Mega Man

Mega Man, known as Rockman (ロックマン) in Japan, is an action game developed and published by Capcom for the Famicom and NES. It is the first game in the original Mega Man series and the entire Mega Man franchise. It was released in Japan on December 17, 1987, and it was localized for North America, and published near simultaneously in December 1987. However, it was not released in Europe until May 1990.

The plot begins the everlasting struggle between the heroic, humanoid robot Mega Man and the evil scientist Dr. Wily. The game establishes many of the gameplay conventions that would define the original Mega Man series as well as its multiple subseries. A standard action-platform game, Mega Man features a somewhat non-linear setup whereby the player can choose the order to complete its six initial stages. With each "Robot Master" boss defeated at the end of a level, a unique weapon is added to the player's arsenal to be used against enemies. Mega Man was developed by a small team of people, which included significant involvement from artist Keiji Inafune. The game was produced specifically for the home console market, a first for Capcom, who had previously focused on arcade titles.

Mega Man was critically well-received for its overall design and has been noted for its high difficulty. Although it was not a commercial success, the game was followed by an abundance of sequels and spin-offs that are still being released to this day, many of which utilize the same graphical, storyline, and gameplay setups instituted by the 1987 game. Mega Man has been re-released several times since its 1987 debut.
 * It was included alongside Mega Man 2 and Mega Man 3 in the Sega Mega Drive compilation Mega Man: The Wily Wars.
 * Another adaptation of the game was released in Japan on the PlayStation as part of the Rockman Complete Works series in 1999.
 * Mega Man was compiled with nine other games in the series in the North American Mega Man Anniversary Collection released for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube in 2004 and the Xbox in 2005.
 * A mobile phone rendition of Mega Man developed by Lavastorm was released for download in North America in 2004. The game was given a separate mobile phone release in Japan in 2007, with an update in 2008 having the option to play as Roll.
 * Mega Man for the NES was reissued on the Wii Virtual Console service in Europe in 2007 and in North America and Japan in 2008.
 * The Complete Works version of the game was made available on the PlayStation Store in both Japan and North America.
 * An enhanced remake for the PSP was released in 2006 with the title Mega Man Powered Up, or Rockman Rockman (ロックマンロックマン) in Japan.

Story

 * Note: For the backstory of Mega Man, please see the Mega Man category page.

Dr. Light created various robots to benefit mankind. He wanted to build robots that contained artificial intelligence within them. He set to work on building a pair of robots: it was thus that Rock and Roll were born. Rock became the lab's new assistant and Roll became a housekeeper. With the success of this project, the good doctor went on to create six more robots, each for industrial assistance purposes: Cut Man, Guts Man, Ice Man, Bomb Man, Fire Man, and the prized Elec Man.

Soon, Dr. Albert W. Wily finally had enough of living in the shadow of his colleague, Thomas Light. Light's reception of the Nobel Prize, as well as his winning the LIT Manual Design Contest drove him over the edge. Wily realized the potential of robots built with true artificial intelligence: they could be used for other means. Dr. Wily stole and reprogrammed all of Dr. Light's industrial robots. However, he missed Rock and Roll, as the helper robots did not suit his needs. With Wily on the loose with an army of intelligent and powerful robots, Dr. Light knew that the world's police forces and armies weren't ready to deal with this new challenge.

It was thus that Rock, the lab assistant, volunteered to be converted into a fighting robot. Rock had a strong sense of justice and couldn't sit by and watch his "father's" work be destroyed before his very eyes. As such, Light reluctantly converted the former lab assistant into a robot of unimaginable potential. Equipped with the Mega Buster, Rock became known as the super robot Rockman ("Mega Man" in North America and Europe) and set out for Wily's fortress to stop Wily from taking over the world.

Non-canon story

 * Note: This story is taken from the localized NES manual (copyright: 1987 Capcom) and it's significantly different from the original. Furthermore, this backstory isn't consistent with later installments of the series.

It's MEGA MAN versus the powerful leaders and fighting forces of Monsteropolis, that strange multi-faceted land of robot-like Humanoids. Brilliant scientist Dr. Light conceived the construction of fully-operational human-like experimental robots to perform specific everyday duties. Dr. Light and his assistant Dr. Wily, encouraged with their very first near human robot, MEGA MAN, proceeded to develop six additional Humanoids, all programmed to perform prescribed rituals.

But, with the exception of MEGA MAN, all of Dr. Light's near-human robot experimentation went awry. Assistant Dr. Wily turned disloyal, re-programming Dr. Light's Humanoids, now bent on destroying opposition so Dr. Wily could control the world and its resources.

Resisting re-programming, MEGA MAN is the chosen defender of the universe and its inhabitants. MEGA MAN dares to single-handedly penetrate seven separate empires of Monsteropolis, eliminating the leaders and followers of these sovereignties.

Get ready for some very exciting challenges!

Gallery

 *  Title screens