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GameCube | Action | Mega Man X Collection

Boxart for Mega Man X Collection
Mega Man X Collection 12 screen shots
  • GRAPHICS: 4.0
  • SOUND: 4.0
  • CONTROL: 4.0
  • FUN FACTOR 4.0
  • AVG USER SCORE 3.9
  • AVG CRITIC SCORE 3.7

Review: Mega Man X Collection

Review by MAJORMIKE | 01/25/2006 | 14:50:50 PM PST

Mega Man X Collection is an excellent flashback to old-school gaming in its finest hour.

Back "in the day," the Mega Man titles were notorious for their challenging, platform-hopping/shooting hybrid mechanics. Typical of games then, Mega Man utilized the traditional 2D-dimensional play scheme and sprite-based graphics-traits that are all but extinct in today's market. Collection is a compilation of the first six Mega Man X games which were different from the "regular" Mega Man titles in that they were tougher, and the narratives had a decidedly darker tone.

"Good Luck, Mega Man!"
Mega Man's plot is simple: You play a futuristic robotic bounty hunter who travels through different worlds to defeat renegade fellow machines. Part of the fun is discovering the Achilles heel of each boss by experimenting with various weapons obtained from other felled bosses. The stages are long, challenging, and cleverly peppered with hidden areas and additional enhancements.

The visuals vary wildly in quality, as reflected by the platforms on which each game originally appeared. One tangible improvement overt the original games, is that slowdown has been completely eradicated, making for smoother game play. The CD-based sound is also an improvement over the cartridge-confined tracks, and you can now save games directly to a memory card, and avoid the cumbersome password option (which is also available). Plus, diehard fans can unlock Mega Man Battle & Chase, a take on Mario Kart that was never released in the United States.

"Power Shot!"
Younger gamers who don't even know who Mega Man is probably won't be won over by this collection. For the nostalgic retro player who grew up with these titles, though, it's an awesome reminder of when games didn't need flashy graphics and tons of hype to be enjoyable; they were what games should be-fun. Mega Man X Collection is an excellent flashback to old-school gaming in its finest hour.

KEY MOMENT: Finding the right weapon to make quick history of a giant smack-talking boss: priceless


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