance's rematch gives him a more diverse team consisting of Salamence, Gyarados, Garchomp, Altaria, Charizard and Dragonite. The True Final Boss Red has a team consisting of Pikachu, Snorlax, all 3 Kantonian starter Pokemon and Espeon, with the remakes making the team far stronger in levels and movesets in addition to switching out Espeon out for Lapras.
    • Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire: The final boss and champion was Steven Stone, who uses a combination of Steel, Rock, and Ground types; this is also the case in Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. However, Pokemon Emerald changes this by having Wallace take his place as Champion instead, whose team consists of Water-types whereas Steven Stone ends up as a post-game Superboss instead.
    • Pokémon Diamond and Pearl: Cynthia's team is different between Diamond/Pearl and Pokemon Platinum. Her Platinum Team is lower leveled with slight moveset changes and Gastrodon is replaced by Togekiss, though they're all much stronger after completing the events at Stark Mountain. The remakes of the original games Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl give her teams perfect EVs with all of her Pokemon having held items instead of just her ace Garchomp, and also decides to Take a Third Option with which teams she uses: Her Diamond/Pearl team is her main story team, with her post game rematch replacing Gastrodon with Togekiss like her team from Platinum, and her post-Stark Mountain team replacing Roserade with Porygon-Z.
    • Pokémon Scarlet and Violet has the AI versions of the professors as the final bosses before the credits roll. The Professor that you fight depends on the version of the game. In Scarlet, you fight Professor Sada, while in Violet, you fight Professor Turo. While both of them only use Paradox Pokémon, their teams are entirely different, with Sada using Past Paradox Pokémon, and Turo using Future Paradox Pokémon.
  • Shin Megami Tensei:
    • Devil Children: DemiKids: Light Version and DemiKids: Dark Version have a different final boss for each version, though their role in manipulating Imperium is the same regardless of version. Quazir is the final boss of DemiKids: Light Version and Seipher is the final boss of DemiKids: Dark Version.
    • Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne: The Final Boss of the original version and its later versions Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne Maniaxnote  and Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniax Chronicle Edition is Kagutsuchi, with the ending differing depending on route aside from the Demon Route. As a result of the Adaptation Expansion present in Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne Maniax and later ''Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Maniax Chronicle Edition', the True Demon Ending has you fight Lucifer as the True Final Boss with the difference between the Chronicles and Maniax versions being incredibly minornote ; the HD Remaster is based on the Maniax Chronicle Edition of the game, making the fight slightly harder.
    • Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey: The original final bosses are Mem Aleph (Law and Neutral routes) or Pillar Zelenin (Chaos route). Strange Journey Redux however adds in the Womb of Grief, which upon completion allows the player to unlock the New Law/Chaos/Neutral routes. Interestingly, this means that Mem Aleph can be fought on New Chaos despite siding with the player if they picked the Chaos route. Additionally, the Three Wise Men also fuse into Shekinah, who is implied to be an avatar of the Great Will, and is the True Final Boss should the player pursue any of the New Alignment routes.
    • Shin Megami Tensei V: The original game has you fight Lucifer whose fight had changes based on which path you took, unless you decided to destroy the Throne of Creation in which case Tsukuyomi would be the Final Boss instead. Vengeance adds new final bosses in its Canon of Vengeance path: Tiamat then either Tehom (Law route) or Mastema (Chaos route) with Lucifer being fought after them.

Turn-Based Strategy 

Wide Open Sandbox 

  • Terraria: The Xbox 360, PS3, Wii U, and 3DS ports of the game have a True Final Boss named Ocram. These ports were developed by Engine Software instead of the original developers Re-Logic, and feature lots of exclusive content. Ocram never made it into the PC version or later ports even as other bosses were added, however he is referenced by the Easter Egg boss Mechdusa, which is summoned with an item called Ocram's Razor.