History Main / DuelBoss

* The ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'' series has [[PlayingWithATrope played]] with this on a few occasions. In ''VideoGame/KirbysAdventure'' and its GBA remake, Meta Knight, fought as the boss of Orange Ocean, forces the player to carry the Sword ability for the duration of the fight; this is repeated in ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'' and ''Kirby Super Star Ultra'' at the end of Revenge Of Meta Knight, though the player can use another ability if they form a helper with their current ability, grab Sword, discard it, convert their helper back into a helper item, and then inhale it to gain their old ability back. [[BoringButPractical Or they could just wait thirty seconds until Meta Knight gets bored and forgoes the Sword requirement]] [[FridgeBrilliance (you ARE on a falling airship, after all).]] ''VideoGame/KirbyAndTheAmazingMirror'' and ''VideoGame/KirbySqueakSquad'' take things a step further: in both games, Meta Knight and Dark Meta Knight don't try to force the Sword ability on Kirby, but the stars they drop throughout the battle do grant the ability when inhaled. Additionally, a Sword bubble is given in the room before Meta Knight's boss fight in ''Squeak Squad'', but the player isn't required to activate or even grab it.

* ''VideoGame/LikeADragonInfiniteWealth'' has Asakura, who Ichiban battles by himself [[RecurringBoss all four times they fight]]. The first time is just because it's the beginning of the game and nobody else has joined the party yet, but the remaining times Asakura requests a one-on-one fight to gauge his own strength and growth.

* ''VideoGame/LikeADragonInfiniteWealth'' has Asakura, who Ichiban battles by himself [[RecurringBoss all four times they fight]]. The first time is just because it's the beginning of the game and nobody else has joined the party yet, but the remaining times Asakura requests a one-on-one fight.

{{Worthy Opponent}}s and {{Blood Knight}}s are the most likely to try this.

** Vindicta & Gorvek are a DragonRider and a Dragon. In the first phase of the fight, you fight against Vindicta while Gorvek flies around and occasionally creates walls of purple fire. In the second phase, you fight both of them while Vindicta is mounted on Gorvek. The challenge mode version of the fight adds a third phase where Vindicta dies but Gorvek doesn't die with her and goes berserk.

* ''VideoGame/RuneScape]]

* Once you've depleted half of Jonathan Jones's HP in ''VideoGame/SuperMarioRPG: Legend of the Seven Stars'', Johnny [[TurnsRed powers up]] and challenges Mario to one-on-one combat, which cannot be declined. Unless Mario is overlevelled and/or has a crapton of healing items, he is going to die. An easy trick to avoid this duel is to not defeat all of Johnny's [[FlunkyBoss flunkies]].

** In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'', Galuf must [[HeroicSacrifice fight]] [=ExDeath=] on his own to free the rest of the party. Notably, [=ExDeath=] nukes Galuf to 0 HP as early as the first turn of the battle, but Galuf continues to fight [[{{Determinator}} without HP]] until [=ExDeath=] submits.

*** There's also the battle between Phunbaba and Terra shortly after you find her in the World of Ruin, but it's a HopelessBossFight and she needs to be rescued.

* ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba'' has the fight between [[PlayingWithFire Kyojuro Rengoku]] and [[spoiler: the Upper Rank 3 Kizuki [[BareFistedMonk Akaza]]]] during the Mugen Train Arc. Becomes a literal one in [[VideoGame/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaibaTheHinokamiChronicles The Kinokami Chronicles]].

* The final boss of ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'' is a one-on-one duel with [[spoiler:Gwyn, Lord of Cinder]], who wield a [[{{BFS}} massive]] flaming sword and nothing else. [[spoiler:Unless you saved Solaire via Chaos Covenant shortcut, he would then assist you instead provided he was alive.]]

* Croix versus [[WellIntentionedExtremist Prince Targana]] in ''VideoGame/ArTonelico2'', of the ThisIsSomethingHesGotToDoHimself type. What makes this battle even more bizarre is the battle system, which allows the Vanguards, like Croix, to defend from attacks only while defending Reivyteils, but since Croix is alone for this fight, he can't defend any attacks and the player is forced to take every blow completely head on. Luckily, Targana's attack power seems to reflect this. To add to it, this boss has to be fought twice back-to-back. The first battle Croix will forcibly not launch any attacks higher than level 2, basically crippling you further, for the second fight, Croix stops holding back and you can go all out.

Do not confuse with the (deliberately) similar-sounding DualBoss, where you fight two bosses at the same time, and their stats are likely ''not'' lowered. If the Duel Boss is also the FinalBoss, this trope overlaps with InTheEndYouAreOnYourOwn. Does not count if you were alone to begin with.

* ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'', Kirito's duel with Heathcliff is essentially this. [[spoiler:The second one also qualifies as InTheEndYouAreOnYourOwn.]]

* ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublic'': Darth Malak pops up and promptly freezes your party members using the Force, then tries to cut you to pieces... twice. Stats lowered, of course: by that point the main character is strong enough that after a Force buff or two it's trivially easy to hurt Malak enough to force him to retreat... which [[GameplayAndStorySegregation does nothing to prevent]] [[spoiler:one of your party members making a HeroicSacrifice to "save" you from the guy you were effortlessly demolishing mere moments ago.]] When you face Malak again at the end of the game, you also fight alone... and this time, he's the most powerful enemy in the entirety of KOTOR. Though this is {{justified|Trope}} because the space station he's on amplifies his Dark Side powers.
** Incidentally, even then he ain't that tough a Sith. All that is needed is liberal use of the Force Choke/Force Wave and a lot of running.
** Juhani and [[spoiler:Bastila]] do this too.
* ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords'': The sequel loves this trope as well.
** The Exile will fight Atris, Darth Sion and [[spoiler:Darth Traya]] alone... which incidentally serves to [[BrokenAesop undercut]] its overall message about [[ThePowerOfFriendship drawing strength from others]]. Interestingly what the main character of KOTOR II is "drawing" on is the ''Force connections'' of his/her friends, which isn't a good thing, by the way.

* Before Yuri can rejoin the party in ''VideoGame/ShadowHearts'', he must defeat the to-this-point ImplacableMan Fox Face in single combat.
** You can [[spoiler:lose this fight without getting a game over]]. This leads to the bad [[spoiler:(and canon)]] ending.

** In ''VideoGame/{{MOTHER|1}}'', when you get to Ellay and perform a show in a club, Teddy comes onstage when you're done and demands to know who is beating up his gang members. He pulls Ninten into a one on one fight that doesn't last long, which results in him joining your group for a while.

** ''VideoGame/EarthBound'': Ness must face an entire world in his own mind (and thus by himself), including the requisite Duel Boss, before the shift to the endgame; said Duel Boss is [[BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind the embodiment of the dark side of his mind]]. You don't even get help from the Flying Men (though it's impressive if you get any of them to survive long enough to accompany you to the boss point), as he collapses on the very first turn if he even survives to that point.
** ''VideoGame/{{MOTHER 3}}'' ends with a Duel Boss battle between Lucas and [[spoiler:the Masked Man]], who has blasted down the rest of his party with a powerful lightning strike, Lucas being protected from it by his Franklin Badge. While Lucas CAN use [[HealingHands healing PSI]] to revive everyone, this just provokes the enemy to ''immediately'' respond with the same lightning attack and strike them down before they can even make a move. When Flint tries to interfere about halfway through, he too gets taken down brutally.