Megaman X Review

Released in 1993, Megaman X was made largely with the intention of making everything a little bit flashier and more advanced than its predecessors, as well as more welcoming and less punishing to newer players; not unlike most games that started life on the NES and made the jump to 16-bit.

Story

The story is set many years in the future of the world detailed in the original series, society is becoming less and less for robots, until a discovery is made by an unsuspecting Dr. Cain came upon the lab of Dr. Light the world's former expert on robotics. In the lab he comes upon X, a reploid created late in the life of Dr. Light. With the help of X, Cain then precedes to build more reploids, who were able to work alongside humankind without strife. However, the peace didn't last, as many reploids began to go 'maverick' due to an error on the assembly line. A team of peace keepers named 'Maverick Hunters' were then assembled, under the control of a reploid named Sigma. Unfortunately, even then things went awry as Sigma himself went maverick, taking most of the Hunters with him. You play as X, who must now hunt down his former comrades and put a stop to the mavericks once and for all. Unfortuately, almost none of this is actually mentioned in the game, and conveyed after the fact through Megaman X's popular anime rendition. Given no prior knowledge, you'll probably find yourself wondering what the heck is going on.

Gameplay

The gameplay is nearly flawless and has a nice flow to it, this being enhanced by some of the power-ups you'll find throughout the game. You're rarely expected to jump any especially extraneous hoops or impossible gaps, and there aren't really any puzzles that can't be solved with a good ol' charged Mega Buster. Smart and detailed level design doesn't hurt, either.

Graphics

Existing in what is probably the most popular graphical era of all time; Megaman X is nothing less than the epitome. With amazing and detailed backgrounds, beautiful sprites, and smooth animation, how can you go wrong?

Sound

From the title screen the final battle with Sigma, Megaman X has had me humming to it's extremely addictive soundtrack since the very first time I played it. Not even it's plethora of extremely repetitive and overused sound effects can bring it down.

Replayablity

While this game may seem short from the outside, a bulk of the fun is actually embedded in hunting down the bonuses and power-ups hidden inside each level. Even after discovering all this game has to offer, you'll often find yourself wandering.

Overall

With an unbeatable combination of engaging gameplay, beautiful graphics, and an addictive soundtrack, its few shortcomings are hardly anything to worry about.