Mega Man Battle Network

"A must buy for any Mega Man or RPG fan!"

When I was able to weasel my mother into getting me this game, it was because I wanted another game for my GBA other than Advance Wars (also a solid game). But then something happened, Capcom managed to put out a fun, fresh, innovative RPG. Let's face it, the Breath of Fire saga dropped in quality in the transition to Playstation. As a fan of Mega Man since the NES days, I was pleased overall with the old school quirks of the game, such as the including of Woodman, Gutsman, Iceman, etc. But this game also has some all-new features that are like icing on a cake you know is going to give you cavities but you eat it anyway. A whole new set of character designs are welcomed, along with the traditional bad guys that are about 3 times bigger than ole’ Mega Man. In this version, Mega Man is like a butt-kicking giga pet in the future. You can send him into anything with a “jack” and go kill baddies, get money, or buy armor and weapon enhancements. A boy named Lan is mega’s owner and you control Lan when in the real world.

Graphics:
Just by looking at screen shots, it can lead you to being skeptical, but when you actually “jack-in” and play, this thing is smooth, colorful, and a shining piece of eye-candy. This game is one of the best uses of a systems full capabilities in a long time, especially for gameboy. In fact, I will go so far as to say these are the best graphics on gameboy…ever.

Sound:
This is where I would deduct a point. It has the classic elements of an RPG’s score, (the world map music, the cheesy battle sound f/x) but the fighting sound f/x are kind of repetitive. But, it does sound better with a good set of headphones.

Controls:
Smooth as silk for a gameboy game. The only complaint is that this would work better with a joystick, but that can’t be helped I suppose.

Story:
The story is pretty solid, although it can be a wee bit hard to know where you need to go and what to do at times. But, Capcom was smart enough to put in a control so you can talk to mega man via a little cell phone device called a PET, he will normally tell you where to go or what to do. Same thing only vice versa when you play as Mega, you can talk to the boy Lan.

Replay:
There are so many little side quests and things to do that this can be played many times over with different paths of winning.

Overall:
I give this game a 9, which isn’t perfect, what game is? Put this one on the christmas list. All I have left to say is I can’t wait for the sequel.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/05/01, Updated 11/05/01