Mega Man X5

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Mega Man X5
Developer(s)	Capcom Production Studio 3
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Platform(s)	PlayStation, PC
Release date	Playstation: November 30, 2000 February 1, 2001 August 3rd, 2001 PC: 2002
Genre(s)	Platformer
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everyone
Media	1 × CD-ROM

Mega Man X5 (ロックマンX5, Rockman X5) is the fifth main game in the Mega Man X series by Capcom. It was released in 2000 for the PlayStation, three years after Mega Man X4, and in 2002 for PC. It was re-released on January 10, 2006 as part of the Mega Man X Collection for the GameCube and PlayStation 2.

Story

Set an indeterminate amount of time after the events of Mega Man X4, a new plot to destroy the Maverick Hunters is hatched by Sigma, who has been revived again (as in X4, it is unknown who revived him or how). Sigma, after conducting research on the origin and design of Zero, decides to discover how to unlock Zero's true power, hopefully destroying X in the process. Sigma attacks the Maverick Hunters directly, intending to lose. When he does, he spreads the Maverick virus across the Earth, throwing it into chaos. Meanwhile, a Reploid mercenary named Dynamo is hired by Sigma to make the space colony Eurasia collide with Earth. The Hunters have only 16 hours to stop the collision.

In order to prevent Eurasia from striking the planet, the Hunters pursue two options of attack. The first option is to fire a powerful cannon called Enigma at Eurasia, hopefully vaporizing it. If the Enigma shot fails, the second option is to launch a space shuttle and pilot it into the colony, destroying it. To maximize their chances, X and Zero are dispatched to collect parts for the two devices. The necessary parts to upgrade the Enigma and shuttle are held by eight Reploids and Mavericks), and X and Zero must defeat them to claim the parts. Further complicating matters, Dynamo repeatedly attacks the Hunters' base during the course of the game, forcing X and Zero to waste valuable time fighting him off.

Whether the Enigma and shuttle succeed or fail is randomly determined by the game, although the Enigma's chances of working successfully are low even with all its parts, while the shuttle has a much higher probability of succeeding assuming all of the parts are collected. If the Enigma succeeds, the Hunters can proceed to hunt for the cause of the virus without fighting the remaining Mavericks (though it is still recommended to do so, in order to get weapons and items from the Maverick). If the shuttle (piloted by Zero) succeeds, the hunt for the cause of the virus begins as well. If the shuttle fails or if your time expires, the colony crashes, nearly destroying the planet; Zero then is infected by the virus and goes Maverick, removing him from the game as a playable character.

In either case, once the location of the virus' origin is discovered, the Hunters must investigate it. X (and Zero if he's still playable) penetrate a bizarre underground fortress, based on levels from previous games and featuring enemies from the distant past. Finally in the third stage of the fortress, X and Zero cross paths, where mutual suspicion and mistrust leads to a duel between the heroes (which had been foreshadowed ever since the end of Mega Man X2).

After the duel, the story diverges slightly. If Zero went Maverick, then he sacrifices himself to save X from Sigma, and X continues on alone to get revenge on Sigma in the final stage. If Zero did not go Maverick, he saves X and himself from Sigma, and both heroes have a chance to confront Sigma in the final battle. There are three possible endings for the game; X has two and Zero has one.

If Zero went Maverick, X defeats Sigma, but is badly damaged. He recovers, but all of his memories of Zero are deliberately erased by a mysterious person. This is considered the "bad" ending, and is treated as non-canon.

If Zero did not go Maverick, Sigma decides to make the Hunters' victory for naught by taking them down with him. X tries to save Zero but is ambushed by Sigma and both Hunters are critically damaged. Zero manages to finish Sigma off, then the endings diverge again. If Zero defeated Sigma, he reflects on his origin and life before dying. If X defeated Sigma, he inherits Zero's beam saber and continues to fight as a Maverick Hunter. This is considered the "true" ending.

It is interesting to note that though the manual says that the Repliforce was wiped out, the Skiver has the Repliforce symbol on his head, and the Repli-air force is mentioned as still being there.

Another notation is that in each of X's endings, it is the hologram of Dr. Light who discovers X's badly damaged body after the battle with Sigma and says "Not yet....just for a few mere moments. X shall live." He is the one who heals X, but it not certain whether he got X back to the Maverick Hunters HQ. Nevertheless, these events imply that Dr. Light himself is still alive, somewhere.

Characters

New characters

• Signas
• Alia
• Douglas
• Lifesaver
• Dynamo

Returning characters

• Mega Man X
• Zero
• Sigma
• Dr. Light

Gameplay

X5 was developed by a different team than X4, and this is evident in the style of gameplay. The most prominent difference in this iteration is the time limit of 16 hours, until the space station Eurasia crashes into Earth. If the crash is not prevented, this does not end the game-it merely changes the course of the story. Every time the player enters a stage, one hour is expended. Due to the nature of the storyline, there are multiple endings to the game. Which ending is seen depends on such factors as whether or not the crash of Eurasia is prevented, and whether X or Zero is used to defeat the last boss.

The change in gameplay was widely viewed by fans as being non-traditional. There were four armors for X -- his Ultimate Armor, the upgraded armor from Mega Man X4, and two others that had to be assembled from capsules. However, X couldn't wear parts of these armors separately. In previous Mega Man X games, X always upgraded what he had (the helmet, legs, armor, and his buster) and they were changed right on the spot. X could also no longer shoot his buster through walls, and for the first time ever in a Mega Man game, each character has the ability to duck.

Dr. Light's capsule holograms are also depicted as AI instead of a pre-recorded message. Zero is able to find and use the capsules; in these cases, not only do Zero and Light have conversations, but Dr. Light tells Zero that Alia should be able to use the programs from the capsules to assemble X's armors. While fewer than Zero's, X has had conversations with the hologram of his creator Dr. Light as is seen in the next few games, X6-X8.

Items

• Heart Tank - Extends the life meter for whoever finds them. There is one in each stage, and more can be obtained by selecting 'weapons and life' after selecting a level 8 and above Maverick.
• Sub-Tank - There are two of them in the game, and they can be filled with energy pellets for later consumption. It takes 16 pellets worth of energy to completely fill one tank, with large pellets counting for two and full-life pellets counting for four.
• W-Tank - Can be filled with weapon pellets and used to reload your arsenal.
• EX Tank - Extends the starting amount of lives from two to four when the player continues from a save or game over.

Armors

• 'Fourth Armor' - Only available if you start the game as X (it gets broken if you start as Zero). Grants almost all the same abilities as the X4 armor. It is also known as the Force Armor. The armor has no Nova Strike and it has a limited weapon battery.
  • Abilities
    • Air Dash
    • Hover function
    • Damage reduced by 50%
    • Plasma extension - A fully charged X-Buster shot will fire a destructive ball of energy; the ball will leave behind trails that continue to damage enemies.
    • Ability to charge weapons
    • Can equip up to 2 parts
• Falcon Armor - Designed for air mobility, this armor allows X to fly. Special weapons can be used, but can't be charged.
  • Abilities
    • Flight function - X can fly for limited periods; while flying, he can damage enemies on contact, and is invincible to attacks
    • Weapon battery - Increases the amount of energy for special weapons, therefore enabling more shots
    • Damage reduced by 50%
    • Laser shot - A fully charged X-Buster shot will fire a laser that can penetrate walls and shields.
    • Giga Attack - Fires a rain of lasers that sweep the screen vertically.
    • Can equip up to 2 parts
• Gaea Armor - Designed for defense and strength. Special weapons cannot be used.
  • Abilities
    • Heavy Dash - No faster than X's walking speed, but it gives X enough force to shove certain inanimate objects.
    • Spike Guard - While wearing this armor, X is immune to spikes (the standard Mega Man deathtrap).
    • Hyper Grip - X can stick on walls without sliding.
    • Damage reduced by 50%
    • Gaea Shot - Although the standard shot is more powerful than the normal X-Buster, it has quite a short range. Charging the Buster is almost instantaneous and it fires off a destructive blast that can destroy certain inanimate objects.
    • Giga Attack - Creates a sphere of energy in front of X, damaging anything that touches it.
    • Can't equip any parts
• Ultimate Armor - The enhanced version of the X4 armor. Available either through a secret code or by finding a special Light Capsule during the third Sigma fortress stage (The stage with the famous "X vs. Zero" battle). Replaces the Fourth Armor if activated by code.
  • Abilities
    • Air Dash
    • Hover function
    • Damage reduced by 50%
    • Plasma extension - A fully charged X-Buster shot will fire a destructive ball of energy. The ball will leave behind trails that continue to damage enemies.
    • Ability to charge weapons.
    • Nova Strike (renamed as Giga Attack) - X flies forward in a plasma-powered air dash. Can be used indefinitely.
    • Can equip up to 2 parts

• Zero's Black Armor - Zero can access the black armor through a code or by finding a capsule in the third stage of the post-Eurasia destruction/crash. This is provided that he can still be used as a playable character after whatever happens to Eurasia. This armor provides Zero with the following parts: Shock Buffer (reduces damage by 50% and eliminates recoil and fall-down when hit), Weapon Energy Increaser (increases special weapons energy gauge by 50%), Shot Eraser and Virus Buster (Zero's attacks destroys most enemy projectiles and Sigma/Zero Viruses). Like regular X, Black Zero can equip up to 4 parts.

Maverick bosses

Story revision

Word has spread that Keiji Inafune had originally planned to end the Mega Man X series with Mega Man X5. While he was beginning work on the first installment of the Mega Man Zero series, a development team at Capcom threw together Mega Man X6 without Inafune's knowledge. When he learned of the X series' continuance, Inafune tailored the story of Mega Man Zero slightly to accommodate Zero's appearance in X6 (Zero was supposed to have been killed at the end of X5 and revived in Mega Man Zero).

Proof of this lies in the retrospective nature of X5 (from the somewhat vague references to Dr. Wily from the classic Mega Man series, to the remixed stage music from previous Mega Man X games), Alia saying that Sigma had spread the "Sigma Virus" so far that he wouldn't be able to regenerate himself this time, and the ominous prediction that began in Mega Man X3 finally coming to pass (X and Zero fighting each other, X suffering the loss of his best friend, and Zero losing his life to save the world).

When Mega Man X6 was made despite all of this, it caused confusion among many Mega Man fans.

References to other games

• The boss of the "Training Mode" stage of X5 is Magma Dragoon, a Maverick boss from Mega Man X4. In X5, Dragoon has been toned down from his appearance in the previous game, performing only a few of his attacks. On a side note, this isn't the real Dragoon. According to Alia, it is only a training program.
• During the dialog between X and Squid Adler, there is mention of one 'Octopardo'. This is none other than Launch Octopus from the first Mega Man X game, billed to be Squid Adler's brother; "Octopardo" is the phoenetic spelling of his Japanese name, "Launcher Octopuld".
• Duff McWhalen's stage is the only Maverick boss in the X series to re-use stage music from a previous game (until Mega Man X6), in this case, Mega Man X2's Bubble Crab. He originally had a different, much slower pace of music which was replaced for unknown reasons. His was also the only true water stage in all the 32-bit and upward 'Mega Man X games (X4, X6, X7, and X8 included).
• The Skiver's attack in which he tries to hit X/Zero from a downward angle is derived from Storm Eagle's attack in Mega Man X.
• The Shadow Devil (the boss of the first stage of the post-Eurasia destruction/crash) is a reference to the Yellow Devil from the original Mega Man game. Not only are its attack patterns similar to the Yellow Devil, the music that is heard when battle the Shadow Devil is a remix of the music heard when battling its predecessor in Mega Man. In addition, one of its attacks consists of turning into a darkened version of Dr. Wily's Wily Machine and trying to crush the player under its spikes. They also share the same weakness; electricity (Elec Man's Thunder Beam and Squid Adler's Tri-Thunder, respectively, which is essentially the same weapon, with enhancements on Adler's part, see below).
• A significant portion of this first stage's layout is based directly on Quick Man's stage from Mega Man 2, specifically, lasers that are an instant death method if touched, but can be stopped with the Dark Hold or Flash stopper in the case of Mega Man 2.
• The Second Eurasia level is based on the first stage of Sigma's fortress in Mega Man X. The boss of this level is directly derived from Rangda Bangda in Mega Man X. The music that plays during this battle is a remix of the music that is heard when battling Bangda in Mega Man X.
• The Dark Hold (received from Dark Dizzy) is similar to Flash Man's Time Stopper from Mega Man 2. Like the Time Stopper, the Dark Hold can stop time (as long as there is enough weapon energy for it). Its weapon energy depletes rather quickly, much like the Time Stopper. However, its usage is more like the Flash Stopper (the weapon of Bright Man from Mega Man 4), where you can still shoot/slash in order to actually damage enemies, especially the Skiver, whose weakness is Dark Hold.
• Dark Dizzy has a move that consists of him swooping down on X/Zero. Should he succeed in hitting them with this move, he will drain a portion of their energy, much like Shade Man from Mega Man 7.
• The Tri-Thunder is like Elec Man's Thunder Beam from the first Mega Man game in that they both shoot thunder forward, up, and down. The only difference is the Thunder Beam travels in a wavy pattern and the Tri-Thunder can cling to walls and continue travelling (in the form of electrical balls of energy).
• The Spike Ball is similar (to an extent) Ring Man's Ring Boomerang from Mega Man 4; both fire a weapon out a short distance before it returns. The Ring Boomerang, however, only hits the enemy once and then returns, while the Spike Ball can strike multiple hits.
• The opening music is a remix of Zero's death song from Mega Man X, which is mixed with the "Get Weapon" theme from Mega Man 3.
• The Dr. Light capsule music in this game is a remix of the capsule music from Mega Man X.
• The events of the Eurasia Incident are later referenced in Mega Man Zero 4 as part of the game's main plot.
• In Mattrex's level, at the beginning of the second part where the path diverges, the above-magma path forces the player to deal with a robotic dragon similar to the boss of the first stage of Wily's Castle in Mega Man 2. Coincidentally, the dragon's weakness (Crescent Shot) is the most similar weapon to the Quick Boomerang, the MM2 dragon's weakness.

PC Version

A PC version was also made. It is almost identical to the original, but it has a rather odd bug that the original version doesn't have-when you first teleport into a stage, the background moves very quickly, almost like it is speeding out of control. It stops as soon as the stage begins, however.

Reception

The game was generally well received, with IGN giving the game an 8.5 out of 10. However, they added that though the game was fun to play, it was "more of the same" from Capcom, and they that "Mega Man, like many other series made by Capcom, is being milked for as much as it's worth".

References

1. ^  Capcom Music Generation (2004). Megaman X1-X6 OST - Megaman X5 Music Section - "Deep Sea".. Suleputer. Retrieved on 07/07, 2006.