In its day, this game set records in graphics, play control, uniqueness, and all-around quality. However, lack of such t
Graphics: If you go back and look at this game now, it doesn’t look as impressive, but at the time the graphics were highly detailed and didn’t look quite as flat as other games on the market.
Animation: Mega Man had a smooth three-frame run animation which was a lot for the NES. His other animations were also adequate, and he even blinked. The other characters and enemies also had lots of animations, and what is really neat is that, unlike most NES games at the time, the characters did not look flat. Perhaps best of all, Mega Man manages to have five whole colors in his sprite (on a system that ostensibly limits sprites to three visible shades).
Music: Many of the tunes are very memorable, though the quality of the sound isn’t that great, of course, seeing that it is an old NES cart.
Sound Effects: The sound was average; the best effect, I think, is the clanking sound that plays whenever Mega Man lands.
Plot: This game had to set everything up, so in that sense the plot was done very well. However, the plot was not executed well during the actual game; the only story you get at all is the ending. On the other hand, this was supposed to be a pure arcade-action game, so what can you expect?
Difficulty: (hard)
The difficulty of this game is increased by such things as no passwords, no Energy Tanks, no invincibility to spikes, and a slight looseness to the play control.
Replay Value: I find the lack of passwords and Energy Tanks to make the game somewhat less enjoyable to just pick up and play. You really have to devote a large block of time to it in order to get anywhere.
Polish: Mega Man was a giant leap into a unique game engine that has since been used successfully over twenty times. This game introduced many new things, such as the Master Weapons and variable stage orders, that had never before been seen. Other than this, there weren’t many extra touches thrown in, but you can’t expect them think of everything right from the start.
+ Plus:
You can pause the game without obscuring the graphics with a menu. (This may sound minimal but as an artist I like to look at frames of animation.)
- Minus:
The fact that there are no passwords means you must start the game from the beginning every time you turn it on.