Mega Man 10

I sometimes (read: often) make strange free associations. Mega Man 10 reminds me of the Foo Fighters, more specifically their music videos. The band shows an incredible talent at non-sequitur based humor, undercutting the rather angst filled lyrics of their songs with ridiculous, comical, and often intensionally schmaltzy visuals. Their music video for Long Road to Ruin is particularly good at being intentionally too dramatic. These videos perfectly balance intentional cheeziness and melodrama in such a way that the end product is hilarious while still being oddly effective at conveying the emotions of the song (despite the fact that the videos and the lyrics seem to be working at cross purposes). Mega Man 10 is just like that. It is utterly absurd, completely stuck in the 90's, and filled with childish creativity while simultaneously being darker, grittier, foreboding, and generally more bad-ass than any previous Mega Man game. The game truly feels like an 8-bit game without irony... which is in and of itself ironic. The final confrontation with Wily inside an upside-down space station with an 8-bit window looking out at an 8-bit Earth is so utterly absurd and somehow completely bad-ass that I still get kind of pumped up just thinking about it.      
 
 Mega Man 10 builds upon the foundation of Mega Man 9. Many of the basic features (such as the shop filled with useful items like E tanks and insta-kill spine protection) and design choices (Rush Jet but no slide) that were staples of 9 have been transfered to 10 completely unchanged. If you were hoping that the core mechanics of Mega Man would "evolve" in this sequel, you will be sorely disappointed. The developers seemed to take the "if it's not broke, don't fix it" route when crafting the core mechanics of 10, mostly making some minor (but important) refinements, such as multiple difficulty settings and the ability to play Blues (Protoman). The most interesting change is the introduction of the Challenge mode, which functions both as a tutorial and as an addictive achievement system. Challenge mode consists of short levels with specific win conditions. Individual boss encounters are unlocked in the challenge mode when you reach said boss in the campaign, allowing the player the opportunity to practice these boss fights infinitely without having to worry about running out of lives or playing through the level multiple times. This is a genius addition to series because it allows for the developers to make challenging boss encounters without the game becoming so frustrating that it isn't fun to play anymore. And in Mega Man 10, boss fights are still challenging, even when you know their weakness.   

  Where Mega Man 10 differentiates itself from its predecessor is in its level design. 9 was designed with simplicity in mind, intending to evoke memories of 2 or 3. 10, on the other hand, is graphically detailed (for an 8-bit game), and the levels are filled to the brim with clever, level specific gimmicks. Nitro Man's stage is particularly endearing and fiendish, with its roads on which you need to dodge oncoming traffic and low hanging insta-kill spikes. The individual robot master levels are all distinct, incredibly well crafted, and are alot of fun. More importantly, the levels manage to feel very Mega Man-like while still giving the player experiences that have never been in a previous Mega Man game. Inti-Creates seems freer in this new sequel to experiment with new gimmicks and stretch the boundaries of the Mega Man experience than they did in 9.  

    The bosses of 10 are stylized, intentionally stupid(with one being a direct reference to "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep"), and challenging to fight. The designs are just as ridiculous and memorable as 9... or really any Mega Man game sans 5. The weapons obtained from these bosses are refreshingly distinct. While none of them are as overpowered as Mega Man 9's arsenal, each weapon is more fun to use partly because they are highly situational and require some clever strategy to maximize their potential. 
 
  The music of 10 is strange. Admittedly, 10 was already backed into a corner because its predecessor, 9, had some of the best music in the series (seriously, it could be favorably compared with 2). 10 doesn't even try to compete. Instead of going for a high energy rock anthem like previous games, Mega Man 10 shoots for more of a brooding blues style. It certainly fits the game's darker aesthetic and... in an odd way... I still can't get some of the songs out of my head. It certainly isn't as immediately catchy as the soundtrack for 9, but it grows on you with time.  
 
So in the end, your enjoyment of Mega Man 10 will largely depend upon your perceptions of Mega Man 9 (and potentially the whole "retro movement" although I don't think an appreciation of retro gaming is necessarily essential to enjoy Mega Man 10). If you thought Mega Man 9 was either a waste of your time or not a "serious" game because it didn't use 3-d graphics, you'll hate 10 because it sticks closely to 8-bit graphics and old game design choices that have largely fallen out of style in modern gaming (insta-death, minimal checkpointing, life systems, difficulty that requires the player have more than just a pulse to complete the game). Personally, I think this is a good entry in the series with some truly fun experiences. I do, however, wonder how long the series will be able to maintain freshness without changing some of the core mechanics (such as the shop, the slide, Rush). So long as the developers can continue to come up with new and interesting levels and bosses, I think the series should be able to continue without problems. Thankfully, with Mega Man 10, we're not at that point. 10 is still fresh and fun, with some clever design choices that manage to stylistically differentiate it from previous entries in the series. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys platformers, or games... or fun.