The Future of Mega Man After Tsuchiya

Happy Rockman Day, everyone!

Okay, I know what some of you are probably thinking right now. With the recent announcement of Mega Man 11 producer Kazuhiro Tsuchiya leaving Capcom, what is there to be happy about? If he’s not there to champion the brand, then who will?

Well, I’m here today to tell you that not all hope is lost. I present to you three possibilities of who could take up the role left behind by Tsuchiya, and continue leading the Mega Man brand through these uncertain times.

Masakazu Eguchi

The first, and perhaps most obvious choice, would be Masakazu Eguchi, aka “Mr. Famous.” Perhaps best known for his work on the Mega Man Battle Network series, Eguchi was the director for the Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection, which wasted no time in moving more than one million units shortly after its April release.

Those are the kinds of numbers people in suits are bound to notice.

Eguchi’s relationship with the brand doesn’t extend to just the Mega Man Battle Network series, either. His earliest recorded involvement, according to Mega Man Knowledge Base, was in developing the script for Mega Man Legends 2. And while one would naturally see his roles in the first two Mega Man Star Force games as an extension of his work with Mega Man Battle Network, he was also set to direct Mega Man Legends 3 before that sadly bottomed out, and rebounded from that to be a level designer for Mega Man 11, as well as contributing the lyrics for the song “RM11” in its soundtrack.

Speaking of Mega Man 11, that brings us to our next possible contender…

Koji Oda

A lot of people seem to hold up Kazuhiro Tsuchiya as the lone champion of Mega Man at Capcom, and as you might be able to tell from this article, I’m just not buying it. I feel it diminishes the contributions others have made. Especially when we know there are people like Mega Man 11 director Koji Oda working there.

When it seemed like Capcom was either too afraid or too unwilling to do anything with Mega Man, it was Oda who would light our darkest hour. He saw that nothing was being done, despite the pleas of us, the fans, and went knocking on Tsuchiya’s door, asking, “why aren’t we making new Mega Man games?!” (Okay, it was probably more like, “why aren’t we making new Rockman games?!”, but you get the picture.)

Oda had been there since 1991, yet was never really involved with the franchise, but still came from what felt like out of nowhere to pick it up. Under his direction, Mega Man 11 has gone on to be one of the franchise’s top sellers as it closes in on two million units sold. On his first try.

As far as I know, Oda is still there. And with much love and respect to Tsuchiya and his role in things, it’s the guy who’s kicking down doors and asking the real questions that I feel could be a good champion for the brand.

Of course, if someone like Oda could come out of the blue (no pun intended) to return Mega Man to glory, then it’s possible that the next person to shepherd the brand could be…

Someone Else

Capcom is a fairly big company. People come, and people go, and it could simply be a matter of time before someone — be it a seasoned veteran from elsewhere within the company, like Ono, or a fresh-faced newcomer like Keiji Inafune was when he started all those years ago — stands up and says, “We need to make more Mega Man. There is a demand for it!”

There was trepidation before, but things have changed. And let’s face it, us Mega Man fans can be a fiery sort. I can feel the fire burning within me right now, as I write this. And I’m sure there are others like us within Capcom.

People like Eguchi and Oda have shown us, and moreover, shown Capcom the way.

Bottom line: I don’t think we’re done yet.

And just to be clear, I’ve not come to bury Kazuhiro Tsuchiya on this day, this Rockman Day. I thank him for all he’s done for the series, and I wish him well in whatever he does in the future. But I think to place everything on his shoulders, and to say the brand is done for with his departure, is simply not right. Not when there are others who have done their part to raise it from the depths we once witnessed a decade ago.

Thanks for reading, a tip of the hat to Ash Paulsen for inspiring this piece, and Happy Rockman Day!

And if you like what we’re doing here, please consider kicking something our way via the Ko-fi or Patreon links on the side. Server renewal is coming up, and anything to help soften the blow would be welcome!

LBD "Nytetrayn"

David Oxford, or “LBD ‘Nytetrayn’,” as he is sometimes also known, is a freelance writer of many varied interests who resides in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. If you’re interested in hiring him, please drop him a line at david.oxford (at) nyteworks.net.

For a full list of places to find him online, click here.