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The Final Fantasy series has a rich library of fantastic monster designs. Lots of them are cool, some are funny, and most of them are charming. However, there are a few that are downright disturbing. Strange Horrors are the kind of monsters that make you a little uncomfortable as you fight them.
Whether because of their massive size, their otherworldly appearance, or perhaps their overwhelming power, these monsters are able to stand out and distinguish themselves as being disproportionately spooky. Final Fantasy might not be a series known for its gruesome creatures, but they certainly have a few in their back pocket.
ten Belias – Final Fantasy Tactics
Belias is one of the Lucavi demons you fight during the Final Fantasy Tactics campaign. While not the scariest creature in the game (it’s probably Cúchulainn’s bloated horror), once you start fighting this bully the intimidation factor starts to increase. By far the toughest fight in the storytelling campaign, Belias is able to petrify, silence, and confuse you.
It also hits like a truck. It doesn’t help that in the first phase of this fight before he has to fight Belias himself, Ramza will have to face Weigraf one-on-one (and no, he doesn’t have a chance to heal afterwards). Basically if you don’t think Belias is creepy now, you will once you fight him.
9 Janova Dreamweaver – Final Fantasy 7: Remake
In the original game, Jenova was scarier as an idea than she was as a real boss. When you finally meet her, she’s just a jumble of polygons and she doesn’t really create a spooky feel.
However, Jenova Dreamweaver’s fight in Final Fantasy 7 Remake adds a bit more fuel to the fire. The otherworldly elements that her body is made of are in high resolution in the remake, giving her design a much needed visual panache. It does a better job of nailing that eldritch horror quality that they were probably looking for in the original title.
8 Reine d’Eblan – Final Fantasy 4
There is something about chimeric monsters with a human face that is deeply disturbing. Snakes are, of course, something that humans are wary of. Especially if you live in a place where there are poisonous snakes. So, a snake with a human face is already something irritating.
Pair that with the indistinguishable tufts, bumps, and tendrils that line its serpentine body and you’ve got something that almost seems to venture into body horror. This is all just the visual aspect; there is also the tragic quality of the Queen of Eblan having once been an ordinary human being. It is all so unsettling.
seven Rogue Axeman – Final Fantasy 15
Some people may forget about it, but Final Fantasy 15 actually has an entire section where the game changes genre and focuses exclusively on horror. You play as an unarmed Noctis and are hunted down by the Rogue Axemen. These dysfunctional magitek soldiers limp in an unnatural, jerky, puppet-like manner.
Since you are on your own and with no equipment, the game encourages you to hide and sneak past them. So the atmosphere also gives these guys a little horror boost. Chapter 13 hasn’t worked for everyone, but it is without a doubt one of the scariest sections of Final Fantasy you’ll come across. The Axemans are certainly a big part of that.
6 Exdeath – Final Fantasy 5
Throughout the series, Exdeath has made several appearances, but his conception in Final Fantasy 5 is the most cosmic horror he’s ever had. The surface of his body is a mess of tendrils and intertwined teeth. It almost looks like Exdeath has been turned over, as the tendrils have a visceral appearance.
As you fight Exdeath’s giant head, his body can be seen curling in the distance. It looks like a giant cosmic worm. It is all a bit strange and disturbing. The way a good cosmic entity should be, making him a great climate patron. Exdeath is easily one of the spookiest trees you’ll ever come across.
5 Iron Giant – Final Fantasy 15
The iron giant has been around for a long time. As a general rule, I would categorize this enemy as pretty “cool”. I wouldn’t have said scary; not until Final Fantasy 15, that is. You see, the battle screen in the old Final Fantasy games didn’t really do big enemies justice. The reach didn’t mean much, and something important didn’t make it difficult.
However, the first time one of these massive iron monstrosities shows up in Final Fantasy 15, you see how massive these things really are. It’s hard not to feel a little intimidated. There will be people who may decide to get back in the car and take an alternate route. It’s hard to blame them.
4 Gerogero – Final Fantasy 8
Gerogero is by nature somewhat disconcerting. It is basically a giant, deformed humanoid creature. He seems to have some of his organs outside of his body which is super gross (they notably recolored those organs to look less like organs for the North American release).
However, disturbing as Gerogero is, he is most disturbing when he acts as a lookalike for the president. You fight him in this human form as he shakes awkwardly, flailing his limbs unnaturally. The two forms of Gerogero deserve to have been combined to create a generally disturbing boss encounter.
3 Calcobrena – Final Fantasy 4
The reason dolls can be so scary is probably related to their lifeless appearance. They feel so close to being real, but something is wrong. Basically all of the dolls live in the Strange Valley. So Calca and Brina were already scary.
When they merge into the giant, heavy monstrosity known as Calcobrena, they officially stumble to officially become disturbing. It’s hard to watch this horror and not feel some strong enough Akira vibes. Seems like there are quite a few quirks in Final Fantasy 4, but this one probably takes the cake.
2 Unknown – Final Fantasy 5
Damn, where do these horrors come from? For those unfamiliar with, Unknown Monsters come in many forms in Final Fantasy 5. One is a series of skeletal torsos extending from the ceiling, another looks like a giant internal organ on display, another is a a Cronenberg nightmare that threw up everything. on itself, and there’s another snake creature from another world (which also looks like something Cronenberg made).
All of these monsters seem to be in total contradiction with the rest of the bestiary. They would make other appearances in the series, but they’ve never looked so gruesome as in Final Fantasy 5. A member of the Final Fantasy design team was in a dark place when he designed these creatures.
1 Zone Eater – FF6
In general, giant tanker-sized worms that have rows of sharp teeth are horrible. The Zone Eater will absolutely make an impression the first time you meet it in the desert.
Then once he starts eating your party members, the real fear will really set in. the zone eater.
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