1998’s Resident Evil 2 is home to one of the best sets of bosses in survival horror history. Like with the original game, Resident Evil 2 Remake does a fantastic job of building up William through his G Stage fights. Of the eight major boss fights in the game, G makes up five. That’s a lot to repeat a boss, but each stage is a completely new encounter with its own gimmick and challenge.
The remake of the second game is a bit more debatable in whether it lives up to the title of the original regarding the boss fights. However, the combat is so good, and the bosses are so well-designed that, in general, it’s hard not to have fun in every single boss encounter.
Updated on March 24, 2026, by Ben Jessey: After the release of Resident Evil Requiem, we’ve been thinking about some of the other Resident Evil games. As a result, we now feel differently about the bosses in the RE2 Remake, so we’ve returned to our ranking of them to make some adjustments.
8
Infected Sewer Alligator
Raccoon City’s Gators Are Built Different
The infected gator lurking in Raccoon City’s sewers is a returning set piece in the 2019 remake, with updated graphics to make this giant t-Virus beast even more frightening. The boss fight is far from your traditional Resident Evil encounter, yet more suspenseful, designed as a linear chase sequence in which Leon trudges through sewer water while an alligator lunges and clamps its jaws mere inches away.
Resident Evil Villains, Ranked
There are plenty of fantastic villains in the Resident Evil series. Here is how all the main ones stack up!
This is an easier mini-boss section if you keep a solid pace, don’t stumble, and successfully dodge the alligator’s wide mouth as it closes in on you. Eventually, the alligator will lock its jaws on a flammable tank, which you’ll explode with a weapon in order to blow the gator into chunks.
It isn’t really much of a fight. It’s more of a set-piece, which hurts its overall appeal compared to the game’s more dynamic bosses. The alligator itself is very terrifying, though, so the sequence at least gets your heart racing.
7
Mr. X
X Gon’ Give It To Ya
Mr. X is a scary boss for multiple reasons, including the fact that he can’t be killed. However, once again, he’s not the typical boss you’d face in a Resident Evil game.
Mr. X stalks you in the halls and rooms of the Raccoon Police Department, a tall and menacing Tyrant bullet sponge who would deplete your health significantly upon colliding with him. Your goal is to outrun him and get to the areas you need without taking severe damage, which is a tough challenge.
He’s definitely menacing, but as a boss, he loses appeal because you don’t have a proper boss fight with him until he becomes a Super Tyrant, which is technically a different boss (more on him later). Any fights you do have are impromptu, meaning there is not a lot to them. It’s just you shooting at a guy who can’t be defeated.
6
G5
What In The Dead Space Is That?
Final bosses should be a highlight of any game, but G5 doesn’t really offer much as far as ‘fights’ go. It’s all about what’s left of William trying to get closer to the protagonists and consume them.
It makes G5 a rather underwhelming way to end the game, but it does make sense to some degree, though, since you will have naturally exhausted most of your ammo. By unloading into G5 with Leon or Claire’s little remaining ammo, you can then knife G5 once he reveals his eyeball. So long as you time it right, G5 should go down in three to four swings.
Despite being lackluster from a battle standpoint, it is still a strong set-piece. There is a great sense of urgency and desperation as you unleash all you have left into the creature, hoping it’s enough to stop them.
5
G2
William Birkin Gets A Conjoined Nemesis Twin
Here’s a quick, easy way to kill G2 as Leon: toss a flash grenade at him, spray him with fire, toss another, spray him again. If you hit the crane’s button shortly after stunning William and then again as soon as it becomes available, G2 will be knocked off the platform in one go, ending the fight and saving you a ton of ammo.
It’s not as methodically easy for Claire, but it’s still simple enough to get done. There’s no real reason to unload ammo either, as two rounds will be enough to knock G2 off. Just dodge, be patient, and he’ll go down easily.
So, the G2 version of Birkin isn’t the most challenging boss you encounter. That said, there is still a lot of like about him and this battle. For starters, the beginning sequence is filled with tension, as he is smashing through the ceiling trying to get to you while the room gets engulfed in flames. The usage of the crane adds a nice element to the fight, too, since you have to use a bit of strategy to get him into the right place to be hit.
4
G1
The Rare Case Where The First Form Is Scarier Than The Others
Running into William for the first time is overwhelming as either Leon or Claire. He comes out of nowhere and immediately jumps you, thrusting you into one of the tensest boss fights in the game.
You will most likely need to rely on your handgun to take out William’s eyeballs, and needing to use such a weak gun so early in the game makes for a very memorable fight. It’s worth noting, however, that Claire has an easier time overall as her Grenade Launcher is better suited for boss fights.
G1 is one of the best fights in the game. He slowly follows you around, and letting him linger for too long results in him quietly hunting you. It’s genuinely frightening, and the boss arena’s tight corridors make each turn a matter of Fine or Caution.
3
G3
A G-Virus Four-Arm Monstrosity With No Remnants Of Birkin
Although Claire can utterly decimate G3 with her Acid Rounds, he’s intended to be one of the more challenging battles in the game. G3 is William at his near sturdiest. He can take damage, dish damage, and he will kill Leon or Claire if you let their guard down for even a second. Just keep a steady aim and don’t stand still for too long. He’s aggressive, but he does let his guard down every now and again.
Leon, especially, will need to make sure he’s hitting William’s eyes to actually fell him with ammo to spare. It’s also worth noting that Leon’s first scenario is the only scenario where G3 marks the last time you fight William. The three other scenarios either include G4 or G5, or, in the case of Claire’s second scenario, both.
There is a great simplicity to this fight, with no gimmicks or special weapons. In fact, even the battleground is just a wide-open space, filled with supplies. Therefore, it feels like a fair one-on-one battle against a hulking beast. This makes it feel very epic.
2
Super Tyrant
Late in the game, the sharp-dressed Mr. X becomes the shirtless Super Tyrant. This time, there is no running from him. You must face him fair and square… for a few minutes until Ada throws you a Rocket Launcher. If you managed your ammo well enough, you should have more than enough to survive until Ada helps, but this can be a damning fight otherwise.
You only need to survive for a minute and a half, but Mr. X hits hard as the Super Tyrant. Even with an R+G+B herb mix, he can take Leon from Fine to near Danger with a single swipe. He’s a boss where you must either dodge or must have enough healing to survive the onslaught in their path. If there’s one thing holding back this fight, it’s the fact that you don’t really need to fight back.
After spending an entire game running from Mr. X, there’s something incredibly cathartic about facing off against him once and for all in both of Leon’s scenarios. The battle isn’t very long, which hurts its appeal a bit. Yet, the feeling that you could be wiped out any second adds some welcome tension to the skirmish.
1
G4
Resident Evil 2’s Bitores Mendez Licker Hybrid Boss
Claire’s final boss in her first run is as good as Resident Evil 2’s bosses get. At this point in the game, G3 will surely have drained all of Claire’s Acid Rounds, leaving you to rely on other weaponry.
Thankfully, there’s a minigun lying around, but even all of its ammo isn’t enough to fell G4. What’s worse, William goes utterly manic as G4, climbing around, dropping down, and lunging from just about everywhere. At the end of the fight, he’ll desperately drag himself on the floor, following Claire around the arena. At this stage, his convenient eyeball weak points are getting harder and harder to hit.
The inclusion of the mini-gun gives this fight a boost simply because it’s a very fun weapon to use. On top of that, the duel involves a nice bit of challenge. Getting hits on his weak points and avoiding his attacks isn’t easy. Also, the train car elevator makes for a unique, dynamic battlefield where you can use the car as strategic cover.
Resident Evil: Every Playable Character’s Age, Height, And Birthday
Capcom’s Resident Evil series has featured many playable characters, some of which are iconic. Here are all of their ages, heights, and birthdays.
