Quality vs Quantity in Boss Battles?

Alright, I've been playing InFamous and InFamous 2, and been watching Second Son because I can't afford a PS4 yet. And I noticed something:

The boss battles in InFamous are few, there's only three and I personally think they're some of the best boss battles I fought in. Each demanding strategy, a lot of timing and precision, and focus. InFamous 2 did something different with a lot of boss battles (with bosses returning later to fight as enemies) But not as much though going into the thought process of fighting them. And then Second Son seems to shift back into InFamous boss fighting again.

So, while I played 2, I thought: Which is better? Quality bosses that demand strategy and precision with only a few battles, or a ton of boss fights with less focus on strategy?

Personally, and everyone who has seen my posts about InFamous 2 probably knows this, but I was a huge fan of InFamous boss battles, even though there were few, the thought you had to put into each one really showed through how the game can really screw with your mind. Especially the first and last boss battle.

 

It depends for me. Sometimes, I'm in the mood to fight a long string of bosses one after another. Another time, I want those special, intense boss fights that come every now and then. And you are right Sara. In inFamous: SS, the boss fights are far and few, but very intense (not very mind-screwy though)

I wouldn't say those that have a lot of boss battles require little strategy. I mean, take a look at Dark Souls/2. I don't think anyone would disagree that with a sheer amount of bosses, they require no skill to beat. It just comes down to the developer and/or the player themselves.

 

I am almost always about quality when it comes to boss fights, however there are a few exceptions (dungeon crawlers, etc) where I don't really care and just want to button mash my way through a ton of enemies and eventually find a big one that has "boss status". Other than that, if its a crappy boss fight in a game like Kingdom Hearts, it kind of just kills the mood.

 

I prefer a mix, I like to have boss battles that just require button mashing but I also love the more thought out ones, I haven't played the Infamous series so I will explain it through KH boss battles. I thought the ending boss battles of BBS were brilliant, it took me ages to beat Terranort because you obviously can't hurt him through normal attacks, you have to use commands and I just loved that as it added a different edge to it. The same with then Ven and Vanitas battle when they battle it out in Ven's heart, I can't even remember exactly what it was but it required more specific actions and techniques than others.

I don't really think there are any boss battles in KH that reflect the sort of skill and precision that you are on about Sara (I don't think I have found such a boss battle) but they do sound interesting. I just like boss battles to have a different edge sometimes so they aren't all monotonous button mashing fights. It is so much more satisfying to beat someone like Terranort than Shan Yu and not because of the level you meet them in game.

 

I wouldn't really personally raise up the inFamous bosses to the level of say the Metal Gear Solid series, but whatever floats your boat.

See, the responsible answer is quality. Dur, no one would say quantity and request that games have many, tedious half-assed bosses.

That said, I'd prefer it if it were both. The bosses shouldn't be few and far between- it can almost make the enemy appear weak. I prefer the way Platinum has it down- bosses every chapter and be well designed as well as intriguing. If the head honchos aren't trying to kill you, then they're letting you succeed with your plan, and that's never good to feel.

 

oh yea, that's my favorite fight in the entire game.

for the question, i'd say a balance between the two is ideal.

 

Depends on the game. In a lot of ways, boss battles in the traditional sense are kind of an old style of game designing these days. Not that I'm indicating waves of enemies or no bosses are better, but more that it seems very scripted and is pretty linear in a lot ways. They're not surprising, they appear at the end of a level and move on more than likely. inFamous is a lot like this, appearing to unlock a new power or zone or to end the game on.
I think quality boss battles are ones that, like most aspects of video games, give you freedom to deal with. You know RPGs or Stealth games really experiment well with it. Mass Effect's second to last boss can be convinced to shoot himself, eliminating that battle altogether. Metal Gear Solid allows you to kill or knockout all bosses. One in MGS3 let's you kill a boss hours before the boss battle even occurs, or let that boss die of old age by saving and waiting a week.
Dark/Demon Souls also has a variation of traditional boss concepts with some interesting ideas, even if some seem a bit clunky. However, it pretty much allows you to fight the enemies in whatever order you want, and that choice makes it kick the traditions away.

I like the different ways to solve boss battles in interesting ways, because i'm so use to beating everything to a pulp. Trying to figure out other ways to defeat a boss, well it's just usually more memorable.

Also, Second Son only had one boss battle in two stages if I recall at the end? Oh wait there are a couple more to get the new powers. I would say only the last boss is interesting, the first was pretty plain whilst the second reminded me of a Saints Row 3 boss. Nothing memorable.

 

I meant more like...

Spoiler

The battle with Sasha and Kessler, where he's appearing in front of your screen and/or blurring your screen while playing mind games. Between that and the limited field and/or tar to deal with on most of the ground, or water which is a death sentence in InFamous. That's what I meant when I meant quality. They're small, but have a huge amount of thought put into them and strategy the player needs to use, at least for me.

And yeah, Second Son was better than 2 in my opinion, but lacked in a lot of the things that didn't make it as good as InFamous. The boss battles I did like more, they really seemed thought out, especially the second, it actually made me feel like I was playing another game inside a game. But the first wasn't as good as I felt it could be boss wise, and the last part was pretty good, but nowhere near as good as InFamous, in my opinion.