The Best Aquatic Monsters In Resident Evil, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• Aquatic monsters in Resident Evil are diverse, from infected animals to human-created beasts hiding beneath the surface.
• These creatures provide some of the scariest and most memorable boss encounters throughout the franchise.
• From Irving’s transformation in RE5 to Moreau’s sea creature form in Village, these aquatic foes offer intense battles.

Throughout the long-running Resident Evil franchise, Chris, Leon, Jill, and the rest of the main protagonists have come up against numerous bio-organic weapons during their adventures. Most of these enemies will appear in plain view for players to see when they encounter them, but this isn’t always the case, since there have always been some aquatic monsters who prefer to hide beneath the surface, only lunging out when they’re ready to attack.

A lot of the time, these sorts of enemies will be water-based animals who have been infected with a virus, transforming them into hideous beasts. On other occasions though, it can be that a human turns themselves into a giant aquatic creature in order to have an advantage against their foe when surrounded by a pool of water. Either way, it’s time to look at the very best aquatic-based monsters from the Resident Evil games based on their memorability, and how fun they were to encounter.

8 Ricardo Irving

Irving Turns From A Cowardly Arms Dealer To A Giant Aquatic Monster In Mere Seconds

Irving doesn’t start off as the long-limbed kraken-like B.O.W he would eventually become. In fact, for much of Resident Evil 5, he is a timid and cowardly arms dealer who is constantly mocking Chris and Sheva while hiding behind a mysterious masked figure for protection. By the time they finally catch up to Irving though, he decides to inject himself and turn into a hideous monster which immediately launches itself into the sea.

Thankfully, Chris and Sheva just so happen to find themselves on a cruiser that has been fitted with gatling guns, resulting in a hectic boss fight where players must aim for the glowing spots located along Irving’s scaly surface. The unusually freaky design, paired with the spectacle of the fight makes this one of Resident Evil 5’s more memorable boss encounters overall.

7 HAOS

A Humanoid Behemoth Who Lurks Within An Underwater Facility

HAOS is a B.O.W. that can only be encountered at the very end of Chris’ campaign in Resident Evil 6. Though this humanoid creature can function on land, it was specifically placed in an underwater facility to facilitate its growth, and since it possesses large tentacles sprouting from its body, it would have no problem moving through the open seas if it were ever unleashed.

HAOS’ size makes it one of the strongest monsters in all of Resident Evil. As a result, the only way Chris and Piers can even escape its grasp is by the latter injecting himself with the C-virus to deal the smallest amount of damage so Chris can get away in an escape pod. The sheer number of bosses in Resident Evil 6’s multiple campaigns means HAOS sometimes goes under the radar, but as far as aquatic monsters go, it still deserves a shout-out for its ghoulish appearance and how difficult it was for the protagonists to take down for good.

6 Moreau

Moreau Uses His Swamp To Outmaneuver Ethan While In His Grotesque Sea-Monster Form

Unlike the other three lords in Village who all have very fancy and well-put-together home bases, Moreau can be found residing in a dank and dirty swamp which is packed full of obstacles and debris for Ethan to navigate through. The peculiar choice of setting does make a lot more sense when uncovering Moreau’s true form though, a grotesque sea creature capable of moving through the waters at terrifying speeds.

As a result, Ethan is put in a pretty dire situation when the fight with Moreau begins, forcing players to carefully time when they move between each scaffolding to avoid becoming Moreau’s next snack. This is without a doubt one of the creepiest designs for an aquatic creature that Resident Evil has ever produced, but it also gains bonus points for the intense boss fight which makes good use of water traversal and light puzzles.

5 Hunter Gamma

The Hunter Gamma Resides In Deep Waters Before Striking Its Prey Unexpectedly

The Hunter Gamma is an alternative form of the original Hunter which is designed for aquatic environments. Therefore, they can mostly be found lurking around in pools of water or appearing in the sewers underneath Raccoon City. While some of them possess long arms to help them catch their prey, others will simply charge at Jill and try to eat her whole with their gigantic mouths.

Not only do they look incredibly unnerving, but the Hunter Gamma’s tough skin and surprising speed also make them one of the most formidable opponents Jill comes across throughout Resident Evil 3. They may not be quite as popular as the original Hunters, but the Hunter Gamma is still a memorable enemy from both the original Resident Evil 3 and its remake.

4 Malacoda

The Biggest B.O.W In The Series Could Have Destroyed Entire Cities If It Reached Land

For much of Resident Evil Revelations, players will journey through a huge ship called the Queen Zenobia, though nobody could have ever expected on a first playthrough that one of the final bosses of the game would be a creature even bigger than the ship itself. Malacoda, the largest B.O.W. in the entire series, is a worm-like parasite that sprouts out from the ocean to try and take down the BSAA for good.

What’s most disturbing about this sea-based monstrosity is that it continues growing indefinitely, meaning if Chris and Jill hadn’t stopped it in its tracks, it may have one day reached the surface and spread chaos across the entire world. The size of this beast, alongside its terrifying design, and the epic battle that accompanies it, results in it being one of the very best aquatic creatures players will face in any of the games.

3 Giant Alligator

Alligators Can Already Be Scary Enough, But Making One Triple The Size Increases The Scare Factor Considerably

The Giant Alligators is a ferocious boss enemy that appears not long after players make their way to the sewers in Resident Evil 2. Seemingly out of nowhere, this gigantic semi-aquatic creature will lunge towards Leon, trying to snap him in two while also navigating its cumbersome body through the sewers’ cramped corridors.

While the design is certainly something to behold, another reason the giant alligator stands out is just how unexpected it is. Though there are a few small hints something big is lurking beneath the surface of Raccoon City, seeing this thing come around the corner with no warning is enough to scare the pants off even the most seasoned horror veterans.

2 Neptune

A Slightly More Normal-Looking Aquatic Enemy Which Is Still Utterly Terrifying

It’s hard to ever forget the moment when Neptune attempts to crash through the glass while trying to drain the water in the first Resident Evil game. While Neptune may look fairly normal when compared to the other aquatic monsters that appear in the series, it’s primarily because he was deemed to be a failure by the scientists who experimented on him with the Clay Virus.

Nonetheless, it clearly made him much more hostile and aggressive, as apparent by how adamantly he will try to reach the player by any means necessary, even if it ends up harming its own body in the process. In order for players to get rid of him for good, they will need to interact with a few panels before finally electrocuting the big brute once and for all.

1 Del Lago

Del Lago Is A Prime Example Of How Parasites Can Transform Innocent Animals Into Unrecognizable Monstrosities

Believe it or not, the gigantic sea creature Leon encounters when trying to cross the village lake was little more than a salamander at one point in time. Once Saddler and his cult members infested the village and its inhabitants with Las Plagas though, the infection spread to the wildlife, with this particular salamander becoming an enormous version of its former self with razor-sharp teeth, and one hell of an appetite.

It’s even shown early in the game that the villagers will occasionally feed Del Lago dead corpses in an attempt to quell its hunger. Del Lago becomes one of the trickiest bosses in Resident Evil 4 as players must try to take it down with a barrage of harpoons while it drags Leon’s tiny boat around an obstacle course. It’s a creature that stands out not only for its size but also because it’s a prime example of the kind of how the viruses and infections seen in the series can mutate innocent animals beyond recognition.