To me, Mega Man is video games. Just as much as Mario ever was or is. It saddens me to think that your only role in the industry is that of a nostalgia act. Sure, Mega Man was great. But why can't Mega Man be great? It's time for you to make the jump. The same jump that solidified Mario's spot as not only our industry's mascot, but one of its pioneers and leaders. The same jump that saw Zelda, Metroid, and Metal Gear prove that they had worth past the age of pixels and cartridges.
You need to reinvent yourself and go 3D.
Make no mistake, this move would not be without peril. Earthworm Jim was once a beloved -- if young -- franchise. One bad 3D game put him out of action for over a decade. But it's a risk worth taking. You are relevant again thanks to Mega Man 9 and Mega Man 10. Now we need to make you important.
One bad game can ruin a franchise.
You can look at the Ratchet and Clank series for inspiration. When you think about it, the Ratchet and Clank games are sort of the 3D equivalent of what the Mega Man games were for the 8-bit generation. Mega Man combined the best of platformers like Super Mario Bros. with the best of shooting games like Contra. Two genres were married beautifully into one game. Ratchet and Clank has that same blend of platforming and shooting. I'm not saying that they should turn the next Mega Man game into a Ratchet and Clank clone, but it wouldn't be a terrible place start.
Just be ambitious! Don't make another 8-bit Mega Man game. Don't just make a side-scrolling Mega Man game with glossy HD visuals. Take Mega Man to the next level. Not an MMO, not an RPG, not any other spin-off that you could safely distance yourself from in case of failure. Make it loud and clear that the next Mega Man game will be beautiful, groundbreaking, and one of the must-have releases of the year. Take your rightful place alongside Mario, Link, Master Chief, and Snake as one of the pillars of our industry. Restore Mega Man to its proper place as one of the biggest franchises in gaming.
Nice article, and I agree -- I'd love to see a re-imaged Mega Man. Unlike most people, I thoroughly enjoyed the Battle Network series (though they could have done without releasing six whole games in six years' time). I can't wait to see what the new "Mega Man Universe" or "Mega Man Online" is going to be about, but I'm hoping it is not entering the MMO territory.
You have great points. Despite for the much needed 3D evolving-jump, we all can remember the failure with the transition of Mega Man X7. Such a cel-shaded like graphics were cool visually. However, once it jumped into 3D with an unsuccessful camera, everything went to hell. I more than truly agree with you one-hundred percent--the franchise needs something new with a revamped of visuals and gameplay. It just needs to be done right. Using the camera of Ocarina of TIme and some elements of Metroid Prime is a good start--at least get the little aspects correct first. Then they can go from there.
You say Mega Man needs to go 3D. Brandon is right. Remember X7? Mega Man might be a cross between Mario and Contra, but only one of those two series ever worked in 3D. Both are arguably better in 2D.
I think MM9 and 10 are just fine. I think innovation has its place, but it doesn't have to be as drastic and genre bending as the pontiffs against "sequelitis" will have you believe. I think the newer retro throwback MM games show a lot of polish and some creative level design, with newer features like shoulder button weapon selecting and multiple difficulty levels enhancing the experience. I don't think we need to go full on 3D to have the series be worthwhile, and I would rather it didn't.
Nice article...great points for sure. Almost controversial, too, considering how beloved the new retro-style ones are with the fans.
I think Capcom should include a free pager offer with the next Mega Man!
The assertion that something has to be in 3D to be important or innovative today is short-sighted. I absolutely do not believe that designers have done everything you can possibly do with that style of gameplay., but abandoned it prematurely when 3D came about. I have no doubt that a designer could push the series forward in 2D with beautiful visuals and a creative eye for doing something we haven't seen before in that style.
The problem isn't the perspective at all. Mega Man 9 proved this style is timeless. Capcom just has to figure out where to go from there. 3D is absolutely not necessary.
I agree that Mega Man needs to shake things up, but I don't think that another 3D game is the answer. Even after their celebrated move to 3D, heavyweights like Mario and Zelda have seen recent, successful incarnations that call back to the series' roots.
I also think a little exploration in the vein of the Metroid series could be really good as long as it doesn't slow the pace of the game too much. And I also agree with Brett on this new iteration of Mega Man including a free pager, they could use it to develop the meta-game aspect of it ; )
Re: Metroid-like exploration
That was the Mega Man XZ series in a nutshell: Mega Man Metroidvania. Of course, those games have their own weaknesses as well...
I know where you guys are coming from with the whole "3D isn't the only answer thing". And trust me, I'm not saying that Mega Man has to stop being 2D because those 2D games are bad. They're not. They're just as much fun as they ever were. But if Mega Man wants to retake its place as one of the top franchises of our industry, they need to make a statement. I'm not sure how else you do that without trying to make THE next-gen Mega Man in 3D that we never really got.
Thanks for all the comments so far, guys! I love hearing from everyone.
Even if it was in 3D and full of eye candy, that's still no guarantee that it would sell. Look at Bomberman: Act Zero. Granted, that was a terrible game, but that game was born with the intent to sell to a particular demographic. It's also why we've only seen Mega Man on downloads and portables: It sells to the fans, but doesn't reach out far enough to justify a proper budget.
Heck, the Lost Planet engine was created with Mega Man Legends 3 in mind and we still probably won't see it.
...why does Mega Man have to be a next-gen, industry-leading, top franchise? Why can't it just be what it is?
Agreed. It doesn't need to be "state-of-the-art, next-gen" to be an amazing game.
@Michael It by no means has to be. But for me, Mega Man was the first game I ever played. I would just like to see them be as ambitious as possible. And I really do think that a great next-gen, industry-leading game can be made out of Mega Man.
If you're talking "ambitious", then that doesn't automatically mean "3D high production values". Ambitious means taking game design risks and bending conventions. It's not something that innately leans toward either 2D or 3D. You have to have some sort of broad concept then refine it by adding limitations, which in turn are the final shape of the game.
Metroid: Other M is a good example here. The previous Metroid games were the Prime series, FPS adventures set in 3D space. For Other M, however, they decided to utilize 2D as a main limitation while keeping some sense of 3D with some of the aiming and looking. Heck, it's even big budget.
All I ever wanted in a new Mega Man is the ability to shoot diagonally.
@Guillermo Bass says hi!
Aside from Ratchet and Mario, 3D platformers are actually few in number this gen. With Jak, Sly, and uh... Blinx developers moving on to different franchises, Mega Man has the perfect chance to get in.
It think it would be incredibly difficult though. Mega Man has pretty much semented retro-status with the retro-releases and self-admitingly laughable story, so elegantly creating a modern game would need to overcome many hurdles. Not to mention recent modern rivivals like Bionic Commando would be pretty discouraging for Capcom to take the plunge.
@Michael Touche. I never played Mega Man & Bass or play as Bass in Mega Man 10. Excuse my ignorance.