Mega Man X

This article is about the series. For the first game in the series, see Mega Man X (video game). For the character, see Mega Man X (character). For the tenth game in the original series, see Mega Man 10.

The Mega Man X (Rockman X in Japan) series is the second Mega Man franchise released by Capcom. It debuted December 17, 1993 in Japan (January 1994 in North America) on the Super NES/Super Famicom and spawned sequels on several systems, with the PC platform notably having the most releases within the series. It is the first continuation in plot of the series, preceded by the classic Mega Man series. The first six games in the series are currently available in the anthology collection Mega Man X Collection.

Plot

See also: List of Mega Man X characters

Mega Man X, commonly known as "X", was created by Dr. Thomas Light an unknown number of years after the Mega Man series. Unlike the original Mega Man, X was a new type of robot with the ability to make his own decisions. After completing X, Light realized that there was a possibility X might choose to turn against humankind. He also feared that even if X chose a beneficent path in life with regard to human welfare, people would inexorably be unable to accept him, and that X would be viewed as a technological anomaly at best and an abomination at worst. Both would result in X's rejection as the cogent thinking machine Light originally intended him to be. Fearing that his life's work and magnum opus would be destroyed by fearful human beings, Light sealed X away in a diagnostic capsule for over 30 years of testing to make sure he would not choose an evil path in life. It is unknown what had happened to him during these years, but Dr. Light presumably died and left his diagnostic experiments unfinished. X's capsule was eventually uncovered by an archaeologist named Dr. Cain almost 100 years after X's creation. With X's help, Cain created a legion of new robots that replicated X's free will; these robots were called "Reploids" (Repliroids in Japan). For a time, everything seemed calm and peaceful.

However, a virus began spreading that caused Reploids to turn against humans (later discovered to be originated by Dr. Wily implanted in Zero and transferred to Sigma). This was because X's circuitry was duplicated imperfectly.^{[citation needed]} These Reploids were dubbed "Mavericks" (Irregulars in Japan), and a force called the Maverick Hunters (Irregular Hunters) was formed to combat them. The Maverick Hunters were originally led by Sigma until he, too, became a Maverick. Because of his betrayal and eventual declaration of war against the humans, X took it upon himself to join the Maverick Hunters and current leader Zero, another powerful robot (created by the evil Dr. Wily), on a mission to save Earth from Sigma.

Throughout the series, X, Zero, and later Axl battle against Sigma and his Maverick followers to stop their many diabolical plots to destroy the human race.

Series history

Capcom released Mega Man X for the Super NES to give a new image to the Mega Man game series. There are a total of 11 games in the Mega Man X series: Mega Man X, X2, and X3 on the Super NES (with ports of X and X3 to the PC, and a Japan/Europe only port of X3 to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn), Mega Man X4, X5, and X6 on the PlayStation (X4 also being on the Sega Saturn, as well as X4 and X5 being ported to the PC), Mega Man X7 and X8 on the PlayStation 2 (X7, X8 also being on the PC in Korea, Japan and Europe), the RPG Mega Man X: Command Mission on the Nintendo GameCube and PlayStation 2, and Mega Man Xtreme and Xtreme 2 (Rockman X: CyberMission and Rockman X2: Soul Eraser in Japan) on the Game Boy Color. The original Mega Man X was remade on the PlayStation Portable as Mega Man Maverick Hunter X.

Mega Man X Collection on the PlayStation 2 and Nintendo GameCube comprises the first six Mega Man X games, plus one additional Classic series game.

Gameplay

Mega Man X plays similarly to its predecessor series Mega Man, but with various new features: X has the ability to dash along the ground at any time, X can cling to walls and Wall Jump, and he can dash and jump at the same time, increasing his speed in the air. This all gives X more mobility than his Classic counterpart; these modifications make it easier to go through the majority of the game without using any other gun than the default, which is different from previous Mega Man games where players were more inclined to rely on weapons won in previous fights (Like Metal Man's infamous Metal Blades) against boss characters in previously conquered stages.

In X3, Zero (the leader of the Maverick Hunters in the first Mega Man X) is a playable character from the beginning. From the second game onward, Zero is armed with a beam saber, relying on this weapon almost exclusively from X4 and onward instead of the traditional "buster" gun. In X5, both X and Zero gained the ability to duck; an ability previously unavailable in earlier predecessors. In X6, there is a new rescue system where the player must rescue reploids. In X7, a new character known as Axl is introduced, playable alongside X and Zero. Axl utilizes two guns known as Axl Bullets. In X8, a new Double Attack feature is introduced, where two characters can attack at the same time. X8 is the latest entry in the franchise.

Mavericks replace the Robot Masters, and Sigma replaces Dr. Wily. The Mavericks are based on various types of organisms (usually animals) instead of being humanoid in appearance, as were most of the bosses in the classic series, although their attacks and names are usually based on mechanical or chemical phenomena or laws of physics like the original games.

Though some Mavericks have new, never-before-seen powers (e.g., Toxic Seahorse from X3), most have the traditional element-based weapons of the past games, such as fire, water, ice, lightning, wind, and earth.

Reception and Legacy

See also

• Global Imagination