Board 8 > I have been playing Mega Man for the first time

(+) Yeah! (+)

I will give 7 credit for that one Wily Stage theme. I think for most of the music I just dont really like the samples they used.

Freeze Man is consistently one of my favorite themes in the series, though I can get how the sound would grate on people. Shade Man's base theme, on the other hand, has absolutely been stuck in my head for full days before.

And since 8's been brought up: I dont care for it much myself, but the weapon variety is cool and they feel really strong. Speedrun nonsense you can pull off with the Mega Ball is also good, but points docked for being slower while sliding unless you buy a part. Also losing points is Wily Fortress this time around, between the infamy of Jump Jump Slide Slide and being totally forgettable otherwise.

WazzupGenius00 posted...

I will give 7 credit for that one Wily Stage theme. I think for most of the music I just dont really like the samples they used.

Same. It's really forgettable, and the instrumentation is... odd. Wily Stage 1 is actually pretty cool though.

Meanwhile I genuinely like 8's music.

2 > 4 > 9 > 5 > 10 > 3 > 8 > 6 > 7 > 1

play battle network

Lopen posted...

What the heck is with the 4 fans I've been seeing lately.

4 rules

MegamanX posted...

4 rules

4 doors

4 is okay

I've beaten Bloodstained (a good game with too many systems and multiple required progression items that are needlessly frustrating to get), so it's back to Mega Man!

I'm getting more used to 7, but I still don't really like how it looks or feels or the level design. I've gone through the first 4 robot masters, and the second lot at least have some interesting theming with dinos and vampires (hey, how fitting) and such.

the number one problem with 7 is that Mega Man is TOO BIG

Yeah it's very strange when mega man x is right there and he's the right size

The hurtboxes are more forgiving than I first thought, but yeah the sprites are definitely too big for the screen, especially in boss battles when you're basically on top of each other. It feels like a portable game in that sense.

Even the later Game Boy MM games solved that problem!

Oh no! I got all the way to Wily Castle 4 in MM7 earlier then took a break, but my saves seem to have disappeared. It says I have save data, but there's no checkpoint to load from and even the challenges I did from the menu are gone. How very odd! I don't see any issue like this come up on a quick search. Is this what people meant when they said MM7's ending is difficult :(

I used a password to get back to where I was, and finished off the game. Still no clue why my saves disappeared. I used my energy tank reserves to deal with the last boss lol, I wasn't gonna get that done cleanly. They got my hopes up thinking MM might actually off Wily for a second there, but of course not.

Mega Man 7
Probably the worst of the bunch. I got used to it, and there were moments where it felt like classic Mega Man, but this is the first time since 1 that felt like a chore to play in large sections. Some of the theming was good, like the weather changing things in Cloud Man's level, and Shade and Slash Man's levels (though Slash should've been a dino bot instead of some Wolverine guy). You can tell the levels were rushed though, and I don't think any of the modernising was for the better.
Best level: I'll go with Shade Man I think, I really liked the setting.
Best weapon: Thunder Bolt
Worst moment: Starting the game and realising this is what the series is like now >_> Alternatively, the Quick Man throwback in Turbo Man's stage.
Best music: I'm listening to the end credits right now and they are solid!

I look forward to finally experiencing MM8's infamous voice acting soon.

andylt posted...

Worst moment: Starting the game and realising this is what the series is like now >_>

This is the only game in the series like this!

I feel really guilty playing Mega Man 2 on the "normal" (easy) difficulty because he just feels stupidly overpowered. Like I'm playing as the Mega Man from the Ruby Spears cartoon.

How is one even supposed to use Bomb Man's weapon from the first game?

You pretty much only use it on Guts Man and hope he jumped straight up instead of forward

andylt posted...

Oh no! I got all the way to Wily Castle 4 in MM7 earlier then took a break, but my saves seem to have disappeared. It says I have save data, but there's no checkpoint to load from and even the challenges I did from the menu are gone. How very odd! I don't see any issue like this come up on a quick search. Is this what people meant when they said MM7's ending is difficult :(

MM7's ending is probably the single most controversial point in the entire series, and the mixed reaction scared Capcom out of ever doing anything edgy with the series again.

Megaman comes close to firing a charge shot directly at Wily with the intent to kill him while proclaiming he's "more than just a robot".

That ending was also altered for the US version and in the original he only says after Wily says the stuff about the laws of robotics

Oh yeah I forgot about that part

Oh and for the record

I actually do think Megaman is capable of firing that shot - It is heavily implied the robots of X's generation are not bound by the laws of robotics, and OG Megaman has clearly displayed some ability to think and feel for himself. The primary difference is Megaman would never forgive himself for actually doing it, and it would ultimately lead to his destruction.

I don't actually hate the ending, and I never knew it was so reviled until a long time after the fact. Megaman having that brief crisis of the soul is the only real evolution he's ever gotten as a character, and it serves as a great stage setter for the later robots who can clearly function on an autonomous level that he's not quite at yet.

People hate that ending? It's the most interesting Mega Man has been by a long shot!

Meow1000 posted...

the mixed reaction scared Capcom out of ever doing anything edgy with the series again.

This is sad to hear.

People didn't like the idea of Mega Man killing Wily for real

for them it was almost like Batman or Spider-Man breaking their no killing rule

Didn't that game also have Bass say "Damn!"?

What a wild entry, especially for that time period

First time I've heard of 7's ending being controversial. I thought it was cool.

I dont think that ending had a mixed reaction when it came out. For one, it was only in the English versions and I dont know how much Capcom was even listening for western opinions at that time where it would have influenced their decisions for future games. Two, the target audience was probably still young enough to not give that much thought to it yet, and the internet was not widespread enough for us to know about the changes made from the Japanese version. (By contrast I think the target audience -was- mature enough by the time of Mega Man Zero that we all recognized the cop-out that occurs near the end of that game for what it was.) Only years later did the fandom take a more mixed stance on the ending.

My own interpretation of the setting is that Robot Masters are generally unable to directly disobey their orders. They do have personalities, and a degree of freedom to do what they want, as long as it does not conflict with their programming. The ones that have been seen to disobey have almost all been due to malfunctions. This is what made X such a big deal that Dr. Light wanted him sealed away for decades of testinga robot with complete freedom was a new and potentially dangerous thing.

Leonhart4 posted...

People didn't like the idea of Mega Man killing Wily for real

for them it was almost like Batman or Spider-Man breaking their no killing rule

Do you think there would be any significant controversy if Batman or Spiderman-Man briefly considered breaking that rule but ultimately didnt?

The localization change is very silly. Comes out of nowhere and breaks the character way too much. Was definitely a better scene in its original form.

redrocket posted...

Do you think there would be any significant controversy if Batman or Spiderman-Man briefly considered breaking that rule but ultimately didnt?

I mean I'm not saying I agree with it, I just think that's where some of the objections come from

And maybe some hindsight criticism that this characterization never went anywhere

tazzyboyishere posted...

Comes out of nowhere and breaks the character way too much.

I feel like after 7 games of dealing with Wily's shit, it's not exactly coming out of nowhere. I always appreciated that Mega Man might eventually consider a more permanent solution when his life is an unending conga line of evil Robot Masters.

We had 5 games of Wily floating away from his misdeeds free of consequence, then in 6 MM takes it up a notch and makes sure he's arrested. That didn't take, so he progresses to the next option. I think it tracks!

I've started Mega Man 8 and oh boy, I don't know what I expected but it wasn't this. They shrunk down Mega Man at least, but I dunno if I like all the other changes. I now know the context of 'jump jump slide slide' and I sure hope it doesn't recur throughout multiple levels! I knew about the Dr Light meme but I didn't expect all the VA to be like this, even the Robot Masters.

This is also the third consecutive game with an Ice Man, come on now Capcom.

Bass why must we fight we are not enemies

SHUT UP

Some people deeply misunderstood the ending of 7 that they believe "Mega Man never threatened Wily's life in the REAL (Japanese) version!".

Because pointing a charged blaster (Also known as a gun) at a human totally isn't threatening someone's life, right? Especially when that human has to remind you that you aren't supposed to hurt humans, and you still hesitate. But ultimately Mega is a good person through and through and his hesitancy proves that. Wanting to kill someone and actually going through with it are two different things. It makes his character far more interesting to see him capable of getting that angry, but still ultimately refusing to pull the trigger.

And this interaction is one of the reasons I love this game SO much! Listen to the Wily 1 stage theme and tell me Mega isn't thinking about putting an end to Wily once and for all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI6Zq6QD-rU

This game was arguably the most human Mega ever felt, and I think it would have been interesting to see how this could be explored. The "logic" of whatever or not killing Wily is more of a violation of Rule 1 than continuously letting him live and then having him escape and cause more chaos, as well as the human emotion of WANTING to kill Wily but also not wanting to become a killer.

Yes the game has its flaws, but fuck do I wish we saw more of THIS Megaman.

The intent being there is important, and the way that intent is handled is what the translation fucked up. Having Mega Man's murder attempt be stopped by the intervention of a self-destruct switch flipping on, as opposed to him retracting that desire to continue following his own moral code, is pretty poor storytelling for your simple good vs. evil story.

The English version also has a typo/translation error right at the end there when he says I gonna do that brings the whole thing down a little

tazzyboyishere posted...

Having Mega Man's murder attempt be stopped by the intervention of a self-destruct switch flipping on, as opposed to him retracting that desire to continue following his own moral code, is pretty poor storytelling for your simple good vs. evil story.

That doesn't seem worse to me, just different. Like I'm totally fine with MM having a moment where he totally would have straight-up ended Wily if not interrupted. Heroes don't need to be flawless!

Mega Man 7 is so hilarious in retrospect, imagine ANY other iteration of Mega Man yelling DIE WILY

KamikazePotato posted...

That doesn't seem worse to me, just different. Like I'm totally fine with MM having a moment where he totally would have straight-up ended Wily if not interrupted. Heroes don't need to be flawless!

I prefer it that way honestly.

He's a robot, dude. Wanting vengeance kinda humanifies him a bit which is neat and then he gets pulled back into robotic roots by the switch. It works for me.

I had no idea that this many people cared about Mega Man lore. I thought that people just played it for the jumping and the shooting.

I mean that's the main reason, yes. But isn't it cool that people actually do pay attention to stuff like this?

I will say I agree with the love for MM7's plot and wish they kept going that way-- I just don't think the game plays well and gameplay is king.

Mega Man 2

I beat Mega Man 8! I'll have a think about best/worst levels etc, but I liked this more than 7. They had some interesting ideas for replayability/exploration with the bolts, and the music is really solid. I would've liked them to utilise the earlier weapons in later levels more, they set that up really nicely in Sword Man's level but the others use the Thunder Claw for swinging and that's it.

The gimmick levels aren't so good. The robot masters are mostly pretty uninspired and weirdly shoehorned into typical element roles- why is Sword Man fire and why is Clown Man electric? The voice acting being so incredibly amateurish makes the generic cutscenes way more fun. Props to the VAs that did a legit good job: Sword Man, Search Man, Roll, maybe Wily too.

Also what the heck is Bass's problem chill out man. I guess he's the Shadow to Proto Man's Knuckles but still, you're just a midboss.

Now you need to play Mega Man and Bass. Which is just a Mega Man 8 mod on the SNES.

MM&B is not on the collection, sadly.

Mega Man & Bass is pretty good and it really annoys me that it's not on the collection! I basically consider it to be Mega Man 8.5 - it's not really a spinoff. I think an early translation of the game called it Mega Man 9 lol, and I'd honestly say that's accurate

I will forever hate jump jump slide slide, even if it's not that bad

I should really get around to just buying Mega Man & Bass and Mega Man 11. Maybe the Game Boy games too.

Grand_Kirby posted...

Which is just a Mega Man 8 mod on the SNES.

I don't want you to mislead people here btw, MM&B does reuse some enemy graphics but it's a completely new game unrelated to MM8, the two games don't even play similar imo. MM&B is much harder

Have I praised Mega Man and Bass in this topic? No?

MM&B is a game for badasses. It pulls no punches and expects you to be skilled at the game. Even the tutorial level requires you to be awake, unlike your typical tutorial stage. If you're confident in your ability, I strongly recommend it!

(The SNES version. The GBA suffers from screen crunch. Though some stage themes sound better on the GBA imo... Namely the tutorial stage and the King stages.)