Final Fantasy is a long-running video game series chock full of some amazing designs, all the way from the characters to their weapons, magic, and the enemies they fight. Unlike some games, they don’t only pull out the stops for their boss monsters— though, admittedly, Final Fantasy bosses often look incredible.
Even some of the common enemies in the series have fantastic designs, which helps add to the fantastical element of the franchise. There are almost always recolors of the standard enemies, but that doesn’t take away from how cool some of them are to look at.
10 Behemoths Have Been Recurring Enemies For Most Of The Series
Behemoths started out as a boss monster in Final Fantasy II but have since become a recurring enemy staple. However, it had concept art in the original, one that included a massive set of wings. An enemy based on the original concept art appeared as an enemy in FFXV.
Typically they are quadrupedal, except in XII where they took on a minotaur look. Regardless of their look, these hulking, purple-skinned beasts are just as cool to look at as they are terrifying to encounter.
9 Braindrainers (XV) Have A Unique Twist On The Typical Mindflayer
The Braindrainers in Final Fantasy XV are pallet swaps of Mindflayers. Even though they share their name with a common fantasy enemy of the same name, Mindflayers and Braindrainers have unique designs. Braindrainers more so, with their fantastical color scheme and creepy, dark visage.
Instead of being humanoids with squid heads meant to feed off of the mental energy of their opponents, Braindrainers are these hulking cephalopod monsters with only a vague humanoid shape. They expand and attack with all sorts of creepy attacks, including falling on the party from above or lashing out like a net.
8 Chocobos Are Simple & Iconic Giant Chickens
Chocobos might be one of the most iconic creatures in all of gaming history. They are giant, rideable chicken-like steeds that are, for the most part, benevolent cutie pies that come in a wide range of colors.
However, they also have colored enemy variants in Final Fantasy XII, suggesting that sometimes, they have a similar temperament to real-world birds with similar structures, such as emus and cassowaries.
7 Dendrobiums (IX & XIII-2) Are Flying Orchids
While it is relatively common for low-tiered, plant-based enemies in fantasy games, the Dendrobiums in both Final Fantasy IX and XIII-2 are these massive flying orchid monsters that really lean heavily on their plant origins.
Unlike a lot of plant-like enemies, these don’t have faces or much in the means of limbs. They’re suspiciously gorgeous plants that just appear to maul the player as a really fascinating low-tier enemy.
6 Dracozombies (IX) Are A Different Spin On Dracoliches
Dracoliches, also known as Zombie Dragons, are another staple of fantasy games. These undead dragons come from a variety of means, but they all have one thing in common: They are zombie dragons.
Final Fantasy IX decided to one-up the generic Dracolich with their Dracozombies. These multi-winged, eyeless terrors really suffer from the cutesy style and limitations of the graphics of the time. Even so, they are awesome enemies that could have easily made for a lower-tiered boss instead of just a regular enemy.
5 Hellhounds (VII Remake) Are Hellish Chimeras
The Final Fantasy VII Remake wasn’t a one-to-one rehashing of the original. It introduced a few minor edits to the story, as well as a handful of new monsters. One the new creatures was the Hellhound, a hulking chimera-like monster ready to destroy Cloud and company at a moment’s notice.
Unlike most other remake-only additions, Hellhounds both look and feel like they should have been around from the get-go. They make for a wonderfully startling enemy to trip up old fans who weren’t expecting them and bringing back a little of that old excitement that the remake was threatening to lose.
4 Hexadragons (VIII) Are Some Of The Weirdest Dragons To Ever Exist
Final Fantasy VIII was a decisive entry, especially with having the unenviable task of following up one of the most beloved games of all time. However, one thing most people can agree on was that it gave its monsters some of the most mind-boggling and interesting designs in the franchise.
The most fascinating however might just be the Hexadragons occasionally found as standard enemies. These funky dragons have six eyes and six legs and probably would have six of other limbs too if they were supposed to be bosses— or if the software at the time could have handled them. Either way, these monsters are fascinating monstrosities that hopefully will find a return in a future installment.
3 Ichthons (XII) Are Monstrous Flying Fish
There are only so many ways the concept of a flying fish can be taken, but Final Fantasy XII took them to the extreme. These fish are some of the coolest monsters in the game’s bestiary, and that’s saying something for XII.
These long, spindly fish had additional, massive fins so they could fly and partake in some annoying fights. It wouldn’t have been much of a leap for them to have made it into minor boss territory with such a cool design, but they are just regular enemies that can be fought a ton.
2 Lilith (IV) Is A Cool Naga-Like Enemy
Lilith was one of a few Naga-style enemies that were within Final Fantasy IV, but her original 2D design was excellent. When it was updated with a 3D render, it lost some of its charm— and later 2D revisions got a little carried away with her sex appeal.
It was fascinating that she wasn’t a boss originally given the size and complexity of her design, but at least she did end up returning in later games as a boss. At least she got to utilize her full potential eventually.
1 Pijavica (XIII) Are Freaky Fliers
Final Fantasy XIII might have gotten mixed reviews from fans, but that doesn’t mean it’s not full of some of the wackiest designs in the series. As with most games, it’s full of its fair share of recolors on its enemies, but even so they are weird creatures.
The Pijavica are one of the game’s weird flying enemies that are so bafflingly absurd in their design it’s a little hard to figure out exactly what is going on with them. They’re like strange, mutant harpies with some obnoxious, miasma-fueled stat debuffs. Even so, they are some really cool monsters and somehow, not even a boss.
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