Check Out LBD’s Mega Man X iPhone Review on Slide to Play
It’s a rare thing for me to talk about my non-MMN ventures here on the site (or even speak in the first person), but today, I felt it was warranted.
As you probably know by now, a new version of Mega Man X was released to Apple’s App Store last night, and since one of my jobs involves reviewing iPhone games, I spoke up as soon as it was announced. Slide to Play complied with my request, and as the game was released last night, I downloaded it, played it, and probably churned out the fastest release-to-review turnaround I’ve ever had on the site.
To give you an idea of what I thought of the game, here is the review’s “Bottom Line:”
As a stand-alone platforming action game for the iPhone, Mega Man X isn’t bad, but it falls well short of the standard set by the original nearly two decades ago.
Want more details? Then check out the full review here. I could have probably written much more about all the differences and nuances which set this release apart from the original or Maverick Hunter X , but sometimes you have to show some restraint. In fact, there originally was more, but some things had to be edited out for size and flow.
Suffice to say, the game engine isn’t bad, but applying it to such an ambitious game and trying to follow it so closely (while at the same time falling well short of the mark) probably did the game no favors. Had this been an original venture, or at least one not based on this particular game, it might have fared better.
Tags: App Store, Capcom, iPhone, Mega Man X
Filed under: Community Developments, Reviews
I think you give it a pretty fair review. A lot of Mega Man fans are acting like this is “killing Mega Man” and all the rest of the laundry list of accusations that have been thrown out over the past two-to-three years, but when it comes down to it it’s still better than 90% of the junk on iOS. It will reach an audience that may never have played a Mega Man game before period, let alone Mega Man X, and to them, all the changes and things made worse compared to the original don’t even make a difference! But even so we shouldn’t ignore the negative changes that did take place, and you touch on those.
@WilyNumber13
Finally, someone says something reasonable. I agree.
I also take back most of what I said in the comments on the previous post about this game. I had really convinced myself that the slow framerate was due to the recording method.
I think if they had enhanced the animation and nothing else, the game would be much more appealing.
I like the graphics, but what really sets my “wtf” meter off is the dlc. You can just BUY all the weapons and heart tanks?! That’s like if the Ocarina of Time rerelease offered fairy bottles for $0.99 and a completed water temple for $2.99.
It’s an insult to a classic, to say the least.
Me thinks that the reason why X looks so mad in that above pic is because he was given a bum steer on the remake of his own game.
So it’s crap right?
Yeah maybe game didn’t deserve that much of bashing.It IS a megaman game after all.Let’s show some love.It is kinda like X7.A tiny step in the right direction.I Phone gaming IS important after all.And very potent if done right which is proven multiple times
So Y SO Serious?
(Capcom i am still dissapoint)
“a completed water temple for $2.99.”
Died.
I don’t have an iPhone or any of those fancy gadgets, so that saves fortunately saves me the decision of whether to buy it or not. Even so, I’m kind of glad that people who have had never played Megaman games or X can get some exposure to the series, even if this port’s in no way perfect.
I just can’t help but compare it to the iOS gold that is Sonic CD HD.
I think they would have been wiser to get Udon to redraw the game then the lack luster job they did.
Plus it really doesn’t help that they mixed in the portraits from Maverick Hunter X which completely clash with the artwork that was done. It makes it seem unprofessional and very fangame-ish.
Is it good that people who’ve never played Mega Man X before will finally get exposure to it on a massively-popular device for the current generation?
Yes.
Is it good that the game they will get to play is a shoddy port at best that doesn’t reflect the basic story, mood, or play style of its parent title, leaving only a semi-solid platformer with none of the original epic accurately portrayed?
Absolutely not.
There’s a perfectly valid negative side to all the rosy “let’s show our support for Mega Man” talk, and I’ll be damned if I don’t play devil’s advocate (not that there wasn’t already a significant outburst of disappointment from many fans in previous threads). All Capcom is doing is re-releasing, porting, and re-releasing again, milking the franchise for every penny it’s worth while making each incarnation worse than the last (I personally loved Maverick Hunter X and Powered Up, but I know just as many haters as I do fans).
Here’s an idea, Capcom. If you REALLY want to get our money, and REALLY want to please us while you supposedly work on revamping Mega Man for the new generation, try releasing some GOOD anthologies. Zero Collection was great, and a good example of how a collection should be done. Anniversary Collection and X Collection could both use updates (MM9-10, MMX7-8/MHX) and more bonus material, drawing from the vast array of Mega Man spinoff titles Capcom already has. And where’s Battle Network Collection, Star Force Collection, or Legends Anthology? Lots of money sitting around waiting to be made off this kind of thing, Capcom, if you’ll just accept that not every title has to be a triple-A, critically-acclaimed blockbuster.
Why hasn’t any of this stuff seen a PC release, anyway? I’d kill for an official, definitive Mega Man collection on my PC. There’s more potential money right there, because I guarantee that the kids who grew up playing Mega Man are now old enough to own personal computers and many are likely full-blown PC gamers (such as myself). Sega got with it and released Generations for PC; why Capcom hasn’t done the same is beyond me.
“Capcom, if you’ll just accept that not every title has to be a triple-A, critically-acclaimed blockbuster.”
Isn’t that what this is? B)
@Sketchman:
My point is that they’ve left console markets completely, out of fear that they won’t be raking in the big bucks. We’ve proven time and again that Mega Man is profitable (MM9, MM10, etc.); Capcom just isn’t satisfied unless they’re making obscene amounts off an over-hyped triple-A title. If a franchise fails to rake in what they think it ought to (rather than what should reasonably be expected), they pull the plug. If a franchise isn’t big enough for their taste, they pull the plug. Look at what almost happened to Mega Man 2. Look at Power Stone. Look at Breath of Fire. The list goes on and on.
Capcom needs to learn how to be content with having Mega Man not be a fifty-dollar cartridge like he was in years gone by. Their executives, according to Inafune’s little expose, are stuck in business philosophies that are decades old, and need to get with the future. A shoddy iOS app riddled with inaccuracy and technical flaws is hardly the way to begin promoting Mega Man as a slightly smaller, but just as potent, package.
@Trigger:
I know, right? This would have been the perfect opportunity to put Megaman back in his rightful place. The portable iPhone app would be an excellent platform to make Megaman “cutting edge” again.
I wonder how many people here are old enough to remember when Megaman WAS the definition of cutting edge graphics. That, believe or not, was part of the appeal of classic Megaman, and helped move sales along.
“Vivid multi-color backgrounds!? Sprites with more than 3 colors?! Wait… was Megaman just ROTATING on that spinning floaty thing?!!”
As time marched on and Megaman retained it’s traditional style, his fans fell into the ranks of “retro gamers” and “traditionalists”. Part of the franchise’s appeal disappeared as other games came out with bigger and better graphics. Donkey Kong Country, for example, became the new icon for high-end graphics in the SNES era. Megaman was left in the dust with “Rockman and Forte”, which didn’t even make it overseas.
Megaman Legends was a step in the right direction, but due to poor marketing and confusion on the part of the “pew pew pew” fans, it didn’t sell as well as it should have, and so that line of thinking was eventually aborted.
People say that it’s not important to keep up with new graphics trends and capabilities. I say, the original Megaman games were the ones who set the trends and pushed the limits of graphics power.
We need to stop living in the past. Megaman needs to advance. No more of this colorful retro-wannabe stuff. Those days are over. This game is proof of what happens when you try to hard to cater to retro-fans, to the point of not changing it ENOUGH.
Wow… this post completely went out of control. And just for the record, I still play Megaman 1-X3. So don’t think I’m not a retro fan too.
And if they can’t find a way to bring Megaman up to par graphically while still retaining the classic charm and gameplay, then just make him a little 2dimensional Mini-game Mascot or something.
I mean… what does Mario have that Megaman doesn’t?
@Sketchman3
“I mean… what does Mario have that Megaman doesn’t?”
A company that is loyal to their roots? Nintendo? Uncancelled games?
Sorry I just had to go there, Megaman was better off being just for Nintendo, after Megaman X3 it changed dramatically. I mean for crying out loud look how long it took for them to make a Megaman 9.
@Trigger: Sonic Generations is on PC?! Holy spit, I missed that info. Thanks a lot! *runs off to look for Sonic Gen on PC*
@Advent Axl: Of course being out of Nintendo also gave us X4, X6, X8, and XCM. And Legends 1 and 2.
But yeah, I got your point. If Capcom really cares about Mega Man and its fans, they need to give us REAL GOOD games. Starting with L3. *still an optimist*
sketch guy , how can you take this game seriously if the snes version , release almost two decade ago , look better and more fluid over this one ?
If capcom want to make megaman populare again , they need to put effort and heart into it. This ios game is rush beyond belief.
@masodx:
Yeah, we’ve already moved on from there. And, yeah, like you said. Instead of trying to release a rush job near the date of that Sonic game, they should have just done a good job and released it later.
@Advent Axel
In addition to a company who stays true to their roots (whatever that means), he also has games that deviate from the standard “run right and jump”, and yet, somehow, were successful.
Megaman has been trailing Mario ever since the SNES era. Mario World – Megaman 7. Mario 64 – Megaman 64. Mario Kart – Battle and Chase. Mario Tennis – Megaman Soccer. New SMB – MMPowered Up.
They need to get the jump on everybody and move ahead like they did with MMBN. That was a good move, even though it only lasted slightly longer than Megaman Legends. And stop following behind.
@Will
Completed water temple for $2.99? I’ll take 3!
How do you get the heart tank in Spark Mandrill’s stage?! I always wall jumped in the corner while shooting boomerangs up and left until it got it. Is there another way??
JewceD: That doesn’t work any more, so far as I can tell. You have to dash-jump out and hook around to grab the ledge, jumping up. Pretty ridiculous by these controls.
Sorry for double post, but @Advent Axl…
I 100% agree with you. I was thrilled during the NES era and didn’t again reach that pinnacle until 9 and 10 for Wiiware. The 8 demake just recently rekindled it yet again.
Clearly, I am a sucker for nostalgia, or other fans and I just dealt with Mega Man after X3 because it was Mega Man. Other than a few exceptions, the formula has been missing since ~1995.
Really, the quality of an iOS remake of Mega Man X would be a non-issue if we were actually getting new, dedicated Mega Man titles.
Sorry to go off topic here, but I just recently fpund this amusing bit of news regarding Zero in UMvC3. I won’t spoil it for you though; just access the link below:
http://esfiworld.com/news/wesker-phoenix-zero-underperform-old-reliables-socal-regionals
@ cantide5ga:
And that’s exactly the problem. The original Megaman games weren’t about nostalgia. They were about making an amazing game that was visually appealing, and even advanced, by the standards of the time.
Nostalgia has it’s place, but it loses it’s meaning when overexposed.
And, kids (wasn’t that the target audience of the original games?) who didn’t grow up playing NES and SNES games will just think awesome games like MM9 and MM10 look weird.
Super Mario has had a huge career going for him with games outside of the “Super Mario Bros. 1″ formula, so when they came out with “Super Mario Bros. Wii” and “New Super Mario Bros.” the nostalgia felt was more potent because that style hadn’t been milked to death, and they came with good enhancements. And they were able to accomplish it without using 8-bit graphics and sound. Same goes with that new Super Mario Bros 3 style game.
We need to grow up and move forward.
@TTL: Not really, there isn’t any excuse as to why the quality of an iPhone remake is lower than that of the original SNES game. I mean they couldn’t even make X’s running frames smooth is just BS.
The whole remade Cartoony graphics for the game was fine. But if doing so takes away the technical effects in the game (no blinking/transitional screens/crappy animation frames etc) then I rather have them just retain the SNES graphics.
But I seriously believe they could’ve ported PSP’s Maverick Hunter X for iOS rather than what we have now. The iphone can run games like Infinity Blade II but not a pseudo 3D platformer?? Come on.
I totally agree with you AdventZ.
All of Apple’s products have far more than enough processing power to handle a 6 year old PSP title.
The SNES version is far superior, both in graphics and in functionality.
It’s cool that they did this, but I’ll personally stick with the original.
Lol. Sorry for the repost but I STILL haven’t been able to get that heart tank in SM stage. It is the last one and driving me crazy! I’ve tried riding the Chill Sled and shooting Boomerangs. Please help! The controls for this thing sucks. But you had to know that going into it considering it is a touch screen version of a console game. Still, glad to own one of the few mm apps. BTW, why hasn’t this site considered making an app of its own?
You have to dash jump off the wall underneath it and hook back and grab the ledge. I did it this way in the original version also.
@Tornado Man
Thank you! It worked!
Your welcome. I think I may start some you tubes on x1 and x2. Maybe x3 if I have the time.
The worst thing about this port is the controls. I don’t feel I am in as much control as in the SNES or the PSP version but that’s more a limitation of the hardware than anything else I guess.