Introduction

Hello everybody, this is Simon and I'd like to introduce you to a game that you surely never heard of before.

Actually, that's kind of unlikely, because Mega Man isn't only a solitary game or even a single series, it's become the greatest video game franchise out there. Ever since it's developer Capcom realized back in the late 80's that they had a hit formula in their hands, sequels, spin-offs and remakes have been put on the market near constantly, staying mostly true to the roots...or, put less friendly, showing increasing sings of blatant laziness on their part.

All of that, though, lies in the future for you and me, as I'm a big fan of starting from, well, the start.

It is...



Mega Man is basically quite a simple game. You've got run, jump and shoot and...that's about it, to start with. What makes it interesting is the way you can play the game, that is, any way you want. With six stages to choose from and a boss at the end of each that will give you his weapon if you beat him, the path you choose is entirely up to you.
It's a concept that's been THE main selling point for most Mega Man games to date, and it alone makes those games lots and lots of fun. It gets augmented by the controls being usually very tight and responsive, the graphics watchable and the soundtrack stellar. This game in particular looked and sounded amazing for its time, and it still pretty much functions perfectly.
Sometimes it shows its age, though; it's definitely a tough one, and at points the difficulty is nothing short of unfair. Still, for a completely original game a very good product; refinements were necessary, but a few touches sufficed.

What I'm trying to do with the game is quite simple: I want to provide an informative Let's Play of it without too much fuss. No challenges, no conditions, but showing off what I know about the game. Maybe what I tell you isn't new to you - maybe it is. Generally, I don't care as long as we all have fun .

So let's talk about the game itself, shall we.

General Info:

Genre: Jump&Run (and gun)
Platform: Famicom / Nintendo Entertainment System
Developer: Capcom
Release Date: December 17, 1987 (Japan), December 1987 (North America), December 13, 1989 (Europe)
Original Name: Rockman (ロックマン)
Story: In the year 200X, Doctor Thomas Light and Doctor Albert Wily are working together to create a new generation of Robots, with humanoid build and sentience. As Dr Light gets all the praise for the work, Wily turns mad with envy and steals six of the "Robot Master" prototypes to try and take over the world. One of the two other new generation Robots in existance  except for Proto Man, of course , Rock, offers to fight his brothers and take down Wily in order to restore peace. As Mega Man, the blue-armored fighting Robot, he gets sent into action. Also watch the first video for this, which is right below.

Videos

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Blip links won't work anymore because blip decided to be assholes and kicked me out. Get the videos on Baldurdash: They're in 60 fps and you can download the source file!

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Music:
_{Big thanks to Bean for uploading the videos and for helping me with my first steps towards LP Superstardom!}

Miscellaneous:

• Title Screen
  
• Stage Select
  
• Boss Battle
  
• Wily Boss Battle
  
• Stage Clear
  
• All Clear
  
• Game Over
  

Level Themes:

• Bomb Man
  
• Guts Man
  
• Cut Man
  
• Elec Man
  
• Ice Man
  
• Fire Man
  
• First Wily Theme
  
• Second Wily Theme
  
• Ending
  

Links of interest if you're into that sort of thing

Informative

• The Mega Man Network - A lot of stuff, basically. A bit like a Wiki, but also more - downloads, spritework and whatnot. Game Page
  
• Mega Man Knowledge Base - This IS a Wiki. Game Page
  
• Mega Man on Wikipedia - This IS Wiki.
  
• Resource Page on TAS Videos - You know those guys who do those crazy tool-assisted runs that break games? Here is how most of their antics with this game work.
  
• MEGAMAN - Those are lightbulbs and don't actually have anything to do with the blue bomber.

Entertainment

• The Mega Man Film - Low budget, somewhat more fun than my introduction.
  
• Oysters LP of the game - He's quite a bit better than I am at it.
  
• Speedrun of the game - This guy is quite a bit more efficient than both of us.
  
• TAS of the game - this is some crazy shit right here.

Media

• Capcom Music Generation - Rockman 1~6 - From the MMN; all music from the first 6 games for free.
  
• The whole music archive - Might as well.
  
• Official Artwork - Also from MMN. You could find all of that yourself actually.
  
• The weakness chain illustrated - From CyberMoonStudios on DeviantArt. I think it's hilarious.
  
• No Sleep Until Clear - You know the guys who can't beat Air Man? This game makes them trouble, too.

Fan Stuff

Dectilon plays through the game without a single death! Thanks a lot for the extra content!

Melaneus offers a charming imagining of myself: