Mega Man 9 Review

The Mega Man series of games is a series of platforming-shooter type games where the player controls the protagonist, Mega Man, whose job is to destroy the warped Robot Masters, controlled most of the time by Dr. Wily. Mega Man 1-6 were released on the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Mega Man 7 on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) and Mega Man 8 was released on the Sega Saturn and the Sony Playstation. They are often considered to be among the best action games ever, with Mega Man 2 coming 33rd in a list of 200 games. If you’re wondering Mega Man 3 is my favourite, which I'll review one day. Anyway let’s cut the verbose nature of this review and talk about the latest game Mega Man 9.

I waited for MM9 with bated breath. The first 8 bit Capcom game for over a decade. I believe the last Capcom game released on the Nintendo Entertainment System was Mega Man 6 in 1993, but I could be wrong, regardless it was never released in Europe. Anyway, Mega Man 9 is available on Nintendo Wii Ware, Xbox Live Arcade and Playstation Network.

Contrary to most games which strive to appeal as photo realistic as possible, MM9 takes us back to the past, to relive the world of colourful sprites, slowdown and flicker. The difficulty is also reminiscent of an NES game and in my view, surpasses the insane difficulty of the first MM game. It is designed to be frustrating, to make you continue playing to perfect some of the tough parts of the game, mostly being pixel perfect jumps, or robustly stubborn enemies. The soundtrack too complements an 8 bit game. Some of the tracks, such as the Robot Master selection, menu and weapon initiation are taken directly from Mega Man 2 and is no doubt nostalgic to people who grew up with the games (sadly I didn’t as I was born in 1992). Of course, it’s not all stock. Quite the reverse. The score to MM9 is amazingly authentic. Sounding like previous MM games. Personally, my favourite pieces of music are Galaxy Man's stage, Tornado Man's stage and Splash Woman's stage. In my opinion it doesn’t sound as good or catchy as MM1, MM2, MM3 or MM5 but I think it kicks the music of MM4 and MM6 out of the park.

Robot Masters are constantly the point of interest of established fans. As usual there are eight to fight (except MM1 which only has six) and they are Galaxy Man, Jewel Man, Plug Man, Hornet Man, Concrete Man, Magma Man, Tornado Man and the first female Robot Master, Splash Woman. They sound ridiculous, but nowhere near as bad as some of them in the past: namely Hard Man (MM3), Dust Man (MM4) or Tomahawk Man (MM6). Names like Jewel Man are designed to be satirical, Capcom know they sound absurd, yet they include them as another tribute to the past.

To conclude, it’s very difficult. The disappearing blocks of MM1-3 make an unwelcome return. These may be discouraging to new gamers, but veteran gamers will be able to traverse them with relative ease. It may take a few hours to complete the game on the first time as you may be overwhelmed by the madness of the game. If persevered with, the established gamer can negotiate it within 50 minutes, while an uneasy gamer may clock up 90 minutes. There is longevity with Xbox style Achievements. Some are impossible, such as completing the game without firing once or not getting hit once, but I’m pretty sure at least one person has completed the list 100% with little satisfaction. Also there is downloadable content available. You can purchase additional difficulties. (All harder. Surprised?) As well as other modes, like endless play and you can even play as Mega Man's brother Proto Man who has the slide (MM3-MM8) and the charge shot (MM4-MM8), both removed for Mega Man in MM9. Sadly Proto Man takes less damage than his younger brother.

Overall, Mega Man 9 is a great game, which will keep away the casuals and attract the hardcore gamers.

9/10

Virtues:
Looks and sounds great and is authentic.
Invigorates the Mega Man franchise.
Game designers finally acknowledge the retro, hardcore gamer.

Vices:
Will be too difficult for casual gamers.