Mega Man Anniversary Collection

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Mega Man Anniversary Collection
Mega Man Anniversary Collection game cover
Developer(s) Atomic Planet Entertainment (APE)
Publisher(s) Capcom
Platform(s) GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox
Release date June 22, 2004 (GC and PS2)
March 15, 2005 (Xbox)
Genre(s) Action, 2D Platformer
Mode(s) Single player
Rating(s) ESRB: Everyone
Media 1 DVD-ROM / 1 Optical Disc
System requirements Action Replay for use codes

Mega Man Anniversary Collection is a compilation of ten video games featuring Capcom's hero Mega Man. It features the first eight Mega Man games, as well as two unlockable arcade games that saw only limited release outside of Japan. Other unlockables include original artwork and remixed music. The anthology is fairly complete, although various side story games such as Mega Man & Bass and Mega Man Soccer are not included, the former due to its recent release on the Game Boy Advance.

Each game has a nearly identical structure: traverse eight themed stages (six in the first game) to face off against boss robots, gain new weapons and abilities, then defeat the robots' master, Dr. Wily. An extra feature is the "Navi Mode" for the first six titles, which provides hints and pathways for completing each stage. The arcade games are similar in gameplay but a bit more streamlined; the battles cut straight to the bosses, who get progressively more difficult with each defeated boss.

Contents

[edit] Games included

[edit] Differences

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Conversion quality

The games present in "Anniversary Collection" are emulated. However, the emulation techniques utilized by Atomic Planet have caused controversy among fans. For example, Mega Man 7 has been cited as the most edited of all the included titles. First, the game's ending (sans closing credits) were removed due to Atomic Planet having difficulty properly emulating the Mode 7 effects. Second, one of Bass' lines was censored to "Darn" instead of "Damn." Third, frame rate issues arise frequently during gameplay, particular when the screen is scrolling vertically. Fourth, blurring occurs to allow the game to display smoothly on its higher resolution.The Gamecube version's controls have been changed, so that the A and B buttons have been switched.A is now shoot, and B is now jump.A rapid-fire feature has been assigned to the Y button on Mega Man 1-6, making the games much too easy. These two adjustments may or may not be on the XBox version.

The PlayStation 2 version displays the first six games at a different screen resolution, causing black bars on the left and right sides of the screen.

The PlayStation version of Mega Man 8 was ported instead of the Sega Saturn version. Therefore, additional features, such as the boss fights of Cut Man and Wood Man, are not included. The main change is that load times were virtually eliminated. However, the quality has decreased in some areas; there are noticeable slowdowns in boss battles, and the final four Robot Masters have their voice clips sped up outside of their introduction. The yellow bar inside the energy meters is just one color in PlayStation 2 version, rather than two like the other versions. In the GameCube version Bink Video compression is used in the full-motion videos instead of M-JPEG compression, as it was provided by the PlayStation system itself, but the quality is largely identical.

Navi Mode

This is a new mode that was added to the six NES Mega Man games in the Rockman Complete Works set for the original PlayStation. The mode does the following:

  • Adds helpers (different character for each game, except Mega Man 1 and Mega Man 6 which have the same helper), who provide Game Hints if the player is in need of help, they are:

Dr. Light in Mega Man 1 and Mega Man 6.

Roll in Mega Man 2.

Proto Man in Mega Man 3.

Kalinka in Mega Man 4.

Dr. Cossack in Mega Man 5.

  • Updates Energy meters
  • Updates Weapon sub-screens (Mega Man 1-3 only)
  • Includes the appearance of Beat or Eddie (depending on the game), who show up in certain areas to show the player the best routes to take. Beat in Mega Man 1-4, Eddie in Mega Man 5 and Mega Man 6.
  • Remixes soundtracks

The PlayStation 2 and Xbox versions include some arranged music for MM1, MM2, and MM3 (taken from the two arcade games). These were present in the original Japanese releases of the Complete Works versions, but were entirely optional, and can be heard if the select button is being held while the Navi Mode is being selected. MMAC also includes the Complete Works arranged soundtracks for MM4, MM5, and MM6. However, the quality of Mega Man 6's remixed soundtrack differs from the Rockman Complete Works version: the sound quality has static and is muffled, and not all of the music is remixed. The GameCube version does not have any of the arranged tunes, but it does include the other features that the Navi Mode provides.

However, all three versions do not have the enhanced Navi Mode weapon menus for MM4, MM5, or MM6 from Rockman Complete Works, in addition to the option of playing as Mega Man without his helmet in those games (which can be done in the original Japanese releases by holding the R2 button whilst selecting Navi Mode). The three versions also do not include the Hard difficulty setting, which could be unlocked in the Complete Works set after finishing a game once with the Navi mode turned off and the difficulty set to Normal. The only other features from the Complete Works set that have been included are a difficulty setting, music and sound effects volume, and a Starting Lives setting. None of the other features in the Complete Works are included.

Capcom of Europe has not released the compilation in Europe and Australia. The company has not given a reason. Shortly thereafter, there was a petition by fans for a European release.

There are also differences for the extras between each version. The PlayStation 2 version features the original Ruby-Spears Mega Man cartoon episode, while the GameCube version has an interview with Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune. The Xbox version, which was released later, includes the same interview, the first episode of the Mega Man NT Warrior anime, the ability to change the control scheme, and the arranged music tracks from the PS2 version.

[edit] Development

Originally due to be released concurrently with the GameCube and PlayStation 2 Collections, the Game Boy Advance version, which was to feature the five original Game Boy Mega Man games, had its release date pushed back several times, with no real explanation given. After rumors of development problems, and of the project's cancellation or transfer to Nintendo DS, the last release date given was February 15, 2006. But in January of 2006, gamers contacting Capcom were told that the game had been placed on "indefinite hold" (many consider this to be equivalent to cancellation). Capcom also began issuing refund checks to those who had ordered MMAC GBA directly through their online store (unlike most other online game sellers, Capcom charges the full amount at the time of purchase for pre-orders which are combined with orders for available items). Around the same time, several retailers, such as GameStop, declared the game "cancelled" and issued refunds or store credits. As of January 25, 2006, some customers had received their checks (along with a letter from Capcom reiterating the "indefinite hold" status). Capcom confirmed on their US forums the game is not in production, mostly due to the costs involved in producing it and the declining support of the Game Boy Advance.

[edit] Reception

The collection received mostly positive feedback, with scores of 8's, 9's, and 10's. The collection was slightly criticised for lacking somewhat in the extras department, and the GameCube version was criticised slightly more for not including the remixed audio for Mega Man 1-6. However the exclusive extra in the PS2 and GC versions were both praised, with the GC version's interview being favorited and thus balancing things out. The Xbox version rated slightly better than the other two versions, because of it's added exclusive content as well as the exclusive bonuses from the PS2 and GC versions. However, it was given a score of 8.0 (versus 8.5 for the other two versions) from IGN for arriving late.

Fans were disappointed by the lack of other known Mega Man games that were released during the NES/SNES (Famicom/Super Famicom) periods. For example, Mega Man Soccer, which hasn't been seen on the market since its 1994 release. Rockman & Forte (Known in the US and Europe as Mega Man and Bass) was left out of the compilation due to its possible effect on sales of the GameBoy Advance version. While Mega Man Battle and Chase was not included in Anniversary Collection, it was an unlockable in Mega Man X Collection.

Despite the few criticisms, the Mega Man Anniversary Collection was a huge hit and earned Player's Choice status on GameCube and became available at the reduced cost of $19.95 USD.

Due to the popularity of Mega Man Anniversary Collection among fans of the series, Capcom followed up with Mega Man X Collection. There is no word from Capcom of Europe whether or not it will see a European release.

[edit] External links

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Mega Man remakes and collections