While not my favorite PS1 Mega Man game, this one was quite a lot of fun to revisit!
The level design isn't as good as previous titles, but the game compensates that a lot with presentation, soundtrack and visuals for the 32-bit console.
Naturally, the biggest issue when it comes to MM at this time is the voice acting. Which is a crying shame, considering how pretty the animations of this period were for both this and X4.
The plot in this one is a bit... out of this world, pun somewhat intended. Are they telling me there's a robot who roams space looking for "Evil Energy" and they just plainly refuse to elaborate on who Duo and what the Evil Energy actually is?
This being said, I really dig Duo's design, and I found the Bass boss fight to be quite enjoyable too!
Also, can't believe I pretty much nailed both of the board stages on first try this time around. The freaking "Jump Jump!" were the bane of my existence some good 20 years ago....
The level design isn't as good as previous titles, but the game compensates that a lot with presentation, soundtrack and visuals for the 32-bit console.
Naturally, the biggest issue when it comes to MM at this time is the voice acting. Which is a crying shame, considering how pretty the animations of this period were for both this and X4.
The plot in this one is a bit... out of this world, pun somewhat intended. Are they telling me there's a robot who roams space looking for "Evil Energy" and they just plainly refuse to elaborate on who Duo and what the Evil Energy actually is?
This being said, I really dig Duo's design, and I found the Bass boss fight to be quite enjoyable too!
Also, can't believe I pretty much nailed both of the board stages on first try this time around. The freaking "Jump Jump!" were the bane of my existence some good 20 years ago....
That long anime opening isn't just for show - this was the series' big anniversary release! 10 years, internationally! Somehow, this translated to Mega Man 8 being the least-traditional entry in the series.
It's not a bad game by any means. Actually, I might even prefer it to a decent chunk of its predecessors. But it is very different in its overarching philosophies. If Rock himself wasn't the main character, and we were instead playing as... oh, I dunno... a robot named Beck, or something like that... then I wouldn't even register this as a Mega Man game, just something drawing influence from it. But stuff like the Mega Ball, the JUMP JUMP SLIDE SLIDE segments, the three-act structure carried over from MM7, the swimming - wildly different from the cadence that the cozily repetitive previous games fell into.
But like I said, I don't think it's a bad thing. The JUMP JUMP SLIDE SLIDE twitch reflex tests notwithstanding, most of the design choices here make the game feel more puzzle-oriented. The Mega Ball is a weird but honestly fun idea, leading to a very disjointed projectile with lots of angled application. There's actually some really neat mechanical challenges to some of the more high-concept stages, like Sword Man's and IM CLOWN MAN's (and, as a result of swimming, Aqua Man's).
There's also the story. Where Mega Man 7 flirts ever-so-briefly with complex themes about autonomy and transhumanism, Mega Man 8 has an alien robot coming to Earth to track down "Evil Energy". Sorta speaks for itself. But it's funny, and the anime cutscenes and dub voice actors are fun, and you're not really here for all that anyway.
I think if you're looking for a more traditional take on Mega Man as an eighth entry in the series, you're better off looking into Mega Man & Bass (well, I think you are, anyway; still on my to-do list). But as its own one-off experiment, Mega Man 8 is a decent enough time. Sort of a weird capstone to the series, at least from 1996 to 2008, but that's not really a concern anymore with subsequent entries.
It's not a bad game by any means. Actually, I might even prefer it to a decent chunk of its predecessors. But it is very different in its overarching philosophies. If Rock himself wasn't the main character, and we were instead playing as... oh, I dunno... a robot named Beck, or something like that... then I wouldn't even register this as a Mega Man game, just something drawing influence from it. But stuff like the Mega Ball, the JUMP JUMP SLIDE SLIDE segments, the three-act structure carried over from MM7, the swimming - wildly different from the cadence that the cozily repetitive previous games fell into.
But like I said, I don't think it's a bad thing. The JUMP JUMP SLIDE SLIDE twitch reflex tests notwithstanding, most of the design choices here make the game feel more puzzle-oriented. The Mega Ball is a weird but honestly fun idea, leading to a very disjointed projectile with lots of angled application. There's actually some really neat mechanical challenges to some of the more high-concept stages, like Sword Man's and IM CLOWN MAN's (and, as a result of swimming, Aqua Man's).
There's also the story. Where Mega Man 7 flirts ever-so-briefly with complex themes about autonomy and transhumanism, Mega Man 8 has an alien robot coming to Earth to track down "Evil Energy". Sorta speaks for itself. But it's funny, and the anime cutscenes and dub voice actors are fun, and you're not really here for all that anyway.
I think if you're looking for a more traditional take on Mega Man as an eighth entry in the series, you're better off looking into Mega Man & Bass (well, I think you are, anyway; still on my to-do list). But as its own one-off experiment, Mega Man 8 is a decent enough time. Sort of a weird capstone to the series, at least from 1996 to 2008, but that's not really a concern anymore with subsequent entries.