Mega Man X (video game)
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| Mega Man X | |
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| Developer(s) | Capcom |
| Publisher(s) | Capcom (Japan, US) Nintendo (Europe) |
| Designer(s) | Tokuro Fujiwara (producer) Keiji Inafune (characters) |
| Platform(s) | SNES, MS-DOS |
| Release date | SNES January 7, 1994 January 18, 1994 March 5, 1994PC January 1, 1995 |
| Genre(s) | Platform |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Media | 12-megabit cartridge, 1x CD-ROM |
Mega Man X (ロックマンX, Rockman X), released in 1994 by Capcom, is the first game in the Mega Man X series. The first subseries of the popular Mega Man series, it was made primarily as a stepping stone between the NES and SNES incarnations of the original series (Mega Man games were released on the NES as late as 1994). It was released on the SNES first, then ported to the PC in 1995. The game was remade in 2006 as Mega Man Maverick Hunter X (Irregular Hunter X in Japan), for the PlayStation Portable.
The game was re-released on January 10, 2006 as part of the Mega Man X Collection for the Nintendo GameCube and the PlayStation 2.
In addition, the SNES PAL version of this game is published by Nintendo, instead of by Capcom.
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[edit] Story
The instruction manual for Mega Man X contains "The Journal of Dr. Cain", in which the story leading up to the events depicted in the game is narrated through excerpts of Dr. Cain's personal journal. According to the journal, Dr. Cain, an archaeologist searching in the year 21XX for fossil records relating to Mesozoic plant life, accidentally discovered the ruins of a robotics research facility that had once been operated by the legendary robot designer Dr. Thomas Light. Among the ruins, Dr. Cain found a large capsule which contained a highly advanced robot the likes of which the world had never seen before. This robot, Mega Man X, had human-level intelligence and emotion. Fascinated by the genius of Dr. Light's design, Dr. Cain studied X and Dr. Light's few remaining notes. With X's help, some months later, the first "replicate android" or Reploid (in Japan, Repliroid), a robot who can think, feel, learn, and grow exactly like a human, was made. Within the year, the design had been standardized and Reploids were being mass-produced.
However, with the free will given to a Reploid came the possibility of criminal activity previously unknown to robots; such rogue Reploids were said to have "gone maverick" and were later referred to as Mavericks (in Japan, Irregulars). As the public outcry against the few Maverick incidents became too great to deny, the government stepped in, and under the advice of Dr. Cain, formed an elite military police organization called the Maverick Hunters. The Hunters would capture or disable any Reploids that posed a danger to humans, provide damage control at Maverick uprisings, help with disaster recovery, and perform other tasks as needed.
For the leader of the Maverick Hunters, Dr. Cain designed a very special Reploid, one with a very advanced thought system. This Reploid, thought to be immune to whatever defect of manufacture, design, or social conditioning caused Mavericks, was named Sigma. Sigma headed the Hunters for about three years before the very head of the Maverick Hunters himself became a Maverick, taking the vast majority of the other Hunters with him. Sigma seized control of a small island and drove all human occupants out. Claiming that the humans were "inferior" and that they were limiting the growth and potential of Reploids, he called for his followers to begin a massive extinction effort. It seemed, with only one remaining Hunter able to fight (the mysterious Zero of Unit 17), that all would be lost and human extinction would become inevitable. But X, guilt-ridden at having helped design such a ruthless and warlike race, decided to join forces with Zero and attempt to stop Sigma at any cost.
[edit] Characters
[edit] Mega Man X
X is heralded as being the first robot to think for himself, as well as having his own feelings and emotions. He was discovered by Dr. Cain in a capsule sealed by Dr. Light to be opened thirty years later after he was encapsulated (although X was in actuality sealed for 100 years). Using X as inspiration, Dr. Cain created a new race of robots called Reploids. Some of these robots turned "maverick" and began to threaten the existence of the human race. X feels it is his duty to protect humans, which serves as the main conflict between the Reploids and the Mavericks.
[edit] Zero
Created by Dr. Wily in the past, Zero was the last of the doctor's creations and was based on X's model. He was once a maverick as shown in Mega Man X4, yet was defeated by Sigma and studied by Doctor Cain and joined the Maverick hunters. Now Zero allies with X in his fight to defeat the Mavericks and Sigma, showing up from time to time to help X out of tough situations. He utilizes the Z-Buster exclusively in X1, and it is much more powerful than the X-Buster. in X2 and X3 he utilizes a beam saber also, but mostly his buster. In X4, however, he utilizes the saber exclusively. From then on, he gains new saber techniques, but is also able to employ the buster, except for X7 and X8.
Zero also appears in the Game Boy Advance game series Mega Man Zero. In this series, X has been copied, and Zero must be resurrected in order stop "Copy X" from annihilating innocent Reploids. Zero uses the Z Saber and Buster Shot, but also learns new abilities and gains more weapons along the way.
[edit] Dr. Thomas Light
As the creator of X, Dr. Light felt it necessary to seal him away until his capabilities and reliability could be confirmed so that he would not harm any humans. Dr. Light appears as a holographic image inside capsules that enhance X's abilities.
[edit] Vile
Vile is the top commander of Sigma's Maverick army who does everything he can to crush X's and Zero's efforts to topple the Mavericks. Vile was shut down due to his violent behavior, but was reactivated when Sigma started the rebellion. This recurring enemy shows up twice in his mobile armor suit in order to get the advantage over X, although he is very maneuverable on foot. He is patterned after Boba Fett from Star Wars.
[edit] Sigma
Sigma plans to start a new civilization of Mavericks without the presence of humans. Because of his intentions, he is hunted down relentlessly, but is guarded by his Mavericks to impede the efforts of the Maverick Hunters. Sigma is one of the Reploids Dr. Cain built from information gleaned from X himself. After going Maverick, Sigma has apparently determined that the human race is inferior to Reploids and must either be enslaved or killed.
[edit] Gameplay
The Mega Man series has always been an action game that focuses on "run-and-gun" gameplay. The player takes control of Mega Man X ("X" for short), a Maverick Hunter who seeks to stop Sigma's rebellion against humans. After an introductory stage, the player is presented with a stage selection screen that depicts eight Maverick boss characters.
After the player selects a Maverick to battle, X is teleported into the Maverick's base of operations. The player must dodge obstacles, destroy enemies and other hazards, and keep their life bar as high as possible. Defeating a stage and its boss Maverick rewards X with the boss's weapon, which can be used in a rock-paper-scissors fashion to defeat other boss characters. This mechanic is carried over from the Mega Man Classic series; Capcom maintained the tradition throughout the new series, with a few twists. In the X series, completing a stage may affect the environment of other stages, possibly making them easier or more hazardous.
Also of note is the addition of hidden upgrade capsules in several stages, which display a holographic message from Dr. Light when found, and upgrade one of X's body parts, replacing his original blue armor (resembling that of the original Mega Man) by the white & gold armor seen on the game artwork, and granting X new abilities (such as the chestplate upgrade giving X more armor, his arm upgrade making the X Buster, his primary weapon, more powerful or his leg upgrade allowing him to dash). Fans commonly agree this is one of the best new features in the Mega Man X series (as opposed to the Classic series), because it adds a new layer of gameplay, and X's design after completing the armor shows a heroic tone.[citation needed] Mega Man X can also increase his life energy by obtaining Heart upgrades, one per each Maverick stage.
[edit] Boss characters (Mavericks)
| English name | Japanese name | Form | Stage | Copied weapon | Weakness |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boomer Kuwanger | Boomer Kuwanger | Kuwanger | Fortress Tower | Boomerang Cutter | Horming Torpedo |
| Sting Chameleon | Sting Chameleao | Chameleon | Recon Base Ruins | Chameleon Sting | Boomerang Cutter |
| Storm Eagle | Storm Eagleed | Eagle | New-type Airport | Storm Tornado | Chameleon Sting |
| Armored Armadillo | Armor Armarge | Armadillo | Energy Mine Ruins | Rolling Shield | Electric Spark |
| Flame Mammoth | Burnin' Noumander | Mammoth | Prototype Weapons Plant | Fire Wave | Boomerang Cutter* & Storm Tornado |
| Launch Octopus | Launcher Octopuld | Octopus | Subterranean Base | Horming Torpedo | Boomerang Cutter* & Rolling Shield |
| Chill Penguin | Icy Penguigo | Penguin | Abandoned Missile Base | Shotgun Ice | Fire Wave |
| Spark Mandrill | Spark Mandriller | Mandrill | Electromagnetic Power Plant | Electric Spark | Shotgun Ice |
[edit] Armor Pieces
- Boots- In Chill Penguin's stage. This is the only capsule in the series that is required to continue the game. It bequeaths the all-important Dash ability. This function is default in later games.
- Torso- In Sting Chameleon's stage. The Armor halves all damage that X takes.
- Helmet- Located in Storm Eagle's stage. The Helmet offers you the ability to break open special blocks by jumping into them.
- X-Buster- Two methods of attainment available. One is via a capsule in Flame Mammoth's stage. The other is proffered by Zero. The new X-Buster offers a third charging stage, and unleashes a bright-red torrent of energy. Also allows for the charged use of special weapons.
[edit] The Hadouken Fireball
As a reference to the Capcom series Street Fighter, a hidden upgrade capsule housing the Hadouken Fireball (complete with X actually yelling "Hadouken!" in a high pitch voice) upgrade was placed into the game. The Dr. Light hologram that appears in the pod is dressed in garb that resembles Ryu from Street Fighter. When the button combination "Quarter-Circle Forward + Fire" is performed (the same action used to perform a Hadouken in the Street Fighter games) at full energy, X fires a small Hadouken-like projectile that can destroy almost any enemy (the exceptions being Vile's Ride Armor and the final form of Sigma) in the game with a single hit. This fact makes the projectile the most powerful weapon in the game.
[edit] The IBM PC version
After the Super Nintendo version was released in 1994, Capcom had the game ported to the IBM PC in 1995. The port was worked on by a group called Rozner Labs, who had also ported Super Street Fighter II to the PC in 1994, as well as creating the original computer version of Mega Man 3 in 1992. The PC version, however, was different from its Super NES counterpart. Many of the differences include, but are not limited to:
- There are no available Ride Armors for the player, and enemies that had them in the original game don't appear in the PC version either.
- The player can save the game in this version instead of using a password.
- The PC version uses MIDI renditions of the original tunes, but the sound quality is less effective.
- Maverick boss characters can sustain more damage from the player.
- A few bugs that weren't in the Super NES version exist in the PC version, such as being unable to jump higher in the water.
- Zero never gives the player the X-Buster upgrade in this version if the player failed to get it from Dr Light's capsule.
- There are no continues for the player to use.
[edit] Mega Man Maverick Hunter X
Mega Man Maverick Hunter X (or Irregular Hunter X in Japan) is an enhanced remake of Capcom's 1994 franchise debut of Mega Man X made for Playstation Portable and is developed by Taito Corporation Japan.
[edit] Major differences
The differences between the original title and this version include:
- 3D graphics
- A reworked script and backstory.
- Voice acting for the characters.
- An anime OVA titled, "The Day of Sigma".
- Anime FMV sequences.
- The ability to play as Vile, which includes over 40 new weapons, new music, slightly adjusted stage layouts, and re-worked enemy placement.
- Changed location of upgrade capsules.
- Rearranged areas and bosses in some stages, most notably a certain boss fight in Sigma's Fortress.
- A one level demo of Mega Man Powered Up is also included in this game, containing Cut Man's level (also Fire Man's level can be obtained through game sharing).
- Some boss characters have been redesigned. Some have minor touch-ups such as Chill Penguin, while others like Launch Octopus and Sting Chameleon have been redesigned. They also have more defined personalities and motivations to fight and support the Maverick cause, which gives more background story.
- Boomer Kuwanger renamed to Boomerang Kuwanger in the English version.
- The arm upgrade that Zero gives you is now different from the Dr. Light one, unlike the SNES version in which it was exactly the same.
- Like the PC version, this one allows you to save and continue where you left off, however there is no password function.
- Acquiring the secret Hadouken Fireball technique has been made shorter in the remake; after acquiring all Heart Tanks, Sub Tanks, and armor upgrades, players need only reach the end of Armored Armadillo's stage and access the catacomb above the boss door without ever taking damage during the stage to find the capsule, rather than reaching the area 5 times, with full energy on the last visit.
While it is possible that the plot changes were only done to make the game interesting for old players again, and to add to the meager narrative of the original, there is no way to yet determine the intent of Capcom as an X2 for PSP has not yet been announced. In an announcement by Keiji Inafune, the remake did not meet his sale expectations in Japan, and any future remakes of the series would be put on hold along with the Mega Man Powered Up games.
[edit] External links
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