Mega Man Cartoon: "Night of the Living Monster Bots"

Because it's Halloween, and there really isn't much going on on the news front...

Happy halloween, everyone!

Mega Man Tribute Winner Revealed

Lo and behold, the Mega Man brick wall:

Maxime's labor of love takes the top spot in Capcom's Mega Man tribute contest at number one. Kind of a bizarre twist on the phrase "hitting the wall", no?

Congrats Maxime!

Click here for more photos of the wall and previous tribute entries.

Papercraft Mega Man Dioramas

Spotted over at The Toy Zone, here's a couple of handsomely made Mega Man dioramas created by Ryo007 and sgonzales22.  Templates available at the provided links below.

Mega Man vs Cut Man (download template)

Mega Man.EXE vs Mets battlefield (download template)

Credit: Capcom Unity

Retailers To Host OSS Demo Play Event, New Manga Coming Soon

Japanese retailers Sofmap and Messe Sanoh plan on holding a Rockman EXE Operate Shooting Star demo play event on November 3rd.  Customers will be allowed to play an "over-the-counter" demo build of OSS, and receive a set Nintendo DS decals.

In related news, the new Rockman EXE manga should be surfacing any day now with the arrival of the Dec. issue of Coro Coro Special, the sister magazine of Coro Coro Comics. The issue shipped yesterday.

For the uniformed, this new manga centers around Rockman EXE and an original protagonist that isn't Netto/Lan.  Not much is known about this character at the moment, but some have speculated that he might be Raito, the son of Netto and Mayl briefly mentioned at the end of Rockman EXE 6.

We'll find out soon enough...

Credit: SSR, The Mega Man Network

Maverick Hunter X Blasts Onto PSN

Starting today, Maverick Hunter X is available for download off of the PlayStation Network for $19.99 USD.  The download will run you 413MB of memory, and is compatible with all versions of the PSP including the recently-released PSP Go.

Who knows, maybe if sales are sufficient enough, Capcom might go ahead and green light the much demanded sequel. Can't hurt to be a little optimistic, right?

New Mega Man and Roll TvC Artwork

The latest update to the official Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars website brings forth new character illustrations for Mega Man Volnutt and Roll:

These new pieces continue Shinkiro's trend of re-drawing character art for the upcoming UAS version. Personally, I found the older art to be a bit more appealing, but these are still quite neat.

More Tatsunoko vs. Capcom character profile art here.

Ariga Drops Fans a Message

On his blog, Hitoshi Ariga posted a brief message for fans who submitted robot entries for the second volume of Rockman Gigamix.  In short, Ariga conveys just how surprised he was at the number of designs, and how he plans of utilizing them in a 'spectacular scene.'  He then goes on to apologize for entries who didn't make the cut.

Well, the best of luck to those of you who entered; hope to see your entries in the scene!

Credit: Skylagoon

Gigamix Postcards

Purchasing the Rockman Gigamix manga at select retailers in Japan yields a special bonus in the form of limited edition postcards sporting exclusive art by Hitoshi Ariga.  Dark Messiah was fortunate enough to collect all three, and has graciously put them up on his blog for all to see:

Postcard artwork varied depending on where customers purchased Gigamix: e-Capcom customers received the left card, Fukkan the middle and Tanomikumo the right.

Pretty neat bonus, sure to be collector's items one day, no doubt.

TvC: Ultimate All-Stars Boxart Features Zero, MM Volnutt, Roll

... and the rest of the gang:

It's a fine piece of artwork, a significant improvement over the original Japanese version, if I do say so myself.

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars is slated to release on January 26, 2010 exclusively on Wii.

[via GoNintendo]

Auction - Advanced PET II

Many fans of Rockman EXE will be happy to see this... the return of the Advanced PET II electronic toy. This version of the popular hand held is quite a rarity these days, though fortunately, a lone unit has made its way onto Ebay.

The auction consists of the PET unit, instruction booklet and an assortment of 14 battle chips. Current price is at $11.95, however, with four days left to bid, there's plenty of time for the item to skyrocket in price.

Check out the complete auction here.

Custom Forza 3 Servbot Mobile

It's amazing what one can do with a little imagination, and Forza 3's paint editor system:

This Servbot themed Ford Fiesta was created by Capcom Unity member Baboon who designed the paint job in about an hour's time. Spiffy, no?  I imagine this will be the first of many Mega Man themed F3 cars...

See more of the car at Baboon's blog.

Inafune Attending Micromania Game Show

 Keiji Inafune and Street Fighter's Yoshinori Ono will be attending the Micromania Game Show on October 31st, a convention hosted by Game Stop in Paris.  According to Gamekult, Inafune will lead discussions on future Capcom games coming in 2010, and will be signing autographs for fans.

If you're in Paris between October 31st - November 1st, stop on by -- should be fun.

Thanks for the tip, Shifty.

This Figure Really Blows

Jin Saotome, the mastermind behind those zany Mega Man/G.I Joe crossover figures, recently revealed his latest creation: Air Man.  Setting itself apart from his other figures, Air Man comes equipped with a real working fan!  Check it out below:

Jin's toys usually make their way onto Ebay, so expect to see this guy pop up on the auction block sooner or later!

More images of Air Man available here.

Rockman And Blues Kubrick Figures Revealed

Looks like Rockman and Blues are getting the Kubrick treatment. CapKobun reports that toy manufacturer Medicom plans on releasing 7cm Kubrick renditions of the blue bomber and the red rocker in February of 2010 for ¥2,940 (approx. $32 USD)

The figures come with interchangeable heads, facial expressions and removable Busters. As a bonus, each figure comes with a their own translucent Be@rbrick. Cute!

Hopefully, we'll see these guys pop up on import shops in the near future!

Musicians Discuss Chip Tuned Rockman

Rockman series composers Ippo Yamada, Akari Kaida (ZXA, & Forte), Ryo Kawakami (ZX, RM9) and Hiroki Isogai (RM9) discuss their work on the Chip Tuned Rockman music CD in this round-table discussion from Nobuooo.  Definitely worth the watch if you're a fan of either composer's work!

Rockin' In the Bleep World - Musicians on Chiptuning Mega Man from Jeriaska on Vimeo.

TvC Producer Talks Zero

Ryota Niitsuma, the producer of Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, recently posted a blog entry discussing the stories behind the new characters featured in the English version of the game, Zero included:

"There was an opinion from R&D that they wanted to include another character from the Mega Man series so I talked to Inafune-san. We were most careful about not letting those hardcore fans down, so we had to make something good.


"During the early stages of game design, this character was to be a character which would technically borrow some moves from other character datas, and not made from scratch, which meant that it wasn't one of the higher priorities. But, as I mentioned above, it is something we had to do right, and as I rejected many of the team's ideas, I kept on asking for something different, something that felt more like Zero - the guys said at the end: "Fine, you're asking us to make it from scratch right!?"
But then Zero turned out to be very good quality work again.


The attack moves that they implemented are taken a lot from the original series, and it is very cool character in a fighting game. Level 3 super is Dark Hold...? Good stuff guys! "

Good stuff indeed! I'm loving what I've seen of Zero so far, and I can't wait to give him a whirl.

Check out Niitsume's complete post at Capcom Unity.

Thanks, Flame!

Rockman In Newtype Magazine

Thanks to fellow reader Thomas, here's a small character profile from the newest issue of Newtype Japan Magazine which discusses Rockman and his success over the years, with commentary from  Keiji Inafune.

"Rockman was born in 1987. The mainstream of those days was for robots to have weapons like that of Gundam. But that wasn't like the robots I saw as a child who understood the heart, and I wanted to revitalize the world with that kind of robot," says Inafune.

"Even now, the boss character contests done since Rockman 2 are huge. When I saw those submissions I got, I never would have thought of those designs by myself.  It always reminded me that it's not just me who's building Rockman, it's the fans too."

More TvC Zero Footage

If I'm not mistaken, there's at least one or two new combos in here:



Blue armored Zero:



Blue armored Zero vs. Roll




Thanks, Bowsersenemy.

More Megamix Heading Our Way, Cover Artworks Revealed

Looks as if a third Mega Man graphic novel is coming down the pike.  According to Amazon.com, Mega Man Megamix volume 2 is slated to ship out on May 14th, 2010 -- a mere three months between volume 1's release (Feb. 13, 2010).  Given the fact that Udon's recent MM books have seen their fair share of delays and bumps, this release date is most likely subject to change.

On a related note, LilFormers has posted the English cover art for Mega Man Megamix volume 1 and the upcoming Mega Man ZX graphic novel:

From the looks of it, they're both practically identical to their Japanese counterparts. No complaints here!

OSS Site Updates

CoJ made a sizeable update to their Operate Shooting Star  homepage today.

The latest section offers a peek at SSRockman's various abilities such as locking onto foes from afar, shielding minor attacks and the rapid buster. These moves are exclusive to SSRockman, and can be fully utilized in multiplayer.

Next, we have a Program Advance section which shows off the new "Double Rockman" PA. The PA summons both SSR and Rockman EXE onto the field to deal some heavy duty damage. SSRockman's battle chip is required to execute this maneuver.

In the prologue section, there's some nice screens of OSS' new scenario wherein Mayl's Navi, Roll, is kidnapped. SSRockman is believed to be the culprit, but we all know who's really behind such a detestable act...

Clock Man takes center stage in the next section. Nothing really new here except a few images of Clock Man summoning SSR3's final boss, Crimson Dragon.  Surprisingly, stopping time isn't one of his attacks.

The finals section details the Rockman Colosseum multiplayer game. There's two modes in all:

• Free-for-all: No teams, players fend for themselves
  
• Team battle: work in groups to defeat opponents. In one scenario, team members must take down Forte/Bass.

Additionally, points earned in the Colosseum can be redeemed for rare chips in the main game.

Credit: Irish_Marcoos, Mega Man Network

Mega Man And Co. Re-Imagined As Transformers

Mega Man and Transformers, together at last. A match made in heaven?






[via hiropon204]

More OSS Imagery

An auction over at Yahoo! Japan offers a better look at the Operate Shooting Star dept. store ad from last week:

Quite spiffy looking; much better than the supposed "final box art" in my opinion.

While we're on the subject of Yahoo auctions, there's an auction for a OSS promotional DVD who's contents remain undisclosed.  It most likely contains the TGS '09 trailer, but you never know...

TMMN Presents The "What Am I Fighting For?!" Contest

The Mega Man Network is kicking off a brand new contest based around the infamous Iris death scene from Mega Man X4. Fans are invited to show off their own interpretations of the scene for a chance to win an autographed picture of Zero signed by Lucas Gilbertson, the voice behind the red crusader. Contest details below:

" You know the scene; you’ve likely seen it dozens of times, if not more. You’ve seen it remade by Mr. Gilbertson, you’ve seen it parodied, you’ve seen it hacked, and you’ve seen it in other contexts. Now, it’s your turn to give us your take on it.

We want you to give us your own take on the infamous scene. You can make submissions by YouTube videos, or just send us an MP3 of you (and perhaps some friends) re-enacting Zero’s tragic moment.
You can be dramatic. You can be humorous. You can remake the scene with startling detail, or you can put it into another context entirely. Be creative. Just reusing the original sound-byte (or Gilbertson’s) isn’t going to do it, unless you compensate for the recycling in some other way. Woo us, impress us. Make us laugh, make us cry. In costume or out, or some other way. The sky is the limit.
The chief condition is simply that you must use the line “what am I fighting for?!”, or at least some close variant. If you’re unsure whether or not your concept will count, mail us at mmncontest (at) gmail.com. That same address is also where you will direct your entries, or links to those entries.
The contest begins now and runs until midnight PST on Friday, November 20th. "

Complete contest details availbel at The Mega Man Network.

Best of luck!

MM Titles On IGN's Top 100 NES Games

IGN ranked the top 100 NES games of all time recently, and to no one's surprise, Mega Man titles are abundant throughout. The rankings:

• Mega Man 4 (#95)
• Mega Man 5 (#84)
• Mega Man 6 (#58)
• Mega Man 1 (#30)
• Mega Man 3 (#16)

and finally at #4.... Mega Man 2, just behind Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda.

Agree/disagree?

The full top 100 is located here. Each game that placed gets their own dedicated page complete with videos and IGN staff commentary.

Thanks, Fabiano.

Megamix, ZX Graphic Novels Get Price Cut

Udon's Mega Man Megamix and Mega Man ZX graphic novels aren't even out yet, and we already have ourselves a price drop from Amazon...

...and they're both eligible for free shipping! Pre-order your copies here.

EXE Zone

Rockman EXE sound effects collide in this new rendition of "Red_Zone", a popular music-video based internet meme.

Kinda catchy, no?

Operate Shooting Star vs. Battle Network

Considering we have a sufficient amount screens now, I think it's about time for the inevitable graphical comparison between the soon to be released Operate Shooting Star and its eight year old counterpart Mega Man Battle Network.

OSS left, Battle Network right:

Only keen observers can really pin-point the slight graphical differences between the two. The most obvious are the new mugshots and overall screen resolution. A bit disheartening, isn't it?

Graphics aside, OSS does have its fair share of gameplay differences, such as the inclusion of a fully-playable Star Force Mega Man, new scenarios and a few minor bells and whistles. But, is that enough to warrant a purchase?

OSS Demo Screens

Game Watch is running a brief report on the Rockman EXE Operate Shooting Star demo that hit Japanese Wiis earlier this week. While nothing new is stated, the report does offer a better look at the demo via a handful of screenshots.

More screens here.

Star Force Anime Arrives In Hong Kong

According to PRC reader the Dark, the Mega Man Star Force anime started airing last week in Hong Kong practically without warning.

It's known as "The Star Hero Mega Man" there, and airs on channel One on Saturdays at 5:00 pm. Reruns air the following Sunday at 4PM, and Wednesdays at 8PM.  Like the US version, episodes run at 20 minutes in length.

"We'll Find Dr. Wowie."

Voice acting seems like a pretty straight forward job -- you read the lines (with effort) and get paid. Simple!  Well, not exactly.  As evident below, Mega Man 8 is a prime example of how not to do voice work.  Behold, Cripsy Gamer's "Greatest Moments In Voice Acting: Mega Man 8":

Chip Tuned Rockman Out Now

Want to get a hold of the Chip Tuned Rockman music soundtrack but don't live in Japan? Fear not, because Otaku has begun accepting orders for the CD at $29.95.

The soundtrack consists entirely of newly arranged chip tune-styled songs from the classic series. The 20 individual tracks are arranged by different artists, each specializing in chip tune mixes. A full track listing and a lone sample track are available here.

The album is also said to include a booklet featuring interviews with the composers and artwork from series artists Hitoshi Ariga and Shigeto Ikehara. 

Grab yous here!

New OSS Box Art (UPDATE)

Nintendo's Touch! DS website is showing off what's apparently the final Rockman EXE Operate Shooting Star box art. It's significantly different than the one we saw earlier, which featured old OSS promotional artwork, but everything here seems new!

Thumbnail size is all that's available at the moment, though I expect we'll see something a bit larger as OSS nears closer to release. Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

UPDATE 10/18 - Medium size version available at Maruchi :

Mega Man: Official Complete Works Out Today (UPDATE)

Today is the much anticipated release of the Mega Man: Official Complete Works art book from Udon Entertainment.  Copies should have gone in the mail sometime earlier today for those who pre-ordered online.  As for finding a copy in-stores, you might want to call ahead before making the trip; Udon titles are sold at select retailers.

Next up on our grand Mega Man book list is Mega Man X: Official Complete Works, slated to hit store shelves on December 14th, 2009. Pre-order yours here.

UPDATE - It's delayed...at least according to Amazon.

"We're [Amazon] writing about the order you placed on April 16 2009 (Order# XXX-XXXXXXX-XXXXXXX). Unfortunately, we are unable to ship the item(s) as soon as we expected and need to provide you with a new estimate of when the item(s) may be delivered:


Capcom "Mega Man: Official Complete Works"
Estimated arrival date: November 13 2009 - December 10 2009""

Please, don't let this be another MMZOCW...

Operate Shooting Star Demo Hits Nintendo Channel (UPDATE 2)

Surprise, surprise: As of today, Japanese Wii owners can download a free demo of Rockman EXE Operate Shooting Star via the Nintendo Channel. Based on Nigoli's breakdown of the demo, it appears it is the same build that was featured at the Tokyo Game Show a couple of weeks ago.
 
Pictures, and impressions of the demo available at Nigoli's blog.

UPDATE - Footage:

UPDATE 2 - same footage; higher quality with in-line sound

Zero Confirmed For Tatsunoko vs. Capcom

Need I say more?

Images, screenshots of Zero at IGN.

November Coro Coro Report (Updated)

Another month, another Coro Coro. Details from this issue are a bit scarce at the moment, but here's what we got so far:

• Operate Shooting Star demo on Nintendo Channel (Wii) and DS Download Stations later this fall.
• The sister magazine of Coro Coro Comics will begin running a new comic starring Rockman EXE and a new operator that isn't Lan/Netto (red-haired boy on left scan).
• Forte is a playable character in the Rockman Star Colosseum mini-game.
  
• new Navi chip for SSRockman, deals 100 damage and coded S.
  

• UPDATE: Insight on Clock Man's scenario:  he wants to make Roll and Harp Note his wives... (possibly a joke on 2ch's part).  According to TMMN, the third scan states that Clock Man "has run off to 200 years in the past with Harp Note. Here SF MegaMan is at WAXA with his friends and Dr. Goodall saying he needs to go after them. Meanwhile, 200 years in the past, Mayl claims that Roll has been kidnapped by a blue Navi. Naturally, Lan and MegaMan EXE go to rescue Roll. This in turn seems to pin SF MegaMan as the criminal, which will likely lead to their battle."
  

• New mugshot for Mayl.
• Scan confirms presence of Bud, Luna, Zack and Dr. Goodall.

More info as it comes in.

Credit: Tarbosan (scans), The Mega Man Network (translation)