As a dejected reviewer rightly pointed out, each and every boss in AoA is a Mont Blanc-sized difficulty spike, and a Wake-Up Call Boss in and out of itself. Now, why zero in on the Gargantuan Killer? Well, although I may well craft a full Boss Eradication feature one of these days, I have to start with GK and expand on that fight. Not only was the progressive way I figured out how to beat that boss deeply satisfying, but the stages I went through perfectly matched that whole pattern of wonderment and discovery I have going on with AoA.
Stage 1: Okay, now I’m quitting
When I faced GK for the first time, it took exactly five seconds for my whole team to kick the bucket, leaving me gaping at the screen and trying to understand what the heck just happened. I went at it again a couple of times, and finally managed to understand how fights unrolled. GK shoots uber powerful long-range laser beams at me, whilst a hive of minor foes fire blaster shots in every direction — all this while puffs of icy air are hanging around the place and eating away at my team’s HP. A tough predicament all right, that!
So tough, actually, that I seriously thought of quitting. I had already entertained such thoughts upon facing the preceding boss, the Laser Tank; but it was much stronger this time, as the apparent gap between my team and GK was much, much wider. But then, forgotten feelings from my younger gaming years awoke: a mix of powerlessness, puzzlement and excitement, giving way to an intense desire to beat the crap out of that seemingly indestructible pest of a boss. In a nutshell, I was riled up, and I vowed to eradicate GK if that was the last thing I did.
Stage 2: Let’s grind, shall we?
My first strategy was simple, and very true to myself: to grind, folks. It had worked nicely with Laser Tank: whilst I struggled at first, a couple of extra levels allowed me to beat the thing comfortably. I proceeded to use the same trick, and grinded until my whole team was Lv. 60.
I’d like to claim that it made all the difference in the world; but the harsh truth is that it didn’t change jack sh*t. My team was sent packing just as fast at Lv. 60 than at Lv. 50, leaving me thinking that a couple of extra levels weren’t going to do the trick this time. I’d probably need to grind 20 to 30 more levels before being able to resist GK’s deadly attacks — and heck, even my serial grinder’s mind balked at the thought. Those 10 levels were already tedious enough to gain, with areas being so wide and foes not respawning; racking up 30 more levels would totally have terminated my love story with AoA.
Stage 3: Broadening my strategies
If levels weren’t enough, I had to find ways to alleviate all the issues I had with that fight. First was that darn cold air that sapped my HP; surely there was a way to get rid of that annoyance, right? I had already spotted another area in the Abyssal Valley sporting those same puffs of cold air, and I decided to experiment there. A survey of the place revealed suspicious-looking structures that looked like empty braziers; I Lunageared them with the Fire Orb, and bingo! The cold air was suddenly gone, leaving my HP bar in peace. I had spotted the same brazier-like contraptions at the boss arena; and so, the cold air issue was virtually solved.
The second issue was GK’s cursed long-range laser beam, which was a sure-fire fight ender. I reasoned that the best course of action was to stay mobile at all times, and to stop solely to unleash Fire Lunagear shots (GK’s elemental weakness) and special attacks before dashing again. Then, I would have to make do with my healing items, and try to stay alive long enough for my item use and special attack gauges to refill.
Stage 4: The money shot
Armed with that newfound understanding of GK’s showdown, I went at it again. I first dashed at the braziers and Lunageared them, before turning my attention to GK. As one fateful dodge brought me literally at its feet, I discovered something mightily unexpected: its shooting range didn’t include its own personal space. Its laser didn’t bend towards the ground beyond a 45-degree angle, which meant that I was totally safe as long as I stayed glued to it. A couple of Fire Orb shots and combos later, GK was no more, leaving me free to reach the next area at long last. Mind you, that fight was still no walk in the park: my crew survived with a mere quarter of their HP bars, and I hurriedly retreated to the base to heal and save my hard-earned progress.
I just love how utterly clever and logical that whole setting was. It makes perfect sense that a laser beam should have limited firing angles, and one should be able to reason that a foe that rock at long-range attacks has to be less competent at melee. Yet at the same time, the fight is set in a way that makes you want to stay as far from GK as possible. No matter how prepared you are, you will be obliterated in a matter of seconds upon entering the arena for the first time; that will instantly cast GK as a formidable and deadly foe that you certainly don’t want to get up close and personal with. Approaching GK enough to realise his glaring range shortcomings is either a matter of trying any tactic you can think of, or a matter of pure serendipity; and yet, once you’ve done so, you realise that said shortcomings were totally predictable all along.
It’s been a long time since an RPG boss fight has been such a rollercoaster of emotions — from the initial daze and near-despair to the riling-up and plotting, up until the intense relief and satisfaction of victory. This is the true essence of an RPG boss fight: to stumble, to be challenged, to despair a bit, and to rack your brain and switch tactics until you finally emerge victorious. Now, I’d lie if I said I wanted every single RPG boss to deliver that kind of hardcore experience; but to get it once in a while is mighty fine by me. I sure didn’t expect AoA, of all games, to feature such a fight; and I can only hope that the game will surprise me more before I’m done with it. Until I come back with more gaming goodness, dear fellow gamers, keep playing and take care!
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