History Main / MirrorBoss

* ''VideoGame/KillerIsDead'' has David, usually being very different from the protagonist [[spoiler:changes in the final battle to a form which is neigh-identical to yours, complete with clothes, sword, and attack set]].

* Interestingly subverted in ''Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast'', where you face a [[strike:Demonknight]] Death Knight and have the option of activating its Mirror of Reflection (which, it is initially implied, might be used against you). [[spoiler:Instead of conjuring a Mirror Boss, it instead conjures up weird distortions that attack everyone, as it's broken.]]

* In Act 3 of ''VideoGame/DivinityOriginalSinII'', [[spoiler:the JerkassGods inhabiting the party's bodies decide to kill them for a GrandTheftMe]] and create shadowy versions of the party with all of their current stats and abilities. And to make matters worse, once there's only one left standing it goes OneWingedAngel and triggers a second phase.

* ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIVOblivion'' expansion ''Shivering Isles'' has you fight a dark shadow of yourself at one point. As Oblivion uses a character creation system with stats for specific abilites, this shadow [[spoiler:is literally your own character, copied and coloured pitch black, with your exact stats and level, right down to the equipment it carries.]] Its status as a [[ThatOneBoss That One Boss]] depends on how much your own character kicks ass, as the computer has all your weapons and abilities without the need to [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard press buttons to switch between them.]]

*** ''XIII-2'' also has separate DLC involving a fight with ([[JustAShell echoes of]]) Lightning and Amodar, who use the same two-man Paradigms that Noel and Serah can use if they eschew [[{{Mons}} the Paradigm Pack]]. Lightning (copied from her condition in the last game as a l'Cie proper) has access to Commando, Ravager, Synergist, and Medic roles; Amodar (who uses items and grenades in lieu of magic, much like Snow did in the early stages of last game) has access to Commando, Sentinel, and Saboteur roles. [[TurnsRed They ditch the Paradigm system when one goes down]].

* Similarly to the ''Jade Empire'' example above, [[BigBad Darth Malak]] from ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'' uses abilities very similar to your own and blocks, attacks, dodges, heals, etc., all exactly like your character can requiring mastery of your combat forms (and a lot of stims) to stand a chance.

* Helena in ''Videogame/{{Lost Kingdoms}}'' has a runestone and uses cards to summon monsters, just like Katia. She also has basically the same backstory and goal.

* ''VideoGame/TalesSeries''

* A similar situation to the ''Ultima IV'' example occurs in the final battle of ''Rings Of Power'' on UsefulNotes/SegaGenesis, whereas your evil rival has gathered a party of adventurers with the exact same class composition as your own to fight you.

** [[AntiVillain Asch]] of ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'' is this to Luke, with very good reason -- [[spoiler:[[CloningBlues Luke is his clone]]]]. Indeed, in Luke's clashes with him (which are, of course, DuelBoss Fights), he has most of the same skills that Luke does -- the only major difference in ability is the fact that Asch can cast spells and his [[LimitBreak Mystic Arte]] is different, though functionally similar.

* The Artifact of Vengeance in ''VideoGame/RiskOfRain2'' causes a shadowy doppelganger of the player to spawn once every ten minutes. The doppelganger comes equipped with all that player's items, making it potentially very lethal.

* Mecha-Turtle in ''VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'' (NES).

[[folder: Roguelikes]]

* In the Flash game ''VideoGame/GinormoSword'', the Temple of the Moon contains a BonusBoss called {{Doppelganger}} who looks identical to you and has a sword [[{{BFS}} exactly as big as yours]]. And, as the game's name implies, that's pretty freaking big. [[spoiler:Unless, of course, you have your sword reforged to its minimum size before fighting him…]]

** Generally speaking, [[BonusBoss Jo Amon]] and [[OldMaster Sotaro Komaki]] both use a variation of Kiryu's signature Dragon of Dojima moveset whenever they're fought. Komaki, being the progenitor of Kiryu's moveset (on top of being, well, Kiryu's mentor) does have some moves unique to him, making him a somewhat {{downplayed}} example.

** Whip's Memory ([[spoiler:Richter Belmont]]) from ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaPortraitOfRuin'', a BonusBoss who [[DuelBoss is fought by Jonathan alone]] and has almost exactly the same style.

** In ''VideoGame/Persona3'', BonusBoss Elizabeth (or Theodore if you play as the female protagonist in ''Persona 3 Portable'') is a Persona user, and uses the same Personas and attacks that the player can use. Including Megidolaon, the strongest non-unique attack in the game.
** ''VideoGame/Persona4'' has the same situation, with BonusBoss Margaret. During the story, there's also the fight with [[spoiler:Adachi, who fights in a very similar way to the protagonist, including having a dark version of the protagonist's default Persona known as Magatsu Izanagi. Though you fight him with your whole party in the game, the anime adaptation plays up the MirrorBoss aspect even more by having Yu (the main character) fight him alone, even using his own Izanagi during the fight.]]
** ''VideoGame/Persona5'' continues the trend of having the Velvet Room assistants (in this case, Caroline and Justine) be a BonusBoss who can use Personas. This time, there's two of them, meaning they can also use player tactics such as healing and even ''reviving'' each other, and they also have their own version of the All-Out Attack (which is an instant win for them, regardless of your party's health) complete with unique "victory" screen. Story-wise, there's [[spoiler:Black Mask Akechi, who uses the same fighting style as the player characters, complete with using both a melee weapon and a ranged weapon. He even has the ability to use multiple Personas, just like Joker.]]

** The BonusBoss [[spoiler:Abyssion]] [[SubvertedTrope Subverts]] this in ''VideoGame/TalesOfSymphonia'' as he wields all the Devil Arms- weapons your party members can equip. The subversion is that he mirrors all of the party members instead of any individual one, and uses moves normally only available to the player.

*** The BonusBoss [[spoiler:Nebilim]] does the same thing as the ''Symphonia'' example above, but for the Abyss cast instead.

* ''VideoGame/{{Control}}'' has a quite literal version of this as it takes place within [[PocketDimension the dimensional confines]] of an [[ArtifactOfDoom anomalous mirror]]. When Jesse enters it, she finds herself facing an entity called [[SdrawkcabName esseJ]] that looks like her and fights with the same arsenal of her [[SwissArmyGun Service Weapon]] and other PsychicPowers. [[BonusBoss She's not a strictly necessary encounter]], but killing her [[AndYourRewardIsClothes nets you that spiffy black]] BadassLongcoat [[AndYourRewardIsClothes she's wearing]].

Simply put, a Mirror Boss is a boss in a game whose abilities are the equivalent of the playable character's somehow. This doesn't have to be exact, and it's relative to what the other bosses tend to be like; if most of the game's bosses are gigantic, then just being the same size as the hero counts for a lot, but if everyone in the game is humanoid, a Mirror Boss will have a very similar fighting style.

Depending on how close the boss' abilities are to the hero's, there may have to be some form of [[TheComputerIsACheatingBastard "cheating"]] to ensure that the boss is still a challenge. Giving them [[ContractualBossImmunity special immunities]] to things that would normally destroy the player, some SecretAIMoves to separate them from the hero, or just any general application of MyRulesAreNotYourRules to prevent the player from exploiting certain weaknesses. In a rare occasion, a Mirror Boss can turn out to be controlled by another player, as a [=PvP=] match in a boss' clothing.

* Creator/PlatinumGames-developed games have a habit of pitting players against {{Mirror Boss}}es:

* ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'':
** Kiryu's final boss, [[spoiler:Keiji Shibusawa]], is a three stage boss that mimics the battle styles Kiryu has collected throughout the game, starting with a copy of [[SpeedBlitz Rush]], then a copy of [[TheBerserker Beast]], ending with [[UnskilledButStrong Brawler]], or, if you have it unlocked, the [[PurposelyOverpowered "Legend"]] [[spoiler:Dragon of Dojima style based on his latter appearances.]]
** To a lesser extent, Majima's "final boss" also ends with a boss that has somewhat comparable fighting styles.

* Downplayed with ''Videogame/DoomEternal'''s [[BossInMookClothing Marauder]]. While these demonic knights don't have the exact capabilities of the [[PlayerCharacter Doom Slayer]], they run pretty fast, can NoSell anything with their [[LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe shield]], have a limited form of the VideoGameDashing that the Slayer has, and are ''very'' quick on the draw, making them a greater threat than anything else on the battlefield. This comparison gets further cemented by the Marauders' backstory: [[spoiler:during the [[GreatOffscreenWar Argenta Civil War]], Marauders slain in service to the [[BigBad Khan]] [[AngelicAbomination May]][[LightIsNotGood kr]] were [[BackFromTheDead brought back to life]] with the Divinity Machine, the same device that was originally used to imbue the Doom Slayer with his [[LightningBruiser superhuman speed and strength]].]]

** Dmitrii Blinov from ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow'' is a much closer match, since he has the power to duplicate any attack you use against him. And if that doesn't work, he'll just stab you with a knife. Since he'll stick to what he copies and then spams it liberally afterwards, he can either be ThatOneBoss or a BreatherBoss: for example, using any high-powered, MP-expensive, hard-to-avoid attack on him isn't too smart, as he has no MP to worry about, but since he only uses the souls at their level 1 strength, some of them are hilariously ineffective. The most notable of them is probably the Cave Troll soul, which causes the user to attack with an elongated tongue: however, since the level 1 version of it only has a range of a few pixels, he'll spend most of his time hopping around harmlessly sticking out his tongue at you.

** Julius Belmont from ''VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow''. He doesn't fight exactly like the player character, but he is human, and he fights ''exactly'' like a Belmont (duh), up to and including the classic subweapons.

** Near the end of ''VideoGame/Splatoon2: [[DownloadableContent Octo Expansion]]''', Agent 8 has to fight Agent 3, [[spoiler:made BrainwashedAndCrazy and undergoing partial Sanitization]]. Both are armed with Splattershot variants (the Octo Shot for Agent 8, the Hero Shot for Agent 3) and bombs, have GlassCannon builds, and boast similar rates of HealingFactor. Since Agent 3 was the PlayerCharacter of [[VideoGame/Splatoon1 the first game]], it also overlaps with DuelingPlayerCharacters.

** ''VideoGame/Splatoon3'''s [[CardBattleGame Tableturf Battle]] mode has several "Splatsville locals" to unlock and play against, each with their own unique decks. However, Clone Jelly, the final unlockable rival, instead uses an exact copy of the player's deck.

* Near the end of ''VideoGame/{{Splatoon 2}}'''s Octo Expansion story, Agent 8 has to fight Agent 3, [[spoiler:made BrainwashedAndCrazy and undergoing partial Sanitization]]. Both are armed with Splattershot variants (the Octo Shot for Agent 8, the Hero Shot for Agent 3) and bombs, have GlassCannon builds, and boast similar rates of HealingFactor. Since Agent 3 was the PlayerCharacter of [[VideoGame/Splatoon1 the first game]], it also overlaps with DuelingPlayerCharacters.

* ''VideoGame/GloryOfHeraclesIII'', [[spoiler:through a cross of StableTimeLoop and BalefulPolymorph, has you relive an earlier boss fight from the opposite side, playing as the boss monster fighting your party. Though this time, [[SheatheYourSword the goal is not to win the fight.]]]]

* Dark Link, who first appeared as the final boss of ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink''.
** Taken very literally during his reappearance in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' as a miniboss, where he would perfectly mimic every movement and attack the player made, like a mirror image… except if the player performed a stab, in which case Dark Link would jump on top of Link's sword and get a free hit.
** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures'', as appropriate for a game about multiple Links, had "Shadow Link" as [[TheHeavy the primary antagonist]]. He appears in every level to harass Link using the same items you can collect in creative and destructive ways. He is also the boss of several levels.
** The BonusBoss of the GBA remake of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' is four copies of Link in different colored tunics as they are portrayed from the Four Swords game. Each Link uses different abilities that the player can use, such as the Hurricane Spin, using the Magic Cape to become invisible, and the ability to shoot sword beams.
** He shows up once more as a bonus boss in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'' at the very end of the most difficult BossRush challenge of the game.

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'':
*** There are a few bosses that are essentially the classes players use (Thamatuge, Archer, Lancer, etc) and can use the same skills as the player can. However, some of the boss characters will use skills that are unique to them and can't be used by the players.

*** The Warriors of Darkness are a party of a Warrior, a Paladin, a White Mage, a Black Mage, and a Bard, and fight with the same abilities a player of those classes would have -- including the Echo's ability to come back from a TotalPartyKill.

* In ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles3'', the first of three boss fights late in Chapter 1 is a battle between the player-controlled Kevesi party members and the soon-to-be Agnian party members. Their lineup mirrors yours, consisting of a tank, a damager, and a medic.

* Near the end of the first ''VideoGame/TombRaider'', Lara meets a copy of herself which does exactly what she does. Shooting it only results in Lara getting injured. You have to lure it into a deathtrap to proceed.

* The third boss in ''VideoGame/CrashBandicoot2NTranced'' is Fake Crash, who mimics the player's movements. Like the ''Franchise/TombRaider'' example, the only way to beat him is to move him so he stands where you shouldn't. If you collide into him, you'll die and he'll produce a cheering animation.