We can all agree that the Mega Man series holds some of the most enjoyable yet infuriatingly hard game play of any series of games, we can also agree that the spin-off X series is better than the original series in all aspects. Now we have straight facts out of the way lets look at everything you get with these collections…
Weirdly the collection has been split into two editions with Collection 1 featuring games up to X4 whilst Collection 2 holds everything from X5 to X8 its a strange move in my opinion but it does offer you something that I’ll get into later.
Legacy Collection 1
So let’s start with Mega Man X; the first of the ‘X’ spin offs and the game that raised the bar for platforming, offering a step up in not only graphics from the original series but also adding more to the game play whilst not moving too far away from the original formula. It kept things fast with the addition of the dash manoeuvre, collecting upgrades and has the greatest introductory level of all time, introducing the futuristic setting whilst also introducing every new aspect to you step-by-step. Mega Man X is definitely the main draw to this collection.
Mega Man X2 is more of the same, taking the near perfect game play and graphics of the original and running with it. It adds more secrets and while it may not be as memorable as the first its still full of locations and characters that are hard to forget. Mega Man X3 was the last of the SNES additions and showed the pinnacle of how the series could look on the console. It kept the puzzles tight, the action fast and didn’t deviate from the core concept.
Mega Man X4 is the last in the quad of Collection 1 and its the first game in the series that left the SNES and went to the PS1/Sega Saturn and the difference in graphics is noticeable right off the bat. The game play itself it relatively the same only now allowing you to play as Zero for the entirety of the game. It also has hilarious voice acting.
Legacy Collection 2
So we start off the second collection with Mega Man X5 a game that’s pretty good but doesn’t hold up as well against the stalwarts of the first collection. Again it doesn’t change too much after X4 but its definitely a blander game overall. It does have an extremely addictive soundtrack though.
Mega Man X6 is where you start to feel things becoming a little more unhinged. It isn’t the worst game but its where you start to feel the series lose itself utilizing half baked ideas and a confusing narrative. Having said that it is still fun to play. Mega Man X7 is a bad game, and that’s not just when compared to other Mega Man games but just in general. Its 3D graphics look bad its audio is bad and most importantly its game play is bad. Also for some reason you don’t even start playing as Mega Man. Mega Man X8 isn’t a great game either but when compared to X7 it stands up a whole lot better. I would recommend it as you can feel the series getting stale and collapsing under its own bloat but its okay. Also it finished on a cliffhanger that never got answered.
Across both collections you also get the “Rookie Hunter Mode” that gives you a much easier play through and “X Challenge Mode” where you pick three weapons and take on a series of double boss fights and get super stressed out with how hard it is. They also have a small amount of CRT effects and smoothing abilities so you can make the game look like it used to or boost it slightly for your newer TV.
When I started talking about these collections I noted that it being split into two halves was pretty weird, but does offer you something, that “something” being the ability to only buy Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 and save yourself 50% while getting the best of what the Mega Man X series had to offer. If you’re really into Mega Man get Collection 2 but even then I just can’t recommend it as value for money when its so lacklustre in comparison to Collection 1.
Verdict:
Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1
Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2
Author: Hal, Plymouth store
