Among them were many pulling support for Mega Man (Rockman), which really moved me. I was also happy that there are many desiring a continuation of Rockman DASH. I wanted to yell that I want to make it more than they want me to. I am truly grateful. As long as the fans support me, I’ll do my best.

Inafune has spoken for years now about wanting to return to Mega Man Legends (Rockman DASH). But now having announced an “oft-requested” Mega Man game in the works, it makes his blogging that much more delicious.

*I’m kind of ashamed to realize how much I follow Capcom developer blogs these days. Makes me nervous I’ll turn this site into something like Kotaku.

- It appears that the game won’t be out for a while yet. “Please support us as we provide more information later,” they say.

- And now, they go into Mega Man‘s history.

- Inafune goes into the character’s “true name” of Rockman, and how he found “Mega Man” to be goofy. Nor was he fond of the “old man” look given to the character on the American box art.

- “I know from personal experience, that more people come up to me and tell me how much of a Mega Man fan they are. This happens more in America than in Japan (guessing that’s more accurate than “in a fan” –ed.). The funny thing is is that they all introduce themselves as ‘#1 Mega Man” fan. So let’s settle this. Who in this room is the #1 fan?”

- “Ok, lets meet at the Capcom booth and you guys will have to fight for the crown. I’m kidding, please don’t punch each other. Ok, let’s talk Mega Man Universe what a lot of you came for. As a lot of you know there is a trailer and is designed to be mysterious, in that it doesn’t show what the game is about.”

- He notes that the trailer we’d seen for Mega Man Universe previously came from the idea of what Mega Man is, and what it means to different people,” whether they began with Mega Man 2 or Mega Man X. “Everyone has a unique idea of what Mega Man is.”

- Inafune hopes that allowing everyone to play as their ideal version of Mega Man or heroes from outside the Mega Man franchise will encourage players’ creativity, with Universe uniting “Mega Man fans from around the planet to play together in one place.”

- “I can’t go into detail, but you might have an idea of what I’m talking about. And for those who haven’t seen the trailer, we’re going to show that right now.” 1UP’s Mike Nelson notes that the props from said trailer are at Capcom’s booth.

- Inafune asks what they thought of the trailer, and is met with applause. He says they’ll have the game playable as soon as possible, and more info in the near future. He expresses remorse for people coming, but says he’ll “let you in on stuff that the press doesn’t even know.” At least we’re all in the same boat.

- While MMU is something he’s always wanted to make, Inafune says that’s not the only Mega Man project in store for this year. “You haven’t heard the last of the Mega Man announcements out there,” he said, adding that fans should expect confirmation of an “oft-requested thing that you guys want.”

- Crowd starts shouting titles, including “Mega Man Legends 3.” To that, Inafune simply responds with a smile and a “thank you.”

- Producer Akiko Ito finished things up by confirming that the game would be available on the PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE Arcade services.

- And that’s it for the panel. Clearly, this not only met the hype, but exceeded it in every imaginable way.

- That is, of course, sarcasm. However, the event isn’t a total wash, apparently: there is another Capcom panel on Saturday at 12pm PST where everyone is told “a big announcement will be made.”

- Do we dare to hope?

Well that wraps it up. Kind of disappointing, really, that the announcement turned out to be nothing more than an even bigger tease. Capcom ought to know by now that Mega Man fans don’t need teases to get hyped up!

Big thanks go out to 1UP, who had a man on the site where we could not be, and to Kotaku for their more detailed report.

Capcom Unity and the Capcom Europe blog have literally just announced that Keiji Inafune is working on Mega Man Universe for Xbox LIVE and the PS3 PlayStation Store.

Quick update: Keiji Inafune has announced on his own blog that, unlike other Mega Man games of recent times, he is fully in charge of the concept and design of Mega Man Universe. He believes it is a Mega Man game that captures the taste of Mega Man nostalgia, and expects it to be enjoyed by Mega Man fans all over the world. He also considers it as “everyone’s Mega Man.”

Said to be a “revolutionary take on the seminal classic, it is Capcom’s aim for Mega Man Universe to be the most creative Mega Man experience yet. “In Mega Man Universe, imagination is the star of the game.”

Said Capcom Entertainment Head of Research and Development Management, Keiji Inafune:

“We are thrilled to finally be able to announce Mega Man Universe. This game will break the mold and challenge the conventional wisdom of what a Mega Man game can be. When fans finally get to see it, I believe they’ll envision their most far-out Mega Man dreams coming true.”

The press release adds that “Inafune is committed to helping craft a Mega Man experience that meets the highest expectations of Capcom fans,” and “gamers can expect Mega Man Universe to bring the core experience fans want while delivering on the promise of innovation that Capcom is known for. Its official: classic gaming will never be same again.”

More is to come on Capcom’s blogs and at the San Diego Comic Con next week. In the meantime, GameSpot has an exclusive Q&A, plus the following trailer:

“What does the teaser trailer mean?” asks Capcom Unity’s JGonzo. “What are Ryu and Arthur doing there? Well, that’s the point of a teaser, right?”

As for the image we saw yesterday? Capcom Unity has the story on that:

In addition, we’re going to have MMU-branded foam Mega Man busters created by iam8bit available to give away at Comic Con! The image I posted yesterday was early concept work for this awesome swag that we’ll be giving out at the show! They will be limited to 2000 total, and we will be giving away 50 at our booth every hour, so be sure to grab one!

Finally, we’re going to be holding a Mega Man cosplay contest on Saturday, July 24th at 1PM at Comic-Con at the Capcom booth. We will have 50 exclusive, Japan-only Mega Man trucker hats and 50 Mega Man busters to give out to the first 50 cosplayers. The winner (as judged by Mega Man Universe producer Ito-san) will also receive a signed sketch by Keiji Inafune!

Sources: Capcom Europe blog, Capcom Unity

2. con·ti·nu·i·ty – an uninterrupted connection, succession, or union

A canon, in terms of a fictional universe, is a body of material that is considered to be “genuine” or “official.” The use of the word “canon” in reference to a set of texts derives from Biblical canon, the set of books which are regarded as scripture. When Reeve created The Mega Man Network, he set forth a canon analysis meant to describe how we would interpret information from Capcom in analyzing the timeline of the Mega Man franchise.

Now, almost a decade later, we have a franchise splintered apart over seven distinct sub-series, source books/publications, manga/anime, and various other mediums. Canon, therefore, is not what we need to examine. Succinctly put, if it is made by Capcom, it is canon; if it is officially licensed by Capcom, it is also canon. In this regard, everything made or licensed by Capcom – whether it be the Ruby Spears animated series, the NT Warrior anime, the Ariga mangas, the Dreamwave comic, or even the Captain N cartoon – it is all irrevocably canon.

Perhaps where we erred was our application of the definition of canon – perhaps what we needed to do instead was understand the fundamental difference “canon” and “continuity.” Continuity, by the above definition, defines a set of events that occur within a timeline. To understand the continuity of the Mega Man franchise requires analysis of the timeline of events established within the games themselves, as well as the gaps that occur between the primary series (Classic, X, Zero, ZX, and Legends) and the secondary series (Battle Network and Star Force).

The primary series occurs in one timeline, and the secondary series occurs in another – an “alternate universe” if you will. The problem we run into here is that over time, even Capcom’s own interpretation of events has varied considerably. Events established in new games contradict previously-established scenarios (such as Dr. Cain’s apparent fate in Mega Man: Maverick Hunter X), some publications make mention of things that are completely ignored by the games themselves (the explanation of X’s “suffering circuit” from Mega Man Zero Official Complete Works), and events mentioned in source books are even retracted in later publications (Capcom’s original explanations for the location of the Guardians in Mega Man Zero 4 versus the Official Complete Works).

What we have now is a Mega Man franchise that has been outsourced to different companies over the years, and which has generated a timeline of events that has become nearly impossible to sort out. Continuity in the realm of Mega Man is almost a non-issue now; take the origins of the Mega Man Zero series, for example. It was designed by Keiji Inafune to follow the events of Mega Man X5. When Capcom made Mega Man X6, story events of Mega Man Zero 2 had to be altered somewhat. When all was said and done, there was a convoluted sequence of events following the untold end of the Mega Man X series that left the Mega Man Zero series that much harder to understand.

Trying to theorize how events from one series impact another is fruitless. It is not up to us as fans of the series to make such judgments. Our role is to interpret events as they happen, and make our best guess as to how they integrate into the overall timeline.

So what is it that we’re trying to say here? Nothing different, really. We’re modifying our definition of canon and how we’ve used it in the past, and separating canon from continuity. Canon is just the official elements that comprise the overall framework of the franchise.

Continuity, on the other hand, defines the storyline events that occur from game to game and from series to series. Continuity is something that is open to interpretation, and is something no one website can claim authority over. Therefore, as we cannot predict with any certainty what directions Capcom will take the storyline, the policy of The Mega Man Network is simply to present the facts of the games and merchandise, and let the best educated minds sort everything else out.

It really makes things a lot easier this way, when you look at it in perspective. Trying to piece together a definitive continuity nearly fractured the Star Wars fanbase, and there is no point in doing the same thing to the Mega Man fanbase. Just remember, Mega Man is a little robot that runs around in blue underwear. You wouldn’t take that too seriously if you saw it, now would you? Neither do we. So what we’re trying to say, if we’re saying anything at all, is just relax and enjoy the games.

Tim is a longtime member of the Mega Man fan community and The Mega Man Network. Once site administrator, he now acts as a part-time adviser for the site, trying ever so hard to improve the legacy of analysis, guides, and other content he has contributed to The Mega Man Network over the years.

“It’s a common comment I hear that games created in Europe aren’t really Capcom games, that games created in Japan are true Capcom games. I want to put an end to that, basically saying that whether games are created in America or Japan or anywhere in the world, I will be the one overlooking it and so it will have that Capcom flavor that fans know and love.

So one of the thing I want people to know is that now that I am overseeing every part of Capcom R&D you can be sure that that unified vision is going to come through in all of our titles no matter where they are created.

Those of you who know me, know how serious I am about trying to make global games on a global scale especially thinking about America and Europe when designing a lot of our titles. I’ve been pushing really hard for the last several years to try and gear our games in that direction.”

Inafune went on to address the issue of a lack of “unified direction” at the company’s studios around the world. To that end, Shinji Futami has been positioned as Inafune’s “mouthpiece,” so that his ideas and philosophy are communicated to the U.S. offices.

“Futami-san has been in the game industry for more than 20 years,” Inafune told Game Informer (via GoNintendo). “I have known him for more than 10. We share the same philosophies, the same ideas, the same dealings about game design, so I feel he’s the perfect man for the job to be able to convey my sensibilities to the Western market.”

In more Mega Man-related news, MegaPhilX (via Protodude’s Rockman Corner) had a chance to speak with Mr. Inafune at Capcom’s recent Captivate event in Hawaii. With the opportunity presented, he took advantage by asking one of many questions that are no doubt on the mind of many a Mega Man fan:

“Okay this is awesome I got to talk with Inafune-san a little bit (With help from his interpreter) and I got him to sign my MegaMan 1 cartridge. The already awesome cover art can’t look any more vintage now ( : I asked Inafune-san if there are any plans to make a MegaMan X9 soon (Obviously to let him know that was the game I would want made) and he said that there are no plans for a X9 for now. If they make a X game it won’t be X9.”

One has to admit, that is a most curious response. If not Mega Man X9, then what could Inafune have planned?

Perhaps with his new position of power, he has finally found a way to make Maverick Hunter X2 a reality? On the other hand, he has unfortunately displayed a rather narrow view of what Mega Man can be in the past, downplaying the existence of Command Mission in the process, which makes a sequel seem less likely.

And if not either one of those, or X9, then one can only wonder what he might have in mind.

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.

1) Bigopinion asks: Inafune-san! Rockman is getting pretty old! Thank you for sharing such a wonderful franchise with the world for all these years!! If you could take the Megaman franchise into any new direction — away from the 2D sidescrolling action adventure we have grown to love through the years — where would you go with it??

Inafune-san: Thanks to you for many years of your support for Mega Man! You are right, the Mega Man game is known for its 2D side-scrolling action. But we are also constantly seeking for a new direction. We don’t want to do just something new in a random manner. It’s got to be not just new to the series but something completely original, something you have never seen when it comes to Mega Man. I hope I can share exciting news with you sometime in near future. Till then, stay tuned!

2) Overdriveostrich asks: I was wondering, why did you choose to make another 8 bit original series MegaMan with MegaMan 10? Did you consider doing a MegaMan X9 with 16 bit Super Famicom(SNES) graphics?

Inafune-san: One of the biggest reasons for going with the 8bit style was the success with Mega Man 9. MM 9 succeeded beyond our wildest expectation. We had initially thought of bringing back to the series the feel of the NES to create a sense of nostalgia with MM9. Receiving the great reaction from the fans over it, we decided to establish the style as the game genre for Mega Man. In line with this concept, reviving the 16 bit game style in the series seems like a great idea. We certainly would like to consider trying it out in future when there’s a chance.

3) Akuknives asks: Inafune-san, are you thinking of brushing off the old Robot Masters contest? and have you thought about other contests such as a Stage Theme Music submission contest? With 8-bit music being so popular these days, surely there are plenty of musicians with tracks to submit, don’t you think?

Inafune-san: Unfortunately this time, we are not able to hold the Robot Master Contest. But we want to bring it back in near future if an opportunity arises. What I hope to do with the Robot Master Contest is to create Mega Man together with all the fans. The Stage Theme Music contest sounds really interesting so I would love to setup a system for the fans to submit their music and make it happen.

4) Manson asks: Was there any overarching theme when choosing boss robot ideas for each of the classic RockMan games? If so, could you give us some examples?

Inafune-san: Mega Man has had many unique boss characters throughout the series. What I work hard most on in creating these characters is to come up with a design that clearly represents each character’s not only physical features but its personality and battle style. We make variations in illustration details by series, such as making the design further simpler or adding more lines depending on the series, but the fundamentals of Mega Man character designing is focused on creating distinct and imaginative art that tells a story of a specific character to the players.

5) Rockmasterx asks: Hello Keiji! I’m from Spain and a Megaman/Rockman fan, I have aprox. 57 original megaman games in my collection and my goal in life is complete this collection! xD Well here are my questions:(sorry for my bad english) Is there any possibility that you make the next Megaman X with graphics style of “odin sphere” or “muramasa: demon blade”? I think that is a good 2-D Style and the gameplay of megaman X-X6 can be restored.

Inafune-san: 57 of them!? That is amazing!! And I should thank you for that. I think Odinsphere and Muramasa are really good games, but we probably would not mix Mega Man X series with those styles. We would love to work with brand new 2D game ideas rather than borrowing one from elsewhere.

More Inafune answers will be posted on Unity tomorrow, and later on we’ll get some answers to questions asked to manga artist Hitoshi Ariga. Stay tuned!

I’ve seen people clamoring for a Mega Man Zero Collection, a compilation of the four Game Boy Advance games in the series, for some time now. But ever since Rockman.EXE: Operate Shooting Star turned out to be a port of the original Rockman.EXE title with minimal changes (similar to Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney), I’ve been something of a killjoy on the matter. If it was brought up, I would tend to respond that Capcom was more likely to release them all individually, possibly with some added content. But a collection? Highly unlikely.

And I am not afraid to tell you here today that I was more or less wrong; of course, “highly unlikely” doesn’t mean impossible, but evidently, the possibility was greater than I had imagined.

In other words: yes, there is going to be a Rockman Zero Collection on the Nintendo DS. Capcom of Japan has opened the site for it, which you can view for yourself here.

Information seems to be scarce at the moment, suffice to say that it seems to contain all four parts of the Rockman Zero saga. The release date is soon– very soon, in fact, with a date of April 22nd, 2010, and a price of 3,990 yen (roughly $43.83 USD).

One should also note that above the center “Z” logo (which moves to the left when the central image of Zero appears) when the site begins to flash scenes, there is an opening for a logo (?) that is unaccounted for. It may simply be an oversight on my part, but what could that space be for?

Naturally, it’s a touch too soon to hear about a U.S. release date just yet, though I’m sure we’ll hear something by E3 in June. Until then, stay with us as we bring you the latest regarding the Rockman Zero Collection– no doubt some of our crew will import it upon release and tell you whether it’s worth getting more hyped for than Operate Shooting Star.

Thanks to fellow MMN staff member Mainfinger for bringing this to my attention.

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

UPDATE: The live chat is now over. Thank you everyone who came in and participated! It was very fun, maybe a little weird. Comments are now open for this post. We will post media and info from the show below.

Ariga’s slice of Mega Man birthday cake, as seen on the Spiceman blog.

Update 2: Seems we forgot to include this in here, but Inafune did answer some questions presented to him from the Capcom*Unity, though for the two hours the show took, this portion was disappointingly short.

The first question was, naturally, about MegaMan Legends 3. Inafune jokingly responded that “if Ben Judd (one of the English co-hosts for the evening) would produce it, we could have a sequel.”

Another question involved another possible move for Mega Man into 3D, which Inafune said would be difficult due to the different expectations which would be had by fans of 2D and 3D games. He added that there were some elements of 2D Mega Man which simply would not translate well into 3D. (If anything, X7 seems like proof of this to some degree.)

Asked about creating a new 16-bit Mega Man game in the style of Mega Man 7 for the Super NES, Inafune responded that 8-bit is where Mega Man was born, and he hasn’t done everything that he wants to in that style yet. But in the future? He’ll have to see where the series takes him.

Naturally, once Legends 3 was out of the way, a question regarding Mega Man X9 was inevitable (they should have simply combined every series into a single question). Inafune professed his love for the X series, but noted that he was quite busy at the moment, and has some different things he would like to do with Mega Man before heading back down that road.

Asked about the popularity of Mega Man 2 making a Mega Man 2 Powered Up possible, Inafune did not commit to the idea, but expressed a rather surprising amount of confidence toward the possibility of it happening.

Someone suggested the idea of Inafune creating a Mega Man game which uses hand-drawn artwork as Vanillaware’s Odin Sphere and Muramasa: The Demon Blade do, and while he did like the idea to some degree, he said he would not wish to simply imitate that idea.

And shortly after that, the show ended. Capcom says they are archiving the video, however, so we’ll post/link to it when they have it up.