Mega Man/Gameplay

Mega Man

Mega Man as he appears on the Famicom/NES

Mega Man as he appears on the Mega Drive/Genesis

Mega Man is a robot creation of Dr. Thomas Light. He started out as a simple assistant robot named Rock, along with his sister Roll. When Dr. Wily reprogrammed six construction robots created by Dr. Light to obey his commands and turn against the very civilization that they were designed to help, Dr. Light knew something had to be done. Due to his programmed sense of right and wrong, Rock volunteered to be converted into a fighting robot. Thus, from that day forth, he became known as "Mega Man" (Rockman in Japan).

Mega Man possesses many abilities that make him stronger and give him more endurance than an ordinary human. Two of his greatest assets are his cybernetic legs which give him tremendous jumping ability, and the Mega Blaster affixed on his arm. But the ability which may possibly be his best, is the ability to copy and adapt the weaponry of opponents that he meets and defeats. This allows him to take a weapon from one enemy and utilize it against another.

Mega Man can withstand a great deal of punishment, but he is not invulnerable. A health meter is visible at all times in the upper left corner of the screen. As Mega Man takes damage, this meter will decrease. He can replenish this meter by collecting health items. If the meter is depleted, Mega Man will lose one life. He will also die instantly if he falls through the bottom of the screen, or touches the deadly spikes that line certain floors. Mega Man has a supply of lives. He begins with two extra lives, and can earn more by collecting 1-Up items. If he runs out of lives, the game will be over. You will be offered the chance to continue as many times as you like, but there is no save or password system on the original Famicom/NES version, so you will lose any progress when you turn the machine off.

Mega Man's primary weapon, the Mega Blaster, has unlimited ammunition so it will never run out. However, any weapons that he acquires from another Robot Master will have a limited supply. When using such a weapon, a second meter will appear along side Mega Man's health meter. This new meter will indicate how much supply of ammunition he has left to fire this weapon. Ammunition can be collected by collecting ammo items. These items can be used to replenish any weapon, but Mega Man must be actively using a weapon in order to collect more ammo from it. Collecting ammo while using the regular Mega Buster has no effect.

Items

Health capsule	Weapon power
Throughout Mega Man's efforts to bring Dr. Wily's robots down, he will be under attack and sustain damage from time to time. These capsules will refuel his power cells and restore any lost energy. A small capsule restore two units while an large ones restore 10 units.	Whenever Mega Man fires a weapon that he obtains from another Robot Master, he uses up some of that weapon's power. He can restore that power by collecting a weapon capsule, but he must be using the weapon he wishes to restore. A small capsule restore two units while an large ones restore 10 units.
Bonus points	1-Up icon
Found only in this version of Mega Man, and no other, some defeated enemies will drop small colored orbs. They do nothing when they are collected. However, if you manage to defeat a Robot Master, or make it to the end of a Dr. Wily stage, you will be awarded 1000 bonus points for every point orb you collect without dying.	You begin the game with 2 extra lives. However, you can earn more by finding and collecting these 1-Up icons. Some are placed in predetermined locations throughout various stages, while others are dropped very infrequently by defeated enemies. Those left behind by enemies won't stick around long, so pick them up before they disappear.
Weapons part	Yashichi
In the first Mega Man, a fight with a Robot Master is not complete until you collect the orb containing the defeated Robot Master's weapon. They drop from the ceiling when the Robot Master is eliminated.	Another item that is unique to the first Mega Man, the Yashichi is an iconic symbol that is present in many Capcom games. In Mega Man, it is only found once in the last stage of Dr. Wily's fortress. It is very difficult to collect, but if you do, it will restore all of your health, all of your weapons to full energy, and give you 100,000 bonus points.
Magnet Beam
The Magnet Beam is the only non-weapon item that Mega Man can collect and utilize at will. When used, it creates a temporary beam which Mega Man can safely stand on, run along, and jump from. The beams won't last forever, so don't stand on them too long. The beam also has its own meter, which can only be refilled by collecting weapon power capsules. Mega Man is not required to collect the beam in order to complete the game, but it will certainly come in handy if you grab it.