Maverick Virus
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The Maverick Virus of the Mega Man X video game series by Capcom is a group of computer viruses which can turn a Reploid into a Maverick. It should be noted that not all Mavericks are infected: a great deal are simply terrorists, criminals, or freedom fighters.
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[edit] Properties of the viruses
The Maverick Virus appears to be capable of infecting most Reploids and Mechaniloids, though some robots, most notably X, Axl, and the New Generation Reploids, seem to be immune to the effects of the virus.
In games with tangible viruses, most notably Mega Man X5 and Mega Man X6, the virus is a self-propelled airborne agent which hones onto a host. This might indicate that the Maverick Virus has wireless capabilities.
[edit] Origins
The Maverick Hunter Zero is the originator of the virus, and it is possible that Dr. Wily had a hand in its creation. It is unknown if he actually created the virus or not. It could be possible that Wily developed the Virus using the Dark energy that he acquired in Mega Man 8, but this is only speculation. In one of the endings of Mega Man: The Power Fighters (when Bass wins alone), Wily reveals a shadowed blueprint of Zero to Bass and speaks of his "other project", which is presumed to be the Virus. What is known however, is that Zero is the original vessel of the virus, and infected Sigma with it after a long battle.
In Mega Man X4, a flashback reveals this event, and Sigma, then leader of the Maverick Hunters, fought with Zero, then quite obviously Maverick, a few months before rebelling against the humans and taking most of the other Hunters with him. Sigma's hatred of humanity seems to stem from this event.
This is further corroborated in Mega Man X5, where Sigma claims that the Maverick Virus purifies Zero’s body and alludes to a "father" of Zero who advised Sigma to spread the virus with the hopes of "awakening" Zero to his "true self".
In Mega Man X8, when Zero meets with Sigma in the final stage, Sigma speaks of Zero's virus having infected him as being the catalyst for the world's destruction, thus verifying that it was indeed through Zero that Sigma was infected (this knowledge was only an assumption in previous games).
Even though Zero was the originator of the virus, it's known that reploids were going maverick months before the Maverick Hunters and Sigma engaged Zero, and this seems to indicate that the virus became active before Zero did, though it is possible that not all Mavericks during that time were in fact infected with the virus, but merely acting out on their own will. In X1's instruction manual, Dr. Cain states that "maybe we've grown too dependant on them (Reploids)", implying that the Reploids may just be acting out against humans out of rage for being used.
[edit] Possible Alternate Origin
In a startling revelation by Capcom questions have been brought up about the information presented here. Capcom released a book, Rockman Zero Complete Works, which tells of many things not specifically mentioned in the games, but rather fans had over the years come to believe. Some choose to ignore the information, others wish to wait for further information from Capcom, and others have accepted the information and are working to integrate it into the Mega Man lore.
The book reveals that Zero was not the originator of the virus nor was the virus developed by Dr. Wily. What would one day work to become the virus is actually a program created by Dr. Light known as the "suffering circuit." This program was what caused X to be so calm and causes his hatred of violence. It seems this program was the cause of the original cases of reploids going Maverick. It has been theorized that Dr. Cain copied the program and placed it in all reploids hoping they would be like X, but a design flaw prevented them from properly utilizing the program. While in some cases the program caused no ill effects, in some instances it caused the reploid to rebel or even go insane.
Over time they needed reploids to protect humanity from these Mavericks, so the Maverick Hunters were formed. One day they get a distress call stating that a "red maverick" is running loose and destroying the city. Sigma answers the call himself and immediately heads to the area and engages the maverick. To stop Zero, Sigma destroys the crystal in Zero's helmet. Sigma leaves and orders that the Maverick be taken back to the headquarters.
It's in Maverick HQ where it is believed that the "Maverick Virus" is first formed...unintentionally. While X's "suffering circuit" was the cause of all Maverick instances up to this point, the "suffering circuit" becomes viralized by an interaction with another program...the program within Zero which caused him to be the homicidal maniac that he was. The "suffering circuit" was installed within Zero which caused his personality to change dramatically and he became a Maverick Hunter. This is likely due to the fact that he and X have something which differs them from the reploids.
Sigma was slowly affected by the program which Zero had transferred to him by accident. While the "suffering circuit" was installed within Sigma just as it was X and Zero, Sigma had the design defect of all reploids that did not allow him to utilize the program properly. Because of this the "suffering circuit" within Sigma did not completely negate the effects of Zero's maniacal program. Instead of becoming a completely homicidal maniac like Zero, he became a cool calculating madman. Over time Sigma's own programming, the "suffering circuit", and Zero's maniacal program merged into one entity, the Sigma Virus.
Zero, while he felt no ill from the virus his programming had become due to his similarity in design to X and his ability to utilize the "suffering circuit", was from that point onward a carrier of the virus. Eventually he realizes this and admits himself to a research center which is assumed to be the scene seen at the end of X6.
Some fans also theorize that the origin of Zero's maniacal program may be the "Evil Energy" which is featured prominently in Mega Man 8.
[edit] Variations
There seems to be no single "Maverick Virus", but rather many similar viruses which produce the same basic effect.
[edit] The Zero Virus
This is the virus which Sigma had hoped would "awaken" Zero to his "original purpose". If infected, Zero becomes much stronger and temporarily regains his lost memory, but otherwise retains his personality and memories. This virus form is more powerful than either the Sigma or Colony Viruses, and therefore, yields much more power.
This is the original, pure version of the Maverick Virus, carried by Zero before he infected Sigma.
[edit] The Maverick Virus
The most common form of the virus is simply called the Maverick Virus. This form causes the majority of Reploids to go Maverick, especially during the first 4 games. Its effect causes Reploids and Mechaniloids to go berserk and attack Reploids and humans indiscriminately. It was first discovered by a Reploid scientist, Dr. Doppler, who also created the first antivirus programs. This virus is a weak version of the Zero virus.
[edit] The Sigma Virus
The Sigma Virus is a modified form of Sigma's own viral code, created by the fusion between Sigma's programing and the Maverick Virus, and is capable of infecting large numbers of Reploids and Mechaniloids alike, making them irrational and aggressive. This form of the virus is many times more potent than the original Maverick Virus. Sigma has this virus spread across the Earth in Mega Man X5 to cause chaos and confusion in order to mask his true purpose: the Colony Virus.
[edit] The Colony Virus
The Colony Virus was used to cause the failure and subsequent crash of the Space Colony Eurasia, hence its name. Little is actually revealed about this virus, except that when it came into contact with the Sigma Virus the two merged and became the Zero Virus.
[edit] Other viruses
There are many other viruses in the Mega Man X storyline, but they all seem to share some commonality: they infect previously deceased Reploids and alter their capabilities significantly, but act more as a brainwashing or mind control tool than a cause of irrational aggression. Examples of these viruses can be seen in Mega Man X6 (called Nightmare), Mega Man Xtreme 2, and Rockman X Megamissions (called Limited).
