Mega Man Zero 4

by Capcom

Product Features

• New systems to seize enemy weapons and create strengthening chips; New Cyber elf programs introduce new abilities
• Zero Knuckle lets you battle with weapons seized from defeated enemies
• Fuse stolen enemy parts to create brand new items and abilities
• New weather changing system lets you customize the difficulty of gameplay
• 16 stages, 16 bosses and 40 enemies to beat

Product Details

• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000B69E8W
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 4.8 x 1 inches ; 1.6 ounces
• Media: Video Game
• Release Date: August 7, 2006
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #12,458 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

After falling under the evil rule of Dr. Weil, Neo Arcadia has collapsed into a state of chaos and confusion. Zero discovers this disastrous turn of events when he and his friends come to the rescue of a band of humans fleeing Neo Arcadia. Now it’s up to our hero Zero to resolve this terrible conflict between humans and reploids, and restore peace and security to the land. With new systems to seize enemy weapons and create strengthening chips, plus new Cyber elf programs to introduce new abilities, this is the most exhilarating action-adventure ever to come to the Game Boy Advance!

Features:

• The Zero Knuckle lets you battle with weapons seized from defeated enemies
• Plus fuse stolen enemy parts to create brand new items and abilities
• New weather changing system lets you customize the difficulty of gameplay
• 16 stages, 16 bosses, and 40 enemies to beat

Product Description

In Mega Man Zero 4 takes you back to the world of Mega Man for all kinds of great action! After falling under the evil rule of Dr. Weil, Neo Arcadia has collapsed into a state of chaos and confusion. Zero discovers this disastrous turn of events when he and his friends come to the rescue of a band of humans fleeing Neo Arcadia. Now it's up to our hero Zero to resolve this terrible conflict between humans and reploids, and restore peace and security to the land.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stays true to the Mega Man gameplay, October 16, 2005

By 

Martin D. Melville (Sacramento, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Mega Man Zero 4 (Video Game)

This game is fun. To give you an idea, it's basically a side scrolling shooter, but with really tough bosses and levels. This game is hard, sometimes to the point where you yell at your poor li'l GBA, but it's still very fun. The graphics are great, although I wish some of the animations were smoother, and the audio aspect is good too. The bosses even speak japanese occasionally. The controls take a li'l getting used to, but you'll get them down in about a half an hour if not less. Overall, this is just a fun game for anyone that likes tradional gameplay. 4 out of 5

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not such a bad game at all, May 11, 2006

By 

S. Rhodes - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Mega Man Zero 4 (Video Game)

The Mega Man Zero games have come to good games in the long run. Mega Man Zero 4 is the latest in the Zero series, and it proves to be a noteworthy game. A few things keep it from being absolutely fantastic, however, some of the changes in gameplay make the game unique, and to the point where even those familiar with the series will have to take time to learn about some of the mechanics.

The humans have left Neo-Arcadia, as Dr. Weil's ambitions have grown darker and more sadistic. Very few humans trust reploids at all, and think they bring nothing but harm. Zero will soon prove them wrong as he tries to deal with Dr. Weil's sinster motives, save neo-arcadia and the human race. There can be, as far as Zero is a concerned, a peace between humans and reploids. Throughout the game, as Zero saves humans, some of them look to him with great thankfulness, while others will revile being saved by a reploid. Still, Zero will fight all he can to defeat Dr. Weil.

Mega Man Zero 4 is different from previous installments thanks to a few changes in the mechanics. For one, Zero begins the game with the triple slash of his Z-Saber. In previous Mega Man Zero games, he always had to level it up first. The level up system for your weapons has been done away with. In this game, Zero's weapons start off at maximum power.

The game also introduces the Z-Knuckle. With the Z-Knuckle equipped, Zero can use that to take an enemies weapon. When he steals an enemies weapon there's a limit to how many times he's able to use it. Also, it's rather disappointing that in order to switch to a different weapon, Zero has to dump the one he obtained with the knuckle. So if you find yourself having to switch to use the Z-Saber, you'll have to dump whatever the Z-knuckle gave you.

The game also introduces the mechanic of being able to change the weather. Before you go into a level, you'll be given the option to change the weather. This can make levels either easier or harder. It depends on what you want. Keeping the weather normal makes the level particularly challening, while changing the condition to something a little easier makes the level almost too easy in some respects.

The cyber-elf system is also changed. You no longer have to find the cyber-elves through killing various enemies and inside packages. You get the three variants right at the beginning, and have to level up all the variants. This eliminates the need to search around and collect cyber-elves.

The game also lets you take parts from some downed enemies and create new parts. Some are helpful, others not so much. The problem with the system is there are a lot of parts, but also a lot of recipes that will create "junk". Junk can't be used for anything, and you'll see that coming up quite a bit.

As far as actually playing through a level is concerned, it's the same as it was in every side-scrolling Mega Man adventure. There are loads of enemies thrown at you, a big boss at the end of every level, so on and so forth. There are sixteen levels, and as with the first Mega Man Zero, you can choose a level, unless something happens and the game automatically sends you to a location. Some levels, however, are devastatingly difficult, especially with the weather being normal. To the point where even some veterans might be frustrated. There are a few trial and error moments as well. If you fail, it's usually an instant death. The levels are also populated with several enemies.

The game compensates by providing an easy mode. However, as neat as that is, it has it's own dilemna. Where as the normal mode is horrendously challening, easy mode is far too easy. In easy mode the weather is already set to be to the best for you. Enemies take more damage and you take less, there's no point to leveling up your cyber elves either, as they'll already be completely prepared for you. In other words, easy mode babysits you. Easy Mode was obviously met for those new to the Mega Man universe.

Mega Man Zero is a good game, but some might be turned off by it's difficulty, as well as the sense that it's essentially the same basic gameplay, regardless of the mechanic tweaks. It'll still take you time to learn some of the new mechanics (and you'll find you'll need them), but at the same time, they don't really alter the gameplay itself. Still, if you enjoy the gameplay of Mega Man Zero, the formula still works fine.

The game also keep the tradition of the ranking system going. The ranking you receive at the end of each levels stems from how much of the mission you were supposed to complete, how many times you died, how much damage you took, how long it took you to complete the mission, how many enemies you killed, the cyber elves you used, and what the weather was like. The rankings range from S to F with S being the best. If you finish a level with an S or A ranking you can acquire an enemies EX skill. This enhances Zero's abilities with his buster and saber. With the difficulty of the game, the real challenge is getting an S ranking--and keeping it. Since the rankings are actually worthwhile, you might want to try for a good one.

Graphic wise the game really doesn't look any different from the other Mega Man Zero games. The same Zero sprite is still used. It's great looking, but not really anything you haven't seen if you've played previoius games in the series. The backgrounds are nice, the lighting is great and the game doesn't really slow down a lot. The game is, overall, a good looking game. Again, however, it looks no different than even the first Mega Man Zero game released in 2002.

The game does sound really good, though. The background music is some of the best in the series. Many tunes match up really well with the levels. Some sound effects are annoying, such as Zero having to grunt every time he uses the knuckle, but for the most part, the game sounds really good.

This is great addition to a great series. It gets a little difficult to the point where it's frustrating at times, but overall, it isn't so bad. The changes in some of the gameplay mechanics are welcome. The game is also a little on the short side, but I'm sure most series fans won't mind that.

The Good
+The game still looks good
+Gameplay is still fun
+Changes in gaemplay mechanics are welcome
+It presents a good challenge for gamers

The Bad
-As far as gameplay goes, it hasn't changed
-It's frustratingly difficult, even for some veterans
-Very short

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed feelings, April 19, 2006

By 

gjh (USA) - See all my reviews

= Fun:4.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Mega Man Zero 4 (Video Game)

I was somewhat disappointed with the game, especially since its predecessors consistently featured so many improvements, and it is a bit stripped down as well. It lacks the extensive item hunting in the previous games, which I liked. Because of this, there's lesser exploration in levels, meaning level design isn't quite as good. The simplified but very functional Cyber-elf system takes away the fun from finding elves as before. Levels are a little shorter, too.

A nice new addition, though, is the Z-knuckle, as there's many diffent weapons you can take from enemies, some which are just for fun, and others which are useful. Boss design is cool (although some have been done before), and it's fun to fight their attacks.

Another main addition is the recipe system. Basically, you kill enemies and they drop certain materials. Then you mix them in the lab to create other items and even equippable colored armors with different abilities. However, make the wrong recipe and your items turn into junk. There are even rarer materials that enemies don't drop often, so you'll have plenty of slashing to do. It sounds good on paper, but there's so many different combinations without an apparent pattern of mixing items that it becomes tedious (try doing the math LOL), and I'd much rather use a guide for this.

There's easy mode, too, which is good for unseasoned players. It's pretty fair, as the previous installments didn't offer this breezy difficulty, and the fact that it's catering to the requests of those who like it a bit easier. I preferred playing tougher modes (though easy mode was good for getting a feel of the game), though, as I am a vet of the Zero, along with more rewards that are not found in easy mode. There's plenty of challenge to drive you to get a good ranking for an EX skill, or even that 100% for the last mini-game if you hunger for a greater test.

There's also a new weather system to choose from (depending on the difficulty mode). While it doesn't drastically change the level, it offers aesthetic variations for the cool factor, determines the difficulty and which layouts are available, among other small things. You can't always choose the weather, though, as choosing a certain one affects your ranking.

Musically, the catchiness of the tunes has slightly decreased, but it still offers plenty of catchy tunes, including a couple classics.

The plot? It introduces new characters and a few new situations and twists, but it doesn't seem to advance the story in the long-term as in the previous installments.

Graphics are no worse and no better, either.

All negatives aside (mainly due to standards set by MMZ2 & 3), the classic Mega Man Zero action still remains.