Assemble! - Fighting Game Archetype Roster - The Final Boss

This is Assemble, where we look at several different characters across multiple series to form a perfect team-up. Whatever the case may be, whether it’s a fighting game roster or an RPG adventuring party, we’ll find the best team for the job. In a change of style from the more long-form articles featured here, these articles will be shorter entries, focusing on one or two characters each, and spread out over time until the complete roster is formed.

What would a fighting game be without a roster of several different, powerful, and engaging characters? In this batch of articles for Assemble, we will be assembling a fighting game roster using characters from several different fighting games based on different character archetypes.

The picks will be based on where the characters fit in terms of game mechanics and their place in the story and world of the game. Only characters that originated in fighting games will be observed here. That means no guest characters, no licensed fighting games (unless their roster includes original characters), and no crossover titles. Finally, I’ll only be discussing games or characters that I am at least somewhat familiar with. While this means I won’t discuss all the fighting games out there, there should be at least some variety from just the major titles.

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THE FINAL BOSS

The Final Boss is the last challenge of the game, the antagonist, the big villain that all the heroes are trying to defeat. Oftentimes, this character tends to be a big threat not just to the other characters, but the entire world. Several final boss characters are conquerors or leaders of large criminal organizations bent on world conquest, with the power and skill to back up their ambitions. Several other characters within the roster (or at the very least, the hero, heroine, and/or rival) will have defeating this character and putting a stop to their plans as their main goal. Their move-set may contain a number of strong moves to the point of being unfair, but that just makes it more satisfying to finally get past them and put a stop to their plans.

 Big stakes for a fighting tournament.

Our choice for the Final Boss is…

Kronika from Mortal Kombat.

Most of the Mortal Kombat series has dealt with Shao Kahn’s attempted conquest of Earthrealm, seeking to merge it with his realm of Outworld and claim the souls of its weaker inhabitants to add to his own power. Raiden, Liu Kang, and the other defenders of Earthrealm saw him as the biggest threat to their safety, but that all changed with the release of Mortal Kombat 11 and the arrival of Kronika, Keeper of Time.

Sorry emperor. You’ve been outdone.

Using her power over time, Kronika has been able to bring back fighters from the past to aid her cause, uniting villains like Shao Kahn, Kano, Sektor, the revenant versions of Liu Kang and Kitana, and more in her quest to reset time. Unlike other villains, she actually succeeds in a large portion of her ultimate plan. (There will be no more said on that though, due to spoilers.) In battle, she uses a lot of projectile moves and strong attacks and if she loses a certain portion of health in a fight, she switches out with a time-conjured version of another fighter from the roster and you have to defeat them before continuing to fight her.

For having the power and skill to see her diabolical plan come to fruition, a plan that would carry dire consequences for everyone in the realms, we now add Kronika to the roster.

ADDED!

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Honorable Mention: Shao Kahn (Mortal Kombat)

Before Kronika unseated him as the most powerful villain in MK history, Shao Kahn was the biggest threat in the game’s universe. The only thing standing in his way from conquering Earthrealm at the start of the series is a set of rules by the Elder Gods stating that he cannot invade without first obtaining victory in a series of Mortal Kombat fighting tournaments. At the start of the first Mortal Kombat game, Outworld has already won nine out of ten of the tournaments they need, so the tenth tournament is Raiden and his chosen fighters’ last chance to save Earthrealm.

Although one of his subordinates, Shang Tsung, was the final boss of the first game, Kahn took that honor in following games. He uses a lot of strong moves including shoulder rams and swings of his war hammer, he has super armor, meaning a lot of moves won’t make him flinch like they would other fighters, and his taunts can even heal some of his health. Fighting his character was a large ordeal for players, which made it feel like an accomplishment is someone managed to beat him.

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What did you think about this article? Want to see what other characters get picked for our roster? Do you think someone would fit this role better besides whoever got picked? Make your voice heard in the comments below. 

Thanks for coming!