Phantom Ganon (Ocarina of Time)

In one of Ocarina of Time’s more atmospheric boss encounters, you fight the Forest Temple boss in a shadowy room, its walls bedecked with paintings. Suddenly, behind you appears the “Evil Spirit from Beyond,” a ghostly echo of your nemesis astride a horse, who goes charging into one of those very paintings, ominous laughter echoing in the air.

It’s not just the eeriness of this battle that makes it so memorable, though. Once you’ve shot him a few times, he faces you head-on and sends out energy orbs that you must deflect back. It wasn’t the first time a Zelda boss incorporated this basic idea—A Link to the Past’s Agahnim required you to send his bolts back at him, too—but Phantom Ganon will sometimes send them back at you again, resulting in tennis-like volleys in which you have to keep up the pressure until he finally misses a step. It’s fast, intense, and just plain cool. — Carolyn Petit