Thursday, February 13, 2020

Mega Man-Inspired 30XX Announced for 2021


A sequel to the much-beloved Mega Man-roguelike 20XX is in development, Batterystaple Games announced. Aptly titled 30XX, the sequel promises a handful of new features and channels some major Mega Man X and Mega Man Zero energy. Trailer and first details after the jump!




From the game's press release:


"Inspired by classic Mega Man titles and infused with modern design, 30XX builds upon 20XX’s Megaroguelike foundation with a plethora of new features including a new hi-bit art style from art director Glauber Kotaki (Rogue Legacy, Duelyst, and Chasm) and a fresh set of eight new worlds to explore, each with their own identity, platforming mechanics, and fearsome Guardian.

Beyond the aesthetic overhaul, 20XX heroes Nina and Ace return with a myriad of new abilities. No longer merely wielding different primary weapons, in 30XX the powerful pair possess entirely distinct move sets allowing greater freedom of expression for both exploring levels and beating back the machines holding Earth prisoner.

Nina’s new Power Fusion system allows her to meld together abilities earned from vanquishing bosses and tailor them to the situation at hand with 64 separate attacks. Meanwhile, the blade-brandishing Ace boasts a versatile set of Techniques, which can be chained together with standard attacks to unleash fierce combos, adapt to any situation, and reach new heights.

30XX also introduces a fresh level of roguelike challenge and reward with its new metagame currency, Memoria. Collected during runs, Memoria can augment the experience, boosting character abilities, giving keen insight into the challenges to come, or altering how stages generate other helping hands. Once certain criteria are met, turn up the heat with Entropy Conditions, introducing optional layers of additional difficulty in exchange for Memoria and other rewards."

30XX will be available to play at booth 21027 during PAX East 2020 (Feb. 27-March 1). The game is slated to release on Windows PC and consoles sometime in 2021.

For more information, head over to game’s Steam page and the official Batterystaple Games website.

25 comments:

  1. The first game has a pretty basic story and characters, but really solid gameplay, even if it was basically a Mega Man X game. The only thing that kept me from liking it was the permadeath aspect, and seeing as how the sequel is sticking with that, I don't plan on picking this up.

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    1. Both 20XX and 30XX has long since added "Mega Mode" which does not apply permadeath.

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  2. YAY!!! I LOVE 20XX. The devs clearly understand the mechanics behind what makes Mega Man great, and I think that 20XX is one of the the best Mega Man-likes I've played. Super excited about the sequel.

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  3. I know reploids can't reproduce like humans but if X and Alia could have a kid, it would be her.

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    1. The same thought crossed my mind.

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    2. So since she's female, does that make her Mega Man XX? *rimshot* I'll see myself out...

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  4. Replies
    1. I would like to point out that many of the individuals who put their time and effort into building this game and their prior release are members of this great community, and a fan of the series much like yourself. If anything, these games being platforming roguelikes differentiate the experience from a standard Mega Man game. I think looking at releases like these with an open mind, and remembering that fun and innovative gameplay can come even from an indie title with far less of a budget than a triple A release is a testament to how creative and talented our fanbase is. I'll be pre-ordering this release on Steam Greenlight for sure.

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  5. This can't be legal. How is this legal? It looks (and plays) almost exactly like the PlayStation Mega Man X and Game Boy Advance Mega Man Zero games. The first game actually had an original art style loosely based on games like Mega Man X, but this? It's so blatant… it's insane.

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    1. every racing game is pretty much the same, every 2D fighting game, every 3D fighting game. there's nothing wrong with making a game that plays similarly. You can't copyright a style of mechanics.

      aside from looking like it plays like MMX, there's almost nothing here that even remotely resembles the mega man universe.

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    2. No legal basis unless the game uses *actual* assets from Mega Man (graphics, music, etc.). As long as "clones" don't directly use assets, it's fair game. This is why games like Bloodstained, Yooka Laylee, Temtem and so forth are able to exist without stepping on anyone's toes.

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    3. @Erik the Red
      "[…] there's almost nothing here that even remotely resembles the mega man universe."
      I mean, I could point out plenty, but I'll just leave it at "Mega Man X5 and X6 would beg to differ."

      In any case, I stand by what I said, earlier: the first game had a much more original style while this one just looks like it's trying to be an official, PS1-era Capcom game, but with an Alia/X hybrid and her blade-wielding sidekick as playable characters. I don't honestly think there's any grounds for legal action, honestly, but god damn it, this is one step away from a Mario Royale situation just on looks, alone.

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    4. I mean it's clearly a blatant knockoff, intentionally so, but it doesn't look, sound and play THAT much like MMX and Zero.

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    5. @Josephine Lithius

      Didn't Mario Royale lift level design from SMB wholesale?

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    6. @Josephine Lithius
      X5? so it rehashes things from the older games, has you racing against a pointless clock and gives you armor that makes level design pointless? I saw nothing like that in the video.

      X6? terrible stage gimmicks with worse level design with DNA octopuses trying to eat hostages? I didn't see that either.

      all I saw where bat enemies, shield attackers, spinning spiked enemies that strongly resemble their X and classic counterparts, but the games didn't look like they played out anything like any X game.

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    7. You know what? Fine. I give up.

      This is a completely original game in literally every way, shape, and form and certainly nothing like the PlayStation Mega Man X games or, indeed, like any Mega Man game ever made.

      Satisfied?

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    8. That does'nt mean it plagiarize Mega Man (As protodue reassured us that they're not using any assets from Mega Man games), This does'nt mean it does'nt stand as a good game on it's own. But there's no denying that it's clearly aiming for a Mega Man feel (albeit with roguelike elements and other things that distinguishes itself from it).

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    9. @Josephine Lithius
      It's in the same camp as Mighty No. 9 ('cept 20XX was way, way better than MN9 and I am hopeful that this is as well). If you can get away with MN9, you can easily get away with this.

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  6. I was wondering about that too. I don't kow what and how Capcom have copyrighted about their game, but it looks like if they decided to sue for plagiarism, they could make a pretty solid case for it. (To be clear before any fan lashes on to me, i'm not saying Capcom shoul do it, nor wishing they do Heck, this looks like a pretty good game. I'm just noticing that it's maybe too close to it's inspiration to be completely safe).

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    1. No, Capcom can't sue Batterystaple Games for 20XX/30XX. Though heavily inspired by Mega Man, neither 20XX or 30XX use any *assets* from Mega Man games. Can't copyright an entire style or genre, either.

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    2. To add, if Capcom really had a problem with this, they would have stopped 20XX back its development like six years ago.

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    3. anon2: yeah, but the first game looks much more different from Mega Man than this one does.
      But if they're not actually using the assets from Mega Man games, then i guess they're fine.

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  7. WOO! I loved 20XX for several years now, especially playing online co-op with my buddy. I was fine with the previous art style, but I can see why they wanted to step it up for the sequel and I'm cool with that, too! Also, they got the same composer back and the preview track he put out for 30XX is absolutely fantastic. https://soundcloud.com/cityfires/highfidelity

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  8. I am thrilled at 20XX getting a sequel. That game was awesome. The graphical upgrade only makes me even more hype.

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