Pros: Controllable weather; quite a challenge for fans; configurable mod chips
Cons: Too hard for casual gamers; easy mode is far too easy; new weapons don't add much

Two-dimensional platforming has largely gone the way of the 8-track tape. The occasional Castlevania entry aside, Capcom's Mega Man Zero series has become the guardian of colorful side-scrolling. This fourth entry keeps the ball rolling, but with an unbalanced pair of difficulty settings that will make the game either too difficult for most, or a walk in the park.

8-bit Beauty

First things first: while this may not be up to the graphic excellence of Konami's Castlevania series, Mega Man Zero 4 is a wonderful vision of the past, thanks to a vivid color palette, huge, quirky bosses, and a solid variety of enemies, environments, and effects. There's even a pretty good story which fits concerns of environmental destruction into a surprisingly semi-conclusion to the Zero narrative.

Tough as Nails

For the players who have been with the series a while, there's a "normal" difficulty setting. That's in quotes because, for normal people, the setting seems designed for masochists who have run out of bamboo to shove under their fingernails. It's tough. The first level will give any but the most dedicated players pause, and it just gets more difficult. Running though platform-heavy levels shouldn't be so taxing, but Zero 4 likes to hide chasms and enemies just off-screen, leading players to frequent (and sometimes cheap) death.

As a concession, developer Inti has included the easy mode, but they've gone a bit overboard. On this setting, there's under two hours of gameplay. Most of the eight main bosses will fall to simple brute force, and there's really no need to do anything but power through each level. It's a good way for players to learn the lay of the land before taking on the normal mode, but not much else.

Balanced Upgrades

Zero's Cyber Elf, a sort of floating defensive companion, is still around, and can be easily upgraded by finding well-placed crystals. Other upgrades are available by refitting enemy parts into new chips for Zero's armor. There's also an option (in normal mode only) to control the weather, which changes the difficulty level of each level.

In addition to the series-standard blade and buster shot, Zero has a new zero knuckle, which steals weapons from enemies. The zero knuckle doesn't offer much new gameplay, however, since Zero's own weapons are typically stronger and more useful than anything he can grab. Here and there it will get Zero out of a specific jam, as when the ability to shoot water can be stolen in order to put out some fires. Mostly, though, players will rely on the traditional armament.

Niche Tradition

Mega Man Zero 4 has some great touches, like the level where Zero has to hide in the shade to avoid overheating. But despite the appealing presentation, it's generally a de rigueur platformer, and no more than par for the series. And with the wildly extreme difficulty settings, this is one for die-hards only.