Mega Man Powered Up

When Capcom announces that they will release a remake of Megaman 1 from the NES era,
i rolled my eyes and sighed. Why does Capcom keep on resurrecting old series, give it a new
graphics, and in some cases (SFA3), didn\'t change much of the game? Is Capcom going
downhill? Then, we have Maverick Hunter X, a very good remake of the SNES Megaman X game,
with new graphics, keep the gameplay intact, adding a 20min Megaman anime. It did gain Megaman\'s
fans support. SFA3 Max was also a good release with additional characters, features and fluid
control. With 2 noteworthy PSP releases, are they able to score with the very beginning of
Megaman?

For those that has been living under the rock, or too young to know about this game, Megaman
is a platform game about a housekeeping robot, Mega, created by Dr. Light, the most
brilliant scientist in the future. Mega was forced to fight (as Megaman) when Dr. Light\'s nemesis,
Dr. Wily decided to take over the world. Thus, begin a series that span for years across multiple
consoles, where Megaman will always battle Wily\'s henchmen, take their powers and use it
against them and finally will capture Wily, who will escape again in the next game.

Graphics:

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v357/Panjang/929675_20060224_screen001.jpg[/IMG]
Look at the image I attached. UBER-CUTENESS!!!!!!! So cute that it is almost a sin!
I can tell you that I fell in love with this kind of graphics the moment I turn the PSP on.
The big head, manga-ish graphic is so beautiful on the PSP clear and huge screen.
And GIRLS CAN\'T RESIST THE CUTENESS. My girlfriend, who is NOT a gamer would not let
me play once she gets her hand on this game.
Capcom did an amazing job with the graphics. Taking an old game, give it a facelift and voila!
the game is as good as any game release that you will see these days. The characters are modelled
very well, and the cartoonish graphic style will grow on you. Capcom also add in cutscenes
between games and intro for each boss. You will feel like you are watching a Saturday morning
cartoon show. And there is no slowdown of framerate even when the activities on the screen are
intense. Good stuff!

Graphics: 10/10

Sound:
The BGM iin this game came in two versions, the new remixed version and the old NES version.
I kinda prefer the new style and most of the music are not bad. On the sound effect department,
can\'t really find any fault on it either. All the sound effects are made in a cartoonish way,
especially the jumping part where your character will go Toink! Toink! Toink! (exact sound :D)
It might get the nerve on some people but I am ok with it. There are also voiceovers in the game
especially between cutscenes and intro. Some of the voiceovers will get on your nerve like Oilman
and Cutman. Still, it will not detract you from enjoying this game.

Sound: 8/10


Controls:
It might just be me, but I do feel the control is not so good with this game. It might not be Capcom\'s
fault, but the PSP\'s own control design. The movement control feel uncomfortable even though
you can use both D-Pad or analog stick to control. This issue aside, Capcom did make some
improvement from the NES version. You can now change weapons using the shoulder buttons
instead of pressing Start to go to the menu to change. Capcom also add a feature that will let you
change your weapon to Mega Buster immediately by pressing L + R. A very handy addition.
You can also do Charge Shot and Slide also (once you unlocked both, of course), so the Megaman
here has more arsenal. Overall, the control is still a ok. At least, Capcom try to make do with
whatever they have.

Controls: 8/10

Gameplay:
Now this is the best part of this game. Capcom has managed to keep all the fun elemnt of
Megaman intact in this game. In fact, this game is AS HARD AS the original Megaman and
some sections are even harder than the original. And with 3 difficulties (EASY, NORMAL, HARD)
to choose from, the action can be really hair-tearing especially on HARD difficulty. The EASY
difficulty will help beginners to enjoy the game and the HARD difficulty will be welcomed by
seasoned Megaman players who might have played the game to death on the NES. Also, you get
to choose to play in Old Style where all the stages and gameplay and the music are the same as
the NES version but with the new style graphics or New Style where your character will be in
larger, more gorgeous looking environment and there are some slight changes to the stages.
There will also be an intro stage like Megaman X series, and you get to rescue each Boss Robots
that you beat and use them. THAT\'s RIGHT! You can now play as Cutman or Gutsman in every level.
Each Boss Robots have their own weapons and special ability which they can use to gain access
to new secret stages available in New Style gameplay. This has add the replayability to this game
and somehow it will fulfill a lots of fans who have dream of playing as Elecman or Iceman.
Also Capcom add additional 2 new Bosses, which is Time Man and Oil Man. Time Man can...
well, slow time and Oil Man can shoot oil at you and ride on oil like a slide. IMO, the designs
of these two new Bosses are not so interesting, but hey, at least Capcom DID try something :)
And their stage designs are one of the harder stages (especially Time Man stage)

As if playing as bosses isn\'t enough, Capcom add a new Challenge mode in this game.
In Challenge mode, you have 100 challenges to complete where you are required to complete
certain task in order to consider it complete. The challenges ranged from very easy to insanely
hard. You will find that you will keep going back here trying to complete each challenges and
even after you have completed the challenges, you will simply play again to get a better time
and score! It is THAT addictive!

And as if your time was not used up enough, Capcom has decided to add a level editor into this
game. That\'s right! You can build your own Megaman stage to play and even share it to others.
Hidden in the New Style gameplay are various secret packages that you have to obtain. Each
packages will unlock stuffs for you to build in the level editor. Capcom has given total freedom
for players with the level editor which is easy to use. You can set the enemies, condition of the stage,
the characters that can play in the stage, the items scattered in the stage, the enemies and the
bosses. Yes, it is really THAT open-ended. Also, in addition, Capcom will keep on releasing
new stages and stuffs each month to be downloaded. Capcom has already include one new
character to download, which is Roll, Megaman\'s \"sister\". You can also equip Roll with costumes
which Capcom will make available for download.

Gameplay: 10/10

Overall:
Graphics: 10/10
Sound: 8/10
Control: 8/10
Gameplay: 10/10

Overall: 9/10

This game has beaten Maverick Hunter X and SFA3 Max to smithereen. This game has set the
standard for any classic remakes to follow. Core gameplay intact, refreshing graphics, high
replayability value, tons of things to do, tons of things to come. What more can you ask?
Get this game. Period.