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Do bosses make or break a dungeon for you?

Dungeons are what most people look forward to when playing a Zelda game, they love solving the puzzles and soaking up the refreshing atmosphere. They enjoy the battles and the feeling of progress as they inch towards that boss door....

And then they get there, unlock the boss door and step inside...

I'd say most bosses in Zelda are memorable and in a good way, though there are some who stick in my mind just because they suck. Bosses are often something to look forward to and often we don't even know what the boss is going to be until it reveals itself.

But after pushing through a well designed dungeon only to be met with a rather sucky boss, how does that impact your feelings upon the dungeon as a whole?

Likewise if you trudge through a rather uninspired dungeon and are then met with an exhilarating boss fight, does it make you feel better about the dungeon?

In short, do boss battles make or break a dungeon for you?
 

Link Floyd

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Not really. If a dungeon has awesome puzzles but a sucky boss, it doesn't really bother me too much. Disappointing, yes, but it doesn't ruin the entire dungeon experience for me.
 
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I consider them pretty distinct experiences. Case in point, TP: awesome dungeons, poor bosses; neither one dilutes the other.

IMO, a bad boss won't ruin a good dungeon (Stone Tower Temple), nor will a good boss redeem a bad dungeon (Jabu Jabu comes to mind), but a frustrating boss will make a frustrating dungeon singnificantly more frustrating, i.e. the Great Bay Temple.
 

InsomniacAttack

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Not at all. Twinmold is a pretty awful boss but the Stone Tower Temple is my favorite in the series. If a dungeon presents good atmosphere, puzzles, and music, then the boss hardly matters. Also, I noticed that dungeons with bad bosses generally have good mini-bosses for some reason.
 
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Well they don't ruin them for me but a challenging and fun boss fight can make a great dungeon more memorable(Stallord) or a dungeon I dislike better (Gyorg Pair). A bad boss can come as a disappointment after a fantastic dungeon (Twinmold) or make a dungeon I dislike even more annoying (Moldarach)
 

SavageWizzrobe

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In the grand scheme of things, the boss doesn't really affect my opinion of a dungeon. The dungeon's puzzles, item, and music are big factors in my enjoyment of a dungeon. I can name both dungeons I don't like with good boss fights (Snowhead Temple in MM) and dungeons that I love with mediocre boss fights (Sandship in SS).
 

Djinn

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Not within a Zelda game, but I have come across some frustrating puzzle bosses in other games that did cause me to rethink ever replaying a game again. Zelda has a couple annoying ones but typically it's hit a red thing on a tail or a tongue then slash with a sword three times.

I was also really not a fan of the God of War button push combo bosses. I want to hack and slash in my hack and slash adventure games. Not memorize complex button sequences based on where a character is in their animation.
 

Shroom

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Somewhat. A dungeon can be great without a good boss and vice-versa, but I think a great boss is a nice bonus.
 

Mercedes

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I don't think it ruins the entire dungeon, but it can be very disappointing when you go through all that effort for a really boring, easy Boss Fight. Not that any Zelda Boss is particularly hard, though, Dark Souls has very much desensitized me to that notion, but it is a disappointment. Don't tend to dwell on it though, because I only spent 5 minutes on the Boss and hours in the dungeon!
 

Dio

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The boss is the reward for me after doing a dungeon, after doing those puzzles I need a good fight with something big. There is only one dissapointing boss and that is Tentalus. Just because it looked so stupid, and it only caps off a dungeon I didn't like. I have heard people like the sand ship but I don't share this like. I thought it was a pretty dull and brown dungeon.
 

TheRizardon

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After going through a dungeon, only to fight a bad boss at the end, is really disappointing to me. This is because after solving puzzles and finding all the extra goodies, if there are any, I expect a really good boss battle to top it off. It doesn't ruin the entire dungeon experience for me, though, because I still had fun with the the puzzles and whatnot.
 

NintendoCN

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Hmm this is a bit of a toss up. I like the puzzles in a dungeon and unless the boss uses the dungeon's main gimmick I find it a boring boss, since some bosses are "Stab it until it dies" which to me is boring, I prefer a boss that "can only be hurt by dungeon item" or "becomes vulnerable when you use this item". Since Zelda games are puzzle oriented I enjoy bosses that have a puzzle feel since it tests to see if you can properly use the dungeon item. I don't like the bosses in Majora's mask, but I enjoy the dungeons. So if the boss sucks it doesn't ruin a dungeon, it just devalues the experience a bit.
 

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