It’s hard to believe it, but Mega Man is now 15 years old! What better way to celebrate it than to bring him back to the place where he started, on a Nintendo console? Using the popular GBA series ‘Battle Network,’ Capcom has created an old school Mega Man side-scroller, only for Nintendo GameCube! Today I’m going to take a look at Mega Man Network Transmission and see how well it has turned out. Continue reading for a ‘network’ of review categories! (I know that was cheesy, but I had to do it.)

·Old school Mega Man gameplay, with a few RPG elements
·Cel-shaded graphics style
·Based on the ‘Battle Network’ series, on the GameBoy Advance
·Use ‘sub-chips’ to give Mega Man different powers
·3D side-scrolling gameplay

For fifteen years the Mega Man series has been primarily 2D. Although Mega Man Legends 1,2 and Mega Man 64 were in full 3D, they were mediocre and forgettable. Mega Man Network Transmission IS a 3D game, but it all happens on a 2D axis. What I mean by that is that the monsters, backgrounds, and character models are ALL three-dimensional while you can only move in a horizontal fashion; similar to the “Mega Man X” series. This is in true Mega Man form right here, it really gives that ‘retro’ feel to the game especially since the game it cel-shaded. Not only does the game give you a retro feel, you also get an Internet theme. Many of the levels appear as if you are inside a computer. You see circuits, wires, and fans -- all inside of the ‘internet world.’ Some of the later levels are a lot more colorful.

The character models are pretty standard. They aren’t anything spectacular, but they’re not bad either. The bosses are well designed, and some of them also give you a retro feel, notably FireMan. The menus are clear and easy on the eyes, while sticking with the whole Internet theme. I do have one pet peeve with this game though. The animation is pretty stale, and is pretty life-less, especially when an action is transitioning to another action. What I mean by this is, when Mega Man jumps onto a ladder (or jumps off) it immediately shows his back. It doesn’t even show Mega Man turning his body or anything. So unfortunately, the animation is not very fluid. Overall though, the graphics are pretty average by GameCube’s standards; although I do believe that making the Mega Man series cel-shaded was a good idea.

Mega Man Network Transmission’s story is tied with the popular GBA series ‘Battle Network.’ The story itself is fairy dry, revolving around “busting viruses.” Mega Man games don’t traditionally rely on a great story to keep the players interested; it’s all about the fast, action-based gameplay. Completing a level consists of getting from one side of the level to the other, and blasting the enemies in your path. You can find secrets and power-ups to make Mega Man more powerful. This classic Mega Man gameplay style is pretty standard, especially when it’s compared to other action-based games available on GameCube today. This is pretty much a game for fans of the Mega Man series, who just have play them all. Although, Network Transmission does have a notable difference from other games in the Mega Man series. You can equip different armor that you may find or purchase at a shop. You can also upgrade your default blaster by increasing its power, rate of fire, and charge.

This is a Mega Man game, and with that usually comes a difficult game. Network Transmission is no exception either. Even the first boss is fairy difficult. The levels themselves aren’t half as difficult as some of the bosses, but they aren’t easy either. You’ll find yourself repeating entire stages, solely because of the bosses. One problem with the game’s mechanics is that your secondary weapons or ‘sub-chips’ randomly generate. So, you have a green bar at the top of the screen that takes a minute or two to charge up. When it is fully charged, you can press Z and a list of random sub-chips. You can choose five of these sub-chips to go into your inventory and use until they run out or if you want to change them by waiting for the green bar again. Although it allows you to choose one favorite sub-chip to always receive, it can still get pretty tedious. Since some bosses require you to use certain sub-chips in order to deal more damage, you will find yourself sitting before the boss warp, waiting until that particular weapon appears in the randomly generated chips. Surprisingly, the game becomes less difficult after the first few levels. It makes me curious why Capcom didn’t make the game a little more balanced, so that you could get the feel of the game easier.