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Sometimes, all of us at Aeropause have received gaming related items in regards to marketing.  At times, it will be a little figuring, or some sort of memento related to the game in question.  Other …

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Home » Nintendo DS, Retro

Oh, Mega Man, what in the hell did they do to you?

Submitted by Stephen Munn on June 24, 2008 – 5:10 pmComments

With Capcom’s announcement that Star Force 2, in its various collectible flavors, is now available at retail, I find only lament for what’s been done to my beloved Blue Bomber. Like most people, I discovered Mega Man at Mega Man 2, widely considered the definitive episode in the franchise all those years ago. I went on to play the original and when Mega Man 3 came out, I had saved up my pennies (I was 14) to pick it up at launch. This wasn’t three months after I had done the same with Castlevania 3… it was a good time to be a gamer.

Mega Man was an action franchise, a platformer with a lot of shooting. You leapt between ledges, climbed ladders, cursed at cruelly placed turrets and giant silly hopping robots. You took on a boss at the end of each stage who would kill you again and again until you figured out exactly how to take him down. X, Zero, and ZX continued with this formula, but Star Force is an extension of the RPG card-battling Battle Network subseries.

Time went on and the series weakened, as we all know. Now that X, Zero, and ZX have run their course (X is dead, Zero is dead, and it looks like ZX Advent was a flop if the mountain of discounted copies at Target is any indication) it becomes apparent that the Mega Man we knew… the Mega Man I loved, is dead. This is made even more apparent by the understanding that Mega Man Powered Up, which I got yesterday for PSP, sold too poorly to warrant a sequel. This is a damn shame, really, because Powered Up is really great. Sadly, the real promise of Powered Up was that we might receive the same treatment of Mega Man 2, giving us a game that looks as good as it plays. Unfortunate.

Recent rumblings of Mega Man 9 give us hope. That hope clearly must be that ten years between Mega Man 8 and Mega Man 9 is enough to bring a level of quality to the title that we haven’t truly seen since Mega Man 3 or 4.

If Star Force 2 sounds good to you, read on for the press release.


MEGA MAN STAR FORCETM 2 FOR NINTENDO DSTM ARRIVES AT RETAIL

Two Versions, Double the Fun!

SAN MATEO, Calif — June 24, 2008 — Capcom®, a leading worldwide developer and publisher of video games, today announced that Mega Man Star Force™ 2 for Nintendo DS™ is now available at retail. The second game in the Mega Man Star Force™ series will offer an updated battle system with new Battle Cards and diabolical enemies. Mega Man Star Force 2 will have two versions: Zerker X Ninja and Zerker X Saurian. Mega Man Star Force 2 is rated E10+ for everyone 10 and older and carries a suggested retail price of $29.99.

Developed by the team behind the popular MegaMan Battle Network® series, Mega Man Star Force 2 continues two months after the previous game left off. Geo Stelar and crew return to battle a whole host of UMA’s (unidentified animated beings) and a new rival character called “Rogue.” Amidst this new conflict, a mysterious organization emerges with plans to revive the ancient civilization of “Mu” by utilizing the force of an ancient heritage “OOPArt.” It’s up to Geo and his virus-busting buddy, Omega-Xis, to thwart this latest threat.

Each of the three variants – Zerker, Ninja and Saurian – offers its own distinct Mega Man transformations with unique special attributes and abilities. Players can harness the spirit of an ancient species known as “Tribe” and transform or “tribe on” into three different forms: Elec Zerker wields a large sword imbued with the power of lightning; Wood Ninja can throw a huge Shinobi Star and move at great speed; Fire Saurian reduces enemies to smoldering pieces with a swipe of his fiery fist.

Mega Man Star Force 2 blends a unique formula of RPG exploration elements with fast-paced action, as players travel and battle between the coexisting physical and virtual Wave World. While seeking to unravel the mystery around the appearance of new troublemakers, players will encounter enemies in the virtual Wave World and battle them on three-by-five battle grids with their Battle Card deck. Mega Man Star Force 2 also adds an upgraded “Transer” system.

Activating the communications application via the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection or local wireless allows players to connect with in-game friends regardless of their location. Once connected, players can add new friends to their network to create a “Brother Band” network where they can share cards, status upgrades, and even help each other to perform upgraded transformations. Wireless match application via the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection is also available for Mega Man Star Force 2 which allows players to test their skills against friends across the internet.

  • Nice rant, Mr. Munn. I'm a longtime series fan, who jumped in at MM3. I've played and completed 1-9, this first 4 X games...and that's where my interest stops.

    The card battle thing isn't interesting to me, regardless of which universe the characters are borrowed from. So, that's right out.

    After MM8, I kind of thought it was over. We couldn't go back. It really wouldn't ever be good again.

    MM9 ended up surprising me. I liked it a lot. But it's an anomaly.

    Listen to the bawl-babies who also write for this site, and you'll see that even among older gamers, the love for the classics really isn't as intense as you'd expect.

    "It's punishingly difficult."

    Yep. Always was. Should continue to be. The dumbing down of gaming as we focused more on looks and "immersiveness" was gradual, but definitely noticeable. Some are cool with it - I'm mixed. While I like Grand Theft Auto in all its sandbox-y, fool around all day glory...I'm always happy when a game is just straight-forward and clever.

    MM9 is what it is. It isn't misleading about it. It's an old-school platformer that will kick your ass up and down the block again and again. I suspect not nearly as many people are as into that sort of thing - or have the gaming goods to hang with that sort of game - as say they are.

    Another thing, though, is everyone's path as a gamer is different. Your "glory days" will feature different memories of different gaming moments than mine, Haygood's, Fourhman's, Jordan's, etc.

    So, when someone else thinks "this is a return to the gaming I loved," they're likely thinking of something different.

    I can only look for experiences in modern gaming that recreate what I used to enjoy.

    Oddly enough, I used to love Megaman AND role-playing games. That Megaman RPG, however, doesn't appeal to me. Because it's not REALLY the MM I remember, and there's a battle system I'll never care about. If Capcom released a straight-up role-playing game based on the characters, backstory and themes of the original MM series, you'd better believe I'd sit up and pay attention, though.

    Just like kids raised on Starforce or whatever will look at MM 1-9 as crappy relics that don't appeal to them at all.

    I'm done.

    Good entry.
  • seraphimdreamer777
    I love RPG games but Mega Man is not an RPG what is wrong with this world. Mega Man Powered Up and Maverick Hunter X were supposed to be a light of hope that the classic series would have new life. Mega Man 9 was awesome why make the series into an RPG why it is sad indeed.
  • Do you think that Powered Up might have sold poorly simply because the Mega Man franchise has been run into the ground so people just guessed it wasn't good enough?
  • Sifer2400
    yea they have really ruined the series with all that stupid battlenet work crap. I remember the one for PlayStation i thought those were fun
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