Mega Man

Overview

Mega Man is the first game in Capcom's long-running franchise. It established the basic concepts that have since become series staples. The game has spawned numerous sequels and spin-offs in a variety of formats. It was originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System, and in the years following has been released, remade, and packaged on several different platforms and game collections, including the Virtual Console, the Mega Man Anniversary Collection, and Rockman Complete Works: Rockman.

Gameplay

Mega Man is a traditional side-scrolling action platforming game, starring the titular robot. His goal is to reach the end of each stage, traversing hazards and defeating enemies with his Mega Blaster (the default weapon, renamed Mega Buster in Mega Man 4). The end boss of each stage is called a Robot Master, of which there are six.

Each of Dr. Wily's six reprogrammed robots, or Robot Masters, must be fought at the end of their own individual stages before the player can enter Wily's fortress. The player can tackle the stages in any order, and once a Robot Master is defeated, Mega Man will acquire a new weapon. Every weapon has its own energy meter (except the default Mega Blaster), which can individually be filled or depleted based on usage. Each of the Robot Masters is especially weak against a certain weapon used by a different Robot Master, giving the player a reason to tackle the stages in a specific order.

Each of the weapons have their unique abilities. One weapon for example (Guts Man's weapon) gives Mega Man the ability to pick up large blocks and toss them at enemies.

Plot

The robot known as Mega Man started out as a simple laboratory assistant robot named Rock, a robot modeled after a young boy. Rock was one of eight robots that Dr. Light and his assistant Dr. Wily created, along with his "sister," the housework robot Roll. The other six were the construction robot Guts Man, the logging robot Cut Man, the energy robot Elec Man, the demolition robot Bomb Man, the arctic exploration robot Ice Man, and the foundry/incinerator robot Fire Man.

Dr. Wily stole and reprogrammed six of the robots before releasing them in a bid for world domination. Horrified by the turn of events, Rock volunteered to be remodeled into a combat robot in order to fight the reprogrammed six, thus becoming Mega Man.

The plot on the back of the original box is different from the in-game plot. According to the box, the megalomaniac Wily is the leader of seven separate yet equally evil societies in an empire named Monsteropolis. Monsteropolis is seemingly made up of turrets and ice-fields, though the actual societies have much more variety. Each society is headed up by a deadly robot/humanoid construct born from Dr. Wily's sacrilegious experiments on humans. For example, Cut Man is the leader of the Cut Society, where cutting is a law that must be constantly obeyed. The use of Guts in that society is, however, outlawed due to it being Cut Man's one weakness. It's up to Mega Man to put a stop to these outlandish societies and destroy their ice-fields.

Robot Masters

DRN-003: Cut Man

"Designed to function as a lumberjack. Powerful saw-toothed scissors-like instrument protrudes from head, capable of gnawing through giant forest limber."

Cut Man's weakness is giant boulders that can be thrown by using Guts Man's power.

DRN-004: Guts Man

"A bulldozing character capable of lifting and transporting huge boulders."

Guts Man's weakness is Bomb Man's weapon.

DRN-005: Ice Man

"Impervious to chilling sub-zero temperatures, capable of human-like performances under extreme climatic conditions."

Ice Man's weakness is Elec Man's weapon.

DRN-006: Bomb Man

"A real "blaster" as a heavy-duty laborer who use intensely powerful explosive to clear land for Dr. Light's construction projects."

Bomb Man's weakness is Fire Man's weapon.

DRN-007: Fire Man

"Melts and molds metals with flame-throwing torch flaring from atop his head."

Fire Man's weakness is Ice Man's weapon.

DRN-008: Elec Man

"Dr. Light's electrifying creation, planned for conducting electrical operations - even supervising nuclear power plants."

Elec Man's weakness is Cut Man's weapon.