Hello, after a month or two of review hiatus, I’m back with Bubsy 3D!!! Okay, not really, you can laugh now. This review is dedicated to Mega Man X4, the game that got me into the X series to begin with. Most people think that this is the best X game for the PSX. I think it’s better than the first X game (gets attacked by angry mob). Well, let’s jump in, shall we?



The Graphics really got an upgrade! 10/10

Oh no, a pun! Well, it’s still the truth. Well, take the last game, Mega Man X3 (SNES version). Compare it with this game. See the difference? Yep! There are a lot more details put into the sprites, and the animations are fluid. Here are a few examples...



Dash4Fun

Like, the dashing animation. In the SNES games, you just went faster and dust was “kicked” up. In this game, there are after images! Not just one, though. There are lots! They give a feeling of your character going fast, and that really helps .



Anime? *mindblown*

There aren’t just sprites in this game, oh no. There are- ANIME CUTSCENES! Yep, since the PSX can make anime, there are cutscenes in this game. How are they? Well, they were like typical animes around that time. Still, that was amazing for that time. I mean, this is from text boxes to voice acting and animations! Well, the games after went back to text boxes, unfortunately.



Sprites vs Models

Well, unlike most games on the PSX, this game used sprites as opposed to 3D models, which were the hype back then. How do I feel about that? Well, I liked how Capcom stayed to sprites. If they used 3D models, the game would have (in my opinion) aged a lot worse. I mean, 3D was still pretty new considering, and it didn’t really get polished until the GC/PS2/Xbox era. So, yay sprites .



Bottom line

The Graphics are good. They were upgraded a lot since the SNES games, and it still looks good today. Because of that, I shall give the Graphics a perfect score of 10 .



The Sound is good, as always, but could be better. 8/10

Well, what did you expect? Unless I was reviewing an awful hack, the Mega Man series can’t really get a low score for Sound. This game is no exception. The tracks are good for the most part, and some themes really get stuck in your head. The reason why it has a lower score is because some tracks just aren’t that memorable. They are still good, but I can’t really tell you how it sounds like off the top of my head. Here are some better tracks.



Sky Lagoon (X)

Well, the first track you hear while playing as the main character, Mega Man X, is awesome, and one of my favorites. It starts off as, well, build up, then it gets a bit more intense. It gives the feeling of going on a mission to, uh, I don’t know, but it’s mission-like. It makes you want to fight, and defeat evil people! Yea! Sorry for the loopy tangent.



Boss/Maverick Battle

One of the more repetitive tracks of the game, but very catchy as well. It starts off frantic, then it goes to, uh, more frantic, then it loops. It gets stuck in your head after a while, and that’s what I look for in video game music. If it gets stuck in my head. It’s not the best track though, due to the constant looping.



Iris

A four-letter name. A random battle (not really). Who knew the theme could be so sad? Well, it is, and for good reason. I won’t spoil the story yet, since that’s for the story section, but it represents a sad part in the story. It starts off pretty sad, and it’s like you're in a sad moment. Then, in a while, it changes to a mixture of sadness and despair. Then it loops. It’s not the saddest theme in the series, but it comes close. I’ll leave it at that.



Japanese-only song?

Wait, wha? There’s a song that’s just in the Japan version of the game? Well, yes, and that goes for a lot of other Mega Man games on the PSX as well. This song is called G̶a̶n̶g̶n̶a̶m̶ ̶s̶t̶y̶l̶e̶ “Makenai ai ga kitto aru”. Don’t ask me what it means, since I don’t know. Anyways, the song’s tone is pretty sad, and yet it’s a little upbringing at the same time. The lyrics, according to a video on YouTube (you can always trust the Internet. JK.), is about love and all that good stuff. Like every song on the radio nowadays. Well, it’s a good song regardless.



The part you were waiting for- Voice Acting!!!

Yep! Capcom hired some voice actors, and this is the product. The product is average at best, and laughable at worst. Capcom continued the legacy of bad voice acting. Well, let’s go into it. Mega Man X sounds like Mega Man from Mega Man 8. How did Mega Man sound like in that game? Well, he was voiced by a woman, so a little kid. That means that yes, X sounds like a little kid, and at worse, feminine. There’s nothing wrong with that, but the voice clashes with X’s personality a bit too much. Zero sounds like a teenager who didn’t go through puberty yet. Clashes with personality, but not as much as X’s voice. The results are infamous lines. I will let you find them yourselves, but you can look them up as well .



Bottom line

The music in this game is good. The only thing that detracts from the score are the inconsistency with the music, and the voice acting. 8/10 is a fair score.



Addictiveness… well, depends on your skill level really. 8/10

I like this game. I really do. But, if you're not good at Mega Man games or platformers in general, you will be rage quitting. And that’s not fun. Well, let’s talk about what makes it addictive in general.



It’s relatively short

The game is short. Like, it’s only about 14-15 levels or so, and on a good run, the level will only take 10-20 minutes. That’s part of what makes it addictive, since no one wants to go through a 40+ hour RPG multiple times, but they will go through a short game multiple times.



Level selection!

Yep! Even though the levels don’t have a billion passageways like Sonic, you can play them in a different order. Since you get a different ability for what level you beat, you can play the game differently each time. That is, if you're ready to get your butt kicked if you pick a “wrong” order. That’s one of the risks of doing so.



It’s so hard!

One of the things that makes me give the addictiveness factor an average score is the difficulty. This isn’t Mario, where you can just pick up the game and play. You need good reflexes, good timing, and lotsa skill. Not everyone has that. Therefore, you might put the game down in pure frustration. That’s not very addictive.



Bottom line

It’s a good game, and addictive in it’s own right, but the difficulty hurts the factor. It’s 8/10 because it wouldn’t feel right to put it higher or lower.



Not much in terms of depth, except two characters to play as. 6/10

Yes, it’s short. That wouldn’t be a problem for depth if there were challenges or the dreaded achievements. However… the only thing it really has are the two characters in terms of depth (aside from levels).



Dem different characters

Well, you can play as Mega Man X or Zero. You are stuck as Mega Man X or Zero for the entire game. What are the differences? Well, Mega Man X is a ranged character. He isn’t as mobile or as strong as Zero, but he has the advantage of range, thanks to his X buster. That pretty much evens out his disadvantages. He also has Dr. Light armor, unlike Zero. Zero, on the other hand, doesn’t have a buster, he has a Z-saber (think ripoff of lightsaber). He can get hit easier, and he will get hit. However, he is more mobile (with the maverick powers), and stronger than X. So, it all evens out for Zero as well. They go through the same stages, fight the same bosses (with a few exceptions) and have a basic story line (X does, but not so much Zero).



Bottom line

There really is only the different characters in terms of depth, so I have to give this category a low score. 6/10, just above meh.



The story is actually pretty good, if you’re playing as the right character. 8/10

Well, unlike the SNES X games, where it was basically evil guys attacking, someone’s dead, some more guys attacking, reincarnation for some reason, and *gasp* more evil guys attacking, this game has a decent story. That is, if you’re playing as the plot important character .



X’s story, A.K.A the not important storyline

Well, X’s story is basically like the other X games. This time the evil people is this group called Repliforce, who really weren't evil until now. They became evil because, you guessed it, Sigma, and now we must kill them. So, X finds a new character, and his name is Double. He is fat, and doesn’t do anything. After you beat all eight mavericks, you will go and kill Colonel, who is sorta like the colonel of Repliforce (I died from that pun) and find out something terrible. Double is actually evil and part of the mavericks! He is also not fat, and turns super saiyan- I mean, turns into an upgraded form of Double. Then you fight the General, the leader of Repliforce, then he blocks a laser or something from destroying Earth.

The story is pretty basic, and doesn’t really have much to impact on the whole storyline of Mega Man X. Unlike Zero…



Zero’s story, A.K.A the plot important storyline

At the beginning of the game, you find out that, spoiler alert, Zero was created by Dr. Wahwee, sorry, I mean Dr. Wily. So, yea, *mindblown*. You find out that Zero has a girlfriend (or so we assume) that’s part of Repliforce. Her name is Iris, and like Double, she does nothing for the majority of the game. Fast forward to when Zero kills Colonel. Oops, we killed Iris’s brother, and now she’s out for our blood, er, transmission fluid? Anyways, you have to kill Iris. After you kill Iris, you find out that Iris wanted a world with only reploids, and Zero. God, the game is really pushing the ZeroxIris ship. Oh, and Zero has a mental breakdown. Fast forward to when Zero and Sigma is facing each other. Sigma tells Zero that he is actually the original carrier of the maverick virus, via flashback. Then Zero defeats Sigma, and the game is over.

I like this storyline more than X’s. First off, it revealed more about the past of Zero. Before this game, Zero just appeared. Also, it revealed more about the history of the mavericks in general. So, this storyline is a good one .



Bottom line

The storyline in general is good, just X’s bland story brings the rating down a bit. I rate it an 8/10, a fair score considering how much plot important details were revealed.



It’s a difficult game, but not as hard as other Mega Man games. 8/10

Well, like all Mega Man games, this one is hard. However, it’s not nearly as hard as other Mega man games *stares angrily at Mega Man 2*. Well, let’s compare Mega Man 2 to this game, shall we?



Annoying disappearing blocks vs Rider section

Well, Mega Man 2 had disappearing blocks. The ones in Flame Man’s stage were super annoying, since it was a really long section, and if you screwed up once, you would die. On the contrary, the rider section in Mega Man X4 was easier and fair. It had more leeway, and the section was fairly short. Compared to that segment of Flame Man’s stage, Jet Stingray’s Stage (the rider stage) is as easy as pie. Well, it’s still hard, but still.



Quick Man vs Cyber Peacock

Quick Man was unfairly quick, and his weakness only did half of his health. HALF! Not only that, but the insta-kill lasers in his stage were very rage-inducing. Meanwhile, Cyber Peacock had a difficult fight, but it wasn’t unfair like Quick Man’s. Also, the weakness could actually kill him, and not just deal some damage. Cyber Peacock’s stage had an interesting gimmick, that was frustrating at times, but not so rage-inducing.



That one boss vs the General

You know that boss in Mega Man 2 where you had just enough Crash Bombs to kill it? Yea… very bad design there. Not to mention the constant super-fast bullets they shot at you. Well, the General on the other hand, might be a hard boss, but at least you can beat it with just your buster/Z-saber. Also, the attacks aren’t super fast to the point of unfair frustration.



Bottom line

This game may be hard, but it’s not nearly as hard as some of the games in the Mega Man series as a whole. The difficulty will get an 8/10 for being hard, but not the hardest.



Overall, this is a solid game in the Mega Man X series. 8/10

Well, this game definitely has it’s ups and down, but it’s a solid game nonetheless. I recommend playing this game for yourself, if you’re good at platformers, of course. The only thing that is bringing the grade down is the depth, so I have to give it a score of an even 8. Bye.

ZeroTails : Awesome review, my friend! Yeah, I really loved how there are anime cutscenes, and the Japanese intro song is so catchy! I love it! It's excellent in overall, I love it, keep up the good work!

Nice work on the review, ZeroTails. It's clean and tosses in some humor (thanks for the loopy tangent ) which is always nice.

I do have to ask: is the voice acting Resident-Evil-bad? If you've even heard the first RE's voice acting. *shudders*

greenluigi : Thanks! I took a long time on it. Well, about 4-5 hours in a day on it. The I had to take a 3 hour break, since I was shaking. I'm better now, though.

I loved the Japanese intro song! do do do...

Eirinn : Thanks . I always try to add humor, since otherwise the review just gets bland.

Loopy tangent is life. Loopy tangent is love.

I don't really know, but I don't think it's THAT bad. It's still pretty bad regardless, though. But laughable .

EDIT: Who disliked? I'm just wondering, since that person didn't say why they disliked.

ZeroTails :

i really enjoi'ed your review. soundz like a fantastic game to play and i have an interest in getting more into the x series. i hail from mega man 2 which was the first mega man game i ever played and beat... hahaha. mega man 2 is a tough one and it takes a bit of doing. strong game though and really a good platform of practice for future mega man playing. and i will let you know when i play x as we were discussing...that walkthrough of yours will come quite in handy im sure. take care!

Nice Job zero! This is one of the first reviews that I read by you and its well thought out and clean throughout the review. Keep up the great work and I can't wait to read your next review! ^^