Mega Man Powered Up – PSP – Review

The Mega Man series has been around
for nearly 20-years now, and just as many releases later it seems like the Blue
Bomber is still going strong. Over this time period the series has definitely
gone through its ups and downs; we’ve seen best with the likes Mega Man 2, and
we’ve been forced to deal with the worst as well with Mega Man X7. But even
through the bad, it’s hard to deny that Mega Man has a subtle charm about him,
even when things become frustrating it’s hard to hold a grudge. This might
explain why he has managed to invade nearly every console during his lifetime,
and even though they might not all have been perfect; they have at least been
creative. So I guess it only seems right that Capcom has chosen the first Mega
Man title to receive its makeover, and the result is by far the most original,
creative, and downright entertaining game so far.

Much like the recently released
Maverick Hunter X, Powered Up has received a virtual face-lift in nearly every
department, and the new look is so astonishing that it almost puts X to shame.
The first thing that most any gamer will notice is the increased visual punch,
as the entire game now sports an overly-cute theme, complete with bobble
head-like character models and lighthearted tones to match. The new makeover
isn’t limited to Mega Man thankfully, as the rest of Dr. Wily’s robots, along
with the environments and enemies that inhabit them, have also received the same
treatment, and look fabulous to say the least. And to make the cartoony theme
seem even more perfect, the developers added a slew of new over-the-top
animations to the game. You’ll see flying enemies spin wildly out of control
after being hit, Mega Man will slip and slide across icy surfaces while his feet
churn at extraordinary paces, and enemy bosses will do back flips and smash
against walls after being defeated.

Once you get past the dazzling
visuals you will notice that Powered Up has two different single-player modes:
Old Style and New Style. We’ll start with the Old Style first as it is
essentially the same game that the original Mega Man was. The level design has
gone untouched, and the aspect ratio stays the same as before as well, and has
bars on both the left and right sides of the screen to ensure that it’s played
in original fashion. The only real difference is with the visuals, which as you
already know have been retooled from the ground up. Though it may not be the
favorite of the two single-player modes, playing through the Old Style is
definitely worth it, especially for the older generation who likely played the
original Mega Man when it was first released in 1987.

The New style is no doubt the game’s
biggest draw, and has received the most fluff in the extras department. Other
than the standard upgrade in graphics, this mode features newly revamped level
designs, which are now longer than before, and even has two new bosses, Oil Man
and Time Man, who have their own new levels to call home as well. Not only are
these new baddies very tough, but their new levels are some of the hardest in
the game, which is saying a lot considering how difficult Mega Man was to begin
with. Another outstanding feature is the ability to play through the story as
some of Dr. Wily’s other robots, like Cut Man, Bomb Man, or Ice Man for
instance, and doing this is actually fairly easy. Anytime you successfully
defeat a stage’s boss using Mega Man’s primary weapon, the enemy robot can then
be taken back to Dr. Light for repair. Once this happens he becomes a playable
character, but choosing to play through the story as this alternative robot
makes Mega Man one of the bad guys. Mega Man doesn’t have his own custom stage,
however, which is the only real drawback to doing this, but nevertheless, going
up against him in battle is an experience no fan should miss.

As weird as this may sound, the two
single-player modes aren’t the most exciting aspect of Powered Up, as the new
Construction Mode ultimately steals the show and never looks back. It is here
that you can literally build your own level from the ground up, and to boot it’s
very easy to use. When you first start your level design you’ll choose the basic
settings like backgrounds and what various hazards and obstacles that you wish
to implement. But soon it’s on to bigger and better things like enemy layouts
and more complicated traps and hazards, but you must first find and collect
these in single player mode in order to access them, but after locating these
scattered pieces you will be spending hours crafting and editing your own
personal stages. And to top it off you can go online and trade your creations
with anyone in the world, where you can literally enjoy an endless amount of
custom stages for months to come. 

Mega Man: Powered Up is nothing short of brilliant and will be remembered as one
of the best games in the series for years to come. With such an improvement over
the original, it’s hard not to recommend Powered Up to every PSP owner, fan of
the series or not. Just make sure you try and finish the single-player modes
first, because once you get into the addicting level editor, there’s no turning
back.

Gameplay: 9.1
The original Mega Man launched it all nearly 20 years ago, and this version is a
testament to how good that game really was. The two new single-player modes,
along with the ability to play as alternate characters really helps it stand
out, and the overly-addicting level editor is one of the best ever seen.

Graphics: 9.0
Powered Up may appear cute, cartoony, and childish at first, but after seeing
the game in motion you begin to understand that it just wouldn’t have worked any
other way. Tons of new animations help the experience along as well, and
ultimately make this one of the best-looking games on the system, even if it is
of the old-school variety.

Sound: 8.6
The Old Style features the original 8-bit tracks that were first heard in 1987,
and the New Style has the same tunes, but they have been fully remixed and match
the game’s new look perfectly. Also each character in the game now has a
voice-over that suits their personality very well. A little more explosiveness
could’ve been used to stimulate the action, but overall the sound is very nicely
done.

Difficulty: Hard

Concept: 8.9
Not only is it Mega Man, but a near-perfect one at that. With the two
single-player modes, an impressive visual overhaul, and a custom level editor,
Powered Up instantly becomes a ‘must have’ for any PSP owner.

Overall: 9.1
Remakes are often looked down upon in the industry, and for usually good
reasons, but what Powered Up brings to the creative table should serve as a
training manual for other developers who wish to follow suit. Nearly every
aspect of this game is perfect, and despite its historic roots, becomes a ‘must
own,’ not only for Mega Man fans, but for every PSP owner out there.