Mega Man X2

Mega Man X2
North American cover art
Developer(s)	Capcom
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Producer(s)	Tokuro Fujiwara
Designer(s)	Keiji Inafune
Artist(s)	Sho Tsuge Yoshihisa Tsuda
Composer(s)	Yuki Iwai
Platform(s)	Super Nintendo Entertainment System, mobile phones, Virtual Console
Release date(s)	Super NES JP December 16, 1994[1] NA January 1995[2] PAL October 1995[3] Mobile phone JP May 13, 2009[4] Virtual Console NA TBA[5]
Genre(s)	Action, platform
Mode(s)	Single-player
Rating(s)	ESRB: K-A (Super NES), E (Virtual Console)
Media/distribution	16-megabit ROM cartridge, download

Mega Man X2, known as Rockman X2 (ロックマンX2^?) in Japan, is a video game developed by Capcom for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The game was released in Japan on December 16, 1994 and in North American and PAL regions in 1995. It is the second game in the Mega Man X sub-franchise after the first installment, released one year previous. Mega Man X2 takes place in the near future in which humans attempt to peacefully coexist with intelligent robots called "Reploids", with some of the Reploids going "Maverick" and threatening daily life. The plot follows a "Maverick Hunter" protagonist named Mega Man X, who has recently saved humanity from the Maverick leader Sigma. A new trio of Mavericks calling themselves the "X-Hunters" has arisen, intent on destroying X by luring him with parts of his comrade Zero, who died in the conflict with Sigma six months earlier.

Following in the traditional gameplay of the original Mega Man series, Mega Man X2 features much of the same action-platforming elements as the first installment of the series, whereby the player must complete a series of stages by gaining various power-ups and the special weapon of the boss at the end of each stage. Mega Man X2 is graphically similar to its predecessor as well, but Capcom included an in-cartridge enhancement known as the Cx4 chip to allow for some 3D wireframe effects. The development team was instructed to utilize this technology as much as possible when working on the game.

Critical reception for Mega Man X2 has been positive. However, many reviews were dismayed by the lack of changes from the original Mega Man X and the graphical limitations of the CX4 chip. Mega Man X2 was included in the Mega Man X Collection for the Nintendo GameCube and PlayStation 2 in North America in 2006. The game also received a Japanese mobile phone release in 2009. In 2011, Mega Man X2 was re-rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), suggesting that it is slated for release on the Wii Virtual Console in North America.

Plot

See also: List of Mega Man X characters

Mega Man X2 is set in an ambiguous year during the 22nd century (21XX) in which the world is populated by humans and robots called "Reploids" (replicant androids). The mass-produced Reploids are based on a robot dubbed Mega Man X, or simply "X", discovered by the scientist Dr. Cain many months earlier. Some Reploids, given such human-level intelligence and free will, have a tendency to participate in criminal activity, or go "Maverick". A military force called the "Maverick Hunters" is formed to halt or prevent such activity. The events of the first Mega Man X game entail the rookie Hunter X's conflict with Sigma, a Maverick leader bent on the destruction of humanity. X succeeds in his mission, but only after the death of his superior Zero.

Six months after defeating Sigma, X assumes the head of the Maverick Hunters.^[6] X tracks a "manufactured Maverick" bearing Sigma's emblem to a Reploid factory, where he launches a full assault.^[1][7] However, despite Sigma's apparent death and X's successful efforts, the Maverick rebellion continues. Three powerful Mavericks—Serges, Agile, and Violen—form a group called the "X-Hunters" and gain control of the North Pole. In the time between Sigma's demise and their sudden uprising, Serges has collected Zero's parts.^[8] The X-Hunters contact the Maverick Hunters and taunt them with Zero's body, which they have split into three pieces, in order to lure out X in hopes of destroying him.

X seeks out and destroys eight powerful Mavericks. The story deviates slightly depending on whether or not the player collects all of Zero's parts before heading to the X-Hunter base in the North Pole. If the player obtains all the parts, Dr. Cain states he will attempt to reassemble and reactivate Zero using his control chip.^[9] If the player does not, the X-Hunters attack the Maverick Hunter headquarters and steal all the parts and the control chip from Dr. Cain.^[10] When X defeats all the X-Hunters, Sigma reveals himself to have been behind the plot. X retreats from the exploding base and tracks Sigma to the Central Computer, one of the eight locations he visited earlier. X finds both Sigma and Zero waiting for him. If the player does not collect all of Zero's parts, X must beat the newly rebuilt Zero in combat. If the player manages to collect all of the parts, the real Zero appears and destroys a clone of himself.^[11] The outcome of either event has Zero creating a passageway in the floor and allowing X to pursue Sigma. When the villain is defeated, X and Zero stand together and watch as the base self destructs, reflecting on the conflict that has occurred.^[12]

Gameplay

Mega Man X2 is an action-platform game in the same fashion as the first Mega Man X and the precursor, original Mega Man series. The player takes on the role of the titular character X, who must traverse and clear a series of eight, selectable stages.^[7][13] Each stages has numerous enemies, fewer mini-bosses, and one Maverick boss at the end. The player's initial abilities include running, jumping, scaling walls, dashing along the ground, and firing and charging the protagonist's "X Buster" arm cannon. Several obstacles such as spikes and bottomless pits litter the stages as well. Defeating the stage's boss will earn the player a special weapon that can be selected and used throughout the remainder of the game.^[7][13] As each boss is weak to a specific weapon, the player may strategize the order in which the stages are completed.

Each of the eight stages contains an extra entrance for a boss battle with one of the three X-Hunters, should the player choose that stage when one of them is present.^[13] Defeating an X-Hunter will earn the player a piece of Zero.^[14] Like the first Mega Man X, players can also locate and acquire numerous hidden power-ups within the eight stages. "Heart Tanks" extend the player's maximum life bar, "Sub-Tanks" store life energy for later use, and armor upgrade capsules grant X a set of new abilities.^[13] However, these abilities differ from the first Mega Man X.^[7] For example, the leg part will allow X to perform a dash in mid-air, while the helmet part will locate hidden areas.^[13] Like the first game, when all upgrades are acquired a special capsule is unlocked, allowing X to perform a one-shot kill attack (the "Shoryuken") used by characters from Capcom's Street Fighter series.^[15]

Development

Mega Man X2 was developed by team at Capcom, which included artists and designers Keiji Inafune, Sho Tsuge, and Yoshihisa Tsuda. A majority of the people who worked on Mega Man X2 had either been heavily involved with the development of the first Mega Man X or were completely new to the franchise.^[1] Inafune, who was largely responsible for designing characters for the original Mega Man series, was "hands-off" with the art design in Mega Man X2. Beginning with the first Mega Man X title, he instead focused on directing, producing, and story writing for the newer series. Inafune wanted to move the narrative using a computer virus as a plot device, something he considered a more complex idea than simply presenting a physical villain.^[1] The game's antagonists, the X-Hunters, were originally present as several illustrations within Inafune's sketchbook. Their aesthetic features were combined to create the basis for Sigma's design in Mega Man X; the three designs were then fleshed out as actual characters for the sequel.^[16] The team had planned to include a fourth, female X-Hunter and were going to denote them as the "Four Guardians". However, both this character and Violen's second form were cut from the final version of the game due to "a lack of resources".^[1]

According to Tsuda, it was Inafune's decision to bring Zero back to life in Mega Man X2 for no other reason than he thought he would be "a shame" to keep him dead.^[1] Even though Inafune had reliquished his character design duties in this title, he refused to allow any drastic changes to the illustration of Zero, a character to which he felt particularly attached.^[16] For the eight Maverick bosses, the development team considered holding public, fan submissions as they had done with several games in the original Mega Man series. They ultimately decided against the idea as they wanted to establish a contrast between the two series. Tsuge elaborated, "With Mega Man, we wanted the players to feel a certain familiarity with the characters, but it was our intention that the X series would have a world with a more hardcore feel to it. We didn't want the bosses in this world to be cute products of kids' imaginations, we needed them to be solid characters refined by professionals."^[1]

Mega Man X2 has an in-cartridge enhancement by Capcom called the Cx4, a DSP chip which allows for limited 3D graphical effects such as rotation, enlarging, and shrinking of wireframe objects.^{[1][14][15][17][18]} The company held weekly meetings devoting to utilizing the chip to its maximum potential. Having to use it in as many ways as possible, Tsuge commented that the Cx4 was their "greatest adversary to date".^[1] The musical score for Mega Man X2 was chiefly composed by Yuki Iwai. Others, such as Ippo Yamada, were involved in some of the game's sound production.^[19] Tsuge wanted the Flame Stag stage theme cut from the game, but the song was kept due to its popularity among the development staff.^[1] Additionally, the game's ending theme was originally its final boss music. As the team felt it was more appropriate for the ending, it was slightly altered and made as such.^[1] The Mega Man X2 soundtrack, featuring the original SNES instrumentals, was included as part of the Capcom Music Generation: Rockman X1 ~ X6 compilation released by Suleputer in 2003.^[20]

Reception and legacy

Reception
Review scores
Publication	Score
Electronic Gaming Monthly	7.6 out of 10[21]
GameFan	86 out of 100[22]
GamePro	[23]
Nintendo Power	[18]
Game Players	81 out of 100[24]
Super Play	80%[14]
VideoGames	5 out of 10[25]

Critical reception for Mega Man X2 has been generally positive.

Jeremy Parish and Nadia Oxford of 1UP.com were both unimpressed with the game as a whole. Parrish felt that although it carried the plot of the first Mega Man X forward, the game itself was simply "more of the same...but not as good".^[26] Oxford commented, "In light of Mega Man 2's vast improvement over the original Mega Man, Mega Man X2's feeble innovations are disappointing."^[17]

IGN named Mega Man X2 as the 31st-best game in its list of the top 100 SNES games of all time.^[27] Mega Man X2 was re-released in North America in 2006 as part of the Mega Man X Collection for the GameCube and PlayStation 2.^[28] A version for FOMA and i-mode compatible mobile phones was made available in Japan in 2009.^[4] The game was re-rated by the ESRB in August 2011, suggesting that it is slated for release on the Wii Virtual Console service.^[5]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k} Mega Man X: Official Complete Works. Udon Entertainment. January 6, 2010. pp. 16–27. ISBN 978-1-89737-680-5. 
2. ^ "Super NES Games" (PDF). Nintendo. http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/gameslist/manuals/snes_games.pdf. Retrieved 2010-10-17. 
3. ^ "Mega Man X2" (in German). Mega Fun (Computec Verlao): p. 30. October 1996. 
4. ^ ^{a b} "「ロックマンX2」配信開始！" (in Japanese). GameSpot. May 14, 2009. http://japan.gamespot.com/news/story/0,3800076565,20393122,00.htm?ref=rss. Retrieved 2010-07-11. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Hernandez, Pedro (August 19, 2011). "Mega Man X2 Rated by the ESRB". Nintendo World Report. http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/27535. Retrieved November 21, 2011. 
6. ^ Capcom. Mega Man X2. (Capcom). Super Nintendo Entertainment System. (1995-01) "Narrator: It has been 6 months since the destruction of (Sigma) and little has changed. The Maverick revolt started by Sigma has ended, but Mega Man X and the new generation of Maverick Hunters have yet to destroy all of Sigma's followers."
7. ^ ^{a b c d} Capcom, ed (January 1995). Mega Man X2 Instruction Booklet. Sunnyvale, CA: Capcom Entertainment, Inc.. pp. 6–16. SNS-ARXE-USA. 
8. ^ Capcom. Mega Man X2. (Capcom). Super Nintendo Entertainment System. (1995-01) "Serges: Collection is proceeding as scheduled. However, we are having problems with the control chip. Agile: We have little time. We must finish construction on schedule. We must hurry..."
9. ^ Capcom. Mega Man X2. (Capcom). Super Nintendo Entertainment System. (1995-01) "Dr. Cain: It will take more time to reactivate Zero...Slow them down, Mega Man X!"
10. ^ Capcom. Mega Man X2. (Capcom). Super Nintendo Entertainment System. (1995-01) "Dr. Cain: I'm sorry X... one of the X-Hunters attacked the base and... took all of Zero's parts away... They're going to rebuild Zero at their base. I tracked them to location 00 - the North Pole!"
11. ^ Capcom. Mega Man X2. (Capcom). Super Nintendo Entertainment System. (1995-01) "Sigma: Look who I found wandering around, Mega Man! My friend here has a small problem with you. It seems that you let him die, and he's not too happy about that! I think it's time he repays the favor! Zero: Sigma, you should have studied the blueprints closer! There is only one Zero!"
12. ^ Capcom. Mega Man X2. (Capcom). Super Nintendo Entertainment System. (1995-01) "Narrator: Joined by his friend Zero, Mega Man X gazes out over the sea. Sigma has once again been destroyed, but X wonders if the fighting will truly end. Was Dr. Light's dream of a world in which Reploids and humans lived together in peace merely a dream? The price of peace is often high, X thinks to himself. Who or what must be sacrificed for it to become a reality? And when the time comes, will he be able to do it? The future holds the answers or..."
13. ^ ^{a b c d e} "Mega Man X2". Nintendo Power (Nintendo of America) (69): pp. 8–17. February 1995. 
14. ^ ^{a b c} Overton, Wil (April 1995). "Import Review: Mega Man X2". Super Play (Future Publishing) (30): p. 32–4. 
15. ^ ^{a b} Nutt, Christian and Speer, Justin. "The History of Mega Man". GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/features/6076983/p-11.html. Retrieved 2010-04-17. 
16. ^ ^{a b} Mega Man X: Official Complete Works. Udon Entertainment. January 6, 2010. pp. 92–6. ISBN 978-1-89737-680-5. 
17. ^ ^{a b} Oxford, Nadia (May 17, 2007). "Mega Manniversary: Jumping the Shark Man". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3159529. Retrieved 2010-12-28. 
18. ^ ^{a b} "Now Playing: Mega Man X2". Nintendo Power (Nintendo of America) (69): p. 104. February 1995. 
19. ^ Chris (May 2010). "Interview with Ippo Yamada, Ryo Kawakami, and Hiroki Isogai". Square Enix Music Online. http://www.squareenixmusic.com/features/interviews/ippoyamada.shtml. Retrieved 2011-03-02. 
20. ^ "カプコン ミュージック ジェネレーション ロックマンX1～6　オリジナル・サウンドトラック" (in Japanese). Suleputer. Archived from the original on 2003-12-14. http://web.archive.org/web/20031214215707/http://suleputer.capcom.co.jp/suleputer/lineup/cpca1076.htm. Retrieved 2011-02-27. 
21. ^ "Review Crew: Mega Man X2". Electronic Gaming Monthly (Ziff Davis) (66): p. 38. January 1995. 
22. ^ "Reviews: Mega Man X2". GameFan (DieHard Gamers Club) 3 (1). January 1995. 
23. ^ Bruised Lee (January 1995). "ProReview: Mega Man X2". GamePro (Infotainment World, Inc.) (66): p. 66. 
24. ^ "Review: Mega Man X2". Game Players (Imagine Media) (48). January 1995. 
25. ^ "Review: Mega Man X2". VideoGames (LFP, Inc) (85). February 1995. 
26. ^ Parish, Jeremy (May 10, 2007). "The Mega Man Series Roundup". 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=0&cId=3159344. Retrieved 2010-04-10. 
27. ^ George, Richard (2011). "Top 100 Super Nintendo (SNES) Video Games". IGN. http://www.ign.com/top/snes-games/31. Retrieved 2011-08-27. 
28. ^ Sulic, Ivan (February 4, 2005). "Mega Man X Collection Announced". IGN. http://cube.ign.com/articles/585/585735p1.html. Retrieved 2010-12-25. 

External links

• Capcom Global website
• Official Rockman website (Japanese)