For a decade across the 8- and 16-bit generations, Mega Man had been an action-filled powerhouse, but after some twenty odd games, the rock, paper, scissors gameplay needed a new entry to revitalize the stagnating franchise. Translating the traditional concepts into a 3 dimensional world, Legends adds adventure and RPG elements to its action to create a title that is at once fresh and inventive while maintaining the style that had been a hallmark of the Blue Bombers adventures since the NES.
Mega Man Legends is a world covered in endless water where diggers explore the ruins of a past civilization hidden among the scattered land masses. The game’s opening site offers a brief tutorial and introduces Mega Man Volnutt and his adopted sister Roll, but it’s not long before they’re stranded on Kattelox Island, racing the famous sky-pirate Bonne family to the mythical Mother Lode, the vast fortune of every diggers dreams. Featuring top-quality voice acting that is appropriately playful and an animation system capable of a wide range of complex expressions, the story comes alive in a steam punk adventure that is innocent, spirited and reminiscent of Hayao Miyazaki’s animated masterpiece ‘Castle in the Sky’.
While Mega Man is strictly limited to eight-directional digital movement, horizontal orientation is controlled by several camera options to help make every shot from his Mega Buster hit its target. Hitting circle snaps the camera to the direction Mega Man is facing while holding L2 enables a basic lock-on for an individual enemy but immobilizes movement and pressing either L1 or R1 spins Mega Man. This last option is particularly effective as it allows for a close approximation to circle-strafing but doesn’t cause the disorientation to the environment outside your field of vision that comes from moving outwards in relation to a focal point. Since hitting either of these shoulder buttons while simultaneously jumping executes an evasion roll in the corresponding direction, mastering these controls provides a fluidity of movement that allows the game to stay true to its action-fueled roots.
The reaverbots that plague the dungeons fit well within the established Mega Man thematic but reflect this games tonal shift. While it’s hard to qualify the need for robotic snakes and dogs, the enemies are often designed to appear like they could have functional significance for their haunts and come in various shapes, sizes and behavior. The bosses are large and imposing with their own gameplay dynamic, including battles that turn the sea and burn the sky. The reaverbots most significant contribution is to illustrate the industrial aesthetic- they’re constructed from technology that has rusted, bulky metallic composition and emit the sounds of creaky pistons and burners and make the ruins feel like abandoned factories, a stark contrast to the newer models found above ground.
The sensibility carries over to the RPG-lite character growth. For weapons, it starts with modifying the Mega Buster attributes. By purchasing new parts or having Roll develop from various scavenged items, your arsenal not only becomes stronger but greatly expands. A single special item can be equipped and each is incredibly different from one another, be it a rocket launcher, arm-mounted shield or vacuum. Mega Man’s basic functionality builds out as well including increased health and replenishment and new abilities that allow him to move faster and jump higher. The decision to make many parts simple household items that can be found in everyday locations further sells how mechanically driven the societies are and adds character to the island.
And Kattelox is an island full of life. What starts as a small town blossoms into a city bustling with activity. From the hustle of the business district to the refinement of the harbor to the warehouses of old town, every block has points of interest; the museum in need of new pieces for its collection, the kids who want a clubhouse to call their own and the mini-games of the TV station. Battles within city walls have real impact on gameplay. Buildings crumble and collapse if they take too much damage and become unusable until the government can procure the funds to rebuild and cements the feeling that your actions impact the world in ways few games do. But where there is a modern culture above ground, there is history below. Many of the dig sites scattered about soon reveal a network of interconnected passages, a labyrinth to be explored with treasures to plunder.
Mega Man Legends is a game that at once honors the franchises past and builds its future; where the first few releases helped define the action genre for 2D, Legends helped do it for 3. It gives us a colorful, vibrant world to explore and charming, heroic story. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time may have set the rules for the genre and on a larger scale, but Mega Man Legends did it first.