Christmas Eve 1988, a day unlike any other. It was on that day that Mega Man II was first released in Japan. Now 30 years later, the game’s legacy is as one of the all time greats. For me, Mega Man II was a game I played constantly and I still own my childhood copy of it. It was a game that broke new ground and wasn’t afraid of stepping into the future.
Mega Man 1 is well remembered but it was a rough game. It had good ideas, but was still tied to Capcom’s arcade games with its scoring system. The series may have started with 1, but its true identity came with the second game. The iconic music, the brutal difficulty and the amazing gameplay were a trifecta of bliss for us back then. Going back to it now, it is amazing how well Mega Man II still holds up today. The music is some of the best on the NES and players are still finding new ways to speed-run through and/or impose new challenges on themselves.
While I no longer have the childlike sense of wonder I had with the game, I now have something else. An appreciation for the craftsmanship that went into making Mega Man II. From the excellent levels and bosses ( Crash Man and Bubble Man are my favourites), to the amazing music ( Flash Man and Wiley Stage 1 stand out for me), the game just had a polish to it that was lacking in so many other games of that era. When people look back on the NES and think of the greats, Mega Man II should always be included among the top ten games.
There is a reason that all future games in both the classic and X series follow a formula set forth by this game. Mega Man II helped break away from the arcade roots that the first game was steeped in, and perfected how an action platformer should be played. Everything was in the right place, and even the glitches had a charm to them that let players have fun.
Learning which powers were effective against which bosses, which routes were opened up by which powers, and what passwords gave you an advantage in Mega Man II were like a rite of passage for gamers. One thing that has given me joy recently is seeing the children of my friends start to play the game on Switch via the Legacy Collection, and enjoy it themselves. It seems even after three decades, the game still entertains a new generation of fans. That is the mark of something that is timeless.