iPhone monstrosity is anything more than a protracted practical joke), there was a time

when Mega Man was still very much in Capcom’s good graces. I know it seems tough to imagine

these days, but bear with me. Back in 2006, when the PSP was fresh and new, it was decided

that what the system needed was some good ol’ blue bomber action... but reimagined

and redesigned, partially out of necessity for accommodating the system’s 16:9 playfield,

partly out of an attempt to reach a new generation of gamers. Thus, we have the super-chibi Mega

Man Powered Up, a big-headed, cutesy interpretation of the original 1987 Mega Man.

But don’t let the bright colors and adorable animation fool you: this is still Mega Man

1. A game legendary for its difficulty. Songs have been written about the abject brutality

of that first offering, and to its credit Powered Up maintains most (but not all) of

that tyrannical status quo. While the design of the stages will be familiar to those who

have played the original game, there are a number of changes; some subtle, some more

blatant. Most notable is two entirely new bosses, Time Man and Oil Man, thus bringing

the game to the now-standard lineup of eight bosses. Also, there’s a greater proliferation

of Super Arm-grabbable blocks, so you might get a little more use out of Guts Man’s

weapon. But not content with just leaving it at that, there are also interactable objects

for most of the rest of the special weapons in the game. These may lead to new paths through

the stage, a definite upgrade for the linearity of the original. Granted, you’ll need more

than weapons to access some sections; you’ll need a whole new body altogether. Ready for

a paradigm shift?

Yes, rather than just letting you obtain the weapons of each robot master, you actually

have the possibility of playing as them. Of course, the only way to do this is by defeating

them without causing significant system damage - i.e., using only the Mega Buster. Such a

peaceable submission will allow Dr. Light to fix the offending robot, thus allowing

access to that character as well as unlocking a new batch of Challenge stages for fun. And

as though that wasn’t enough, you can harness that part of you that spent most of third

grade drawing up Mega Man stages and actually make your creations playable. There’s a

full-featured level editor included, which can be augmented by collecting scenery and

enemy packs in the main game. Create your own speedrunner’s haven or Kaizo Mega Man

deathtrap. For the new crop of potential Mega Man fan... let’s face it, Mega Man Powered

Up didn’t really hit that demographic as squarely as hoped. The game, while being a

respectful reinterpretation of a true gaming classic, didn’t pull the kind of numbers

Capcom hoped. And I understand that. Sometimes good games don’t sell. (Okami, for one.)

I didn’t buy it at the time because, well, I didn’t obtain a PSP until much later.

But now I have it, and I know what I missed... as I look back at those days from an era where

Rock and the crew are at best personae non grata and at worst a kind of horrible, protracted

practical joke. Ah, nostalgia.