Played as part of the Mega Man Anniversary Collection for the Nintendo GameCube.

Considering I have an actual cart for this one, I could just play it on my NES, too. In fact, I would like to at some point, because this is the Mega Man game I grew up with. In fact, it's actually hard for me to remember if I played any of the other NES entries when I was a kid, or if time has warped my perception so badly that memories of watching the Ruby Spears cartoon and owning a two-inch figure of Ice Man has metamorphosed into false nostalgia for games I've never played. Nothing makes me feel like I am in cognitive decline more than Mega Man.

Just as Mega Man the Third introduced the slide, Proto Man, and perennial god boy Rush, Mega Man 4 makes a significant contribution to the overarching series with the inclusion of the charge shot. So major is this change that it's endured as a series staple more than 3's aforementioned contributions, permeating through numerous spin-offs and side series where those do not. I don't think it would be an exaggeration to say it's Mega Man's equivalent of the spin dash.

A brief aside at that mention of Sonic, but in the early 2000s there was a Sonic fan site I frequented that had a looping MIDI on the home page that I kept coming back just to listen to. It had this somewhat haunting intro that opened up into a faster, head-bopping melody. There was no identifiable way to name the track, but there was something strangely familiar about it. One of those things you recognize but cannot place. After all, it had been years since I first heard it and years still until the source would finally click into place. I haven't touched much on the legacy of Mega Man's music in these reviews, but that's because there's so many iconic tracks that the sound of Mega Man might as well be more recognizable than the games themselves. I also just don't find myself to be particularly qualified to talk about music. But just as Mega Man 4 is my favorite in the series, so too is its soundtrack. Like yeah, Crash Man's theme is great and all, but it's no Bright man.

Outside of the introduction of the charge shot, Mega Man 4 is really just more Mega Man, albeit with that "late NES" sharpness. By this point, Capcom knew how to put together a damn good Mega Man game. The stages have a wonderful sense of flow, the weapon powers all feel great and have a good amount of utility, Rush is as useful as he is adorable, and I think they really came out swinging with some of these Robot Master designs. Pharoh Man rules, but have you seen Skull Man? If you look like Skull Man, please contact me. I will buy you literally anything from your Amazon wish list.

As is customary for these reviews, I do need to touch on the way this game handles Mega Man's abilities and boss weaknesses. I did not list the boss order because at this point weaknesses are inscrutable. I've pretty much given up trying to intuit my way through who is weak to what, the only thing bashing my head against the wall accomplishes is making me like these games less. That said, it also feels like weapons need to be employed in a more skillful manner than in previous games. Bosses have invulnerability on some attacks, and the way your weapons operate can at times make it easy to whiff and waste energy. I find this to be a positive. They're still powerful, but rather than utterly steamrolling each boss, victories still feel earned. You get that satisfying sense of overcoming an obstacle along with the smug satisfaction of exploiting a weakness, and it's just perfect. Well, except for Pharoh Man, who gets done dirty worse than any Robot Master in this entire series. I just felt bad about that.

Mega Man 4 also executes another fake out, similar to Mega Man 2's true last "level," or 3's jaunt through four previously completed stages. This time, you get to clear two whole castles. Thankfully, they're both pretty good, and getting a game over doesn't totally reset your progress like it does in Mega Man 3! You are also able to go back and freely explore any beaten levels, though outside of two hidden powers, there's really not much reason to do this. Muted as it is, it's a good idea that Capcom would later build on, becoming an integral element of the X series.

Yeah, ok, nostalgia might be playing a big role in my love for Mega Man 4, but I'm ok with that. I really have to strain to come up with a negative for this game, even though I'm sure your average Backloggd dot com user could divine half a dozen from thin air. Actually, no... wait... I can think of at least one: the final Dr. Wily fight. Stupid asshole just shut off the damn lights, getting killed over here because I keep having the misfortune of just running into this bozo. Can't see shit!

Oh, Kalinka...

Reviewed on Apr 24, 2023


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