Rock-Research - From R1 to R&F **WARNING: Long Read**

Joseph Collins · 15818

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Offline Joseph Collins

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on: September 10, 2012, 09:00:12 AM
So... last month, I was inspired by a post at Protodude's Rockman Corner.  I think it was about the on-going debate about whether or not Rockman 2 was actually worthy of all the praise, references, and references it gets. (In my opinion, it's really, really not.)  Anyway, that post inspired me to to play all of the in-house Capcom Rockman games one after another, comparing the games, taking note of what's different, what's the same, improvements, stuff that needs improvement, and so-forth.  It might be a little subjective, since I also give my input on stuff I like, dislike, and what weapons and items I found overpowered and underpowered.
Some of what I found was also pretty interesting, such as how the Rock Buster's charge time kept getting longer and longer with each game (minus Rockman 5), or how they kept screwing with Rush.  Hopefully, you'll find this as interesting to read as it was to compile!

For your convenience, I've chopped up each of the game sections with spoilers.  Because of the extreme length, I've also had to chop this into two posts.  Sorry about that!

Rockman[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
Other Notes
- No previous game.  It's the birth of a legend; Rockman's very first game!

Likes
- The ability to revisit beaten levels is a good feature to help you perfect your game without having to start over.  Not to mention, it's fun (and sometimes profitable) to revisit certain levels with certain boss weapons.
- The score system gives you incentive to challenge your friends or beat your own score records.
- The graphics are all very clean and distinct from one another.  It's extremely hard to find a sprite that blends into a background in this game.
- The music is very catchy and the sound effects seem perfectly suited for where they're played.
- The Magnet Beam, unlike some later gizmos, is actually fairly useful in totally optional ways!

Neutral Points
- Enemies respawn if you leave their spawn area.  This can be annoying, but doesn't seem terribly hindering.
- Some of the weapons do an absurd amount of damage to bosses.  But these bosses can do absurd amounts of damage to you (Elecman, Iceman...), so that's fairly balanced.
- Don't touch instant-kill tiles (spikes, lava) while you're blinking after being hit.  You'll still die.

Dislikes
- Lag seems to be rampant in several parts of the game, be it input lag or graphic overload lag.
- The scoring system is broken.  Provided you don't lose all your lives, you can just perfect one stage and keep running through it, raising your score infinitely.
- Grabbing any energy item, regardless of if it recharges your energy bars, will completely kill your horizontal and vertical movement or, on rarer occasion, make you continue walking forward for a step.  Either can be very irritating, but the latter can be rather fatal.
- Placed items in stages respawn if you walk off-screen.  This includes 1ups.  A notorious example is a fairly easy to reach 1up in Bombman's stage. (Amusingly, I found myself not complaining when I ran out of Magnet Beam energy in Wily Castle 1 and had to grab the infinitely respawning Small Weapon Energy capsules in the room right below where I needed to use the Magnet Beam.)
- I'm not sure why Rockman seems to lag when you jump into the water in Iceman's stage, since the "water" doesn't seem to do anything, but he does.
- Walking off an "active sprite" platform (Magnet Beam, Foot Holders, or the lifts in Gutsman's stage) will cause Rockman to fall at maximum velocity.  This can be rather jarring and sometimes fatal.
- The aforementioned Magnet Beam is a "mandatory optional tool."  Sure, you can skip it... but then you can't leave the right side of the tower in Elecman's stage nor ascend Wily Castle 1, thus can't continue your game.  Period.
- On that same subject, nothing in-game indicates you can even get the Magnet Beam, much less tells you how you can get it.  But I guess trial-and-error with the weapons works.
- The checkpoint in Elecman's stage is a little unforgiving, considering the mostly vertical nature of the level.
- Big Eyes -- the giant, one-eyed things with way too much health and way too much speed.  They're nearly impossible to avoid without the Magnet Beam or Ice Slasher and drain a little over 1/3 of your health on impact.  And... they're almost always situated directly outside boss hallways which, if you don't get to the boss shutter, means you have to replay roughly half the level again.  And in some cases (like the one above), that can be downright annoying.
- The boss hallways are frustrating when you're low on health -- particularly Elecman's vertical hallway with the broken conduits.
- There exists an oversight in the game where if you shoot a weapon that doesn't disappear after hitting an enemy and pause the using the Select button, then unpause after the hit graphic finishes flashing, it will score an extra hit.  This can be done nigh-indefinitely, thus rendering even the strongest bosses extremely easy, to a player who's fact on the pause button.
- Two of the six weapons available can't be used effectively against most bosses, due to how they work.  That doesn't make them useless in and of themselves, but does limit the amount of play time they'll see.
- There's an infinite number of continues... but no way to pick up where you left off if you turn off the game or hit the Reset button.
- Accessing the weapon screen pauses the game while on the menu, but the action resumes immediately once you exit.  This wouldn't be of note, but Rockman does a feign warp when you do this.  You can't control him during this animation.  This can be annoying and fatal, particularly if hanging from a ladder.
- There's no reference you've gotten a boss weapon until you check your menu again.  In the next stage.

Most Overpowered Weapon: Thunder Beam (Elecman's weapon)
1 energy unit (28 uses total) for 2 vertical and 1 horizontal shot that kills every small enemy it touches and keeps going?  Granted, you can't use it if any of the beams are on-screen.

Most Useless Weapon: Super Arm (Gutsman's weapon)
The Super Arm is a gimmicky weapon in that you can only grab specific 2x2 blocks with it.  The large blocks also split into 4 1x1 blocks if the big block hits either an enemy or any solid object.  Sounds pretty great, right?  Well unfortunately, due to how it works, you're only able to use it against bosses, where you need it, in about four boss fights -- only two of which being bosses which are actually weak against thrown blocks. (Amusingly, Copy Rockman becomes completely defenseless if you use either this, or Magnet Beam.  Unfortunately, so you do.  And unfortunately, he can still do collision damage to you.)

Most Useless Utility: Magnet Beam
This "make a platform anywhere" item is extremely handy to have in Gutsman's and Iceman's stage or Wily Castle 4, if you're really bad at the lifts or in a hurry.  It's also literally mandatory for Wily Castle 1.  Otherwise?  It's pretty useless. (Aside from exploiting phasing-glitches, if you're into that sort of thing.)[/spoiler]

Rockman 2[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- *USA Only* A difficulty selection has been added! "Difficult" mode is the same as the Japanese game in terms of damage tables, but "Normal" mode makes your weapons twice as effective and makes you take half damage.
- A "Password" mode has been added, making it possible to pick up right where you left off between gaming sessions!  The Password screen continued to thrive in future titles.
- The score and score tally from the previous game has been completely removed.  In exchange, you now get a "Weapon Get" screen, informing you you've earned a boss weapon.
- Underwater physics have been added!  Rockman now jumps much higher underwater as well as falling a bit slower. (At first, anyway.)
- Placed items in stages no longer respawn if you leave their spawn area.  In fact, they don't come back at all until you continue. (Enemies, on the other hand, will still respawn if they're dead when you scroll their spawn spot off-screen.)
- Rockman no longer randomly forfeits control while picking up energy power-ups.  He does still stop walking on certain levels, however.
- The "pause" feature has been removed -- Select doesn't do anything now.  Start still opens the weapons menu.
- Attempts to reduce graphical lag have been made.  This results in a bit more "sprite flicker" throughout most stages.
- You can no longer revisit beaten stages.
- Rockman still feign warps after changing weapons, but the action doesn't resume until he's finished blinking.
- Deflected shots no longer simply disappear, but fly off screen.  Deflected shots still count toward your "total on-screen shots" which can prevent you from shooting any more.
- You can now land on instant-kill tiles while invincible and continue to live.

Other Notes
- The game gives you a bit of backstory before you hit the title screen.
- The Stage Select screen has been revamped, adding two more Robot Masters as well as a center panel (which is where the cursor starts now.)
- A wider variety of enemies, as well as mini-boss type enemies, have been added.
- Rockman now has access to more utility "weapons" as well as E-Tanks, which refill your health completely.
- Energy power-ups have been redesigned, for some reason.  They still give 2 and 10 units for small and big power-up respectively, though.
- Wily also has a brand new UFO, a new castle, new bosses, and an actual castle map!
- Boss hallways are now one screen and never have enemies.  Also, most major threats to Rockman are not found just outside of boss hallways.
- Speaking of bosses, the Robot Masters are now fought via teleportation hub in one of the final levels of the game, rather than spread throughout the final levels.
- The Yashiichi, one of Capcom's random logos, is no longer in the game. (In Rockman 1, it completely refilled your Life and Weapons Energy.)

Likes
- The music has gotten a bit more intense as of this game and makes much more frequent use of the Noise channel and Triangle channel (when not already occupied) for drum effects.
- Item-2.  I know it's just a "jet sled" and all, but dang it, I love it.  It gets me where I want to go fast!
- There are considerably less "useless" weapons this time around.  Every weapon can be used.  Usefulness, however, still varies.

Neutral Points
- I can't say that I'm fond of the fact there's no real "circle of weaknesses" in this game.  But that could be a good thing, too.  Many bosses are weak to many things, so that lets players explore possibilities.
- Your E-Tanks are removed if you hit the Continue screen.  I think I know why they did it this way, but it can be very irritating to lose up to 4 E-Tanks because of one little mistake.
- Some of the weaknesses from this game onward are a little outside the realm of logic.  For example, how does a "leaf shield" hurt Airman as badly as it does?  Or why is Quickman so weak to Atomic Fire?  And of course, Metalman being extremely vulnerable to Metal Blade, while extremely amusing, technically makes no sense.  Unless, of course, you read the extended lore of the series.  Which was completely unavailable when this game originally came out.

Dislikes
- Once again, access to Wily Castle is only permitted via expert use of utility weapons -- in this case, Item-1. (Item-3 can also be used to scale the first part, but Item-1 is necessary for one part in particular.)
- This game has not one, but two bosses which require specific weapons to kill them, being completely invincible to the Rock Buster and everything else.  One boss has enemies you can grind for energy, but the other boss does not.  If you don't have enough weapon energy, you're forced to suicide and continue... which can be very annoying if you have a stockpile of lives for some reason. (Or value your E-Tanks.)

Most Overpowered Weapon: Metal Blade (Metalman's weapon)
112 uses, 8 directions, 3 shots on-screen at a time, most enemies take damage from it, and it's particularly useful against at least three bosses.  Need I say more?

Most Useless Weapon: Bubble Lead (Bubbleman's weapon)
I sincerely hate to admit this, but Bubble Lead really is a craptastic weapon.  Do you know how many enemies are actually vulnerable to Bubble Lead?  Six!  Do you know how many different enemies there are in the game?  Not counting invincible ones, 25!  Three bosses are also weak to it, but it bounces right off everything else.  It's less and weapon and more a utility, really, since it's great for checking for pass-through floors.  In one and only one level.

Runner-Up Most Useless Weapon: Atomic Fire (Heatman's weapon)
It's not so much that this weapon is useless... as much as you get two huge shots before it petters out.  There's also a noticeable delay before you can fire even "uncharged" shots.  Basically, you may use this once or twice, or against bosses, then go back to the Rock Buster.[/spoiler]

Rockman 3[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- The entire game seems a lot faster, thanks in-part to the new way slowdown is handled.
- Rockman moves a bit faster now.  He climbs ladders as fast as his running speed.  Which has also been increased slightly.
- Oddly enough, screen scrolls (going up/down ladders, entering boss doors, etc.) are slightly slower now.
- On that same note, Rockman now takes nine frames (0.15 seconds) to turn the other way while running.
- The blue bomber no longer comes to a complete stop when picking up an energy power-up of any kind.
- Inversely, Rockman does come to a complete stop when you release the left/right button while on the ground. (He slid slightly in the first two games.)
- The controls are now much tighter and more responsive.
- Rockman can perform a "home run" slide now.  This reduces his height to half and gives him a light speed boost for a short while.
- Rockman starts the game with a utility weapon.  In this case, it's Rush Coil, which boosts him to great heights.
- The weapons menu has been redesigned to rise from the bottom of the screen.
- The action once again resumes before Rockman phases back into tangibility after poking around the weapons menu.

Other Notes
- Gone is the introduction from the last game.  However, this game is the first to have non-gameplay actual cutscenes!
- Both Rockman and boss characters explode in a slight different way now, using large, white, "poofy" explosion particles.
- In addition to a "Get Weapon" screen, you now see Rockman absorb weapons from defeated bosses and watch the weapon appear on your menu.
- The maximum number of E-Tanks you can carry is 9. (Up from 4.)  You also don't lose them when continuing now.
- The sound effects for 1ups and E-Tanks has been slowed slightly.
- Mini-bosses are now much more obvious, always having their own room.
- Yoku (Vanishing) Blocks now appear rhythmically instead of randomly -- they'll always appear in the same pattern no matter what.
- The game introduces the concept of extra stages between the eight bosses and before Wily Castle.
- Wily's UFO once again gets a redesign, though this one is a bit more subtle.
- The Robot Master re-fight teleporter hub stage has no boss.  You just move on to the next stage after you defeat the last one!

Likes
- This.  Entire.  Game.  It may not be the first one I've played, but it's damn sure my favorite game.
- Once again, music quality has improved dramatically.
- It's nice that, while they added a new moves (sliding and high-jump via Rush), they didn't beat you over the head with them.  In a lot of cases, sliding or high-jumping is optional.
- Also, Doc Robots.  Dokurobotos.  Skullbots.  Whatever you want to call them, they're just plain awesome.

Neutral Points
- After fighting the first boss in Geminiman's revisited stage, there's a place where, if you somehow manage to get there with no Rush Coil or Rush Jet energy, you are forced to reset the game.  However, I simply can't envision a scenario where that would possibly be, unless you were trying to get there with no Rush energy.  Still, if you did that by accident, you'd have to... um... enter a password to get back there.  ... yeaaah, minor inconvenience at worst.
- Not game-breaking, but given that this game came out about a year after the second one, you'd think they could have made the Doc Robot battles a little more... authentic... to the Rockman 2 Robot Masters.  Some were slowed down, some were strengthened, others weakened...  And poor Doc Robot Crashman's Crash Bombs were just sad, hollow shells of their former selves.  :(

Dislikes
- ... I've got nothing.  Absolutely, positively nothing.  I genuinely cannot find one thing wrong with this game that would happen to the average person.  And believe me, I am trying.
- Okay, ACE Spark reminded me of something I failed to mention.  Somehow.  The new weapons menu?  It's absolute crap.  If you have gaps in your weapon inventory, you will more than likely miss the weapon you're going for, or even worse, end up using an E-Tank by mistake.  This also caused the infamous "Phantom Rush Marine/Jet" glitch which let you get Rush Marine/Jet before you were supposed to.  Which is pretty hilarious.

Most Overpowered Weapon: Top Spin (Topman's weapon) or Shadow Blade (Shadowman's weapon)
Yep.  Two overpowered weapons.  I couldn't decide which was more deserving of the title.
- As far as the first goes, I know what you're thinking.  "You're full of crap!" and/or "You're biased."  Well... I admit I'm a bit biased on this, but I'm most certainly not full of crap.  Think about this for a minute.  Top Spin destroys anything it can -- which is pretty much any small enemy in the game (and one or two larger ones) -- in one hit for one weapon energy unit.  Now stop to consider that most enemies will drop a small Weapon Energy power-up when destroyed.  Tell me that's not overpowered.  Ah, but it does have a little kick-back... not to mention you have to run into enemies with it in use...
- As for Shadow Blade?  What Top Spin can't destroy, Shadow Blade seems to excel at destroying.  Hammer Joes, Giant Snakeys and Petit Snakeys...  And it makes this awesome buzz saw sound while it does it, too!  Unfortunately, it has only 1/4 the range of Metal Blade from the last game as well as the inability to shoot in any downward direction.  You also only get 48 of them instead of 112, which is what's stopping me from dubbing this the single-most overpowered weapon in the game.

Most Useless Weapon: Spark Shock (Sparkman's weapon)
While it's very useful to be able to lock an enemy in place no matter where they are or what they're doing, Spark Shock nullifies this usefulness with the fact that you can't switch weapons while an enemy is shocked.  You either have to wait for the shock to wear off, scroll the enemy off-screen, or avoid it entirely.  Speaking from personal experience, the only real use this weapon gets is as a boss weakness.

Most Useless Utility: Rush Marine
I'm not sure this was intentional, but anywhere you can use Rush Marine, you can use Rush Jet.  The biggest difference between the two is where the bullets come from, really. (Rush Marine fires from the mouth while Rockman fires while riding Rush Jet.)[/spoiler]

Rockman 4[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- As stated in the intro, Rockman is now equipped with the New Rock Buster, an upgraded default weapon which allows his charge energy into his shots.  These charged shots do three times the damage of a normal shot. (Fun fact: Rockman takes takes 97 frames (1.62~ seconds) to charge his weapon.)
- The weapons menu has been vastly redesigned again, now being on its own separate screen.  It's also a lot easier to navigate!
- You can now open the weapons menu while a weapon is still on-screen. (With the exception of Flash Stopper.  Doing so with other weapons will delete any projectiles you've fired.)
- The turn-around-while-moving delay is back to its normal 3-frames (0.05 seconds) from the second game.  However, this delay still causes a lot of misdirected charged shots in more dexterous gamers.
- Rockman no longer feign-warps after selecting a weapon, but he'll still let go of ladders when you get back to the gameplay.
- Screen scroll transitions are much slower now, as is the speed which boss energy meters fill before boss fights and the invincibility time on bosses after they've been injured.
- Returning from the first game is the ability to play through the levels of bosses you've defeated!  The bosses themselves will not reappear, however.
- Rush Coil now uses 2 Weapon Energy units instead of 3.
- Rush Jet has been crippled somewhat.  Instead of being a "fly anywhere" item, it now works similar to a slow-moving version of Item-2 from Rockman 2, except you can move up or down slightly while moving forward.

Other Notes
- The introduction scenes return!  This persists through all future titles.
- This is the first game with a villain other than Dr. Wily taking the lead. (Sort of.)  This concept is used again in all but two of the remaining titles in the series.
- In dire need of a power-up part-way through a stage?  Fear not!  Eddie, Dr. Light's robotic suitcase with legs, will meet you once per-stage and toss you a Weapon Energy Capsule!  I mean Weapon Energy Capsule.  No, I mean Weapon Energy -- dang it, Eddie!
- You no longer see your newly acquired weapon appear on your weapons menu after beating a boss.
- Unlike the last two games, there is a definite weapon weakness pattern to Robot Masters again. (But as with the last two games, they're not always obvious.)
- If you're clever, you can find optional weapons hidden away in certain levels!
- This game takes the "extra stages" idea from the last game and turns it into a "first castle;" a linear series of stages between the Robot Masters and the final stages.
- Yoku Blocks now take a bit longer to disappear, giving players more time to react.
- Yoku Blocks have also been demoted to being a final levels-only stage gimmick.
- Dr. Wily went back to his Rockman 2 Wily UFO design.
- First appearance of the Wily Capsule!

Likes
- I like the fact that, even though you now have a triple-damaging shot, the game doesn't have but one enemy that requires you to use a charged shot to kill it.

Neutral Points
- I miss the old Rush Jet...

Dislikes
- I don't like the fact the charging noise overrides the music.  That's why I generally don't use charged shots during the level, in fact. (That, and normal shots are just as effective against small fry enemies.)
- The mini-bosses in Ringman's stage.  Why are there four of them?  And why are two of them back-to-back?  They're not terribly hard, but they are annoying.
- If you're like me and love to play with the underwater physics, you'll probably run smack into that instant death spike that's just before a screen transition in Diveman's stage.  Just like I have.  Repeatedly.
- Toadman's combat AI.  If you shoot at him, he leaps.  If you don't, he starts dancing.  If you shoot him while he's dancing, he stops dancing.  You can wait until he starts dancing again and shoot him again over and over and over again until he's dead.  Seriously!
- Overall, it doesn't seem like they did much at all to improve the game engine.  Kind of like going from Rockman 1 to 2.
- Capcom also seemed to both learn from their mistaken with Rockman 2 and repeat them here...  The Wily Capsule is completely immune to the Rock Buster.  Thankfully, the one weapon that does any real damage to him is Pharaoh Shot, but if you used it all up beforehand, you're going to have to die and kill Iworms for Weapon Energy...

Most Overpowered Weapons: Pharoah Shot (Pharaohman's weapon) or Ring Boomerang (Ringman's weapon) and Dust Crusher (Dustman's weapon)
Yes, that's right.  There's three weapons in this game that totally clean house when it comes to usefulness.
- According to the energy meter, Pharaoh Shot has 14 uses, but really, it's more like nigh-infinite.  It's a bit like Atomic Fire done right, but simultaneously gone horribly wrong.  What it does is when you charge it, it creates a giant ball of fire over your head which will defeat pretty much any unarmored enemy in one hit.  If an enemy touches the ball after it's fully charged, the ball will remain over your head.  In addition, if an enemy does make that ball disappear, you can still throw a fully charged shot for 2 energy units in one of six directions (not straight up or straight down)!
- On the other hand, Ring Boomerang and Dust Crusher do a lot of little damage over a short period of time.  Ring Boomerang pierces enemy armor and does fairly rapid damage and has 28 uses, plus a number of bosses are weak against it.  Dust Crusher explodes into fragments which can kill most enemies in two hits, if not substantially weaken them.  It also has 28 uses.
None of these weapons can be thrown rapidly, but you really shouldn't need to, given the damage output of any of them.

Most Useless Weapon: Drill Bomb (Drillman's weapon)
Despite the fact it explodes on-contact (or on remote detonation), the explosive does little more damage than a Rock Buster shot on most enemies.  Sure, it can crack open those breakable walls in the castle stages, but its damage output is just pitiful.  Plus, it can't go through regular walls.  Ultimately, it's only good for getting rid of bosses, walls, and Jumbigs.

Most Useless Utilities: Rush Marine or Balloon Adapter and Wire Adapter
There were a lot of useless items in this game...
- As mentioned in Rockman 3, anywhere Rush Marine can go, Rush Jet can go... except that it's extremely counter-productive to do so, since you now need to summon it from dry land and it moves along at its own pace.  On top of that, it's really not worth it to bother with Rush Marine in the two levels where it would be useful.  Since it's so much wider than Rockman, there's a greater chance of running into the cleverly-placed spikes in both underwater levels.
- It's no coincidence the optional utility weapons suck.  Balloon works exactly like Item-1 from Rockman 2 did, but is easily overshadowed by either Rush Coil or Rush Jet.  Wire works like a grappling hook that only shoots straight up, but can only be fired from the ground while holding Up.  Again, easily replaced by Rush Coil.[/spoiler]



Offline Joseph Collins

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Reply #1 on: September 10, 2012, 09:01:39 AM
Rockman 5[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- Charging the Rock Buster now takes 82 frames of animation (1.37 seconds) instead of 97 frames (1.62 seconds).
- The Rock Buster will now charge any time the B button is held. (You had to actually fire an uncharged shot to start a charge in the last game.)
- If the Rock Buster has any amount of charge, visible or not, releasing the B button will fire off a shot.
- Getting hit while charging the Rock Buster will knock the charge out of Rockman.
- A charged Rock Buster shot is now very wide instead of being long.
- Enemies with many hit points now have a noticeable invincibility time between hits.
- The screen scroll transition is back to its normal speed, as is the boss energy meter filling.
- Rush Coil has been upgraded to the New Rush Coil, changing from a spring-powered super jump to a single-hop rising platform.  The end result is roughly the same.
- New Rush Coil uses 4 Weapon Energy units instead of 2.
- Eddie is in far less stages this time around.
- Weapon energy no longer refills if you beat an already beaten level again. (You also don't get a password for your trouble.)

Other Notes
- The firing sound for a charged Rock Buster shot is different.  A half-charged shot uses the old sound.
- Stages now have hidden paths and secrets.
- A new energy tank has been added.  The M-Tank refills all your Weapon and Life Energy when used. (If used with all meters full, it turns every enemy on-screen into a 1up.)
- There are now circuit plates to collect, one in each stage.  Getting them all gives you a special weapon.
- Boss hatches are now one 8x8 block shorter.
- Returning to an already beaten level will no longer play the boss introduction scene.
- If there's two (sets of) Yoku Blocks on the screen, the first (set) will vanish as the third (set) appears.

Likes
- I like the idea of there being a reason to back into previously beaten stages.

Neutral Points
- This game seems to be considerably easier than any of the previous titles.

Dislikes
- The random number generator in this game seems to favor 1ups, enemies handing them out like crazy.  You'd be hard-pressed to see the Continue screen.

Most Overpowered Weapon: Charge Kick (Chargeman's weapon)
With the exception of two enemies (and spikes), Charge Kick will let you slide through just about anything completely unscathed, provided you have enough room to do so.  In addition, it can defeat some armored enemies in one hit!  It is, in essence, the perfect shield.  Too bad you can only use it in the ground.  While sliding.

Most Useless Weapons: Water Wave (Waveman's weapon) or Crystal Eye (Crystalman's weapon) or Napalm Bomb (Napalmman's weapon)
Yes, another tie.  There are a lot of useless weapons in this game.
- Water Wave can only be used if you're standing on the floor and have enough room to do so.  It sweeps enemy projectiles, but the damage output is so miniscule, you'll probably use all 14 shots before you know it.
- Crystal Eye splits into three shards, but does very little damage, but does the same amount whether it's the giant crystal that's hitting an enemy or the crystal shards.  Luckily, it has 28 uses, so you can afford to waste some.
- Napalm Bomb, despite the awesome sounding name, actually does very little damage.  This also has 28 uses and can be fired two at a time.
You might notice Power Stone isn't on here.  I've actually found it to be almost as useful at clearing the screen of enemies as Gravity Hold.  I just wish you could reverse the direction of the spiral, like in Rockman IV on the Game Boy.

Most Useless Utility: Rush Jet
Now, technically speaking, Rush Jet isn't useless.  It makes a really good no-cost platform if you need a quick boost, and you can also fly it over danger.  However, both these functions are easily interchangeable with Super Arrow.  The projectile costs 2 energy to fire and sticks to walls, but it also rockets forward as a platform similar to Item-2.  Much like Item-2, using it this way uses all its energy in flight, you more than likely won't need but a single flight to clear over a long, horizontal area anyway.  And on top of all that, Super Arrow does damage to enemies while Rush Jet does not.[/spoiler]

Rockman 6[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- The controls seem a little less responsive this time around...
- Rush is missing!  At least, at first.  Rather than start the game with Rush, you now earn two Rush power suits: Power Rush and Jet Rush.
- Charging the Rock Buster now takes 94 frames of animation (1.57 seconds) instead of 82 frames (1.37 seconds).
- Screen scroll transitions are back to their slow, Rockman 4 speed.  Boss energy meter speed remains the same as 5.
- Instead of there being eight letter plates, you now collect four plates from four of the bosses... but only if you beat the "real" ones. (See below.)  The bonus weapon is the same as the one in Rockman 5.
- Beating the "false bosses" still earns you their weapon, but denies you the letter plate they hold.  The boss will be in that stage again if you revisit it regardless of which path you took.

Other Notes
- The Capcom logo has a jingle now!
- Boss introductions play even if revisiting a beaten stage.
- M-Tanks are no longer a part of the game.
- Rockman runs faster than he ever has, but only graphically.  His run speed remains the same.
- Once again, the Rock Buster sounds have changed.  Both the half-charge and the full-charge shots make the same noise as an uncharged shot.
- If Rockman falls down a pit, the music doesn't stop and you continue on your next life rather quickly.
- Boss shutters are back to their normal 4 x 1 (four 8 x 8 blocks) size.
- Robot Masters now have dramatic lightning as they enter their rooms.
- Your newly-earned weapon is demonstrated on the "Get Weapon" screen.
- Levels now have alternate paths, usually only reachable via Rush Suits.
- On that same note, four of the bosses are "false."  Only by taking an alternate path will you find the real ones.
- The background changes if you revisit any of the four stages which have fake bosses.
- If you can find it, there's a new item in the game -- the Energy Balancer -- which puts any Weapon Energy pick-up you grab into whatever weapon needs it the most. (Only if you're using Normal, Power, or Jet Rockman, however.)
- The Robot Master re-fight teleporter hub stage has no boss, much like Rockman 3.

Likes
- The Rush Suits are a nice touch.  The Power Suit in particular is a favorite of mine.

Neutral Points
- I kind of miss traditional Rush.  There's more than a few areas Rush Coil or Rush Jet would've been helpful to navigate.

Dislikes
- This game is to Rockman 4 what 4 is to 2...  It tried to recapture the feeling of a previous successful game and kind of missed the mark.
- As useful as the suits are, they also make the game extremely easy, particularly the Power Suit.

Most Overpowered Weapon: Silver Tomahawk (Tomahawkman's weapon)
Silver Tomahawk (despite being bronze) has quite a lot of range for a weapon of its type!  In addition, it can one-shot a lot of enemies and makes it pretty easy to kill the rest.  It's also a weakness for quite a number of bosses...

Most Useless Weapon: Plant Barrier (Plantman's weapon) or Blizzard Attack (Blizzardman's weapon)
This is becoming something of a trend in the later games...
- Plant Barrier is a lot like Star Crash was in the previous game (one projectile or enemy and it's gone), except it costs double the Weapon Energy (you get 7 uses) and you can't throw it.  There's not a whole lot of things coming at you from overhead in this game, so it doesn't see a lot of use.
- Blizzard Attack seems like it could be a good weapon, what with its angled projectiles and all, but it turns out to be a huge disappointment when you realize the angles are awkward and the damage output is pathetic, considering you get all of 7 uses out of it.

Most Useless Utility: None
The game honestly doesn't have a useless utility.
- The Jet Suit is great for avoiding stuff and flying over short pits you can't normally jump over, not to mention it's great for saving you from falling to certain doom.
- The Power Suit is just a behemoth of a weapon, albeit with limited range.
- The Energy Balancer is extremely helpful if you don't switch weapons often, but its ability to put energy where you need it most is nullified if you have any weapon equipped.[/spoiler]

Rockman 7[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- Despite moving to a new console with superior hardware, most of the core gameplay mechanics of the NES titles made the jump pretty well!
- Charging the Rock Buster now takes 113 frames of animation (1.88 seconds) instead of 94 frames (1.57 seconds).
- While charging the Rock Buster, Rockman now sparkles with energy in addition to glowing.
- Rockman no longer loses his charge if hit by enemies.
- A charged Rock Buster shot has to clear the screen before you can begin to charge another one.
- The invincibility time after Rockman gets hit has been roughly halved.
- The Rush Coil from Rockman 4 returns, complete with its original 2 Weapon Energy unit cost!  Rush also gains the Rockman 4 Rush Jet ability and a new ability -- digging for items (Rush Search).
- The Rush items now have to be found in the game stages instead of gained by defeating bosses.
- Eddie no longer appears in stages.
- An item shop, "Big Eddie's," can be accessed from the stage select screen by pressing Select.  Here, you can by an assortment of useful items such as E-Tanks and upgrades.
- The item shop requires Bolts (or Screws) to purchase items.  These are dropped by regular enemies as well as being found randomly laying around stages.
- Some levels have areas which can scroll both vertically and horizontally!
- The letter plates return, one in each of the four first stages.  Collecting them unlocks the Rush Adapter Suit, which is a combination of the Jet Suit from the previous game and a rocket punch attack.
- Robot Masters now display a painful reaction to weapons they're weak against, which also resets their attack pattern.
- Weapons can now quickly be switched using the L and R buttons. (Except utilities such as Rush.)  You cannot cancel existing projectiles in this way, however.
- Once you get the Exit Module, you can leave levels you've already beaten -- a first in the series!
- Every time you complete a section of Wily Castle, you return to the stage select screen. (In other games, it's a back-to-back stage gauntlet.)  This also refills all of your weaponry.

Other Notes
- This game is a fair bit more story-driven than the previous titles, having many more in-game cutscenes and the like.
- This game marks the first time a Mega Man game has an introductory stage as well as an extra stage in the middle of the game.
- E-Tanks are joined by W-Tanks, which refill your Weapon Energy, and S-Tanks, which work like the M-Tanks from Rockman 5, minus the "enemies to 1ups" effect.
- The weapon select menu is now two menus: One for weapons, one for recovery items and other things.
- You can only carry 4 E-Tanks and W-Tanks at a time.  S-Tanks are limited to 1 only.
- Life and Weapon Energy Capsules have received a make-over.  There also exists a Giant Life Energy Capsule hidden in one stage which completely refills Rockman's Life Energy. (A Giant Weapon Energy Capsule exists, but was never implemented into the game.)
- In addition to the Energy Balancer from the last game, you can also find the aforementioned Exit Module, Beat Rescue Service (which saves you from falling into pits), and the Hyper Rocket Buster -- a range increase and homing upgrade for the charged shot of the Rush Super Adapter.
- Passwords are now numerical instead of a dot-and-grid format.
- Only four bosses are available at the start of the game, rather than the full eight.  The other four come in later.
- **Japan Only** Boss introductions now have a little quote beside them, such as "Don't slip!" for Freezeman or "Jurassic Jungle" for Slashman.
- Yoku Blocks return to being in non-final stages!
- Rather than showcasing a newly-collected weapon, Rockman now talks about it with Dr. Light.
- **Japan Only** Rockman may also talk about a collected weapon with Roll or Auto.
- Revisiting a beaten stage will no longer show the boss intro.

Likes
- Almost everything I loved about the NES games got sized-up and amplified in this 16-bit sequel!
- I love the variety of items in this game.
- That ending.  Oh my god, is that awesome.

Neutral Points
- I had nothing neutral to say about this game.

Dislikes
- I don't like how mean Rockman looks throughout the entire game.  His child-like qualities seemed to disappear, leaving behind this angry kid in battle armor who just wants to destroy everything.
- I think one Rush item should have been hidden in one of the last four Robot Master levels.  Giving you both Rush items in the first four levels is a little too generous...
- I really don't like how, once you get the Super Adapter and the Hyper Rocket Buster, there's really no reason to use any other weapon in the game, aside from boss weaknesses and the sort. (Did I mention all four circuit plates are in the first four levels?)
- If you know where all the secret items are, there's really no purpose ever going to Big Eddie's Item Shop aside from buying lives and Tanks.  Which the game is somewhat generous with.
- The boss weaknesses...  If you're clever or quick about it, you can complete stun-lock the Robot Masters, essentially neutering them.
- **English Only** You know the part where Rockman yells "Die Wily!!!" in the ending?  Yeah... that was purely an English thing.  In the Japanese version, he just says "....." and actually hesitates.

Most Overpowered Weapon: Thunder Strike (Cloudman's weapon)
With 28 uses and the ability to split vertically on contact with an enemy (or a wall), the Thunder Strike is a ridiculously useful and powerful weapon, able to destroy a great many enemies with minimal effort.

Most Useless Weapon: Wild Coil (Springman's weapon)
As much as I want to defend this weapon, I genuinely cannot.  Though it costs 1 Weapon Energy and fires two springs (one either way), it does roughly the same amount of damage as an uncharged Rock Buster shot.  The charged version is a little better, but not enough to justify the doubled Weapon Energy cost.

Most Useless Utilities: Rush Coil and Rush Jet
Sorry, Rush, but you've gone and made yourself obsolete!  Once a player gets the Super Adapter, there's really not much use for either a super jump or an air taxi. (There aren't all that many long, horizontal areas anyway.)[/spoiler]

Rockman 8[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- Once again, the series makes a jump to a new system.  And onc again, the physics remain intact, for the most-part.
- Rush is once again absent from your inventory at the start of the game.  However, the Mega Ball you get not only replaces, but surpasses Rush Coil's abilities.
- You never actually get traditional Rush utilities in this game.  The closest thing is the Rush Cycle, which is a motorcycle vehicle for rapid transit.  It also has a missile launcher.
- Charging the Rock Buster now takes 120 frames of animation (2.00 seconds) instead of 113 frames (1.88 seconds).
- Half-charged Rock Buster shots now do extra damage!  This is specifically useful in levels, but can be useful when fighting certain bosses (Tenguman) as well.
- Rockman's invincibility time after taking a hit is back to its Rockman 6-like speed.  Enjoy being able to walk over spikes again!
- Not only can you switch weapons with the shoulder buttons (by default), but there's a specific button for firing the Rock Buster as well.  This means you can have both the Rock Buster and a weapon equipped at the same time!
- Levels now contain "Party Balls" which function exactly like Eddie did in previous titles, though can also give you small Energy Capsules instead of large ones.
- At the end of almost every level is a Giant Party Ball which drops an item that recovers all of Rockman's Weapon Energy, making things considerably easier for the Blue Bomber.
- Rockman finally learned how to swim!  Badly!
- Big Eddie's has been replaced by "Dr. Light's Lab," located in New Mexico, USA.  Here, Roll makes you parts from the Bolts you find in stages.  These parts can upgrade your offensive and defensive capabilities, as well as other attributes!
- Rather than collecting a never-ending supply of Bolts and Screws like the last game, this game has a limited supply of 40 large Bolts.  And there are no returns or refunds should you end up buying something you don't actually want.
- Making a return from Rockman 5 are vehicle-based sections in stages!  You can ride a rocket-powered snowboard or fly Rush Jet through sections of certain stages.
- Like previous titles, stages have a checkpoint halfway through.  Unlike previous titles, the checkpoints let you continue from there even if you lose all your lives.
- Half-stages also have their own checkpoints, and plenty of them.  Losing all your lives will send you have to the beginning of the half-stage, however.

Other Notes
- As with the last game, this game is very story-driven.
- In addition to in-game cutscenes, there are now fully-animated cutscenes between game sections!
- This game also features voice acting for most of the major characters (as well as one particular enemy).
- Like the last game, this game has an introductory stage and mid-game extra stage.  Unlike the last game, however, you can revisit these stages at your leisure!
- E-Tanks, W-Tanks, and M/S-Tanks have been completely removed from this game.  Instead, you get Rush Question, a Rush Search-like item, and Rush Charger, where Rush Jet flies high above the stage and drops an assortment of recovery items.
- The Rush items can only be used once per-life.
- Life and Weapon Energy Capsules have received another make-over.
- Unlike the items in Rockman 7, nothing sold at Dr. Light's Lab can be found in any of the stages.
- The music once again stops if Rockman falls in a hole and there is a brief delay before your next life.
- Rush Jet sections play a lot like side-scrolling shoot 'em ups, such as Konami's Gradius or Data East's R-Type.
- The Yashiichi from Rockman 1 returns as one of many items Rush Question can give you.  Just like in 1, it completely refills your Life and Weapons Energy.

Likes
- The enormous variety of special weapons and power-up items is crazy-awesome!

Neutral Points
- I miss traditional Rush again.

Dislikes
- The lack of a password option for continuing is rather frustrating for players who don't own a Memory Card. (An unlikely occurrence, but possible -- especially for Playstation 2 owners.)
- The Giant Party Ball kind of ruins bosses... not to mention Wily Castle.
- The snowboard sections can be extremely trying for players with slow reflexes.
- The way the item shop works in this game guarantees you will never be able to own everything possible.  Even if you buy only the 4 and 5-bolt items, you can only carry eight of them.  Granted, owning every item possible would make an already overpowered Rockman all the more ridiculously powerful, but still.

Most Overpowered Weapon: Arrow Shot + Super Charge Speed
The Arrow Shot is an upgrade for the Rock Buster which turns your standard charged shot into a projectile that splits into five fully-powered Rock Buster shots, shot in a half-circle formation, on impact.  Combine this with the High Speed Charge, which decreases your charge time by 75%, and you have one of the most ludicrously overpowered weapons in any Rockman game.
For added fun, buy the Boost Part, which increases Rock Buster shot speed.  Yes, it works for half-charged and fully-charged shots!

Most Useless Weapon: Mega Ball
Now, I know what some of you are thinking.  "How could something that lets you jump forever be considered useless?"  Well, that's the thing.  As a utility, it's pretty much a Godsend.  But as a weapon?  It's practically useless.  Sure, it does quite a bit of damage and plows through most enemies, but getting aimed to do so is nearly impossible.  If you're in an area with no walls or a ceiling?  Welp, say goodbye to your ball.

Most Useless Utility: Rush Cycle
It's not so much that Rush Cycle is useless in theory, but with how the game is laid out, being that there are very little straightaways... and the fact that you can only use it once per-life, even if you hop off early... severely limits the usefulness of this utility vehicle.[/spoiler]

Rockman & Forte (aka "Rockman 8.5")[spoiler]Gameplay Changes from the Last Game
- The biggest gameplay change?  For the first time ever, you can play as another character -- in this case, Forte.  He controls somewhat differently than Rockman in that he has a seven-directional, rapid-fire buster, can dash, and can double-jump.
- Rockman's (and Forte's) invincibility time remains in-line with Rockman 8, rather than Rockman 7.
- Rush is, as is becoming the trend, missing in action yet again.  In fact, his only appearance in this game is Rush Search. (Not counting Rockman's ending.)
- Dr. Light's Lab has been replaced by Auto's Shop.  The currency is one again an infinite supply of Screws picked up from enemies rather than a limited number of Bolts found in levels.
- There are Robot Database CDs scattered through every level in the game (except King's Tower and the transitional stage before it).  Collecting them does nothing in-game, but the data they contain is quite interesting!
- Rockman can no longer swim.

Other Notes
- Rather than follow the graphical style of Rockman 7, Capcom chose to use Rockman 8 as their template.  That said, there's quite a lot of reused art from Rockman 8 used or adapted for this game.
- Despite using Rockman 8 graphics, some sound effects come from Rockman 7.
- Life and Weapon Energy Capsules have received yet another make-over!  Not really sure why, since Rockman 8's graphics would have worked just fine, but whatever!
- This is the second game in the series to have a gameplay demo if you wait at the title screen long enough.
- Charging the Rock Buster still takes 120 frames of animation (2.00 seconds).
- Rockman (and Forte) now breathes heavily and winces when his Life Energy is low.
- Like Rockman 6, after beating a boss, new weapons are now demonstrated.  However, they're now demonstrated on enemies! (Mets and Tellys.)
- Yoku Blocks are now a little more methodical and "clever" in their patterns and timing -- especially in their final appearance in the game.
- For the first time since the original game, Robot Master re-fights are done throughout the final level, rather than through a teleporter hub.
- Also for the first time since the original game, defeated revisited Robot Masters don't drop Life Energy...

Likes
- The music in this game is absolutely phenomenal!
- The ability to play as a different character was something thought up as far back as Rockman 2, but aside from the arcade games (which are too different to warrant discussing here), this is actually the first time it's been put into execution.  And it worked fantastically!  The game even re-tailors itself to suit Forte so he doesn't have an absolute advantage over Rockman.

Neutral Points
- It seems to me like the game developers were trying to make this, what was supposed to be the final game in the series (and an alternate timeline game beside!), have the charm and difficulty of the earliest titles without forfeiting some of the modern conventions people had grown to love.  I personally think they succeeded.  This game is pretty hard, even after buying all the shop items!

Dislikes
- Forte is the game's "easy mode."  His Forte Buster, especially when equipped with the Super Buster or Counter Attack parts, will tear anything and everything apart in record time.  Not to mention, he's far more agile than Rockman.  Granted, four boss battles were made harder for Forte to compensate, and early Robot Master battles can be really challenging, but ultimately?  Easy mode.
- I'm really disappointed the only utility weapons Rockman has access to are non-vehicular items.  Forte has Treble Boost, which can fly just about anywhere, but Rockman has nothing this time around.
- The rest of main stages aren't terribly difficult, but the grueling length of King's Tower 2 and 3 are enough to drive one mad, especially since you have to start over from the very beginning of the stage if you lose all your lives!  These levels could have easily been split into a few more levels. (I figure King Tower 2 could have been three levels and King Tower 3 at least two.)
- The Robot Master copies in the final stage needed to drop Life Energy Capsules.  There are simply not enough of them throughout the stage to go around, especially if you're reckless!

Important Note: The following notes are focusing solely on Rockman.
Most Overpowered Weapon: Ice Wall (Coldman's weapon)
It may seem odd that I'd say a cumbersome, awkward, and somewhat fragile weapon like Ice Wall would be the most overpowered in the game, but it really is.  As a weapon, you push it into things.  But you can also just fire it off on top of enemies.  See, Ice Wall does damage as it's de-spawning, but it also does damage while it's spawning!  Using Ice Wall in this way will kill everything in one use, aside from the Sydecka (rhino-like robot) in Burnerman's stage.

Most Useless Weapon: Split Drill (Groundman's weapon)
While Split Drill seems like a good idea in theory, in execution, it's a terrible weapon.  The first stage drill tends to drop off before you can actually use it on anything while the second and third stage drills disappear before doing any real damage to enemies.  And what damage it does do is equivalents to the normal buster, practically...

Most Useless Utility: Item Presenter or Rush Search
These are yet another pair of things that seemed like a good idea in theory, but ultimately fall flat in execution.
- The Item Presenter can be bought in Auto's shop for 60 Screws and it will put Party Balls in pre-determined spots the next time you enter a stage.  However, this only lasts for one level.  On top of that, the items it drops generally aren't very good, unlike the Party Balls in Rockman 8.
- Rush Search in this game works like it did in Rockman 7 or like Rush Question did in the last game, but seems to be severely stingy in comparison.  It's mostly used for digging up CDs, but will, on very rare occasion, dig up a power up.  Mostly, he just digs up Uncle Sam hats and old tin cans, though, so you're far, far better off using Eddie for getting Life/Weapon Energy Capsules.[/spoiler]
« Last Edit: September 11, 2012, 08:01:52 PM by Joseph Collins »



Offline Mirby

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Reply #2 on: September 10, 2012, 09:23:23 AM
What a very interesting read. Thanks for posting this! :3

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Offline Flame

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Reply #3 on: September 10, 2012, 06:09:30 PM
Yeah, nice read.

Also, i always assumed Leaf Shield affects Airman so much because it, y'know, jams his fan.

...When Larry the reploid accountant goes maverick of his own accord, he's certainly formidable during tax season, but he isn't going to provide X the challenge needed to make him grow as a warrior and reach his potential.


Offline Hiryu

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Reply #4 on: September 10, 2012, 07:44:43 PM
Nice job, enjoyed the notes.

I'm not sure if you noticed during your playthroughs, but one of the things I hated about some of the boss fights where they only gave you just enough weapon energy to kill the boss if you didn't miss. And if you die, you're stuck using another weapon to try, which will usually never work.  Bright man is annoying to kill if you're not perfect.



Offline Protoman Blues

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Reply #5 on: September 10, 2012, 08:41:39 PM
You forgot the awesomest part of MM7.

YOU GET PROTO SHIELD!  8D



Offline Joseph Collins

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Reply #6 on: September 10, 2012, 10:04:54 PM
Thanks for all the positive feedback so far, gang!  I'm glad you guys like my giant wall of analysis.  X3
Also, i always assumed Leaf Shield affects Airman so much because it, y'know, jams his fan.
Well, that's pretty much the accepted logic.  I suppose I just figured 28 leaves in his "mouth" wouldn't be enough to completely disable him.  But then, I never actually sat down and thought about it as "28 leaves in the mouth."  XD
I'm not sure if you noticed during your playthroughs, but one of the things I hated about some of the boss fights where they only gave you just enough weapon energy to kill the boss if you didn't miss. And if you die, you're stuck using another weapon to try, which will usually never work.  Bright man is annoying to kill if you're not perfect.
You know, I'm sure I knew about that, but I didn't really consciously acknowledge it, definitely.  That is a bit annoying, and it started all the way back in the first game, albeit slightly differently.  You can easily miss Cutman or the CWU-01P units with Super Arm, not to mention there's really not enough "Guts Blocks" to even use against the latter.  That can be quite trying even for experienced players.
You forgot the awesomest part of MM7.

YOU GET PROTO SHIELD!  8D
Shh!  That's supposed to be a secret!  :O

Actually, while I did write the article somewhat as if certain things were spoilers, I did just kind of forget about Blues' Shield.  Thanks for pointing that out!  :D



Offline Protoman Blues

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Reply #7 on: September 11, 2012, 01:18:53 AM
I'll say this though. I really disagree with you on RnF's music. I thought the soundtrack was terrible except for one or two tracks. However, it could just be the choice of instrument because GroundMan's stage is fuckin' incredible in 8-Bit.

You know, one day I should do a soundtrack review from MM1-MM10....then the X series! Oh geez that's going to take some time! XD



Offline Mirby

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Reply #8 on: September 11, 2012, 03:14:53 AM
I still think MM4 had an awesome Wily Capsule theme. Short but great. :3

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Offline Protoman Blues

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Reply #9 on: September 11, 2012, 06:54:20 AM
MM4's soundtrack, as a whole, is very underrated I think. I hope the Megas continue on with their work and do MM4.



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Reply #10 on: September 11, 2012, 09:50:44 AM
MM4's soundtrack, as a whole, is very underrated I think. I hope the Megas continue on with their work and do MM4.
Definitely agreed on that one. It'll have to come after a secret project they were working on and then History Repeating: Red though.

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Offline zuschzero

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Reply #11 on: September 11, 2012, 03:57:03 PM
Rockman 2
how does a "leaf shield" hurt Airman as badly as it does?
Because Wood is land, and Air is sky. You know, the two are way different.


Rockman 3
- The entire game seems a lot faster, thanks in-part to the new way slowdown is handled.
Are you kidding me? Rockman 3 is by far the laggiest Rockman game on the NES.

- The controls are now much tighter and more responsive.
Are you kidding me? When the game is lagging enough, sometimes no matter how hard you press B, Megaman do nothing! Geminiman shoots only when you do too. Sometimes it happens that if you press B Geminiman will shoot at you but Megaman don't shoot at all! It proves that the game actually recognized that you pressed B but still, Megaman did nothing!

- ... I've got nothing.  Absolutely, positively nothing.  I genuinely cannot find one thing wrong with this game that would happen to the average person.  And believe me, I am trying.
Second worst weapon arsenal after 5, the Wily fortress levels are just half stages, the fortress bosses are just meh, the leftover debug features of the 2nd controlles shows the game's rushedness.


Rockman 4
Adding to likes: Best weapon arsenal before 9 came out, best level design thanks to dozens of platform elements, best set of fortress bosses.


Rockman 5
- Charging the Rock Buster now takes 82 frames of animation (1.37 seconds) instead of 97 frames (1.62 seconds).
Uhm, are you sure about that? I always felt that the charge time in 4 is faster than in 5.

Adding to dislikes:
- Enemies with many hit points now have a noticeable invincibility time between hits. <- That's a dislike from my part.
This game offers by far the worst robot master AI. There's almost no randomness between their attacks. Due to this, this is the only game I don't have a favorite robot master from. You can't charge while Megaman is sliding. In other words, the game stop counting how much you charged the mega buster during a slide. You can't pause the game during the boat-ride section. New Rush coil sucked. You have to jump almost exactly at the middle of it to get a jump on that.

Most Useless Utility: Rush Coil
Fix'd.



Offline Da Dood

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Reply #12 on: September 11, 2012, 04:26:46 PM
Yeah, MM3 is my favorite game of all time, but it's very flawed. The control thing is spot on. I have to add that this bug apparently happens if you shoot at the exact frame when you touch the ground (from a jump or a fall).

And I agree that MM4 has great music. <3


Offline Joseph Collins

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Reply #13 on: September 11, 2012, 08:22:21 PM
Rockman 3
- The entire game seems a lot faster, thanks in-part to the new way slowdown is handled.
Are you kidding me? Rockman 3 is by far the laggiest Rockman game on the NES.

- The controls are now much tighter and more responsive.
Are you kidding me? When the game is lagging enough, sometimes no matter how hard you press B, Megaman do nothing! Geminiman shoots only when you do too. Sometimes it happens that if you press B Geminiman will shoot at you but Megaman don't shoot at all! It proves that the game actually recognized that you pressed B but still, Megaman did nothing!
The control thing is spot on. I have to add that this bug apparently happens if you shoot at the exact frame when you touch the ground (from a jump or a fall).
That specific "Rockman doesn't fire" glitch didn't happen very often when I played through the game.  I just tested it further and it happens about 10% of the time.  I can't seem to pinpoint when it happens most, however, but it does seem to happen whenever you're landing and try to fire.
As for Geminiman, are you sure you weren't just pressing B while in an injured pose?  Geminiman is programmed to fire regardless of whether you can fire or not.

As far as lag goes, try this some time.  Go play Metalman's stage in Rockman 2.  Specifically the part where the Moles and Presses are.
Now go to B10 in Sparkman's stage in Rockman 3 and let the screen fill with four junk blocks.

The controls in Rockman 3 are much more responsive under stress than the ones in Rockman 2.  I will, however, add a point I'm sure I meant to mention, but somehow forgot to:
- A "bug" has been "fixed" since Rockman 2 wherein while running, Rockman could instantly (in 3 frames) turn the other direction if you pressed, for example, left while going right very quickly.  Rock now comes to a complete stop regardless of how quickly the opposite direction is pressed and takes the full amount of time (9 frames) to turn around every time.

Quote from: zuschzero
- ... I've got nothing.  Absolutely, positively nothing.  I genuinely cannot find one thing wrong with this game that would happen to the average person.  And believe me, I am trying.
Second worst weapon arsenal after 5, the Wily fortress levels are just half stages, the fortress bosses are just meh, the leftover debug features of the 2nd controlles shows the game's rushedness.
How do you figure it had to many bad weapons?  Spark Shock was genuinely useless except in rare occasions (such as freezing Bikkys, the "Big Eye" of the game, in mid-air) and Gemini Laser was surprisingly weak, but had its uses, Hard Knuckle could one-shot pretty much anything in your way, Shadow Blade was a pretty good all-around weapon, Top Spin destroyed most of the really annoying enemies, Magnet Missile did pretty decent damage to most everything, Search Snake was great for hitting enemies below you, and Needle Cannon was a great Rock Buster replacement.  Only one of the eight weapons were truly useless. 
Now compare the 1 out of 8 useless weapons of this game to the 2 out of 6 in the first game, those two being Hyper Bomb (which couldn't destroy airborne enemies) and Super Arm (which spent 90% of the game collecting dust).  However, I don't disagree with Rockman 5 having probably one of the most useless arsenals of the series.

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Rockman 5
- Charging the Rock Buster now takes 82 frames of animation (1.37 seconds) instead of 97 frames (1.62 seconds).
Uhm, are you sure about that? I always felt that the charge time in 4 is faster than in 5.
Absolutely positiive.  I tested it myself.  The charge time in Rockman 5 is faster than the one in Rockman 4, but the charge time just kept goiing up past that.

If it's any help, I gauged the charge time from the frame when Rock releases a shot to the earliest frame where can fire a fully-charged shot.  I also took into consideration the 3-frame delay Rock has when firing any kind of shot.

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Adding to dislikes:
This game offers by far the worst robot master AI. There's almost no randomness between their attacks. Due to this, this is the only game I don't have a favorite robot master from.
Can't say as I disagree with that.
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You can't charge while Megaman is sliding. In other words, the game stop counting how much you charged the mega buster during a slide.
... huh!  You're right!  I honestly didn't even notice that.  Good find!
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You can't pause the game during the boat-ride section.
To be fair, this was done because the design team was too lazy to figure out how to disable your weapons from being selected during this segment.  Which is a lame excuse, but it makes sense.  Whoever did Rockman World 5 didn't have this problem, as they disallowed weapon selections during the Rush Space segment without disabling the menu itself.
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New Rush coil sucked. You have to jump almost exactly at the middle of it to get a jump on that.

Most Useless Utility: Rush Coil
Fix'd.
You know, a lot of people have this opinion.  I'm not sure why.  You actually get a greater sense of control over how high you jump with New Rush Coil.  Admittedly, I don't think it's worth double the energy cost, but still.



Offline Gaia

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Reply #14 on: September 12, 2012, 12:18:00 AM
Yeah, nice read.

Also, i always assumed Leaf Shield affects Airman so much because it, y'know, jams his fan.

Also, Metal Man was weak to himself because he had a [acid burst]-poor defense module, and with a weapon that can litterally slice through the toughest metal, that's insult to injury. Plus metal irl has had a history being able to cut through metal (how else would a sword peirce through a car's hull?)

In a sense, Metal Man was a rushjob.

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One mention of LEGENDS and everyone goes batshit.  :\

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Offline zuschzero

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Reply #15 on: September 12, 2012, 05:32:21 PM
As for Geminiman, are you sure you weren't just pressing B while in an injured pose?  Geminiman is programmed to fire regardless of whether you can fire or not.
I know what I'm talking about. Using the mega buster, the "Geminiman shoot, but Megaman don't" thing happened to me many, many times.

As far as lag goes, try this some time.  Go play Metalman's stage in Rockman 2.  Specifically the part where the Moles and Presses are.
Now go to B10 in Sparkman's stage in Rockman 3 and let the screen fill with four junk blocks.
You're talking about sprite flickering, not lag. It's true that sprite flicker can cause lag, that's the case in Rockman 2. But in Rockman 3, lag happens WITHOUT sprite flickering!
A few examples: Using Gemini Laser, those flame shooting things at the beginning of Geminiman and Doc-Geminiman stages, Doc-Quickman battle etc.


For the weapons: Shadow Blade is good. Magnet Missile could have been great, but its energy usage is a fatal flaw. The little delay before a Hard Knuckle is created can be awkward. Top Spin isn't all that bad, but still very bad, you have to know what enemies can be killed with it. Needle Cannon has EXACTLY the same power and range as your default weapon, kinda pointless and the automatic fire feature doesn't make it better. Gemini Laser causes massive lag and if you miss it you're forced to wait, average power and a very thin projectile. Search Snake is an upgraded Bubble Lead, but weak. Spark Shock is just for bosses.



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Reply #16 on: September 12, 2012, 06:59:42 PM
There are quite a few things in Rockman3 that bug me, starting with the absence of an intro cutscene: the weapons provide little more than straightforward shots for far too much energy; the Doc Robots are impossible to dodge because of their oversized hitboxes; Rush energy management in some of those stages is as ridiculous as Rockman2's fortress, able to get you stuck until you game over or in one area reset your NES; plus the Blues/Breakman identity matter is handled so poorly it's a mystery even today. 



Offline Hiryu

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Reply #17 on: September 12, 2012, 07:20:17 PM
the Doc Robots are impossible to dodge because of their oversized hitboxes

In general, kinda wish they didn't make the Doc bots so bulky. Fighting Flashman and Quickman is a pain. If you run into him, you lose a lot of health, more than what you would take if you were fighting the originals.

Oh curse you Wily for trying to kill Megaman!



Offline Joseph Collins

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Reply #18 on: September 12, 2012, 07:47:53 PM
I have to say, I sincerely wish the Doc Robots didn't have such sturdy bodies.  Quickman and Flashman no longer take 2 damage from the Rock Buster, for example.  That was about the only saving grace for fighting the original Quickman buster-only.

...

Alright, so there's something else I didn't like about Rockman 3.  A nitpicky thing, but a thing all the same.  XP



Offline The Great Gonzo

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Reply #19 on: September 12, 2012, 08:01:31 PM
Quote
plus the Blues/Breakman identity matter is handled so poorly it's a mystery even today.

Oh yeah, the Breakman thing. The first time around you just assume it's straightforward, then you try to look into it more closely and realize how ambiguous it is, even with that unused data. (At least, I did.)

Archie and Ariga removed that ambiguity by having Proto appear before Megaman as Breakman first (or rather, I'm guessing Archie will do that), but those're alternate continuities.


Also, I'm guessing that Rush Coil is only so useful in dodging the Doc Robots.



Offline Ladd Spencer

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Reply #20 on: September 24, 2012, 09:03:02 PM
JC, are you planning on expanding this to 9 and 10? You've got quite the knack for scrutinizing the small things, and I'm very curious as to how they compare with the NES ones.


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Offline kartus

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Reply #21 on: September 28, 2012, 07:26:07 AM
Hi, first post. Just a question.

About Rockman 5, when you say "considerably easier", are you simply referring to the abundance of extra lives? The game doesn't seem particularly easy compared to the others in this post, except for the original (of course).



Offline Hiryu

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Reply #22 on: September 28, 2012, 06:45:27 PM
I would think so. I swear Megaman 5 gives you 5 lives everytime you press start.

The beginning of Crystalman's stage is a [sonic slicer] to deal with. You think you've learned the pattern and it chuck testa's you. Atleast it was at the start so you don't lose much progress.



Offline Joseph Collins

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Reply #23 on: September 28, 2012, 07:01:06 PM
JC, are you planning on expanding this to 9 and 10? You've got quite the knack for scrutinizing the small things, and I'm very curious as to how they compare with the NES ones.
There's a couple reasons I didn't include 9 and 10 in the list.  The biggest reason is that they were created by Inti Creates, not Capcom in-house.  Bearing that in mind, the series technically ends at 8, & Forte being an "alternate timeline" continuation of the series (and off-topic, probably my second favorite game!)
The other reason is far less valid.  See, I don't actually have a convenient way to play them.  I'm one of the 1% of gaming America that does not own a 7th generation console.  T_T;  I was going to buy a 360 at some point, but then that money went toward other things.  Something equally frivolous, no doubt.  XD  However, I could emulate them, if need be.  That would probably be more useful for the depth of research I'm doing, actually.  I'm just kind of scared of my computer at the moment.  It's working... a little too well, since I cleaned it up.  I'm afraid that something might go wrong.  Like the CPU will suddenly overheat or something.  Lame excuse, I know...

About Rockman 5, when you say "considerably easier", are you simply referring to the abundance of extra lives? The game doesn't seem particularly easy compared to the others in this post, except for the original (of course).
For some reason, that game seems much easier overall, even without the mountains of 1-ups you get for no apparent reason.  There are some challenging areas, such as Crystalman's stage, or (I think) one of the final stages, but for the most part?  Pretty easy game.  Pretty fun, too!

Thanks for the questions!  :D



Offline Splash

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Reply #24 on: September 28, 2012, 08:56:05 PM
How about analyzing Game Boy games?

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