Cut to the Chase with your Blade Man Fan Art Votes

Looks like we forgot about poor li’l Nitro Man last week. But time passes on and wounds heal. Then again, this next guy looks like he wants to cause a lot of wounds. This week’s Mega Man 10 fan art subject over at Capcom*Unity is Blade Man. Seems Mega Man fans must really be into knives or something, because Blade Man has the most entries submitted yet! So many that the submission gallery had to be split into two, which you can see here and here. After you’ve perused all the lovely artwork, you can go vote with your dollars votes.

There is also a hint for next week’s Robot Master. But hopefully, with Mega Man 10 coming out tomorrow, you won’t be too full!

Inafune Would Like to Make Mega Man Game with the Fans, Responds to MM9 Mystery

As promised, Capcom has come through with the second batch of questions for Mega Man mastermind Keiji Inafune, as posed by members of the Capcom Unity.

6) Snppls asks:

What is your stance on fan made material? Like fanart, sprite comics, remixes, fangames or the Rockman movie currently in production in the US. Do you like it that fans are so into your creation or does it bother you that they are using copyrighted material? Do you watch it sometimes or sometimes even get ideas from it?

Inafune: I totally welcome all sorts of Mega Man-inspired-art created by the fans. I really would like to create a game with the fans. I have had the desire since the Robot Master Contest, and the fans’ Mega Man art come from the same inspiration. In reality, there are copyright issues and that puts me on a tough position as a member of a company, but I truly believe that Mega Man has come this far with warm supports from the passionate fans and their creative art work.

7) Samuel asks:

Will there be a new megaman anime series from the Starforce side, Battlenetwork side, or the megaman operate starforce? (Please answer I’ve been waiting for some new megaman animated goodness)

Inafune: I am ready to witness exciting Mega Man action in the animation, too. I would love to try it out when I have a chance, and in fact, I have been thinking about specific ideas on this, too. I will do my best to make this happen and hope to surprise you with the news. We will definitely need your support to make this happen!

ibehv asks:

Why is zero’s appearance in megaman zero different from his appearance in megaman x?

Inafune: Zero is one of the most important characters for me. Initially, Zero was created for the Mega Man X fans as well as for fans new to the series. But rather than making a game with Zero as a main character in the established storyline, we wanted to create a brand new storyline for him with a completely new game design. Thus, Zero you all know now was born. The story of the Mega Man Zero game also tells you the secret behind the Zero’s appearance change. So if you haven’t played the game yet, please try it out!

9) The Blue Badger asks:

What direction would you like to see the Mega Man franchise go in the future?

Inafune: I’ve never stopped thinking about the future of Mega Man series! I want more people to get to know Mega Man and fall in love with it. And I am always thinking about the best way to attract more people to play the game. But instead of us guiding you the direction where we go, I would collaborate with the fans and decide where we go. It would be fantastic if you and we can together create a new direction for Mega Man.

10) Monochrome Twist asks:

What are the chances of us seeing a Mega Man Powered Up 2?

Inafune: Many people have asked us about that. I too feel very passionate about making it happen. But as a reality, there are so many things I want to do and Mega Man Powered Up 2 is one of the projects that is still patiently waiting for its turn…

11) Zepper asks:

It’s been 1 year since the release of Mega Man 9, but until then, we’re inside an endless quest for something “extra”. Even with a lot of recorded gameplays, tricks and so on, it’s said there’s still an undiscovered secret or a little surprise. Could you point us to a certain direction?

Inafune: Well, let me think… I am guessing that most of the tricks and secrets have been discovered by now as there are so many good players out there and they have revealed their great Mega Man 9 skills. So I would rather love to see you try it out and surprise me with your cool techniques and hidden elements! Very looking forward to seeing that!

Hmm, so even Inafune himself doesn’t know. Very curious, indeed.

Pump Out Those Votes at Capcom*Unity

It’s another weekend, and here’s another reminder. Head on over to Capcom*Unity and vote on this week’s latest Mega Man 10 fan art subject: Pump Man. For what some people wrote off as kind of a silly Robot Master, there are some pretty fantastic entries. Be sure to check them out before you exercise your fan art democracy.

Next week’s fan art subject is said to represent the color of Valentine’s Day. I’m guessing that must mean Chill Man, since Valentine’s Day always makes me feel cold and blue! Waaaahh!

Voting Gets Crackin’ for Strike Man Fan Art Contest

Capcom*Unity is in week three of its Mega Man 10 fan art contest, and this time the theme was Strike Man. Be sure to head over and vote for your favorite work of art! Also be sure to check out the full gallery of submissions.

Next week’s topic character, well… I thought the hint was pretty easy this time. But don’t get bent out of shape if you can’t see it!

A Most Vile Offering

Do you like Vile, aka VAVA? Sure you do, who doesn’t?

Okay, X and Zero, I’ll give you that. And Axl. And probably anyone with a Maverick Hunter badge– never mind, forget I ever said anything.

Anyway, for those who do actually like Sigma’s lavender lapdog, there is a product coming soon which may interest you:

It may interest you, that is, until you hear the price: 12,000 Yen, or $132.

Still here? Still interested? Alright, then here is what else you may need to know: the figure is 30 centimeters tall, or 1/6 scale. It can be found at the upcoming Wonder Festival 2010, and you can see many more high-resolution photos of it at FC. But, if you don’t have an account, then you can find them mirrored at Protodude’s Rockman Corner.

Sheep Man Robot Master Fan Art Contest Judging is Now On

Just a reminder for those interested, Capcom Unity has opened the polls for judging of this week’s Mega Man 10 Robot Master fan art contest, which features the pick of the flock, Sheep Man.

You can find all the entries in Capcom’s photo gallery, and cast your vote (one per person) here. The poll also makes note of two video entries, which can be found here.

As for the hint for next week’s contest, Capcom says “I’m sure you’ll be hearing it around the horn with the next tape measure blast.”

Capcom*Unity Running Weekly Mega Man 10 Robot Master Fan Art Contest

Love drawing Mega Man characters? Want a chance to win Mega Man and Mega Man X Official Complete Works and more? Then head on over to Capcom*Unity’s Robot Master fan art contest. Each week, user’s can submit a single fan art of a chosen Robot Master – this week is Commando Man. Entries must be received by Friday at 7AM PST. Each next week will bring a new Robot Master, including a mystery week, and then a finals round, where all the weekly winners will go head to head to win the grand prize: Mega Man artwork drawn and signed by series creator Keiji Inafune.

With awesome prizes like these, and nine total shots to win big, there’ll be plenty of opportunities for winners! So get over to Capcom*Unity for the details and get those created juices flowing!

Mega Man 10: A Blast from the Past, in More Ways Than One?

We all know that a large part of Mega Man 10’s hook is that it’s a retro-styled title, a blast from the past, made in the style of the 8-bit NES titles which brought the Blue Bomber to prominence. But it appears that the game gets a little more oldschool than we thought… or perhaps even more than Capcom intended.

Odds are, many of you reading this are only too familiar with the Nintendo Power Robot Master Design Contest held many years ago, with the results shown in the very same issue which covered Mega Man 5 for the NES and Mega Man 4 for the Game Boy, all as part of one huge collective Mega Man blowout. Scans of the contest feature have been posted across various parts of the internet for years, and of course, two winners not shown in the feature went on to be bosses in the sixth and final NES Mega Man title: Knight Man and Wind Man.

Now, years later, it appears that the contest had two more unexpected, belated winners… that is, assuming that Capcom themselves are even actively aware of it.

EmCeeGramr of the NeoGAF recognized two of the newly-revealed Robot Masters for Mega Man 10 as bearing an uncanny resemblance to two of the contest entries, and made a post illustrating them side-by-side:

While it appears that Capcom took inspiration from these two entries from long ago, Producer Keiji Inafune told Nintendo Power “this time around, we invited young designers to design bosses in hopes of giving them a chance to grow from the experience. I supervised their work and provided direction to maintain the MM universe.”

Admittedly, there are only so many ideas to go around, but even then, this seems rather odd– particularly in Blade Man’s case (as RMC of GoNintendo notes, they’re even the same colors). It’s a most peculiar circumstance, and we will try to learn more as we try to figure out who will be receiving credit for these Robot Masters.

News Credit: GoNintendo

Dueling Analogs Presents: Mega Man 10 – Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy

A few days ago, in the post “IGN Goes Hands-On with Mega Man 10, and Capcom Finally Addresses Multiplayer,” I said:

I think it’s safe to assume there are people who do indeed love the spirit of Mega Man, but have been put off by some of its more precise demands; hopefully Easy Mode will make everyone happy.

Then again, there are those who were offended by the mere existence of the Super Guide in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, so the same existence of this will likely get some in a tizzy.

And, as if on cue, Steve Napierski of the webcomic Dueling Analogs put together the following video in lieu of today’s comic strip to express his feelings on the inclusion:

To the notion of using this optional mode to attract more people to the brand, he says “So what!? Look, the people that would have wanted to play this twenty-three year old franchise would have played it by now and those who you might attract play this installment will probably be turned away from the lack of dumbed down levels and mentally challenges enemies in the previous incarnations. Also, the inclusion of an Easy Mode might also tempt those who would be willing to overcome the challenge of the game to be swayed to a much more wussified experience.”

In all, he feels that any of the other various Mega Man incarnations (except X) should be where such comforts reside– and in the case of some, such as Zero and ZX, they already do.

Meet Sheep Man

It’s been a while since we’ve seen anything new from IRA at our affiliate, Iragination, but just as Mega Man 9 managed to draw him out, so too has the recent announcement of Mega Man 10 and its new Robot Masters inspired him to create once again:

The designs from the box art work amazingly well with the more classic art style. It’s nearly enough to make one want to see a game with this kind of style.

See where it goes from there in the full strip.

If that’s not enough for you, he’s also added two new illustrations of X, which were inspired by that popular fanmade Revoltech-styled action figure kit. You can find them here and here.

Thanks to Scarab for alerting us of the update!

Next Page »