User blog:Tecku/TT: Giga Gargantuar

Well guys, now that Frostbite Caves has been out for awhile, I can move from a "first look" to a more adequate and fair assesment of the level. And while my opinion on a few things have changed (I like Troglobite better and Weasel Hoarder worse), one opinion has been very consistent: the Zomboss battle was a lot more original than the past versions.

Now, a little while back during a TT suggestion post, I was asked to cover the issue of Giga-Gartantuars. This particluar reader wrote:

"What about the issue of Giga-Gargantuars and originality? Because those are sooooo necessary, right?"

Well.... with this lastest boss being such a pleasant suprise, now may be a good time to discuss the issue of originality in tough bosses. My next post will cover Dr. Zomboss, but for this issue, I'd like to cover the topic of mini-bosses

Tecku Talks About: Giga Gargantuar

Before we begin, I want to define the term "boss". While many would consider Dr. Zomboss to be the only boss in PvZ 1, they are many points in the game where the player will act as if they are facing a boss or mini-boss. Becuase of this, I'd like to introduce the following idea: categorizing bosses based on how serious of a threat they are to the player. These categories are called the "boss tiers". There are four of them:

Cannon-Fodder: These zombies are a dime a dozen, and are often taken care of by AOE plants.

Specialty: Specialty zombie are tougher than the other zombies on the feild, but can often be found with other zombies of the same kind. With a good defense it unlikely that they'll permanently change the round, but they still catch your attention.

Sweeper: These zombies usually only appear one at a time, and when they do appear, they catch your full attention. These fellas are the ones you save your Cherry Bombs and Squashes for. If you're not careful, you could lose your lawnmower and/or brains to these chumps.

Behemoth: Dr. Zomboss-like zombies that have entire levels dedicated to them.

Now, why is it so important to understand boss tiers when talking about bosses? Becuase when you think deeply about it, 'many zombies change boss tier from level to level. 'For example, Conehead Zombies serve mostly as cannon-fodder in the daytime levles of the original game. But in the early nighttime levels, they can quickly reach the specialy or even sweeper tier, as Puff-Shrooms are not potent enough to deal with them. Alternatively, Zomboni can be a sweeper when it first appears, but usually falls to specialty tier later on.

Now, with that in mind, I'd like to ask you this: what tier does Gargantuar fall into? Each world in PvZ2 has a level dedicated to them being a sweeper tier zombie. However, in the far levels of the endless zones, Gargantuars are a common sight, making them more of a specialty tier.

Now, in the endless zones of PvZ2, players must start each level fresh, re-planting thier enitre defense. This lets Gargantuar put pressure to set up a good defense early. But in the Survival: Endless zones, where tough plants are set up in advance, the game does not have this advantage.

This is why Giga Gargantuar and Black Football Zombie are necessary. These zombies serve as the new sweeper tier zombies, keeping players alert. Giga Gargantuar deals with defensive plants, and BF Zombie crosses the gaps quickly to deal with AOE plants. However, this only works in the endless zones, where defenses are prepped in advance. And since these zombies only appear in the endless zones, they are not worth thier own unique mechanics. Thus, these zombies work out fine.

So to answer your question, yes, these zombies probably are necessary. But your desire for originality is high-tier zombies is commendable. Perhaps next time I can talk about that more.