What makes a good bossfight?

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

Really, it depends on the setting. For example, what makes for an awesome boss fight in an RPG wouldn't work so well in an FPS. However, one thing that stays constant is a feeling of "holy cow, this is going to be awesome!". Some examples, showing how it differs for me between genres.

1. Solomon Grundy in Batman: Arkham City- This boss fight was awesome to me, because here I am, as the goddamn Batman[sup]tm[/sup], and I'm fighting, on even ground, with an 11 foot tall undead monstrosity. The feeling of dread, combined with excitement, really made it stand out.

2. First Ridley Prime battle in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption- This one stood out to me because of the sheer scale of it. There you are, as bounty hunter Samus Aran, in a powersuit, but still human (well, somewhat), fighting against a dragon-like enemy, completely in free-fall. That was just an adrenaline rush.

3. Dhoulmagus in Dragon Quest VIII- This one is a bit different. It wasn't the scale of the battle, but rather, a feeling that all the battles, all the fighting, everything, had led up to this moment, and feeling like the fate of the world hinged on my winning this fight, against an opponent that was not going to go down easy, and was in fact tougher than any boss up to that point.

Spoiler: Dragon Quest VIII spoiler

He wasn't the final boss, but to a first time player, it really felt like he was.

 

[DragonStorm247]

The specifics will often vary, but I find a good boss fight usually incorporates at least two characteristics:

One, the battle usually requires use of a skill or knowledge learned previously in the level/game, almost like an exam. A good example of this would be any Legend of Zelda game, where you find a new item in a dungeon, and then the next boss fight requires you to successfully use said item. Even Portal 2 incorporated the knowledge aspect somewhat with recalling information about moon dust, which I though was a nice touch.

Two, the battle should have a relatively cinematic feel to it. It should function as the climax in the action arc. This the reason why you get crappy boss fights sometimes (Halo 3, Skyrim, among others): they fail to significantly distinguish themselves from the rest of the game and subsequently feel lackluster or disappointing. Inversely, you don't want to make EVERY encounter in the game as cinematic; for example in D&D 4.0 the level of detail and description present in combat fits fighting a fully frown dragon, but if the game engages in a two hour slugfest every time a pair of rats crawls into the room, players will be well sick of it by the time they reach that boss fight.

 

[rob_simple]

I like bosses that let you choose your own strategy to defeat them, and each choice is as valid as the other (can't think of an example right now).

I hate boss fights that only have a single method of dispatch, so I can stand and hit it with everything I've got and it'll do nothing because first I had to hit a switch that would blind the enemy with light or whatever.

 

[In Search of Username]

Basically being in Metal Gear Solid. Or Shadow of the Colossus. Those games had the best boss fights.

 

[F'Angus]

Depends on the game, for example I loved Borderlands boss fights because they were just plain meatheads that needed taking down. Although I also love MGS bosses because you had to outsmart them to beat them.

Both fit the style of the game.

 

[Crazycat690]

- Well, one thing is a visible healthbar, I hate when in games there's a huge boss monster and I can't see if my attacks are actually doing anything. I don't remember any specific games but I remember that in some games I've wasted all my ammo into a monster (or whatever) and though "hmm, so obviously this is not how to defeat the boss..", I try again looking for some other way of defeating the boss, but don't find anything and I finally look it up on the internet where I see that you're simply supposed to shoot it until it dies. This one is almost the most important one for me...

- I want the battle to last for some time, hopefully to some epic battlemusic. It shouldn't take too long though, enough to build up your victory, but before you get sick of the boss.

- Make it somewhat dynamic, I hate bosses which makes you memorize some specific pattern before they can be defeated, it's not a test of skill when you encounter that boss one time and he pulls some random shit out his ass. Not that a boss with patterns is bad, I'm just saying that the battle shouldn't be ABOUT the patterns.

- It must be a good boss, the character, the battle may be well made but unless the boss himself is either awesome or built up throughout the game you won't have a good time. Deus Ex HR, great game, bad bosses, the fights were very badly designed but IMO the worst thing about them was that you knew nothing about them, you get more story from them from trailers than you do in the actual game. They might as well be an extra tough guard for all I care, they're quite bland and uninteresting, making the bossbattle so much worse.

Games I think has gotten this right, the MGS games and Gta4 (and RDR). The MGS games have always had fun boss fights and they're always presented in smart ways, overall they all feel epic and most importantly, they test your skill. I also said Gta4, strange huh? That game got no traditional boss battle, no, but it does have bosses! And I like the few there are since the "boss" is well built up, the battle is leanghty and they have a special feeling, winning gives you satisfaction.

 

[Fidelias]

I like bossfights that allow you to use EVERY gameplay mechanic to defeat them. That's why I liked the Saren Bossfight. You could use every ability, every weapon, and it would work on him. None of that "But the effect failed" crap.

That's why I hate almost every fighting game. It's real fun up until the boss, then they take away gameplay mechanics to try to make the boss seem more difficult, when it's really just a cheap way to make it feel more epic than it is.

That's why I hate Shao Kahn in Mortal combat. The only reason why he's tough is because they took away knockback and gave him cheap moves.

 

[Sexy Devil]

Somewhat more challenging than usual, forces you to use a wide range of abilities while still giving you options, gives you some wiggle room to figure out tactics without forcing you to start the whole damn fight all over again for not knowing what to do momentarily.

So basically I wish every boss fight was Mr. Freeze from Arkham City.

 

[Mint Rubber]

Inflated HP bars and insta-gib attacks are overrated. In my opinion a boss fight turns really interesting when the boss pulls out moves and tricks that are only available to the player up to that point.

From the top of my head a good example would be the Empress in Prince of Persia: Warrior Within. She uses advanced counter blocks, coup-de-grace when you're down and not quick enough and most importantly she can slow down time in the same way the prince does - in fact you have to use your own slow-mo to fight her in normal time. I'd put this fight in my hardest boss fight list as well.

Surprise bosses are also a good idea as long as they're foreshadowed or explained to my satisfaction. The Witcher does this admirably with the King of the Wild Hunt.

 

[KoudelkaMorgan]

I think we can boil it down to 3:
- attack patterns
- weaknesses and strengths
- multiple stages (each stage changing patterns and weaknesses)

Absurd amounts of health and QTE is just lazy bullshit for devs who don't want to do the work properly.

This. I want to be the one that figures out how to beat the boss, or do it in a way perhaps not expected by the developer. In games like Lord's of Shadow, I'm basically "oh look a giant, and there is a big spike over there. How do I go about getting the button prompt to pop up that makes him impale himself on it? yawn."

Considering that there are plenty of games where every enemy DOESN'T explode into gibbets after a button mashing QTE, and people still play them, IDK why so many others insist on making EVERY enemy into a mini cutscene upon death.

 

[OpticalJunction]

When it doesn't become a grind. The boss should ideally change tactics or switch up the dialogue throughout the fight, so it feels like you're progressing. I hate those games where your only indication of progress against a boss is a gradually decreasing health bar. That is fine for ordinary enemies, but the boss should really offer a more substantial and interesting challenge.

 

[Ryotknife]

It has to invoke some sort of a response from me. Either emotionally or physically. Heart pounding, being at the edge of my seat, or just a desire to beat the crap out of it.

 

[TheScientificIssole]

Dark Souls is who makes good bossfights. Dark Souls has a balance of skill/statistic ability to defeat a boss, and good patterns.

 

[DJ_DEnM]

CoD3: Hang a guy from a roof

I'm gonna assume that's MW3 you're talking about, or MW3 ripped off CoD3's ending.

OT: Something that makes you think "How could that have been better?" and make you realize there was no way.

 

[Draxz]

CoD3: Hang a guy from a roof

I'm gonna assume that's MW3 you're talking about, or MW3 ripped off CoD3's ending.

OT: Something that makes you think "How could that have been better?" and make you realize there was no way.

Woops, my bad =P I meant MW3, just slipped my mind.