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Mega Man Anniversary Collection

It seems like only yesterday that I was riding my bike over to the local video rental place, emptying my jar of pennies onto the store counter, and claiming a copy of Mega Man 2 for the sixth week in a row. Those were good times.

The Mega Man series raised the bar for 2D side-scrollers. It introduced a groundbreaking boss structure, where you could use the power you acquired from one boss to defeat another boss, capitalizing on their weakness — using Metal Man’s Metal Blades to defeat Wood Man, for instance. The series introduced incredible musical themes, which to this day may have single-handedly kept the videogame music remix community going. And, of course, let’s not forget the famously frustrating gameplay. Ask anyone who’s played the Mega Man series and I’m sure they each have their own controller-heaving horror stories. The Quick Man stage alone probably made Nintendo controller manufacturers very, very rich.

But that was a different time. A simpler time, when a 2D character could keep us interested for weeks of gaming. Can the Blue Bomber still cut it in an era of stealth games and online RPG’s?

Enter: Mega Man Anniversary Collection

I heard a few months back that Capcom was going to release this compilation and I’ve been eagerly anticipating it ever since. Included would be the 8 original Mega Man games (1 through 8, from NES to Playstation) as well as two arcade games (only one of which had been previously released in the U.S.), plus a load of other unlockable extras. Finally, the release date arrived. I took a trip out to my local video game shop. I emptied my jar of pennies onto the counter — that’s just the way I do my business, so back off! — and the game was mine.

The first thing to notice is the nifty and efficient menu system they’ve implemented to access each game. Even the menu itself is a throw back to the old times. No fancy 3D animations or super sophisticated pixel shading and dynamic lighting thing-a-majigs. This is a classic-looking 2D menu. The options menus don’t contain a lot, maybe a little more than the usual Mega Man song-and-dance, but then again, the series was never known for its array of options. You either played the game on “normal,” played the game on “hard,” or you went and read a book.

Besides adjusting difficulty, sound effects and music levels, and screen position, the only real noteworthy option is the new Navi Mode. When turned on, this navigation system is present in games 1-7 and will provide you with tips and hints (signified by an exclamation point icon in the bottom left corner) throughout each and every level. Simply hit select when you see the icon and one of the many lovable Mega Man series characters will give you advice on your current stage. This is sometimes helpful, sometimes not. The advice ranges everywhere from how to get through a truly tricky obstacle to “The boss is in the next room. Good luck!” Gee… thank goodness you were here to tell me that, Proto Man…

Another advantage/disadvantage of Navi Mode is the change in music. Turning this mode on will replace some of the classic Mega Man themes with newer, remixed versions. Now, a few of them are decent, but as a fan of the original Mega Man music, I’m inclined to go old school. In general, Navi Mode might be a good thing for those new to the series — and welcome back to Earth, by the way — but for the seasoned gamer, it’s just icing.

Graphically, there isn’t a whole lot to say. There haven’t been any major graphical improvements, and each game seems to be presented as it was when originally released. They may have cleaned the visuals up a bit, but the change isn’t noticeable. The primitive graphics of the earlier games in the series can bring a laugh here and there, but you forget all about that when you start dying a lot.

That brings us to the gameplay, where the real gold is. Imagine all the time you occupied as a kid trying feverishly to get through just one Mega Man game, let alone 8.

“But I’m grown up now, and I’m a better gamer,” you say. “Plus,” you add, “these games are like old and stuff, and old means easier.”

Silly man. Your overconfidence will be your downfall. Bottom line: These games are still challenging and pretty damn frustrating at times. But as irritating as it can seem, veterans should have no trouble jumping into the role again. It’s really amazing how much you remember about the little things. The classic thumb technique — tip of the thumb on the shoot button, middle of it on the jump button. Constantly trying for an extra life or power-up that’s just out of reach when you know, deep down, there’s no chance in hell. And of course the swearing, the swearing, and the swearing…

Luckily, they’ve beautifully transferred the classic NES control scheme to the PS2’s controller. The PS2’s ergonomically friendly controller makes the controls even more natural and possibly better than they ever were originally. Aside from the basic controls, they’ve added some great extras. The L and R buttons now allow you to switch powers in-game in EVERY game, and the triangle button acts as a rapid fire button and comes in handy often. And the PS2 owners are better off in at least one respect. Sources tell me that the GC version has the jump and shoot button-positions SWITCHED AROUND.

Blasphemy. Utter blasphemy.

A very welcomed addition to the compilation is the save system. A sort of “umbrella” auto save system makes it possible to save progress in one game (beaten stages and all), then exit to play another Mega Man game without having to repeat beaten stages when you go back. It’s a very handy super save. For when you’ve had it with Mega Man 4, but still feel up for a little Mega Man 6.

I think the main draw for a title like this is simply the nostalgia of it. You get to see and play the near-complete evolution of a groundbreaking game series all in one disc. From the pioneering first NES Mega Man to the greatly under-appreciated (I believe) Mega Man 8 on the Playstation. True, the series slowly declines in ingenuity and design after Mega Man 3. Don’t get me wrong; I love the series, but when your bosses go from Heat Man and Flash Man to Clown Man and Search Man, someone in the production department has clearly switched to decaf… or hallucinogens.

Obviously, there isn’t a vast amount of replay value, but a devoted gamer will have literally hours and hours of gameplay ahead of him if he wants to complete all 8 games (plus the 2 unlockable arcade games). Completing each game unlocks a number goodies, only some of which are mildly interesting. On the PS2 version, you’re able to unlock an episode from the original TV series (in all its quirky anime glory), artist character sketches, a few new music remixes, and of course the two unreleased arcade games which aren’t all that mind-blowing. One is called POWER Battles, and the other is POWER Fighters. They’re worth checking out, but I found them pretty tiresome. Probably because of all the relentless POWER.

However, with that said, for just 30 bucks, there’s absolutely no reason every hardcore gamer shouldn’t have this in their library. It’s video game history.

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Posted by Andrew on Jul 1st, 2004 and is filed under PS2 Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.

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