REVIEW: Mega Man X
1993 SNES
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| REVIEW: Mega Man X
1993 SNES |
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a positive sense), you're
presented with a hefty dosis of that familiar, typically Megaman-style action.
You know the sort of thing; work your way through a level while dispatching several
bizarre mecha-nasties, brave deadly jumps, and find yourself face-to-face with
an utter swine of a boss. Kill him and a new weapon is yours, and you can head
for whichever other level you fancy next. That formula has been around for ages
on the NES, and people were already complaining that it needed something new.
Their prayers have been heard, as this game does have a few enhancements over
the old Megaman formula. 
can be added to the
blue tinhead's repertoire. And the really smart bit is that these new features
will allow you to open up previously unreachable secret areas (a bit Metroid-style),
where life-boosting goodies await, providing that you do some back-tracking through
previously completed levels. Completing certain levels will also alter the conditions
of some other levels. Overall, play control is much smoother and more intuitive,
with more room for your own initiative than the very pedestrian 8-bit versions,
and there is certainly some kind of innovation in there (there's also a few new
characters and a change in villain and plot, but that hardly counts). 
hazards. There really
isn't anything you haven't seen before in here. The game never really taxes you
to the limit, never really dares to go out and do something genuinely surprising.
The depth and finesse of such titles as Super Mario World are still way out of
Megaman's reach. So it's a really a shame to admit that, while Megaman X deserves
credit for trying hard, the Megaman games still have a lot of catching up to do
before they'll become true masterpieces. Overall, the thing is just too shallow.
Megaman X in particular, seems almost like it was meant to be an arcade game,
not a console title, with it's short bursts of limited challenge and unsophisticated
level design. And the few bits that are genuinely tricky end up being just cheaply
frustrating. So, nice try, but no cigar. On the other hand, it's still Megaman,
and there are always a few who can't get enough of that (for some sinister reason;
it's probably the silly mechas). The more reasonable among us will find that this
is enjoyable enough, nicely presented, but in the end, not all that special. -
Toasty 78% |
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