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MegaMan, or RockMan as the character is known in various countries,
including Japan, is the hero in a series of video games made by Capcom for
various Nintendo and other gaming consoles. In the story, Mega Man is an
android created as a lab assistant by scientists Dr. Thomas Xavier Light and
Dr. Albert Wily; following treachery by Dr. Wily, Mega Man was converted
into a fighting robot to defend the world from Wily's violent creations.
The character of Mega Man, his robotic dog Rush, and mentor Dr. Light
appeared in the cartoon series "Captain N: The Game Master" in the United
States. A later cartoon series was based completely on Mega Man and his
friends and enemies, although they were distinctly different from their
video game forms. Mega Man has also been featured in comics and manga in
Japan.
MegaMan/RockMan original series
MegaMan appeared in four platform games for the Nintendo Entertainment
System, one for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, one for the Sony
PlayStation, five for the Nintendo Game Boy, one for the Nintendo Game Boy
Advance (which was a port of a Japan-only game for the Nintendo Super
Famicom), and one for the Bandai WonderSwan. In addition, there was a
MegaMan soccer game for the SNES, and a racing game for the PlayStation.
A game in this series generally takes the player to a stage select
screen, from which he/she can select any of several (usually eight) "Robot
Master" bosses. Now, upon selecting a boss, Mega Man enters a level
associated with that Robot Master, and must reach the end of the level and
defeat the boss. (Distinctive elements of the Mega Man series include that,
in most cases, he gains new abilities from fallen bosses--for example, upon
defeating the electrified Spark Man, he gains an electrical attack known as
Spark Shock. Robot Masters are affected differently by different attacks, so
this greatly affects gameplay and play order.) Usually, after all Robot
Masters have been defeated, Mega Man proceeds to a fortress. Sometimes this
fortress is inhabited by Dr. Wily; sometimes another character is at the end
of the fortress, in which case a second one with Dr. Wily usually follows.
In general Mega Man must fight all the game's Robot Masters again at the end
of the fortress before facing the final boss.
Major characters include
- Mega Man ("Rock Man" is his Japanese name).
- His prototype and "brother" Proto Man ("Blues" is his Japanese name),
- His "sister" Roll, a housekeeping robot. Her name is part of a pun- as in
Japan, Megaman was "Rock man". His original name worldwide was, "Rock",
making the two "Rock and Roll"
- Rush the Canine Support Unit is Mega Man's robotic dog friend. Rush can
transform himself into a coil, a jet, a marine device, and/or a search
device, depending on the game. He can also fuse with his master.
- Dr. Light is the inventor of MegaMan, Roll, ProtoMan, CutMan, GutsMan,
ElecMan, IceMan, FireMan, BombMan, Beat, Eddie, Tango, and Auto. He ran a
store where P-Chips could be traded for items in RockMan World 4/MegaMan IV
and RockMan World 5/MegaMan V
- Beat the Bird Support Unit first appeared in RockMan 5/MegaMan V, and has
appeared continuously in other MegaMan games. At first he pecked at enemies.
In other games, he picked up MegaMan if he fell into a hole.
- Tango the Feline Support Unit appeared in RockMan World 5/MegaMan V as
one of MegaMan's healpful allies. Tango changes itself into a buzzsaw and
dives into enemies.
- Auto the Utility Bot first appeared in RockMan 7, MegaMan VII as the
runner of the place where MegaMan exchanged bolts for items. He has appeared
in other games.
- Eddie the Storage Unit, also Fliptop, first appeared in RockMan 4/MegaMan
IV to give MegaMan well desired items. He had been reduced to onlooker
status in RockMan 7/MegaMan VII
- Dr. Wily, The inventor of the "evil" robots and enemy of the series. He
used to be Light's lab assistant before stealing 6 robots to counter megaman
in the first game.
- Bass (Forte is his Japanese name) an evil robot similar to Mega Man, made
by Dr. Wily in the later games to counter Mega Man.
- Treble (Gospel is his Japanese name) is Rush's alter ego. Trebel is Bass'
dog friend whom can fuse with him.
- Duo, a mysterious robot that only made his appearance in the most recent
games.
The series is set in the ambiguous year 20XX to avoid seeming dated; in
Mega Man 2 this was given as 200X, but generally the transition is
interpreted as a change in canon rather than an indication of time passing.
MegaMan X/RockMan X series
Similar to the original series, the MegaMan X series features a formerly
peaceful robot who, after to a disastrous betrayal, begins fighting to save
the world. This robot, named "X" (hence the series name), is Dr. Light's
final creation; he was the most advanced robot ever created, and the first
truely sentient robot. As part of a testing procedure to prevent him from
becoming dangerous, X lay dormant for thirty years, during which Dr. Light
apparently died (though he lives on in the form of a sentient hologram) and
the events of the original series were forgotten. In 21XX, X was discovered
and awakened by a scientist named Dr. Cain, who used X's design and numerous
modified versions to create a race of sentient robots known as "Reploids".
However, a mysterious computer virus, apparently contracted from a Reploid-like
robot named Zero, began causing Reploids to go berserk, becoming evil
"Mavericks". A Reploid named Sigma, who hunted these Mavericks (a "Maverick
Hunter"), managed to defeat Zero in battle, after which he was rebuilt and
became a Maverick Hunter himself. Sigma himself later became a Maverick and
took most of the Hunters with him, leaving X and Zero responsible for
defeating the Mavericks and protecting Reploids and humans alike. It is
strongly implied, though never stated, that Zero was created by Dr. Wily.
Despite the different storyline and characters, gameplay is very similar
to the original series, with several exceptions (most notably, X and Zero
can cling to walls, and Zero is armed with a beam saber rather than the
traditional "buster" gun.) Mavericks replace the Robot Masters, and Sigma
replaces Dr. Wily. There have been a total of eight MegaMan X games: three
on the SNES (MegaMan X, MegaMan X2, MegaMan X3), three on the PlayStation (MegaMan
X4, MegaMan X5, MegaMan X6), and two on the Nintendo Game Boy Color (the two
side stories MegaMan Xtreme and MegaMan Xtreme 2). A seventh main-series
game, MegaMan X7, is planned for the Sony PlayStation 2. Major characters
are X, Zero, Sigma, Dr. Light, Vile (a Maverick working on his own to kill
X), and Dynamo (a mercenary who plays a similar role to Bass).
There seem to be running jokes with this series in the form of references
to Star Wars--in the first game in particular, Zero played a role similar to
that of Obi-Wan Kenobi (including dying and his body disappearing) and Sigma
fighting with a light saber (Zero, who returned in the second game, gained
such a saber himself in the process). The most prominent resemblance is that
Vile wears something very similar to Boba Fett's distinctive "T" helmet.
It should be noted that the relation of X to the original Mega Man is
under dispute. Some fans believe X is an upgraded form of Mega Man; others
believe he is a totally different robot who simply has a similar design.
Comparisons between the two in terms of personality and technical
parameters, as well as X's lack of any memories of the 20XX era, seem to
indicate that the two are separate. Keiji Inafune, the man generally
associated with being the creator of Rockman, expressed in an interview that
Rockman and X are two different robots entirely.
MegaMan Zero/RockMan Zero
After laying dormant for 100 years to permanently remove the Maverick
Virus from his systems, Zero (from the X series) awakens in 22XX in a world
where Reploids are being constantly accused of being Mavericks and
systematically exterminated, apparently under the direction of X himself.
Assisting a small resistance group lead by a human named Ciel, Zero must
fight X's army, including his four generals (named Harpuia, Leviathan,
Fefnir, and Phantom), to reach and stop X... who, as it turns out, is a mere
imitation of the real X. Gameplay is very similar to that of the X series,
although the level select screen is removed in favor of a "mission"-oriented
system. Major characters are Zero, Ciel, X, and the generals. There are two
games in this series.
Legends/DASH series
A strange variation on the MegaMan franchise, MegaMan Legends has no
known connection to the original or X series at all (although some have
speculated such a connection based on misinterpreted comments in the X
series, most notably the use of the word "elysium"). The player controls
MegaMan Voulnut, a human teenage boy. MegaMan is a Digger, meaning he goes
into underground mazes for a living, fighting ancient robots to find
"refractor" power sources with help from his adopted sister Roll and their
grandfather, Barrell Casket. Giving them trouble are the Bonnes, a group of
pirates consisting of leader Tiesel Bonne, his sister Tron (who is,
ironically, infatuated with MegaMan), the large "baby" robot Bon Bonne
(known primarily for his oft-repeated line "Babu!" which has become a
catchphrase among the series's fans), and the forty Servbots (which vaguely
resemble Lego mini-figures). There are only two MegaMan Legends games at
present (the first is available for PlayStation, N64, Sega Saturn, and PC,
though the second is exclusive to the PlayStation), plus a spinoff
PlayStation game called "The Misadventures of Tron Bonne" starring said
character. Main characters include MegaMan, Roll, Barrell, and the Bonnes.
Characters from this series also cameo in various other Capcom games, and
Tron Bonne is a playable character in Marvel Versus Capcom 2. No planning
has begun on a third game, which has many of the fans upset, especially due
to the cliffhanger ending of the second game.
Battle Network/EXE series
Known as the EXE series in Japan, the MegaMan Battle Network games are
RPGs for the Game Boy Advance. The series is set in 20XX in an alternate
version of the original universe in which computers, not robots, were the
subject of the most research; the result was the PET (PErsonal Terminal), a
small computer which is used similarly to a cellular phone or PDA and which
contains a customizable artificial intelligence known as a Navi (short for
Navigator). These Navis have battle capabilities for deleting viruses, but
are also capable of fighting each other, thus BATTLE Network. The Battle
Network series focuses on the adventures of relatively ordinary fifth-grade
student Lan Hikari and his very extraordinary Navi, MegaMan.EXE. Lan and
MegaMan fight primarily against the schemes of madman and failed scientist
Wily, who is evidently an alternate version of the villain from the original
series. This consists mostly of defeating Navis operated by Wily's henchmen.
(Incidentally, most (but not all) of the Navis are named after characters
from the original series, and one is named after a character from the second
Legends game.) Out of battle, gameplay is typical RPG fare; in battle, they
are a unique hybrid of classic MegaMan gameplay and RPG-style fights. There
are two Battle Network games with a third coming out, all for Game Boy
Advance; another game in the series, set between the first two, has been
made for the Nintendo GameCube.
- Lan Hikari doesn't do the best in school, yet he and RockMan/MegaMan are
an effective team in fighting viruses.
- Mayl has known Lan for practically his entire life. Roll is her NetNavi.
- Dex, the "brat", doesn't do so well in net battles, so he often gets into
trouble. Gutsman is his NetNavi.
- Chaud is only an elementary school student, yet the calm and focused boy
is a well-known net-battler. Blues/ProtoMan is his NetNavi.
- Yai is a rich girl whom also skipped several grades due to her
intelligence. She has a net navi named Glyde.
- Doctor Wily and henchman Match are the two men whom fight Lan over the
internet.
Other significant characters, who are not featured in the games as much,
are Bass, Gospel, Serenade, and Mr. Famous.
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