Mega Man | |
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Developer(s) | Capcom |
Publisher(s) | Capcom |
Year introduced | 1987 |
Genre(s) |
Mega Man, alternatively written as Megaman and MegaMan, known as Rockman (ロックマン Rokkuman?) in Japan, is a video game franchise created by Capcom, starring the robot character Mega Man, or one of his many counterparts. Mega Man, released for the Nintendo Entertainment System or NES in 1987, began a series of over 50 games on multiple systems. By March 2015, the series had sold approximately thirty million copies worldwide, and is often cited as one of the most renowned video game franchises of all time.
The classic Mega Man series consists of twelve main titles and a spin-off, Mega Man Soccer, as well as all Game Boy, Sega Genesis, Sega Game Gear and other console titles featuring the original design of Mega Man. The classic series is considered to be the origin of the story, with Mega Man being the first installment, and continuing with ten direct sequels. Chronologically after Mega Man 8 comes Mega Man & Bass, followed by Mega Man 9,Mega Man 10 and Mega Man 11.
Although the classic series has yet to reach an ending, the storyline shifts to the Mega Man X series, followed by the Mega Man Zero series, Mega Man ZX and Mega Man Legends. Although it is confirmed that the Legends series takes place sometime in the distant future after the ZX series, there is an uncertain amount of time as to when it actually takes place. All series follow one continuous timeline except for Mega Man Battle Network and Mega Man Star Force: Pegasus, Leo, and Dragon, which exist in an alternate universe (one in which network technology flourished instead of robotics technology), with Star Force occurring two centuries after the Battle Network series.
The official source book Rockman Perfect Memories outlines the Classic, X, and Legends series and makes mention of the Battle Network and Zero series (which were fairly new at the time of the book's publication). While the ZX and Star Force series were not yet conceived when the source book was published, Capcom is explicit within the games themselves regarding their placement in the timeline(s).
Mega Man Backstory[edit | edit source]

To understand the story of Mega Man, one must look back at the events which occur before the game takes place, and to do so, once can look to sources such as Rockman Perfect Memories which have taken the time to document the information reported by Capcom over the years in regards to the series:
The story of the Mega Man universe begins in the mid-20th century with the birth of Thomas Light and Albert W. Wily (circa 1958). These men would become friends and attend the same university, studying the field of electronics and eventually receiving PhDs. By the 1990s, the two men would go into business together and form a company called Light Labs, a team whose ambition it was to use computer and electronic technology to benefit mankind in the coming era.
In the early 21st century, Light Labs made its first leaps in the field of robotics, creating the Sniper Joe police robots, Mettool construction robots, and various others to benefit mankind. Yet, Light and Wily both realized the potential of their project. They wanted to create robots that were human-like. They wanted to build robots that contained artificial intelligence within them.
Thus, around the year 2005, Light Labs produced the first one of such robots: Proto Man. Proto Man was based on the design of the Sniper Joe robots, but was instilled with an artificial intelligence unlike anything the world had ever seen. Yet, Proto possessed a true sense of independence, one that made him much like true human beings, and because of this he ran from the lab before his diagnostic testing was completed.
Still, Light and Wily did not give up. The following year they set to work on building a pair of robots, thinking that two would work together and overcome the independence issue. 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 two scientists went on to create eight more robots, each for industrial assistance purposes: Fire Man, Ice Man, Bomb Man, Cut Man, Guts Man, Elec Man, Oil Man and Time Man.
It was for the success of these projects that Dr. Thomas Light received the Nobel Prize for Robot Master Design in 2007, an award which Wily felt he deserved as well.
Note: In the original version of the story, Doctors Light and Wily only built six robots in their industrial series, but Capcom modified the story with the release of Mega Man: Powered Up to contain two additional Robot Masters in order to make the game more in-line with its sequels.
Game list[edit | edit source]
The following table shows all the main video games in the Mega Man franchise, organized by sub-series, excluding remakes and compilations.
Classic Mega Man[edit | edit source]
Sorting the table by N., the games will be listed according to plot continuity.
N. | Original title | Localized title | Year | Genre | Systems and remakes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Rockman | Mega Man | 1986 | ||
2 | Rockman 2: Dr.ワイリーの謎 Rockman 2: Dr. Wily's Mystery |
Mega Man 2 | 1988 | ||
3 | Rockman 3: Dr.ワイリーの最期!? Rockman 3: Dr. Wily's Death!? |
Mega Man 3 | 1990 | ||
4 | Rockman 4: 新たなる野望!! Rockman 4: A New Ambition!! |
Mega Man 4 | 1991 | ||
5 | Rockman 5: ブルースの罠!? Rockman 5: Blues' Trap!? |
Mega Man 5 | 1992 | ||
6 | Rockman 6: 史上最大の戦い!! Rockman 6: The Greatest Battle in History! |
Mega Man 6 | 1993 | ||
Handheld games | |||||
2.5 | Rockman World | Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge | 1991 | ||
3.5 | Rockman World 2 | Mega Man II | 1992 | ||
4.5 | Rockman World 3 | Mega Man III | 1992 | ||
5.5 | Rockman World 4 | Mega Man IV | 1993 | ||
6.5 | Rockman World 5 | Mega Man V | 1994 | ||
Later games | |||||
3.2 | Rockman Mega World | Mega Man The Wily Wars | 1993 | ||
7 | Rockman 7: 宿命の対決! Rockman 7: Showdown of Fate! |
Mega Man 7 | 1995 | ||
7.5 | Rockman: The Power Battle | Mega Man: The Power Battle | 1995 | Fighting | |
7.6 | Rockman 2: The Power Fighters | Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters | 1996 | Fighting | |
8 | Rockman 8: Metal Heroes | Mega Man 8 | 1996 | ||
8.5 | Rockman & Forte | Mega Man & Bass | 1998 | ||
9 | Rockman 9: 野望の復活!! Rockman 9: Revival of Ambition!! |
Mega Man 9 | 2008 | ||
10 | Rockman 10: 宇宙からの脅威!! Rockman 10: Threat from Outer Space!! |
Mega Man 10 | 2010 | ||
11 | Rockman 11: 運命の歯車!! Rockman 11: Gears of Destiny!! |
Mega Man 11 | 2018 | ||
10.5 | Street Fighter X Mega Man | Street Fighter X Mega Man | 2012 | ||
Spin-offs | |||||
4.6 | ワイリー&ライトのRockBoard ザッツ*パラダイス Wily & Light's Rockboard: That's Paradise |
- | 1993 | Monopoly | |
4.7 | Rockman's Soccer | Mega Man Soccer | 1994 | Sport | |
7.4 | Rockman Battle & Chase | Mega Man Battle & Chase | 1997 | Racing |
Mega Man X, Zero, ZX[edit | edit source]
These three sub-series are set in the same fictional universe as the classic one, but they are set decades or centuries in the future.
N. | Original title | Localized title | Year | Genre | Systems |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
X1 | Rockman X | Mega Man X | 1993 | ||
X2 | Rockman X2 vs. X-Hunters | Mega Man X2 | 1995 | ||
X3 | Rockman X3 | Mega Man X3 | 1995 | ||
X4 | Rockman X4 | Mega Man X4 | 1997 | ||
X5 | Rockman X5 | Mega Man X5 | 2000 | ||
X2.5 | Rockman X: Cyber Mission | Mega Man Xtreme | 2000 | ||
X3.5 | Rockman X: Soul Eraser | Mega Man Xtreme 2 | 2001 | ||
X6 | Rockman X6 | Mega Man X6 | 2001 | ||
X7 | Rockman X7 | Mega Man X7 | 2004 | ||
X8 | Rockman X8: Paradise Lost | Mega Man X8 | 2004 | ||
X9 | Rockman X: Command Mission | Mega Man X: Command Mission | 2004 | Role-playing | |
Mega Man Zero | |||||
Z1 | Rockman Zero | Mega Man Zero | 2002 | ||
Z2 | Rockman Zero 2 | Mega Man Zero 2 | 2003 | ||
Z3 | Rockman Zero 3 | Mega Man Zero 3 | 2004 | ||
Z4 | Rockman Zero 4 | Mega Man Zero 4 | 2005 | ||
Mega Man ZX | |||||
ZX1 | Rockman ZX | Mega Man ZX | 2006 | ||
ZX2 | Rockman ZX Advent | Mega Man ZX Advent | 2007 |
Mega Man Legends[edit | edit source]
"D.A.S.H." stands for "Diggers Adventure Story in Halcyon age".
N. | Original title | Localized title | Year | Genre | Systems |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Rockman DASH 鋼の冒険心 Rockman D.A.S.H.: Adventurous Heart of Steel |
Mega Man Legends | 1997 | Role-playing | |
0 | トロンにコブン Tron and Henchmen |
Misadventures of Tron Bonne | 1999 | Action-adventure | |
2 | Rockman DASH エピソード2 大いなる遺産 Rockman D.A.S.H. Episode 2: Great Inheritance |
Mega Man Legends 2 | 2000 | Role-playing |
Mega Man Battle Network & Star Force[edit | edit source]
Two series of role-playing games with similar gameplay and several elements in common. Star Force is the sequel of Battle Network, centuries later.
N. | Original title | Localized title | Year | Genre | Systems |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
BN1 | Battle Network Rockman.EXE | Mega Man Battle Network | 2001 | Role-playing | |
BN2 | Battle Network Rockman.EXE 2 | Mega Man Battle Network 2 | 2001 | Role-playing | |
BN3 | Battle Network Rockman.EXE 3 | Mega Man Battle Network 3: Blue and White | 2002 | Role-playing | |
BN1.5 | Rockman.EXE Transmission | Mega Man Network Transmission | 2003 | Role-playing | |
BN3.5 | Rockman.EXE Battle Chip GP | Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge | 2003 | Programming | |
BN4 | Rockman.EXE 4 Tournament | Mega Man Battle Network 4: Red Sun and Blue Moon | 2004 | Role-playing | |
BN5 | Rockman.EXE 5 | Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team ProtoMan and Team Colonel | 2005 | Role-playing | |
BN6 | Rockman.EXE 6 | Mega Man Battle Network 6: Cybeast Gregar and Cybeast Falzar | 2005 | Role-playing | |
Mega Man Star Force | |||||
SF1 | Shooting Star Rockman | Mega Man Star Force: Pegasus, Leo, and Dragon | 2006 | Role-playing | |
SF2 | Shooting Star Rockman 2 | Mega Man Star Force 2: Zerker × Saurian and Zerker × Ninja | 2007 | Role-playing | |
SF3 | Shooting Star Rockman 3 | Mega Man Star Force 3: Black Ace and Red Joker | 2008 | Role-playing |
Classic series[edit | edit source]

Gameplay evolution[edit | edit source]
The following table shows the evolution of gameplay elements. The Tanks column shows not only the maximum number of tanks, but also their type (E, M, W or S). Game boy titles are inserted in the table so that their gameplay elements are consistent with the general gameplay evolution.
Game | Tanks | Megaman | Item box | Rush Marine & Beat |
Items |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mega Man 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - |
Mega Man 2 | 04 EEEE | - | - | - | - |
Mega Man 1 (GB) | 0 | - | - | - | - |
Mega Man 3 | 09 EEEEEEEEE | Slide | ?-can | Rush Marine | - |
Mega Man The Wily Tower | 09 EEEEEEEEE | Slide | ?-can | Rush Marine | - |
Mega Man 2 (GB) | 04 EEEE | Slide | - | Rush Marine | - |
Mega Man 4 | 09 EEEEEEEEE | Slide, charge | Eddie | Rush Marine | - |
Mega Man 3 (GB) | 04 EEEE | Slide, charge | Eddie | - | - |
Mega Man 5 | 10 EEEEEEEEEM | Slide, charge | Eddie | Beat | - |
Mega Man 6 | 09 EEEEEEEEE | Slide, charge | Eddie | Beat | E-balancer |
Mega Man 4 (GB) | 09 EEEEWWWWS | Slide, charge | Eddie+Protoman | Beat | E-balancer, Light's shop, P-chips |
Mega Man 5 (GB) | 09 EEEEWWWWS | Slide, charge | Eddie+Protoman | Tango | E-balancer, E-saver, Light's shop, P-chips |
Mega Man 7 | 09 EEEEWWWWS | Slide, charge | - | Beat Whistle | E-balancer, E-saver, Rightot's shop, Bolts, Exit unit |
Mega Man 8 | 0 | Slide, charge | Surprise box | Beat | E-balancer, E-saver, Roll's shop, Bolts, Exit unit, +14 parts |
Mega Man & Bass | 0 | Slide, charge | Surprise box | Beat Shield | E-balancer, E-saver, Rightot's shop, Bolts, Exit unit, +16 parts |
Gallery[edit | edit source]
- Title screens
NES titles | Game Boy titles | ||
---|---|---|---|
Original (Japan) |
Localized (North America & Europe) |
Original (Japan) |
Localized (North America & Europe) |
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- Notes:
- The official title of Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge is different from its true title.
- The true titles of the localized NES games and of the localized Game Boy games are identical.
Trivia[edit | edit source]
Spelling of character names[edit | edit source]
There is some debate as to what the proper spelling of the name of each character actually is. The reason this happened is because throughout each mini-series, Capcom's translators have mixed up their naming scheme, even within a series; anyway, the original name is always written "Rockman".
The localized name is sometimes written "Mega Man", sometimes "Megaman". For example, Mega Man is the title of the games, however when used in a game like Mega Man 7 the characters reference him in text as "Megaman" (usually in all capitals).
Originally the naming scheme for the bosses was the name of the boss plus "man" together as one word (like Bombman), however in Mega Man 3 and IV, they started putting spaces in them (like with "Charge Man"). This continued until Mega Man 6 where they returned to the original scheme with names like "Centaurman" and "Windman". In Mega Man 7 they switched it to the alternate way again, this time presenting bosses such as "Freeze Man". Many years later, with the creation of Mega Man Powered Up, they returned to the original scheme where they supported the names like "Gutsman"however in Mega Man 11,they returned to the alternate way again where they supported the names like "Blast Man'.
Subcategories
This category has the following 6 subcategories, out of 6 total.
Pages in category "Mega Man"
The following 43 pages are in this category, out of 43 total.
M
- Mega Man
- Mega Man & Bass
- Mega Man (Sega Game Gear)
- Mega Man 1 (GB)
- Mega Man 10
- Mega Man 11
- Mega Man 2
- Mega Man 2 (GB)
- Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters
- Mega Man 3
- Mega Man 3 (DOS)
- Mega Man 3 (GB)
- Mega Man 4
- Mega Man 4 (GB)
- Mega Man 5
- Mega Man 5 (GB)
- Mega Man 6
- Mega Man 7
- Mega Man 8
- Mega Man 9
- Mega Man Anniversary Collection
- Mega Man Battle & Chase
- Mega Man Battle & Fighters
- Mega Man II
- Mega Man III
- Mega Man IV
- Mega Man Legacy Collection
- Mega Man Legacy Collection 2
- Mega Man Powered Up
- Mega Man The Wily Tower
- Mega Man The Wily Wars
- Mega Man V
- Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge
- Mega Man: The Power Battle