Today is July 18th. It's been a full year since the cancellation of Mega Man Legends 3.
I tried to come up with something to say about today. In the end, I couldn't come up with anything truly insightful on the matter. Everything that has been said has already been said. There are so many ways to analyze why it happened and, quite frankly, the discussion has left me exhausted.
If I had to sum up July 18th, 2011 in the most concise way possible, I'd say, well, it was a bad day. And the days that followed? Just as bad. Need we be reminded of Capcom Europe's shenanigans? Gasoline to the fire; salt to an open wound.
But it wasn't all bad. Not long after goodness started to take root: 100,000 Strong For Mega Man Legends 3 kicked-off. Contests, events, marches, speedruns, musical tributes, all that fun stuff. It took a little while, but the goal of a 100K members was reached. And while it may not be enough to rectify the damage done, the group's efforts are entirely commendable. For all intents and purposes, 100K fulfilled what the Devroom was meant to be: a community united under a single cause.
Anyway, the way I see things today is this: we're all in this together. And together we face a single question: in light of all that has happened, letdown after letdown, what is Mega Man's future? That's the unsettling part; no one really knows. Well, no one but those enigmatic "top men" we keep hearing about. These guys are hammering out Mega Man's next ten years, apparently.
I like to imagine a revived Legends 3 falls into their grand scheme somewhere. I'd like to play it someday. It's a little dream of mine I share with many of you. But I'm mindful of the probable reality that the game may never come to fruition. And should that reality hit us, we'll face it together as community.
Mega Man's 25th anniversary is coming up in December. Many of us look to the month as Capcom's last chance for redemption. I don't necessarily share that outlook; however, I do hope something substantial shapes up. At the very least, it's high time those top men speak up.
To better days ahead, my friends!
[Image source]
aww man.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Protodude. I admit there is a feeling of melancholy to the whole thing, an entire year with literally nothing new about Mega Man, our beloved Blue Bomber being kept alive by comics and merchandise, and the occasional rerelease of an older adventure on PSN, Wii, or 3DS. Though to be honest, the silence started long before, back in 2010 after the Zero Collection release. To be really on point, we've had silence on the releases for more than 2 years. Of course the silence was for good reason initially, the announcement of MML3 soon followed.
ReplyDeleteI'm no optimist on the situatuion, either, but one can hold out the hope that Capcom has taken the criticisms to heart and decides to finish what they started. Never before has a game cancellation drawn such ire, not even the likes of Starcraft: Ghost, the previous "biggest cancellation" to come about had this much backlash. I suppose though, the radio silence may mean there are great things to come. Maybe they'll actually work out those legal issues with MML1 and 2, and finish 3. I'd say they owe us that much, though truthfully they owe us nothing.
I don't hold my breath about what is to come in December, though I know that is merely an announcement. I expect nothing. Should something great come of it, it will be a pleasant surprise. Should it be nothing... well, can't say I'd be surprised. But we'll see, hopefully it'll be "something", though.
The community would benefit from a more self-centered approach.
ReplyDeleteInstead of just waiting for Capcom's next move, I'd rather support the numerous high quality fangames we have comming up (Megaman Unlimited, Megaman Battle Network Chrono X, Megaman X Corruption... to name a few).
The industry is moving on. If we want more of the same, we won't get it from them (and be honest, don't say you want something fresh. If you really did, you wouldn't be stuck wishing for the continuation of a 20+ y/o franchise)
If the Megaman community stays in this mood of reminding itself how dissapointing and neglected the franchise has been lately, instead of highlighting the good things we have comming up from unofficial sources, it's gonna get very depressing (and boring).
A whole year later the "fans" are still complaining and trying to ruin what little the normal fans have left.
ReplyDeleteI'm probably a minority on this one but i'm pretty satisfied with the figures and comics. As long as they don't try to turn it into Call of Duty (Capcom's new obsession) I'm perfectly fine with whatever we get. Hell, I'd rather see the series die off before that happens.
ReplyDeleteI think, to be fair, the Megaman community should see that there are more opportunities besides the Legends 3 project. There are other projects one can put their support behind; Project X Zone, the Archie comics, the D-Arts line, fan-projects among many new and currently unknown ideas.
ReplyDeleteInstead of pushing the community to support this 1 project; if the community can accept that there are more facets to Megaman than just Legends or Classic (etc) then we may be able to actually make more noise; banding together even in our differences.
@ 2nd Anon: Call of Duty has nothing to do with Capcom. Are you sure you're not mistaking it with something else?
ReplyDelete@Prof. MegaMan:
ReplyDeleteSeriously? You're still going on about how the fans complaining about Legends 3 aren't real fans? Why do you keep doing this?
Capcom keeps saying they want Resident Evil to be like Call of Duty in their interviews to a ridiculous amount. Nothing to do with MegaMan I guess.
ReplyDelete@Professor Megaman
ReplyDeleteBecause REAL fans love a company no matter what it offers them for entertainment.
Seeing as how Megaman has gotten nothing gamewise in the past year, from a GAME COMPANY, I'd say we're a little bit justified in our frustration.
If Capcom won't listen to us and give us what we want including mml3, let's press Nintendo to buy the rights from them and give them back to inafune no matter what.
ReplyDeleteCapcom hasn't been the same since last July and that's made me reevaluate my love for capcom and it's games.
@Anonymous #2:
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me as if they're more obsessed with Street Fighter.
@Anon wanting Nintendo to buy Megaman:
ReplyDeleteoh hi musashi. :D
You shouldn't try to act like other people or Anonymous yourself if you can't even change your typing style and close-minded mindsets. :D
Love, your friendly neighborhood Spiderman
'Well, no one but those enigmatic "top men" we keep hearing about. These guys are hammering out Mega Man's next ten years, apparently.'
ReplyDeleteIt has just hit me. Holy shit the revelation that I just had.
Up until now, Megaman games have usually been get a new one(iteration) out as the older series dies, then milk it annually/biannually if it shows success, especially if 2/3/4 are very successful. Megaman never really had a solid plan like other series do that release that frequently.
What is being planned out is most likely a new game, followed up by development plans for other games, instead of on the spot decisions that led to the shit storms of later titles in ALL the series, or bad series in general(SF). This could possibly lead to longer development times which could leads to better, longer games. It's bloody genius.
This could actually be beneficial to everyone. We get better quality games, it could restore the symbol of quality Megaman had long ago.
Let us not forget this day, but also let's focus on the positive.
ReplyDeleteNegative sentiment towards Capcom won't help our cause. They know we're out here and I'm pretty sure they know how we feel - you can be sure they won't talk about MegaMan again until they have something VERY substantial to show and VERY confirmed to talk about. That may take time. Let's keep being fans and being supportive.
One year later, huh? Sure feels a whole lot longer than that with all the crap that Capcom has put us through. With that being said, even after all this time has passed, I can't commit myself to supporting Capcom these days; they've done nothing to warrant my support and the substantial amount of trust I had in them has been outright shattered. And this, is coming from a fan that has been with them since the NES days.
ReplyDeleteThat does not mean I hate Capcom; despite what they have done as of late, they have produced too many good games that have permanent spots in my collection to warrant something like that. I am, however, disappointed in them. Very, very disappointed. So disappointed, that until such a time where they can restore my trust and show the world that they are not worse than Activision or EA in terms of customer relations that I will NOT be purchasing any of their games new. If I should ever find myself desperately wanting a Capcom title, I'll be making damn sure it is used and thus prevent them from seeing a cent of my money. Truth be told, I know this will probably do nothing in the long run, but I will sleep a wink or two better at night knowing that I am personally responsible for them making less money.
I honestly hope Capcom can straighten their act and we can forgive them for this eventually. Forgive, but never forget. But with the current trend of them losing money, and the amount of bridges they've burned? Let's just say that if, somehow, Resident Evil 6 bombs? They will be, for the most part, SCREWED. And if that happens, Mega Man and other Capcom titles might just be screwed too.
With all that said, let's not abandon the fight to get what we were promised, everyone. Legends never die.
Funny, it still doesn't seem that long ago since the cancellation.
ReplyDeleteRight, time for my ten cents...
I've mentioned before, perhaps dozens of times by now, that I've always been the kind of fan who fits on the neutral side of the fence, more or less just sitting back and watching as things unfolded and watching the reactions of others. While I was indeed very, very upset over the cancellation and ticked off with Capcom's handling with not just the MM franchise, but their other franchises as well (Especially Ace Attorney), I still sat on the neutral fence. Never did part-take in any of the 100,000 Strong protests (not like I have Facebook anyway), but in the same light, never did diss those who wanted the game to be revived.
And from where I stand, I tend to get more annoyed at both sides of the fandom, to be honest. Yes I would like L3 to come back and yes I have gotten very annoyed at Capcom's antics and have rolled my eyes at them plenty of times by now, but that doesn't mean that I outright hate them or scream "CRAPCOOOM" at every, single, little, thing, they do. I swear sometimes that I get more bothered by the fandom than the company itself. But even though I tend to get more annoyed at the sheer negativity, it also doesn't mean that I don't also get annoyed at blind supporting either. And by blind, I mean unrealistic blind supporting.
Over the course of this year, I've learned to not be hopeful, and again, to basically just sit back and watch as things come and go. That is how I feel neutral on the entire subject of Capcom, and I certainly feel more content being a MM fan as a result.
Of course, it's not like I'm completely without negativity. I don't really expect anything that great in December or in the months to come after that. I just cannot be hopeful anymore after these past experiences. But if something great does happen, then I'll be all the more pleasantly surprised. But, no hoping from me.
Funny, it still doesn't seem that long ago since the cancellation.
ReplyDeleteRight, time for my ten cents...
I've mentioned before, perhaps dozens of times by now, that I've always been the kind of fan who fits on the neutral side of the fence, more or less just sitting back and watching as things unfolded and watching the reactions of others. While I was indeed very, very upset over the cancellation and ticked off with Capcom's handling with not just the MM franchise, but their other franchises as well (Especially Ace Attorney), I still sat on the neutral fence. Never did part-take in any of the 100,000 Strong protests (not like I have Facebook anyway), but in the same light, never did diss those who wanted the game to be revived.
And from where I stand, I tend to get more annoyed at both sides of the fandom, to be honest. Yes I would like L3 to come back and yes I have gotten very annoyed at Capcom's antics and have rolled my eyes at them plenty of times by now, but that doesn't mean that I outright hate them or scream "CRAPCOOOM" at every, single, little, thing, they do. I swear sometimes that I get more bothered by the fandom than the company itself. But even though I tend to get more annoyed at the sheer negativity, it also doesn't mean that I don't also get annoyed at blind supporting either. And by blind, I mean unrealistic blind supporting.
Over the course of this year, I've learned to not be hopeful, and again, to basically just sit back and watch as things come and go. That is how I feel neutral on the entire subject of Capcom, and I certainly feel more content being a MM fan as a result.
Of course, it's not like I'm completely without negativity. I don't really expect anything that great in December or in the months to come after that. I just cannot be hopeful anymore after these past experiences. But if something great does happen, then I'll be all the more pleasantly surprised. But, no hoping from me.
Geez, time flies. It's pretty depressing, seeing as how Rock/Megaman is the series that introduced me into the anime and game worlds, so to speak. The only fandom I've really stuck around in too, and this is how it's ended up.
ReplyDeleteI'll admit I'm being a pessimist, but I'm not looking forward to the next non-remake Megaman game Capcom releases. No, I really, really want one. The problem is that Capcom knows (or they should know, by now) we're pretty desperate for a game, so they don't have to put as much effort into making it to get us to buy it. So, predicted route. Low budget game + desperate fanbase = PROFIT!!!!11!
But I really hope Capcom proves me wrong. I'd appreciate a good game at some point. Until then, I'll go play around with programming something of my own.
@Spiderman
ReplyDeleteThat wasn't me, dumbass.
Has no-one noticed that Legends 3 was cancelled a few months after a disaster (earthquake & tsunami to be precise) hit Japan? That was a perfectly valid reason for it's cancellation and Capcom would be better off working on a game for ZX and Star Force (which are unpopular amongst the fanbase but yet never recieved proper conclusions in their respective series storylines).
ReplyDeleteBig deal, Capcom's probably gonna can MegaMan's 25 annivasary for nothing and pin the blame on the fans.
ReplyDeleteCapcom has shamed themselves and so has the MegaMan fanbase for being complete idiots. I have lost faith in Crapcom and the MegaMan fanbase.
The MegaMan fanbase are not gonna face what lies in the future together, they're gonna continue destroying themselves in their rage...
I feel ashamed to call myself a MegaMan fanboy and is starting to think it is the MegaMan fanbase's fault that MegaMan is on life support.
@Zerker: As much as I would've liked StarForce 4, 3 did end the series well enough, nothing major was left in the open.
ReplyDeleteAlso the tsunami would've been a good excuse yes, yet they never blamed on it; they never gave a single reason for the game's cancellation (Capcom of Europe's twitter aside), and this is also part of the reason people get so pissed about it.
@12:37PM Anon - The Mega Man X series was supposed to end at X5, continued until X8 + Command Mission (?) with cliffhanger ending (though that is partially due to the fact that the series wasn't supposed to continue after X5). Battle Network series was supposed to end at 3, continued until 6 with a conclusive ending. As long as Capcom is Capcom then there's still hope for Star Force 4 and ZX 3 (because these two are the newest series in the franchise yet no-one pays attention to them).
ReplyDeleteNow then, back onto the topic of Legends 3:
The quake and tsunami is the most logical reason for Mega Man Universe + Legends 3's cancellations, even if it was never confirmed by Capcom themselves. In my honest opinion Legends 3 should stay cancelled and everyone should stop thinking "boo hoo it's the end of the franchise" simply because two games got cancelled.
@Zerker: I'm not saying it can't be done, just that it doesn't necessarily needs to, unlike ZX all major plot points were resolved.
ReplyDeleteLike I said, I'd love a StarForce 4, 3 was one of the most enjoyable experiences I had on my DS.
The tsunami makes sense, but what doesn't is why Capcom wouldn't put the blame on it if it was the case. People would've been a lot less angry if they had a solid reason for the game's cancellation, especially one that was beyond capcom's control
@ Zerker: There's a big difference between X and EXE compared to Star Force. The 'why they did it' is always more important than the 'they just did it', not to mention that times now are FAR more different than it was a decade or two decades ago.
ReplyDeleteX and EXE were generally well recieved and sold very well. Star Force's reception and sales slid off immediately after the first game.
As for the tsunami thing, IIRC Capcom did blame a few things regarding MvC3 on the tsunami. I vaugely remember something about Capcom using the tsunami to actually justify the release of UMvC3 about 9-10 months after the release of the original.
All of the content that was originally going to be distributed as DLC was to be repackaged and sold as UMvC3 instead.
Whether or not the tsunami was to blame for this, I (and quite a few others during UMvC3 pre-release) found it quite shady.
If I was Japanese, I'd be insulted at the idea that a gaming company would use such a natural disaster as justification to:
- Cancel development of a video game (which may or may not be true)
- Explain why they canceled plans for DLC distribution and went to packaging everything for a sudden retail update so soon after the original.
...When said gaming company's headquarters is nowhere near the regions where the tsunami's greatest impact was, and especially when no other Japanese gaming company showed any signs of having the tsunami impact their operations outside of planned festivals in any way.
So yeah, I'd stop talking about the tsunami altogether.
@Zerker
ReplyDeletethey said that the game was cancelled because it "failed to meet the reqired criteria" we still don't know what that means, but I highly doubt it has anything to do with the disaster (as a matter of fact several other games continued development after)
But, just out of curiosity, why do you think that Legends 3 should stay cancelled yet they should make another ZX or Starforce instead, despite the fact that you said they weren't all that popular and that starforce like Anon 4:25 said the major plot-points were taken care of, unlike BOTH ZX and Legends?
I mean, don't get me wrong I'd like a sequel to both (especially ZXA)but I'd rather get some closure for the legends series considering we were left hanging MUCH longer
@Alilatias: There was a game cancelled because of the Tsunami, but it was a game about natural disasters, so it made sense lol
ReplyDelete@Musashi:
ReplyDeleteWait, so now you're blaming the fans for lack of Megaman? After two years of "NO DA FANZ ARE AWESUM N ANY1 ELSE SAYZ UTHERWIZE IS DUMB" nonsense with zero evidence to back it up?
No no no no, you're not allowed to back out on that anymore. If anything, you are part of the reason why the Megaman fanbase is in such shitty waters in the first place. People like you are part of that vocal minority who screams and cries this kind of garbage in more open areas, so the non-fans only see your brand of stupidity.
TL;DR: Shut the fuck up.
Top Men? I have a sinking feeling that we're going to get nothing but a massive Top Spin attack all across the board for the 25th. :P
ReplyDeleteIf this last year was anything to go by the next ten will be nothing but merch and vague promises of getting better some time soon no really why aren't buying this car fresheners guys?
ReplyDelete