High on Life features a variety of boss encounters that prove to be surprisingly entertaining and action packed. Using the bounty hunter’s wide array of constantly improving skills and gadgets, the player is forced to test their might against some of the toughest opponents in the universe.
The Skrendel Bros can be especially challenging for even the most adept High on Life players due to the chaotic nature of their move-set. But claiming this bounty is not only a literal achievement in-game, but it is also imperative for story progression and a lot of fun to conquer.
Fighting One-On-One
Before the real showdown, the bounty hunter must first face three separate encounters with each of the brothers individually. The design of this works not only to offer an added challenge and introduce each of the foes in a unique way, but it also works as a game design trick that can prepare the player for some of the move-sets that they can expect in the trio battle.
Jonathan Skrendel
The first brother to fight is Jonathan Skrendel. At this point, Creature will have been added to the player’s arsenal, so it may be best to use him to get acquainted with his abilities. There are a few moves of Jonathan’s to look out for. When he’s grounded, he may try to blast the player with acid circles. Use the dodge mechanic liberally to avoid getting caught on the edges. Passing through the center of these circles won’t hurt, but letting them hit on either side most definitely will. Jonathan also has a ground pound move that causes a short wave of acid to echo out into a circle around him. Hop over each wave and keep the pressure on by firing at him constantly. The best aspect of Creature is that his bullet-children will continue to do damage for a short time even when the player is distracted with reloading or dodging attacks.
Angela Skrendel
Jonathan will flee eventually once he’s taken enough damage. Follow him and proceed through the facility to the next brother, Angela. The Angela fight can be difficult because of the arena. The way it is designed will keep the player mostly around the edges of the square-like room, and it will keep them constantly moving to avoid the additional enemies that Angela has thrown into the mix. Creature is best for this fight to keep the pressure on the Skrendel brother and the alternate enemies at bay. Use Creature’s special move to mind control the other assailants for a short time while focusing the bulk of the firepower on Angela. Keep constantly moving. Again, Angela will flee once enough damage has been inflicted.
Mona Skrendel
The third brother is Mona. In this arena, take note of the hives that are high on the walls. Since you now have Creature, use him to flush out the hook bugs and grapple onto them to escape Mona’s rushing attack. Mona moves quite rapidly. Dodging these dives shouldn’t be particularly hard, but Mona has a spinning move that dishes out large bubbles of acid. Use the hook bugs to evade this move and keep Mona under constant fire.
Bro-Tron
Once Mona has been defeated, the real fight begins. The other Skrendel brothers will join in and conjoin together to form Bro-Tron which is essentially just the three of them stacked on top of each other. The trick of this fight is that each time Bro-Tron is formed, the collective health of the brothers becomes full once again. Once Bro-Tron’s health drops to zero, the brothers will be forced to split, allowing the bounty hunter to cause real damage.
First, Bro-Tron needs to be dealt with. The move-set for the three brothers combined is sort of just an enhanced version of each of their signature moves individually. The ground pound will now cause a much taller acid wave which can be avoided with the hook bugs in the arena or the jetpack. The rushing attack is a bit faster and longer lasting, but can still be timed with an effective dodge. The most difficult move to evade is essentially a wall of acid cylinders that spin out like tornadoes and move unpredictably. Timing these tornadoes is difficult. The easiest way to get through them is to get distance from the brothers to allow time for these columns to get close. Then line up an opening and dash forward with the dodge boost. Once again, it is best to use Creature here because the damage output allows time for the player to focus on evading.
Once Bro-Tron has been separated, the Skrendel Bros will return to their original move-set patterns. The only trouble is that they’re now doing them all at the same time. Because of the chaos, it’s best to stay in the air as much as possible to avoid the pockets of acid that are about to be everywhere. Focus Creature’s attacks on one Skrendel at a time to get them out of the fray for good. Bro-Tron can still form with two brothers, but this way when they separate, there’s less chaos to contend with on the ground.
The trio should now be a duo, but the move-set of Bro-Tron will stay largely the same. Avoid jumping over Bro-Tron during the tornado attack and keep firing at all times. Use Gus’s razor ability to add some damage and split them again. Stick to the same tactics to avoid their individual attacks. Once it’s one-on-one again, cleaning up the final Skrendel brother should be easy. Knifey will be very excited to collect three bounties, and the player will likely be excited to have completed this impressive challenge.
High on Life is available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.