Customer Reviews
A solid remake of the game that started the X series
Mega Man X: Maverick Hunter (2006.) A Playstation Portable remake of Mega Man X, originally released for the Super Nintendo in 1993.
INTRODUCTION:
The Mega Man series was Capcom's pride and joy for many years. With its at-the-time revolutionary gameplay stylings, the series won fans over all around the world. In the middle of the nineties, Capcom took the series to the next level with the X series. Unfortunately, from the new millennium forward, it's become a shadow of its former self. The new X games have been half-assed, overly complex pieces of junk. The Legends and NT Warrior/EXE games aren't even really Mega Man games - they just make use of appearances and character names similar to the days of old. But one thing no one will deny is that when this series rocked, it rocked. In early February of 2006, Capcom released Mega Man X: Maverick Hunter in America. This was a remake of the 1993 Super Nintendo game that started the X series. Read on, and see how the remake fares!
OVERVIEW:
Mega Man X: Maverick Hunter was released in America in February of 2006 for the Playstation Portable, by Capcom. The game is one player, and features many little revamps here and there over the original game. At its time of launch, the game retails for thirty to forty dollars in America.
STORYLINE:
The storyline behind this game is a continuation of the original Mega Man series, taking place approximately one hundred years later. I'M STRICTLY COVERING THE STORYLINE IN THIS PARAGRAPH, SO IF YOU'RE NOT INTERESTED IN THE STORY, SKIP THIS PARAGRAPH. Prior to his death, Dr. Light created Mega Man X, a new type of robot called a Reploid. These new robots had the ability to think on their own, and make their own decisions. One hundred years after Dr. Light's lab remains were found in an excavation, X was discovered by a scientist named Dr. Cain. The Reploid concept was copied constantly, and the humans and reploids entered a golden age - or so it seemed. Many Reploids went Maverick, turning against the human race and causing harm. To combat this threat, Dr. Cain created the Maverick Hunters, led by Sigma, the most powerful Reploid ever built. Unfortunately, Sigma himself went Maverick, and declared war on the humans. Thus, X and fellow Maverick Hunter Zero, whose origins are very much a mystery, go into battle to save the human race from the Maverick threat.
SUMMARY:
This game plays true to the original game on the Super Nintendo. The eight Maverick bosses are all the same as they were on the old game, and all the old levels are here. Some things have been given minor revamps and alterations here and there, as well. The graphics are how three dimensional and polygonal, meaning that in a sense this is a two-and-a-half dimension game. The game itself plays like a two-dimensional side-scroller with the typical Mega Man elements. It was also originally Capcom's first attempt at the X series, and even in this port, it shows. The major additions are a Vile Mode that lets you play through the game as the Boba Fett rip-off himself, and several anime cut scenes, and still dialogue scenes. The game also includes a playable demo of the forthcoming Mega Man Powered Up (a revamped version of the original 1987 NES Mega Man game.)
REVIEW:
So, how IS the game? In one word, excellent. Capcom has taken one of their old favorites, back from the age when the Mega Man series was still good, and revamped it. The game plays just like it did in the good old days. Pretty much every alteration Capcom did to the game improves it. I'm a firm believer of "if it ain't broke don't fix it," and I'm not about to deny that the game didn't need fixing. Despite this, Capcom succeeds beautifully here. The polygonal rendered graphics look awesome. And the additions of the anime cut scenes, still dialogue scenes, and voice acting make for a refreshing change to the game itself. Vile Mode is also great. Of course, the game isn't perfect. The controls often feel stiff and unresponsive. Of course, this is probably due to the way the Playstation Portable was designed (remember how that PSP version of Darkstalkers sucked so bad because of the system's design? Fortunately, nothing that serious is wrong here.) As a result, you'll often find yourself dying on account of poor control responsiveness. Likewise, the screen is obviously smaller than the television. And since dead enemies can be scrolled back onto the screen, this becomes a serious problem. Another problem is that they used the original X game as their model for the control style, and not a later game. THE DASHING IS AS IT WAS IN THE FIRST X GAME. BIG MISTAKE, CAPCOM. Later X games let you start with the dash, and the boots were an upgrade to it that let you perform the dash in midair. Why couldn't they fix this here? There is also a glitch where when you are charging up your X Buster and you enter a boss fight, your first shot (if you let go of the button during the midway point) will be a standard strength shot, not a charged one. And did I mention charging takes longer than ever? Yes, the game is full of problems. But in this day and age, when Mega Man games are at an all-time low, this is the light at the end of a very dark tunnel. I know my words may have sounded a bit harsh, but this game RULES. Are you a sucker for old-school two-dimensional platformers? If so, don't be left without this one!
OVERALL:
Overall, I am EXTREMELY satisfied with this game. It's one of the redeeming games of the PSP, a system which has much too scattershot of a library. But if you're a fan of old-school side-scrollers, you're going to absolutely love this game, I guarantee it. Recommended to any fan of the series or genre!
EDITION NOTES:
This game is a recent release at the time I write this review. As such, it is readily available in most stores that sell video games, and will likely remain such for months to come.
A solid remake of the game that started the X series
Mega Man X: Maverick Hunter (2006.) A Playstation Portable remake of Mega Man X, originally released for the Super Nintendo in 1993.
INTRODUCTION:
The Mega Man series was Capcom's pride and joy for many years. With its at-the-time revolutionary gameplay stylings, the series won fans over all around the world. In the middle of the nineties, Capcom took the series to the next level with the X series. Unfortunately, from the new millennium forward, it's become a shadow of its former self. The new X games have been half-assed, overly complex pieces of junk. The Legends and NT Warrior/EXE games aren't even really Mega Man games - they just make use of appearances and character names similar to the days of old. But one thing no one will deny is that when this series rocked, it rocked. In early February of 2006, Capcom released Mega Man X: Maverick Hunter in America. This was a remake of the 1993 Super Nintendo game that started the X series. Read on, and see how the remake fares!
OVERVIEW:
Mega Man X: Maverick Hunter was released in America in February of 2006 for the Playstation Portable, by Capcom. The game is one player, and features many little revamps here and there over the original game. At its time of launch, the game retails for thirty to forty dollars in America.
STORYLINE:
The storyline behind this game is a continuation of the original Mega Man series, taking place approximately one hundred years later. I'M STRICTLY COVERING THE STORYLINE IN THIS PARAGRAPH, SO IF YOU'RE NOT INTERESTED IN THE STORY, SKIP THIS PARAGRAPH. Prior to his death, Dr. Light created Mega Man X, a new type of robot called a Reploid. These new robots had the ability to think on their own, and make their own decisions. One hundred years after Dr. Light's lab remains were found in an excavation, X was discovered by a scientist named Dr. Cain. The Reploid concept was copied constantly, and the humans and reploids entered a golden age - or so it seemed. Many Reploids went Maverick, turning against the human race and causing harm. To combat this threat, Dr. Cain created the Maverick Hunters, led by Sigma, the most powerful Reploid ever built. Unfortunately, Sigma himself went Maverick, and declared war on the humans. Thus, X and fellow Maverick Hunter Zero, whose origins are very much a mystery, go into battle to save the human race from the Maverick threat.
SUMMARY:
This game plays true to the original game on the Super Nintendo. The eight Maverick bosses are all the same as they were on the old game, and all the old levels are here. Some things have been given minor revamps and alterations here and there, as well. The graphics are how three dimensional and polygonal, meaning that in a sense this is a two-and-a-half dimension game. The game itself plays like a two-dimensional side-scroller with the typical Mega Man elements. It was also originally Capcom's first attempt at the X series, and even in this port, it shows. The major additions are a Vile Mode that lets you play through the game as the Boba Fett rip-off himself, and several anime cut scenes, and still dialogue scenes. The game also includes a playable demo of the forthcoming Mega Man Powered Up (a revamped version of the original 1987 NES Mega Man game.)
REVIEW:
So, how IS the game? In one word, excellent. Capcom has taken one of their old favorites, back from the age when the Mega Man series was still good, and revamped it. The game plays just like it did in the good old days. Pretty much every alteration Capcom did to the game improves it. I'm a firm believer of "if it ain't broke don't fix it," and I'm not about to deny that the game didn't need fixing. Despite this, Capcom succeeds beautifully here. The polygonal rendered graphics look awesome. And the additions of the anime cut scenes, still dialogue scenes, and voice acting make for a refreshing change to the game itself. Vile Mode is also great. Of course, the game isn't perfect. The controls often feel stiff and unresponsive. Of course, this is probably due to the way the Playstation Portable was designed (remember how that PSP version of Darkstalkers sucked so bad because of the system's design? Fortunately, nothing that serious is wrong here.) As a result, you'll often find yourself dying on account of poor control responsiveness. Likewise, the screen is obviously smaller than the television. And since dead enemies can be scrolled back onto the screen, this becomes a serious problem. Another problem is that they used the original X game as their model for the control style, and not a later game. THE DASHING IS AS IT WAS IN THE FIRST X GAME. BIG MISTAKE, CAPCOM. Later X games let you start with the dash, and the boots were an upgrade to it that let you perform the dash in midair. Why couldn't they fix this here? There is also a glitch where when you are charging up your X Buster and you enter a boss fight, your first shot (if you let go of the button during the midway point) will be a standard strength shot, not a charged one. And did I mention charging takes longer than ever? Yes, the game is full of problems. But in this day and age, when Mega Man games are at an all-time low, this is the light at the end of a very dark tunnel. I know my words may have sounded a bit harsh, but this game RULES. Are you a sucker for old-school two-dimensional platformers? If so, don't be left without this one!
OVERALL:
Overall, I am EXTREMELY satisfied with this game. It's one of the redeeming games of the PSP, a system which has much too scattershot of a library. But if you're a fan of old-school side-scrollers, you're going to absolutely love this game, I guarantee it. Recommended to any fan of the series or genre!
EDITION NOTES:
This game is a recent release at the time I write this review. As such, it is readily available in most stores that sell video games, and will likely remain such for months to come.
Maverick Hunter X-- Redesign, replace, or rebuke? Or all of the above?
I LOVE MegaMan (RockMan, actually). I bought this game expecting the story from the original SNES to still be there, just with more. What I got what a bit of a mixed bag. Good, bad, and...pretty. I'll explain in detail--
The good is that 90% of the game play is still there from the first. A few bosses, such as Spark Mandrill, have a new attack(s). Maps are about 80% the same, with a few differences, such as Capsule relocations, and major overhauls, especially in the Sigma Stages. It has a few anime cut scenes (the real 30 minute movie comes after you beat the game once), and some voices, which I hear over 14 characters voiced by just 5 actors...hm. Though greatly portrayed, X's voice gets annoying after the first 10 times of using his special weapons, as he calls it out nearly EVERY time. Despite this, the voice acting QUALITY is definetely there, and I can't think of any sub-par voice work (except I really wish the same actor from X8 did Dr. Light in this one). Vile Mode is something new to me, and I've only gone over it once, but it's a nice addition. It also comes with a demo of MegaMan Powered Up!
The Bad: The story has changed from MegaMan X1!! Sure, the premise is still there, but there are a lot of little things that happen in this game that completely compromise the future X games' story. I won't go into full detail, but I suppose my recommendation is to play the game with an open mind if you're familiar with anything before MegaMan X4. The energy bar has been reworked, and seems MUCH smaller than what I'm used to. Maybe it's just me, but it seems the charge takes a little bit longer. Other little annoyances that peeved me included suddenly-discarded power ups. Yeah, that little shooting thing you just destroyed left you an energy morsel, but when it dropped 4 pixels away from the screen, it disappeared!! I consider this more like an in-game flaw, but SOMEONE at Capcom should have done something about it...
The...pretty? Graphics, of course! The characters move very fluently, with bright, exuberant colors, and are very true to their 16-bit counterparts. The maps are also very nicely drawn, and also do the atmosphere justice, OVER the SNES one. The anime seems a bit outdated, however. There are some scenes that remind me of the slight cherub-like face of classic MegaMan yesteryear. One of my main reasons for getting this game was for the music, and it hasn't disappointed me. Well, maybe alittle. Zero's speech "theme" is played, but only for a few seconds!! The music is very nicely done, similar to X7 and Command Mission, and nearly all the themes can be identified if you've got a keen ear from X1. (On a side note, unlike the original, there is no Sound Test...at least, not that I've discovered yet)
In conclusion, it's a pretty decent game. However I will always support the SNES version, since it's story was told, and comes, first. I think with this game, Capcom proved you can improve, but not beat an original.
