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Mega Man X (Rockman X in Japan) is the second Mega Man series released by Capcom. It debuted December 17, 1993 in Japan (January 1994 in North America) on the Super NES/Super Famicom and spawned sequels on several systems, with the PC platform notably having the most releases within the series. The plot is a continuation of the preceding series, Mega Man. The first six games in the series are currently available in the anthology collection Mega Man X Collection.

Plot [link]

Mega Man X, commonly known as "X", was created by Dr. Thomas Light an unknown number of years after the Mega Man series. Unlike the original Mega Man, X was a new type of robot with the ability to make his own decisions. After completing X, Light realized that there was a possibility X might choose to turn against humankind. He also feared that even if X chose a beneficent path in life with regard to human welfare, people would inexorably be unable to accept him, and that X would be viewed as a technological anomaly at best and an abomination at worst.^[1] Both would result in X's rejection as the cogent thinking machine Light originally intended him to be. Fearing that his life's work and magnum opus would be destroyed by fearful human beings, Light sealed X away in a diagnostic capsule for over 30 years of testing to make sure he would not choose an evil path in life. Though what happened to him during these years is not specifically mentioned, it is assumed that Dr. Light died and left his diagnostic experiments unfinished. X's capsule was eventually uncovered by an archaeologist named Dr. Cain almost 100 years after X's creation. With X's help, Cain created a legion of new robots that replicated X's free will; these robots were called "Reploids" (Repliroids in Japan). For a time, everything seemed calm and peaceful.

However, a virus that caused Reploids to turn against humans (later discovered to be originated by Dr. Wily implanted in Zero and transferred to Sigma) began to spread. This was because X's circuitry was duplicated imperfectly.^{[citation needed]} These Reploids were dubbed "Mavericks" (Irregulars in Japan), and a force called the Maverick Hunters (Irregular Hunters) was formed to combat them. The Maverick Hunters were originally led by Sigma until he, too, became a Maverick. Because of his betrayal and eventual declaration of war against the humans, X took it upon himself to join the Maverick Hunters and current leader Zero, another powerful robot (created by the evil Dr. Wily), on a mission to save Earth from Sigma.

Throughout the series, X, Zero, and later Axl battle against Sigma and his Maverick followers to stop their many diabolical plots to destroy the human race.

Series history [link]

Capcom released Mega Man X for the Super NES to give a new image to the Mega Man game series. There are a total of 11 games in the Mega Man X series: Mega Man X through Mega Man X8, Mega Man X: Command Mission, and Mega Man Xtreme-Xtreme 2. Mega Man X Collection was later released in 2006 which comprised the first six Mega Man X games, plus one additional Classic series game as a North America exclusive.

Here is a list of platforms that each Mega Man X game got released on:

• Super NES
  • Mega Man X
  • Mega Man X2
  • Mega Man X3
• PlayStation
  • Mega Man X3 (Japanese and European port only)
  • Mega Man X4
  • Mega Man X5
  • Mega Man X6
• PlayStation 2
  • Mega Man X7
  • Mega Man X8
  • Mega Man X: Command Mission
  • Mega Man X Collection
• Nintendo GameCube
  • Mega Man X: Command Mission
  • Mega Man X Collection
• Game Boy Color
  • Mega Man Xtreme (Japanese Title: Rockman X: CyberMission)
  • Mega Man Xtreme 2 (Japanese Title: Rockman X2: Soul Eraser)
• Sega Saturn
  • Mega Man X3 (Japanese and European port only)
  • Mega Man X4 (Japanese and North American port only)
• PC
  • Mega Man X (Port)
  • Mega Man X3 (Port)
  • Mega Man X4 (Japanese port only)
  • Mega Man X5 (Japanese port only)
  • Mega Man X7 (Japanese, Korean, and European port only)
  • Mega Man X8 (Japanese, Korean, and European port only)

The original Mega Man X was remade on the PlayStation Portable as Mega Man Maverick Hunter X.

As of December 21, 2011, Mega Man X is now able to be downloaded on the iPhone.^[2]

Gameplay [link]

Mega Man X plays similarly to its predecessor series Mega Man, but with various new features: X has the ability to dash along the ground at any time, cling to walls and Wall Jump, and dash and jump at the same time, increasing his speed in the air. This all gives X more mobility than his Classic counterpart; these modifications make it easier to go through the majority of the game without using any other gun than the default, which is different from previous Mega Man games where players were more inclined to rely on weapons won in previous fights (Like Metal Man's infamous Metal Blades) against boss characters in previously conquered stages.

X is also able to locate capsules that permanently upgrade a part of his armor, such as his helmet, boots, chestplate, or arm cannon. An upgrade common to each game is the ability for X to charge weapons earned from bosses, which gives them an enhanced secondary fire mode. In later games, there are multiple armor types available that can either be mixed and matched, or completed for additional armor set bonuses.

In X3, Zero (the leader of the Maverick Hunters in the first Mega Man X) is a playable character from the beginning. In the second game, Zero is armed with a beam saber in addition to the traditional "buster" gun, but relies on his saber almost exclusively starting in X4. In X5, both X and Zero gained the ability to duck; an ability previously unavailable. In X6, there is a new rescue system where the player must rescue reploids. In X7, a new character known as Axl is introduced, playable alongside X and Zero. Axl utilizes two guns known as Axl Bullets. In X8, a new Double Attack feature is introduced, where two characters can attack at the same time. X8 is the latest entry in the franchise.

Mavericks replace the Robot Masters, and Sigma replaces Dr. Wily. The Mavericks are based on various types of organisms (usually animals) instead of being humanoid in appearance, as were most of the bosses in the classic series, although their attacks and names are usually based on mechanical or chemical phenomena or laws of physics like the original games.

Though some Mavericks have new, never-before-seen powers (e.g., Toxic Seahorse from X3), most have the traditional element-based weapons of the past games, such as fire, water, ice, lightning, wind, and earth.

References [link]

See also [link]

• Global Imagination