Nepiki
Positives:
- The driving overall controls good with solid drifting mechanics.
- 21 different race tracks to choose from.
Negatives:
- Items are mostly garbage and have almost no effect on the races.
- Enemy AI is close to rubber banding, making it almost impossible to win as the slower racers.
- Doesn't do anything at all to stand out from the competition.
-----------------------------------
''Kart Racers were really popular in the late 90's and early 2000's. Every mascot- and brand needed their own game in this genre, and Disney was no exception to the rule--so much so that the big mouse himself even got a game developed by Rare of all studios. But in a time period with so many great kart racers, Mickey's Speedway USA manages to be good... but not good enough to be anything special. It's as basic as a kart racer can possibly be, and that unfortunately results in it not being the first game of this genre on that platform I can recommend. But I want my reviews to be independent from its competition so I'm not going to compare it to the other racers of this time. Comparing it to Diddy Kong Racing--a game made by the same developer a few years before--is obviously going to have a clear winner that dunks on the other, but that's not what I'm here to do.
The game has your usual modes like Time Trial, Battle Mode and of course, the main Grand Prix where most of the time is spent (unless you are a time trial maniac). The Grand Prix is split up into multiple cups with four races each, all on different difficulties. Aside from the speed increase with each cup, I can't really say there was an actual difficulty increase since the AI is always very... uh, specific. It's actually tough to describe because they're not really those kind of AI that keep bombarding you with items, but they are always somehow very close behind in a nerve-wrecking way and are literal masters of avoiding your items. Close to rubber banding, but I also never really lost to them--that is, unless I picked slower characters like Minnie and Daisy who genuinely could not win against the AI unless they were really lucky with items. Problem is that the items in this game? They are really, really bad. The homing items only worked if you were far behind them but not close to corners, the non-homing item was surprisingly tough to aim, and everything else... exists. And the items being so bad is a double-sided coin because the enemies can't really use it against you, but you also can't really use it against them. Once you're behind, it's a literal coin-flip on whether you can surpass them again or not. Also, the boost item not working over grass and the like triggers me more than it should.
I do really like the controls though, and that was often more than enough for me to win the races. Drifting felt satisfying to do, albeit a bit tougher for characters with less handling but that makes sense. There is actually a character with absolutely terrible handling but if you can somehow manage to stay on the road with him, he actually becomes the most broken character in the game. Definitely a necessity for the staff ghost times in the Time Trial mode because they are very pixel-perfect and sadistic. No idea who got hurt so badly as a kid on the schoolyard but maybe tone it down a bit.
Anyhow, I'm getting off-track, even though there is surprisingly not that much to talk about. I guess I could talk about the tracks themselves but just like the game as a whole, they are very basic. None are really bad, but for a game that is inspired after USA cities, there are surprisingly few tracks that actually take advantage of the themeing. Washington D.C. has the White House to race in and is therefore also one of the better tracks, but Los Angeles is just a figure-8 track. Now, I'm not a expert on the continent of freedom but I'm pretty sure Los Angeles is known for anything but just being a figure-8. I guess I like the latter tracks more in general because they actually had a bit more drifting involved, like the snowy mountains of Colorado. Early tracks on the other hand are a lot of just driving forward. But to not sound too negative, there aren't really any bad tracks; none just stand out. And that brings me back to my opinion on the game as a whole being very generic. It definitely works and you can have fun with it, but it's too basic for me to remember it long after I've last played it.''
- The driving overall controls good with solid drifting mechanics.
- 21 different race tracks to choose from.
Negatives:
- Items are mostly garbage and have almost no effect on the races.
- Enemy AI is close to rubber banding, making it almost impossible to win as the slower racers.
- Doesn't do anything at all to stand out from the competition.
-----------------------------------
''Kart Racers were really popular in the late 90's and early 2000's. Every mascot- and brand needed their own game in this genre, and Disney was no exception to the rule--so much so that the big mouse himself even got a game developed by Rare of all studios. But in a time period with so many great kart racers, Mickey's Speedway USA manages to be good... but not good enough to be anything special. It's as basic as a kart racer can possibly be, and that unfortunately results in it not being the first game of this genre on that platform I can recommend. But I want my reviews to be independent from its competition so I'm not going to compare it to the other racers of this time. Comparing it to Diddy Kong Racing--a game made by the same developer a few years before--is obviously going to have a clear winner that dunks on the other, but that's not what I'm here to do.
The game has your usual modes like Time Trial, Battle Mode and of course, the main Grand Prix where most of the time is spent (unless you are a time trial maniac). The Grand Prix is split up into multiple cups with four races each, all on different difficulties. Aside from the speed increase with each cup, I can't really say there was an actual difficulty increase since the AI is always very... uh, specific. It's actually tough to describe because they're not really those kind of AI that keep bombarding you with items, but they are always somehow very close behind in a nerve-wrecking way and are literal masters of avoiding your items. Close to rubber banding, but I also never really lost to them--that is, unless I picked slower characters like Minnie and Daisy who genuinely could not win against the AI unless they were really lucky with items. Problem is that the items in this game? They are really, really bad. The homing items only worked if you were far behind them but not close to corners, the non-homing item was surprisingly tough to aim, and everything else... exists. And the items being so bad is a double-sided coin because the enemies can't really use it against you, but you also can't really use it against them. Once you're behind, it's a literal coin-flip on whether you can surpass them again or not. Also, the boost item not working over grass and the like triggers me more than it should.
I do really like the controls though, and that was often more than enough for me to win the races. Drifting felt satisfying to do, albeit a bit tougher for characters with less handling but that makes sense. There is actually a character with absolutely terrible handling but if you can somehow manage to stay on the road with him, he actually becomes the most broken character in the game. Definitely a necessity for the staff ghost times in the Time Trial mode because they are very pixel-perfect and sadistic. No idea who got hurt so badly as a kid on the schoolyard but maybe tone it down a bit.
Anyhow, I'm getting off-track, even though there is surprisingly not that much to talk about. I guess I could talk about the tracks themselves but just like the game as a whole, they are very basic. None are really bad, but for a game that is inspired after USA cities, there are surprisingly few tracks that actually take advantage of the themeing. Washington D.C. has the White House to race in and is therefore also one of the better tracks, but Los Angeles is just a figure-8 track. Now, I'm not a expert on the continent of freedom but I'm pretty sure Los Angeles is known for anything but just being a figure-8. I guess I like the latter tracks more in general because they actually had a bit more drifting involved, like the snowy mountains of Colorado. Early tracks on the other hand are a lot of just driving forward. But to not sound too negative, there aren't really any bad tracks; none just stand out. And that brings me back to my opinion on the game as a whole being very generic. It definitely works and you can have fun with it, but it's too basic for me to remember it long after I've last played it.''
Positives:
- Koholint Island and the theme of this game are very memorable and executed well.
- Gameplay based on Link to the Past carried over well.
- An overall solid set of dungeons, with no real low points.
Negatives:
- Game Boy limitations apply, though not as bad as many people make them out to be.
-----------------------------------
''Fans of the Nepiki Gaming Variety™ may know that The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of, if not my favourite game ever. It is a super satisfying experience that I can play over and over again as many times as I want--especially with the randomizer that makes each new playthrough a fresh new journey. Why am I bringing this up when it's not the topic of today though? Because syke, I baited you into a review for another game. But joking aside, development for The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening started out as a port of my beloved SNES game before it became its own product. While the differences are night- and day now, a few elements still carried over. Most importantly though, the top-down sword-slashing gameplay is virtually the same and given how much I like it in Link to the Past, it shouldn't come as a surprise that I still enjoy it here too. It did come with a few limitations due to the Game Boy having less buttons, meaning that neither the sword- nor the shield are ever permanently equipped and have to be set to a button just like any other item. This is usually the main complaint people have because it results in a lot of time being spent in the menu switching weapons. It's something I can't deny myself either, but I also think it's something that is complained about a bit too much and doesn't make the experience worse. Could it have been handled better, like making some items permanently equipped? Probably. But it's definitely not a game breaker as it is now.
What is very annoying though, is that every time you walk up to a liftable- or bombable rock but you don't have the required item equipped, it will give you a monologue of what you need to do for them. Every. Single. Time. The same also applies to finding items in dungeons like the compass and map, with an explanation for what said item does for all 8 of the dungeons. You could say this is a nitpick, but after having picked up either of those items the first time around, I'm pretty sure I know what they do. I feel this to me more annoying than the other Game Boy limitations, mostly because it is unnecessary, but does it make the game worse? Not really I'd say. In fact... I don't really have that many negative points to make about Link's Awakening from a mechanical standpoint. It does exactly what you expect from a Zelda game from this age, and it results in it (unsurprisingly) being regarded as one of the best Game Boy games ever by fans. Does that mean I can ignore these flaws? Not at all. But I don't think they take away from the overall package.
But that's enough talk about the mechanical side, because this review so far is more feeling like me trying to address complaints rather than me actually talking about the game itself. But fortunately, I can gladly say that the gameplay front lives up to my expectations as well. I already mentioned before that the same sword-slashing gameplay from previous games is here, particularly Link to the Past. The inspiration is also shown in some of the items, like the Hookshot and Pegasus Boots which both work exactly as desired. It also surprisingly has the most overpowered variants of well-known items, such as the Boomerang which kills almost anything and the Magic Rod also being a weapon of death and destruction. The latter probably shouldn't come as a surprise given that there is no magic meter, so it can literally be spammed over- and over for tons of damage. Fortunately, both are closer to the end of the game so that they don't affect the difficulty.
The dungeons- and bosses tend to be more on the good-but-not-outstanding part for me. I can't say there's really a dungeon I dislike (even though Turtle Rock has a very nasty unforgivable switch room that did piss me off), but my only real stand-outs are Catfish Maw and Eagle's Tower--the former because I like the idea of chasing a mini-boss through the dungeon, and the latter mostly because of the spectacle because it is an otherwise very confusing dungeon to navigate. I do really like the idea of every dungeon having a mini-boss though, which wasn't really a thing before this game. The mini-bosses (just like the normal bosses) aren't really too noteworthy as mentioned before, but I appreciate them being there and also functioning as a half-way point in the dungeon that can be teleported to from the entrance.
But when I think about Link's Awakening, I don't just think about how good of a game it is. This adventure is probably one of the most bizarre- and unique adventure Link has ever been on, but absolutely for the better. Koholint Island is a very memorable place with its unique vistas, like a village full of talking animals that's right next to a small desert with a boss veterans of the franchise are familiar with, or a castle ruled by Richard, a character from a completely different game made by the same developers! And Richard is not the only unrelated character appearing in this game, as several Mario characters- and enemies show up too, like a chain chomp that is even required to open the second dungeon. This gives Link's Awakening a more... distinct feeling, without going into spoilers as to the why, but it persists throughout the entire game as a running theme. It's not unusual for the Zelda franchise past this game to go into some more unique territories, but Link's Awakening was the first and arguably still one of, if not the most unique of them all.
And the theme also directly makes Koholint Island more fun to just... be. That might sound a bit vague, and my apologies for that, but it's tough to describe. It just feels like a warm place where everyone knows each other, and occasionally you'll also see these characters appear in other places. The prime example of course is Marin, the girl who found Link washed ashore in the first place. She appears throughout the island and is mentioned everywhere, especially in the animal village where she is beloved for her singing. She isn't just another resident of this island; she is the defining connection between Link and Koholint Island. It feels like a cozy place where you would like to stay and get to know each other, making it all the more tough that staying simply isn't an option as Link needs to get home. I'm pretty sure everyone is familiar with the theme- and spoilers of the game--that I'm still avoiding--but I'm of the opinion that it is just really well executed.''
- Koholint Island and the theme of this game are very memorable and executed well.
- Gameplay based on Link to the Past carried over well.
- An overall solid set of dungeons, with no real low points.
Negatives:
- Game Boy limitations apply, though not as bad as many people make them out to be.
-----------------------------------
''Fans of the Nepiki Gaming Variety™ may know that The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of, if not my favourite game ever. It is a super satisfying experience that I can play over and over again as many times as I want--especially with the randomizer that makes each new playthrough a fresh new journey. Why am I bringing this up when it's not the topic of today though? Because syke, I baited you into a review for another game. But joking aside, development for The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening started out as a port of my beloved SNES game before it became its own product. While the differences are night- and day now, a few elements still carried over. Most importantly though, the top-down sword-slashing gameplay is virtually the same and given how much I like it in Link to the Past, it shouldn't come as a surprise that I still enjoy it here too. It did come with a few limitations due to the Game Boy having less buttons, meaning that neither the sword- nor the shield are ever permanently equipped and have to be set to a button just like any other item. This is usually the main complaint people have because it results in a lot of time being spent in the menu switching weapons. It's something I can't deny myself either, but I also think it's something that is complained about a bit too much and doesn't make the experience worse. Could it have been handled better, like making some items permanently equipped? Probably. But it's definitely not a game breaker as it is now.
What is very annoying though, is that every time you walk up to a liftable- or bombable rock but you don't have the required item equipped, it will give you a monologue of what you need to do for them. Every. Single. Time. The same also applies to finding items in dungeons like the compass and map, with an explanation for what said item does for all 8 of the dungeons. You could say this is a nitpick, but after having picked up either of those items the first time around, I'm pretty sure I know what they do. I feel this to me more annoying than the other Game Boy limitations, mostly because it is unnecessary, but does it make the game worse? Not really I'd say. In fact... I don't really have that many negative points to make about Link's Awakening from a mechanical standpoint. It does exactly what you expect from a Zelda game from this age, and it results in it (unsurprisingly) being regarded as one of the best Game Boy games ever by fans. Does that mean I can ignore these flaws? Not at all. But I don't think they take away from the overall package.
But that's enough talk about the mechanical side, because this review so far is more feeling like me trying to address complaints rather than me actually talking about the game itself. But fortunately, I can gladly say that the gameplay front lives up to my expectations as well. I already mentioned before that the same sword-slashing gameplay from previous games is here, particularly Link to the Past. The inspiration is also shown in some of the items, like the Hookshot and Pegasus Boots which both work exactly as desired. It also surprisingly has the most overpowered variants of well-known items, such as the Boomerang which kills almost anything and the Magic Rod also being a weapon of death and destruction. The latter probably shouldn't come as a surprise given that there is no magic meter, so it can literally be spammed over- and over for tons of damage. Fortunately, both are closer to the end of the game so that they don't affect the difficulty.
The dungeons- and bosses tend to be more on the good-but-not-outstanding part for me. I can't say there's really a dungeon I dislike (even though Turtle Rock has a very nasty unforgivable switch room that did piss me off), but my only real stand-outs are Catfish Maw and Eagle's Tower--the former because I like the idea of chasing a mini-boss through the dungeon, and the latter mostly because of the spectacle because it is an otherwise very confusing dungeon to navigate. I do really like the idea of every dungeon having a mini-boss though, which wasn't really a thing before this game. The mini-bosses (just like the normal bosses) aren't really too noteworthy as mentioned before, but I appreciate them being there and also functioning as a half-way point in the dungeon that can be teleported to from the entrance.
But when I think about Link's Awakening, I don't just think about how good of a game it is. This adventure is probably one of the most bizarre- and unique adventure Link has ever been on, but absolutely for the better. Koholint Island is a very memorable place with its unique vistas, like a village full of talking animals that's right next to a small desert with a boss veterans of the franchise are familiar with, or a castle ruled by Richard, a character from a completely different game made by the same developers! And Richard is not the only unrelated character appearing in this game, as several Mario characters- and enemies show up too, like a chain chomp that is even required to open the second dungeon. This gives Link's Awakening a more... distinct feeling, without going into spoilers as to the why, but it persists throughout the entire game as a running theme. It's not unusual for the Zelda franchise past this game to go into some more unique territories, but Link's Awakening was the first and arguably still one of, if not the most unique of them all.
And the theme also directly makes Koholint Island more fun to just... be. That might sound a bit vague, and my apologies for that, but it's tough to describe. It just feels like a warm place where everyone knows each other, and occasionally you'll also see these characters appear in other places. The prime example of course is Marin, the girl who found Link washed ashore in the first place. She appears throughout the island and is mentioned everywhere, especially in the animal village where she is beloved for her singing. She isn't just another resident of this island; she is the defining connection between Link and Koholint Island. It feels like a cozy place where you would like to stay and get to know each other, making it all the more tough that staying simply isn't an option as Link needs to get home. I'm pretty sure everyone is familiar with the theme- and spoilers of the game--that I'm still avoiding--but I'm of the opinion that it is just really well executed.''
1993
Positives:
- Not only a mechanical improvement over what came before, but also just a game that feels really, really good to play.
- Stage design being full of action- and secrets, allowing X to become stronger through more means aside from just stealing bosses' weapons.
- Good boss fights with varied patterns, making it fun to learn- and master their battles. Also, good designs and themes.
Negatives:
- Dash not being available right from the start gives me mixed feelings, even though I can admit it eases veteran players into the game and allows for no-dash runs (up until it's mandatory).
-----------------------------------
''Mega Man has seen a lot of success on the NES, with a total of 6 mainline games on the system. But the final game, Mega Man 6, was released while the SNES already began its domination of the market. It was time for the blue bomber to get an upgrade himself, and if you've been on the retro side of the internet for a while, you're most likely highly familiar with what kind of upgrade he has gotten. It is very tough for me to talk about such a game myself, given how the internet has already sung its praises at every opportunity they were given. Like, what can I even say that hasn't already been said yet about Mega Man X? Short answer: nothing. But I still want to share my personal feelings about the game, if only for making it a good reference point for future reviews of the same variety.
Mega Man has always nailed the formula since the very first game, hence why they could keep it going for so many games with the main differences being better levels, boss fights, and a few gameplay improvements like sliding- and charging the mega buster. So what did Mega Man X do? At first sight, mostly the same with not really that much being different. The tutorial follows a very good show-don't-tell approach to teaching the mechanics, which up to a certain point are mechanics we're all used to. The only real difference shown during this tutorial is that X can wall jump, but that is already a massive change. The approach to level design changes completely given how it can now work more with verticality that is not reliant on just ladders or level-specific gimmicks, but also boss battles now have more varied strategies to them. And that's it for the tutorial really! I could go more in-depth about what Vile's impact is and all that but really, that's not something I personally pay much attention to. I know, I'm a fake gamer, I'm sorry.
Regardless, there is one notable feature missing: the slide. This has been replaced by the awesome dash feature which, like everything else, is a great example of how much of an evolution this game really is. I went into detail on the mechanics so far, but not really about the feel–and boy does the game feel really, really good. It takes the slightly slower approach to platforming from the NES games and makes it faster without losing the strategical approach to anticipating enemy obstruction. The stages have far more action going on in them without being distracting, and the bosses also feel a bit more dynamic. I'll be talking about them a bit later but coming back to the dash, it could be argued whether this not being available right from the get-go is a good design choice or not. It definitely helps players ease into the game, especially if they came from the NES games, but once you've used the dash once, it's unlikely you'll want to go back to not using it. It being available exclusively in Chill Penguin's stage kind of gives you that forced feel of starting with him first, and then following the weakness chart from there. But of course, that last part only applies if you know the weakness chart, and every single other level is doable without the dash so you aren't punished for it at all. I more so bring this up for discussion purposes because I am genuinely curious what people think about the Dash not being part of the default toolkit right from the start.
But it also is a nice segue into one of the best elements of Mega Man X in general: the way X becomes stronger over the course of the game. In previous games, Mega Man only really got stronger by killing robot masters and taking their weapons, with there sometimes being an additional reward like the magnet beam. You had to get through a level and beat the boss, and if you weren't good enough then well… sucks to be you, get better. Mega Man X is still going to test your skills don't get me wrong, but the stages themselves now also give X options to get stronger, like upgraded armour that come with their own benefits like more defense, heart containers for an increased maximum health and last but absolutely not least, permanent sub tanks to restore health. So now if you end up getting destroyed by a boss, you might at least have gotten something from their stage to make life a bit easier for other bosses, even if you don't have their weakness. Though of course, they are not usually in plain sight so your navigational skills of these levels will also be put to the test, and sometimes you already need a weapon- or upgrade beforehand. It's a good thing then that these levels are overall very fun to explore- and/or breeze through, and sometimes also come with added depth to them by another Maverick's defeat having effect on another stage, like Chill Penguin's defeat freezing over Flame Mammoth's stage.
The bosses are still one of the defining elements of the game and no surprises here, they are all still fun. Their patterns are dynamic yet easy to predict the more you fight them, making almost any boss very doable with just the buster and your default skillset. The only one I wouldn't really recommend as first is Launch Octopus but hey, you do you. And in classic Mega Man fashion, one Maverick is weak to another's weapon, which makes the fights even easier. In fact, they become a bit too easy, as this game is also famous for introducing the "Spark Mandrill Syndrome" term. Walk up to him, shove some ice in his face and he will literally not be able to retaliate. But to be fair, this is the only boss that really becomes immobile when shivering in fear of its weakness; the others just take a lotta damage. Overall, the line-up of mavericks in this game is very memorable, and I also appreciate that they went with an animal theme for this subseries of games which opens up a whole new dimension of interesting designs.
Oh, and I usually never bring this up in my reviews since I usually value gameplay- and game design over presentation unless it directly hinders my enjoyment, but the music in Mega Man X? Real good stuff.''
- Not only a mechanical improvement over what came before, but also just a game that feels really, really good to play.
- Stage design being full of action- and secrets, allowing X to become stronger through more means aside from just stealing bosses' weapons.
- Good boss fights with varied patterns, making it fun to learn- and master their battles. Also, good designs and themes.
Negatives:
- Dash not being available right from the start gives me mixed feelings, even though I can admit it eases veteran players into the game and allows for no-dash runs (up until it's mandatory).
-----------------------------------
''Mega Man has seen a lot of success on the NES, with a total of 6 mainline games on the system. But the final game, Mega Man 6, was released while the SNES already began its domination of the market. It was time for the blue bomber to get an upgrade himself, and if you've been on the retro side of the internet for a while, you're most likely highly familiar with what kind of upgrade he has gotten. It is very tough for me to talk about such a game myself, given how the internet has already sung its praises at every opportunity they were given. Like, what can I even say that hasn't already been said yet about Mega Man X? Short answer: nothing. But I still want to share my personal feelings about the game, if only for making it a good reference point for future reviews of the same variety.
Mega Man has always nailed the formula since the very first game, hence why they could keep it going for so many games with the main differences being better levels, boss fights, and a few gameplay improvements like sliding- and charging the mega buster. So what did Mega Man X do? At first sight, mostly the same with not really that much being different. The tutorial follows a very good show-don't-tell approach to teaching the mechanics, which up to a certain point are mechanics we're all used to. The only real difference shown during this tutorial is that X can wall jump, but that is already a massive change. The approach to level design changes completely given how it can now work more with verticality that is not reliant on just ladders or level-specific gimmicks, but also boss battles now have more varied strategies to them. And that's it for the tutorial really! I could go more in-depth about what Vile's impact is and all that but really, that's not something I personally pay much attention to. I know, I'm a fake gamer, I'm sorry.
Regardless, there is one notable feature missing: the slide. This has been replaced by the awesome dash feature which, like everything else, is a great example of how much of an evolution this game really is. I went into detail on the mechanics so far, but not really about the feel–and boy does the game feel really, really good. It takes the slightly slower approach to platforming from the NES games and makes it faster without losing the strategical approach to anticipating enemy obstruction. The stages have far more action going on in them without being distracting, and the bosses also feel a bit more dynamic. I'll be talking about them a bit later but coming back to the dash, it could be argued whether this not being available right from the get-go is a good design choice or not. It definitely helps players ease into the game, especially if they came from the NES games, but once you've used the dash once, it's unlikely you'll want to go back to not using it. It being available exclusively in Chill Penguin's stage kind of gives you that forced feel of starting with him first, and then following the weakness chart from there. But of course, that last part only applies if you know the weakness chart, and every single other level is doable without the dash so you aren't punished for it at all. I more so bring this up for discussion purposes because I am genuinely curious what people think about the Dash not being part of the default toolkit right from the start.
But it also is a nice segue into one of the best elements of Mega Man X in general: the way X becomes stronger over the course of the game. In previous games, Mega Man only really got stronger by killing robot masters and taking their weapons, with there sometimes being an additional reward like the magnet beam. You had to get through a level and beat the boss, and if you weren't good enough then well… sucks to be you, get better. Mega Man X is still going to test your skills don't get me wrong, but the stages themselves now also give X options to get stronger, like upgraded armour that come with their own benefits like more defense, heart containers for an increased maximum health and last but absolutely not least, permanent sub tanks to restore health. So now if you end up getting destroyed by a boss, you might at least have gotten something from their stage to make life a bit easier for other bosses, even if you don't have their weakness. Though of course, they are not usually in plain sight so your navigational skills of these levels will also be put to the test, and sometimes you already need a weapon- or upgrade beforehand. It's a good thing then that these levels are overall very fun to explore- and/or breeze through, and sometimes also come with added depth to them by another Maverick's defeat having effect on another stage, like Chill Penguin's defeat freezing over Flame Mammoth's stage.
The bosses are still one of the defining elements of the game and no surprises here, they are all still fun. Their patterns are dynamic yet easy to predict the more you fight them, making almost any boss very doable with just the buster and your default skillset. The only one I wouldn't really recommend as first is Launch Octopus but hey, you do you. And in classic Mega Man fashion, one Maverick is weak to another's weapon, which makes the fights even easier. In fact, they become a bit too easy, as this game is also famous for introducing the "Spark Mandrill Syndrome" term. Walk up to him, shove some ice in his face and he will literally not be able to retaliate. But to be fair, this is the only boss that really becomes immobile when shivering in fear of its weakness; the others just take a lotta damage. Overall, the line-up of mavericks in this game is very memorable, and I also appreciate that they went with an animal theme for this subseries of games which opens up a whole new dimension of interesting designs.
Oh, and I usually never bring this up in my reviews since I usually value gameplay- and game design over presentation unless it directly hinders my enjoyment, but the music in Mega Man X? Real good stuff.''
1994
Positives:
- Doesn't fix what isn't broken, making it very similar to X but still very good too.
- Overall good set of Mavericks... aside from Crystal Snail.
- One of the best upgrades to the armour the X series has seen.
Negatives:
- The X-buster being so strong reduces the effectiveness of all other weapons, making them almost pointless to get.
- No actual different ending gained from the X-Hunters.
-----------------------------------
''After a very successful game, the Mega Man X series of games continuing was pretty much an inevitability. And as it goes with the Blue Bomber's previous adventures, sequels would never really mess too much with the established formula. Mega Man X2 is no such exception, being a new game with new stages, new mavericks, and a few quality of life improvements. So perhaps unsurprisingly, I'm not really going to talk about the core game mechanics since they are literally no different from Mega Man X, and instead focus on what this game does differently. That will probably be a disappointment to some as that means you need to be familiar with how Mega Man X plays, but there's only so many times I can say that X can dash, jump and shoot without me wanting to lose it. I can definitely recommend you to read my Mega Man X review for that. This is totally not a shameless plug, I swear.
Mega Man X2 has another set of 8 Mavericks to deal with, following the trend of the first game by designing them after animals like an ostrich and a centipede. It's a good set of mavericks overall, with some nice highs like Magna Centipede and Morph Moth being my favourites. But... it also has Crystal Snail. The less I say about Crystal Snail, the better. They all have good battles too with none really suffering from the ''Spark Mandrill Syndrome'', meaning that they definitely take massive damage from their weakness but won't end up staggered... well, aside from Crystal Snail. Stop ruining my compliments Crystal Snail, I swear. But aside from Mavericks, there are now also a few other robots running amok, namely the X hunters. They are additional bosses that randomly appear in any still-unfinished stage after two mavericks have been defeated, and they need to be defeated to get a uhh... slightly better ending? It changes literally nothing aside from an extra boss battle near the end if you don't defeat them, which arguably makes them fun not to defeat. I usually defeat them just because I like to though, and I'd rather take three unique boss battles over one right before the final boss.
Them randomly deciding in what stage they appear might annoy some people as it gives them the idea that they can't charter their own road, because they stop appearing after every Maverick is defeated, but I personally never really cared too much about it. I always forget the weakness chart for this game anyway, and often a charged buster is just as strong as the weakness of the boss. Actually, Mega Man X2 probably has some of my favourite armour upgrades in general, since the Mega Buster becomes so good with its two consecutive powerful shots, and the boots now give a dash in the air that can be chained together with Flame Stag's charged-up weapon for an extra dose of fun. The helmet reveals secrets which is not bad, although I prefer the X3 incarnation of that upgrade which I'll get to next review. Meanwhile, all other collectables like heart containers and sub-tanks are still available right from the get-go, continuing the trend of making X stronger through means other than just defeating the bosses and stealing their weapon.
The X-buster being this strong does reduce the effectiveness of the weapons gained from bosses, which is kind of a shame. If I don't use them in the stages themselves (which I generally don't anyway unless they have traversal options) and also not for the bosses, then... what purpose do they even have? I normally don't really talk about the weapons unless there are some very good ones that I would use outside of boss battles, like the Metal Blades from Mega Man 2, or just complete garbage weapons. Admittedly, I forgot to talk about them in Mega Man X for the exact same reason, but that game actually has some really nice charged-up variants like Sting Chameleon's weapon. This game though... I mean, I like Flame Stag's charged-up variant because it can be chained together with the dash for extra airtime, but that situation happens so infrequent to the point where the dash simply is all I need. Aside from that, I can't say I've really bothered using any of them. And yes, before you ask: Crystal Snail, yet again, has the worst charged up variant. It slows time which sounds great! ...But it slows X down too. Wow.
And just like last time, I can still assure you that the music is good. I prefer X's soundtrack personally, but the opening stage in this game as well as X-Hunters stage 1 are really good. Could play them on endless repeat and still not get tired of them.'
- Doesn't fix what isn't broken, making it very similar to X but still very good too.
- Overall good set of Mavericks... aside from Crystal Snail.
- One of the best upgrades to the armour the X series has seen.
Negatives:
- The X-buster being so strong reduces the effectiveness of all other weapons, making them almost pointless to get.
- No actual different ending gained from the X-Hunters.
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''After a very successful game, the Mega Man X series of games continuing was pretty much an inevitability. And as it goes with the Blue Bomber's previous adventures, sequels would never really mess too much with the established formula. Mega Man X2 is no such exception, being a new game with new stages, new mavericks, and a few quality of life improvements. So perhaps unsurprisingly, I'm not really going to talk about the core game mechanics since they are literally no different from Mega Man X, and instead focus on what this game does differently. That will probably be a disappointment to some as that means you need to be familiar with how Mega Man X plays, but there's only so many times I can say that X can dash, jump and shoot without me wanting to lose it. I can definitely recommend you to read my Mega Man X review for that. This is totally not a shameless plug, I swear.
Mega Man X2 has another set of 8 Mavericks to deal with, following the trend of the first game by designing them after animals like an ostrich and a centipede. It's a good set of mavericks overall, with some nice highs like Magna Centipede and Morph Moth being my favourites. But... it also has Crystal Snail. The less I say about Crystal Snail, the better. They all have good battles too with none really suffering from the ''Spark Mandrill Syndrome'', meaning that they definitely take massive damage from their weakness but won't end up staggered... well, aside from Crystal Snail. Stop ruining my compliments Crystal Snail, I swear. But aside from Mavericks, there are now also a few other robots running amok, namely the X hunters. They are additional bosses that randomly appear in any still-unfinished stage after two mavericks have been defeated, and they need to be defeated to get a uhh... slightly better ending? It changes literally nothing aside from an extra boss battle near the end if you don't defeat them, which arguably makes them fun not to defeat. I usually defeat them just because I like to though, and I'd rather take three unique boss battles over one right before the final boss.
Them randomly deciding in what stage they appear might annoy some people as it gives them the idea that they can't charter their own road, because they stop appearing after every Maverick is defeated, but I personally never really cared too much about it. I always forget the weakness chart for this game anyway, and often a charged buster is just as strong as the weakness of the boss. Actually, Mega Man X2 probably has some of my favourite armour upgrades in general, since the Mega Buster becomes so good with its two consecutive powerful shots, and the boots now give a dash in the air that can be chained together with Flame Stag's charged-up weapon for an extra dose of fun. The helmet reveals secrets which is not bad, although I prefer the X3 incarnation of that upgrade which I'll get to next review. Meanwhile, all other collectables like heart containers and sub-tanks are still available right from the get-go, continuing the trend of making X stronger through means other than just defeating the bosses and stealing their weapon.
The X-buster being this strong does reduce the effectiveness of the weapons gained from bosses, which is kind of a shame. If I don't use them in the stages themselves (which I generally don't anyway unless they have traversal options) and also not for the bosses, then... what purpose do they even have? I normally don't really talk about the weapons unless there are some very good ones that I would use outside of boss battles, like the Metal Blades from Mega Man 2, or just complete garbage weapons. Admittedly, I forgot to talk about them in Mega Man X for the exact same reason, but that game actually has some really nice charged-up variants like Sting Chameleon's weapon. This game though... I mean, I like Flame Stag's charged-up variant because it can be chained together with the dash for extra airtime, but that situation happens so infrequent to the point where the dash simply is all I need. Aside from that, I can't say I've really bothered using any of them. And yes, before you ask: Crystal Snail, yet again, has the worst charged up variant. It slows time which sounds great! ...But it slows X down too. Wow.
And just like last time, I can still assure you that the music is good. I prefer X's soundtrack personally, but the opening stage in this game as well as X-Hunters stage 1 are really good. Could play them on endless repeat and still not get tired of them.'
1995
Positives:
- Ignoring all the fluff, it is still a good Mega Man X game at its core.
- The armour is really good, and the chips are a nice idea as well.
- Some really good music pieces.
Negatives:
- Everything surrounding Zero and completion.
- Difficulty has been ramped up by a lot--and not in a good way.
- Bosses suffer very highly from being stunlocked.
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''Last time I reviewed Mega Man X2, which is a game I very much enjoy but didn't really have much to say about due to how similar it is to the first game, with a few improvements- and changes here and there. At first glance, you would think the same would apply to Mega Man X3. The graphics- and gameplay both look the exact same, but perhaps surprisingly, I have a lot to say about this game... both for the better, and for the worse.
So first of all is the overall game structure, which obviously hasn't changed much: fight 8 Mavericks, fight not-Sigma, game is over. This set of Mavericks is... slightly unremarkable however. I don't really dislike any of them, but there's also not really any of them that I really like. It probably also doesn't help that every single one of the Mavericks in this game suffer from the ''Spark Mandrill Syndrome'', either being staggered for a bit or put into an easily looping pattern. It makes them utterly pathetic, which is a contrast to when you fight them without their weakness because for whatever reason, Mega Man X3 decided to increase the damage X takes by a wide margin. It often only takes two touches from a boss to lose a life, and that is very easy to do. It makes these bosses either a nightmare- or a breeze, without much in-between. Until you get the armour upgrades and heart tanks I guess, but they too are surprisingly annoying to get with almost all of them being locked behind one upgrade or another. Unlike previous games where you could go in any stage and often leave with at least one of the collectables, the chart you need to follow here is very specific--so much so that it basically counters what I like so much about this system in making X stronger even if a boss is not defeated yet.
It also doesn't help that one of the collectables you absolutely need are the four separate ride armours, but to activate them in stages, you first have to find a single one in Blast Hornet's level... after having defeated Tunnel Rhino, whose stage has collectables hidden behind the buster upgrade and Volt Catfish's level. Revisiting levels is going to be a far more frequent occurrence than other X games. I can also assure you that I have not once met a person who actually cares for the separate ride armours, because the default one is plenty strong enough and the others barely add anything--not to mention that their sole purpose is just to unlock new collectables. The armour upgrades on the other hand, now those are pretty cool. The legs now allow for an upwards dash, the helmet shows a map with secrets when entering a level as well as what levels still have collectables remaining on the select screen, and the body armour reduces damage as usual. The buster really sucks though, with two consecutive charged-up shots becoming a wildly inaccurate wide shot. There are also four chips to further enhance each body part with nice effects like healing when standing still that also refills sub-tanks, but this has been made a bit complicated as you can only have one chip... or all if you had not collected a single one yet before reaching the final stages. It's a nice reward for waiting, but also a massive punch to the face if you didn't know beforehand, which you are unlikely to know anyway.
But if that wasn't complicated enough, just wait until I tell you about everyone's favourite robot: Zero! This game marks his playable debut, and it's one of the worst debuts a playable character has made in any game... ever. Sure, he's fun to play and his Z-saber can do nice damage after charging it up, but the game doesn't actually want you to play as Zero. The moment you even think about it is the moment you lose, because if you lose a life as Zero, he's gone. Forever. And then, there will never ever be a chance to play as Zero again. Convoluted? There's more! You also cannot enter a boss room while playing as Zero as he'll automatically switch out back to X, and if it ends up being a mini-boss room, you cannot switch back to Zero after the mini-boss room for the remainder of the level. So what purpose does Zero really have them? Simple: find returning character Vile in a random Maverick level, kill him but only with his weakness, then go to the second Doppler stage and enter the first boss room where he dies and gives you his weapon. His purpose is literally just to die. And yeah, it's totally logical to be assuming all of this right? Especially entering a boss room where he normally switches out? Thought so as well.
So completion is unnecessarily complicated, that much we've already figured out by now. But let's say that you are not a completionist, what's in it for you? Aside from us never becoming friends, you still have a competent Mega Man X game. I would say it takes a lot to mess up that formula, but Mega Man X6 is the worst game I've ever played so I can't exactly say that, but it at least applies for this game. Like I mentioned before, the armour upgrades are awesome and the controls are for the better because of it. I do like the level design overall, barring some minor issues like the changing level design after beating a Maverick returning from Mega Man X, but very specific and nonsensical. Also, ice physics suck, but what else is new. And for what it's worth, I do like the weapons better in this game than in Mega Man X2--if only because the buster upgrade here is so bad. And the music, oh I love the music so much. Yeah, it has absolute stinkers like Neon Tiger, but it also has absolute bangers like Volt Catfish, the intro stage and Doppler's stage. All three of those are very high up when it comes to my favourite 16-bit music pieces, even if they loop a bit too fast. Why does every compliment I give to X3 end with a ''but''...''
- Ignoring all the fluff, it is still a good Mega Man X game at its core.
- The armour is really good, and the chips are a nice idea as well.
- Some really good music pieces.
Negatives:
- Everything surrounding Zero and completion.
- Difficulty has been ramped up by a lot--and not in a good way.
- Bosses suffer very highly from being stunlocked.
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''Last time I reviewed Mega Man X2, which is a game I very much enjoy but didn't really have much to say about due to how similar it is to the first game, with a few improvements- and changes here and there. At first glance, you would think the same would apply to Mega Man X3. The graphics- and gameplay both look the exact same, but perhaps surprisingly, I have a lot to say about this game... both for the better, and for the worse.
So first of all is the overall game structure, which obviously hasn't changed much: fight 8 Mavericks, fight not-Sigma, game is over. This set of Mavericks is... slightly unremarkable however. I don't really dislike any of them, but there's also not really any of them that I really like. It probably also doesn't help that every single one of the Mavericks in this game suffer from the ''Spark Mandrill Syndrome'', either being staggered for a bit or put into an easily looping pattern. It makes them utterly pathetic, which is a contrast to when you fight them without their weakness because for whatever reason, Mega Man X3 decided to increase the damage X takes by a wide margin. It often only takes two touches from a boss to lose a life, and that is very easy to do. It makes these bosses either a nightmare- or a breeze, without much in-between. Until you get the armour upgrades and heart tanks I guess, but they too are surprisingly annoying to get with almost all of them being locked behind one upgrade or another. Unlike previous games where you could go in any stage and often leave with at least one of the collectables, the chart you need to follow here is very specific--so much so that it basically counters what I like so much about this system in making X stronger even if a boss is not defeated yet.
It also doesn't help that one of the collectables you absolutely need are the four separate ride armours, but to activate them in stages, you first have to find a single one in Blast Hornet's level... after having defeated Tunnel Rhino, whose stage has collectables hidden behind the buster upgrade and Volt Catfish's level. Revisiting levels is going to be a far more frequent occurrence than other X games. I can also assure you that I have not once met a person who actually cares for the separate ride armours, because the default one is plenty strong enough and the others barely add anything--not to mention that their sole purpose is just to unlock new collectables. The armour upgrades on the other hand, now those are pretty cool. The legs now allow for an upwards dash, the helmet shows a map with secrets when entering a level as well as what levels still have collectables remaining on the select screen, and the body armour reduces damage as usual. The buster really sucks though, with two consecutive charged-up shots becoming a wildly inaccurate wide shot. There are also four chips to further enhance each body part with nice effects like healing when standing still that also refills sub-tanks, but this has been made a bit complicated as you can only have one chip... or all if you had not collected a single one yet before reaching the final stages. It's a nice reward for waiting, but also a massive punch to the face if you didn't know beforehand, which you are unlikely to know anyway.
But if that wasn't complicated enough, just wait until I tell you about everyone's favourite robot: Zero! This game marks his playable debut, and it's one of the worst debuts a playable character has made in any game... ever. Sure, he's fun to play and his Z-saber can do nice damage after charging it up, but the game doesn't actually want you to play as Zero. The moment you even think about it is the moment you lose, because if you lose a life as Zero, he's gone. Forever. And then, there will never ever be a chance to play as Zero again. Convoluted? There's more! You also cannot enter a boss room while playing as Zero as he'll automatically switch out back to X, and if it ends up being a mini-boss room, you cannot switch back to Zero after the mini-boss room for the remainder of the level. So what purpose does Zero really have them? Simple: find returning character Vile in a random Maverick level, kill him but only with his weakness, then go to the second Doppler stage and enter the first boss room where he dies and gives you his weapon. His purpose is literally just to die. And yeah, it's totally logical to be assuming all of this right? Especially entering a boss room where he normally switches out? Thought so as well.
So completion is unnecessarily complicated, that much we've already figured out by now. But let's say that you are not a completionist, what's in it for you? Aside from us never becoming friends, you still have a competent Mega Man X game. I would say it takes a lot to mess up that formula, but Mega Man X6 is the worst game I've ever played so I can't exactly say that, but it at least applies for this game. Like I mentioned before, the armour upgrades are awesome and the controls are for the better because of it. I do like the level design overall, barring some minor issues like the changing level design after beating a Maverick returning from Mega Man X, but very specific and nonsensical. Also, ice physics suck, but what else is new. And for what it's worth, I do like the weapons better in this game than in Mega Man X2--if only because the buster upgrade here is so bad. And the music, oh I love the music so much. Yeah, it has absolute stinkers like Neon Tiger, but it also has absolute bangers like Volt Catfish, the intro stage and Doppler's stage. All three of those are very high up when it comes to my favourite 16-bit music pieces, even if they loop a bit too fast. Why does every compliment I give to X3 end with a ''but''...''