When Capcom announced that they will release a remake of Megaman 1 from the NES era, I rolled my eyes and sighed. Why does Capcom keep on resurrecting old series, give it a new graphics, and in some cases (SFA3), they didn’t change much of the game. Is Capcom going downhill? Then, we have Maverick Hunter X, a very good remake of the SNES Megaman X game, with new graphics, keep the gameplay intact, adding a 20min Megaman anime. It did gain Megaman’s fans support. SFA3 Max was also a good release with additional characters, features and fluid control. With 2 noteworthy PPSSPP Games Download releases, are they able to score with the very beginning of Megaman?
For those that have been living under the rock, or too young to know about this game, Megaman is a platform game about a housekeeping robot, Mega, created by Dr. Light, the most brilliant scientist in the future. Mega was forced to fight (as Megaman) when Dr. Light’s nemesis, Dr. Wily decided to take over the world. Thus, begin a series that span for years across multiple consoles, where Megaman will always battle Wily’s henchmen, take their powers and use it against them and finally will capture Wily, who will escape again in the next game.
Graphics:
Look at the image I attached. UBER-CUTENESS!!!!!!! So cute that it is almost a sin! I can tell you that I fell in love with this kind of graphics the moment I turn the PSP on. The big head, manga-ish(or for the technically inclined :cel-shaded) graphics is so beautiful on the PSP clear and huge screen, that even GIRLS CAN’T RESIST THE CUTENESS. My girlfriend, who is NOT a gamer would not let me play once she gets her hand on this game.
Capcom did an amazing job with the graphics. Taking an old game, give it a facelift and voila! The game is as good as any game release that you will see these days. The characters are modeled very well, and the cartoon-ish graphic style will grow on you. Capcom also add in cut scenes between games and intro for each boss. You will feel like you are watching a Saturday morning cartoon show. And there is no slowdown of frame rate even when the activities on the screen are intense. Good stuff!
Graphics: 10/10
Sound:
The BGM in this game came in two versions, the new remixed version and the old NES version. I kind of prefer the new style and most of the music are not bad. On the sound effect department, can’t really find any fault on it either. All the sound effects are made in a cartoonish way, especially the jumping part where your character will go Toink! Toink! Toink! (exact sound) It might get the nerve on some people but I am ok with it. There are also voiceovers in the game especially between cut scenes and intro. Some of the voiceovers will get on your nerve like Oilman and Cutman. Still, it will not detract you from enjoying this game.
Sound: 8/10
Controls:
It might just be me, but I do feel the control is not so good with this game. It might not be Capcom’s fault, but the PSP’s own control design. The movement control feel uncomfortable even though you can use both D-Pad and analog stick to control. This issue aside, Capcom did make some improvement from the NES version. You can now change weapons using the shoulder buttons instead of pressing Start to go to the menu to change. Capcom also add a feature that will let you change your weapon to Mega Buster immediately by pressing L + R, a very handy addition. You can also do Charge Shot and Slide also (once you unlocked both, of course), so the Megaman here has more arsenal. Overall, the control is still A ok. At least, Capcom try to make do with whatever they have.
Controls: 8/10
Gameplay:
Now this is the best part of this game. Capcom has managed to keep all the fun element of Megaman intact in this game. In fact, this game is AS HARD AS the original Megaman and some sections are even harder than the original. And with 3 difficulties (EASY, NORMAL, HARD) to choose from, the action can be really hair tearing especially on HARD difficulty. The EASY difficulty will help beginners to enjoy the game and the HARD difficulty will be welcomed by even the most seasoned Megaman players who might have played the game to death on the NES. Also, you get to choose to play in Old Style where all the stages and gameplay and the music are the same as the NES version but with the new style graphics or New Style where your character will be in larger, more gorgeous looking environment and there are some slight changes to the stages.
There will also be an intro stage like Megaman X series, and you get to rescue each Boss Robots that you beat and use them. That’s right! You can now play as Cutman or Gutsman in every level. Each Boss Robots has many unique weapons and special abilities, which they can use to gain access to new secret stages available in New Style gameplay. This has added the replay ability to this game and somehow it will fulfill lots of fans that have dreamed of playing as Elecman or Iceman. Also Capcom add additional 2 new Bosses, which is Time Man and Oil Man. Time Man can... well, slow time and Oil Man can shoot oil at you and ride on oil like a slide. IMO, the designs of these two new Bosses are not so interesting, but hey, at least Capcom DID try something And their stage designs are one of the harder stages (especially Time Man stage)
As if playing as bosses isn’t enough, Capcom add a new Challenge mode in this game. In Challenge mode, you have 100 challenges to complete where you are required to complete certain task in order to consider it complete. The challenges ranged from very easy to insanely hard. You will find that you will keep going back here trying to complete each challenges and even after you have completed the challenges, you will simply play again to get a better time and score! It is that addictive!
And as if your time was not used up enough, Capcom has decided to add a level editor into this game. That’s right! You can build your own Megaman stage to play and even share it to others. Hidden in the New Style gameplay are various secret packages that you have to obtain. Each package will unlock stuff for you to build in the level editor. Capcom has given total freedom for players with the level editor, which is easy to use. You can set the enemies, condition of the stage,the characters that can play in the stage, the items scattered in the stage, the enemies and the bosses. Yes, it is really THAT open-ended. Also, in addition, Capcom will keep on releasing new stages and stuffs each month to be downloaded. Capcom has already include one new character to download, which is Roll, Megaman’s "sister". You can also equip Roll with costumes, which Capcom will make available for download.
Gameplay: 10/10
Overall:
Graphics: 10/10 Sound: 8/10 Control: 8/10 Gameplay: 10/10 Overall: 9/10
This game has beaten Maverick Hunter X and SFA3 Max to smithereens. This game has set the standard for any classic remakes to follow. Core gameplay intact, refreshing graphics, high Replay ability value, tons of things to do, tons of things to come. What more can you ask? Get this game. Period.