Proto Man Be Chillin’ It on the Download in MM9

Yeah, I’m rather disappointed that we didn’t cover this yesterday, too. Don’t worry, I’m working on it… once my computer is user-friendly again (posting from my in-laws’). For now, fiery chain whips and tasers will have to do.
Anyway.

Ever since Mega Man’s older robo-bro Proto Man first stepped on the scene, many a Mega Man fan has said “I want a piece of that action.” But unlike our own Tabby, most simply wanted to be able to play as Proto Man and leave it at that. And the opportunity has arisen but a small handful of times, mostly in these out-of-the-way forms: Battle & Chase, the pseudo-fighting game arcade titles… Most recently, however, fans with either a ridiculous amount of patience or access to the internet were able to play as Proto Man for the first time through an entire Mega Man game in Mega Man Powered Up. Unfortunately, that was for the PSP, which means that only about fifteen of us across the world got to do so, and about half of those played it on the other half’s PSPs. Let’s face it, the unit wasn’t doing so hot at the time, and many a Mega Fan suffered for it.

But all that is about to change. Mega Man 9, which unlike Powered Up is a cross-platform release coming to hardware that people actually own now, will feature the Blues Bomber (see what I did there?) in playable form… as downloadable content.

That’s right, 200 Wii Points, 160 Microsoft “Funnybucks” (as Games Radar put it), or just $1.99 gets you the honor and the glory of playing as DLN-000, and like in Powered Up, he’s more than just another skin for his blue baby bro. And he may be the option of choice for those who like the more newfangled mechanics Mega Man used to have: He can charge and he can slide, plus he can still block some projectiles with his shield– but the recoil will push him back further than Mega Man. Ouch.

Perhaps even more interesting will be his use of assist items. No dogs for the number-one son; rather, he sports a set of Proto-adaptors: Proto Sled, Proto Coil, etc. It should be fun to see how those play out. Here’s hoping he gets really creative with his shield. Sadly, though, there are no screens yet.

Some rumor has it that he may not have to be received through DLC, but may be unlockable through traditional means, similar to how he was handled in Powered Up. But until this is substantiated, take it with a grain of salt.

News credit: Games Radar via Kombo.com

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