Metaphor: ReFantazio has a secret final boss that you probably missed

One of Metaphor: ReFantazio's hardest achievements is locked behind this secret final boss

Metaphor: ReFantazio / Atlus

If you’ve defeated the final boss of Metaphor: ReFantazio and been crowned king then congratulations, as your adventure is over. However, you probably missed something big if you played the game in the optimal way. 

Metaphor: ReFantazio actually has an alternate version of the final boss that you probably missed because it requires you to skip content to reach, but it makes the game’s last battle a lot more challenging and you get an achievement for your efforts. We’ll explain how to unlock Metaphor: ReFantazio’s true final boss so you can put yourself to the ultimate test.

How to unlock Metaphor: ReFantazio’s hidden final boss

Metaphor: ReFantazio / Atlus

On the final day of the game, before you face Louis, you’ll have to fight your way through a short dungeon. In this dungeon, you’ll occasionally find elevators that take you to side areas containing Melancholia Crystals. Each one makes you fight a miniboss before you destroy the crystal, rewarding you with some of Metaphor ReFantazio’s best weapons.

However, these also significantly weaken the final boss. So, to get this secret boss you must not destroy any of the crystals in this dungeon. Simply ignore them and run straight towards your final encounter with Louis.

This version of the boss looks similar to the weaker version but is much more difficult. Not only does it have access to much more powerful attacks, but it gets a whopping eight Turn Icons every round; in fact, for its last action, it will always use Soul Scream, giving it four more Turn Icons, making for a ridiculous 12 actions every round. If you're going to challenge this boss your team needs to be as beefed up as they possibly can, and preferably have high chances of dodging attacks to drain the boss' many Turn Icons quicker.

While the ending of the game doesn't change from beating the weaker version of the final boss, doing it this way is the only way to get the Star Shatterer achievement on Xbox/gold trophy on PlayStation.