Mega Man 9

"Mega Man is back in two dimensions"

Introduction

Mega Man 9 is the latest game in the Mega Man series, and the first numbered entry since the 1996 game Mega Man 8. The game has returned to its roots, going back to how it originally looked on the NES. A bold move for Capcom in today's world of fancy-pants graphics and large production teams.

I still remember playing one of the original Mega Man games as a kid, fighting against Cut Man and becoming extremely frustrated. But obviously it was fun, or I wouldn't have played it day after day (I never did beat Cut Man, sad, I know) and also, I wouldn't have returned to the series. At first I had very little interest in this game, but after looking it up and doing some not-so extensive research I had already fallen in love with Mega Man 9. As I hadn't played any other Mega Man games save for the aforementioned one and Battle Network, I was pleasantly surprised to see how the game played. I'll explain it all in detail in a moment.

Gameplay

This game plays much the same as previous installments in the series. You play as Mega Man, created by Dr.Light. You have a fancy blue helmet and your "Buster" weapon. Since I'm reviewing the PS3 version, I'm going to explain the controls; There is one button for attack, and one button for jump. And that's all you really need to know about the controls. Except, of course if you want to pause and get some snacks or something. In which case you'll want to learn the location of the 'Start' button.

The pause menu doesn't just allow you to go off and prepare a tasty meal. It's also the place where you can use items you've bought using the bolts you've collected, as well as selecting your weapon. Using bolts found in levels you can buy extra lives, or help from an ally. Possibly a health canister. You can even get your hair looking stylish. There are a surprising amount of weapons to choose from, and no weapon is better or worse than any other. They each serve a purpose. You can unlock a weapon by defeating bosses. They also look nice when equipped, because Mega Man changes color.

Using Mega Man and Mega Man 2 as the main inspiration for the Mega Man 9, Mega Man lacks the 'Power Slide' and 'Charge Shot' abilities. This has caused a lot of upsets from Mega Man fans. Having never experienced any 'Slide' or 'Charge Shot' abilities, I personally don't mind them not being included. You, however, might.

You start with roughly three lives, and can pick them up in the level. Each level has two checkpoints, which makes the game hard. Really hard. Don't expect to finish a level the first run through. They will take you awhile, and you have to perfect each one. The controls and platforming are fine, and handle well. The only issue I can think of is spikes, which cause instant death and you tend to hit them a little too much. But that's all down to the individual skill level, really. You have a standard health bar, as per normal. However, for every weapon apart from the buster you also have a bar, which decreases every time you use said weapon. When the bar is depleted, you can't use it again. Unless of course you obtain different sized screws which replenishes the bar.

As well as the main story, you're able to test your skills with the rest of the world in modes such as the Time Trials. You can also play as Proto Man (For a price) and obtain extra game modes through download.

Story

Robots! On the loose! At first, thoughts are turned to the evil Wily. But it seems that the evil Wily is not responsible for the robot's strange behavior. Dr. Light is subsequently blamed for the robot's outburst of horrible evil. Wily announces on television that he needs donations to complete the robots he is creating to destroy Dr. Light's 'evil' robots. Mega Man, Roll and Auto vow to prove Dr. Light's innocence and expose the evil Wily's true intentions. Mega Man must defeat eight robots in order to get to Wily, and to find out the truth.

Graphics/Sound

As previously stated, the graphics are designed to look like the classic versions of the 2D Mega Man games, using 8-bit graphics similar to those of the original Nintendo. The environments and enemies seem to be done in a little more detail than in previous games. Which would be expected. There aren't utterly breath-taking, but they're not supposed to be. Each level has a very different environment. Not just in the backgrounds, but the foregrounds too. Different platforms, areas and such. Each done extremely well, and fitting to its environment. The sound effects, are basic. As they should be. Basic, traditional 8-bit game sound effects. And this works just fine.

Even though I have only played one of the classic Mega Man games prior to playing this one, I could recognize the music in an instant. Not because it is the same, mind you. But the sound is very similar, using nice ambient beats and catchy tunes. Each track is fitting to the level, and unique to that level. The boss music can get you pretty pumped up too.
The excellent soundtrack is one of the reasons you'll want to play through each level again and again. I still can't get enough of that crazy Tornado Man tune.

Play Time/Replayability

The average play though, I believe will take you anywhere from eight hours to twelve, depending on various things. Such as the order you play each level, which directly affects how difficult the game can be (What I mean by that is, you may not have the right weapons, which can make levels more difficult).

As for 'replayability', I feel there's a lot of it. As I said, you may well find yourself wanting to play through each level over and over until you perfect it, and are basically able to run through the entire thing barely stopping for a breather. The challenge of Time Trials, harder difficulties and extra game modes are also tempting, and add to a longer life for the game. Aside from all of this, there are a whole lot of challenges to complete, if you fancy trying to get them. For example, defeat so many enemies, defeat this boss in a specified time limit, etc. There are enough of them to keep you occupied for a long time. Not to mention the rest of the 'downloadable' content, which I briefly touched on earlier. Even without it, there's enough content to keep you playing for a long while.

Final Recommendation

Finally, I believe that Mega Man 9 is certainly a game worth your money. It's got everything that a good game should have, even if it is lacking a little in the story department. However, if you're still undecided about whether or not you want this game, a demo is available for download on the PlayStation Network. After playing this, you should know for sure whether Mega Man 9 is for you.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/05/08

Game Release: Mega Man 9 (US, 09/25/08)