Showdowns present a boss-rush mode for players where they can take on supercharged versions of Gotham Knights’ main case file villains once they have been defeated in the base game. These bosses are scaled to have incredibly high difficulty thresholds in an attempt to incentivize co-op gameplay, but the recommended power levels for each boss may look astronomical still if players did not indulge in any open-world grinding since Gotham Knights’ launch. Therefore, it seems like this mode rewards players who have stuck to the game despite having an incentive to do so, which is bad news for new players.
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Gotham Knights’ Showdowns Require Absurdly High Power Levels
The recommended power level for the Mr. Freeze Showdown, which is the lowest level Showdown, is already a whopping 9,900. But interestingly, Mr. Freeze’s original boss fight and his Mecha Freeze fight are separate Showdowns, whereas Clayface is only available with his second boss fight as a Showdown.
Mecha Freeze’s recommended power level sits at 15,300. Meanwhile, Harley Quinn’s recommended power level is 12,400, suggesting that players attempt her Showdown before Mecha Freeze, while Clayface’s recommended power level is a steep 18,400.
Then, the most difficult Showdown is Talia al Ghul’s, with a staggering power level recommendation of 21,912. Of course, Gotham Knights does recommend that players tackle these Showdowns in co-op as a huge incentive, and with the power levels of two players combined it will hopefully be a more fair fight.
Still, players will likely not be able to defeat even the first Mr. Freeze if they have not been playing since launch, and certainly not if they have neglected to collect improved gear and mods. If players complete Gotham Knights’ main campaign and all villain case files, they may still be at a relatively low power level themselves.
Power levels come chiefly from the higher grades of gear players equip, which can only be achieved by going out and pursuing harder activities in the open world. Thus, if fans have not been playing since launch, it may take a lot of open-world grinding in order to be able to fight these Showdown bosses effectively.
Gotham Knights’ Showdowns Reward Players Who Love Its Grind
Thankfully, Gotham Knights’ Showdowns list any elemental attack statuses that the villain deals out, as well as any elemental attack statuses that they are weak to. Likewise, respective rewards are listed with associable gear, mods, resource materials, XP, or colorways they will earn for completion. But engaging in these endgame challenges is a huge feat, and will surely test players’ true dedication to the game.
It may only take a few gear upgrades and some well-placed mods to bump players’ characters up further, but in co-op, players will have to hope that their companions have done the same. Some players were less enthused about Gotham Knights’ boss fights than others, and Showdowns may not be an exciting mode for them as a result. Fortunately, they will still have Gotham Knights’ Heroic Assault arcade mode that introduces four-player co-op.
Gotham Knights is available now for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X.
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