IGN's Colin Moriarty has posted an enlightening article in response to recent Mega Man 10 criticism; specifically, the complaints of fans who pan the title for taking on the old-school/8-bit style once more. A portion of the article below:I implore the skeptics and loudmouths to do one thing. Sit down and play an old Mega Man game. Ignore Mega Man 9 completely, and go back further. If you don't have access to an NES and the old cartridges, break out that Wii, go to the Virtual Console, and drop $5 on a game like Mega Man 3 (my favorite game of all time). Remove yourself from the critical and snarky internet age, and place yourself in, say, 1990. Let the classic music enter your ears as you browse the stage select screen. And then play. Experience the 8-bit Mega Man series' influence on gaming culture. Imagine a simpler time in gaming when gameplay was the be all-end all, the king of the block. Immerse yourself in the 8-bit sights and sounds, the difficult and rewarding play. And then come back here and tell me you aren't impressed with what that game not only did, but continues to do.
Mega Man 10 isn't only a throwback to a better time in gaming, but also to those people who enjoyed these games and want more. It's a nod to the days when someone would stay up all night to get through Ninja Gaiden, or attempt to decipher the bad translations in Simon's Quest. It's an ode to the level-grinders who got their kicks with Dragon Warrior III, and the amateur cartographers who kept themselves busy mapping The Legend of Zelda on graph paper. It's in appreciation of those who spent tireless hours proving to themselves that Battletoads could be beaten, and yes, to those who forked out $60 a year for six years straight, just to experience the latest iteration of the Mega Man series. It's for the love of pure gameplay that Mega Man 10 is being released, just like Mega Man 9 before it.Really couldn't have put it better myself. If you've got some time on your hands, I highly recommending giving the article a read. Check it out here
Credit: Capcom Unity
That's right!
ReplyDeleteMegaman 4ever!
:3
I'm glad to see that there's someone else out there who sees that Mega Man 3 is superior to Mega Man 2, which in my opinion, is overrated. It's not a bad game, I just don't think it's good enough to warrant all the praise it gets, with so many people acting as if it's the greatest thing since sliced bread.
ReplyDeleteWhoa, Mega Man games went for $60 dollars back then!? To think we only paid $10 dollars for Mega Man 9 and $30 dollars for new iterations of Mega Man on the DS now. lol Glad we're getting to experience the classic Mega Man style again though. Simpler times indeed.
ReplyDeleteI've never played the old megaman games, but its cool! Megaman is so cool!
ReplyDeleteGo MEGAMAN!
(Except Spider-man, I still like him.)
- Or better, go play your Call of Duty, Halo 3 ODST and much others. Fanboys, argh. >_<
ReplyDeleteGood read. The thing about most of these defense articles, however, is that they assume it's impossible to make a MegaMan game with good visuals and good gameplay.
ReplyDeleteI always go back to the GBA version of Super Mario Bros. 3 as a prime example. The game is identical to its NES counterpart in every single way.. The only changes were updated sprites (but still the same size) and backgrounds, resampled music, tons of bonus content (though not interfering with the main game), voice work (used sparingly), save-anywhere functionality (something that would really make Wily stages more bearable), and much much more. It could just be me, but I don't recall the gameplay suffering as a result...at all.
I digress though, because I'm still buying 10. As long as it plays like the originals, it'll be fun - recycled sprites or not. I'm just bitter that all the awesome innovation of Powered Up (both visual and gameplay-wise) has been ignored by Capcom completely in 9 and 10. :|
-Age
Wow. He pretty much fucking nailed it, didn't he? Damn. Great article. And that isn't something I find myself saying about IGN's editors very often.
ReplyDeleteAgeman20XX --
I completely agree with you. I think it's perfectly possible to make a Mega Man game with good visuals AND gameplay, and most people who defend the neo-8-bit titles don't seem to acknowledge that; for them, it always seem to be "either or." I mean, look at Mega Man X8, Maverick Hunter X, and Mega Man: Powered Up. All of them had current-gen (at the time) visuals and the gameplay didn't suffer at all. X8 wasn't the best in the X series, but the characters themselves controlled as well or nearly as well as they did in X1-X6 (I would say better than in X4-X6, actually).
It DOESN'T have to be graphics or gameplay for Mega Man, and I for one would love to see Capcom eventually try for another fully-animated Mega Man Classic game, as long as it's a whole lot better than Mega Man 8. But Mega Man is Mega Man, and I'm loving these neo-8-bit titles because they successfully bring back that impeccable Mega Man 1-6 gameplay while still providing a decent focus on story progression, which us hardcore fans appreciate (I for one would be annoyed if Mega Man 9 and 10 had the minimalist stories of the original 8-bit titles).
So, yeah. I'm all for another fully-animated Mega Man Classic title down the line once Capcom figures out how not to sacrifice gameplay for the visuals a la Mega Man 8... and they should be able to figure it out, because they did for the titles I mentioned above. But until then, I'm also happy with the continued neo-8-bit releases, as long as they keep up the story aspect of it all (gimme my 8-bit cutscenes!).
Eh, I wouldn't go as far as to "immerse" myself into a gaming age that existed when I was 2. I can only say their style is interesting.
ReplyDelete- I wouldn't say "gaming age", but 3D-ism. In order to get back to the roots, a lot of games use a 2.5D or a 3D with the camera positioned to give a 2D view perspective.
ReplyDelete- If you think about getting graphics improved, forget MM9. Take MM1~6, then MegaMan7 (16-bit giant sprites) and MegaMan8 (32-bit 4-child looking and sounds). The efforts of a 3D MegaMan (3D fanboys) wasn't so good, as you can see in MegaManX7. They switched back to a 2D camera in MMX8, and more with Maverick Hunter X. It's improved, no doubt, but what's wrong after all? Just let MM10 to be *as is*.
Nicely said, Colin!
ReplyDelete@Krazy Monkey:
I got tired of MM2 a long time ago. A loooooong time.
@Age:
Then why did Powered Up and Maverick Hunter X sold so poorly? I can't figure that out. Good gameplay, nice concept...oh right, freaking PSP was blocking their way to success :(
This is pretty much the samething I hear back on the other fan sites. Pretty much rehashing everything what another fan would normally say.. . Now I'm not saying I hate 8-bit but I'm saying THIS type of article is what I hear all the time, been there done that.
ReplyDeleteAmen.
ReplyDeleteYou know, not all of us critica of the current direction of the (classic) Mega Man series are graphics whores who snub our noses at 8-bit. Some of us just don't care for the direction in which the series is continuing.
ReplyDeleteFor example, I am a long time Mega Man fan (favorite series entry is MM3, second favorite game of all time), but I just liked Mega Man Powered Up better than Mega Man 9. I would love to see the entire series "powered up," if you will, rather than continued 8-bit throwbacks. I get the repeated impression that a lot of people, especially the "whippersnapper" gamers (teenagers and younger), see the 8-bit graphics and say "zomg it's retro so kewl 10/10" without really savoring its design. DON'T get me wrong, Mega Man 9 is a gem in every aspect of its design,...but so is Mega Man Powered Up. And I would also argue that Mega Man Powered Up is a more challenging game overall.
With Mega Man 9, you find where your one hit kill spots are and get your timing/placement of jumps down, and you can play through it with almost no problem at all (and in no time at all). In MMPU, you had challenge mode (masochistically addictive), multiple characters, superb voice acting by Ocean, and killer bosses on Hard Mode,...in addition to the much overdue Construction Mode. I can honestly only see the choice of platform (PSP) as the game's achilles heel.
Mega Man 9 was great, and the Blue Bomber started to get some long overdue respect from mainstream gamers because of MM9's greatness. I expect that MM10 will be just as good a game, if not better. However, Powered Up is a greater labor of love and gift to the longtime, hardcore Mega Man fan. With as many sequels as Capcom pumps out every year, it pains me that Powered Up 2 (and 3) have not been made by now.
I expect that I'm in the minority with most of the opinions I've just expressed, but I hope I have adequately expressed why I sigh every time I see a new retrostyled Mega-sequel announced.
-Mr. Aoki
I agree with Mega Rock exe.
ReplyDeleteI cant help it if I was brought up in the PSx era, with the likes of Megaman 8 and X4 as my first megaman games.
I cant be of the same mindset of a gaming era I am not of.
Dynamo8 has the right point too.
Been there done that. its not that amazing an article, as thats pretty much what they all say. it reminds them of their childhood. Thats what this guy is getting at. its reminiscent of a long gone age.
and thus I say, if you want memories, go play 1-6, or one of the many rom hacks there are. theres your memories. But dont force your selfish nostalgia onto everyone else who wants something new.
Granted, im happy there even is a magaman 10, but the 8 bit style AGAIN is going too far. Inafune does it because he realizes that from a buisiness perspective, this will sell to those fans more than a next gen Megaman would. Merely for the nostalgia aspect.
*In b4 MaverickHunterAshe rages at me*
This post really means nothing. I'm fine with MM10 being 8-bit, but... that's like saying, "Go watch a movie from the 80's that we all grew up with and come back and tell me we don't need the big hairdos and cheesy clothes back."
ReplyDeleteLet's go back and watch It's a Wonderful Life and and then decide the next Christmas movie needs to be black and white!
For those who grew up with the NES games, going back is nostalgic. And I'm one of the people who likes it. But this defense of sticking with the old style is empty.
Nothing wrong with going back to black and white. Sin City and Schindler's List used it to great effect. Capcom can't use it forever, but the NES Megamans had the most effective art style on the NES; why not use it a bit?
ReplyDeleteI was born when the NES Megaman games were coming out and didn't get into gaming until I was ten. I didn't play a Megaman game until a year or so ago. I still really enjoy the 8-bit Megamans and can appreciate the atmosphere in which they came out. It's not nostalgia for me; it's just good gameplay and a unique graphic style.
I grew up around the PSX era but i was poor so i had a Famicom instead and Rockman games were really cheap (enough for me anyway. 200P per game) So I pretty much grew up playing 8 bit Mega man so i can't help but appreciate the 8 bit MM.
ReplyDeleteI've played the original MM games and while I appreciate them and respect people who enjoy them... I still don't. I find the soundtrack grating and the game play both frustratingly difficult and at times controller breaking. I'm sorry, but 9 and 10 are only there for the nostalgic fans who grew up on it. If you dropped them in front of someone who'd never heard of the series most probably wouldn't touch it with a ten foot pole.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty much with Ageman on the rest of it.
I was perfectly fine with the article until the author said MM7 and MM8 were awful. Both were very solid titles and shouldn't be looked down upon just to make the classics look better. Indeed, both had its share of flaws, but the apparent innovation and love put into both games shouldn't be ignored.
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree with Age's comment. In defense of MM9 and MM10, many assume that MM wouldn't work with modern graphics, and yet they forget the existence of the recent PSP remakes. Inafune commented that although an Odin Sphere/Muramasa-esque design would be interesting, he didn't want to imitate their style. On the other hand, it's not like Capcom never made SSFII:HD Remix. While I love what they are doing with MM9 and MM10, MM will undeniably need to evolve eventually.
Thats all well and good, but those days of MegaMan are what they call "classics". MegaMan 9 was a neat little blast from the past, but go all out for the next line of MegaMan titles, Capcom. For christs sake stop being so dirt-cheap and overhaul. Stop making repops of your already released titles and get to showing your series that truly put you on the map some devoted time in this advanced generation of gaming. Simply, period. Classics wont be classics if we keep making them, now will they? Make something NEW that years later can become a "classic" eh?
ReplyDeleteI'm the old guy here and I think that article was great. Yes, for me it is nostalgic and has the great gameplay that it did in the past with a juicier storyline. I agree that story is very important in an age when many could care less why this world is what it is. Nothing deep, but it is a good escape. And Mega Man 2 was the greatest thing since sliced bread.
ReplyDeleteI understand that Capcom will need to re-update Mega Man again as they did with Maverick Hunter X and the horrible Powered Up, but a few games going back to the basics is a positive thing to do. After Mega Man 8 and Powered Up, the classic series needed to re-establish itself. Maybe after Mega Man 10 or Mega Man 11, they could go back to something similar (but not retarded) as Mega Man 8. I've seen fan graphic ideas on this site (Crystal Man's Stage?) that was beautiful and would be much better than the look of Mega Man 7 or 8 and it's bright pastel chessiness.
This is an exciting time not just for Mega Man fans, but for people that enjoy good video games. I haven't been this pleased with Capcom since Mega Man 2, 3, and Mega Man X. I just hope that there will not be too many of those that wish to pick this apart and make Capcom second guess further Mega Man titles. Hell, what else to you need...... MEGA MAN IS FINALLY CO-OP!!!!
I still cannot understand why people seem to enjoy bashing 8. 8 was in my opinion, one of the better megaman games.
ReplyDeleteThen people complain about megaman's voice in the game. because apparently, they prefer a robot with the body and mind of a prepubescent little kid no more than 10, to have the voice of a 25 year old college graduate.
I agree with Soultrigger. The way he put down 7 and 8, was downright diry, and solely for the purpose of making the classic games look good.
he then insulted every single FPS player out there, simply for enjoying FPS games. This article is the real garbage IMO.
as a few of the members there commented.
Basically, Capcom should be given a pat on the back for not having a single clue n how to evolve their franchise. and these nostalgic memories should be forced down other peoples throats and if they dont care for it, the too bad, kill them with fire.
What a biased article. Its not like Megaman is the game of the year. there are plenty of games from this day and age that will always overshadow megaman, and most likely be better. Why? Because Megaman is being held back in the past by the people who wont let him at least TRY to evolve.
Why cant we have both good gameplay and graphics? is that too much to ask?
- If MegaMan hadn't a 3D version or an improved one with better graphics, I'd say you're right. However, there are so many versions of MegaMan that whose to fire against MegaMan10 are just "Noveaux Players".
ReplyDeleteFlame --
ReplyDeleteI'm not going to rage at you. You made a well-reasoned argument this time, as opposed to just bitch and moan like you did last time. Doesn't matter whether or not I agree with you; if you make a reasonable argument, who am I to call you out?
I said it before and I'll say it again: Mega Man CAN work in the current-gen (Powered Up was amazing), but for some reason, Capcom has only been able to be successful in that once. Mega Man 8 wasn't good at all. While I do want to see Mega Man evolve again eventually, I'm fine with these neo-8-bit titles until Capcom knows they can get Mega Man in something other than 8-bit right again. But yeah, I don't want to see Mega Man Classic relegated to 8-bit for the rest of its lifespan. I think it's a neat design choice that works right now, but Capcom's not going to be able to ride on this choice of direction for long. It was novel and unique in Mega Man 9, and it will be neat in Mega Man 10, but how many more sequels can we go before it becomes Capcom's latest derivative plan to cash in on sequels?
I just hope they have the good sense to evolve Mega Man Classic again before these neo-8-bit titles become derivative, and Mega Man 12 becomes another Mega Man 6. But for now? I'm loving the direction Mega Man 9 and 10 have taken, especially if this direction is responsible for reviving Mega Man Classic and keeping it alive. I can't wait for Mega Man 10 and all of its old-but-new-again-again goodness, and I'm gonna play the hell out of it.
Well, would you look at that. I'm a gamer that grew up in the NES era and started playing Mega Man games with Mega Man 2 and 3, and I can be reasonable on both sides of the neo-8-bit argument. There's no reason others shouldn't be able to do the same.
Ashe, i would like to know what is so terrible about 8. Personally, I loved it much more than 7 or the 8 bits. (they have their charm, but 8 wins me over with its trippy visuals)
ReplyDeleteI found the gameplay to be fun, Just as challenging as the 8 bits, (even if a little easier,)and the visuals to be good. I found that Unlike in X4, the voices, (except Dr. Elmer fudd Light) fit really well. Megaman sounds like a little boy. Just like he should, not like a tween going through puberty. Little kids of his "age" tend to have effeminate voices oftentimes.
The anime cutscenes were very well made and displayed the characters just the way they should look,
And Duo was an awesome character.
Ive heard people complain about Megaman's speed in it. Am I the only one who doesnt seem to notice any speed difference? I mean, its a completely different visual style, so its only natural that he would work differently. Or maybe I just havent had this "speed down" affect me at all?
Honestly, I still think they had something good going with where they were going with Command Mission. This is because of my love of RPGs, of course. We all know that Command Mission wasn't fantastic and that there was much room for improvement, but honestly, with how much they're completely regressing with the Megaman series in general, I would welcome another Genre switch at any time. I mean they really didn't have to switch Megaman into a casual-fest. I love having the games on handheld consoles, but I wish they would go back to Megaman releases on full consoles (aside from MM9 and MM10, I suppose.) I'm absolutely starving for a ZX game on a big screen. XD
ReplyDeleteYeah. What do we do now that the 3d graphics revolution is at the point where we can make people look real down to the pores on their buttcheeks? We go back and make awesome games in 2d the way they were supposed to be made!
ReplyDelete