Quick Links
Whereas Superman of the Regime or Batman of the Insurgency become two (2) of the largest threats in the entirety of the Injustice universe, it’s Brainiac who becomes the center of villainy in the Injustice 2 story. In the game’s narrative, Brainiac is a 12th-Level Intelligence, easily one of the most powerful beings in the universe with a mad penchant for “collecting” worlds. While he becomes a playable character after defeating the Injustice 2 Story Mode, he serves one of its chief bosses throughout the experience.
Unfortunately for players, Brainiac is a tough cookie to crack when facing him as a boss. Astute and calm as any megalomaniac, Brainiac can release various long-reaching hits and massive burst attacks that can eliminate players if they’re not careful. However, just how can players defeat Brainiac if he’s such a tricky boss to eliminate?
Understand What Makes Boss Brainiac Different
Before players look for tips as to their recommended approach when fighting Brainiac as the Injustice 2 boss, it’s essential to understand the nature of his character first. Unlike the Brainiac players unlock after defeating him and completing the Story Mode, players get an exclusive Boss Brainiac that is available only when fought in this gameplay mode. This means players must anticipate Boss Brainiac having a unique take in combat reserved for more challenging bosses in typical fighting games, solely because he’s relegated as the boss character. Here are some things to expect:
- Expect a tough fight: As a boss character, Boss Brainiac is characteristically more difficult to fight compared to other characters in the game. Being frustrated about losing to him is reasonable, but players must remember that he’s explicitly designed to be a much stricter version of the character.
- Unique techniques: Due to his nature as a boss character, Boss Brainiac has moves exclusive to this form and is not present as a character. This means players hoping to train in the multiplayer mode may observe different techniques between Boss Brainiac and Brainiac players, such as different Injustice 2 super moves.
Lower The Difficulty
One of the easiest ways to defeat Brainiac is to simply lower the game's difficulty. While this seems like a no-brainer, this is actually quite a nifty approach in terms of the meta. A lowered-difficulty match may have players defeat Boss Brainiac much faster and more efficiently. Still, the more practiced player can use these difficulty levels to observe Boss Brainiac’s battle tactics progressively.
When players replay the Story Mode at more challenging levels, Boss Brainiac battles will get considerably more demanding in the long term. However, these progressing battles also show Boss Brainiac’s evolving strategies in increasing complexity, giving players the leeway they need to prepare themselves mentally and instinctively adjust to Boss Brainiac’s new strategies with more effective foresight, and may even avoid the need for expensive Injustice 2 Gear.
Study The Matchup With An AI
If players feel like fighting and defeating Boss Brainiac is next to impossible, it may perhaps be due to how they’re not maximizing the potential of their Injustice 2 character. Thankfully, the game does offer a Battle Simulator option, where players can customize an AI loadout for Injustice 2 characters to fight on the player’s behalf. Players can allot up to 60 points to stats such as Rushdowns, Combos, Counters, and Runaways, dictating the general “trend” of character choices when faced with certain situations.
In the case of Boss Brainiac, an ideal setup could be 30 Combo and 30 Counter, especially for fast-paced characters like the Flash and the Batman. This stat loadout focuses specifically on dishing out combos as often as possible, and especially countering Boss Brainiac when they have the chance.
Keep The Pressure Up
Similar to other tough boss fights in fighting games such as Shao Kahn (Mortal Kombat) and Akuma (Street Fighter), Boss Brainiac is only a tough Injustice 2 character to beat should players allow him to string combos together. When players are caught off-guard, their chances of being defeated exponentially increase. However, Boss Brainiac doesn’t stand a chance if players can persist in doing their combos every chance they get.
In turn, one of the most ideal strategies against Boss Brainiac is to develop a fast-paced, rushdown playstyle. Going fast and hard as soon as the round begins will allow players to get a headstart at the boss, dealing massive damage even on the off-chance that Boss Brainiac gets to land a counter. Ideally, players should try studying how his most brutal attacks happen to dodge them, giving them an opening for more counters.
Stay Away From The Zone
One of the most infamous attacks of Boss Brainiac involves his long-ranged tentacles that deal massive damage when connecting with players. This spells bad news to players who want to stay away from Boss Brainiac to keep safe, as the tentacles essentially mean zoning is out of the equation when fighting this boss.
However, this may actually serve the player’s advantage, especially when using rushdown characters like Injustice 2 Superman with good Gear. Keeping an up-close strategy and avoiding the mid-to-long-range immediately removes Brainiac’s access to his tentacle attack. This means players simply have to worry about Boss Brainiac’s close-range counters and grapples.
Cornering Is A Key Defensive Move
A key component in any fighting game playstyle is to ensure players aren’t even able to secure the spatial advantage. In this case, not letting Injustice 2 characters like Boss Brainiac get access to the middle stage and attack with his more devastating moves. In turn, this opening allows players to dish out as much damage as possible. Players should take note that giving Boss Brainiac the spatial position allows him to release his more powerful ranged attacks, while keeping him in the corner allows players to finish him off.
Compared to a fast-paced rushdown strategy, the key to cornering tactics is continuously finding ways to keep Boss Brainiac on the ground through hard hits. Speed may not necessarily be the key here, but rather exploiting openings that give players room for grapples, throws, and specials that keep Boss Brainiac stuck in a corner.
Playing Safe Is A Slow But Sure Win
Considering the nature of Boss Brainiac as one of the most brutal fights in Injustice 2, it makes sense for a low-level DC Comics character to find it much harder to defeat him. If characters lower than Level 20 are facing off against the boss, it’s ideal for players to stand their ground and instead look for ways to dodge Boss Brainiac’s attacks.
While this tactic can get exhausting and encourage players to just mash their way to a victory, this sure-but-safe approach focuses more on survival. Assessing Boss Brainiac’s moveset and relying on punishments such as counter-moves can ensure players get the least damage possible while having all the means of dodging or parrying Boss Brainiac’s attacks.
Injustice 2 was released on May 11, 2017 for the PS4, Xbox One, Android, iOS, and PC.