The Ultimate Persona 5 Royal Boss Ranking - Unveiling the Most Powerful Foes!

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS for Persona 5 Royal ahead. Proceed at your own risk.

Highlights

Persona 5 Royal showcases an array of exceptionally crafted and unforgettable bosses, each offering thrilling and meticulously designed battles. Though a few bosses may cause frustration and letdown, the exhilarating highs attained from confronting the top-notch bosses outshine any other encounters in the entire Persona series.

Changes made to boss fights in Persona 5 Royal were a mixed bag - some were improved, while others became more challenging and forced. This highlights the need for a more consistent and well-designed approach to boss battles in Persona 6.

Persona 5 Royal features a range of bosses that are both memorable and divisive. While certain antagonists in the game are expertly crafted and offer thrilling boss fights, others are notorious for being frustrating and underwhelming, lacking a satisfying culmination to their story arcs. While the game undoubtedly reaches new heights with its boss battles, it also exposes the shortcomings of its weaker encounters, serving as a valuable lesson for the future design of bosses in Persona 6.

S-Tier

Takuto Maruki, the final boss in Persona 5 Royal, truly lives up to his status. To encounter him, players must first unlock the bonus third semester. Maruki's story arc is incredibly heart-wrenching, making him an incredibly sympathetic antagonist during the third semester. The game reaches a thrilling and cinematic climax with Maruki, solidifying his position as the ultimate boss and a worthy addition to the Persona 5 Royal experience.

Masayoshi Samael Shido – Shido poses as a constant threat to the Phantom Thieves throughout the game, manipulating events from behind the scenes while advancing in the political world. Confronting this antagonist in a climactic final battle is undeniably satisfying, enhanced by the tough yet fair nature of the boss fight. The epic music accompanying the showdown heightens the feeling of justice finally prevailing. This challenging encounter often forces players to strategically switch between party members, making it a well-rounded bout due to its innovative use of key mechanics.

A-Tier

Suguru Asmodeus Kamoshida serves as the initial boss encounter in Persona 5 Royal. Although not incredibly demanding or unconventional, this battle effectively establishes the game's atmosphere. Kamoshida, a despicable antagonist, intensifies the satisfaction of his defeat. Furthermore, this confrontation effectively introduces the boss mechanics of Persona 5 Royal, paving the way for future accomplishments.

Goro Akechi – In Persona 5 Royal, players will encounter and battle Akechi while infiltrating Shido's Palace. Despite not being the primary target, this fight remains memorable due to the unveiling of Akechi's true nature and his formidable and unpredictable combat style. Players who are unprepared may find this battle challenging, but it ultimately serves as the climax of Goro Akechi's complex character arc.

Sae Leviathan Niijima – The confrontation with Sae in Persona 5 Royal is a pivotal moment in the game, as it occurs before Joker's capture. Unlike other battles, this fight takes on a more personal tone as Makoto must confront her sister and the corruption that has consumed her. Along with this narrative significance, the battle incorporates roulette mechanics that provide an interesting twist to the gameplay and align thematically with Sae's Palace.

Zodiac Ultimate – One of the most challenging encounters in the core storyline of Persona 5 is the astonishing showdown against the divine puppet master, Yaldabaoth, who ingeniously manifests in the form of the revered Holy Grail. This climactic battle thrusts players into a thrilling face-off against the enigmatic puppeteer, the true architect behind the intricate web of events within the game, and demands their unwavering determination to vanquish the colossal adversary and its myriad appendages. Regrettably, the prominence of this momentous clash is slightly diminished in Persona 5 Royal by the astounding final confrontation against Maruki, the true archenemy.

B-Tier

Despite the significant improvements given to Madarame in Persona 5 Royal, his boss fight still maintains a rather conventional nature. While it is less bothersome compared to the original Persona 5, the inclusion of Power Rangers-like clones, each possessing their unique elemental affinities, fails to introduce an engaging or unique boss mechanic.

Cognitive Wakaba Isshiki - The concept of Cognitive Wakaba as a boss is intriguing since she is not portrayed as a villain in the real world of the game. Instead, she represents Futaba's trauma in the Metaverse. However, the boss fight itself lacks excitement and mainly involves waiting for opportune moments to attack with the ballista and patiently awaiting Futaba's awakening to her Persona.

Junya Bael Kaneshiro - Kaneshiro could have been a more compelling boss if there was a stronger connection to the Phantom Thieves. The actual fight against Kaneshiro is quite easy, as he relies heavily on his Piggytron to do the majority of the work. Unfortunately, this reliance on his creation only adds to the disappointment surrounding Kaneshiro as a character. Once the Piggytron is defeated, Kaneshiro brings forth a Bodyguard-for-Hire and a Hitman-for-Hire, who can be frustrating opponents due to their resistance against various forms of attack.

C-Tier

The battle against Kunikazu Mammon Okumura in Persona 5 Royal is widely regarded as the worst boss fight in the game. Unlike other boss battles, Okumura himself does very little fighting and instead relies on his robotic underlings to do the dirty work. While this aligns with his character, these bots become incredibly frustrating because they reset if not defeated within two turns, causing the battle to drag on unnecessarily, especially considering there is already a time limit. As a result, Okumura has gained a notorious reputation among fans as the most poorly designed boss in the game.

Persona 5 Royal is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.