I must say I was a little surprised that these games weren’t released as DLC for the first game. With only four games to release instead of six like with the first collection, it seemed to make sense. I was wrong on this one and the more I think about was a very good thing. Three generations of games in one collection is already a great thing.
I feel like I shouldn’t need to discuss the story of a Mega Man game at this point. Doctor Wily attacks using new robots in an attempt to take over the world. Doctor Light sends out Mega Man and his friends to stop the evil Dr. Wily. It’s a tried and true story that has served Mega Man well throughout his adventures. What makes this collection specifically different than the previous is that it is the games that took place in the 16 and 32-bit eras. Yes, nine and ten are from the 7th generation xbox360/PS3 era but they are made in the style of the NES games.
What is important in this instance is the quality of the HD appearance of the blue bomber’s adventures. It is safe to say that the four games included are given the respect they deserve. The first game (Mega Man 7) first appeared on the Super Nintendo and as far as I know has never been released in any other form outside of the Mega Man Collections that appeared on the 6th generation consoles (PS2, GC, Xbox).
Let’s start with the most basic of things. The controls are perfect. In the case of Mega Man 8, they feel way more responsive than the original PlayStation controller. You do have the option to use the analog stick if that is your preference, but with platforming games, I highly recommend using the traditional directional pad.
Mega Man 8 saw Mega Man’s first and only appearance (Not including the X series) on the 32-bit consoles. There is only one real difference between this version and the previous ones and it is immediately apparent. The 32-bit generation suffered from CD load times. Mega Man 8 was no exception. It is so disorienting to see that there is no load time in this version of the game. Very welcome, but disorienting.
Mega Man 9 and 10 are the first games in the series to include outside developer help to create. It was fortunate that Capcom went to the reliable company Inti Creates who is probably best known for their recent work on Mighty Gunvolt and Blaster Master Zero for 3DS. Both Mega Man 9 and 10 took the franchise back to its 8-bit roots both graphically and audio wise. Both come with a bunch of options plus they include the DLC that you had to purchase separately when they were first released.
Mega Man nine and ten are the jewels of this collection for me for one reason. Both 7 and 8 have been released physically. While they will cost you to find out in the wild they are obtainable. Nine and ten up to this point were only released digitally. I prefer having physical copies of games myself so this collection is a no-brainer. You can buy Mega Man nine and ten as a bundle right now on the PlayStation store for 15 dollars, though the digital editions are only playable on the ps3. Mega Man 8 is also available on ps3 digitally for $5.99. So you can see the value already in purchasing the Legacy Collection. You get the four games for 20 dollars. Even if you get the digital editions they are a great price.
The bonus features to the collection, however, are pretty slim. As with the previous collections, you get the music player to listen to the songs from each game. There are also art galleries for each game. You also get the usual fanfare for these types of HD games. Backgrounds to fill the black bars on the sides of the screen from the old 4:3 aspect ratio and screen filters to give you the pixel effect of old TVs. You can also make the games full widescreen if you wish.
At first glance, those who played the last gen versions of Mega Man 9 and 10 will notice that there is some DLC missing from the games. It turns out Capcom decided to have a little fun with us. You have to unlock the content via a button combination much like in the NES and SNES era.
Enter this sequence at the title screen of both games to unlock the hidden content.
Mega Man 9 and 10 code- Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, Down, Up, Up, Down
There are two new features that have not been seen before in any of the previous compilations that are very helpful. One is a checkpoint autosave function. This is a great way to stop the game and pick back up where you left off rather than the old method of beating the area and getting a code to write down. Considering these games can take some time to beat, this is a great feature. This also replaces the save states that the first Legacy collection used. It brings the difficulty back up.
The second feature is also welcome for those who are not the best at the Mega Man franchise. The Mega Man games (particularly the later ones) got quite hard to play through. Mega Man 9 is probably known as one of the hardest. This collection offers an option that doubles your resistance to damage taken within the games. This opens up the game’s playability for not only new players but for those who are more casual and want to play the games. While this does reduce the damage, it does not make the stages themselves any easier. There are still plenty of pits and one-hit kills that will keep you on your toes.
I am not sure if I should complain that there are only four games in this collection rather than the six that came in the first one. Mega Man games are always fun and welcome to play but this felt like a great opportunity to throw on some of the more bizarre Mega Man titles. Mega Man soccer would have been a fun addition to the collection. Even the Game Boy editions of Mega Man. At the very least they could have added Mega Man V from the Game Boy series since it was the only original Mega Man game on the console. I understand the games that are in the collection are the last for the classic series but neither of the games mentioned here will probably ever get an actual re-release so why not have included them. They do use the classic Mega Man after all.
Another small gripe with the collection is when you stretch the image to widescreen. The background stays pretty crisp, but animated characters tend to blur out when in widescreen.
I must admit the bonus material in the game is slim and honestly lacking, especially when you look into the production of each game, but I have to also say that the collection is only twenty dollars. That with the fact that games 9 and 10 have not had a physical release makes this a must-own, at least for me. Even if you look at the prices for the digital games the collection is still worth it. Chances are you aren’t looking at the second collection as your entry point in the series and even if you are it is a great set of games.
My mind races with ideas of what will come next. Maybe we will see a start of the Mega Man X collection. Maybe we will finally see some HD remakes of the long-desired Legends series. Please Capcom, May we have more? Mega Man Legends HD collection perhaps?
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