Gears Of War: Every Final Boss, Ranked

Highlights

• Gears of War games boast diverse enemy types, allowing for epic final boss battles that challenge players till the end.
• From Infected Brumak to Kraken, each final enemy in the series offers unique gameplay mechanics and a satisfying conclusion.
• Raam, A Swarm Queen, and more iconic bosses provide intense and memorable showdowns that test players’ skills and determination.

Alongside their endless gore and lovable characters, the Gears of War games have also been admired for their enemy variety. Of course, the most prominent foe that the COG is forced to take on, especially in the early games, is the Locust, but these mysterious humanoid creatures come in all shapes and sizes. This also applies to the Lambent that appear later on in the story, and the DeeBees and the Swarm who show up in Gears of War 4.

Needless to say, the series has featured a ton of unique enemy types, and as a result, it allows the developers to get as creative as they want when it comes to creating a final boss for players to take on at the end of their adventure. Here’s how each of the final enemies seen throughout the Gears of War series stack up when taking into account their relevance to the story, their battle, and how challenging they are to beat overall.

7 Gears Of War 2 (Infected Brumak)

The Finale Of Gears Of War 2 Is A Little Too Short Considering Who The Boss Is

A lot of fans look back fondly on the campaign of Gears of War 2 and for very good reason. The game’s story is the darkest the series has ever gotten, and it does an excellent job of showing how much of an effect the war is having on regular people, and how vicious the Locust can be if it puts them one step closer to achieving their goals. In the final act of the plot, Marcus and the gang discover a new enemy known as the Lambent – Locust and humans who have been mutated beyond recognition by consuming too much Imulsion.

Dealing with regular Locust soldiers who have turned into Lambent is already hard enough, but at the end of the final missions, Delta Squad comes face to face with one of the Locust’s most formidable units, the Brumak, who has mutated into a terrifying Lambent. Though this should culminate in an epic sequence, the fight itself is very short and essentially just involves the player aiming a Hammer of Dawn as their helicopter circles around the enormous monstrosity. It’s a pretty lackluster way to end what is otherwise an amazing campaign.

6 Gears Of War 4 (Hive Beast)

The Hive Beast Fight Is Slow, But It Ends In A Glorious Spectacle Of Gore

After a long and arduous journey, the final obstacle that stands in the way of JD and his friends in Gears of War 4 is a huge bulky monster known as the Hive Beast. As part of this battle, players are suited up in small mechanical exoskeletons which are a little clunky to move around, but they also act as sturdy protection against the beast’s deadly projectiles. The first half of the fight simply involves firing as many bullets into the boss as possible, but about halfway through, players are tasked with ripping off a helicopter propeller to use for defense.

From this moment onwards, the fight slows down to a crawl as players must slowly walk up to the beast while spinning around their brand-new weapon to defend against projectiles, while also getting pushed back every now and again by its mighty roars. Thankfully, once JD does get close enough to the Hive Beast, the fight turns into a gory spectacle, which is perfectly fitting for the series, but the whole battle definitely could have been sped up to make it more exciting.

5 Gears Tactics (Ukkon)

A Long And Difficult Battle That Puts Player’s Tactical Skills To The Test

The talkative Locust scientist known as Ukkon appears a few times throughout the story of Gears Tactics, but as arrogant as he is, he doesn’t show up to the final battle with the COG alone. When Ukkon arrives, he flies onto the scene with a brand-new mount that he calls “Hydra,” and it’s fair to say that this thing is no pushover in battle.

Hydra is kitted out with a mighty roar attack and two rocket launchers that it will gladly fire off to try and keep the team separated. While keeping track of all this, players will also need to fend off groups of soldiers thrown their way throughout the battle, so hunkering down for cover as much as possible is heavily advised. It’s a fight that can feel like it’s a little too long for its own good considering how durable the Hyrda is, but it’s still a challenging final encounter that puts everything players had learned thus far to the test.

4 Gears Of War: Judgment (General Karn)

Karn And His Reaver Hold Nothing Back During His Chaotic And Intense Battle

Though he only appears in what is technically a spin-off game, General Karn is actually one of the most important, and dangerous, individuals in the entire series. He was one of the very first Locust commanders who pledged his allegiance to the queen early on in the war, and he’s also credited as being the orchestrater for Emergence Day, which implies players could see him show up once again in Gears of War E-Day.

It’s fair to say that, once this commander is surrounded by Baird and the team at the end of Judgment, he puts up one hell of a fight. Karn is perched on top of his own custom Reaver, which has been kitted out with dual gatling guns that will turn players into mince meat if they aren’t constantly bouncing between cover. Being a commander, Karn also calls upon his Locust servants to help him in this battle, making for a chaotic firefight that is a ton of fun to be a part of.

3 Gears 5 (The Kraken)

The Enormous Kraken Takes Quite A Lot Of Punishment Before It’s Down For Good

In terms of size, the Kraken is by far the biggest final boss in the series, and its enormous stature certainly helps to make this battle feel as epic and grandiose as it can possibly be. What makes the fight so memorable to a lot of fans is how varied it is in terms of the gameplay itself. At first, it plays like a regular turret section as players blast a railgun into the Kraken’s mouth, before then switching to a boots-on-the-ground segment, which is when the real challenge begins.

During the fight, the Kraken will use its tongues to try and consume anyone in range. This single attack encourages players to stick together since the only way to stop it is by allies shooting at the tongues once they appear to save their friends from an untimely death. Now and again, the Kraken will even leap forward and try to catch an unsuspecting COG with its mouth, which forces players to keep moving to avoid taking damage. This intense battle ends with Jack sacrificing himself as he calls in the Hammer of Dawn to defeat the Kraken once and for all.

2 Gears Of War 3 (Tempest)

Being Able To Defeat The Locust Queen Once And For All Is Such A Satisfying Moment In The Series

The Locust Queen, Myrrah, may have been introduced in Gears of War 2, but it wasn’t until the third game in the trilogy that players could finally get the chance to take her down for good, that is if they can survive the endless onslaught of the Tempest. Tempest is a large airborne creature Myrrah uses as her personal form of transport, but it’s also capable of unleashing a massive heat-ray beam that can decimate any humans it makes contact with, making this a pretty tricky fight as a result.

Another reason this fight stands out is because of Myrrah’s dialogue. As she talks directly to the humans, she claims they are “genocidal monsters,” just like the Locust, which does make players think about the staggering number of Locusts they’ve killed throughout the games leading up to this point. The fight ends with an extremely emotional scene of Marcus killing the queen in the name of Dom, and all the other humans who Myrrah inadvertently killed during the war.

1 Gears Of War (Raam)

Raam’s Final Fight Aboard A Moving Train Provides An Epic Finale To The First Game

Alongside the queen herself, Raam is one of the most recognizable villains from the series, despite the fact he barely strings a sentence together throughout the entire first game. The truth is though, Raam doesn’t need to speak to invoke fear in his enemies since his large size, gigantic butcher knife, and the horde of Kryll creatures that fly around him for protection are more than enough to present him as a pretty big deal.

The final encounter with Raam takes place on a moving train, which already makes it pretty exciting, but Raam won’t simply sit back and take potshots all day. Instead, he will constantly be stalking the player throughout the entire fight and will either blast them with his rifle or will just let his Kryll do the work for him. The only way to damage Raam is by waiting for Cole to shine a spotlight on him, as this will force the Kryll to fly away from their master, but it’s only for a short period, so players will need to ensure they aren’t wasting any time. This is an exhilarating final boss that highlights how powerful Raam truly is, and it makes beating him all the more satisfying.