Episoder

  • In 1992, Sega followed up its smash Sonic the Hedgehog with a sequel purpose-built to ensure that its new mascot didn’t become a one-hit wonder. Sonic the Hedgehog 2 proved a definitive platformer of its era, spawning countless imitators and influencing even its most confident and established competitors. As Capcom prepared to bring Mega Man to 16-bit consoles, it couldn’t have ignored Sonic 2 - for better or worse.

    Game: Sonic the Hedgehog 2

    Developer: Sega Technical Institute

    Publisher: Sega

    Director: Masaharu Yoshii

    Producer: Shinobu Toyoda

    Designers: Hirokazu Yashuhara; Takahiro Anto; Ytaka Sugano

    Programmers: Yuji Naka, Bill Willis, Masanobu Yamamoto

    Composer: Masato Nakamura

    Released:

    JP: November 21, 1992

    US: November 24, 1992

    EU: November 24, 1992

    Music Used In This Episode

    Ruinous Ruins by Ben Briggs and Pete Lepley

    Dark Waters by Mkvaff

    Dream Pipe by Darkesword

    Ethereal Skies by Pumpkin King

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • By 1992, Takeru was on its last legs. In the parlance of Jake Taylor, all that was left to do was win the whole thing. In this case, “the whole thing” meant the dying days of the Famicom, and win it did. But as always with Little Samson, we are left to ask: at what cost? Join us as we put a button on Akira Kitamura’s career.

    Music Used In This Episode

    Quiron’s Mallets by Abreu Project

    Walking Weapons Unit by WillRock

    Odyssey Beyond The Falls by Vurez

    Good Night Li’l Man by texxsound

    Bubble Man (wants to get) Funked Up by Disco Dan

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

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  • Let’s see if we’ve learned anything.

    Music Used In This Episode

    Odyssey Beyond the Falls by Vurez

    Quiron’s Mallets by Abreu Project

    Walking Weapons Unit by WillRock

    Cossack Skies2 by bsolmaz13

    Good Night Li’l Man by texxsound

    Let There be Light by AmIEviL

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • As priorities shifted inside of Capcom and the third generation of video game consoles wound down, the company finally faced the inevitable: the Mega Man series simply could no longer continue on the Nintendo Entertainment System because the Nintendo Entertainment System itself would soon no longer continue on. With the franchise’s migration to next-generation hardware (or at this point, current-generation hardware) imminent, Capcom decided to try to squeeze one more drop of milk from its 8-bit cash cow. Mega Man 6 is not a triumphant last hurrah, but rather a coda. So disinterested in the game was Capcom that it fell to Nintendo to publish the game outside of Japan. So what can we learn from playing it? If anything, that its makers were likely as bored of this same old routine as its players were.

    The Game: Mega Man 6 or Rockman 6: Shijō Saidai no Tatakai!! (ロックマン6 史上最大の戦い!! Rokkuman Shikkusu: Shijō Saidai no Tatakai!!)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Capcom

    Publisher: Capcom (JP), Nintendo (US)

    Release Date:

    November 5, 1993 (JP)

    March 15, 1994

    Music Used In This Episode

    Flurry of Frozen Fury by Vurez

    Quiron’s Mallets by Abreu Project

    Yamato Spear by Joshua Morse

    Odyssey Beyond the Falls by Vurez

    Good Night Li’l Man by texxsound

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • With two Game Boy Mega Man games under its belt, Minakuchi Engineering had built up enough expertise to feel confident pushing boundaries. Developed in an environment of expanding scope and increased technical sophistication in handheld gaming, Mega Man IV introduces narrative and mechanical flourishes surpassing some NES entries’, while also adding an economy and improving on the game’s presentation. But even with these improvements, Mega Man IV gives us the impression not of something that was continuing to thrive, but rather of something that was beginning to wind down.

    The Game: Mega Man IV, or Rockman World 4 (ロックマンワールド4)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Game Boy

    Developer: Minakuchi Engineering

    Publisher: Capcom

    Release Date: October 29, 1993 (JP)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Electrolytic Man by ambient, MaJIN_SaN, tomatsu

    Rock My Socket by Nostalvania

    The Jazzassin by Nostalvania

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • The first real attempt at a true expansion of the Mega Man brand was a Japan-only board game simulation based on Monopoly starring the least popular characters in the franchise. Like Monopoly, it is not a good game. But it also wasn’t the first or last game to take its inspiration from the time-honored pastime of gathering ‘round the table with the family to roll some dice and move some pieces of plastic. Rockboard demonstrates some of the limits of Mega Man as an intellectual property. I wouldn’t recommend it!

    The Game: Wily & Right no RockBoard: That's Paradise or ワイリー&ライトのロックボード ザッツ☆パラダイス Wairī ando Raito no RokkuBōdo Zattsu ☆ Paradaisu

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer

    Developer: Capcom

    Publisher: Capcom

    Designer: Yoshinori Takenaka

    Artist: Keiji Inafune

    Release Date: January 15, 1993 (JP)

    Music Used In This Episode

    To The End of the Sea and Sky by Lemonectric and Phonetic Hero

    Gravidade by Leandro Abreu, André Pastore, Helton Lima, Leo Quintão, Marco Lima

    Metal Man Goes Clubbing by Disco Dan

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • What is the line between “game” and “fan game”? Stephen Rozner’s return to Mega Man forces us to ask and answer that question with the third game called Mega Man 3. Mega Man 3 - The Robots Are Revolting actually introduces several concepts that the series would take years to come back to, but it remains hamstrung by the same issues that crippled its DOS-based predecessor. Should you play it? No. Should you listen to this episode? Yes.

    The Game: Mega Man 3: The Robots Are Revolting

    Original Platform: Microsoft Disk Operating System

    Developer: Hi-Tech Expressions

    Publisher: Capcom USA; Hi-Tech Expressions

    Designer: Stephen Rozner

    Artist: William Rozner

    Release Date: 1992

    Music Used In This Episode

    Good Night, Li’l Man by texx sound

    Cossack Skies2 by bsolmaz13

    The Jazzassin by Nostalvania

    Gemini Salsa by MkVaff

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    Referenced in this episode:

    Action Button Reviews Pac-Man by Tim Rogers

    The Story of Mega Man on DOS by Norman Caruso

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • It’s becoming harder to write these Mega Man recaps as repetition becomes the series’s primary trait. But for the purposes of analyzing Mega Man III - the second of three games bearing some variation of the title Mega Man 3 - I’ve decided to adopt the mind of a newcomer. We know that this is our 8th proper Mega Man game, but what this episode presupposes is: maybe it’s somebody’s first?

    The Game: Mega Man III, known in Japan as Rockman World 3 (ロックマンワールド3)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Game Boy

    Developer: Minakuchi Engineering

    Publisher: Capcom

    Release Date:

    December 11, 1992 (JP)

    December 1992 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Cossack Skies2 by bsolmaz13

    Bubble Man (wants to get) Funked Up by DiscoDan

    Gemini Salsa by MkVaff

    Cutman Sonata by MkVaff

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • The video game equivalent of a later “Thin Man” film, Mega Man 5 represents Capcom buying time for its once-proud flagship while Street Fighter II sat at the top of its priority list. Despite its repetitive nature, the game is nothing if not familiar and reassuring. And that’s not a bad thing! But at this point in our journey, it’s hard not to wonder what more Mega Man could be if only Capcom were willing to put in the time and effort.

    The Game: Mega Man 5, known in Japan as Rockman 5: Blues no Wana!? (ロックマン5 ブルースの罠!?)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Capcom

    Publisher: Capcom

    Director: Ichirou Mihara

    Composer: Mari Yamaguchi

    Release Date:

    December 4, 1992 (JP)

    December 15, 1992 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    To The End of the Sea and Sky by Lemonectric, Phonetic Hero

    Good Night, Li’l Man by texx sound

    Gravidade by Leandro Abreu, André Pastore, Helton Lima, Leo Quntão, Marco Lima

    Walking Weapons Unit by WillRock

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • Sticking with its guiding principles of “quick” and “cheap”, Capcom handed the reigns of its portable Mega Man series to the creatively named “Japan System House”, which promptly produced the series’s first true retread. Mega Man II for Game Boy is a slice of pepperoni pizza reheated once too often.

    The Game: Mega Man II, known as Rockman World 2 (ロックマンワールド2) in Japan

    Original Platform: Nintendo Game Boy

    Developer: Japan Systems House Co., Ltd

    Publisher: Nintendo

    Composer: Kenji Yamazaki

    Release Date:

    December 20, 1991 (JP)

    February 1992 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Magnet Man Goes West by Disco Dan

    Metal Man Goes Clubbing by Disco Dan

    Gemini Salsa by MkVaff

    Bubble Man (wants to get) Funked Up by Disco Dan

    Cut Man Sonata by MkVaff

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • With the franchise fully established and the production team stabilized, Capcom brought Mega Man 4 to the Nintendo Entertainment System, attempting to move forward while also adopting some bad habits that would stick with it for decades to come. Can a came be both good on almost every dimension and yet almost entirely forgettable? You tell me, cowboy.

    The Game: Mega Man 4, known as Rockman 4: Aratanaru Yabou!! (ロックマン4 新たなる野望!! Rokkuman 4 Aratanaru Yabou!!)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Capcom

    Director: Yoshinori Takenaka

    Producer: Tokuro Fujiwara

    Composer: Minae Fujii, Yasuaki Fujita

    Release Date:

    December 6, 1991 (JP)

    January 1, 1992 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Let There Be Light by AmIEviL

    Pharoah’s Last Dance by Vurez

    Shades of Blue by CrimsonZeal

    Cossack Skies by bsolmaz13

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • We examine Capcom’s first focused expansion of the Mega Man brand to a new platform. Mega Man: Dr. Wily’s Revenge is a remix of previous entries in the series, with just enough new additions to avoid being a rehash. While compromised, it’s a full-fledged games that, unlike some its contemporaries, successfully compressed Mega Man into a 166x144 pixel screen.

    The Game: Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge, known as Rockman World (ロックマンワールド Rokkuman Wārudo)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Game Boy

    Developer: Minakuchi Engineering Co, Ltd

    Director: Unknown

    Composer: Makoto Tomozawa

    Release Date:

    July 26, 1991 (JP)

    December 1991 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Bubble Man (wants to get) Funked Up by Disco Dan

    Electrolytic Man by ambient, MaJIN_SaN, tomatsu

    It’s About Time by Symphonic Chronicles

    Cut Man Sonata by MKVaff

    Wonderful Shadows by the Electric Sheep Orchestra by fredrikd

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    If you have any feedback on this podcast, you can email [email protected].

  • We examine Akira Kitamura’s final significant directorial contribution to video games - the Mega Man derivative Cocoron, a move-and-shoot platformer that begins to contextualize what isn’t a Mega Man game.

    The Game: Cocoron (ココロン)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Takeru

    Director: Akira Kitamura

    Composer: Takashi Tateishi

    Release Date:

    May 3, 1991 (JP)

    Music Used In This Episode is taken directly from the game Cocoron.

  • We explore Stephen Rozner’s groundbreaking heartbreaker, and in doing so explore the flipside of the Kitamura question. If Mega Man 3 asked what happenes when you remove Akira Kitamura from a Mega Man game, then Mega Man for DOS asks what happens when you remove any trace of Capcom from a Mega Man game.

    The Game: Mega Man

    Original Platform: Microsoft Disk-Operating System

    Developer: Rozner Labs

    Director: Stephen Rozner

    Composer: Stephen Rozner

    Release Date:

    1990 (US)

    See Also: The Story of Mega Man on DOS | The Gaming Historian

    Music Used In This Episode

    Air Shooter by Joshua Morse

    Metal Man Goes Clubbing by Disco Dan

    Envenomation by YoshiBlade

    Wily & The Deep Forest by Diggi Dis

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

  • We examine the first significant inflection point in the Mega Man franchise, as personnel turnovers and a tumultuous production process plants seeds that will take two decades to bloom.

    The Game: Mega Man 3, released in Japan as Rockman 3: Dr. Wily no Saigo!? (ロックマン3 Dr.ワイリーの最期!? Rokkuman 3 Dokutā Wairī no Saigo!?)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Capcom

    Director: Masahiko Kurokawa; Keiji Inafune (uncredited)

    Producer: Tokuro Fujiwara

    Composer: Yasuaki Fujita; Harumi Fujita

    Release Date:

    September 28, 1990 (JP)

    November 22, 1990 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Intro Jazz by Zoltan Vegvari

    Proto Man’s French Horn Concert by John Stacy

    The Jazzassin by Nostalvania

    Gemini Salsa by MKVaff

    Wily & The Deep Forest by Diggi Dis

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    Please check out Mega Man 3 by Salvatore Pane, available now from Boss Fight Books.

  • We examine the first true masterpiece in the Mega Man franchise, and in doing so, discover the secret roots of the Yakuza series.

    The Game: Mega Man 2, released in Japan as Rockman 2: Dr. Wily no Nazo (ロックマン2 Dr.ワイリーの謎 “Rokkuman 2: Dr. Wairī no Nazo”)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Capcom

    Director: Akira Kitamura

    Producer: Tokuro Fujiwara

    Composer: Takashi Tateishi

    Release Date:

    December 24, 1988 (JP)

    June 2, 1989 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    The Tallest Building by injury

    It’s About Time by Symphonic Chronicles

    Metal Man Goes Clubbing by Disco Dan

    Crash and Burn by DJ Goyim, DJ Intermodal

    Wily and the Deep Forest by by Diggi Dis

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.

    Please check out Mega Man 3 by Salvatore Pane, available now from Boss Fight Books.

  • We lay the first brick in the foundation of our unifying theory of the Mega Man franchise.

    The Game: Mega Man, released in Japan as Rockman (ロックマン “Rokkuman”)

    Original Platform: Nintendo Family Computer / Nintendo Entertainment System

    Developer: Capcom

    Director: Akira Kitamura

    Producer: Takashi Nishiyama

    Composer: Manami Matsumae

    Release Date:

    December 17, 1987 (JP)

    December 29, 1987 (US)

    Music Used In This Episode

    Drag Me Up (To Heaven) by Gario

    Circuit Breaker by Injury

    Set Me Up the Bomb Man by injury

    Wily & The Deep Forest by Diggi Dis

    All sourced from OCRemix.org and used under its Content Policy’s Terms of Use.