Mega Man 11

Mega Man 11
Switch cover
Developer	Capcom
Publisher	Capcom
Release Date	2018
Genre	Plaformer
Platforms	Switch PlayStation 4 XBox ONE PC

Mega Man 11, known in Japan as Rockman 11: Unmei no Haguruma!! (ロックマン11: 運命の歯車！！, Rokkuman Irebun Unmei no Haguruma!!, lit. "Rockman 11: Gears of Fate!!"), is a action platformer game and the eleventh main installment in the original Mega Man series. Developed and published by Capcom, the game, which marks the return of the Mega Man series mainline after eight years of hiatus, was first announced on 4th December 2017 in Capcom's livestream event celebrating the Mega Man franchise's 30th anniversary. Mega Man 11 is avalaible for PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One, and was released worldwide on October 2018.

Gameplay

Mega Man 11 features the usual gameplay of the classic games. Mega Man is once again able to use Sliding and Charge Shot, and can call upon Rush to reach higher platforms, using abilities that appear to be Rush Coil and Rush Jet. Players travel through linear stages before battling against one of Doctor Wily's eight Robot Masters. Mega Man can perform classic moves such as the chargeable Mega Buster and slide, as well as obtain new weapons by defeating Robot Master bosses at the end of each level. Mega Man 11 features 3D polygonal characters and environments, departing from the pixel art-based approach from the first six games and the ninth and tenth installments, and going towards a similar approach to both the seventh and eight installments in its detailed graphic gameplay. Much like Mega Man Powered Up, Mega Man: Maverick Hunter X, and Mega Man X8, Mega Man 11 uses 2.5D graphics for the gameplay engine.

Unique to this game is the "Double Gear" system, which grants Mega Man two additional abilities; the "Speed Gear" and "Power Gear". The Speed Gear lets Mega Man slow down time, allowing him to dodge attacks, while the Power Gear increases the attack power of Mega Man's weaponry; both of these will overheat if Mega Man uses them too much. When Mega Man's health is critically low, he can activate both gears to perform a powerful charge shot which can only be used once and leaves Mega Man weakened afterwards.

Mega Man 11 marks the return of difficulty settings for the series, last seen in Mega Man 10, expanding upon them for a total of four: "Newcomer", "Casual", "Normal", and "Superhero". The game have additional features, including Time Trials, Missions, Global Leaderboards and a concept art gallery. The Nintendo Switch version have Amiibo support, which can be used to unlock in-game items.

Characters

• Mega Man
• Roll
• Rush
• Auto
• Dr. Light
• Dr. Wily

Bosses

• Block Man
• Fuse Man
• Blast Man
• Acid Man
• Tundra Man
• Torch Man
• Impact Man
• Bounce Man

Story

The evil scientist Dr. Wily has completed a forbidden research to attack the peaceful robotic society again. While reflecting on his younger days when he studied alongside Dr. Light, he remembered a creation of his own: the Double Gear System, a device that dramatically increases the abilities of robots, but its research was stopped due to the danger caused by pushing robots beyond their limitations, and it is related to the conflict between Dr. Wily and Dr. Light. Finishing the Double Gear System, Dr. Wily steals eight of Dr. Light's robots and increases their abilities to use on his plans to conquer the world. In order to counter the situation, Dr. Light reluctantly decided to install a prototype of the Double Gear System that Wily created when he was younger on Mega Man, giving him new abilities to help him stop Dr. Wily's nefarious ambitions.

Development

The existence of Mega Man 11 was first teased in Mega Man Legacy Collection 2, which featured concept art from this game as an easter egg. Roll's Mega Man 11 design was also teased by her Nendoroid figure. Mega Man 11 runs on Capcom's MT Framework. According to the game's producer Kazuhiro Tsuchiya and director Koji Oda, the departure of Mega Man producer Keiji Inafune was mainly the reason for the long hiatus of a new classic game, as there was a huge hesitation for anyone to step up and become "the new Mega Man guy" until Oda himself did so. Mega Man 11 is directed by Oda, produced by Tsuchiya, and features character designs by Yuji Ishihara and music by Marika Suzuki.

The game was officially announced in December 2017 as part of the franchise's 30th anniversary celebration, along with the announcements of 2018 re-releases of earlier Mega Man games; Mega Man X Legacy Collection and Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2.

Release and merchandise

Mega Man 11 was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on October 2, 2018, execpt in Japan where it released two days later. In Europe, the Switch version is only avalaible through digital download.

An alternate soundtrack for the game was available for those who pre-ordered the game. A new Mega Man Amiibo figurine was also released alongside the game for the Switch version.

Reception

Mega Man 11 was met with positive reviews by critics. IGN gave it a 7.5/10 rating saying "It's not revolutionary, but Mega Man 11 feels almost like a classic Mega Man game, and is a good foundation for the next 10 games" while GameSpot gave it a 7/10 rating praising the game for its "great sub-bosses and intense robot master fights, some new stage gimmicks [being] a lot of fun and endearing personality of the series com[ing] through in the visual and character design", while criticizing the stages for being "far too long and hav[ing] some questionable elements, [and] the difficulty spikes throughout levels lead to frustrating setbacks and the Double Gear System never seems quite as useful as you want it to be". Nintendo Life gave it a 9/10 rating, writing that "Mega Man 11 is an excellent resurgence for the Blue Bomber, imbuing the tried-and-true classic gameplay with modern touches and new ideas that expand on existing concepts in interesting ways."

Trivia

• Mega Man 11 is notable for having these distinctions in the classic series.
  • It is the second mainline classic game to use full voice audios since Mega Man 8.
  • Excluding re-releases and compilations, it is the first Mega Man game to be available on Steam upon release.
  • The first Mega Man game to receive a standalone physical release since 2008's Mega Man Star Force 3.
  • The first classic Mega Man game (barring compilations) to come to a Nintendo console physically since Mega Man & Bass in 2002/2003.
  • The first original Mega Man game since Mega Man 7 to feature at least one Robot Master on all cover art outside of Japan.
  • The first classic game since Mega Man & Bass to feature idle animations.
  • The first classic game to display a Robot Master's serial number alongside the robot himself when he is selected and also the first game to give the Robot Masters official nicknames.
  • Not counting Mega Man Powered Up, Mega Man 11 is the first classic Mega Man game to feature multiple stage select themes.
  • Both Proto Man and Bass are absent from Mega Man 11, making it the first mainline game since his introduction in Mega Man 3 not to feature the former character, and if one considers the latter's cameo in Mega Man 9, the first game not to reference Bass at all since his introduction in Mega Man 7.

• As part of the promotion for Mega Man 11, Capcom's upcoming action game Devil May Cry 5 features the Mega Buster weapon via DLC for the main character Nero.

• Unlike in previous classic Mega Man games, the player does not need to meet any requirements to unlock Rush's forms in the game; instead, all forms of Rush are unlocked by default.

• The Robot Masters in this game are referred in-game as Wily Numbers despite not being made by Dr. Wily, as has happened in previous games.

• Just like in Mega Man 7 and Powered Up, the Robot Masters will make an animated entrance (such as Fuse Man dropping down onto the stage while inside a lightning bolt).

• Mega Man's design is based on his appearance from the manga included in Rockman Character Collection, including the cleaning device used by him.

• Mega Man's new ability with gaining a new Head and Arm Gear in addition to the color changes when using special weapons is similar to his successor’s Armor changes.

Gallery

Key artwork.

External Links

• Official Site
  • 2nd official site
• Official Japanese site
• Wikipedia article
• Mega Man Knowledge Base article