Mega Man X5

Mega Man X5 (Rockman X5 in Japan) is the fifth game in the Mega Man X series and introduced the character of Alia, who for the remainder of the series (with the exception of Mega Man X: Command Mission) acts as a Navigator for the Maverick Hunters. X5 the only game to have a time limit on the stage select. The FMV sequences from Mega Man X3 (PS, PC, and Sega Saturn) and Mega Man X4 have been replaced with still screens and text.

The player can choose X or Zero in the title screen, but can change the character later. The only difference is that if X is chosen, he will be able to use the Force Armor, and with Zero, he will be able to use the Z-Buster.

It should be noted that series creator Keiji Inafune originally intended for this 2000 release to be the last title in the Mega Man X series, but Capcom later decided to green-light Mega Man X6 against his wishes. Artwork, like in the last game, was done by Haruki Suetsugu.

The game was re-released on January 10, 2006 as part of the Mega Man X Collection for the GameCube and PlayStation 2.

Characters

Mega Man X
Zero
Sigma
Dynamo
Alia
Signas - He is the new leader and commander of the Maverick Hunters. He was originally a private investigator before being assigned to the Maverick Hunters. Signas commands every mission executed by the Hunters, and he often plans out major operations, overseeing them carefully. Very loyal to humans and reploids, Signas will stop at nothing to ensure that all Mavericks are eliminated, as he has already proven to be a worthy leader and valuable Hunter. He has the most advanced CPU of all current Reploids and is somewhat similar to X4 's Colonel in appearance.

Douglas - A mechanic for the Maverick Hunters. He constructed power-up parts (or "modules") for X and Zero and reinforced the Enigma Cannon and Space Shuttle with the parts they gathered from the Mavericks. During the Nightmare outbreak, Douglas helped X and Zero by refining power-up parts for them. Although he is still employed by the Maverick Hunters, he has not appeared in-game for a while. He is a somewhat eccentric character who prefers to look on the lighter side of things. He can fix just about anything.

Lifesaver - Lifesaver was hired as the Maverick Hunters' medical control officer. He runs virus tests and builds vaccines to protect against viruses, and is very knowledgable of the Sigma Virus and its properties. He's also responsible for general medical duties, such as when he picked up the exhausted Zero after the Shuttle mission. Lifesaver was always suspicious of Zero's virus readings, as the virus seemed to have no effect on him. When the Zero Virus broke loose, his suspicion grew even greater. When X confronted Zero, he accused him of being infected immediately from this suspicion. Curiously, he has made no further appearances in the X series.

Axle the Red - Axle was born of a rare and mysterious mutation that spontaneously formed from a nature control unit, a Reploid, and the Sigma Virus. When confronted by X and Zero about the use of the Orbiter Engine, he was stubborn, and ended up being destroyed as a Maverick.

Dark Dizzy - Dark Dizzy was created by Sigma (who then promptly forgot about him) three years before the events of Mega Man X5 took place. He had been in hiding until the Colony started to crash.

Duff McWhalen - Duff was the chief of the oceanographic museum and held rank as Captain of the maritime security force. He would always be in arguements with the Repli-Sea Force, but was not a violent Reploid. More stubborn and reckless than downright vicious, Duff challenged X and Zero to a duel when they came seeking use of "his" ocean for hydrogen.

Grizzly Slash - Grizzly loved to fight, and would sell the weapons of his defeated opponents. He was always an illegal arms dealer, but the Hunters never saw that as a threat and didn't hunt him down until they needed a Crystal Ball that he had. He was infected with the virus, but still looked down his nose at the Hunters, thinking of them as oppressive and fascist. Requesting to fight X and Zero while he still had control over his mind, he was defeated.

Izzy Glow - Izzy was a genius scientist in laser technology. But, because of his fear of his experiments being used as weapons, he closed himself off to the world in his lab and never let his laser technology see the light of day. When he was confronted by X and Zero, he was already infected by the virus and requested to be destroyed so that he could rest in peace.

Mattrex - Mattrex used to be a part of the disaster countermeasure scene, and used this to his advantage by hiding a secret cache of weapons in the mountain that he was stationed.

Squid Adler - Squid used to be a Maverick Hunter, but retired from his work when he had doubts about his job after a friend of his, Launch Octopus, retired. Since then, he had been leading a quiet life in a research facility experimenting with his electrical weapon systems. When confronted by X and Zero about use of the Energy Cart, he said they were free to have it. Before he could hand it over, though, the virus overtook him.

The Skiver - The Skiver was a young high-ranking official in the Repli-Air Force who greatly respected Colonel. When confronted by X and Zero for use of the Orbiter Wing, he claimed that the Repli-Air Force was doomed to destruction, knowing the necessity of the Shuttle operation. He battled them and was destroyed before he handed it over.

Rangda Bangda - Rangda Bangda was in some Southeast Asian ruins that Sigma found and liked while he was leader of the Maverick Hunters, so he used it as a guardian in his base. It was intended to crush trespassers, but the walls would only close halfway. Therefore, Sigma had the eyes and nose redesigned to be able to attack. A different version appears in Mega Man Zero 4.

Shadow Devil

Trivia

For this game's localization, renaming of the eight main stage bosses revolved around members of American hard rock band Guns N' Roses (as opposed to the usual translation of Japanese terms and adjustment of English-style terms to more regular words). In a 2011 interview, voice actress and Capcom associate Alyson Court revealed her role in this decision and apologized to the fans.

Credits

Director: Ookodai 14
Planner: Toyozumi Sakai, Akiteru?
Programmer: Masaharu Watanabe, Fumiaki Satou, Ryu Takada, Yoichi Isogawa, Masatsugu Shinohara
Character Design: Katsumi "MW" Toda, Sadao "Sensei" Uchimura, Keisuke "Ando" Ando, Takashi "omu" Ohmura, Kohichi "tan" Tanaka
Background Designer: Masahiro Ishizuka, Tetsuya Kakumoto, Gen Sato, Masaki Tokuda, Go Yoshida, Yoshinari Matsuura, Masashi Saitou
Visual Design: Hiroman, Ryutarouman, Hideman, Ikeman, Kenichi Miyahara, Iketti Bunta
Original Design: Sensei, Seito
Movie: Yukiko Sasaki, Yoshimi Zaima
Voice: Syotarou Morikubo, Ryutarou Okiayu
Opening Theme - "Monkey"

lyric & music by: Show-taro

arranged by: Mosquito-Milk

Ending Theme - "Mizu no Naka"

lyric & music by: Show-taro

arranged by: Mosquito-Milk

Sound: Naoto Tanaka, Takuya Miyawaki with Shinya, Naoya Kamisaka
Sound Effect: Toshio Kajino, Atsuko Fujitani
Tester: Masahito Yasunami, Takuji Yasui, Takuya Ikushima, Eiji Takay, Takashi Hashimoto, Robayan' 75, Tomoyuki Yokota, Naoki Kamura
Special Thanks: Keiji Inafune, Akio Watanabe, Toshiji Hazumi, Naoto Minamide, Mareo Yamada, Yanapipi !, Miduho, and Capcom All Staff
Producer: Tatsuya Minami
Executive Producer: Yoshiki Okamoto