The best $8 I've ever spent. Best $8 anyone could ever spend in pretty much their entire lives.
Gameplay: For n00bs: STINKIN' HARD! For those of us who have played since they were just old enough to press "B"… STILL STINKIN' HARD! That's what makes the game so fun! It'll keep you occupied forever unless you're too impatient to try running Quickman's gauntlet one more time. One of the problems I have is with the controls. I'll explain later.
Sound: If you're a fan of the series, you know that Mega Man=Stinkin' good music, pretty much. Well it's the entire old soundtrack plus a few bonus unlockable tracks.
Playback: With ten games, boredom does not come quickly. It should last you till… I dunno... maybe, the end of time. More or less. That's just a guestimate.
Why I bought this game: I basically grew up with Mega Man. He was like my best friend, and Rush was like the puppy dog I would pet when I was sad (wow. That turned out to be a kinda creepy analogy…). ANYhow… I was at Game Stop, and the guy was all like "Can I help you find anything?" and I was like "Do you still have GameCube games?" and he's like "Yeah, they're over there. Anything in particular?" and I was like "DUH! Mega Man Anniversary Collection." (… Okay, maybe I didn't say "Duh," but still…) and he's like "Yep. It should be there. It's eight bucks." And I was like "Sweetness!" So I bought it. Another reason I bought it was that 2, 3, 4, and 6 I have for the NES, and I can't play through a whole game without it freezing, and I can't play ANY of it with a perfect picture (THAT's how much I played the old games).
Why YOU should buy this game: This is a must-have for any level of Mega Man fan. It's like those TV infomercials for the 60's music: "Even if you could find all these great hits (which we seriously doubt you can), it would cost you X's of amount of dollars." Plus, you get a whole bunch of bonus features too like concept art and TV shows. If you're a n00b to the series, for $8 it gives you the whole experience. And you can't say "I've played Legends/Zero/Battle Network/Starforce before. That counts, right?" Not that those aren't bad games (they're actually very decent games), they just aren't Mega Man games.
Why You SHOULDN'T buy this game: Yes, it's hard, but that's how it was originally designed. Some die-hard fans of the series might notice a few quite small, hardly-noticeable differences. But the main gripe I have is this: The blasted button configuration! (no pun intended) It's bad enough to complain about, and you can't change it, what's more! For shame Capcom. Maybe the only thing that could ruin the perfect game.
In the end, it's amazing. Go buy it. Right. Now.