Topic: General Mega Man Discussion Thread

[Inccubus]

Recover, study, possibly rebuild.


The update for SFxMM is coming out Friday afternoon. Now equipped with password feature and multiple bug fixes.

http://www.themmnetwork.com/2013/01/14/street-fighter-x-mega-man-update-coming-this-friday/

[X]

Maybe now I'll get a chance to play it. for some unknown reason both my controller and keyboard wouldn't work with the game. At all.

[Ratty]

So I've never been a big Mega Man fan, I respect the series as one that's always been well made with solid gameplay, good visuals and excellent music. Though the gameplay doesn't appeal to me personally, that's just me. I am curious about something though and would like for you guys/gals who are fans to tell me something -Does the lore appeal to you?  If so, what is it about the Mega Man universe that makes you feel invested in and attached to it? Is it something that you got into when you were kid, or more recently?

I'm not saying the lore (or anything else in the series for that matter) is bad by any means, just that I've never "got" the appeal there and would enjoy hearing thoughts on it from fans of the series. Because in my experience most series I'm a big fan of, Castlevania, Sly Cooper, even Doom, I feel a certain fascination with and pull towards the world and characters it lets me explore.

[crisis]

I first got into MegaMan when I was a little kid, when MM1 first came out, so I've been with the series since it's inception. Although I kinda fell off once MM4->onward were released, I gained other interests, etc. The classic NES series were and still are the hardest to beat for me.

Once MegaMan X for SNES came out, that's when my love for the series reignited. The "lore" is what fascinated me, and for those that are clueless about the entire plot of MM here it is, with all the finer details left out:

Classic MM series (MM1-MM10), takes place sometime in the year 20XX (this is purposely left ambiguous), so it's not that far ahead of our time. Dr. Wily & Dr. Light, once colleagues, have a disagreement, causing them to become rivals. Many many robots would soon be created by both scientists, the first being "Protoman." Through a series of conflicts Wily and his Robot Masters are continuously defeated by Light's champion, ROCKMAN! As time passes, both scientists' age catches up to them. After many failed attempts Wily convinces himself that he has finally created a robot that's the "strongest in the universe," one that will finally defeat MegaMan and Light, much to Bass' (his previous attempt at "1-upping MM") disbelief. This robot is Zero. Light is hard at work at his own champion, MegaMan X. Capcom till this day will neither confirm nor deny that MegaMan and MegaMan X are the same robots (there's evidence for both cases that they are different, and are the same), instead rather leave it up to the fan's imagination to come to a conclusion. Light seals X away for "the world isn't ready," and Wily presumably does the same (we never actually see Zero's sealing)

100 years pass and the year is now 21XX. Dr. Cain discovers Dr. Light's lab and reactivates X, thus sparking a revolution in robotics since X can "think, feel, and make his own decisions." Sigma is Dr. Cain's ultimate "Reploid" and is almost seen as X's equal. After a while Reploids begin to go "Maverick" and turn on their human creators. A special team is formed, called "Maverick Hunters," that are designed to hunt down & "retire" said Mavericks. One day Sigma (the leader of the Maverick Hunters) and his team find a warehouse where an unstable and extremely violent Maverick is let loose. Sigma confronts the Maverick alone, and it turns out to be Zero. Sigma easily outmatches Zero, until Zero suddenly gains the upperhand and severs Sigma's arm. Zero proceeds to pound on Sigma until Zero is stopped by an extremely painful noise in his head, signified by a large W appearing on his forehead. Zero, being distracted by this pain, is then knocked out by Sigma. Sigma leaves the warehouse, instructing his teammates that they bring Zero to Dr. Cain's lab to be studied. This fateful fight would prove to spark countless decades of bloodshed and violence, since this was the event that Sigma became infected with the "Maverick Virus" (which Zero was the progenitor of, originally created by Wily).
Some time after, Sigma goes berserk and wages war on humanity. X, becoming a Maverick Hunter, goes after Sigma and his allies (former Maverick Hunters-turned Mavericks). Zero has been "cured" of his affliction by this time, and joins X in his battle. The remainder of the X series consists of the devastating effect of the virus on the planet, Sigma being literally transformed INTO the virus. During these "Maverick Wars," Sigma comes in contact with "the ghost of Wily" (I presume it's via holographic projections from one of his many devices, same way Light communicates to X from beyond the grave) and tells him that the Virus purifies Zero and he must be reunited with it, to fulfill his destiny of defeated MegaMan X and thus gaining ultimate victory over Dr. Light. Zero becomes momentarilly infected but his good will refuses, thus thwarting Wily's plan and X defeats Sigma. However, the Maverick Wars continue.

The humans desperately try to find a way to stop this madness. One human develops "Cyber-Elves," useful programs that serve to help reverse a Reploid's Maverick state. Another human proposes that instead of reversing the Maverick State peacefully, they [Reploids] should all be destroyed. There is a disagreement between the two (sound familiar?). The other human designs the "Mother Elf," through it's power X uses to end the Maverick Wars. Zero seals himself away once the Wars has ended, due to the danger he posed (and it's pretty much all originated from him). The other human, a man called Dr. Weil, enraged that his idea was rejected, steals the Mother Elf and curses it, transforming it into the "Dark Elf." Dr. Weil steals Zero's body and creates a powerful shell over it, calling him Omega, the "Devil Reploid." Thus begins the "Elf Wars," a 4-year long conflict that eliminates 90% or so humans/reploids alike. However, Zero's mind was removed from his body, and the other scientist created a duplicate body for him to occupy. X and Zero with their combined efforts defeat Omega and exile him to space, ending the Elf Wars. X seals the Dark Elf within his own body, so such a evil will always be contained. Zero seals himself away as well. The humans of earth have a trial for Dr. Weil and punish him by putting him in a cyborg body, so he will never die, and "eternal punishment." The year is now 22XX.

Ciel, descendant of the original scientist that created the Mother Elf, awakens Zero to help her stop Copy-X, a deformed copy of the original X that has gone rogue. Through a series of events the Dark Elf is eventually released from X's body, triggering Dr. Weil & Omega's return from exile. Dr. Weil seeks to reunite the Dark Elf with Omega, for revenge on the humans. Zero defeats Omega, thus destroying his original body in the process. Dr. Weil, having seized control of the government of the time, continues to hunt down Reploids. He builds a giant space station, named "Ragnarok," that would obliterate literally everything on the planet. Through a series of battles Zero sacrifices himself to finally stop Dr. Weil, killing them both aboard the Ragnarok and saving the planet from destruction.

Several hundred years pass, and the planet is recovered from the devastation of the previous centuries. Humans and Reploids begin to work together in harmony, and even begin to literally become one another (humans trading their bodies for Reploid bodies, and vice-versa). The line between human and Reploid begins to blur. Pieces of Ragnarok remain, however, and cause Maverick outbreaks in various cities. It turns out after the events of the Zero/Weil battle, Ciel created various "Biometals," devices that contain the data/souls of the fallen heroes (X, Zero, etc.) A select few can access their power and be "reborn" as X or Zero. A bunch of battles take place to combat those that became corrupted by the remaining pieces of Ragnarok. Eventually the heroes win, but with one of the leaders of the government at the time (Master Thomas), declaring that despite all that has happened, "the world must be reset."

Thousands of years later, a "blue boy" is discovered by Barrel & Roll Casket. They go on various adventures to find energy, fighting off various pirates that seek the same energy for their own selfish means. To be continued when I get home...

[RichterB]

So I've never been a big Mega Man fan, I respect the series as one that's always been well made with solid gameplay, good visuals and excellent music. Though the gameplay doesn't appeal to me personally, that's just me. I am curious about something though and would like for you guys/gals who are fans to tell me something -Does the lore appeal to you?  If so, what is it about the Mega Man universe that makes you feel invested in and attached to it? Is it something that you got into when you were kid, or more recently?

I'm not saying the lore (or anything else in the series for that matter) is bad by any means, just that I've never "got" the appeal there and would enjoy hearing thoughts on it from fans of the series. Because in my experience most series I'm a big fan of, Castlevania, Sly Cooper, even Doom, I feel a certain fascination with and pull towards the world and characters it lets me explore.

Interesting question. I got into Mega Man at a very young age with Mega Man 2. As far as lore, here's what's been most appealing for me (and it evolves, as you'll see). Basically you have two rival scientists (Dr. Light and Dr. Wily) creating or manipulating robotics toward good and evil. Mega Man is turned into a champion of justice, while his initial brethren, created for various jobs in society, are corrupted by Dr. Wily to be combat machines. As the story goes along, Dr. Wily keeps trying to surpass Dr. Light and Mega Man with more and more focused war machines through one means or another, sometimes hiding behind disguises or extortion of other scientists. Meanwhile, Mega Man is continually tested to uphold justice, even as his patience wanes with Wily's antics. In the meantime, you have mysteries during a number of Wily's schemes, like a new robot showing up out of nowhere, including Mega Man's brother, Proto Man. Mega Man's brother comes across as sort of a mentor and anti-hero all at once, challenging and helping Mega Man, and its interesting to see these two interplay. Additionally, there are robots like Bass, who have been convinced that they are stronger than Mega Man, and that they must prove that at any cost. Now, it sort of a gameplay mechanic, but it's also a part of the lore, is the logic of rock-paper-scissors. I like how the world is set up with some sort of internal logic that everything has a strength and weakness against something else. The logic goes into the character designs, too, which fit their function or evolution as a specific type of robot (IE: Gutsman for construction, Bombman for demolition; Clashman as an upgrade of Bombman, Drillman as acombination of the Bombman and Clashman technology, etc). There are certain world and character motifs carried through, too, like the jewels on the robots or the futuristic cityscapes.

As for evolution, the way the story moves from Classic saga to X saga and X saga to Zero saga is fascinating, as well. The stories become thicker and darker with mysteries and moral dilemmas of robotic self-awareness. In X saga, you have Sigma, once a hero fight against Zero, once a villain. Eventually, this arrangement flips, and Zero becomes the hero and Sigma becomes a revolutionary. In the middle of it is X, an ancient next-gen robot that is the model on which the modern robots were created, who has an attachment to both Sigma and Zero, and must make a choice. Also, he wants to become stronger, like Zero, but is unsure if he can, and his creator, Dr. Light, is afraid what he will become if he reaches his full strength. There's a lot of interesting stuff.

The gameplay and art direction is really what makes it all come together, though.

Sadly, like Castlevania, Mega Man has lost its way and is in a dark period.

[Sumac]

I played all NES MegaMan games and MegaMan 7 and X on the SNES. I tryed to like this series, but after three games it felt stale and boring for me. The only games I genuinely like are MegaMan 1 and 3 on NES.

[crisis]

ok i'm home. I'm still halfway through MMLegends 2 so I'm afraid I can't give a full synopsis on it's story. All you need to know is that all the games (EXCEPT for Battle Network & Star Force) are connected, a long-running timeline. MM-MMX-MMZ-MMZX-MML. Battle Network/Star Force are set in alternate universes with no connection to the main timeline. We also know a lot of vital information through the release of various sourcebooks, an idea Konami has yet to capitalize on with Castlevania. Sourcebooks serve to answer a lot of unanswered questions & reveal a lot about the reasoning behind several design choices and whatnot.

So the lore is very rich with a lot going on behind the scenes, the games are action-paced and good platforming. Excellent music and the bosses have their own personality (for the most part). In my own mind the Castlevania series takes place before the MM series (obviously) lol.

[Flame]

Once MegaMan X for SNES came out, that's when my love for the series reignited. The "lore" is what fascinated me, and for those that are clueless about the entire plot of MM here it is, with all the finer details left out:

But the finer details are what makes it so much fun! Stuff Like power sources and shit! Did you know most of the robots in Mega Man are solar powered, with the exception of Protoman, who is Nuclear Powered?

Im gonna just go all nerd on this.

Dr. Wily & Dr. Light, once colleagues, have a disagreement, causing them to become rivals.

Actually, them being colleagues is an invention by the localization team. They went to the same university, but were never colleagues professionally. Light always got the fame and admiration and accolades, while Wily, who is, make no mistake- just as much of a genius, was always the "number 2", having to live in Light's shadow.

 

Many many robots would soon be created by both scientists, the first being "Protoman." Through a series of conflicts Wily and his Robot Masters are continuously defeated by Light's champion, ROCKMAN!

Just because I LOVE finer details, but don't want to just repeat everything you said... ill just add to it. K?
Protoman, (also known as Blues in Japan) Built by Dr. Light, was the very first autonomous Android with humanlike thought created. (hence the name) He had a defect in his energy system however, but did not trust Dr. Light, fearing that were he repaired, he might lose his individuality. He ran away from Light, eventually collapsing from his defect. Wily came across him, and seeing the defect, decided to repair him, replacing his former Solar power reactor, with a Nuclear reactor instead. he also gave him combat capabilities, and gave him a helmet with shades, so Light would not recognize him. Protoman thus helped Wily, out of gratitude, for a while, doing his bidding. Unfortunately however, replacing his power source did not fix the defect in his energy system, thus making him unstable. Wily gave him a strong shield, so that he would have better protection from attack, since, as Protoman himself once said, "one wrong hit in the right place" could vaporize him and his immediate surroundings due to the nature of his nuclear reactor. Light, moved on, and made two more robots, Rock, and Roll, intending to keep them for himself as his surrogate children. as such, they were built in the image of such. Roll did housework, and Rock helpe him in the lab. he went on to create 6 more robots, all with industrial purposes, such as Cutman, a logging robot, and Gutsman, a construction robot, or Bombman, a demolition robot, etc.

Wily, finally deciding on a plan of action decided he would get his recognition by taking over the world. To this end, from the insight he gained of Light's robots via his repair of Protoman, he reprogrammed Light's robots to his will, and had them turn on Humanity, along with many other robots under him. Feeling a sense of duty to defeat his "brothers", Rock volunteered to stop them, and Light therefore converted him into a Combat robot, where he became known as "Rockman", (or Mega Man outside of Japan)

As time passes, both scientists' age catches up to them. After many failed attempts Wily convinces himself that he has finally created a robot that's the "strongest in the universe," one that will finally defeat MegaMan and Light, much to Bass' (his previous attempt at "1-upping MM")disbelief.

Just to add, Bass is essentially Wily's answer to Light's Mega Man. Mega Man is Light's "super fighting robot" and Bass is Wily's imitation of that idea.

 

Capcom till this day will neither confirm nor deny that MegaMan and MegaMan X are the same robots (there's evidence for both cases that they are different, and are the same), instead rather leave it up to the fan's imagination to come to a conclusion.

No, it has been confirmed before, (WAY back, mind you) that they are NOT the same. X is NOT Rock. They are two entirely different beings.

Light seals X away for "the world isn't ready," and Wily presumably does the same (we never actually see Zero's sealing)

Just as a tidbit- Zero was sealed away mainly because when Wily activated him, he discovered that Zero's cognitive program contained a flaw that caused him to be not only excessively violent and destructive, but to be unwilling to obey orders. SO, Wily sealed him away. The reason he never went back to correct the flaw is unknown, though it is possible he simply never got the chance.

 

"the ghost of Wily" (I presume it's via holographic projections from one of his many devices, same way Light communicates to X from beyond the grave)

not quite. take it as you will, but when asked about it, Inafune stated that Wily was "brought back by the Virus".

There is also overwhelming evidence to conclude that Serges from X2, and Isoc from X6, are actually housing Wily's consciousness. (Isoc therefore being the old man Sigma mentions in X5)

and tells him that the Virus purifies Zero and he must be reunited with it, to fulfill his destiny of defeated MegaMan X and thus gaining ultimate victory over Dr. Light. Zero becomes momentarilly infected but his good will refuses, thus thwarting Wily's plan and X defeats Sigma. However, the Maverick Wars continue.

Actually, Zero has always been infected. I assume you mean the fight between X and Zero, although the actual scenario as followed by the timeline,  is of Zero NOT going Maverick. However, Zero has always been a carrier and spreader of the Virus himself. Him and Sigma were infected at the same time during their fight, from Zero's capsule, which had actually been the containment source for the Virus.

Dr. Weil steals Zero's body

he actually obtained it perfectly legally. He asked the Government to use the body, since it was immune to the Virus, and they gave it to him. it was once he created Omega that he turned on the government and unleashed Omega upon all who opposed him.

 

the other scientist created a duplicate body for him to occupy.

probably semantics, but we dont know the circumstances surrounding Zero's copy body. We don't know who exactly made it. It was not the same person who created Cyber Elves.

The humans of earth have a trial for Dr. Weil and punish him by putting him in a cyborg body, so he will never die, and "eternal punishment." The year is now 22XX.

Just to elaborate, they illegally punish him WITHOUT a trial. He was essentially attacked by a lynch mob of survivors of the war, who after giving him an immortal regenerative body, exile him into the wastelands his war created. By then, there is really only ONE last remaining bastion for Humanity, the rest of the earth is a wasteland. He is cast out into this, so as to experience eternal death. Always dying, but never being able to fully die and end his suffering.

Ciel, descendant of the original scientist that created the Mother Elf, awakens Zero to help her stop Copy-X, a deformed copy of the original X that has gone rogue.

Again, just for clarity, when X sealed Dark Elf within his body, his soul was pushed out and split into 5, 4 of which were used to create Copy X's 4 guardians, (classified as "X-Bioroids") and Copy X, was initially intended to be a replacement body for X himself, but he refused to come back, and thus they instead turned the shell into a copy to replace him, so that the people would not despair that their savior (and then ruler) was no longer. His going rogue, was essentially caused by a naivete, lack of experience, and massive ego. Not to mention a massive chip on his shoulder. he decides that to solve the energy crisis and keep Humans happy, he will start to indiscriminately execute Reploids, since they are big energy users, thus creating an oppressive regime against them. 

He builds a giant space station, named "Ragnarok," that would obliterate literally everything on the planet.

just a note on the space station and all that, one of the main plot points of Zero 4, is that Nature has once again started to grow outside of Neo Arcadia, the previously mentioned "last remaining utopia". When the space colony from X5 crashed, it's environmental system survived and began to cultivate nature all around the area. So Weil, naturally, wants to destroy it so all must live under his reign.

Several hundred years pass,

semantics, but 200 years, to be exact.

 

(humans trading their bodies for Reploid bodies, and vice-versa)

to clarify, Humans gain robotic cyborg bodies, while Reploids gain lifespans.

Thousands of years later, a "blue boy" is discovered by Barrel & Roll Casket.

Barrel is the one who discovers him. On one of his adventures in forbidden, (and un-enterable) ruins, he discovers a baby within a stasis field, accompanied by a robotic monkey (just roll with it) he raises the kid, along with his granddaughter Roll, after her parents disappear in an accident.

They go on various adventures to find energy,

to clarify, this future world is mostly water, with small islands housing towns. the energy source is provided by crystals, which are obtained from ancient ruins and the like, thus establishing ruin hunting as a profitable business. (which Barrel used to do when he was young, and that which the boy he found, he has raised to do) f

To be continued when I get home...

Ill continue!

The boy is named Rock. (Mega Man in the US translations) he is essentially a kind of cyborg. to elaborate, although technology seems to have regressed to pseudo-21'st century, (aside from things like massive airships and the power source, most things seem very modern day commonplace) technology regarding the body still seems advanced, as it is possible to become a cybor and replace your body parts. ruin hunters, (called Diggers) often do this, to better aid them. Barrel himself has robotic eyes and ears, and Rock, also has an entirely cybernetic body, which he can interchange with a blue armor he uses while Digging. with this armor equipped, he can replace parts such as his arm, with weapons and tools. Roll meanwhile, acts as his navigator, using radar and such to guide him through ruins that are often found deep under most islands and the outskirts of towns. The robot monkey meanwhile, (called Data) acts, gameplaywise, as a save point. strangely, Rock is the only one capable of understanding what the robot says.

Within these ruins are rogue robots called "reaverbots", which attack all intruders, but which have no basis in society, seeming to be leftovers from whatever civilization previously lived on the planet. Eventually, Rock and Roll make their way to the center of some complex ruins, to discover and accidentally open a capsule containing what appears to be a pleasant man with purple hair and a primitively robotic floating body and limbs. This person, (called Juno) recognizes Rock, and identifies him as "Mega Man Trigger", a "Purifier Unit, first class), and proceeds to thank him for awakening him, and reveals that it is his duty to monitor the population of the island, the people, whom he refers to as "Carbons", and prevent them from reproducing beyond a certain limit. Once they do, it is his job to "purge" the Island, killing all on it. This job continues every time the population exceeds a certain limit. Eventually, Rock catches up to Juno deep within the ruins, where they do battle. All the while, far up in space, a probe is released from an abandoned satellite and descends over the town, prepared to purge it. Once Juno is defeated and destroyed, Data steps in, and commands the "system" to interrupt the command given by Juno, and declares that under suspicion of malfunction, Juno was terminated, and Rock will assume Juno's duties until he petitions for guidance later.  The probe retracts, and acknowledges the command. Data tells Rock that he cannot tell him anything yet, but will do so in due time.

The next adventure revolves around Barret and his former digger partner, setting up an expedition to the mysterious siland on which Rock was found. It is protected by severe weather, but Rock manages to penetrate, and after defeating more reaverbots, discovers a stasis field with two strange people in it. They have dark skin, green hair, and wear strange clothes. They are taken back to the ship, where the people on board, Barrel and his friend included, decide they must be Ancients, the previous inhabitors of the world and the people the ruins are left from.

Long story short, they are not actually ancients, but part of the same system as Juno, and try to do the same thing, that is, "purge the carbons". this time however, Rock learns more about his past. he himself was part of that ancient system, as a "purifier unit", a unit that hunted down and terminated rogue machines and other units. (sort of like the Maverick Hunters of the Mega Man X series)


Humanity had left the earth, and established a paradise on the artificial moon called "Elysium". they did not die, they did not need, and they had no wants. it was utopia. They had various robots as well, who maintained the system and the planet. Juno, like Rock, and the two"Ancients" are of these robots. However, all the Humans eventually died out, And "The Master" a Human who had lived thousands of years, and was the creator of the system, decided that they System itself had crown too cold and sterile, and that Humanity had lost essentially, their Humanity. The population of the planet, "Carbons" were artificial Humans created by the people on Elysium. The Master decided that they were truly Human, and asked Rock, Mega Man Trigger, to take him there. He cannot survive outside of Elysium, but before dying, he orders Rock to destroy the system in it's entirety, and gives him his genetic sample, since, once the last Human had died, the world would be purged of all Carbons and Humans would be re-cloned from a massive genetic library. Having The Master's genetic code would therefore make him harder to attack, since it would mean risking the genetic Code. Hoe does however, eventually fight to a standstill, with one of those two ancients they had found, named Sera, who was the unit in charge of the systems on Elysium, damaging both severely. Trigger to survive, downloads his memory (and the genetic sample) into Data, the robot monkey, and resets his body to regenerate, thus resetting his body to that of an infant. The unit that had been in charge of the planet's systems, (She was named Yuna) and had declared herself neutral. She seals both away, until Barrel eventually found the boy and raised him.

Sera after showing her true colors, returns to Elysium and plans to finish what went undone since their final battle, and Rock follows. They fight and Sera is defeated, though not killed- although she learns of Rock's intentions and the Master's dying wish, finally understanding it and seeing Rock's point of view. However, Rock, Sera, and Yuna, are left stranded on Elysium with no means of escape. back on the planet, Roll vows to get him back, and her and Tron, one of the pirates that you fight multiple times across the two games- who had grown infatuated with Rock, try time and time again, to build a rocket to Elysium. When i mentioned technology had regressed, I should have mentioned, there is no space travel either.

And thats really where the Mega Man timeline ends, since the third Legends game was cancelled.

As you can see, yes, I love the lore. Im a big sci fi guy, and the idea of robots and such always fascinated me. I just liked how it was presented by Capcom, and Mega Man has been present in my entertainment since i was very little,

[crisis]

No, it has been confirmed before, (WAY back, mind you) that they are NOT the same. X is NOT Rock. They are two entirely different beings.

Why though? What's stopping Rock from being X, just "upgraded" to have free will? Is it simply because Inafune or [Capcom employee] says so in an article/interview? Or is there some plot element that forbids it, or is there a scene that shows Rock walking around while X is being built? I'm just curious, because I don't see how them being the same contradicts anything. Unless a sourcebook has a factoid I overlooked that proves they're 2 different beings (and we all know we can't argue what a sourcebook says, even if it contradicts/changes what a game may say in certain cases but lets not get into that)

Either way, I like the idea of Rock being X because in X5, when Sigma says "there's someone other than me.. who hates you.." seems to indicate that Wily believes X to be the original MegaMan. Why would he harbor such hatred for X if he isn't his original nemesis? Either he's misinformed, or really knows that they're the same. Despite that X is and will always be seen as MegaMan's successor, it's hard for me to believe Light would suddenly shut down his "son" in favor of a "new, improved" version. The sad fact is we don't know what MegaMan's ultimate fate is after 20XX, UNLESS he lives on as MMX. If X & Rock aren't the same, then what happened to Rock? Why can they say they're not the same yet leave the question "So what happened to Rock?" unanswered (unless they did answer it & I'm just clueless)? Stuff like that baffles me, but it is Capcom we're talking about. I know that creators can say whatever they want and we have to accept it cuz it's canon, but sometimes it's best to go with what we think is right, such as.. Han shooting first lol

Anyway nice synopsis on the entire MM story. I skipped the tidbits about Legends cuz as I said I'm still working my way through that game. I'm still struggling with these model kits that I NEED to get built, because they're just sitting on my shelf collecting dust. Here's the latest:


(look how small Zero is, lol!)
I keep reading that D-Arts Zero Mk II has "issues," I don't know if I should buy it or not

[crisis]

i have discovered some incredible MegaMan Zero artwork 

i guess i should make due on my promise eh

(click to show/hide)

Anyone have any idea when this artbook is coming out? Has anyone here even heard of it?

(click to show/hide)

[Flame]

Why though? What's stopping Rock from being X, just "upgraded" to have free will? Is it simply because Inafune or [Capcom employee] says so in an article/interview? Or is there some plot element that forbids it, or is there a scene that shows Rock walking around while X is being built? I'm just curious, because I don't see how them being the same contradicts anything. Unless a sourcebook has a factoid I overlooked that proves they're 2 different beings (and we all know we can't argue what a sourcebook says, even if it contradicts/changes what a game may say in certain cases but lets not get into that)

Source material. Capcom used to have a Japanese bi yearly magazine called Club Capcom. In it, they did a preview of Rockman X, and interviewed the staff.

http://kobun20.interordi.com/2010/07/05/rockman-x-origins-2/

"Q: How is this connected to Rockman?

A: The new “Rockman X” is, to put it simply, a game that is set in the same world as the “Rockman” that appears on the Famicom. Only, the “Rockman” time period is set in 20XX A.D., while “Rockman X” takes place in 21XX. That is, “X” is set in a slightly later era.

Our protagonist this time is X, who is of course an entirely different person from Rockman. He’ll still have the Rockbuster on his left hand, the helmet, and everything that’s come to be associated with Rockman, but he is in fact a separate character. He is merely inheriting the world stage of the “Rockman” series, and that means the same familiar types of enemy characters will be around as well. Please think of this as new series set further along in the same universe."

Either way, I like the idea of Rock being X because in X5, when Sigma says "there's someone other than me.. who hates you.." seems to indicate that Wily believes X to be the original MegaMan. Why would he harbor such hatred for X if he isn't his original nemesis?

Now that's silly. Let me ask you this: Why would he NOT hate X? X is still a Dr. Light creation. More specifically, he is Rock's successor, and Dr. Light is still the one who gets all the credit for his magnificent groundbreaking reploid.

Im more surprised you did not mention that "comrade" line of Sigma's in X5, in which he mentions his ally used to be a "comrade" of X's. Something which is in fact just a mistranslation, due most likely to vague japanese writing that wouldnt translate well or something.

Despite that X is and will always be seen as MegaMan's successor

No arguing that. Mega Man is not a "name" it is a title. X inherits that title from Rock.

 

it's hard for me to believe Light would suddenly shut down his "son" in favor of a "new, improved" version.

It's even harder for me to believe he would strip Rock down to his bare bones, change his brain, and erase his memory of who he is and completely change his name. X is not named "Rock". he is named simply X. Rockman/Mega Man is merely his title. He is a Mega Man. the title of the champion who protects the weak. When X is no longer able to carry on the fight in the Zero series, Zero carries on, protecting those X believed in. it's not called "Mega Man" Zero for nothing. Zero is the unofficial inheritor of the title of "Mega Man" during his tenure in the Zero series, IMO.

If X & Rock aren't the same, then what happened to Rock?

Who knows? We DO know ONE possibility however. In one of the games, One of the gameboy Mega Man games, Wily steals a time machine. He goes to the future, and finds that in that future, his future self had actually reformed and abandoned crime. He also discovers that as such, Mega Man had stopped being "Mega Man", and disarmed, returning to his civilian life as Rock. He convinces himself to join his past self, and together, they kidnap the defenseless Rock, reprogram him, and turn him into a Wily combat robot called "Quint", sending him back in time to kill Mega Man. Mega man defeats Quint, Quint dies So that is ONE possible future for Mega Man. Becoming Quint. Although it is unlikely, seeing as how knowledge of the future probably altered the timeline.

Another theory, which I myself am somewhat fond of, is that he left with Du at some point, to continue fighting evil in outer space. contrived? absolutely. But it's not TOO far fetched.

Why can they say they're not the same yet leave the question "So what happened to Rock?" unanswered (unless they did answer it & I'm just clueless)?

No, it's never answered. However, we know Auto is still alive! In the PSX/Saturn/PC version of Mega Man X3, the boss intro cutscene for Volt Catfish has a brief cameo of Auto watching TV. So yet ANOTHER possibility is that Rock is now just a civilian robot once more.

Stuff like that baffles me, but it is Capcom we're talking about.

Capcom has certainly never been known for it's excellent storytelling, sadly.

(look how small Zero is, lol!)
I keep reading that D-Arts Zero Mk II has "issues," I don't know if I should buy it or not

Nice models! The WKS Zero in particular. too bad it's so small.

on Zero MKll, yeah, the model seems to have issues. particularly, one of the arms does not stay on properly at the elbow joint, the pauldrons seem to come off easily, and the head seems to be very difficult to open when you want to change the faceplate. I myself am waiting for a rerelease that fixes the issues, though that could be a long while.

On the Zero anthology:

http://www.themmnetwork.com/2012/04/26/fans-culminate-to-create-zero-10th-anniversary-compilation/

A bit late. Good luck finding it now.

[Flame]

Also, I see those awesome pics, and I raise you some more.

(click to show/hide)

Also, I dont remember if these have been posted before and I cant be bothered to check, so have these two vids.

X VS. ZERO DECISIVE BATTLE 2

ZERO VS. OMEGA ZERO DECISIVE BATTLE

[Belmont Stakes]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned, posted or previously thought of this but I think the next logical step for the series is Lego Mega Man or Mega Man vs Lego Man.

[Flame]

So Senior Vp Sven of CoA has said that given the negative feedback on Xover, He asked CoJ to put it's localization on hold for the time being.

"Based upon the largely negative feedback from MM fans, I've requested that we place any Americas release on hold for the time being," said Svensson. "We will revisit at a later date."

Good riddance to bad rubbish.

I suppose Sven (who seemed pleased at the results on that digital games survey that they did a while back, which included Mega Man on it) sees it as an opportunity to release something ELSE first or alongside Xover's localization, to prove brand viability or something like that.

See, CoA does care. And they are the only ones that can change CoJ's mind on ANYTHING.

sauce: http://www.rockman-corner.com/2013/01/xover-localization-officially-on-hold.html

[Pfil]

I was about to create a topic, but then I find this one, so I'll say it here.

I found Street Fighter X Megaman very uninspired.
The enemies seem kind of random. The music is generic.
And at first, the lack of passwords left me asking what were they thinking.
At least that was my opinion.

I understand that it was developed by fans, but Capcom should have put a little effort to make it better before releasing it, since they are putting their logo everywhere.