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[Toad.T]

Megaman 9 was a dandy of a game, wasn't it? Great gameplay, great sound, challenging difficulty. Yet, one thing bugs me about the game: the 8-bit graphic style. Now, I'm not knocking retro video games in any form, it's just that it seems well... lazy. As if Capcom didn't have enough faith in the product, so they had to add in a retro-style plea for attention so people would notice it.

Putting aside for a second that you can't do moves in this game that you could in a good chunk of a series (Charge shot, Slide and I believe Rush as well) doesn't it seem odd for a game to downgrade instead of upgrade (especially for a numbered sequel.) I mean, imagine if Final Fantasy 15 came out and instead of modern day graphics, you used NES style sprites, plus all of the modern features are gone. But whatever, the game was a success and hopefully Capcom can move forward in all aspects with Megaman 10, right?

Nope. Same old 8-bit graphics. What was once believed to be a one-off trick to grab attention is now an excuse for not trying your best. (Imagine if Street Fighter 5 used Snes sprites, then used them AGAIN for Street Fighter 6. Same sort of idea.) But then again. this is coming from a company that made a running gag out of reusing Morrigan's animations for every single game she appeared in. (For a while, anyway.)

For reference, here are the sprites from the previous games before this: Mega Man 7, Mega Man 8 and Mega Man & Bass. If Capcom had to use sprites for their next numbered game, couldn't they have matched, if not bested attempts made in 1998? Or hell, why not ditch sprites and make the characters 3D models, as was done with other series retro callbacks (Sonic 4 Ep.1, NSMBW)? You could still keep the nostalgic feel of platforming, without sacrificing advancement.
I don't think that it would deter anyone from playing, either. Or perhaps I'm wrong and people only want a Mega Man sequel if it looks like the originals?

What say you, GAF? Would you have kept the 8-bit sprites of Mega Man 9/10, or would you have put a bit more effort into the graphics department? (Of course, keeping the same great gameplay, challenge and soundtrack (Just updated, mind you.))

 

[RockTurtle]

nostalgia can sell a game to a lot of people
indie games like minecraft making retro looks "cool again"
capcom loves low poly count cause it saves money (look at monster hunter series. bank a lot of money on the same engine/graphics reuse)

 

[castlemadeofsand]

its not really a downgrade. its a style choice. and also yes, nostalgia. i'd like an option like in some of the versions of cave story. an 8 bit mode and also updated

 

[Wolf Akela]

Nostalgia. I have no problem with it, even if I prefer MMX series and liked MM8.

I mean, imagine if Final Fantasy 15 came out and instead of modern day graphics, you used NES style sprites, plus all of the modern features are gone.

It's not really a fair comparison. NES FFs are incredibly slow and dated in terms of gameplay, and they weren't that pleasing to look at. NES Megaman (at least 3 onwards) still looks clean, mainly because of incredibly palette usage. Its gameplay, even by modern standard, is still tight and fast-paced. It's not as clunky as, say NES Castlevania.

 

[enzo_gt]

The whole point of Megaman 9 and 10s existence is to capitalize and make bank off of nostalgia for Megaman 2, 3, etc. It's also relatively cheaper than other options, plus you avoid the potential for ugliness like the games you cited (Sonic 4 or NSMB).

If anything, they should go forward with Powered Up art.

 

[WillyFive]

It's the game's art style. They did the effort of making the game look like that, all the way to the flickering sprites to emulate the NES limitations when displaying large numbers of sprites, because they wanted the game to look like that.

If anything, they should go forward with Powered Up art.

I think Nintendo's version of Megaman is a lot nicer than the Powered Up version.

It's less encumbered by it's art style.

 

[timetokill]

Because Megaman 2 and 3 are still the golden age of the series, and that's the time period they were trying to evoke.

capcom loves low poly count cause it saves money (look at monster hunter series. bank a lot of money on the same engine/graphics reuse)

:lol
Poly count has nothing to do with it in this case.

 

[shaowebb]

OP you missed the point entirely if you can't get this one.Selling a game on nostalgia to folks who wanted more old school games like Mega Man 2 means using graphics that look like Mega Man 2. Its the whole hook of the game.

 

[Dr. Kaos]

Because it's cheaper, no other reason.

Obviously, Megaman X and Z games are vastly superior to the older Nes ones.

 

[entremet]

It was also cheaper, which was low risk for Capcom.

 

[terrisus]

I mean, imagine if Final Fantasy 15 came out and instead of modern day graphics, you used NES style sprites, plus all of the modern features are gone.

I would love that. It would be a dream come true.

Granted, SNES-style would be the best, but anything would be better than the abomination the series has been starting with 7.
Take all the time and money that gets poured into the graphics and movies and such and actually make the game enjoyable.

 

[Cheddahz]

Well, all of the other main Mega Man games were done with 8-bit sprites, so you would think that Capcom wanted MM 9/10 to retain the same style as the previous ones

 

[ZealousD]

The NES stuff sold better and there were 6 games on the NES, only 1 for the SNES, and only 1 PS1/Saturn game. So the NES stuff is what people think of when they think of classic Mega Man. So it tugs at the nostalgia strings much harder to do the NES style than a more modern style.

 

[Berordn]

It was also probably the easiest way to fit the game into the limitations of WiiWare, but it was almost certainly a stylistic choice to capitalize on nostalgia for MM2 in gameplay and art.

Charge shot and slide never added anything significant anyway, and lived on in Proto Man so no real loss.

 

[MoxManiac]

They did it because the NES games are good and the ps1/2/3 games are bad.

 

[JordanN]

It fits within the budget Capcom wants to give Mega Man games now a days which is $0.

 

[MisterHero]

It wasn't just the NES look. There were a bunch of Gameboy games and a Genesis game.

Most importantly, it was how he was portrayed in Captain N.

 

[BluePigGanon]

As everyone covered: 1) to get the retro look/appeal, and 2) it's so much cheaper, which matters for what's essentially a niche product.

 

[Rhaknar]

More importantly, why aren't they on Steam

 

[ViewtifulJC]

MM9 was a conscious effort to make a game just like MM2(the consensus favorite). That means an 8-bit art style and getting rid of any advancements or technical innovations in the series.

It was also probably cheaper this way.

It probably wasn't entirely noble, but the game itself turned out really well, a kind of pure distillation of the Mega Man concept that hadn't been seen in well over a decade.

 

[GuyKazama]

If they released 8-bit remakes of Mega Man 7 & 8, Capcom can have more of my money. I never found the 16-bit graphics appropriate for mega man. They belong to the X series.

 

[emb]

It makes sense to me. You're going back to an old style, go all the way. It makes it clear what they were going for. Besides that, the best MM games were in that style, so why not evoke memories of that?

I wish they would have changed it up for 10 though. I'd like to have seen another MM7 or MM8 style (visually, at least). What I wish for even more though, is MMX9. Can be like 1, 4, or 8. I don't care. They're all great outside of 7 and maybe 5/6.

 

[120v]

first off, megaman 9 was a brilliant game. it's the true successor to megaman 2 and i daresay that it's even better. i was heartbroken when some time ago a gaffer made a thread on which megaman game is the best and nobody mentioned 9. my account hadn't been activated yet so i just sat there and squirmed

anyway, the main reason Inticreates went with 8-bit sprites was primarily because larger sprites moved around more clunky. yeah they could've just given a hi-res version of the 8-bit sprites but NES megaman is really the heart and soul of the original mainline megaman games. it's just what people identify with. i think the point was to save the HD "current gen" stuff for the spinoffs (until capcom killed off the franchise altogether)

 

[Josephl64]

I only really got into classic Megaman so it just felt at home to me

 

[Toad.T]

Yeah, I can sort of understand the nostalgia factor for at least MM9, (And Capcom's cheapness is self evident) but the fact that they did that for MM10 as well, irks me.

 

[Raziel]

It was a gimmick and it saved money to boot.

 

[Kwixotik]

I mean, imagine if Final Fantasy 15 came out and instead of modern day graphics, you used NES style sprites, plus all of the modern features are gone.

Sold, where can I preorder?

 

[BrokenEchelon]

Because muh retro nostalgia

 

[x3sphere]

Yeah, I can sort of understand the nostalgia factor for at least MM9, (And Capcom's cheapness is self evident) but the fact that they did that for MM10 as well, irks me.

Yeah, they over did it with 10. MM10 should have went to the 16-bit era style at least.

 

[timetokill]

I mean, imagine if Final Fantasy 15 came out and instead of modern day graphics, you used NES style sprites

The game would probably be better than what we'll end up getting. I know I'd be exponentially more interested. Which is why I'm a million times more excited for Bravely Default than I am in FF15.

 

[Mellahan]

Here's a few things Inafune and Takeshita said on the matter.

Firstly, the game almost had two graphic styles: 8-bit and "modern."

Nintendo Power: Was there any feedback you received from fans on Mega Man 9 that was especially surprising?

Inafune: It was a great, happy surprise for us that the NES style was so widely accepted. In the early stage of development, we internally discussed the option of having both old-school NES style graphics and next-gen style, [and we'd allow] the player to choose between the two. However, we believed that a revival of the NES style would surprise people and be appreciated. And the result exceeded our expectations -- so many people enthusiastically welcomed the NES style.

Takeshita, in an interview with 1Up, said Capcom wanted the game to be in 3D.

1UP: Was this game a hard sell for Capcom's decision makers? Did anyone express concerns over how the game would be received?

HT: Management was supportive of the e-distribution idea but not of NES-style graphics. We heard lots of negative responses; they thought it would be better to make it 3D and that the 8-bit style would only appeal to the Mega Man fans, which would limit the sales potential. But we disagreed with this opinion. By sticking to this unique style, we believed that we could attract both Mega Man graduates and NES fans. We had different views, but eventually, management appreciated our spirit and desire to revive the 8-bit style.

http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=0&cId=3172027

It all comes down to a creative decision. Personally, I don't believe they could get away with MM11 in 8-bit. Fan expectations sway more in the favor of HD or what have you.

 

[Eusis]

Yeah, they over did it with 10. MM10 should have went to the 16-bit era style at least.

Nah. I think they should've gone with a MMX9 instead with 16-bit graphics, though given there may've been a gameplay advantage with 8-bit for MM gameplay but 16-bit likely less so for MMX it wouldn't have mattered as much if they went 32-bit instead.

As stated it's a stylistic choice, and frankly a lot of higher resolution 2D looks kinda bad unless it's the sort of stuff the likes of Vanillaware put out. Though I guess with the Wii's resolution it'd have never gotten further than 16-bit like anyway.

EDIT: And it really is disappointing how often they want to go "No we need to make this 3D" rather than try to make actual good 2D artwork regardless of what generational style it's in. But I guess there's also a cost angle for many of them.

 

[Astral/H3X]

SNES is my favorite system, simply because (IMO) there's just so much personality to it. NES is (slightly) too limited to me, but SNES has the perfect resolution and capabilities.
So it does just appeal to some people. And no, it isn't nostalgia because the first games I can remember playing were on the N64.

 

[Htown]

Yeah, they over did it with 10. MM10 should have went to the 16-bit era style at least.

No one has ever given a crap about 16-bit Mega Man.

If they released a new X game and made it 16-bit, fair enough.

 

[Random Painted HIghway]

) I mean, imagine if Final Fantasy 15 came out and instead of modern day graphics, you used NES style sprites, plus all of the modern features are gone. But whatever, the game was a success and hopefully Capcom can move forward in all aspects with Megaman 10, right?
))

Snes and I would be happy with ff. ff dimensions to me was more enjoyable than any ff post ps1

 

[SuperAngelo64]

I'm still waiting for a MM8 styled game that explains what happened between the classic and X series.

I'll be waiting forever

 

[Hours Left]

I'd be content with the main Mega Man series being 8-bit forever. It's the perfect style for it.

If anything, they should remake 7 & 8 in 8-bit.

 

[Maedhros]

No one has ever given a crap about 16-bit Mega Man.

If they released a new X game and made it 16-bit, fair enough.

I love Rockman and Forte (Megaman and Bass).

 

[terrisus]

Most importantly, it was how he was portrayed in Captain N.

So, every fourth word or so starting with "Mega" in front of the word?

 

[Wonko_C]

If they released 8-bit remakes of Mega Man 7 & 8, Capcom can have more of my money. I never found the 16-bit graphics appropriate for mega man. They belong to the X series.

You're in luck:
http://www.screwattack.com/news/mega-man-7-8-nes-graphics

Not from Capcom, but good enough.

 

[Doctor Decimate]

they wanted to communicate "hey, this is good, more like the old games!" and the best way to do that was to go back to what people consider the pinnacle of the series, the NES games. if the later games were lauded as the best, it'd probably have looked like those ones.

 

[PsionBolt]

Mega Man 9 and 10 are both excellent-looking games. To ask "why did the developers of this game decide to make it look great?" is kind of silly, I'd say.

 

[SonyToo!™]

Say Mega Man and most ppl think 8bit Mega Man straight away.

If Capcom were making a new Mega Man X sure go with 16bit or HD but Mega Man would have been odd.

In short they were giving MM fans what they wanted.

 

[thefro]

In the case of the original Megaman series, there's a purity to the controls in the NES games that doesn't carry over to the SNES and PS1 games. They'd be tempted to make the sprites/characters too big in a new remake which would lead to the gameplay being off.

I also completely approved of them stripping the basic mode down to just jumping and shooting. There's a flow to that which the sliding and especially the charge buster screw up.

 

[Dreamwriter]

The OP thinks it was a lazy decision, and lots of people are saying it was "cheaper" to go 8-bit style. That's completely incorrect, it's a LOT more work to hand-draw animated 2D art than it is to make a 3D model, rig it, and then move bits around in a modeling program to animate it. The reason companies very quickly jumped to 3D rendering of 2D games is because of how much cheaper/faster it was.

The stylistic choice to make the game a "neo-retro" game, as if it was a long-lost NES game in the series, wasn't made to save any money or effort.

 

[VARIA]

Pandering to retro geeks.

God bless them.

 

[Momentary]

It was a way to save money and tug on people's nostalgia strings at the same time.

 

[qq more]

People saying it's lazy probably haven't tried making NES sprites with all of the limitations in mind. It's honestly very tough getting sprites to look very good with the limitations. It's kind of why a lot of indie games goes with the "retro" route but don't even try to deal with the limitations, which often takes away that genuine 8bit feel.

I barely grew up with the NES since mines didn't last very long, so I mostly grew up with the 16bit era consoles. (And I never played Megaman as a kid), so without the nostalgia, I still actually think MM9 and 10 look pretty damn great.

 

[Biker19]

Simple: For nostalgia.

If you were born in the early 80's or the mid-80's like most of us were, you would be having that same good feeling as well.

 

[MisterHero]

In the case of the original Megaman series, there's a purity to the controls in the NES games that doesn't carry over to the SNES and PS1 games. They'd be tempted to make the sprites/characters too big in a new remake which would lead to the gameplay being off.

I also completely approved of them stripping the basic mode down to just jumping and shooting. There's a flow to that which the sliding and especially the charge buster screw up.

That's also a good reason. Street Fighter II HD Remix is the pinnacle of graphics overhauls without compromising the gameplay. It was... incongruous.