Mega May - Mega Man Celebration in May (OP - Updated)

[darsparx]

Well battle network would be the only one for me to discuss during the free week especially since that's a great spinoff series and not mentioned in the other weeks

[FerretGamer]

It's officially May and so begins our month long celebration. I'll be popping in the anniversary collection and playing Mega Man 1 tonight.

I also bought myself a copy of Mega Man Xtreme for GBC (mimicking the e-shop release) to celebrate.

[PressStart]

Ever since I got these games on 3DS, I've been trying to clear them without losing a life. It's forced me to actually try and figure out the boss' strategies, but some (like Elec Man) are just way too vicious. The best chance I have is running into him (does less damage than getting hit by his Thunder Beam) and using the Rolling Cutter.

I played through the 1st game again tonight, but still lost some lives. Post-hit invincibility does not protect you from spikes

[FerretGamer]

Ever since I got these games on 3DS, I've been trying to clear them without losing a life. It's forced me to actually try and figure out the boss' strategies, but some (like Elec Man) are just way too vicious. The best chance I have is running into him (does less damage than getting hit by his Thunder Beam) and using the Rolling Cutter.

I played through the 1st game again tonight, but still lost some lives. Post-hit invincibility does not protect you from spikes

The rolling cutter is definitely the way to go with Elec Man.

So I finished the first Mega Man and it's definitely a lot harder than I remember. I know a lot of people have trouble with Ice Man's stage because of the disappearing blocks but I didn't find it all that difficult. The part of the stage that I found annoying was right after that with the random moving platforms that shoot at you. I used the magnet beam to traverse that section untouched, which is a good tip for anyone having trouble there.

For anyone tackling the first Mega Man, the best order to finish the game is as follows:

• Bombman (Use Mega-Buster)
  Gutsman (Use Bombs)
  Cutman (Use Arm Cannon)
  Elecman (Use Cutman Boomerang)
  Iceman (Use Elecbeam)
  Fireman (Use Iceslasher)

It's still a great game and holds up fairly well today. The music is fantastic, the platform in is tight, and the game has just the right amount of difficulty.

[MyNameIsVince]

Too bad the Gameboy collection never became a reality. IV and V GB are real classics.

I highly recommend the Zero Collection on DS as well.

And on another annoying collection note is the fact that the X Collection only has the 32 bit version of X3. I really don't like the redone music even if X3's compositions aren't quite the best in the series to begin with.

I HATE the redone X3 music as well. It's like hearing imposter versions of much better original songs. To me it's like....listening to THIS version of Burning Down the House:


when I'd rather listen to THIS version:



Also, apparently somebody on the SNES collecting thread on the Neogaf forum said that they prefer the 32 bit version of the X3 music than the SNES version. I think that person is certifiably insane....


I definitely do want to get the Zero Collection. Cheaper than trying to get the Zero games on GBA.

[Retrogamer0001]

I'll be giving Mega Man 2 a playthrough next week for the Summer Game Challenge, so I guess that qualifies for this thread too. Pretty excited to experience what is arguably the best in the NES series!

[PressStart]

For anyone tackling the first Mega Man, the best order to finish the game is as follows:

• Bombman (Use Mega-Buster)
  Gutsman (Use Bombs)
  Cutman (Use Arm Cannon)
  Elecman (Use Cutman Boomerang)
  Iceman (Use Elecbeam)
  Fireman (Use Iceslasher)

Dang, I should try this next time! I've been going after Cut Man, then Guts, then Elec and the rest in order. It gets a lot of the same things done (Having Rolling Cutter and Super Arm ready for Elec Man's stage, and having Magnet Beam for Ice Man's), but I would like to try throwing those blocks at Cut Man!

It seems unanimously agreed upon that the shooting and moving platforms seem to be the most broken part about this game. It's been so long since I've actually tried to get through them without the Magnet Beam; it really does feel like a requirement. While the disappearing blocks themselves aren't that bad, having to traverse them before getting another attempt at the moving platforms is just cruel.

[FerretGamer]

I'll be giving Mega Man 2 a playthrough next week for the Summer Game Challenge, so I guess that qualifies for this thread too. Pretty excited to experience what is arguably the best in the NES series!

Mega Man 2 is fantastic! I started that one last night and took care of business with Flash Man.

Oh and this!

Still an epic intro...

[GSZX1337]

I played through the original Mega Man last night. I mainly did it so I can compare it to Powered Up, which I also just played, but I also did it to participate in the event. I have an almost finished post about what I think of Powered Up that'll post in the Games Beaten thread.

It's forced me to actually try and figure out the boss' strategies, but some (like Elec Man) are just way too vicious.

I find Elec Man to be one of the easier bosses. Just hit him three times with the Rolling Cutter and he's done. If you time it right, you can hit him twice with the first shot.

For anyone tackling the first Mega Man, the best order to finish the game is as follows:

• Bombman (Use Mega-Buster)
  Gutsman (Use Bombs)
  Cutman (Use Arm Cannon)
  Elecman (Use Cutman Boomerang)
  Iceman (Use Elecbeam)
  Fireman (Use Iceslasher)

I always did Guts Man first as I find the Hyperbomb more frustrating to use on him than the arm cannon.

It seems unanimously agreed upon that the shooting and moving platforms seem to be the most broken part about this game.

Yes, yes they are. They wouldn't be so bad if they at least had a consistent pattern. I've had those platforms just circle around the same general area stuck in a loop a couple of times.

It's been so long since I've actually tried to get through them without the Magnet Beam; it really does feel like a requirement.

I mainly use the Magnet Beam when I've already cleared a platforming section once and don't feel like doing it again.
"Dammit, I got killed during the final boss rush! Wait, now I have to deal with the moving platforms again? Fuck that!" *magnet beam*

[Gunstar Green]

I definitely do want to get the Zero Collection. Cheaper than trying to get the Zero games on GBA.

It's the definitive version since it includes all the neat little e-Reader card bonuses for Zero 3 built in. It's a great package. I have said before and stand by that the Zero series is the most consistent of any Mega Man series in its quality and maybe even improving as it goes on.

Good luck everyone who's on the original Mega Man. Even after years of beating it over and over again I still find ways to die. It's definitely the hardest of the original 6.

Anyway, now would be a good time to give my thoughts on the 8-bit games!

I think if I had to put them in order of my favorite to least favorite it would go something like this:

2 > 3 > 6 > 4 > 1 > 5

Though really that's not a slight on any of them. 2 and 3 are of course classics, even though 3 feels a little rough and unfinished at times, probably because it was. They still managed to make an epic game out of it.

6 is one of the most underrated of the bunch, coming out when everyone was already being blown away by Mega Man X. The story is by far the goofiest which I feel turns a lot of people off but the "around the world" theme was actually pretty cool and the graphics are some of the best on the NES. It tried a lot of new things like alternate level exits and armor adapters, almost like a proto-Mega Man X. It's one of the easier entries, thanks in part to the Jet Adapter, but it's a lot of fun.

4 is nostalgic for me even if it's where most people started to see things go down hill. It's the first Mega Man game I personally played and I'll forever remember the origin story cutscene at the beginning. It started my love affair with the blue bomber that continues today. The level design is a little bland and the robot masters were getting a little abstract but there's still some great music, especially in the Dr. Cossack stages.

The first Mega Man feels like the prototype it is. While still a classic that set the standard and had brilliant features like its level select and weapon-stealing it's never been my personal favorite. The clever design of the original bosses cannot be denied however and they are as memorable as they are simple.

5 is last but not least. The graphics like 6 are fantastic at times but the difficulty was turned way down with random drops supplying you with loads of health and extra lives. The Mega Buster is at its worst here, so powerful you really don't need any other weapons. This is a problem that would later go on to plague the X series in my humble opinion. The only difficult parts come from poor level design that includes a few beginners traps but since lives are plentiful it's not a problem, just not very fun.

I haven't forgotten the Game Boy titles, the first of which was a fairly impressive early attempt to capture the NES game. Keeping Mega Man's sprite the same size as on the NES really helped make you feel like you were playing a NES game. Instead of just porting the original levels they designed new ones to fit the new perspective. It's pretty dang hard too, one of the hardest in the series, but only half the length and easy to plow through. The addition of the Mega Man killers in the Game Boy series was also really neat, a whole new boss specific only to the GB games.

The second game was handed off to a different development team and the difficulty swung in the other direction. This time it's easy, super easy, I dare say the easiest traditional Meg Man game out there. You can beat it in about 45 minutes the first time you sit down with it. Blind folded.

Not only that but it's weird, with a strange time travel plot that you'll only get from reading the manual and a Salvador Dali themed Wily level. The music of the first game was remixed really well for the Game Boy, but here it's absolutely atrocious and ear-splittingly high-pitched.

The third game went back to the makers of the first and they nailed it. The graphics, music and overall experience was even closer to the NES than their first attempt though it was still just a remix of existing games. The difficulty was also back, big time. I'd rate this among one of the hardest Mega Man titles.

With the fourth game they decided to experiment a bit. This was the first Mega Man game with a shop that you could buy items at, something that would be carried over to Mega Man 7 which is hardly a surprise given many of the people who worked on this one apparently went over to 7 (for those who are observant the sprite-to-screen ratio for Mega Man 7 is also the same as the Game Boy games).

Beyond that the graphics were better than ever and neat little touches were added such as the Mega Buster now having a "kick" to it, making it dangerous to use in some situations and adding a little more risk and balance to it. The graphical achievement came at a cost however, there's a lot of slowdown in this one. Despite that it's a superb game and one of the best of the 8-bit titles, even when put against the NES games.

Number 5 is of course the most famous with an entirely new story and all original bosses. It's the only Game Boy title that isn't a remix. While some of the level designs are a bit too bland and mechanical that's really my only complaint. Everything else is superb. It brought back everything that was good about the fourth GB title (and also the slowdown unfortunately) and added even more new gimmicks like the Mega Arm. It's really hard for me to say if it's better than 4 because they're both fantastic but if you only play one Game Boy Mega Man it should probably be this one.