Instead of a pretty good game that reminds people of Mega Man, they've created a real Mega Man game that compares favorably to the very best of the series. For ten dollars.
Without sliding and charging, Mega Man games are much twitchier. You always know how to get through a situation -- by running, jumping, and/or shooting, of course -- it becomes a matter of practicing until you can. The levels, from Tornado Man's rotating platforms to Plug Man's disappearing blocks to Jewel Man's diabolical swinging-bridge-over-tiny-gap room, are gauntlets designed to test your platforming skills, with enemies placed mostly as obstacles. Cleverly-placed spike traps and just close enough jumps abound.
Of course, once you complete one of these stages you must face the boss. While we do have GameFAQs now, that doesn't change the fact that Mega Man 9 may be the first game in the series for which first-time players can jump in without the correct boss order being common knowledge. It's new enough that you may be forced to take on a Robot Master with the Mega Buster. Although even with the appropriate weapon, it's not a matter of just spamming an attack and winning. You still have to avoid the bosses' movements, which are pattern-based as always, and take a few deaths to learn. As always.
The only negative I can think of isn't really a negative to me, but will be for some players getting into Mega Man for the first time: the difficulty. Mega Man 9 is harder than any original Mega Man game since the first. Inticreates has channeled the hardcore nature of their Zero series and applied it to the classic Mega Man style, which means deviously-placed enemies and instant deaths. You will die hundreds of times. You may not finish the game. It is important to know this.
For people who do finish the game, replayability comes in the challenges -- a set of 50 Achievement-like goals whose progress is tracked in the menu. They range from those that will be unlocked in normal play, like "Defeat one boss with one pixel of health remaining," to the ridiculous, like "Clear the game without getting damaged" and "Don't miss with the Mega Buster and clear the game." Taking those on is a lifetime commitment. And if that's not enough, there's DLC.
I have to stress that I don't just love Mega Man 9 because I played Mega Man 2 in 1988 and it imprinted strongly on me. That's part of it, of course, but there's more to it than that -- the difference between nostalgia and appreciating a classic. Mega Man 9 isn't just amazing because it reminds me of 1988. It's amazing because it proves that what worked in a game then can still work now, when developers make an honest effort. This is a game made by people who have played the hell out of Mega Man, and isolated the essence of the series. The result is something that is more pure fun than any Mega Man game since 3.
Final score: 110,000,000/10 9.5/10
[Note: We're giving away a copy of the game right here, if you're so inclined.]
If you're actually crazy enough to be on the fence about which WiiWare game to buy today, we've got plenty of other WiiWare reviews. If you're so crazy that you want to go to the store and buy something when you could be playing Mega Man 9, we can help with that too.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-23-2008 @ 3:05PM
Drahken said...
Yeah, those challenges were conceived by a clinically insane person. I'm having a hard enough time just beating the game period (though I am going for the no E-tank challenge, so it's a little harder) much less beating it without missing a shot or getting hurt.
Yes sir. Galaxy Man's theme rocks pretty hard. I think it's second only to Tornado Man's. His is kind of iconic of the game for me, since it was the featured track in the trailer, which really cemented the realism of this game's awesomeness for me. (it cement shot'ed it, perhaps?) Plus the fact that it's just such a good track.
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10-01-2008 @ 8:42PM
Josh said...
I agree completely with your second paragraph.
9-23-2008 @ 3:10PM
grimmlock said...
i played this game for 40 freaking minutes last night after downloading without even making it to a single boss. put it down for a few hours, then came back for more more more. mega man 9 is just plain amazing. i love it, and want to play it the second i get home from work, though my wife (the evil one) will of course not allow me.
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9-23-2008 @ 4:22PM
WhatIsThatThing said...
Took me an hour and 15 minutes. That's right, I'm not ashamed to admit it.
9-23-2008 @ 10:31PM
Go1denchi1d said...
It took me 2 hours and 5 different stages to reach a boss. then another half hour to get back and beat him lol.
9-23-2008 @ 3:27PM
acefondu said...
Can't wait to play it. Would be right now if it were not for work and school. Stupid human priorities.
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9-23-2008 @ 4:03PM
Darkjesus said...
Great review. I'll be getting this as soon as it comes out in Europe.
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9-23-2008 @ 4:28PM
Scotty said...
I had time to take out Galaxy Man last night, and that was all. The rest will go down tonight, it's on.
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9-23-2008 @ 4:32PM
CJLopez said...
Funny, I also went heads on for galaxy, seemed like the easiest one on the roster
9-23-2008 @ 4:28PM
Mr Khan said...
I lol'd at the score
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9-23-2008 @ 4:35PM
CJLopez said...
I played the game for like 15 mins after downloading it (had to go back to work) and man, 2 continues, bouth on tornado man, the headed to galaxy man stage and cleared
Man, this game is pure awesomes
I'm gonna beat all the challenges, except the 3 most insane!!
1.- Beating the game without missing a shot (i'd rather not shoot at all)
2.- Beating the game withouth recieving damage (chea right)
3.- Beating the game withouth dying (i bet even god can't pull this one)
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10-01-2008 @ 8:45PM
Josh said...
Well, on your list, 2 would be more difficult than 3...
But yeah, I really hope whoever accomplishes any of these insane challenges gets some kind of medal or award or cake.
9-23-2008 @ 5:47PM
Drahken said...
Yeah you've really got to put effort into these guys. Galaxy Man is indeed possibly the easiest. Although that might be Splash Woman. Right now I'm taking a break. Right on Wily Machine. Well, I game overed on Wily Machine, so I've got to go back through the boss revue again but I digress. I've got to leave the system on though, lest I repeat the whole damn castle.
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9-23-2008 @ 5:49PM
Q-Kid-Kyle said...
okay. The first one I tried was GalxyMan. Hard as HELL! So I went to what I thought was the order. ConcreteMan. HOLY F*** I could barely make it to the ladder at the end. I then went back to galaxyman. About 2 hours, maybe, tops. I figured out using that robo-dog jump ability is a quick time-saver. Use it to jump to ladders where enemies sit on the steps.
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9-23-2008 @ 6:58PM
cheesecake said...
I expected a lot out of 9, but it has really surpassed my expectations. It's almost perfect.
The line about how "it shows that a game like this can still work" was one of my first thoughts after giving the game a go. It's exactly right, and I can't wait to see what developments Mega Man 9's success will spur.
Galaxy Man is definitely the easiest, followed by Splash woman. Splash Woman's stage is probably the most fun. The game is really tough, but I can't keep from going back and playing again and again.
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9-23-2008 @ 7:44PM
Roto13 said...
Spoiler if you've never ever played a Mega Man game before:
I beat the Robot Masters and now I'm taking on Wily's Castle. Sweet Jesus, it's tough. I've beaten all of the original Mega Man games, 1 through 8, and this is without a doubt the hardest time I've had playing one. The first stage of Wily's Castle requires a few of the Robot Masters' weapons to get through, which is pretty cool. There is one room where, I'm not kidding, if you don't haul your ass out of the way within two seconds of entering, you instantly die.
The boss of stage 3 of Wily's Castle will make Mega Man fans cry, both tears of joy and nostalgia and tears of blood. (That is, if you can make it through the low-spiked-ceiling-over-bottomless-pit room.)
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9-23-2008 @ 7:53PM
GatorSax2010 said...
Is that the room with the horizontal lava thingies? I still haven't figured it out. I gave up on that for a bit and I'm playing through all the Robot Master stages again for the Double Trouble challenge. Or I would be, if stupid school hadn't taken me away from my Mega Man time...
9-23-2008 @ 8:03PM
Roto13 said...
That's the one. I can tell you how to beat it. (Don't read if you don't want to know.)
Have Rush Coil ready as you enter the room and fire it to the right while you're still on the ladder. Then quickly jump on it and up to the ladder on the left above you. (From there, you can climb up two screens and use the Laser Trident on a block to get an E Tank.) While hanging from that ladder, wait for the top lava beam to fire underneath you and shoot your Concrete thing at it to turn it into concrete. Then just walk across. :P
9-23-2008 @ 8:13PM
GatorSax2010 said...
Thanks for the warning :) I'll come back to this later if I'm still stuck.
9-23-2008 @ 7:48PM
GatorSax2010 said...
You know, I played a marathon of it yesterday and beat all the Robot Masters. At first I thought, "This must be easier than the others." But looking back, it wasn't easy. I died a bunch of times, and had many game overs. I was just so excited to be playing a brand new, old-school Mega Man game that I wasn't getting frustrated. Plus, I was lucky enough to pick what might be one of the easiest stages in the game first (Splash Woman). I made it halfway through the level before taking any damage. Splash Woman owned me, though, and it took me to my last life to beat her.
Just the way I like my Mega Man :)
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9-23-2008 @ 8:10PM
milan said...
I can't wait for mega man 10 in 2028
though I am hoping for a 20XX release date
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9-23-2008 @ 10:00PM
Kenneth Caldwell said...
Nice review, JC. I have to agree about the difficulty. Last night I smashed through three Wii Remotes trying to defeat one of the bosses. Well, I didn't break them, but I would have felt better if I had. I added Frustration.com to my favorites.
Then I saw the list of challenges. And I shat myself with disbelief.
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9-24-2008 @ 12:32AM
Dash said...
This is my favorite WiiWare game so far to me. It fells like I'm that 5 year old kid trying to beat Megaman 2 all over again.
But it is a fantastic game that eveybody should play. I just don't get why people say it's so hard (finished it Monday, just getting the achievements now). It's way more forgiving then real NES era game. or maybe I just feel like it because I've been playing the first 3 Megaman games for the last month in anticipation.
Anyway, please buy it (on the Wii, also). Retro for the win.
by the way, HINTS AND SPOILERS ahead (you've been warned, don't read if you are going to complain afterwords):
-Concrete man is the first (it's easy to dodge his attack), followed by Galaxy (use Concrete Shot on his shot) and Hornet (use black Hole on the bees). Leave Plug and Tornado for after you get the Rush upgrade.
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9-24-2008 @ 10:19AM
Ujn Hunter said...
wow I stink at this game! i used to rock some Mega Man & Mega Man 2 back in the day... but man is this humbling. will keep trying... Ninja Gaiden isn't even this hard! ;)
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9-24-2008 @ 9:03PM
andy said...
I've played for hours and I can only beat galaxy man. Of course this is only the second mega man game I've played extensively besides mm2. I'm determined to at least beat the 9 robot masters. If you are trying to quit smoking do not play this game. Also Jewel Man's spikey death room is hard, I can't figure out how to beat it.
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9-25-2008 @ 9:01AM
Richard said...
Because I remember getting this game as a kid, Mega Man 2 still has my vote for favorite art. It always struck me as so odd that the guy on the box looks nothing like the person in the game. Oh well.
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9-28-2008 @ 3:38PM
Cyberxion` said...
@ Andy
You're definitely right about the smoking thing. I fired this baby up and defeated two robot masters, but I hit a brick wall after that. I guess I got lucky with those first two choices, but it seemed like after that I couldn't even get to a boss, much less beat another one. I think I went through half a pack of smokes trying. I eventually had to quit playing for the night, but damn if I didn't love every single hardcore second. But yeah, I smoked way more while playing this game than I usually do over the course of a day.
I picked it back up a couple of days later, and somehow managed to beat another four bosses. Magma Man stands out in particular, because I either didn't have the right weapon when I got to him, or I just forgot to try out all of the ones I did have to see which one worked. I had to defeat him with my mega-buster, which wasn't too difficult actually.
I managed to get him in a pattern in which he'd do a short hop over me, and then I'd turn around and hit him with a few shots, at which point he'd hop back over me in the other direction, and I'd repeat the pattern over again. The angle I was at made it easy to avoid his shots just by standing in place.
It was really exhilarating once I beat him. I definitely felt a sense of accomplishment that I hadn't felt since I was 7 and beat Megaman 2, despite my gamer-grandma warning me that the game might be out of my league.
I friggin' love this game. That it even exists is sort of a minor miracle, even though Capcom sort of put the design down to necessity. It's clever, it's well made, and it hits every note of nostalgia. It's great. I hope this game leads to further retro-revivals.
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