The Mega Man of the 90's. Set hundreds of years in the future after the original series that began on the NES, "Mega Man X" reintroduced the franchise for a lot of kids in the 16bit era. While the game retained the original series' bright and colorful look, it was at the same time layered with an edgier art style, darker atmosphere, and a very seriously played story involving rouge robotic special forces units being led by an insane commander out to kill every last human being. You, as Mega Man X, are part of a futuristic police force of sorts known as a Maverick Hunters and it is your mission to take down these insurgents and quell the Maverick threat.

The game wastes very little time throwing you into the mix with one of the best designed introduction levels ever made. The Central Highway intro stage is the very definition of show don't tell. Against the backdrop of a ruined futuristic freeway with an absolute BANGER of a soundtrack, it will teach you to move, jump, blast, and climb your way across stages through some well thought out enemy placement and action sets. The only way I think it falls short is that if you are completely new to the series it doesn't really teach you that you can hold the fire button for a stronger blast but that isn't exactly rocket science so its not that big an issue.

At the end of the intro stage waits Vile: your first boss encounter. This Boba Fett inspired enemy can make short work of you in a deadly Mech suit that is completely invincible to your attacks and in a flash you are in his literal grasp awaiting death. Though scripted, this boss fight serves to establish the story and introduce us to X's best friend Zero, who blasts his way onto the stage with a single blast and a rockin' tune in a now iconic rescue scene. At the end of the encounter you learn that even though you lost the fight you have the potential to grow stronger. X and Zero teleport off and thus the intro ends.

Now the game opens up and you are reintroduced to the familiar stage select layout with all eight bosses free for you to take on as you please. This is where the game starts to truly differentiate itself from the classic series. That line that Zero said about growing stronger? That's an actual game mechanic he's talking about not just a story beat. Across all 8 stages lie various different upgrades to collect and add to your arsenal. Special Weapons received from defeating bosses, Heart Tanks that increase the life bar, Sub Tanks that you can fill up with reserve energy to use when you are in danger, and Armor Parts that expand everything from firepower to how much damage you can tank. The most important part and what really sets Mega Man X apart from what came before being the Leg Parts. These introduce the Dash mechanic. Similar to the original Mega Man's slide, this mechanic is instead mapped to a single button and retains its speed when jumping, allowing you to quickly maneuver through stages when mastered and greatly increasing the pace of the game. Once you get this down you'll find you seldom even use the walk/run option. Whether one sees that as a positive or a negative is up to the player. Lastly, there is also a secret upgrade in the form of an iconic special move from another Capcom franchise waiting to be found. Kind of cryptic to discover but totally worth it if you can find it.

Accompanying all these great new gameplay features are gorgeous 16 bit graphics with animated and colorful sprites modeled after Keiji Inafune's artwork accompanied by vibrant and detailed backgrounds. From snow covered mountains, to robotic forests, and from futuristic power plants to underwater bases, every stage is full of life and personality with rarely a dull moment. But as great as the game looks, it is an undeniable fact that it wouldn't be as highly regarded and memorable as it is if it wasn't for the amazing soundtrack. Every. Single. Song in this game is a work of art that fits each stage's theme and makes the gameplay and visuals come together in an explosive way. It's an absolute delight that has to be experienced to fully appreciate. Composed by Setsuo Yamamoto, Yuki Iwai, Toshihiko Toriyama, Yuko Takehara, and Makoto Tomozawa, the music of Mega Man X has to be one of the greatest collection of songs in the 16bit generation. Maybe of any generation. You decide.

All this comes together in a package that is short, sweet, memorable and immensely re-playable. Mega Man X stands up there with SNES titans like Super Mario World, Chrono Trigger, Super Metroid, and Super Castlevania IV. It is well worth your time if you are a fan of the 16bit era. Putting it simply this game is just a damn good time. Give it a whirl.