Customer Reviews

Mega Man

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was in the 6th grade when I first played Megaman (in 1988). This one was different from most games of the time for two reasons: A) You could pick which stage to go to! and B)you were able to obtain your opponent's weapons! Those two factors more than any others are what made megaman a winner.

The premise:

Dr. Wright's partner (in the other games he's known as Dr. Light) Dr. Wily goes mad, steals the industrial robots they created together, attempts to reprogram "Rock" who resists programming and left behind to be found by Dr. Wright. "Rock" volunteers to be transformed from (I think he was a butler or something) into a fighting robot: Megaman, thus Megaman begins his very, very, very, very, very loooooooooooooooong journey to bring Dr. Wily to justice.

Game play:

For its time, the original megaman had superb game play. The ability to selct which stage you wanted to tackle, the ability to use the vanquished robot masters weapons and indeed, the ability to go back to the stage you defeated and defeat the robot master again all contributed to the superb game play of megaman. These factors actually make it superior to megaman 2 and 3 where you cannot return to any previosuly beaten stage. Even in subsequen megamans where you can return to beaten stages, you cannot refight the vanquished robot masters.

Also, you can pause this one with the select button, which is something of a trick because you can defeat difficult enemies by pausing and unpausing repeatedly. Unfortunately, when you go to the subscreen, or unpause when you're on a latter, megaman lets go (well, he doesn't just let go, he shoots down a couple of rungs).

Another thing pertaining to gameplay that's different about this one is the scoreboard. You collect points for defeating enemies. The amount of points set for defeating robot masters is generated randomly, while the price on Dr. Wily's head is set squarely at 200000 points. It's a nice touch that's lost on the later games.

Pluses:
-First Megaman game.
-Good play control.
-The special weapons are cool.
-The music is good.

Minuses:
-No save or password feature.
-Replay value limited.
-Megaman likes to fall off of latters in this one (for example, when unpausing the game or selecting a special weapon from the subscreen).
-Graphics by todays standards are not so good (but at the time were tops).

Conclusions:

A good game. Probably worth a look if you're curious about where it started. The rock monster (of which incarnations are found in Megaman 3, 8 and X5) is extremely difficult in this installment. They didn't go over the top with this one. Later with all of the skull castles and castles in general got to be too much. In this one you battle your way through 'monsteropolis'. Better than megaman 2.

When you talk about Capcom, the developer and publisher has a long and celebrated history. They got their start during the 1980's making video games for the NES. In 1987, they released several of them in hopes of showing that their games were fun to play. Little did they knew that a major franchise was born to humble beginnings; Mega Man almost didn't see the light of day outside of Japan. Capcom decided at the last minute to release it in the U.S. and it led to one of the worst box art designs in the history of video games. It didn't matter because the few players who got their hands on this game realized that there was something cool about it. Word of mouth quickly spread out through the gaming community and Mega Man had gathered a cult following. Oh yes....the Blue Bomber's first adventure left quite an impression on gamers everywhere.

In Mega Man, you control Mega Man (AKA Rockman in Japan), a human-like robot created by Dr. Wright (later on, Capcom changed his name to Dr. Light.) He sought out the game's main villain, Dr. Wily, who re-programmed Dr. Wright's robots to work for him and wreck havoc in the city of Monsteropolis. As Mega Man, you chose from six stages filled with enemies, traps, pits and a Robot Master. Beat the Robot Master of each stage to acquire his special power. After you clear all six stages, you ran through four more stages filled with more boss characters, the chance to fight all six Robot Masters again and finally, you fought against Dr. Wily. You did not have access to passwords or battery backed saves but you were able to pick up extra lives and had unlimited continues.

The PROS: Out of all the games Capcom released, this one stuck out. It was a one of a kind game involving robots, a futuristic setting, the ability to gain enemy robots' powers and interesting stage layouts that put your shooting, jumping and memorization skills to the test. For its time, the graphics were pretty sharp and bright. The sound effects and controls were spot on and easy to appreciate. The music was excellent since each Robot Master's stage got its own theme so it fit the mood perfectly. There was a lot of variety when it came to enemy robots and some were exclusive to certain stages. Mega Man quickly became known as a hard as nails game to play through so if you beat it, you were among an elite group of gamers that managed to pull it off.

The CONS: Since it was really hard to beat back then, it also proved to be its biggest fault. At the time, most games were pretty easy to clear compared to Mega Man. The game had been too much for some players which led to most people who attempted to beat it to give up completely. It was a bit demanding to beat the game in one setting even though you had unlimited continues and enemies would randomly drop extra lives though not as often. It was also one of the few games where you didn't earn extra lives through points so it didn't help at all.

Despite the steep learning curve and the fact that it demanded high gaming skills, Mega Man earned its place in video game history and gave birth to one of Capcom's most recognized video game characters. They would go on to release five more sequels on the NES, a new spin off series for the SNES and PS1 and multiple portable iterations. If you missed your chance to play this diamond in the rough title, you can search for a used copy or pick up the Mega Man Anniversary Collection for the PS2 or Gamecube consoles. Also, if you own a Wii, you can download this game from their Virtual Console Service for US $5.00 (500 points.)

When I was growing up in the late 1980s, I was fascinated with things like robots and flying saucers. Movies like 'Short Circuit', 'Batteries Not Included', and 'Robocop' were coming out; The LEGO company had 3-4 awesome space themes going on at once; and Capcom introduced the video-gaming world to the Mega Man series.

The original Mega Man title was mostly overlooked when it came out, but seemed to gain more respect after the second and third games made bigger splashes and prompted gamers to go digging at the local video store. This doesn't come as much surprise, as it was released before the days of Nintendo Power magazine and was one of the first Capcom releases that didn't have an arcade counterpart. Coupled with its atrocious American cover art, it's comes as no surprise that people probably looked like through this title.

Under its ugly veneer, however, is one fabulous and vibrant gaming experience which was completely fresh at the time it came out. I actually managed to play this game at a friend's house before the second title was released and recall being completely taken by the novelties the series introduced. While games like Zelda and Goonies II offered some latitude in the order by which one approached the game, I had never before played a game where a stage-select was shoved right into your face. My young, action-figure-addled sensibilities were further wooed by the unique enemy and robot-master designs.

Though I didn't realize this as a kid, Mega Man probably served as my 'baptism by fire' into appreciating more difficult gaming (soon to be followed by the NES Ninja Gaiden). I played this game before I had access to strategy guides or the internet and recall getting massacred by the game's steep difficulty curve. This, however, never felt like a deterrent and made the occasional stride forward all the more rewarding. Some parts would end up seeming downright impossible (e.g. fighting Elec Man before you know what to do). I don't think I beat this game, or even managed to get to Dr. Wily's stage, until years after I had beaten Mega Man 2's 'normal' difficulty, but I was never so discouraged that I wrote the game off as being hard for the wrong reasons. What's awesome is that this game's difficulty stands the test of time. Even if you know how to beat the game, it can still give experienced players a fresh challenge if they haven't tried it in a while.

As a huge gaming music enthusiast, I would rank the Mega Man series as one of the best-scored properties from that time period. Though Capcom's sound people certainly traversed new heights with games like Duck Tales and the later Mega Man games, the music in the original game was simply awesome. Each uniquely-designed stage is matched with a different theme and all of them maintain a great energy. I would rank the Cut Man and Fire Man stage themes amongst the best in the series.

While this game has certainly been outshined by the subsequent entries in the Mega Man series, I still think it stands out as one of the best games on the NES and one of the most creative titles ever made. I would recommend buying the anthology version on the PS2, as that version will save your progress. Beating this game takes a bit of patience and practice.

Ah, the MegaMan series. It is probably the hardest Capcom series ever. While the gameplay is unique and solid, and the graphics and sounds are just plain amazing for the NES, the games are also known for their extremely hard difficulty.

The first MegaMan is no different (Okay, maybe a little) from that. The title screen is basic, despite the logo, and there are 6 bosses compared to the other games' 8. The screens are more basic looking.

However, the main game is what you would expect from a MegaMan game. Having to go through huge levels to get to fight the robot masters at the end of each level, and then you fight Dr. Wily after going through yet another frustrating stage.

It's awesome.

I don't know what else to say.

The first Megaman game I ever played was MM3, and after that I played a couple of later MM games before I finally played the original Mega Man. I immediately noticed several differences, but for a first game, this was pretty good. It's a bit clunky and simplistic compared to its successors (much like Final Fantasy 1 or Super Mario Brothers) but is still a nice, solid game. Definitely not the best of the Mega Man series, this game still does deserve a try and to be played once if you're a die-hard Megaman fan.

Before appearing in hundreds of sequels and spin-offs, Mega Man made his first appearance on the NES over 15 years ago. Coming out at a time where the platforming genre was booming due to the success of Super Mario Brothers, Mega Man had it's share of qualities that made it stand out from the rest. The graphics were colorful and detailed, the music was cool, and the gameplay was top notch. The game also gave the player a choice as to which stage they wanted to play. Each of the bosses had their own distinct world which included environments, enemies, and traps unique to that world. But what really made this game a standout from the genre was the ability to gain a boss's ability after defeating them. For instance, beating Cut Man would give you the ability to throw scissor-like boomerangs, while defeating Elec Man would give you the power to shoot electric beams in 3 different directions. The way you used your accquired powers also brought a strategic element to the game, for using a particular weapon against a boss could kill them with a few hits. For example, Fire Man was weak against the Ice Slasher and Guts Man could be defeated with a few hits from the Hyper Bomb. The storyline in the game is basically the same in later Mega Man sequels; stop Dr. Wily and his robots from taking over the world. Although this is the only Mega Man game to feature just 6 bosses instead of the standard 8, it is still a tough game to beat. In fact, it might be the hardest game in the series. There are no energy tanks to collect so you will have a hard time in some areas, especially Dr. Wily's castle. There is also no password feature so be prepared to beat this game in one sitting. And while the control is good for the most part, Mega Man has a tendency to slide just a little bit before coming to a stop, but it can be enough to throw you off balance at times. Overall a good beginning for the Mega Man series, but Mega Man II and III are much better games due to better graphics and sound, more bosses to face, and the inclusion of password features.

Back in the late 80s, Capcom created a series of games that would achieve status as classics including 1942, Strider, Bionic Commando, Commando, Ghosts N Ghouls, among many others. One of the games didn't stand out much for the fact that not very many copies were sold, but it quickly rose to become a cult classic. It was among the first of its kind and generated sequels and spin-offs that would please many gamers around the world. His name: Mega Man.

THE GOOD
The graphics were ahead of their time and this is one of the few instances where an early game reaches the potential of the system. The music was also very well written and many of the tunes stood out including Cutman, Elecman, and Fireman. This was one of the first games to define the "platform" genre (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was around the same time as well). Of course, it's fun. I noticed many Mega Man gamers tend to dismiss this one because "it was raw" and/or "it was too hard." Bah. I enjoyed the difficulty level and I like this game over Mega Mans 5-8 anyhow (not that they were terrible, mind you). The ending was also pretty good considering no dialogue is spoken.

THE BAD
In this game, when you're flashing and you hit spikes, you still die. This was changed in later entries. Also, there is no password system to save your game, so you'd have to start from scratch every time. Oh, and did you remember the game box's cover? Weird. Still, this is Mega Man in its raw form and should be reviewed lightly.

OVERALL
What can I say? The Mega Man series is a great one and this is the one that started the whole thing. I loved the old school feeling this game has and the fact that it's among the hardest in the series. This is a hidden gem, folks; it's rare, but I highly suggest you hunting down this game for your NES.

The original Mega Man, while rough around the edges, is still a classic in every way. I know many that didn't like it as much as, say, Mega Mans 2 or 4, but you have to realize that this game (with no passwords, energy tanks, rush, etc.) was made back in the day when Nintendo games kicked your [...] and forced you to love them. I still play this every now and then mainly because it's very challenging and still has some replay value to it. Mega Man 2 proved to be easier and was the one that made Mega Man a household name. Rough, hard, but still a great game. Besides, it began the series, so it should be given good credit!

No energy tanks, fancy gadgets, spike invulnerability when hit, and two less robot masters than most games in the series make this debut the bad kind of hard. The stages and bosses are EXTREMELY hard without the right equipment. The next one, Mega Man 2, is where greatness would first be reached.

Of all the games of the NES era, Mega Man sticks out in my mind as being the hardest. I didn't expect it to include the things that would later go into the series such as the charge shot, or Rush or anything like that, but when I first played it, I was flabbergasted by it's extreme difficulty. As a kid I thought it was a great game. Now that I'm older, I can look at it with a critical eye and say that it is a good game, but even for an old school gamer, Mega Man is a game that so rightfully needed the remake that it was garnered in the PSP, and was also a game that seriously needed tweaking even when it was first released in the 80's.

As with all old school games of the 8-bit era, Mega Man's focus was not story. It was gameplay. Storlyines didn't become important until the 16-bit era. So if you wanted to know the premise, you needed to read the instruction manual. Of course, you probably know it without the use of the instruction booklet anyway.

Mega Man's gameplay was pretty simple. You played as the blue bomber and selected one of six robot masters to go off and face. You went through the level and would eventually find the robot master and take them down. Each Robot Master was weak to another Robot Masters weapon. In the end this proved to be a staple of the Mega Man series. Each time you defeat a boss, you get his weapon and move on. Fantastic.

The game was difficult, though. And when I say difficult, I'm not joking. For one, you've got no energy tanks, and the energy pellets that restore health are not dropped very often. Also, there are no passwords so you have to complete the game in one sitting. Bosses also did a lot of damage to you. For a series, Mega Man got off to a great start, but as an indiviual game, the fun is actually taken away because of the difficulty (the Yellow Devil comes to mind). You're not invulnerabe to spikes if you get hit, and there are no energy tanks. That makes up the bulk of the difficulty. This probably won't bother those who played the games in order, but I started with Mega Man II. The other big thing about the difficulty was the Magnet Beam. You'll have to grab it in order to get further in Wily's fortress, but you don't get it by traditional means. You have to find it in a level. This brings about another gripe with the difficulty, if you go back to a level you must fight that Robot Master AGAIN, and you might not be prepared for that.

Music wise I also didn't think highly of the first Mega Man. A lot of the music just didn't sound fantastic to begin with. There were some good tunes (Wily's fortress, Cut Man's stage), but there were also tunes I dreaded a lot (Ice Man's stage, the Boss Fight music). Again, though, this is the first game. It's just getting things started.

Mega Man is a good game, but the extreme difficulty might be a bit much for even your average old school gamer who's used to such difficult feats. It's a good game, and it'll probably test your skills more than the likes of Contra. However, I'm not the kind of gamer who is used to that. I was able to complete Mega Man, but it's not an easy game. But I've heard of gamers going through the whole game without getting hit once, which means the difficulty really does provide a lot of fun.