Mega Man X7

"Your Experiment Was a Moderate Success."

Let me just say that I am a dedicated Mega Man fan. I have and always will love the series (except X6..but let us not speak of that.) So when I picked this game up (after months of anticipation)..needless to say I was very excited. I fired it up, watched the beginning movies, and smiled as I soon took control of our new friend, Axl. That smile did not last long...after completeing the 1st mission I took on a stage. I grew to hate this game. I took it out of my console and set it aside for the night. I took it up the next day and played for a bit, practicing, more than anything. I learned to deal with the controls, and soon grew efficient with them. And so will you, given the proper time and slight dedication.

Graphics 7/10
They were OK. I have seen much better. I base this not so much on how breathtakingly real and sparkely they look , but how the characters look. I find that most look really mediocre. Only a few designs were noteworthy (Red, for one). The cell-shadeing was a nice touch. I really see no other way it could have been done. Overall it looked somewhat...dark. But not in a Silent Hill way...but more of a...night time way. If that made any sense. Heh.

Sound 7/10
The music was mediocre as well. Only a few songs really stood out (Snipe Anteaters was good, and the 2 last fight songs and end credits were amazing). The voice acting was very inconsistet. Some voices (X and Axl and 99% of the Mavericks) were god awful. But some were very good (Zero's new voice is very well done. Red was good too). On top of that, we have our awesome Mega Man X4 announcer back! We get to hear him saying the Mavericks names before the stage begins. Not a real game maker, but it's a nice little treat. The normal shot/slash effects were the same as they always have been, though. Nothing new there.

Gameplay 8/10
Different, but hey..it works. While the moves are executed the same way, they are not the same. Take wall climbing, for instance. It's done the same ways as before but there is some higher gravitatinal force that keeps you from efficiently dash-jumping off of a wall like the old days. This has gotten me killed more than once, and does get annoying, but you have to forget what you know about MMX games and relearn the system. It's not that hard once you get the hang of it. You can also power up your guys by using chips collected from saving reploids (same deal as X5 and X6, but now they sometime give you powerups) Another thing is that bosses are a bit tougher this time around, but nothing you can't handle.

Story 7/10
Eh. It was ok..I guess...nothing really to say without spoilers. Axl was part of an organization that started well, but grew sour over time. He joins forces with Zero to stop them blah blah blah.

Fun Factor 8/10
While the game had its flaws, it was still a good Mega Man game.All of these flaws can be easily overcome. But I am opinionated. I love Mega Man. If you're not a MM fan, than I suggest a rent. For all of us Blue Bomber worshippers, go and buy it...NOW.

Wrap Up
If you are angry at the whole 3D thing, than take a step back and think. Do you REALLY want another fully 2D Mega Man? Look at X6. Shield Sheldon? INFINITY MINJINION? They were really scraping the bottom of the barrel there. They had to pull this off to save the series rom certain doom. Be thankful.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/31/03