No More Heroes Boss Guide: How to Beat Death Metal

Could kick ass. Could be dangerous. Could totally suck. That’s one of the first phrases we heard from Travis Touchdown when No More Heroes was still being advertised, and that phrase covers the whole No More Heroes vibe. Several years and console generations later, No More Heroes has reappeared on the Nintendo Switch in the best way possible – the original Wii version, but in HD. It’s been a while, and many of you may be trying the game out for the first time. Considering it’s largely a gauntlet of over the top boss battles, how about a boss guide?

No More Heroes Death Metal Boss Guide

Death Metal, a wiry old man with a massive sword and a longing for a real challenge, is No More Heroes’ first boss fight. As such, there isn’t really much of a guide to be had here. You’ve just learned the controls at this point, and Death Metal is meant to ease you into the boss format more than beat you up. Granted, Death Metal will still murk you if you let him, because No More Heroes is no cakewalk even on the easiest difficulty. Still, as long as you recognize the basic tenets of combat, you should be able to walk away with little more than some dust to brush off.

Since Death Metal is the first boss he won’t be pulling many tricks on you. He leaps around, and swings his very big sword. He has a couple of different attacks, but they aren’t very different from one another in all honesty. You’ll need to stay locked on and approach him, but be ready to roll to the side, then run up and slap him a few times. You can only do so much damage before Death Metal recovers and guards, and as soon as you hear the defensive clashing sounds you need to back off.

Eventually you’ll get to a new phase, for which Death Metal creates two clones of himself. It’s a lot scarier than it looks, however. The three will rush you down, but the clones aren’t very strong. Focus on them first, since they have low-ish health they’ll go down pretty quickly. Stay moving and locked on as much as you can, to make sure you don’t get surrounded. Death Metal will introduce a new move at this point, a ground-based shockwave move that is clearly telegraphed and easy to avoid as long as you’re moving.

When you eventually stun Death Metal, try to watch out for the spinning head stars animation and lay off your attack. When you stun a boss you only have a brief window to grab them for a wrestling move, and the damage you get is worth the extra effort. As an aside, keep in mind that boss rooms do have a health and battery box, one each. Going after them will leave you extra vulnerable, so make note of where they are and only go for them if you absolutely need them. You’re turning your back to the boss, so knowing where they are relative to you will give you those extra seconds you would use to find them.

That’s really more than enough for Death Metal. Just stay mobile, stay patient, and don’t get too greedy. You’ll get on the top ten assassins list in no time. Your next boss fight is much more challenging, but we’ll tackle that in the next boss guide. Are you trying No More Heroes for the first time with the new Switch ports? Or are you giving it a revisit and excited for the chance to do so on a current platform? Let us know over at the Prima Games social channels on Facebook or Twitter!