Mega Armor Series Returns After 20 Years as Giga Armor

So this was a bit unexpected. During their 10th Anniversary World Tour, Tamashii Nations revealed a number of new products to come at their stop in Grand Central Station in New York City this past weekend. The main focus was on other products, such as Dragon Ball and — if you can believe it — WWE, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t any Blue Bomber representation there.

The biggest news, of course, would be the return of the Mega Armor Series. Well, sort of — as you can see in the banner above from Tamashii’s Twitter and webpage, “After 20 years of waiting, the legendary series returns…”, only it’s now under the name of “Giga Armor Series.”

For those who might not be familiar, these were essentially the Mega Man (or rather, Rockman) toys to own back in the day. The quality wasn’t top-of-the-line, particularly where the application of included stickers was concerned, but these detailed figure model kits were what you were after if you wanted to have representations of X, Zero, Vile Mk. II, and others (including various versions X’s many armors) in the late 90’s, even being featured in advertising for online import shops in magazines such as Diehard GameFan.

The main focus was on Rockman X3 and Rockman 8, though X in his Ultimate Armor was released in a bonus edition of Rockman X4 (plans for a Zero equivalent never materialized), and the line would be picked up again a few years later with the eventual releases of Rockman X5 and X6. That said, these model kits were never released in a localized form as many products are now.

There wasn’t just a logo at the event, however, but an actual peek at the figure:

According to Tamashii Nations’ Twitter, the whole thing should be revealed at a later time, which is probably why the face seems obscured/incomplete (and with the lighting, it’s just a cool effect besides). What we can discern from this is that the newer models seem to be more detailed than the old, evoking a sense of aesthetic that doesn’t feel entirely removed from TruForce Collectibles’ premium figure (which I reviewed here), but with its own design and presumably at a lower price point.

Another picture from Tamashii Nations’ Facebook also confirms a recent leak:

That’s right, it looks like NXEDGE Zero is definitely happening, though no other details are offered at present.

Thanks to Max and Big Chap for bringing these to my attention! And if you’re interested in a greater look at the event, be sure to check out Toy Ark’s gallery as well!

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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