Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart review
:: SUPERB AND SPECIALPrice: $6.99
Version: 1.0.4
App Reviewed on: iPad Pro
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It's always been easy to be cynical about mobile games generally, and it's only gotten easier as time goes on. Fewer premium releases seem to come out each year, and those select few often tend to be ports, sequels to known quantities, or titles locked behind subscription services. Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart is (refreshingly) none of these things, and is also a unique and special blend of genres that makes it one of the most compelling mobile experiences I've come across in a long time.
Boss-killing gig
Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart is a game about a couple who work together as devil hunters. This profession is cheekily presented as a kind of gig work for a fantasy city that has other similarities to our modern society. When these two aren't actively in combat they like to hang out at the local "chill and grill" restaurant, flirt, and try to find their way through life.
This results in a game that has a lot of quirky text-based dialogue vignettes that punctuate boss fights where you control both characters through a few simple tap controls that let you cast spells, swing swords, and block attacks as you work your way through fights with robots, devil knights, local politicians, and more.
Combo combat
Action gameplay on mobile devices can be tough to make feel good, but Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart makes it look easy. Your own controls are pretty simple, but every boss has unique and creative attack patterns that make every fight a fresh and novel combat puzzle.
Your characters have light and heavy attacks, but also a stamina meter that allows them to block. If one character gets knocked out, you can use your other character to revive them. Chaining together enough hits can also let you use a special move that stuns bosses for a few seconds so you can wail away on them. There aren't any rpg or progression mechanics in Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart, but since every fight is several minutes of bespoke combat design, it stays satisfying and compelling throughout.
Head and heart
In addition to Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart's smart combat design, the game is also quite endearing. The story is a relatable tale told with characters that like to quip at each other, but also feel like real people with real feelings.
I could see some players getting invested in this game purely for the story, and if that's the case, Bossgame smartly includes a ton of options to customize the game's combat difficulty so you can tune it to your liking. Things like auto-blocking, battle speed, and even invincibility are all at your fingertips to ensure you can see then adventure through to its end without frustrations.
The bottom line
Bossgame: The Boss Is My Heart is one of those games you can tell is made with a lot of love. You can feel it in how the characters talk to each other, how each boss fight is designed, and the smart customization controls. I am not sure I'd change anything about it, and I hope to see more smart and original releases like this on the App Store.