Kingdom Hearts 2.8 is full of epic boss battles, and some of them can be pretty challenging. From Demon Tower to Phantom Aqua, here’s a guide to help you come out on top at high difficulty levels.
Demon Tower - Castle Town: This is the first boss battle, and your level-50 Aqua is generally perfectly suited to win it on any level. It’s really hard to get out of this one without any hits, but our best strategy is to focus on your melee attacks. Just keep whacking the darn thing until your Spellweaver situational command unlocks and use it right in the middle of it all. If you end up getting caught in the wave, counter in mid-air to dash and land on your feet. Its worst attack is a downward piledriver. Have your Curaga spell ready for when that happens.
If you can get a little distance, it’s also really easy to get a perfect score on your Shotlock. Use your dashes to get away, and point your Shotlock at the massive tower. That’s undoubtedly the best strategy if you’re low on health or want to nail that no-hit objective.
Phantom Aqua - World Within: Phantom Aqua has two main attacks at her disposal. She’ll either warp in front of you for a few quick slashes or throw four glass balls at you. She starts right away with the melee strikes, so have your finger near square ready to counter them. There will be obvious moments where she slows down to open up for damage, so either toss some magic or jump in with your keyblade when she’s defenseless.
When she teleports into the air, that’s when the glass balls are about to come. Doge these with well timed rolls to the right, left, right and left. The directions can change, but, once you get the rhythm, you’ll be alright. When she does a bunch of quick teleports, have your finger by the counter button again to block the melee. Eventually she’ll go down.
Phantom Aqua Encounter 2 - World Within: Aqua opens the battle with three rounds of melee strikes, so just counter those the best you can. Once those are over, she’ll open herself up for damage like last time. The four glass balls generally react the same way, but she’ll do them twice in a row. Stay away from the center of the ring if you can, and attack her on the outside. It’s a very similar fight to the first one.
Phantom Aqua Encounter 3 - The World Within: Right as the battle begins, you’ll have the opportunity to Shotlock Phantom Aqua while she’s teleporting. Do that to get an early edge. Beyond that, she has some new attacks, including a spin move towards the outside of the arena. Stay in the center at first, but dash to the outside as she moves the circle in. You can also stay in the center and counter the whole thing if you prefer. After she does that, she’ll open herself up for damage. She uses faster melee strikes too, so keep your finger near the counter.
The only other thing to be aware of are magic strikes when she’s on the outside of the ring. You should have enough distance to counter those, though. This battle is about careful avoidance and hopping in for a strike when it seems obvious.
Darkside - The Forest Of Thorns: This is very much a classic Darkside battle that Kingdom Hearts fans should know how to handle. Come in fast with melee strikes at his hand that’s not holding the orb and whack at his head. He’ll shower orbs on you, but those can be avoided with standard movement or rolls. When the homing orbs start coming, those can be countered or rolled away from.
The best strategy is to use your attack momentum to rise above the danger below and keep slamming his head when you get the chance. There are lots of obviously open times, so just take advantage of them. Along the path you’ll have some smaller Darkside battles. Approach those similarly.
Darksides And Orbs - Forest Of Thorns: Avoid the fiery orbs that rain down with standard movement, dashes and rolls. Once you get towards the center, start going nuts with melee on the Darkside’s hands. It’s really a very similar and easy fight, until you get him down to his last bar and a half of health.
When you see the obvious signal, move towards the outside of the arena where the ring of beams can’t hit you. If you’re fast enough, he’ll only have time to do that move once. After about 10 seconds or so, the barrage will end and you can go back in for more melee attacks. If you want, you can even use Shotlock on his head.
Demon Tower Encounter 2 - Depths Of Darkness: This battle won’t look pretty but you can win. The best way to handle this swarm is to hammer on the melee and use Spellweaver when you can. Try to position the finishing move so that it’s right where the tower is clustered. You might be able to use a Shotlock or a Link when close to Mickey, but the main thing is to use lots of Curaga and potions while you go in for hits. The longer you let this thing loose, the more annoying it gets.
Demon Tide - Destiny Islands: The Demon Tide is basically a super version of the Demon Tower, so you should go in with the same expectations. You’re going to take lots of hits and need lots of potions. In the early goings, our best strategy is to use Thunder magic so you can hit it while it circles around you. If you get ahead of where the wave starts, you’ll also have enough time for a Shotlock. There’s not a ton you can do defensively, except counter when it comes in for a piledriver attack. However, even then, you’ll still take hits from stray Heartless. Naturally you’ll find yourself in the center of the Tide. Take the damage while getting attacks in.
Once you get about three quarters of its health down, the Tide will circle around an orb. When that happens, go straight after it with melee as soon as it forms. Use your Link command with Mickey too, because he should be right near you.
The final phase is flat-out ridiculous. Start by jamming on counter as best you can. Eventually, you’ll see a break in the cluster where you can jump inside. Do so, taking as many hits you can possibly sustain. If you have to, you can get a pretty safe distance while your magic recharges. Some orbs may rain down on you, but those can be avoided with movement. Shotlocks can also work from far away too. If you take your time and occasionally dive in for big chunks of damage, you’ll survive. Enjoy the reward after the credits. You’re done!
Kingdom Hearts 2.8 is available now on PS4. Read our review and additional guides for Zodiac Relics and Objectives.
What do you think of the boss battles in Kingdom Hearts 2.8? Were they too cheap to be fun, or did you like the repetition? Tell us in the comments section!
