Fang (Trip’s Story) – Sonic Superstars

It’s almost hilarious how Sonic Superstars has not one, not two, but three terrible final bosses. Fang in Trip’s Story narrowly manages to win out by sheer virtue of annoyance, which is saying something given how unnecessarily challenging her playthrough feels. This fight is long, with severe waiting periods between each attack and some insta-killing you just because it would be funny. The lack of any checkpoint in the second phase is also especially excruciating. It isn’t the end of the game, as there’s the true final boss to deal with, but it’s a disappointing conclusion to Trip’s Story all the same.

Zhang Rhang – Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

On the surface, Zhang Rhang’s schtick is interesting as he continuously summons clones. The problem? You have to keep killing them, building up Spirit Damage until he’s staggered for a Fatal Strike. So you’re running around, smacking clones, trying to find the right one, getting pelted with magic from this way and that.

Guan Yu and Cao Cao also assist during this fight, further adding to the visual mess and chaos. The worst part? Once you’ve staggered him and dealt a Fatal Strike, you must go through the whole process again. It’s one of those ideas that seems unique on paper but ends up being extremely tedious in practice.

Hunter and Emissary – Starfield

Depending on your decisions, you have to fight one or both of these entities in the finale of Starfield. However, outside of their gimmick of all three of you teleporting across different universes and areas, the fight’s mechanics are pretty non-existent. All you do is follow and shoot. Then you get teleported.

Then follow and shoot some more in a cave against them and alternate versions of your companions. Of course, the question arises: What could the team possibly have done differently? Maybe a space battle against the Starborn’s ships? It’s hard to say, but this wasn’t it. At least you can skip the fight with enough Persuasion.

Corrupted Parade Master – Lies of P

Given the sheer range of bosses in Lies of P, it’s weird fighting one with several of your options temporarily removed. Nevertheless, surely there would be an interesting twist to fighting a corrupted version of the first boss, aside from the danger of Decay? Well, not really. Most of his attacks are similar, and all you have to do is dodge through most of them, back off when it starts crawling on the ground and repeat. Not the worst fight ever, but pretty rote despite his heavily altered appearance.

NORA – Atomic Heart: Annihilation Instinct

The first story DLC for Atomic Heart is pretty underwhelming, with its final boss easily the capstone to all the disappointment. After the Twins arrive to save P-3, you must create a new schematic to stop NORA’s madness. It amounts to inserting the mechanical balls in the correct configuration on the floor, taken from fighting a familiar boss that keeps regenerating.

The sheer amount of manufactured tension belies how dull it is, despite the puzzle-solving approach, and the fight ends in a whimper. The worst part is that even after a relatively happy ending, the conclusion teases more annoyance for P-3.

Ahriman, the Destroyer – Ghostrunner 2

As the first boss of One More Level’s sequel, Ahriman is a solid test of the game’s combat and movement. The problem is, that’s pretty much all he is. Having such a cool-looking appearance and sword, you would think there would be something more to him after his defeat. Alas, he commits seppuku and that’s it.

No coming back later in some big twist or anything like that. Would I have been less disappointed if he wasn’t called “The Destroyer”? Probably. As an intro to the rest of the Asura, he’s pretty lame, but thankfully, the rest more than pick up the slack and offer far better fights.

Ruiner – Lords of the Fallen

Ruiner is this hulking beast of a warrior with a crazy look and fire magic that can build Ignite. As the guard of Fitzroy’s Bridge, he seems virtually impassable…until you start dodging his attacks. As agile as Ruiner can be, some attacks are insanely telegraphed, leaving him open for a heavy attack that knocks off a sizable chunk of his health. Pair that with Radiant damage, and take him out in no time. When the lead-up to a boss with all the enemies you have to deal with is considered more tedious than the actual boss, you know there’s a problem.

Narag-Shazon – The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria

It’s bad enough that Return to Moria has the issues it does, but there is a kind of charm throughout as you venture to the final boss. The Balrog isn’t your final challenge – instead, it’s Narag-Shazon, a dragon. Additional prep and end-game armor and weapons are a given, especially when playing solo, but she quickly falls after just a few hits. It seems to be an issue that will be fixed sooner or later. However, for those who have been playing on PC since October, it’s a let-down.

DJ Cyber – Bomb Rush Cyberfunk

Finally, you get to fight against DJ Cyber after all the cryptic nonsense, conspiracies and mysteries. Unfortunately, the first phase involves meleeing his projectiles back at him as his spider-bot jumps around. The second involves dodging explosives that he leaves on the ground and then returning his projectiles. Then you hit him with one last melee, and that’s it – game over. Truly a weak way to end the game, especially considering the final battles in the Jet Set Radio games were so hype.

Scorpion and Nitara (Invasions) – Mortal Kombat 1

After the insanity of Story Mode’s final battle (which admittedly ends in a bit of a disappointing fight), there was the opportunity to do something special with Invasions. With all the different mechanics, it could have made its bosses special, right? Unfortunately, that didn’t happen, and both Scorpion and Nitara, the bosses of Seasons 1 and 2, are relatively boring.

Of course, it also doesn’t help that Invasions has no impact on the overall canon (such as it is after two reboots). While this is likely due to the seasonal model, it also means there are no stakes, and the lasting impact on their demises is pretty much moot.

Rather than fixing fundamental flaws with the design, combat or story-telling, it delivers new content. Not a lot of new content, though, and even those who enjoyed Agent P-3’s uneven romp may find it hard to get on board with this oddly tame trip down the rabbit hole.

"It’s hard to decipher what kind of tone Annihilation Instinct is going for with these odd dollops of “humor” interspaced between existential crises for both man and AI."

Annihilation Instinct picks up after the so-called “good ending” of the base game. P-3 wakes up in the Mendeleev Complex, which is cut off from the Kollektiv due to its AI, NORA, malfunctioning. After escaping, players must locate Professor Lebedev and find a way to fix NORA. How did P-3 end up in that complex in the first place? Don’t worry about it. Why is NORA all lovey-dovey for him? It doesn’t matter. Why is the writing still piling on tons of embarrassing dialogue? For all that is good in the world, please don’t ask.

If you disliked P-3’s ramblings in the first game, there isn’t much enjoyment here. At the very least, there are some much-needed answers about his past and some nuance to his interactions with NORA, as he tries to play nice while looking for ways to counteract her. Unfortunately, it falls flat due to the horrible innuendo, which is neither clever nor delivered well. It’s hard to decipher what kind of tone Annihilation Instinct is going for with these odd dollops of “humor” interspaced between existential crises for both man and AI.

It also doesn’t help that the story feels overly contrived en route to the finale. No spoilers, but seeing P-3 waffle back and forth before committing to the mission felt tacked on for perhaps teasing some more alternate endings. Nevertheless, even if this ending is a response to how the base game concluded, it feels more like the set-up to a new storyline while massive plot holes remain.

Oh, and Granny Zina also pops up now and again in her flying hut, but only to remind you that she’s there and that P-3 is a maggot. Riveting stuff.

"It’s a fetch quest, sure, and the only real one in the DLC, but there are some interesting steps, like separating some electro-magnetically charged BEA-Ds by tossing them into different chambers and shutting the doors."

Annihilation Instinct isn’t very long. There are three new areas – Freedom Park, the swamps and Mendeleev Complex. It presents a few new enemies and a new boss fight. The main “quest”, so to speak, is to locate eight special BEA-Ds to fix NORA. These are helpfully marked on the map, even if the waypoints are sometimes iffy.

It’s a fetch quest, sure, and the only real one in the DLC, but there are some interesting steps, like separating some electro-magnetically charged BEA-Ds by tossing them into different chambers and shutting the doors. Otherwise, expect a lot of killing enemies and depositing the special BEA-Ds into chutes.

The BEA-D are distinct enough, possessing different skills when separated and joined together. You’re encouraged to break them apart using new weapons like the Secateur, a gatling gun that builds up charge to unleash wave-based projectiles. It’s good at piercing multiple targets, though the primary fire’s damage can feel weak.

The other new weapon is the Klusha, a double-bladed staff which can slash multiple times with light attacks and pierce with a heavy strike. Nothing too crazy, and it becomes decent enough when upgraded to have faster attack speed. Both weapons have blueprints for different parts to improve their performance and can be upgraded. As you deposit BEA-Ds, you get weapons like the Shotgun, Handgun and more, with their upgrades.

"There’s also a talking goose, which randomly attacks you and then leaves. Yes, a goose."

In terms of abilities, there isn’t too much here. The only new one is Techno-Stasis, which slows everything around you (and you, making it more of a reactionary tool when swarmed by enemies). You still have abilities like Shok and Polymeric Shield, along with their upgrades, and they do the job, even if there’s nothing that feels drastically different.

The same is also sadly true about combat. When you’re facing a boss and reading its patterns, quickly dodging to the side to avoid its heavier attacks, it’s fun. The same applies when dealing with smaller groups of enemies, as you chain lightning, engage with melee attacks and switch to your firearms depending on the situation.

Things quickly fall apart when tons of simultaneously, and combat quickly devolves into spraying with a Secateur or swinging the Klusha, spamming Techno-Stasis and Shok continuously while avoiding being knocked down. The strategic dismemberment isn’t too deeply explored, and the lack of many fresh combat scenarios or stakes doesn’t help the combat either.

However, I did enjoy the boss fight, even when it was reused in the finale since there were enough deviations to help it stand out. There’s also a talking goose, which randomly attacks you and then leaves. Yes, a goose. Its existence is explained in some terminal, probably, but after the first few attacks, it felt more like a throwaway gimmick than anything else.

"Despite Annihilation Instinct’s issues, the art design and music continue to impress. The hanging walkways connecting the starting “hotel rooms” in Mendeleev Complex are incredible to behold…"

The difficulty at the start feels somewhat absurd, even in Normal mode, with a single enemy capable of taking all your health without breaking a sweat. Things improve when you get a new Polymer Glove with some abilities and weapons, but enemies can still feel a bit too tanky at times.

Despite Annihilation Instinct’s issues, the art design and music continue to impress. The hanging walkways connecting the starting “hotel rooms” in Mendeleev Complex are incredible to behold (and it’s a shame they have no gameplay purpose afterwards). Despite how unintuitive the level design can sometimes feel, each area is chock full of detail, whether navigating Lebedev’s tower in Freedom Park or examining the different signs. The animations on enemies, especially the BEA-Ds, are also impressive.

The soundtrack, which features a healthy mix of rock and techno (sometimes the former more so than the latter) with some classical music thrown in, also warrants a mention. It’s not quite as memorable as the base game, but the music is good, if a bit ill-fitting at times. Do I need the background score to go super hard when fighting a whopping two enemies? Not really, and hearing it end just as awkwardly is weird.

"Annihilation Instinct is more Atomic Heart for those who want it, but even that would encompass only the most die-hard fans, and the prospects aren’t amazing."

Unfortunately, as solid as the sound design can be, some bugs cause the audio to cut out. It occurred more than once, including in the ending cutscene, which was also low resolution and had a lower frame rate. Another bug saw P-3 repeating an entire conversation with NORA after leaving the complex, which then cut into an incoming message from Lebedev.

Enemy AI occasionally acts up, getting stuck on corners and containers, and there was a progress blocker, which necessitated restarting from a previous checkpoint. Performance can also suffer when exploring the swamps, with some pop-in also apparent. Nevertheless, there were no crashes or game-breaking bugs, at least on PS5.

Annihilation Instinct is more Atomic Heart for those who want it, but even that would encompass only the most die-hard fans, and the prospects aren’t amazing. Maybe P-3 will finally get some answers. Maybe Granny Zina will stop being angry at him. Maybe we get some spiffy-looking environments and nice new tunes. Either way, if this is the bar for DLC, I’m not exactly excited about what’s to come.

This game was reviewed on PlayStation 5.

The story concerns NORA, an AI that’s gone insane, and you’ll need to work with Professor Lebedev to deal with it. The Mendeleev Complex offers intriguing new environments with swamps and winding structures, filled with new enemies like BEA-D and a new boss. New weapons include the Secateur, a gun with two firing modes, and Klusha, a double-bladed staff, while you can also slow down time with the new Techno-Stasis.

Annihilation Instinct can be purchased separately or with the Atomic Pass. The base game is discounted by 34 percent (check out our review here), while the Premium and Gold Editions are 40 percent off on Steam until August 7th, so it’s a good time to check it out.

The Secateur is a new ranged weapon with rapid-fire and a charged projectile as its alternate firing mode. The Klusha is a double-bladed staff, which is good against groups, and the Techno-Stasis ability allows players to slow time. As for the new enemies, there’s BEA-D, which can connect to increase in size, and new marionette-like robots.

A “new enigmatic” character is teased, but there will also be “returning ones” in “surprising circumstances.” Annihilation Instinct is included with the Atomic Pass, Gold and Premium Editions. Stay tuned for more details en route to release.

Atomic Heart is available for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC. Check out our review here.