Time for me to get some rest. The weekend is finally here...time to relax! We will be recording another early podcast today, which will be starting sometime around 3:00 to 3:30 PM EST. If you are looking to catch the live-stream, head to the site then. I'll give another reminder post later. For now though, I am off to bed. See you guys in a few hours, enjoy the start of your weekend!

Doing an introduction for a Mega Man game feels absolutely ridiculous. While the expanded audience may not know Mega Man, I'd wager a wad of cash that a large majority of the readers here are very familiar with the character. How could you not be? Mega Man, in one form or another, has been an extremely popular character for 20 years now. As we progressed from console/portable generation to generation, the Blue Bomber has stuck with us. He has had a ton of ups, downs, and in-betweens...but we still love him. In recent years, it has been the Battle Network, and now Star Force series that has gained him the most attention. The younger crowd loves these titles, so much so that a cartoon series spawned out of them. While long-time Mega Man fans can find something to enjoy in that series, I am pretty sure they are more interested in the more traditional Mega Man titles. I am referring to the Mega Man Zero series that was on GBA, and has since been transformed into Mega Man ZX for the DS. These series provide the side-scrolling action that we constantly crave. Now, the first sequel to ZX is upon us. Does Advent bring anything new with it, or is this one of the Mega Man entries that we'd like to forget?

The ZX series storyline plays directly off of the Zero GBA series, and even goes a bit farther back into the Mega Man timeline. Without a doubt, the ZX series pays tribute to the older characters while still building upon the story set up throughout Zero. There is so much going on here that it will simply confuse someone that is just picking up the series at this point. That's the good thing about Mega Man games though. You may not know your motivation for your actions in ZX Advent, ZX, or Zero...but you know what you have to do. There are always a collection of evil robots that you will have to destroy. The names Mavericks, Hunters, Pseudoroids, Reploids, and Raiders might not mean a thing to you, but blowing up a boss character and taking his power has been a part of the Mega Man story line since day one. To sum things up, there is a ton of story and fan service for those that are invested in the entire series. For the players that have skipped out on a lot of the entries, you can pick up right here and know exactly what to do.

MMZXA is old-school side-scrolling action. While Mega Man has had a few 3d outings, it's his 2d adventures that keep the series running. This is the type of gameplay that the MM die-hards out there want. The harmony of running, jumping and shooting is key to the longevity of the series. MMZXA, like many other entries in the franchise, doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. You are going to get your bread and butter here. No worries about the game going all Tron Bonne on you. You'll be taking out robots left and right, collecting energy tanks, and jumping from platforms to ladders, rockets to ledges, and more. There is always a little trepidation when a new MM title is announced. Capcom has taken the series in some pretty radical directions, but MMZXA definitely isn't one of those instances. The interesting parts of the game come from the minor tweaks and additions that give the game a new and fresh feeling.

One of my main gripes with the first ZX title was the map screen. While I loved the idea of being able to roam the landscape at free will, the map that you were provided with was almost no help at all. Basically it was a bunch of lettered squares on a grid that didn't give you any real sense of direction or location. It kind of soured the open-ended experience. That's why I am so happy to see that issue resolved with Advent. The map screen slightly resembles that of ZX, but now you can actually make sense of things. You can scroll, touch, tap, and fully read the locations you are visiting. Now, paths of the map actually make sense when compared to your path of travel. You won't start in one box on the map, and then all of a sudden wind up on the other end of the map. That is, unless you are riding a train or teleporting! While the map just seemed silly and confusing in ZX, Advent makes it a very welcome addition.

That map helps make the exploration aspect of the game that much more fun. Just like ZX, Advent allows you to visit areas at your own free will. You will find certain portions of the game closed off to you, but it's up to you to find those on your own. You don't have to go right where your mission is set to take you. You can wander around at your own pace and scope out the various locations. I really love the idea of playable stages that aren't part of a boss stage. You actually get to make your way through the game world in order to access the particular objective you are trying to reach. These areas can lead to power-ups, hidden items, and more. This massive world idea is something old when it comes to games, but fairly new when it comes to the Mega Man series. It truly does breathe some new life into things.

There's even an element of Metroid/Castlevania here. While some locations on the map are blocked via key cards, others are closed off by certain types of materials. You won't be able to access these areas until you have the correct weapons to blast through them. For instance, there is one area that has three types of locks that you have to disengage. These locks are sealed via certain properties, such as electricity. It's up to you to find the boss that harnesses that power, and then you can progress through the locked portion of the game. Your home base will always steer you in the right direction, but never force to you to accomplish a task right away. There are multiple areas that can only be opened up with certain weapons, not just paths vital to completing the game. The best part is the inclusion of teleportation stops along the way. You can activate these ports by spending a certain amount of cash. Once activated, you can teleport to these locations via a teleportation station. This makes getting from point a to point b a lot easier.

We are all familiar with boss battles in Mega Man games. You meet a boss, learn a weakness, take them down, and earn their power. That formula stays the same, except for the last portion. I actually believe that Advent has one of the biggest changes we've seen in a MM game in a long time. Now when you defeat an enemy, you don't get just one of his powers. You actually take every single attack/defense that they had. Any move that you saw them perform while fighting them is now at your disposal. Not only that, but instead of changing colors when you are using their power, you actually transform into a carbon-copy of that character. It is a lot cooler to actual transform into the boss you just fought instead of stealing one of their abilities. Having their entire move-set is just too damn cool. There's no doubt that as you're playing you will find one boss character that you favor more than the others. It's fantastic transforming into a boss that is about twice the size of Mega Man, and has insane amounts of firepower.

You can actually use these new transformations to help you progress through levels as well. You can change into another boss at any time in order to help you get past certain areas in the game. For instance, let's say you are having a tough time making it through a series of jumps. All you have to do is change into a boss character that has the ability to hover. Now you don't have to worry about those jumps anymore! On the same side of things, if a certain collection of baddies is taking you out, you can switch to a boss that had a better range of weapons. Now you can worry less about losing another man, and focus on taking out those tough to beat enemies. This boss character ability not only opens up all sorts of different gameplay, it allows you to create difficulty changes on the fly. You should always have a character on your hands that can help you beat a tough area you are having trouble with.

One of my issues actually comes from the difficulty itself. The entire Zero series was absolutely insane when it came to difficulty. Those titles were hardcore kick-ass action all the time. No matter how good you thought you were at side-scrollers, the Zero series showed you that you weren't nearly as good as you thought. Mega Man ZX was the same way, but Advent feels a bit different. I don't know if it is due to level design or the boss abilities, but Advent felt a good deal easier than the other titles. There are definitely portions that are going to test your skill, but I felt the overall game was noticeably easier. This is actually something worth noting, considering that hardcore MM fans will pick up on this after a few hours of gameplay.

It's in the roots of the MM series where Advent falters a bit. While the boss switch is a great new ability, and the open-ended areas freshen things up, the gameplay remains largely unchanged. This is, for all intents and purposes, the same style of game we played back on the NES MM titles. There really aren't huge leaps from one Mega Man to the next. The graphics might look better, the music may be of a higher quality, but the gameplay is extremely familiar. It feels back to knock the game for this considering how much changes via the boss switch, but you will no doubt recognize this as a game that's been played multiple times over. Personally, I cannot get enough of the series. I love the progression of the games...a ton of familiarity with a sprinkling of new bits each time. I do understand that there are many out there that find this aspect of the game a huge downside.

Things stay familiar when you hit the graphics and sound as well. The soundtrack is yet another good one, but it follows the same type of rock/techno rock that we've heard since MM Zero. There aren't any real standout tracks, but the overall soundtrack does fit with the game well. Sounds are largely the same as well. You know what noises to expect from a gunshot, jump, energy tank pickup, and all that. Once again, these may be things that you either find endearing or annoying. One part where the game does receive a bit of the boost is the actual storytelling. Out of all the GBA/DS handheld Mega Man titles, this one has a large amount of voicework. The previous entries did have a bit, but this one has the most by far. All the main portions of the game are narrated. Some of the actors are good, some are bad...but nothing absolutely horrible. The main character voice (MM) does a serviceable job, while your companion spirit (trying not to ruin plot points) has quite a high-pitched annoying voice. Think of her as Navi if Navi had a lot more to say. I still give the game a nod for going all out on this end of production values.

No matter if you are a fan of the series or not, Advent should provide you with an exciting, fun time. The series is very deeply rooted in it's old-school ways, but that's definitely part of the charm. The entire game is a very solid, challenging experience. There are some people that might be turned off by the nature of the game, but that doesn't make the final product a bad one in any way. If you are a fan of MM, old-school gaming, or are looking for an action game that has it all, you can't go wrong with Advent.

Mega Man ZX Advent gets a 8.2 out of 10