Mega Man Legends (video game)
Mega Man Legends is a 1997 action-adventure game released by Capcom. It is the first game in the Mega Man Legends sub-series of Mega Man games from Capcom, and the second major 3D polygonal Mega Man title in the franchise, following Mega Man: Battle & Chase. It was released for the PlayStation in 1997 in Japan, and in 1998 in North America. A Nintendo 64 port was released in 2000 with the same title, but it was renamed Mega Man 64 for the North American release in 2001. It was also ported to Windows in 2001, and to the PlayStation Portable in 2005, the latter only in Japan. Its most recent release was as a PS one Classic on the North American PlayStation Network in 2015.
Legends stars a new incarnation of Mega Man, known as Mega Man Volnutt, the game's player character. Mega Man Volnutt is a "Digger", someone tasked with investigating ruins on a flooded Earth. During his journey with his friends, their ship crashes on Kattelox Island, where Mega Man confronts pirates seeking the island's hidden treasure. As an action-adventure game, Mega Man Legendss gameplay is significantly different from the original series, though it retains some familiar elements.
Mega Man Legends received positive critical reception for its transition from 2D graphics to 3D. However, the Nintendo 64 and Windows ports were criticized for lacking improvements over the PlayStation version, whose graphics were considered outdated by the time of their release. Mega Man Legends was followed by the prequel The Misadventures of Tron Bonne and the sequel Mega Man Legends 2.
Gameplay
Mega Man Legends differs significantly from the platforming gameplay of previous Mega Man games, with the primary change being its three-dimensional worlds and movement. Unlike the original Mega Man series, which are platform games, Legends is an action-adventure game featuring mechanics similar to those in Tomb Raider, such as the ability to grab and climb ledges, perform left/right diving maneuvers, control the camera manually, and use lock-on targeting.The player controls Mega Man Volnutt throughout the game, completing various missions such as investigating ruins or fighting pirates. The game features a large world with multiple dungeons that must be explored in a specific order, as well as a town with non-player characters to interact with. The story is revealed through cutscenes.
Although the player moves through the game solely on foot, once Roll Caskett repairs a support car, she can transport Mega Man to specific locations.
In Legends, large gems called Refractors serve as the primary power source. Smaller fragments, known as Refractor Shards, can be exchanged for money. When enemies are defeated, they often drop these shards, which are automatically converted into Zenny, the game's currency. Mega Man's health can be increased by purchasing upgrades in shops, recovered by buying health packs, collecting orange cubes from defeated enemies, or by asking the character Data to heal him. Mega Man also possesses a Life Shield, which reduces the amount of damage he takes from enemies. Enemy damage can be further mitigated by acquiring armor or helmet upgrades.
Mega Man's interactions with characters can also influence the price of items. If the player makes Mega Man behave rudely toward characters, item prices will increase, and the dialogue with those characters will change.
The power of Mega Man's main weapon, the Buster Gun, is determined by the Buster Parts equipped. These parts can enhance four stats of the Buster Gun: Attack, Rapid, Range, and Energy. Buster Parts can be obtained from stores or found in dungeons. Additionally, Roll can create Buster Parts from unusable objects discovered in the ruins. She can also craft weapons for the player using specific combinations of parts found in dungeons or purchased in shops, many of which serve as complements to the Buster Gun.
The only way to refill special weapons in the field is by using an item that can be purchased, though only one can be carried at a time. Unlike the original series, only one special weapon can be equipped at any given time, and switching between them requires talking to Roll. Special weapons can be upgraded in five different stats: Attack, Rapid, Range, Energy, and Special. To upgrade these weapons, the player must spend a certain amount of Zenny.
Plot
Setting and characters
The Legends series is set on a flooded Earth, where only a few scattered islands remain and energy sources are scarce. To meet the growing demand for energy to power machinery, people rely on quantum refractors found in ancient ruins. Shards of these refractors are used as currency. However, the ultimate goal for most people is to find the Mother Lode, a legendary item of infinite power that could solve the energy crisis once and for all. Those who explore these ruins in search of refractors are known as "Diggers". They are assisted by Spotters, who use technology to map the Diggers' paths and help them avoid or defeat Reaverbots, hostile robots that guard the ruins.The game's protagonist is Mega Man Volnutt, a Digger who lives aboard an airship called the Flutter. He resides there with Roll Caskett, his Spotter who is searching for her missing parents; Barrel Caskett, Roll's grandfather; and Data, a mysterious monkey who communicates in gibberish that only Mega Man can understand.
The main antagonists are the Bonne family, pirates intent on stealing the secret treasure of Kattelox Island to amass wealth. The group is led by Teisel Bonne, while his sister, Tron Bonne, builds most of their robots and eventually develops feelings for Mega Man. Their youngest brother, Bon Bonne, is either fully robotic or encased in a robot suit, and only says one word: "Babu!" The Bonne siblings are accompanied by forty Servbots, small robots who serve under Tron's command. The Bonne family travels and lives aboard their flying warship, the Gesellschaft.
Story
The game begins with Mega Man Volnutt exploring a tower ruin in the middle of the ocean, where he retrieves a large blue refractor. After defeating the Reaverbots guarding his path, he returns to the airship, the Flutter, and departs from the ruin. However, the Flutter suffers from engine issues and crash-lands on Kattelox Island. Stranded, Mega Man, Roll, and Barrel begin searching for parts to repair the airship.While on the island, pirates led by the Bonne family attack Kattelox City, using giant mechanical weapons in their hunt for the island's legendary treasure. Mega Man decides to intervene and protect the city. He defeats the pirates' forces, including Tron Bonne and her robots in the Downtown area, and Bon Bonne, who leads the siege on City Hall. Afterward, their leader Teisel Bonne plans an assault on the Clozer Woods ruins, but Mega Man also defeats him, safeguarding the island.
The island's mayor, Amelia, reveals to Mega Man that the Bonne family is searching for Kattelox's secret treasure. Legends claim that uncovering it would bring about a great disaster for the island. Concerned about strange activity in the island's ruins, Amelia asks Mega Man to explore them and investigate the increased presence of Reaverbots.
Mega Man continues his journey through the Forest Ruins, where he discovers a large yellow refractor. Using this to power a boat, he gains access to the Lake Ruins. After defeating the Bonnes again, who had turned stolen boats into robotic weapons, he retrieves a huge red refractor from the ruins. This allows Roll to repair the Flutter, granting them the ability to fly again and reach the Clozer Woods ruins. Inside these ruins, Mega Man unlocks the Main Gate, the largest ruin on the island, in hopes of uncovering the source of the Reaverbot activity. On the way back, the Bonnes launch a final attack with their mothership, the Gesellschaft, but Mega Man destroys it and defeats them once more.
After exploring the depths of the Main Gate, Mega Man unlocks access to three Sub-Cities scattered across Kattelox Island. While investigating them, Mega Man encounters the Bonne family once again in the Old City and destroys their newest robot, a colossal monster named Bruno. Accepting their defeat, the Bonnes retreat, though Teisel plots to steal the treasure of the Main Gate once Mega Man retrieves it.
Using three keys from the Sub-Cities, Mega Man delves deeper into the Main Gate, where he uncovers an ancient stasis chamber housing Mega Man Juno, a 3rd-class bureaucratic unit from Eden, a space station orbiting above the planet. Upon awakening, Juno recognizes Mega Man as "Mega Man Trigger" and realizes that Mega Man is suffering from memory loss.
Juno reveals a chilling plan: the island's population, referred to as "carbons", must be purged to maintain control, as their unchecked growth would eventually become a threat. Mega Man protests, realizing that Juno is referring to the people of Kattelox Island, but Juno insists that the "reinitialization" process is necessary. Juno leaves Mega Man trapped while he prepares the reinitialization program, intending to exterminate the island's population.
With help from Tron and Teisel Bonne, Mega Man escapes the trap and confronts Juno. Despite Juno transforming into a more powerful form, Mega Man defeats him in battle. However, even after Juno's defeat, his backup data is sent to Eden, confirming that the Carbon Purification Process is set to begin.
Just when all seems lost, Mega Man's companion Data overrides the system's commands. Data cancels the Purification Process and deletes Juno's backup data, effectively preventing the reinitialization from happening.
Data then explains to Mega Man that he holds all of his original memories from when he was known as Mega Man Trigger. Data reveals that Mega Man had transferred his memories into him to prevent Eden from ever accessing or tampering with them. Data promises to restore Mega Man's memory when the time is right.
With the island saved, the residents of Kattelox celebrate Mega Man as a hero. The Caskett family, now aboard the fully repaired Flutter, sets off to continue their adventures elsewhere. Meanwhile, the Bonne family, undeterred by their defeat, sails away on a makeshift boat constructed by Tron out of scrap parts, hauling the giant refractor they stole from the Main Gate.