The bosses» damage output is extremely high relative both to
what normal enemies can dish out and to what you can yourself, and the aforementioned frequency of stunning attacks grants some bosses several hits on you if they manage to land just one.
Not exact matches
Loving our
enemies goes contrary to
what feels right or
normal.
The
normal enemies in The Surge alone can act as mini-boss fights and while there is a lack of
enemy variety in the game, the struggle to improve and iterate on each fight is
what makes the game fun here.
You have your
normal run - of - the - mill
enemy groups like any other dungeon RPG, but
what makes Etrian Odyssey special is its super-bosses known as F.O.E.'s, known by their full name Formido Oppugnatura Exsequen.
Keep in mind that
Enemies take off twice as much damage per hit and Green Herbs heal only a fraction of
what they do in
Normal mode.
Although they function like
normal Note Blocks, they also play a sound with its pitch based on the block's height, and its instrument based on
what object /
enemy bounces on it, but specifically plays a steel drum if Mario bounces on it.
It's never smarter or more intuitive, and only manages to become more of a challenge because
enemies either become able to withstand massive amounts of punishment (like the juggernaut suited
enemies) or they simply use a specialized version of an auto - aim program to try and headshot you from
what would otherwise be impossible for a
normal player to achieve.
You would often find a treasure chest, (yes the original Xenoblade had
normal chests for those with the skill to find them) high level gem, or high level
enemy, which if the player defeated above his level was rewarded with high level weapons or armor well beyond
what they would normally get at that point in the game.
What you wind up with is an
enemy type that completely breaks the
normal rules of the game and gives you only one way to deal with them, which is pretty close to «Press X to not die.»