| Mega Man Maverick Hunter X review |
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When it comes to films, few actors can lay claim to having been in as many productions as Burt Reynolds. From the excellent (Smokey and the Bandit) to the truly dismal (Cannonball Run II), it's a credit to the man’s agent that he's been in as many movies as he has. Video game characters seem to suffer this annoying fate as well, with publishers commissioning sequels to games that proved popular in a bid to boost fiscal year earnings and make their accountants very happy. You only need look at Lara Croft, or the real video game whore, Mega Man, for evidence of this phenomenon.
Unlike the original NES Mega Man games, the X series has always had a stronger emphasis on combat rather than platforming, resulting in a more exciting but an equally lacklustre affair. Being a remake of a decade-old title, some things (such as the inability to shoot up or in diagonals) won't sit favourably with less-seasoned gamers, condemning an already niche title to near market obscurity.
A narrative is included, but it's really only there to please fans and add purpose to the proceedings. The farcical storyline follows Mega Man (referred to here as “X”, and also known as “Rockman” in Asia) tracking down replicant-like robots called mavericks who, tired of their boring day to day jobs of cleaning up after humans, rebel against society with the help of Mega Man's arch rival and former commander, Sigma. It's all very Ghost in the Shell-esque, just not as well handled, unsurprisingly.
Mega Man Maverick Hunter X's difficulty curve is extremely erratic with earlier levels being far more challenging than proceeding stages. Maverick Hunter X thinks it’s both an old-school platformer and a demanding shooter; it’s all too eager to flood the player with enemies while making you jump between platforms barely bigger than your avatar’s feet! Despite this, the game isn't terribly taxing and won't challenge more refined game players; it's just infuriatingly designed with poorly placed checkpoints and an over reliance on jumping and shooting simultaneously. The game just takes pride in making the player miserable throughout.
The area in which the game really suffers, however, is in the controls department. The PSP's d-pad just isn't as responsive or as intuitive as the game’s creators hoped it might be, making the analogue nub a necessary (if not appealing) substitute. The game’s action controls aren't any better with commands mapped illogically to the face buttons: for example, the square button allows you to charge your weapon in order to release a more devastating attack; triangle is used for quick, single-shot bursts from Mega Man's arm cannon; while X is for jumping. This creates a plethora of problems as, usually, the only way to penetrate a boss’s armour is through firing charged balls of simmering, hateful death while also dodging their return fire. It's well known that the system’s square button isn't as responsive as the rest so, in order to fire that all-important charged shrapnel while jumping, you have to overcompensate by timing the presses perfectly which usually results in a tired and worn thumb – not a good trait for a portable title.
In terms of graphics, this title is a failure. The game abandons the clean two-dimensional sprites that made the original so appealing in favour of ugly, clinical polygons that could very well burn the eyes thanks to the PSP's wide profile. It's akin to meeting an old flame from an earlier chapter in your life who has recently undergone cosmetic surgery in a bid to hold on to her youth. Everything that once attracted you to her is gone in favour of what modern society deems acceptable or alluring. A real shame considering the retro look of two-dimensional sprites has incurred something of a resurgence of late thanks to the efforts of development houses like Cave and Nippon-Ichi. The level design is little better than the graphics with clichéd, repetitive settings that, while significantly different in theme, all still manage to feel completely identical and amount to what can only be described as blandness. The design of the levels also makes it hard to pull off theoretically simple actions such as dodging enemies, due to the cluttered nature of the stages with unnecessary drops and obtrusive scenery being commonplace throughout the game’s thirteen or so locales.
One redeeming feature of the game is the anime-styled cutscenes which, unlike the in-game graphics, bring out the best in the PSP's gargantuan screen. Capcom obviously realized this early on as it’s been so kind as to include a full-length Mega Man anime upon completion of the game; just too bad it, like the game itself, isn't very good. Considering how well hand-drawn animation looks on the PSP, it really makes you wonder why there's not many other games that take advantage of this aspect of the platform. Old-school graphic adventures would look especially great on the system, even if they didn’t necessarily play that way.
While it may please fans, Mega Man Maverick Hunter X will not appeal to less conservative gamers, and certainly won't bring new players into the fold. While Capcom obviously feels otherwise, Mega Man just doesn't sit well with today’s crop of platformers as it not only feels, but plays like something from the bygone days of video gaming. With a few adjustments this could have been something special. As is, it's a bland, archaic mess.
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System: Sony PlayStation Portable
Genre: Action
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
Players: 1
Version: United States
Reviewed: Apr 2006
Writer: Adam Gellatly
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Pros:
Anime cutscenes are nice
Simple, old-school game play shows the kids how it used to be
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Cons:
- Controls are poorly optimized for the PSP
- In-game graphics are genuinely ugly
- Uneven difficulty might frustrate some
- Really not much fun
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Mega Man Maverick Hunter X Video: 13.2MB
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