Mega Man 9
2008
“Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction.” - Albert Einstein.
“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.” - Orson Welles
2008
“Any fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction.” - Albert Einstein.
“The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.” - Orson Welles
"Old games rock. New games suck." - Me
Mega Man was a God back in the late eighties to the mid nineties. Created by Capcom, the robot warrior had six adventures on the NES and four on the SNES. All ten games were solid classics. The blue bomber was a joy to play as. Each game introduced all sorts of cool new weapons and gadgets, the level designs were always clever and exciting, and the soundtracks were some of the best metal instrumentals ever composed.
But as the years went on, the series ran out of power. The first disappointment was Mega Man 8 on the PlayStation, released in 1996. It was the first “contemporary” game in the series, boasting new features for the series like 32-bit graphics, anime cutscenes and voice acting. While the game was attractive, the level design was awful, the cutscenes were laughably bad, and worst of all, Mega Man's voice actor was horribly miscast. Instead of hiring a cool-sounding dude in his twenties (like in the short-lived animated television series), Capcom apparently cast a twelve year-old girl. It reminded me of the disastrous transition silent movie stars made to the sound era.
Then came Mega Man X4 in 1997, which was ruined by more helium-induced voice acting, cheesy anime cutscenes, a dumbed-down difficulty, a dialogue-heavy storyline and a strange, pop-disco soundtrack. It suddenly became quite obvious that Capcom’s new target audience was young, susceptible children of the new generation that thought games were only a form of entertainment, never realizing that it was once much more.
Mega Man Legends was released on the PlayStation in 1999, and it was strike three for me. It was the first 3D game in the series, and suffice to say, Mega Man didn’t exactly land the leap to the third dimension like Mario and Link did. In addition to clunky 3D controls, Legends bore such little resemblance to its predecessors that the only distinguishable feature was its main character.
Over the next decade, there were literally dozens upon dozens more Mega Man games, but the further the technology advanced, the worse the gameplay grew. I lost all hope for the series, like I have many others. But then, as if Capcom finally realized how far from the trail they had strayed, they made a brilliant, ballsy decision: to return to the roots.
Mega Man 9 was released in 2008 as a downloadable game for the Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360, though you would never guess it by looking at it. The game was made to look, sound and feel like an oldschool NES game. The graphics are only 8-bit. The sound is only five-channel. Sprites flicker when there’s too much happening onscreen. Offscreen enemies respawn immediately. Even the game’s cover artwork is a throwback to the awful covers of old. All that’s missing is the lag!
The game’s presentation not only invokes deep nostalgia; it makes for truly excellent gameplay. Sure enough, simplicity breeds brilliance. For example, restricting the number of "instruments" they could emulate in an 8-bit format forced the composers to be more creative with the actual music (which turned out fantastic). Likewise, limiting the levels to a 2D plane allows the designers to focus more on crafting engaging platforming and action set pieces. The eight new weapons this time around are awesome, and each have multiple uses. Aside from using them as attacks, the Concrete Shot can also be used to create platforms, the Hornet Chaser can retrieve items, and the Tornado Blow can give you a lift. The title character lacks the slide and charge shot, but he does get Rush. So it feels kinda like Mega Man 2.5, which seems appropriate considering MM2 and 3 were the best. True to the NES formula, all the bosses' names end with “man” (Concrete Man, Plug Man, etc.), except, of course, for Splash Woman, the first female maverick! Go, girl gamers!
Remaining true to the classic formula also means having a high difficulty level. But holy hard hats! No Mega Man game was ever this difficult. If you get frustrated easily or suck at action games, this is not the game for you. But if you're a Mega Man vet or simply enjoy a great challenge, get your weapons ready! This is what oldschool games were all about: pure, hardcore skill. The levels and bosses are strategically designed to kick your ass the first time. But once you get to learn the levels, the enemy patterns and the bosses weaknesses, the apprentice becomes the master.
My only gripe about MM9 is a cruel little menu trick that nearly made me break my controller in two. Be forewarned: visiting The Shop between Wily levels forces you restart the entire fortress! This contradicted the rules established in Mega Man 7, in which you could take a break between, say, Wily Fortress 2 and 3 to stock up on E tanks for the final battle. Damn, was I pissed. But my second time through the fortress, I blew through the levels twice as quickly, which is a testament to how well the game had trained me. The stricter the master, the greater the apprentice becomes.
Would MM9 still have been as great had it been released on the NES? Yes and no. It would still be a great game, for sure. I’d say, better than MM4-6 but inferior to MM1-3. What really makes 9 so amazing is the impact it's had on videogame history. It marked perhaps the last significant turning point we’ll ever see for the artform: coming full circle back to simplicity. “Old” is the new “new!” Just look at all the revisionist/retro-style games that have followed in its footsteps: Super Mario Crossover, Limbo, NyxQuest, Mega Man 10, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Donkey Kong Country Returns, VVVVVV, Braid, Dark Void Zero and On a Weird Way!! Pole’s Big Adventure.
Mega Man 9 proves that better technology doesn’t always produce a better game; but rather, the two are usually inversely related.
Mega Man was a God back in the late eighties to the mid nineties. Created by Capcom, the robot warrior had six adventures on the NES and four on the SNES. All ten games were solid classics. The blue bomber was a joy to play as. Each game introduced all sorts of cool new weapons and gadgets, the level designs were always clever and exciting, and the soundtracks were some of the best metal instrumentals ever composed.
But as the years went on, the series ran out of power. The first disappointment was Mega Man 8 on the PlayStation, released in 1996. It was the first “contemporary” game in the series, boasting new features for the series like 32-bit graphics, anime cutscenes and voice acting. While the game was attractive, the level design was awful, the cutscenes were laughably bad, and worst of all, Mega Man's voice actor was horribly miscast. Instead of hiring a cool-sounding dude in his twenties (like in the short-lived animated television series), Capcom apparently cast a twelve year-old girl. It reminded me of the disastrous transition silent movie stars made to the sound era.
Then came Mega Man X4 in 1997, which was ruined by more helium-induced voice acting, cheesy anime cutscenes, a dumbed-down difficulty, a dialogue-heavy storyline and a strange, pop-disco soundtrack. It suddenly became quite obvious that Capcom’s new target audience was young, susceptible children of the new generation that thought games were only a form of entertainment, never realizing that it was once much more.
Mega Man Legends was released on the PlayStation in 1999, and it was strike three for me. It was the first 3D game in the series, and suffice to say, Mega Man didn’t exactly land the leap to the third dimension like Mario and Link did. In addition to clunky 3D controls, Legends bore such little resemblance to its predecessors that the only distinguishable feature was its main character.
Over the next decade, there were literally dozens upon dozens more Mega Man games, but the further the technology advanced, the worse the gameplay grew. I lost all hope for the series, like I have many others. But then, as if Capcom finally realized how far from the trail they had strayed, they made a brilliant, ballsy decision: to return to the roots.
Mega Man 9 was released in 2008 as a downloadable game for the Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360, though you would never guess it by looking at it. The game was made to look, sound and feel like an oldschool NES game. The graphics are only 8-bit. The sound is only five-channel. Sprites flicker when there’s too much happening onscreen. Offscreen enemies respawn immediately. Even the game’s cover artwork is a throwback to the awful covers of old. All that’s missing is the lag!
The game’s presentation not only invokes deep nostalgia; it makes for truly excellent gameplay. Sure enough, simplicity breeds brilliance. For example, restricting the number of "instruments" they could emulate in an 8-bit format forced the composers to be more creative with the actual music (which turned out fantastic). Likewise, limiting the levels to a 2D plane allows the designers to focus more on crafting engaging platforming and action set pieces. The eight new weapons this time around are awesome, and each have multiple uses. Aside from using them as attacks, the Concrete Shot can also be used to create platforms, the Hornet Chaser can retrieve items, and the Tornado Blow can give you a lift. The title character lacks the slide and charge shot, but he does get Rush. So it feels kinda like Mega Man 2.5, which seems appropriate considering MM2 and 3 were the best. True to the NES formula, all the bosses' names end with “man” (Concrete Man, Plug Man, etc.), except, of course, for Splash Woman, the first female maverick! Go, girl gamers!
Remaining true to the classic formula also means having a high difficulty level. But holy hard hats! No Mega Man game was ever this difficult. If you get frustrated easily or suck at action games, this is not the game for you. But if you're a Mega Man vet or simply enjoy a great challenge, get your weapons ready! This is what oldschool games were all about: pure, hardcore skill. The levels and bosses are strategically designed to kick your ass the first time. But once you get to learn the levels, the enemy patterns and the bosses weaknesses, the apprentice becomes the master.
My only gripe about MM9 is a cruel little menu trick that nearly made me break my controller in two. Be forewarned: visiting The Shop between Wily levels forces you restart the entire fortress! This contradicted the rules established in Mega Man 7, in which you could take a break between, say, Wily Fortress 2 and 3 to stock up on E tanks for the final battle. Damn, was I pissed. But my second time through the fortress, I blew through the levels twice as quickly, which is a testament to how well the game had trained me. The stricter the master, the greater the apprentice becomes.
Would MM9 still have been as great had it been released on the NES? Yes and no. It would still be a great game, for sure. I’d say, better than MM4-6 but inferior to MM1-3. What really makes 9 so amazing is the impact it's had on videogame history. It marked perhaps the last significant turning point we’ll ever see for the artform: coming full circle back to simplicity. “Old” is the new “new!” Just look at all the revisionist/retro-style games that have followed in its footsteps: Super Mario Crossover, Limbo, NyxQuest, Mega Man 10, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Donkey Kong Country Returns, VVVVVV, Braid, Dark Void Zero and On a Weird Way!! Pole’s Big Adventure.
Mega Man 9 proves that better technology doesn’t always produce a better game; but rather, the two are usually inversely related.
