Mega Man 9

"Mega Man returns to the 8-bit glory we all know and love"

To be forward about it, this game is exactly what you would expect from an old school Mega Man game (NES era) and then some. Taking a step down from Mega Man 7 and 8 and going back to the 8-bit days was a bold move for Capcom however, it seems it will fare well with the ones who have played the originals.

Graphics: Ok, I can't lie here…obviously by today's standards, it looks like crap, but for those who can still appreciate retro gaming, and have not forgotten their roots, then this game is for you. I might say that this is possibly the best looking in the 8-bit era as far as the Mega Man franchise goes. I'm impressed that people can still develop this stuff apparently without just reviving an old game with new features and better graphics.

Sound: Again, outdated…yet these older tunes are quite catchy and get stuck in your head easily. Some music is recycled from Mega Man 2, but is mostly all new music and a great soundtrack at that. One of the levels in fact starts off very similar to the Wood Man tune in Mega Man 2. It's all one big blast to the past, but I'll go on about that soon enough.

Story: I don't want to ruin anything but we all know the basic drill, Wily causes havoc, Mega Man saves the day, this time with a twist. Dr. Light is being accused of sending robots out to destroy the world, obviously framed by Dr. Wily somehow and you're on your usual hunt for the 8 robot masters to find out what is going on. Never a huge story line really for a Mega Man game but we all still played them way back when. Some people will no doubt be looking for an answer for a connection perhaps between the original series and the X series, while I cannot tell you if this fulfills that answer or not, I can say it is a great story that flows well together as simple as it may be, and the ending is again to not ruin things…satisfying.

Gameplay: This of course is where the game shines. It stays true to the original 8-bit glory. Everything runs as you remember it. Only downside is, it appears you've downgraded since Mega Man 8 as you are playing as if you were playing Mega Man or Mega Man 2 as you have no charge shot nor a slide in this one. If you enjoyed the first two, you know exactly what you are in for. There is one other drawback, although I don't consider this to take away from the core gameplay, it must be mentioned. Casual gamers beware of this one…if you are trying to just get into the series, this is NOT a start and even for the hardcore Mega Man fans, this is possibly in my opinion the hardest Mega Man there is. What a way to go out eh? Giving the fans what they want in every way but the difficultly for some gamers may turn them off to this title. That being said and done let's get to what you want to know. Game gives you all you want and then some. Downloadable content on the way and in-game accomplishments so you can get some feel of getting achievements without getting the Xbox Live version which doesn't come out till early October. You can now save your game so you don't have to do it all in one sitting. (I did I stayed true to the NES days). Saving in between Wily's levels though, won't work. Your passwords back in the day wouldn't let you do It, and this won't either. All or nothing for Wily's levels, you can forget about the save feature there. You have a shop you can now buy stuff from such as energy cans, eddie power-ups and ect. Taking the bolts system from Mega Man 8, you collect bolts in levels and may use them to purchase items in between stages on the robot master select screen. There are eight robot masters by tradition since Mega Man 2, and then the usual Wily stages. Mega Man games once learned tend to be quite short but don't expect to speed run this one anytime soon. The levels are very innovative, they look great and a good portion of them have new things within the level waiting for them. Old things such as the disappearing and reappearing blocks return and some new things such as platforms that you slide around 2D style and when you jump off of them you jump up if you are on top of it or jump down if you are spun around to the bottom. Some levels may feel short but all are well done, I was not bored with any stages in this game. What more is there to say really? I don't know, the game is everything you've been expecting because if you're reading this at all you're probably one of those rabid Mega Man fans.

Game Mechanics: You still get knocked back a bit when you get hit. You can still get hit and take the slight time with your invincibility to pass an area. You CANNOT charge shots. You CANNOT slide. It's pretty much exactly as you remember it. The platforming is great and Mega Man 9 does it well as always. Mega Man is very responsive and makes the gameplay smooth with no problems. That pretty much sums it up considering all I've said in the gameplay section already.

Overall: As if it was not obvious enough, I am a big fan of this series. But even so, if you enjoyed any Mega Man titles in the NES days 1-6, the Super Nintendo one (Mega Man 7) or even the strange Playstation one (Mega Man 8), Mega Man 9 is a return to form and is well worth your $10. If you're a hardcore gamer that hasn't played Mega Man but is looking for a great game with a challenge, go for it. If you're a casual gamer, beware…even so if you want to check out the series for what it is, Mega Man and Mega Man 2 are both on Virtual Console to check out. My main complaints are not much outside of “downgrading” and something storyline wise which I cannot talk about without running into spoilers, but neither of these affect the gameplay of this spectacular game. If you like Mega Man you MUST have this game.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/25/08

Game Release: Mega Man 9 (US, 09/22/08)