True, it doesn’t add anything new to the series.
#MEGA MAN X4 SATURN SERIES#
Mega Man X4 is my second favorite in the series and a truly fantastic game. This, Mega Man 8, and Resident Evil formed a trifecta of awful that showed Capcom had a lot to learn in this area. The soundtrack is among the best in the series but the overall sound production is let down by the atrocious voice acting. The anime cutscenes are a treat although they are grainy. Frozen Walrus is large but pales in comparison to the General. The mavericks are exceptionally well designed and absolutely massive at times. The sprites are larger and feature more rendered elements that give it a harder edge look. As the X series is more “mature” it eschews the bright colors and cartoony artwork for a more serious look. Just like Mega Man 8 Mega Man X4 is an insanely beautiful game. Bottom line, this is not a difficult game. His Z-saber moves can be tough to utilize in combat but once mastered is grossly overpowered. Playing as Zero does present a challenge as he does not earn new armor.
#MEGA MAN X4 SATURN UPGRADE#
The helmet upgrade allows you to use special weapons almost infinitely! If that weren’t enough the plasma cannon is so powerful you won’t even need the boss weapons in most cases. The armor upgrade significantly reduces damage to the point you’ll need to go out of your way to die. But once the upgrades come in X is completely broken power wise. Energy tanks are limited to just two instead of four as well. Heart tanks are located in conspicuous places and will require skill to attain. Capcom have certainly tried to bump up the difficulty in certain ways. Mega Man X4 is probably the easiest game in the series. Jet Stingray’s level takes place entirely on a jet bike while you can actually fight Magma Dragoon using one of the Ride Armors! I know, little steps. Cyber Peacock’s level challenges you to clear each area as fast as possible to access its upgrades. While the game as a whole is typical it does have a few neat areas. Most levels do handle it well, creating entirely new environments to justify it. This was probably for memory reasons but the change is still jarring. Every stage is split into two unique halves. It’s very different and can lead to some frustration but worth mastering. Instead they provide Z-saber techniques performed with different button combinations. He has no new armor and does not receive boss weapons either. You have a choice of two buster power-ups one that stores four powered shots or the overpowered plasma cannon. The best is the helmet, which reduces special weapon consumption to almost nothing. The armor not only reduces damage but powers up a strong special attack as well. The boots allow you to air dash and float for a few seconds. X’s armor upgrades are extremely cool this time out. The series staples return with a few twists. It’s not only a great contrast to X but his addition also adds great replay value. Zero plays very differently from X, focusing on melee attacks with his Z-saber. Both X and Zero follow the same general stories however there are unique bosses and routes designed around their abilities. Not the half assed implementation in X3 but an entirely separate campaign. One of the biggest additions to the game is the ability to final play as Zero. It expands the world of the series considerably and is a welcome addition, terrible voice acting aside. Mega Man X4 is more story driven than its predecessors with numerous FMV cutscenes to move the story along. Rather than stand down they instead opt to fight for their independence and are branded mavericks in the process. This ends when the Sky Lagoon is destroyed crushing the city below and Repliforce is blamed. Dubbed the Repliforce this military group is led by the General and the Colonel and works in cooperation with the maverick hunters. Mega Man X4 would continue that streak, revitalizing the series and adding another great game to the PlayStation library.Īfter Sigma’s third defeat a new maverick hunting group has arisen. Mega Man 8 was everything we had dreamed of with its lush sprite work. But somehow Capcom were able to get not one but two Mega Man games by Sony in the US. Seeing once great bastions of 2d gameplay transition to ugly 3d was just sad. One by one many of my favorite series were making the move to 3d and the results were painful. As the 32-bit generation progressed I’ll admit to being a bit dismayed.