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Mega Man 9 (Xbox 360) artwork

Mega Man 9 (Xbox 360) review


""Be careful out there! You haven't done this in awhile!""

"Be careful out there! You haven't done this in awhile!"

Yet, it feels like they haven't skipped a beat. It's been a little over 10 years since Mega Man 8 came out, but once you start up Mega Man 9, it's like there was never a huge gap. Once again, as the unstoppable Blue Bomber, you'll be pitted against eight robot masters, whom, as always, you can choose in any order. Once you pick your stage, you'll be plopped into an, ignoring the graphical progression of the previous two games, 8-bit world, and start your usual journey through various platforming segments. And if you've played a Mega Man game before, you know this won't be so easy.

Hastily jump over a gap, and you'll be met by a mechanical ball that shoots out, knocking you down into the very pit it came from. Run through what seems to be a simple section taking place in space, filled with spikes, and the darnedest thing will happen: a robot will suddenly propel itself down from the top screen, grab you, and forcibly thrust you forward, towards the spikes. Think quick, and you'll realize that you still have the ability to jump, so you time yourself as you near these spikes. However, these baddies have a habit of letting go at the worst times, so, you'll still end up hitting the spikes if you're not careful. In another stage, you'll come across something oh-so familiar, and dreadful to some: disappearing blocks. Lots of them, I might add. It's typical Mega Man platforming action that many players have grown used to over the years, and really, that's all we continue to want in a classic Mega Man game. If you were honestly expecting something new or innovative here, then you're going to be extremely disappointed. Hell, they even took away the slide and charge shot to make it more challenging.

Of course, this being the eighth sequel in the series, you can't help but think "this looks familiar..." during certain moments of the game. Splash Woman's level has a part where you have to ride up to the next few screens on bubbles. If you've played Mega Man 5, you'll come across the exact same situation during Wave Man's stage. Also, Tornado Man's stage feels like a combination of Guts and Cloud Man's stages. The first half involves having to guide Mega Man through a field of moving platforms. The difference here being that Mega Man constantly spins around on the platforms, making sure you'll have to time your jumps right so you won't fall off the screen or on spikes. The second half of the stage has you pushing your Blue Bomber from one small platform to another in a storm that pushes you back and forth, reminiscent of the one in Cloud Man's stage from Mega Man 7. It doesn't put a damper on things, but you do feel a sense of "been there, done that" when you reach these specific destinations.

There are some other minor complaints, like one part in Jewel Man's level that constantly irritates, involving a moment where you're on a swing that you can... swing around by moving left and right. The tough part comes in when you're attempting to jump into the small entrance to the right. It's surrounded by spikes, some of which are inside the top part of the entrance. You really have to time this one right, because you'll die if you even touch one of them. Doesn't help that the collision detection seems a bit off here. However, these are just small nitpicks in an overall good game. You'll have fun and curse Mega Man 9 at the same time, of course, it just wouldn't be a Mega Man title if it didn't do that. While it doesn't pack the same punch as some of the better Mega Man games in the classic series, you'd be crazy to pass this title up if all you want is some platforming fun.

-2016 Edit: I recently replayed this, and I decided to remove the part where I said Wily's stages are easy. They're actually challenging. I dunno what 2008-Me was thinking... The rest of the review still sticks, though I would have been more descriptive, not to mention appalled at the DLC, if I wrote this today. If I wrote a new MM9 review, I'd give it a 6/10 or a 3/5.

-2018 Edit: the remodeled rating system translated my 7(?)/10 into a 3.5/5? Odd how that works out.



dementedhut's avatar
Community review by dementedhut (October 04, 2008)

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Iraff posted October 05, 2008:

I must heartily disagree with your rating. I fell as though the familiar setting was overstated, and the enjoyable gameplay was woefully ignored. I don't think that one can truly deduct from the game as a whole simply due to a lack of mind-blowing innovation, though it's obviously your right as the reviewer. Certain parts, such as the sometimes mind-bending difficulty is, I believe, an intentional addition. Good review, but because we have differing opinions, I must never speak to you again. Good day!
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honestgamer posted October 05, 2008:

Clearly that's the only solution!
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dementedhut posted October 05, 2008:

Either this is a hilarious joke account or you're being serious with your statements...

I must heartily disagree with your rating.

I like how you went for the rating first.

I fell as though the familiar setting was overstated, and the enjoyable gameplay was woefully ignored.

Did you actually read the second paragraph? I basically said that this is a typical Mega Man game, and that that's actually a good thing for it to be.

I don't think that one can truly deduct from the game as a whole simply due to a lack of mind-blowing innovation, though it's obviously your right as the reviewer.

Huh? Yes, I said there was nothing innovative or new in the game, but I never said that was a bad thing, just for those who were expecting that.

Certain parts, such as the sometimes mind-bending difficulty is, I believe, an intentional addition.

I never said it wasn't.

Good review, but because we have differing opinions, I must never speak to you again. Good day!

Thank you, kind alt account.
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bluberry posted October 05, 2008:

how many times can I say it

THE SCORE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THE REVIEW
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EmP posted October 05, 2008:

Though I'm sure this'll simply cast suspision atop my good self, it's not an alt account.
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Iraff posted October 05, 2008:

Well, the frustrated tone of the work gave me the impression that you detracted from it for that reason. Also, he's right, I'm not an alt. I wasn't trying to offend, or incite any sort of fight. Sorry that it came across as such.
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dementedhut posted October 05, 2008:

Hmm, the only real frustration I ended up giving in the review were the easy Wily stages and that spike part in Jewel Man's stages. But I dismissed those as nitpicks. Not trying to sound rude here, but it sounds like you only really payed attention to the stuff that might have potential to upset you and skimmed over everything else in the review.
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honestgamer posted October 05, 2008:

I liked this game better than pickhut did. I felt like it innovated enough to be worthwhile (even if technically it removed some previous innovations to the series) and was a solid representation of the very best of the series. I disagree with pickhut when he says that this is just more of the same, because to me that implies that it's more of the same with the series low points included. He also said (I think) that this doesn't stack up to the best in the series. I don't agree with that, either. I'd put it in the top three for the series thus far, just after Mega Man 2 and perhaps Mega Man 4 (yes, I really like Mega Man 4).

I still like his review, though, and I feel that his text justifies the rating.
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Iraff posted October 05, 2008:

I guess I'm not sure how to respond to that, other than by saying that I did, in fact, read the whole review. Again, much of my post was in jest, and I was just pointing out where I disagreed. I do agree that the rating fits the text, however.
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dementedhut posted October 05, 2008:

Well, if that's it, I fine with that. Thanks for reading.

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