Mega Man 11 on Game Informer: The First 11 Days

In case you missed it, or just haven’t been able to keep up, Game Informer has been providing an ongoing month of coverage following Capcom’s announcement of Mega Man 11 back on December 4th. Some articles have merely gone over what was covered during the live stream, while others have given us new details of what lies ahead. Here’s a recap of what’s been shown so far.

Their most recent article looks at “Answering Five Big Questions About The Future Of Mega Man.” Among the questions are previously-addressed topics such as why it took so long for the Blue Bomber to return and if he still matters to Capcom, as well as newer subjects such as whether they’d consider making another 3D Mega Man (it was among the considerations for how to move forward), whether we can expect a Mega Man 12 (without saying as much explicitly, it sounds like we can), and perhaps most pressing to some fans, if this revival could spread to other series such as Mega Man X and Mega Man Legends:

“I’m one of those people who thinks that actions speak louder than words,” says Oda. “I could say all kinds of things, but at the end of the day, I’d like fans to see that we’re taking it seriously by starting to resurrect the brand in the way that we are and to continue to prove ourselves moving forward. I love reading survey data. It’s a great pastime, and I’m well aware that there is a voice out there that wants something new for games like Mega Man Legends and Battle Network.”

Dialing back a few more days, Game Informer would discuss “Everything We Know About Mega Man 11‘s Robot Masters.” Among the highlights are that there will once again be eight Robot Masters, figuring out the weakness chain should (“will”) make more sense, hot swapping between special weapons with the right analog stick, the difficulty of designing new Robot Masters, that they were created by Dr. Light, inspirations, no females this time out, and that the guy on the right isn’t named “Brick Man.”

A clue to what one of the new Robot Master’s identities is can be found in one of the weapons, which is a jackhammer spike that replaces Mega Man’s fist and can be used as a physical attack or for a mid-air dash. Odds are this belongs to the bot behind the digging operation seen in the trailer, as there will be greater cohesion between the Robot Masters and the stages they occupy, with the latter typically alluding to the former in some way.

They also talk about the intent to have a mix of designs that range from comical to mysterious and serious:

“When I looked at the enemies for Mega Man 7 and onward, I felt like they had more color variety, but the individual personalities of each enemy was lessened because of that. I cut back on the number of colors for the enemies, so you can really see the distinction between each enemy. I don’t want players to be sad when they defeat enemies; I kind of envision it as they’re all having fun on the playground.”

Next, art director Yuji Ishihara talks a bit about coming up with the new design for Mega Man:

Following on from that is an exclusive concept art gallery.

The above is the first image created once they settled upon the look of the game, and is about gaining a sense of what it would be like to be there yourself as Mega Man. Other topics touched upon include Mega Man’s new design, gaining Robot Master weapons, Roll, stage creation, making enemies cute, and simplifying their color schemes.

Next up, we’ve got an excerpt from “The Game Informer Show” in which Ben Reeves speaks about his impressions of playing the game:

Among the points of discussion are Capcom’s efforts to balance out a greater range of animation with the tightness of the controls — an issue some had with the way Mega Man 8 looked versus how it played — with the consensus being that Mega Man 11 “felt good.” They also get into the four difficulty levels a bit, with “Normal” of course being most on par with your average Mega Man game, which they noted was still a bit more challenging than many of today’s games.

There is further discussion, including what they would do if they were making a new Mega Man game and a “completely optional” new feature that really shakes things up a bit. They also touch upon the “weapon get” screen, which looks like a blueprint and allows you to try out the new special weapons for yourself, indicating that each weapon will now apparently have a regular and charged version.

They also bring up a popular comparison of Mega Man 11 to Mighty No. 9, describing the former as feeling “so much better, tighter, and the moment-to-moment gameplay just feels better,” adding that they’re “nailing it” in a way that Mighty No. 9 tried to do, “but failed.

Finally, there will be a physical release, but the price point remains unknown.

If you’re not tired of video yet, then there’s also an exclusive interview with the creators of Mega Man 11:

And last, but not least, there is “Eleven Things We Learned While Playing Mega Man 11,” which honestly features a lot of tidbits that overlap with what we’ve seen here already. Of particular note are that while the traditional slide has returned along with the charge shot, Capcom is considering adding a dedicated button to perform the same function in activating the former as the Down + Jump input, as that might be easier for new players.

That’s everything for now, but you can find their next update on December 18th by following this link, and you can check back here for any major breaking developments.

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.

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