Boss Fights Are Essential to Games – Even If Kotaku Disagrees
Kotaku Wants You to Skip Boss Fights. Maybe They Should Just Play Games.
Look, I’m not trying to “gatekeep” here—but if you’re writing about video games and your hot take is “what if we just remove the part of the game that’s, you know, the actual game,” maybe it’s time to pick up a new hobby.
Like knitting. Or yelling at clouds. Or writing about your fee fees in film school forums, where gameplay isn’t an obstacle.
This week’s subject of critique is Kotaku’s John Walker, who’s back with another article that reads like it was written by someone who spent more time fumbling with the accessibility menu than actually pressing “Start.”
In his mind-numbing article advocating for skippable boss fights and his follow up piece where he attempts to defend his position, he insists that optional challenge is an affront to gaming inclusivity. And while I have zero interest in dogpiling the guy (seriously, don’t harass anyone), we do need to call this out for what it is:
Image Source: Every Argument For Why We Shouldn’t Be Able To Skip Boss Fights, Addressed | Kotaku
Another prime example of how modern games journalism is being hijacked by ideologues who don’t seem to like, understand, or even play video games.
So let’s take a minute to address John’s funderful rebuttals:
“Git Gud” Is Elitist – Or So They Claim
In my opinion, Walker’s first argument basically boils down to: “Difficulty is exclusionary. People should be able to experience the game without skill checks.” Oh, and comparing hard bosses to playing tennis against Roger Federer?
That’s gatekeeping now.
Let’s unpack the funsies with the force of a Soulsborne backstab.
Skill Isn’t Exclusion — It’s The Point
Nobody’s locking you out of a game because you’re not good enough. Most modern titles come preloaded with difficulty options, assists, checkpoints, and accessibility features.
The idea that games need to sacrifice mechanical integrity so people can skip through them like they’re flipping through Netflix episodes?
No thanks.
Image Source: Hollow Knight | Team Cherry
That’s not gatekeeping—that’s gamekeeping. It’s about protecting games from being watered down into glorified cutscene simulators.
Input Is the Medium, My Guy
The thing that separates games from every other form of art is input. You don’t just watch or read—you do. If you cut out the “doing,” you’re not engaging with the game anymore.
You’re just fast-forwarding through a Let’s Play you bought for $70.
Saying boss fights should be skippable because they’re “too hard” is like saying a rollercoaster should have an option to walk through it while someone shakes you a little and plays a YouTube scream in the background.
Tennis? Really?
Comparing a boss fight to playing against Roger Federer is not just bad—it’s dishonest. You’re not up against a sentient god with a racket. You’re interacting with scripted, designed content meant to challenge you and help you grow.
The game is actually rooting for you to win and improve in the process.
This isn’t a tennis match. It’s a climbing gym. The devs gave you a harness and a rope. And your response is to ask for an elevator to the top because the wall looks steep?
Come on.
“Boss Fights Don’t Reflect Progression”
Ah yes, the classic “boss fights are arbitrary” angle. The fights don’t test anything real. The game taught you what it needed to already.
The bosses are just filler.
This is the kind of take you get from someone who sprints through games for article deadlines and never once considers how pacing works.
Image Source: Zelda: Ocarina of Time | Nintendo
They’re Supposed to Be Hard
Of course boss fights spike difficulty. That’s literally the point. You’re being asked to prove mastery over what you’ve learned. Calling that “arbitrary” is like saying final exams are unfair because they’re harder than the worksheets.
It’s not arbitrary—it’s earned friction. You can’t have a satisfying climax without tension. And no, watching the boss die in a cutscene doesn’t count.
Games Have a Rhythm and Tempo
Bosses provide escalation. They’re pacing mechanisms. They make the quiet moments matter and the loud ones feel earned. Without them, games become beige slogs of flat encounters and hollow objectives.
It’s like watching a thriller where they cut every chase scene because walking was “good enough.”
No, It’s Not Like Skipping a Cutscene
Skipping cutscenes removes flavor text. Skipping a boss removes meat. That’s not the same thing.
That’s not even in the same category of decision.
Image Source: Elden Ring | FromSoftware
Trying to equate skipping a fight to skipping a cutscene is like saying not playing the game at all is just a “different kind of playstyle.” It’s nonsense dressed up like compassion.
“The Fights Don’t Matter to the Story”
Walker’s final Hail Mary is the idea that skipping boss fights won’t hurt the story, because most of the narrative happens before and after the fight. The fight itself doesn’t “add” anything.
I’m gonna be real with you, chief—this one made me actually roll my eyes.
Gameplay Is Storytelling
Beating Father Gascoigne in Bloodborne isn’t just a gameplay achievement. It’s thematic. It reflects your character’s descent, the madness, the struggle. No amount of cutscene can deliver the same gut-punch as that final axe swing.
You’re not just “watching” the story happen. You’re part of it.
That’s what makes games games.
The Fight Mirrors the Journey
In Elden Ring, Hollow Knight, Metal Gear Solid, hell—even in the Sans fight in Undertale, the fights are the message. They’re mechanically built to make you feel guilt, pressure, conflict.
Image Source: Undertale | Toby Fox | Royal Sciences LLC
Skipping them rips the soul out of the experience and leaves you with a highlight reel devoid of emotion.
Skippable ≠ Disposable
Just because you can skip something doesn’t mean you should. That’s like saying it’s fine to skip every level in Celeste and still act like you beat the game because the credits rolled.
Some choices in game design undermine the experience.
Just because it’s labeled “choice” doesn’t mean it’s good design. A “win fight” button in Sekiro would be a joke—and no offense, but so is this argument.
Hey Kotaku, Stop Trying to Netflix My Games Please
John Walker, bless him, seems more mad that gamers pushed back than interested in preserving what makes the medium special.
And that’s honestly the saddest part.
He—and others like him at Kotaku, TheGamer, etc.—don’t seem to want to protect games. They want to repackage them into safe, sanitized “experiences” with zero friction, zero resistance, and zero soul.
Why?
Because friction doesn’t sell ad clicks.
Hot takes do. Ideology does.
Writing real criticism takes effort. It’s easier to call everything gatekeeping and pretend that defending mechanical integrity is punching down.
That’s actually why I created reportafk.com in the first place—because I got tired of watching corporate-owned, left-leaning activist outlets turn gaming into a soapbox for politics while pretending they still care about fun.
And again—don’t harass Walker or anyone else.
This isn’t about canceling. It’s about calling BS when someone tries to trade in the soul of our medium for Twitter clicks and rage baiting.
We don’t need “skip boss fight” buttons.
We need better writers.
This was a commentary article based on publicly available information and personal opinion. Readers are encouraged to form their own conclusions based on the sources cited.
All images, logos, and video clips used in this article are the property of their respective owners. This content is used for the purposes of commentary, criticism, and news reporting under the guidelines of Fair Use (17 U.S.C. § 107). No copyright infringement is intended.
Want More?
Check These Out Next!
About Report AFK
A place for gamers, by gamers, untarnished by legacy gaming media and their herds of sheeple.
Site Links
Copyright 2025 ReportAFK.com
Be the first to leave a comment