Mega Man 9

"Classic 8-bit Megaman is revisited and, more importantly, revitalized!"

Megaman is one of the classic videogame series of all times. It has enjoyed success in the US markets, the Japan markets, and nearly every market in between. After spawning countless spin-offs ranging from amazing to decent, Capcom has finally decided to bring the series home, back to it's roots (and in the opinion of most..it's glory). Every one of it's 8 bits is spit-shined, buffed, and polished to unprecedented levels in this newest sequal

Gameplay - Lets get right to the meat and potatoes of this review before we delve into the mechanics beneath it. The basics of a Megaman are as follows: Select one of 8 stages, each with it's own unique theme, enemies, music, pace, puzzles, and difficulty. Proceed with caution, using your trusty Mega Buster (also known as the P Shooter or the Arm Cannon) to take down every enemy you encounter as you evade enemies from land, sea, and air. You'll be tasked along the way with sliding under obstacles, jumping over bottomless pits, and steering clear of numerous spikes and other traps. Surviving all of this brings you face to face to the most memorable aspect of the Megaman series: The Robot Masters. They flip gravity upside down; fire at you with missiles, fire shields, ice shards, napalm, concrete, flying scissors and a myriad of other weapons. Defeating them ranges from "What? I beat him already?" to "After 37 years I still can't beat this guy without his weakness". Which leads me to the next aspect of the gameplay. Each Robot Master you take down rewards you with their weapon, and each weapon is also the weakness of another one of the Robot Masters, which rewards you with a new weapon and a new Robot Master with a weakness to exploit. This cycle is repeated in every game, with a few slight variations.

Megaman 9 is much the same as all of the rest of the games in this regard. The key differences with past games are the removal of the Mega Slide (gained in MM3) and the Charge Shot (gained in MM4). This leaves you with 3 options - Jump, Shoot your Arm Cannon, or Shoot your gained weaponry. Luckily this game has been tweaked to perfection, and the loss of these two skills is hardly noticed. The 8 Robot Masters (RM's)are as colorful as ever, and are definitely a step up from some past enemies. Jewel Man conjures a shield of 4 spinning jewels, which he fires at you in turn. Concrete Man fires blocks of concrete which ensnares you so that he can jump on and/or ram you. Galaxy Man attempts to trap you in a black hole of energy in order to leave you open to his attacks. Each of the 8 RM's are unique in their own right and completely stand out from the rest of the series in originality.

The weapons that you gain from the fallen RM's are also as varied and colorful as ever. One weapon simply whisks every susceptible enemy off the screen, but has limited uses. One weapon acts as a quasi-charged shot, having (against most enemies) double the power of your Arm Cannon, while also traveling through enemies (even shielded ones). Yet another weapon fires hornets that home in on your enemies and also retrieve out of the way items for you. This game, more than any other game in the series, actively rewards you for using each and every weapon in the game.

On top of all of this Capcom has seen fit to add a few extras to the mix. Time Attack mode puts you in a stage of your choice with a timer, every available weapon, and one life. Making the top 10 in the global rankings put your name on display for all to see. There are also 50 challenges to complete ranging from Beat the entire game without taking a hit (yes..i'm being serious), to beat the game in less than 60 minutes, to beat every RM with only your Arm Cannon. There are challenges for every skill level here. Finally, with the impending DLC you can tailor the game to your own tastes. Is the game too easy? Why don't you try one of the two harder difficulties! Do you long to relive the glory of the charge shot and slide moves? Purchase the Protoman DLC to play has Megaman's brother. They will even be including a new Time Trial stage, complete with a 9th RM.

I must warn you, good reader, that this game is hard. I've been playing Megaman games for 20 years and I definitely feel that this game has the steepest learning curve of all of the games. You will most likely die a lot during your first playthrough, particularly if you are a new player, or a bit rusty in your skills. While I would not call every screen "instant death" as another fellow reviewer, there are definitely some "OMG how will I ever be able to do THAT" moments. But, as evidenced by the "beat the game without taking a hit" challenge, this game is perfectly beatable, perfectly playable, and perfectly enjoyable once you learn the levels and the uses of the various weapons. There is also a fine selection of helpful items you can purchase from the in-game store using screws found through the stages. These range from E-tanks (which completely refill your life) to Beat (who lifts you back out of holes if you fall into one). This gives new players plenty of options to help them through learning how to play the game.

Graphics - Let me first show you what Gamefaqs states about graphical ratings

"Graphics/Sound - How a game looks and sounds. These should always be compared to the system's capabilities, not to games on other more advanced systems. "

This game was made not to be played on an NES directly, but to be enjoyed AS IF IT EXISTED ON THE NES ORIGINALLY. I can't stress this enough. If you play this game after a rousing game of Call of Duty 4 or Metal Gear Solid 4, it will be a shock to your eyes. 8-bits only go so far, but Capcom has pushed them to their absolute limits. The enemy animations, boss animations, backgrounds, and of course the stages themselves, are lovingly crafted. From an 8-bit standpoint, this game is the equivalent of the Mona Lisa, and as much care was put into the making of this as was put into the painting of that epic beauty. Each stage feels unique, both in this game and from the series as a whole. The style, the colors, and the feel all mesh well to feel both classic and modern at the same time.

In much the same way, the music in this game is superb. Much like a recently released hard rock album by a 20 something year old band, the music in this game is back to basics, yet as finely tuned as the soundtrack to any blockbuster you'll find in Hollywood this year. Each song is appropriate for each stage, doing a wonderful job of setting the tone for the stage. And more importantly, if you take them out of their respective stages and just listen to them as stand alone tracks, they are just as catchy (or more so) than some of the songs on the radio right now.

My one regret about the music in this game is the track that plays while you are viewing challenges, rankings, and time trial records. The sampling is very short, and after a few minutes of browsing these areas it becomes very annoying. Luckily this isn't a screen you'll probably be spending copious amounts of time in.

Playtime/Replayability - On my first run, my game clocked in at 3 hours and some change. I took my time, enjoyed every stage immensely, and took great pleasure in working out my own strategies while minimizing my usage of helpful items in game, or FAQ's and forum posts outside of the game. The current "All Clear" record times (on the wii) are about 25 minutes long, but the fastest time you get rewarded for is 60 minutes. The many ways you can proceed through the game offer great replayability. You can pick any stage in any order you like. You can proceed using enemy weapons exclusively, your arm cannon exclusively, or a mixture of both. You can challenge yourself to a "no healing items" game or a "no death" game or just spend hours trying to get some of the harder challenges such as "beat every boss with only 1 pixel of life remaining". There really is no "right" or "wrong" way to play this game, and that is one of it's strongest selling points. There is almost literally a different style of play for everyone.

Final Recommendation - I give this game a Definite Purchase status. Whether you grew up on 8-bit Megaman titles, 64 bit Pokemon titles, or highly polished next-gen titles, this game should be able to give you just the right mix of fun, challenge, and adventure. There is a reason that this game series has lasted 20 years...because it's one of the finest gaming experiences ever crafted, and this game is one of the shining jewels in that 20 year collection.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/01/08

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