15 Boss Fights Everyone Cheese’d Instead of Beating Normally

Boss fights in video games are the culmination of the game’s systems, testing everything you’ve learned in a final clash for survival. If you can’t cheese it, that is, or find a way to bypass a lot of what makes the fight difficult. You may wonder why anyone would do that, since it essentially takes away from the experience of the game, but gamers have their reasons.

Not all of us have all the time in the world to master a game’s system, let alone beat its hardest moments, but we still want the feeling of satisfaction from doing every task in a game. How the task was achieved isn’t relevant for everyone, and these are the fights most gamers cheese if they can.

Alpha Protocol’s Final Boss

The final encounter becomes dramatically easier by repeatedly stepping through the doorway. This makes the boss constantly switch between his different guns, trapping his AI in an endless loop while players slowly chip away at his health.

Ren Hayabusa in Nioh 2

Ren Hayabusa overwhelms many builds with relentless attacks. Numerous players resort to repeatedly using the Fists’ charging attack to keep him stunlocked, avoiding a prolonged duel almost entirely.

The Dark Genie in Dark Cloud

Players who neglected ranged characters often found the final boss nearly impossible. Many scraped through by abusing awkward positioning and every trick available instead of engaging with the intended ranged combat mechanics.

Bloody Crow of Cainhurst in Bloodborne

Before later patches, players commonly cheesed the Bloody Crow by exploiting his tendency to bleed out while staying safely out of danger. It became one of the community’s favorite shortcuts through an infamously brutal fight.

Capra Demon in Dark Souls

One of Dark Souls’ most famous cheeses involves throwing Dung Pies over the fog gate before entering. Toxic slowly drains the Capra Demon’s health while players wait safely outside the arena.

Okumura in Persona 5 Royal

Ironically, increasing the difficulty to Merciless often makes Okumura easier. The higher weakness damage lets players clear robot waves before they reset, turning one of the game’s most frustrating bosses into a manageable fight.

Azazel in Tekken 6

Many players discovered Azazel struggled to counter repeated jumping attacks. Rather than learning the demanding fight properly, they simply spammed the same move until the final boss eventually collapsed.

No Heart in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep

No Heart’s relentless offense led many players to rely on specific command combinations, invincibility loops, and repeated dodge strategies. Winning fairly became far less common than exploiting the game’s powerful defensive mechanics.

Tartarus in Halo 2

Instead of patiently waiting for Sergeant Johnson to drop Tartarus’ shield, players famously glitched a Banshee into the arena. The aircraft let them unload continuously, skipping the intended rhythm of the encounter.

Victor Marchenko in Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Rather than fighting Marchenko head-on, many players exploited vents and corners to repeatedly peek out with a shotgun. The tactic ignored most of the boss’s dangerous abilities while slowly wearing him down.

Indalecio Without His Limiter in Star Ocean: The Second Story

Removing Indalecio’s limiter creates one of JRPG’s most notorious difficulty spikes. Many players survive only by equipping Bloody Armor, sacrificing health drain for near invincibility while constantly healing.

Mary in Vampyr

Players attempting a pacifist run often discovered that repeatedly building blood and using Bite attacks trivialized otherwise difficult encounters. The tactic became the safest answer to several challenging boss fights.

Sigrun in God of War

The Valkyrie Queen pushed countless players to lower the difficulty after exhausting every other option. Many admitted they simply wanted the final achievement without spending dozens more attempts mastering the fight.

The Demon of Hatred in Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Rather than enduring the enormous three-phase battle, many players lured the Demon of Hatred into falling from a nearby cliff. The exploit became one of Sekiro’s most famous community-discovered cheeses.

Sarevok in Baldur’s Gate

Instead of battling Sarevok inside his heavily trapped arena alongside numerous allies, many players baited him outside. Separating him from his support transformed the climactic fight into a far more manageable duel.