It’s clear to me that either my poll questions are lousy or no one really has any interest in participating in the polls, because for the last couple of weeks, I’ve had meager responses. And that’s fine. So I’ve decided to make these polls monthly, and this first poll I’m bringing over from my article at Games Are Evil, where I question the necessity of boss fights at all.
Depending on the game, I don’t mind boss fights. In the case of one game I’m playing now, Mass Effect, I really don’t mind them because they are implemented well. The types of boss fights that I hate are those that are giant time sinks. You know, the ones that take several minutes to chip away at their health bars or those that morph into multiple phases with no save points (sometimes, no checkpoints either).
I understand the need for boss fights, but I just don’t think that as a whole they are presented well. There are so many instances where a boss fight makes little sense, and it’s quite obvious the developer needed some padding or they couldn’t think of a better way to spice up the gameplay.
I’m about halfway through Mass Effect, and so far, every boss fight has been my ideal. Bosses come in at specific plot points. They aren’t there for mindless and frustrating leveling up. It actually makes sense why you have to fight them right there and then. And best of all, they don’t take longer than a couple of minutes to defeat.
So strategy guide-loving community, do you love or hate boss fights?
I really don’t mind them — I guess I’m just used to them, but I’m with you on time sinks. They’re just not fun in general.
A game that really gets boss fights right, though, is Shadow Of The Colossus. 16 of the greatest boss fights in gaming.