Mega Man Powered Up

The robot creator Dr. Light created two human-like robots with advanced artificial intelligence named Rock and Roll. Following this, he created eight more robots intended for industrial use: Cut Man, Guts Man, Ice Man, Bomb Man, Fire Man, Elec Man, Time Man, and Oil Man. He received a Nobel Prize for Physics, and his old colleague and rival Dr. Wily has grown bitter for not being acknowledged for his work on the project. Wily discovered a prototype robot made by Dr. Light before Rock and Roll called Proto Man, who is in danger of having his energy generator go critical. Wily gave him a nuclear energy supply to extend his life. He later steals and reprograms the eight industrial robots to attempt world domination. Rock volunteered to stop Wily and rescue his friends, and Dr. Light converted him into a fighting robot, giving him a new name: Mega Man. After defeating all eight Robot Masters and returning them to normal, Mega Man goes through Dr. Wily's fortress and challenges him. After beating Wily, the mad scientist surrenders and asks Mega Man to spare him. Mega Man then returns home, where he's greeted by Dr. Light, Roll, and his friends. ==Gameplay==

The game is a remake of the original NES Mega Man title and has similar gameplay and level designs. The game moves on a 2D plane and players are given control of the game's eponymous hero Mega Man. Unlike the original's 8-bit graphics, the game uses 3D character models with super deformed designs. Mega Man's primary abilities include jumping and shooting, and when certain conditions are met, can also use a sliding maneuver to dodge obstacles, or charge his Mega Buster for a more powerful shot. Mega Man can lose health by touching enemies or their projectiles, while lives will be lost when Mega Man touches spikes, or falls into a pit. In lieu of the missing Robot Master, an evil clone of Mega Man will be added to their respective spots and stages as a boss instead. It features two styles of gameplay: "Old Style" is comparable to the NES version aside from the updated presentation, and "New Style" uses the PSP's entire widescreen and contains storyline cutscenes with voice acting, altered stage layouts, remixed music, and three difficulty modes for each stage. Additionally, the remake lets players unlock and play through the game as the eight Robot Masters, Roll, and Protoman. The New Style stages differ in structure from that of Old Style, with some pathways only accessible to specific Robot Masters. Mega Man Powered Up also features a Challenge Mode with 100 challenges to complete, a level editor for creating custom stages, and an option to distribute fan-made levels to the PlayStation Network online service. ==Development==

was a designer for both Powered Up and the original Mega Man. Mega Man Powered Up was first seen on a list of games that would have demos at the 2005 Tokyo Game Show titled Rockman Rockman. It was later revealed to be a remake of the NES Mega Man. It was announced for a US release on November 8, 2005 under the title Mega Man Powered Up. A European release was also announced. It was slated to be released on the PSP's PlayStation Network service, along with other Capcom PSP titles. While it was released for the Japanese PSN, it was never released on the service's US counterpart due to technical difficulties that neither Sony nor Capcom could resolve. Keiji Inafune had originally planned to use the chibi art style for the original Mega Man, but could not due to the hardware constraints of the NES. Producer Tetsuya Kitabayashi stated that redesigning the character models was a result of the PSP's 16:9 widescreen ratio. The larger heads on the characters allowed the development team to create visible facial expressions. Character designer Tatsuya Yoshikawa explained the concept of the design was "toys" and be "Geared towards little kids ... the kinds of characters that you'd see hanging off of keychains and such". He added that the design team made sure proportions and movements were accurately reflected on the models. ==Reception==

Pre-release Mega Man Powered Up received generally positive reception after it was revealed. It was perceived initially as a "straight port" of the NES game with graphical enhancements. Jeff Gerstmann felt the game was promising and praised its take on the original levels as well as its level editor. Juan Castro felt that it would appeal to Mega Man fans and those looking for an "oldschool platformer." Post-release Sales of Mega Man Powered Up in Japan were considered very poor, though it sold better in the US. Speculation existed for the low sales which included the possibility that it came out too early in the PSP's life and a "lack of overlap between Mega Man gamers and PSP owners." Fan lamentation also existed for the fact that it was not available for the Nintendo DS (which featured several other Mega Man titles). Due to the poor sales of the game, further remakes have been put on hold. Game Revolutions Mike Reily praised the game' variety of challenges, playable bosses, level editor, and the gameplay variety but criticized its "trial and error" gameplay and graphical slowdown. Gamasutra writer Connor Cleary praised its improvements of the original Mega Man and noted that those who do not love the art style would be able to get over it after playing. David Oxford, from 1UP.com felt that it was the most notable remake of the original Mega Man. In his review, Jeremy Parish, also from 1UP.com, called it "one of the most addictive PSP games to date" and felt that it reminded players of Mega Mans greatness. He later included it in his list of games to play on a short flight due to its quick levels and auto-save feature. GameSpots Alex Navarro called it the best remake of the original Mega Man due to a combination of the original game's quality and the quality of the additional features, Matt Keller from PALGN called the original an "all-time classic" and felt that Powered Up was "the remake it deserves." IGN ranked it the ninth best PSP game ever made. It was also nominated for "Best Action Game" for the "2006 1UP Awards", losing to another Capcom game Dead Rising. ==References==