Good evening everybody! This is Aifos coming to you alive from the forsaken city of Karst! Ah, the red moon's light reflecting ff the water, a murderous witch lurking around, a curse looming over the kingdom, perfect place for a Halloween vacation, don't'cha think Kaho?
Kaho: "What are you talking about..?"
I'm talking about bosses! Who doesn't love a good ole fashionec boss fight? One on one, against an enemy woth a health pool several times larger than your own!
Boss fights have been a staple in gaming for as long as I remember. As such, bosses have been handled in countless different ways.
[u]This particular thread is about how & when bosses appear, and is about linear games only.[/u]
With that out of the way, let me put on my poll making hat, and list the options in the spoilers below!
(for the pupose of this thread, assume the bosses of whatever option choses are made well)
Perfect attendees;
[spoiler]A boss, or at least miniboss, will appear after [i]every[/i] single level, with optional bosses & minobosses sometimes adding more than one boss per level.
For an example, see Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight.[/spoiler]
World-Watchers;
[spoiler]Bosses appear at the end of each "world" or "zone", usually unlocking the way to the next one. Minobosses & optional bosses sometimes appear earlier.
For an example, see the Kirby franchise.[/spoiler]
Final Showdowns;
[spoiler]A single boss will appear at the end of the game, nowhere else. These games usually have no optional or minibosses, either.
For an example, see the early Mario Bros. games.[/spoiler]
Irregulars
[spoiler]Bosses appear at irregular intervals. Sometimes you'll have 1 boss in a world, the next you'll have a boss on every level. Sometimes, the game can even be entirely bosses, or only have a boss at the beginning.
For an example, see Cuphead.[/spoiler]
[b][u]Tl;dr? Here's my point![/u][/b]
Read the spoilers, and choise your favorite boss format!
My answer:
[spoiler]I like to fight a boss every level. I like when boss fights and levels are balanced like that, because it gives a wide variety for whichever I'm in the mood for.[/spoiler]
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Irregular I wanna be surprised by seeing a boss appear out of nowhere
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1 ReplyFinal show downs are my least favorite
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1 ReplyEdited by AzureOrpheus718: 10/15/2017 3:22:17 AMAnother good world-watcher example would be Undertale (generally a miniboss and a final big boss in each area. Exception is New Home) Or Persona 5, what with the Infiltration and Calling Card phases leading up to the big bozo.
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1 ReplyIt’s impossible to pick because it depends entirely on how the game is presented and played. I don’t prefer one over the other because each method can work great as long as the game and how it plays allows it to be great.
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irregular, shadows of Colossus ftw.
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1 ReplyI'd say either world watchers, for the narrative of them being all that's left after you've torn through the defenses, or irregulars in the sense that they appear as the story demands or can just be run into under the right conditions.
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1 ReplyYou forgot the boss gauntlet. Nothing but bosses.
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3 RepliesIrregulars. I like to be surprised when i face a boss. If i face one every level at the endI'm just like "oh look, another boss". If i face one in intervals its basically the same. If i haven't faced one in some time it gets me amped kick their ass, and die a few times trying to figure a strategy.
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1 ReplyWorld watchers. The kind with lots of mini bosses to get you prepped up for the final fight of the zone.
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1 ReplyEdited by GTLargo21: 10/14/2017 2:04:21 PMJust felt I should point out that classic Mario games go more in the world watchers category rather than final boss. There's usually world bosses and sometimes minibosses. Anyway, my answer is all of the above. As long as it's not some shoehorned fight with no context as to why its happening... or that the boss isn't terribly designed.