Mega Man & Bass

"All your Bass are belong to us !!"

Megaman and Bass was originally released for the Super Famicom, and like most Megaman games, carried out the legacy of quality and fun. This game is no exception. Even though it is not a completely new game, it still remains fun.

Like most games in the series, this game has the traditional Megaman story, which is simple and straightforward. Basically, the evil robot King has stolen CDs containing information on all the past Robot Masters (bosses). Dr. Light decides to send Megaman to get these back. Megaman's dark rival, Bass, is also sent by his master to get back the CDs. The two must now work together if they are to overcome their foe and complete their mission. Nothing too complicated or deep, but the story is enough to keep a player going.

This game has the traditional Megaman style gameplay. However, there are a few differences. Is M&B, you are allowed to choose between two playable characters: Megaman and Bass. There are many significant differences between them, besides their looks. Megaman can charge his arm cannon shots to do the most dammage, slide, and shoot while he runs. Bass can double jump, fire his arm cannon rapidly (although he cannot charge his beam), and dash. Although they both have different abilities, many players will soon find that Bass is the dominant character.

The game otherwise plays like a traditional Megaman game. M&B is a side scrolling adventure, like most games of the series. Basically, the point is to get to and beat the boss robot at the end of the level. Once you beat the boss, you inherit his powers, which you can use to destroy enemies and other bosses.

Some bosses are especially weak against certain abilities. For example, the fire boss, Burner Man, has a weakness to the ice ability that you earn from Cold Man. The abilities you get from the bosses vary. They usually are one of the moves that the bosses themselves use.

Two other nifty things that are included in this game is a shop where you can upgrade your character and a CD collection. The shop holds numerous items, ranging from a gun that fires more powerful shots to an item that makes any health you find worth more. The items and powerups can be purchased with screws, which is the currency of M&B. Screws can be dropped sometimes from some enemies after you kill them, and they come in two forms: large and small, both with different values.

The CDs are much different. CDs can be found lying around spots in areas. Often, you can only get some on a certain character, because they require abilities, such as Megaman's dash, that the other character does not know. When you get these CDs, you can view the information they hold in the gallery. They hold information on the various robots that Megaman has faced in his previous adventures. However, they hold miniscule and insignificant information that chances are you, or anyone, won't care about.

M&B's graphics are beautiful. They're colorful, and really give the game life. The enemies are alive and wildly imaginative. They look great, and there are so many different kinds of enemies, you may have a hard time keeping track of them all.

The backgrounds are just as colorful and alluring as the game itself is. Unlike many other games, they are not dark and hard to see, which is a major problem if you are playing on a regular Game Boy Advance and not the SP version.

The bosses are very great as well. They are massive and animated, making boss battles usually a pleasure to play, even if you can't win.

The graphics are also suprisingly detailed, something you don't see often on a handheld. Like I mentioned earlier, the backgrounds and ememies are very nice looking down to the last detail.

M&B's sound is medicore. The music is nothing special. It's actually quite boring at times. The boss battle music is not tense or dramatic, but rather just enough that you can play them with the volume up without worrying if the music is going to bother you enough to lose a life or whatever.

The sound is something different. It is very nicely done. Each item sounds like it should be. Bass's gun sounds great, fast and dangerous. Each ability makes their own noise, as does the enemy attacks. The only problem that really bothered me when I play was Megaman's buster, which makes a noise that sounds like a squirt gun and not a dangerous arm cannon.

Megaman & Bass's difficulty is immense. This could possibly be one of the toughest games I've ever played on my Gameboy. The game isn't just challenging, but at times, it can be frustrating. Although the bosses are fun, they get quite annoying and just plain frustrating. After losing to, say, Dynamo Man for the tenth time without getting one hit in, you'd probably want to smash your GBA.

Luckily, in all Megaman games, there is always one item you earn from another boss you have beaten that is good against a boss and deals extra damage. However, they aren't always so good to use. For example, the fire robot, Burner Man, is weak against the ice ability you learn from Cold Man. Burner Man is quite agile, and it takes a lot of time, patience, and energy to actually hit him with the ability.

The levels are difficult as well. They are full of countless enemies determined to make you a pile of rubble, annoying puzzles, and often bothersome mini bosses. Also, some paths are harder if you use Megaman, or vice versa.

The replay value of this game is nothing special, but good enough. After you've beaten the game (if you can even get that far), you can start a file with the character that you decided not to use your first time around. Using him, you can collect the CDs your character that you started your first file couldn't reach, and have an entirely new experience as you play through the bosses with a new character and new moves.

As stated before, the CDs are worthless and not worth hours of gameplay. Therefore, unless you feel to use the Megaman or Bass that you didn't use the first time, there is no reason to go back and play this game. Besides CD collection, there is nothing else of interest that will make you come back, wanting more.

In conclusion...

Story: 5
Gameplay: 9
Graphics: 9
Sound: 7
Difficulty: Very high (way too hard)
Replay: 5

Overall: 8

Rent or buy: If you are a fan of the Megaman series, want a good challenge, or like games with plenty of action, then I suggest you buy this. Otherwise, rent it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/05/04