Mega Man X (series)
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The Mega Man X (Rock Man X in Japan) series was the second Mega Man franchise released by Capcom. It debuted December 17, 1993 in Japan (February 1994 in North America) on the Super Famicom/Super NES. It is the first continuation in plot of the series, preceded by the Classic Mega Man series. It is currently available in the anthology collection Mega Man X Collection, along with five of its sequels and Mega Man Battle & Chase.
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[edit] Plot Description
Mega Man X was created by Dr. Light, possibly when the original Mega Man still existed (shown in the old animated Mega Man cartoon). X was no ordinary robot, however; it was the very first robot with the ability to make its own decisions. After completing the creation of X, though, Dr. Light realized that there was a possibility X might choose to turn against mankind; fearing this, Dr. Light sealed X away in a diagnostic capsule for 30 years of testing to make sure he wouldn't choose an evil path in his life. This testing is quite possibly what prevents X from becoming an evil robot, or a Maverick. An archeologist named Dr. Cain found X almost 100 years after X's creation and with X's help, Dr. Cain and X created a legion of new robots replicated from X's ability to create his own choices; these robots were called "Reploids." Unfortunately, some of the Reploids became evil, or turned Maverick, and with the help of their leader, Sigma, they became an unstoppable force. This is when X's life as a Maverick Hunter began.
At first Sigma was the top Maverick hunter, and was almost destroyed by Zero (Cinematic in Mega Man X4). Some time in the future Sigma went Maverick and Zero later went to the Maverick hunters after being Maverick himself for some time (Also shown in the cinematic).
Zero is X's partner as a Maverick Hunter. His original weapon was a standard Buster, but he is later equipped with the Z-Saber in Mega Man X2, allowing for close range combat. Throughout the entrie series it is strongly hinted that Zero was created by Dr. Wily; It's said to be one of the worst kept "secrets" in the videogaming world.
Axl is a new character introduced in Mega Man X7. Originally a member of the Red Alert Syndicate, he defects to the Hunters at the beginning of the game. His weapons are dual laser pistols. He also has the ability to transform into certain Reploids of identical size by destroying them with a special laser shot, otherwise he gains a special ability from destroyed reploids.
[edit] Series history
Capcom released a more action packed Mega Man X for the Super NES to give a new image to the Mega Man game series. There are a total of 13 games in the Mega Man X series. Mega Man X, X2 and X3 on the Super NES (with ports of X1 and X3 to the PC, and a port of X3, released only in Japan and Europe, to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn), Mega Man X4-6 on the PlayStation (X4 also being on the Sega Saturn, and X4-5 being ported to the PC), Mega Man X7-8 on the PlayStation 2 (X8 also being on the PC in Japan and Europe, while X7 was (possibly) only released in Korea), the RPG Mega Man X: Command Mission on the GameCube and PlayStation 2, and Mega Man Xtreme 1-Mega Man Xtreme 2 (Rockman X: CyberMission and Rockman X2: Soul Eraser in Japan) on the Game Boy Color. Mega Man X was remade on the PlayStation Portable as Mega Man Maverick Hunter X. Lastly, Mega Man X Collection on the PlayStation 2 and GameCube is comprised of the first 6 Mega Man X games; and Mega Man: Battle & Chase is unlockable.
[edit] Gameplay
The Mega Man series has generally resided within the platformer genre. Mega Man X is no exception to this rule, however several things are very different in Mega Man X. Most notably that X, the new protagonist, can cling to walls and "climb", and secondly, and just as importantly, he can dash and jump at the same time, increasing his speed in the air. These modifications make it possible to go through the majority of the game without using any other gun than the default, which is very different from previous Mega Man games where one had to rely heavily on weapons won in previous fights against boss characters in previously conquered stages. In addition, from the second game onward, Zero is armed with a beam saber rather than the traditional "buster" gun. Mavericks replace the Robot Masters, and Sigma replaces Dr. Wily. The Mavericks are based on various types of organisms, usually animals, instead of being humanoid in appearance, as were most of the bosses in the classic series, although their attacks and names are usually based on mechanical or chemical phenomena or laws of physics like the original games. For example, instead of "Flame Man" there is "Flame Stag," instead of "Spark Man" there is "Spark Mandrill," etc. One exception is "Boomer Kuwanger," whose name seems to be a mix of "boomerang" and "kuwagata" (A Japanese stag beetle). The PSP remake renames the English name to the more clear "Boomerang Kuwanger". Though some Mavericks have new, never-before-seen powers (e.g., "Toxic Seahorse"), most have the traditional element-based weapons of the past games, such as fire, water, ice, lightning, wind, and earth.
[edit] Characters
[edit] Notes
- In Japan, the game series is written as Rockman X pronounced Rokku Man X, while the character X is pronounced Rokkuman Ekkusu—note the use of kana instead of an "X" in the character's name.
- There seems to be running jokes with this series in the form of references to Star Wars. In the first game, Zero played a role similar to that of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Sigma fighting with a light/beam saber. The most prominent resemblance is that Vile wears something very similar to Boba Fett's distinctive "T" helmet. Also, Zero's Z-Saber has a distinct lightsaber sound in the Japanese version, but was changed in the U.S. editions of the games.
- In the U.S. Mega Man X5, it should be noticed that every new Maverick had some relation to the band Guns N' Roses. Also, in Mega Man X3, Neon Tiger's stage uses a non-lyrical version of the Guns N' Roses track "My Michelle" with toned down sound quality. The character named Axl is also most likely a reference to Axl Rose.
- Upon his defeat in Mega Man X2, Sigma mentions that Zero was "the last of the doctor's creations" and says the first syllable of "Wily" during this line. To support this theory, Dr. Wily, in his later years, was said to have worked on a robot to counter both Mega Man and his own renegade creation, Bass, who described its plans as "girly-looking" and "long-haired". Zero also has memories of a human resembling Dr. Wily in Mega Man X4 and X5, and the "W" sign appearing in his forehead.
- Mega Man X5 also contained many allusions to past games in the series. Some of these connections are certain boss fights, stage music and stage designs themselves (the first Sigma Stage is an almost exact replica of Quick Man's stage from Mega Man 2). The boss of the first Sigma Stage is based on the "Devil" monsters from the earlier Mega Man games. The Falcon and Gaea armors could also be seen as homages to the "Jet" and "Power" adaptors, respectively, from Mega Man 6.
- Mega Man X5 and Mega Man X6 use remixes of tracks from X1 and X2.
- The X series hasn't been featured in any crossovers, other than Pocket Fighters and Cardfighters Clash.
- Mega Man X has been subjected to several manga adaptations in the past. None of these have been released in the United States, though they are popular among fans. The most popular Manga adaptation was drawn by Yoshihiro Iwamoto of SD-Gundam and Devilman fame, who authored Mega Man X1 through X4. Iwamoto's manga gives an expanded view of the series. Other manga adaptations have been published by Shigeto Ikehara and the Megamissions Adaptation by Hitoshi Ariga. Iwamoto's adaptation is the most well-received and most circulated.
- X, X2, X4, X8, Xtreme, and Xtreme 2 house cameos from Street Fighter in the form of the Hadouken and the Shouryuuken.
- The unused "Light Capsule" music from the X5 OST was used for the X Collection credits.
- The Ultimate armor is recolored black in X6 for unknown reasons.
- In Mega Man X8 we see a robot that looks a lot like the Reaverbots from Mega Man Legends.
- Final bosses in the games tend to be named after Greek letters, i.e. Sigma or Epsilon, with the exception of Lumine and Redips.
