10 Boss Fights You Should Have Lost

Beating a tough boss is one of the great thrills in video games…but sometimes your victories don’t seem plausible.

Beating a tough boss is one of the great thrills in video games…but sometimes your victories don’t seem plausible. For the sake of the story and providing a satisfying experience, you need to defeat adversaries who are far beyond your characters’ capabilities. When you think about them realistically, these 10 boss fights should have sent you to the game-over screen instead of letting you emerge triumphant.

1. Machine Gun Willy (Double Dragon)
You’ve heard people caution against “bringing a knife to a gunfight,” right? Well, the Lee brothers don’t even bring a knife. Instead, they fight their machine-gun-toting adversary with their bare fists. Unless the brothers somehow have Matrix-like bullet-dodging powers (they don’t), this battle should be over before it starts.

2. Kessler (Infamous)
Imagine you are a fledgling superhero, still learning how to use your powers. Now imagine that you are facing off against the future version of yourself, who has mastered all of those powers, plus other abilities you don’t even know you possess. Do you feel like you even stand a remote chance of victory? If so, wise up.

3. Shang Tsung (Mortal Kombat)
Knowing your opponent is the key to emerging victorious in Mortal Kombat. That’s difficult when fighting Shang Tsung, since he can transform into any opponent – including you – at will. With access to every trick in the book, this withered old sorcerer should have the perfect counter-maneuver for any attack you attempt.

4. Cronos (God of War III)
No one can dispute that Kratos is an impressive warrior, but this match-up is as lopsided as they get. As one of the mythical Titans, Cronos is several orders of magnitude larger than Kratos. You are like an ant to him, but apparently tiny blades and angry shouting can make ants dangerous opponents.

5. The Boss (Metal Gear Solid 3)
In MGS 3’s introductory mission, the Boss dismantles Snake’s weapon, breaks his arm, and throws him off a bridge – and she barely has to work for it. Nothing indicates that Snake’s skills vastly improve, but he somehow doesn’t die immediately in their final encounter. Maybe nanomachines helped him win?

Next: Bosses from classic series like Castlevania, Metroid, and Final Fantasy.