A short film using forced perspective illusions recently went viral online, reigniting player discussions about the design of giant boss battles. In the clip, a giant attempts to attack a tiny figure in the foreground, with movements that reminded many players of the Colossus of Rhodes battle at the start of "God of War II".
In this battle, the Colossus slams its fist into the ground. While it looks devastating, it actually only reduces Kratos's health by about 15% to 20%. After the attack, the Colossus leaves itself open for a few seconds, allowing players to roll away and look for an opening to counterattack, creating a fixed rhythm of offense and defense.
The discussion quickly turned to an old question: why do massive bosses often choose to slam the ground and then pause for a long time after their attacks? If such attacks were designed to be instantly lethal, battles would easily boil down to just two outcomes—either the player successfully overwhelms the boss, or a single mistake ends the challenge immediately.
Some improvement ideas emphasize internal consistency within the scene. For example, a boss might be suppressed after ceiling debris falls on it, become briefly exhausted from vigorous attacks, get its arm stuck in rock (creating a path to its head weak point), or directly alter the arena by collapsing bridges or covering the ground with lava. These designs can explain why windows for counterattacks appear.
"Shadow of the Colossus" has also become a representative case in these discussions. The game focuses on 16 Colossi, minimizing non-player characters, side quests, and collectibles, instead concentrating resources on animation and conveying a sense of weight. Players need to observe the Colossi's movements and find climbing routes and weak points, rather than simply waiting for a fixed stun window.
The later-released "Dragon's Dogma" adopted a different approach. Players can climb onto the bodies of large enemies like Cyclopses and Griffins. The gripping and stamina mechanics turn these giant enemies into constantly moving vertical battlefields, ensuring that combat is no longer limited to dodging slams and then moving in to deal damage.