Mega Man: The Wily Wars Review

So I just played ¨Mega Man The Wily Wars¨ for the Sega Genesis.

Mega Man The Wily Wars is a 16 bit remake compilation consisting of 16 bit versions of Mega Mans 1 2 and 3 for the NES as well as a brand new segment called Wily Tower. It was only released in North America on the Sega Channel, an online video game service used to download and play games, demos, and other things. So unfortunately Capcom only released it on cartridges in Europe and Japan and those cartridges now sell for hundreds of dollars. Now I played on a repro cart since I prefer to play on official hardware and it has yet to released in an official capacity since the Sega Channel was shut down in 1998, but you can find it online if you really want to play it.

Gameplay: If you're reading this review without ever having played a Mega Man game, here's the basic formula. It starts as a basic NES platformer with two main buttons ¨jump¨ and ¨shoot.¨ You then play through different stages each with a unique boss in whatever order you choose and when you beat the boss you gain his power. When you beat all the bosses you unlock the final part, typically Wily’s Castle, which requires you to use all the powerups you get along the way. There are little variations and improvements from game to game, but those are the basics.

As far as remakes go Mega Man the Wily Wars is about as faithful as it gets for better or worse. Each game is recreated with their original mechanics. For example you can only slide in Mega Man 3 since that was when that mechanic was introduced. And Mega Man 1 still has a point system in tact despite that being removed in all future Mega Man games. But in terms of mechanics the movement is practically 1 to 1. The shooting feels the same and the bosses and enemies are just how they were in the originals. And then there are the levels. For the most part the level design in these games is pretty much on point. Difficult, but beatable if you're good enough.

That being said a few levels fall a bit too far on the frustrating side of the spectrum. Particularly in Mega Man 1 with the upward platforming in elec man’s stage and the insane timing of Guts Man’s stage. Or in Mega Man 2 when you have to memorize the falling pattern in Quick Man’s stage. As it turns out memorization is not fun.

Of course one of the biggest selling points of Wily Wars is the Wily Tower. Wily Tower is basically a mini Mega Man game. There are three new robot masters as well as a new Wily Castle. What separates it from other games on the compilation is at the start of each level you get to pick 8 weapons and 3 items from those first three games. These levels combine enemies and mechanics from all three games to create fun levels. They felt a bit easier than the other games, but that could be because you have to beat the other games to unlock Wily Tower and by that point you should have a pretty solid mastery of the mechanics.

Graphics: Let me just start by saying that I have no nostalgia for the Mega Man series. I never played a Mega Man game until last year. With that in mind I have to say The Wily Wars looks better to me. The NES games look great for what they are. Technically they push the system to the limits. The improvements in the backgrounds as the series progresses are actually pretty incredible. But it’s still the NES, the Genesis is a more powerful console with a wider spectrum of colors and higher definition graphics. So you have all that, and the developers showed restraint in all the right places. The mega man sprite is still the same size. Often times 16 bit platformers would have bigger sprites to show off the power of the hardware a la Mega Man 7 on the SNES. And the original levels and robot masters are among my favorites that I’ve seen in the Mega Man series. The three new robot masters are based on the Chinese story Journey to the West.

Music: The music is a little more of a mixed bag. First off the music in Mega Man games is among the best of the era. Capcom was on point through the 8 bit and 16 bit console generations. Ducktales, Street fighter, and Mega Man have some of my favorite game soundtracks of all time. The problem comes with the Genesis. Genesis music has a very specific sound. While it’s not necessarily bad it does work better for some tracks than others. I think the softer tracks like Protoman’s Whistle Concert sound better on the Wily Wars, but the more beat heavy tracks like Wily’s Castle in Mega Man sound better on the NES. I think it depends on the track and your tastes.

Verdict: Mega Man The Wily Wars is a great compilation that is to the Mega Man series what Super Mario All Stars is to the Mario series. At least it should be. Unfortunately Capcom doesn’t seem interested in releasing it on any current platforms. But hey that’s what I thought about Ducktales 2 and Capcom just released the Disney Afternoon Collection so we’ll see what happens. I give Mega Man: The Wily Wars 37 out 42 lemons.