A mega collection of Blue Bomber greatness
I’m a huge Mega Man fan. If allowed to, I would decorate GI headquarters in every room with gear resembling Capcom’s infamous Blue Bomber. After Mega Man’s last adventure on the NES, I found that during the transition from 8‑bit to 16-bit gaming a new character known as Mega Man X would appear, giving the Mega Man series a new chapter set years after the original. While I played a few MMX games when it was on SNES and PSOne, I realized that I liked the X series but wondered if Capcom would do a collection for the PlayStation 2. My wish was granted in Mega Man X Collection.
MMX Collection is simply as advertised: A collection of the first Mega Man X games released. It consists of MMX and MMX2 from their SNES debut; MMX3 — another SNES game that was ported to PSOne; and MMX 4, 5 and 6, which were released for PSOne. There is also an unlockable game, “Mega Man Battle and Chase,” an exclusive never released outside of Japan.
In each MMX game, you take control of “X,” a new version of the Blue Bomber created by Dr. Light years after the original Mega Man. X is a more powerful version of our blue titan but with free will. 100 years later, after Dr. Light’s death, X was found by Dr. Cain, a robotics expert who developed robots based on X’s design known as “reploids.” However, this began a rise of rebellious reploids, known as mavericks, which led to the formation of a group known as maverick hunters to stop them. Alas, the maverick hunter’s leader Sigma became a maverick (and the series’ main villain), forcing X to team up with another maverick hunter named Zero to stop Sigma’s plan for global domination.
Control of X is simple as any regular side-scrolling game, especially with the option of switching between the analog sticks or directional buttons. X’s main weapon, the X‑Buster, and other weapons he acquires from a level boss can be powered up in addition to finding upgraded boots, helmet and armor via secret areas in each level. Using a sub screen, I appreciated that it was understandable and simple in organizing items and weapons since, in other side scrolling games, looking for needed items is time consuming and morale-draining. Zero is also playable in MMX 4, 5 and 6 where controlling him is a guaranteed good time as he is not only equipped with his own Buster weapon, but also his signature Z‑Saber cuts enemies down to size.
The graphics have been refreshed, ensuring that a thoughtful balance of action-adventure and anime-styles elements are intact. Capcom’s music department did an awesome job remixing each game’s soundtracks. With the amount of detail put into this game, the replay value is high, especially if you’re wanting to get deeper into the Mega Man lore.
The Mega Man X Collection is the perfect answer for a devoted fanbase of the Blue Bomber. While the MMX series may be in question, I hope Capcom hears Mega Man’s fans’ calls to continue his legendary return to gaming as the MMX collection is a great way to continue Mega Man X’s hunt.