To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the PlayStation, we recall the best ideas of game developers in creating unique missions, complex quests and final bosses that seemed invincible. Levels that tested not only our ability to quickly press the jump button or make a headshot from 200 meters.
Here we will not recall the side quests in the style of “bring me 10 sheep skins”. Only the missions that we still remember because of their variability and thoughtfulness. We chose those that became a real test of the player’s IQ. If you want to test your skills in real-time, you can take a few minutes and pass IQ tests online, here for example: https://cerebrumiq.com/start.
Bosses from Hideo Kojima’s Metal Gear Series
The genius game designer has always loved non-standard techniques. Choosing a favourite among the bosses in his stealth game, which became a defining one for PlayStation, is not an easy task. Sorrow, Gray Fox, Revolver Ocelot, and Vulcan Raven are all brilliant, clever and memorable opponents in their own ways.
However, it was the incredible battle destroying the fourth wall with the levitating, eccentric “Psycho Mantis” that many gamers remember for years. First, he would analyze your playing style until that point. If you were often caught by the guards, he would call you careless. Kill a lot of enemies ー he would say that you were a great warrior. Defeating “Psycho Mantis,” it was necessary to figure out to switch the PlayStation controller to a different port.
Out-of-the-box thinking from the players was useful completing “The End”, the boss in the Snake Eater part. The old sniper used camouflage, making him difficult to detect, and he was also a damn fast and accurate shooter. But it was worth it for the player to use their wits and move the console system’s time a week forward, return to the game, and it would report that “The End” died naturally of old age.
Madarame Fight from Persona 5 Royal
In Persona 5, not only the final bosses pose serious challenges to players. One of the most memorable opponents is Madarame, the subconscious mind of an artist. This battle requires the players to think strategically. When the main characters’ team has just acquired powerful abilities, which hit the entire group of enemies, the game forces player to change tactics.
In the first phase of the battle, different parts of the boss, like eyes, nose and mouth, can be targeted with elemental abilities. In the second, the artist summons duplicates, and each one reflects a specific type of damage back at the attacker. If the player keeps hitting inaccurately, they will either restore Madarame’s health or accidentally kill their own characters, resulting in defeat.
God of War’s Mix of Brutality and Logical Quests
The God of War gameplay allowed players to not only take a break from action, but also pose interesting puzzles. These levels were distinguished by depth, interactivity, and high-quality visuals and sound. One particularly memorable was “Poseidon’s Room”, which was located in an underwater palace and contained a mechanism for adjusting the water level. Players needed to understand how the device worked in order to solve the puzzle.
The puzzles in all subsequent God of War games were also coolly integrated into the gameplay and plot. They became an integral part of the gaming experience.
Hundreds of Hours in the Witcher card game
The third part of the epic about Geralt of Rivia is a rather big game in itself, which took some weeks and months, and sometimes years, to finish. But the presence of an extremely exciting built-in “Gwent” board game made the completion even more extended.
In “Gwent”, players collect and upgrade their decks consisting of various cards.
There are various types of units, spells, weather conditions and heroes in the decks. Players must carefully plan their moves, taking into account the strengths and weaknesses of their cards and the opponent’s cards. Strategic thinking and the ability to anticipate the opponent’s moves play a key role in victory. “Gwent” had an impact on the gaming industry by demonstrating how card games can be famously integrated into larger game projects.
The PlayStation collection is full of examples of video games that not only entertain, but also develop the intelligence of players. It’s always great when game developers create challenging levels, quests and puzzles that allow players to train their strategic thinking and logical skills. These games are just a small part of the vast variety of PlayStation titles, but they have had a significant impact on the industry.