A GAME THAT RETREATS TO OLDER GRAPHICS AND BOLD-FACEDLY STATES IT WILL NOT FURTHER THE STORYLINE,
R9 furthered the storyline and deepened the series a lot. What it didn't do is END the storyline. Why does Rockman need an ending anyway? Why do we need to get so close to X and ZERO when they're so much more that can be told?
Also, those older graphics have an immense beauty in their simplicity. For this time, the return to the old brought about immense nostalgia, charm, amazingly stylish music and most of all, to the point fun gameplay.
"Shooting Star Rockman"
a classic game ported to a Cell Phone
Why do you complain? It's not interfering with the creation of new games in the main Rockman universe. In fact, EXE saved Rockman by earning Capcom enough money to keep going with both. Cellphone games are trying to create interest in the series amongst the Japanese. And SSR is trying to retain the fanbase that they created with EXE now that japanese sales for both the main and secondary universe have been declining steadily. What's killing Rockman is not Capcom, but people bitching and moaning all the time over every single thing they do, nobody never seems satisfied.
Now finally, Capcom hit a gold mine with Rockman9, simple, effective, high quality and immensely popular. And you want to complain about that too? Sure, maybe Capcom will drive it into the ground by making R10 and R11 like that in rapid succession, but that hasn't happened yet. This is still a want time thing, so what's the issue?
What I am, however, is pissed the [tornado fang] off. What primarily attracted me to the games is the ongoing storyline between them. And when all the mystery about unseen events came up, I eagerly awaited the startling revelations and closure. That was around the time of RMX4. Needless to say, I have been throughly let down.
I'm quite sure ZX and ZX Advent provided us with a million and one answers about the ongoing storyline, all the way from classic to DASH. But that's apparently not what you want. Want you want is that elusive Rockman to RockmanX connection. Well, I've already expressed I see no point in ending Rockman, nor do I see a point in the X-series messing with the spirit of classic Rockman by answering those question. Capcom's choice to not answer that is an understandable one. Still, they provided plenty of things for us to figure out what could have happened. After all, we have a two points in time, the bridge always exists in some fashion, even if it's in small possibly unintended facts. Capcom wants us to use the worlds they created and imagine these things for ourselves.
In terms of the X-series providing closure within itself. Well, we originally had X5. Those events alone provide closure, whilst 'providing the means to imagine' in all the mysteries that deliberately exist. There are reasons why and all sourcebooks to this date speak vaguely about the matter of Wily, even though it's all well known fact. Maybe after X5, they would have released a book revealing the truth about the matter. But the X5 team felt there was much more they could do with the series, so that closure was overwritten with a new start. Which is a noble thing, Alia became a much deeper character, one of the greatest characters in the series was introduced and Isoc was there to open all our eyes about the mysteries of the world.
And now we are where we are now. I can't say why it seems the series went in a completely different direction, but they obviously have a plan. When they made X7, they knew where they wanted to go and they knew the ZERO-series was the goal. As X9 was intended, but never made. It is unfair to judge the progression of the X-series based on what it still incomplete. X8 revealed things that change our entire perception of the plot, and IHX shows us there's definitely a coherent whole to be found. People just need to find that acceptance, the patience, and the willingly to figure it all out for themselves.
For any other closure you might want, go play the ZERO-series and read ZERO Complete Works.