Mega Man Anniversary Collection
To honor the Blue Bomber's 15th birthday, Capcom decided to create a compilation of his greatest adventures. Included in this collection is Mega Man 1 through 8, and two hidden arcade games. With ten games on one disc, we couldn't pass this title up. After this review, we hope you don't pass it up either.

Graphics:

While Mega Man 7 and 8 stand the test of time with SNES and Sega Saturn graphics, Mega Man 1-6 aren't as fortunate. The first six Mega Man games came out for the Nintendo Entertainment System, and it definitely shows. While the later games for the NES look improved over the originals, they still don't compare to what we have today. Luckily for them, I tend to rate older games against what was expected for their time. Which means at the time these games came out; the graphics were pretty darn good. Another thing to take into account is that this is an anniversary collection, not a remake of all the games. As for Mega Man 7 and 8, the graphics in them are still good by today's standards. Mega Man 7 looks much like a GameBoy Advance game would, and Mega Man 8 is still one of the best I've seen to date. The game is filled with so much detail, such as little bolts and screws falling to the ground when an enemy is destroyed. It's the tiny little details like these that make a game great to look at.

Sound and Music:

After watching the unlockable interview with the creator of Mega Man I learned that the music is one of the most important things that they work on. Once finished with playing all the games on the disc, I would have to agree. The music in these games is definitely top notch. The games are filled with hypnotic, upbeat, techno/rock songs that are always fitting to the level or area. The sound effects are excellent as well. Probably one of the most detailed things I've seen is that Mega Man actually makes a sound when he jumps and lands back onto the ground. For their time, not many developers took the time to add these details. Unfortunately, there is one thing to complain about in this category, and that would be the god-awful voice acting in Mega Man 8. Mega Man sounds like a girl, Bass sounds like a idiotic surfer, and Dr. Light sounds like he is mentally handicapped. The only voices I didn't find complaint with were Dr. Wily's and Roll's, which is sad considering how many characters are in that game. Fortunately for us, Mega Man 8 is only one game out of ten.

Storyline:

This is a hard category to judge for Mega Man games. The games DO have stories, but they aren't very in depth. They mainly revolve around Dr. Wily using his armies of robots to yet again try and conquer the world. A few of them try to trick you with new bad guys, but in the end it's always Dr. Wily who is behind everything. I do appreciate that they try to spice up the series with new baddies, but the storylines still aren't very detailed. The again, I don't tend to expect much from shooting games, especially Mega Man games.

Gameplay:

The gameplay in all the Mega Man games is very simple. Run and jump through 2D levels while shooting all the bad guys in your way. At the end each level you'll reach a boss fight. Once you beat a boss, you gain their power. Enemy powers can be used against other enemies, and some are especially weak against others. For example, electric is powerful against water, where as water is powerful against fire. The rock, paper, scissors style of gameplay is what Mega Man games are popular for. Mega Man also brought about the idea of being able to choose what level you wanted to play first. Instead of following a set path, you have the ability to fight any enemy you wish. This is true except in Mega Man 7 and 8. In these titles you have to beat the first four bosses in order to get to the other four. Starting in Mega Man 5 they added extra power ups in the game. These power ups weren't required for you to beat the game, but if you did find them the game would be made a bit easier. Mega Man 7 also started something new by allowing you to customize Mega Man. By collecting bolts you could buy upgrades that would make you more powerful. Mega Man 8 used the same system; except bolts were limited and you had to choose which upgrades were more important to you. The gameplay is definitely why Mega Man games are still being released today. No matter how much technology advances, shooting and blowing things up will always be fun.

Controls:

The control scheme is very simple in all the Mega Man games included. However, many people complained about them for one simple reason. Throughout Mega Man history, the A button has been used to Jump and the B button used to shoot. In the Mega Man Anniversary Collection, B is used to Jump and A is used to shoot. This simple little switch of controls made so many people start complaining. I can't believe people found this to be such a problem. I was able to adapt to the controls quickly, and I honestly found them to be simple and responsive. To all of those out there reading this who complained about the controls, you're all complete and utter morons.

Replayability:

Mega Man games have a pick up and play style of gameplay. Any time you feel like it, you can pick them up and play them. Go through some levels, kill some baddies, have some fun. However, if you don't feel like going through games again, there are plenty of unlockables in the game. What would an anniversary collection be without secret stuff? You can unlock music, picture sets, two arcade games, an interview with the creators of the series, and much more. Yet, unlocking all of this is no easy task. In order to get it all, you will have to complete all the games on the disc. I'm sure you're all up for the challenge though, because why else would you buy the game if you didn't plan to beat all of the games?

Overall, the Mega Man Anniversary Collection captures the essence of all Mega Man games. It compiles some of his best adventures to date on one disc and is a must have for all Mega Man fans. If you're looking for something with complicated gameplay, steer clear of this collection. However, if you are looking for a simple minded blast-em-up game, the Mega Man Anniversary Collection is just what the doctor ordered.
Graphics: 8.5/10
Sound and Music: 9.3/10
Storyline: 8.0/10
Gameplay: 9.8/10
Controls: 10/10
Replayability: 9.5/10
9.0
Out of 10