Friday, November 29, 2024

First Secret Level Mega Man Episode Clip Released


Amazon has released a 39-second trailer from the Mega Man episode of Secret Level. While brief, it offers our best look yet at what to expect from the upcoming episode of the animated anthology series.

The clip includes a few details to watch for:

  • Rock's shirt reads "L.N 001," referencing his Light Number serial code.
  • Before becoming "Mega Man," Rock's left arm transforms into a coolant-type buster, likely a tool for his role as Light's assistant.
  • A small spider-like robot attempts to corrupt Rock. It can also briefly be seen on top of Bomb Man's head.
  • The Mega Buster design features elements inspired by Mega Man: Fully Charged.
  • Mega Man steps into a capsule resembling a Light Capsule from Mega Man X.

Also, for those interested, by entering the code "M394-M4N" on the show's website, you can join a contest for a chance to win a Mega Man statue from First 4 Figures.

Secret Level premieres on Prime Video on December 10th.

109 comments:

  1. I appreciate them keeping his name Rock. Mega just doesn't work well for a civilian name in my mind.

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  2. This is gonna be soooo good!!! I can't wait!!!

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  3. Seeing these designs in motion feels kinda gross. I wish it could have looked more stylized and cartoony, sense Mega Man's visuals have always been based on 60s anime (mainly Astro Boy, sense that's why Mega Man was created in the first place.) While I wouldn't want this episode to have a 100% game accurate art style to it, something less realistic would fit these characters much better.

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    1. 100% agree with you, it doesn't look right at all.

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    2. Looks AI generated.

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    3. Mega Man looks very different to Astro Boy. Mega Man is closer to Dragon Ball or modern anime if anything.

      Astro Boy looks like a slightly anime leaning fletcher cartoon. They don't look very much alike in my opinion.

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    4. Tezuka's style is very different from Inafune and Kitamura, yeah. I'm not sure how much is really based off of Astro - I think there were people claiming (not sure if it's even true) that MM1 was a scrapped Astro Boy game?

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    5. @8:41PM I meant inspired as in both Astro Boy and Mega Man have robots drawn in a similar way, not exactly a 1/1 style inspiration.

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    6. @RS Proto Man
      The idea was always Megaman from the get go, at one point during development they were thinking of turning it into an Astro Boy game, but decided to keep it original.

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    7. “MM1 was originally an Astro Boy game” sounds about as credible as “Donkey Kong was originally a Popeye game.” Sometimes inspirations are just that; not every game has a development like Journey to Silius.

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    8. @1:30 Ah, so that's what it was. Thank you for the info.

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    9. @ 1:30, MM1 was never going to be a Astro Boy game, why are you making things up?

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    10. @10:42
      https://www.patreon.com/posts/lets-talk-about-83290300
      Why don't you do your research before accusing someone of being a liar?

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  4. Oh, this is incredible beautiful! just perfect!!

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  5. I like that Rock has a buster-like tool before becoming Mega Man. Like he was less modified, and more enhanced.

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  6. It's fan fiction, I'm not interested in it. I'm sure we could all make up our own story about this franchise using AI. No thanks! And then why is the music so depressing? Rockman always had upbeat music.

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    1. That's the overarching music for the series.

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    2. Nobody likes ia production use.

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    3. And why would we insult ACTUAL artists work and talent by using ai?

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    4. Because it looks like AI generated art and character design.

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    5. One of the most popular Megaman mangas is basically fanfiction in Megaman megamix. Whys this one so different? Its clearly part of a larger series that has its own style and needs to fit that style. Accept this for what it is, its own thing. Its not affecting canon.

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    6. For my tastes Megamix does a good enough job being recognizeable as Mega Man, as well as walking a fine line with tone, that while darker than the games generally get, still had enough light heartedness to feel appropriate. This one seems to be a bit off in those regards. At least from what we've seen so far.

      That said, some people don't care for Megamix either. Which is totally fine, different adaptations are going to appeal to different people. That's just how it goes.

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    7. The argument people make against this Bomb Man could be used for how Ariga draws Quick Man, tbh. I dislike both, but for the latter it's because I like playing into things like human builds (endomorph, ectomorph, and mesomorph) rather than making him the anti-Flash Man or what-have-you.

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    8. Otherwise, I do agree with anon of 4:45pm.

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  7. For those who are complaining, just stop. This isn't supposed to be game accurate, it's an adaptation of the origin story. There's nothing wrong with the animation, music, and whatever else you're complaining about. Don't even watch the episode if you hate it that much.

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    1. Jeez. This website is almost exactly like the fan group I used to be part of.

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    2. Whether you like it or not, people are still gonna complain about this, especially if it made a bad first impression on some (myself included.)

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    3. You're asking old megaman fans to stop complaining, i fear that's impossible.

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    4. A lot of what you're saying people aren't allowed to criticize is a matter of taste. People should be allowed to criticize it as long as they remain civil.

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    5. That's kinda been a thing for a while now.

      Fans can only really look at what's been given to them and give their thoughts. If something doesn't click with them, I don't know what they are supposed to do.

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    6. Mature discussion and criticism is one thing. There's also a small subset of fans who don't want anything Western touching their precious Rockman. If it doesn't look like it came right from the Complete Works, it's trash.

      Which is ironic, because if you've spent any significant amount of time in Japan, you'll realize that Rockman is even more niche over there. For all the flak Capcom USA gets, they've arguably built a more recognizable brand and passionate fanbase over here.

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    7. Ah yes, the typical "accept all scraps and don't critique" response.

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    8. Don't ask questions just consume product then get excited for next product.

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    9. More than anything I feel like there's too many broad, sweeping statements that hinder discussion of these sorts of things.

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    10. 5:15 AM: That's actually so true though, it's like everything is so divisive now.

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    11. @5:15

      That’s a problem with society as a whole right now, especially on the internet. Everyone’s either for or against, and the middle ground is the war zone, not the neutral territory.

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    12. @9:28 PM and 10:53 PM Ah yes, the typical "Don't ask questions just consume product" response when someone else isn't as brainlessly against new things as you are. Ash's point isn't even a bad one. Art is a matter of subjective taste, and the reactions some people here are having against this comes off as hyperbolic. He's not saying nobody is allowed to criticize, he's specifically calling out the moaning about this being trash based on what amounts to little more than the same overly emotional hatred of Capcom we've been seeing in this community for so long. Just mindlessly hand waving off everything you don't like as cringe and then accusing anyone who's not as hateful as you of being a mindless drone helps nobody at best and is hypocritical at worst.

      Creative reinterpretations aren't the end of the world, and it's kind of silly how much some people here absolutely hate the idea of Mega Man getting depicted differently in something new and totally unconnected to the main lore. It's not like this is a replacement for anything, so maybe we could try to calm down a bit and give this a chance to stand on its own two feet?

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    13. @8:15 Yeah, I mostly say that because I get kind of annoyed when someone says you're not allowed to criticize something they like.

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    14. @9:46 second paragraph: That's fair. I don't use Amazon, so I couldn't watch it legally even if I wanted to. Hohoho.

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    15. @9:46AM: Spot-on.

      I mean, we're talking about a TV show depicting events from an NES game which didn't even have any dialogue! Creative liberty is not just ok, it's necessary! Yes, I get the critiques of Bomb Man's height and Rock's look. But to pretend this show can be "accurate" based on your subjective opinions is just laughable.

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    16. @5:14 PM: Yeah but your being disingenuous or deliberately ignorant if you think story is the main complaint and only substantive thing associated with the IP. Clearly people are talking about tone and artstyle/aesthetics in general. They didn't even release the show so they obviously aren't harping on plot/story. You are fighting a strawman and you know it based on acknowledging the actual complaints.

      Also speaking of artstyle and stuff, it defeats your point about the in game story.

      The problem with your argument is that you're treating Mega Man 1's lack of dialogue as if it defines the entire game's ethos, while ignoring everything else that shaped its identity—like the manuals, and promotional material, data books etc. You can't dismiss fan expectations for consistency based on in game stuff, when so much of what made Mega Man iconic came from outside the game itself. If you're willing to accept the art style as part of the canon, you can't turn around and act like the story or tone doesn't matter just because it wasn't in the game back then. Obviously Mega Man is not literally meant to look like an 8-bit sprite (I mean he might be nowadays due to clownworldery but you get the drift).

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    17. @9:46 am, piss off people are allowed to have an opinion. Last time I checked it's fine for people to dislike something.

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    18. A lot of the "criticism" is trash. Good criticism points out flaws and has actual substance. Bad criticism is when someone just says "this is trash.". Okay, but why do you think that? People that say stuff like that are just trolls. They aren't even being critical, they just want attention.

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    19. People should be able to point out when they don't find something appealing or don't like the direction something has going.

      Yes you get some comments that add nothing like the "this is trash" stuff.

      But coming in from the start of this comment chain with a blanket take like "For those who are complaining, just stop. This isn't supposed to be game accurate, it's an adaptation of the origin story. There's nothing wrong with the animation, music, and whatever else you're complaining about..." is equally reductive in a way.

      Just because you don't see something wrong with the animation, music, or adaptation as a whole, doesn't mean people who take issue with what they are seeing don't have "actual substance" behind what they are saying.

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    20. @Turainx9 THANK YOU! Someone finally put into words what I've been thinking for a lot of time.

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    21. @Anonymous December 2, 2024 at 5:22 AM
      Correct!

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    22. @turianx9

      I mean yeah, it isn’t good, constructive criticism, but also… why does it have to be? It’s not like they’re talking directly to the show creators, and I think stating a dislike for the trailers and designs is more than fine, as long as it’s focused on the work and not the people.

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  8. I know it's not important, but that thumbnail bothers me. It's just so not recognizable as Mega Man.

    But I've voiced my issues with the visuals of this adaptation enough so this will be the last time I say anything on it. Hopefully the writing is strong.

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  9. I think they did a fabulous job i can't wait to see how this episode pans out the characters look on point and the voice of doctor light i cant quite tell if its the gentleman who preformed it in Fully Charged or not but its rather well done. the action seems good bomb man looks great my only worry is that the episode wont be long enough to get more people interested in the games.

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    1. Doesn’t sound like Gary Chalk, though he sounds familiar. Probably the best voice of Light ever, at least since Ruby Spears. Rock sounds good here too, I think I prefer him being played by a child/woman, contrasts better with X.

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    2. I’ll admit, I have little hope for the soundtrack being not-bad. If film music has been trash for decades, what chance does an Amazon show have?

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    3. I'm not sure that Dr. Light sounded particularly emotional about his son being hurt.

      It's... decent, I guess.

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  10. Will there be an article on the Blade Armor X character mod that just released for X DiVE Offline?

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    1. I'd rather see the mod over whatever this is.

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  11. Oh wow, another "brand expansion" thing they're doing instead of a new game. Yawn. Look, I read your Twitter thread. I understand Capcom's strategy. They're still idiots.

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    1. In reality all they have to do is make more games and finish putting the rest of the older games in collections. Not these terrible looking cameos.

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  12. I'm so happy to see that Megaman is getting this kind of treatment.

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  13. I appreciate seeing more people giving this a chance. As long as it’s respectful to the source material, this is shaping up to be interesting.

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  14. I keep trying the code, but it keeps saying "incorrect" I've tried with a space, no space, and hyphen, nothing.

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    1. You're supposed to type it as M394-M4N (with a -)

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    2. I've tried it that way as well, and I keep getting "incorrect," too.

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    3. Doesn't work for me either. Could the code not work for Canadians?

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    4. OK so as it turns out, it only let's you enter the code if you live the US. (I checked the actual giveaway website that the code takes you to.)

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  15. Lol no, that was a 19 second clip of the MegaMan episode and a 20 second clip of a logo. Looks awesome, though! 😎

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    1. “15 second ad on a 6 second video” energy.

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  16. This looks like some cheap promotional material with a lot of CGI effects applied to disguise the weakness of the writing, it's a skip for me.

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    1. It looks like bad ai animation.

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  17. Didn't expect the main conflict to be from a 30 ft tall Bomb Man but that's interesting anyhow

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  18. I'll tune into it, but that cgi is soooo bland.

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    1. Agreed, I’ll watch it but I don’t like the cgi or character design.

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    2. Someone in the comment section pointed out that he looked like fully charged mega man, and I was like
      🤬

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  19. I think I'm too spoiled by Demi Niko's animation which blows the "professional stuff" clear outta the water.

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    1. His stuff is great and he clearly puts a lot of work into it but let's be honest, it's not remotely "accurate". It's way over-stylized and tries to be super gritty compared to the source material.

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    2. I can think of another gritty Mega Man thing a good amount of people seem to like. Is it anything like that one?

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    3. On a visual level, it’s a little similar to MMZ if that’s what you’re thinking of.

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    4. Nay. I was thinking of The Protomen.

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    5. Nah it's totally awesome. How can you say they're too gritty when they look very much like they're supposed to. I mean, it's not like he's Michael Baying them.

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    6. @Anonymous 8:41 AM: Sorry, but I have to disagree. What do you mean by not remotely accurate anyway? DemNiko's work is downright incredible. He is paying 100% complete attention to the design and abilities for the X1 Mavericks. What do you even mean by over-stylized and super gritty? It's not like X's series is fluffy and lighthearted the way Classic is and even the manga adaptation is way darker than the game. Your post makes no sense.

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    7. @Leave a Whisper Yeah, just Fnaf-ing them. Totally better, lol.

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    8. @8:57AM: Easy: His designs don't look exactly like the official artwork and the stages don't look like how they do in the games, so they're great (to me), but not accurate.

      I mean, that's why people are trashing this show's trailer, right? Because Bomb Man is 20ft taller than he should be and Rock doesn't look like the Pillsbury Doughboy circa 1987.

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    9. @Anonymous 8:57
      Earlier X games had similar visual and design style to the later classic games, down to some designs sharing elements, and even the later ones didn't stray away from that too far. The fanwork definitely does go for a more "Michael Bay" approach, from how they animate, to the incredibly realistic-esque environments they're in, to how they behave and especially their design details, which do feel so... 2000s realistic robot film. If citing the manga adaptation (which one? Iwamoto's?), even there's a direct contrast: between the characters in the fanwork being so much "robots", and manga focusing on making them more alive and giving them human expressions and details, down to X's expressions.

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  20. Where's the Robot Masters?

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    1. These generic Pixar style 30ft tall robots are the robot masters.

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  21. I'll say it: I like it. So, am I an outcast and not a true Mega Man fan now? = /

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    1. Yes. You will make a fitting sacrifice for our dark lord, Inafun- I mean, Kitamur- I mean… wait, who’s our dark lord now?

      (this is a joke)

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    2. Nah, you're entitled to your opinion.

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    3. It’s not a big deal if you like it, personally I don’t.

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    4. Nope, it's Death penalty for you I'm afraid. (Of course you can like it lol)

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    5. Well, as someone who doesn't like the current status of the franchise and hate X DiVE, I'm actually hyped at this.

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    6. TRAITORRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR /s

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    7. Does this mean he's fighting a corrupted Baymax? Lol

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  22. I don't do business with Amazon in general. I suggest y'all do the same.

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  23. Another thing to pirate, probably a waste of bandwidth in this case.
    And by the way, only children and manchildren are against piracy, they are a fighting a war that was lost long ago.

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    1. Oh trust me, I'm no stranger to piracy, if you were trying to get in a jab about me. I used to use WinMX, Napster, BearShare, Frostwire, and Soulseek. It was to say "Yeah, I know there's other ways to get it, but I don't really feel like it."

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    2. That aside, hate-watching is still watching.

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    3. @1:32

      I agree on piracy. Sharing is caring, after all!

      @RS Proto Man

      Napster?! That’s OG. Respect.

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    4. @Jark Hehe, yeah I'm a little old lady. I'm surprised WinMX lasted as long as it did.

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  24. I'm intrigued enough to give it a chance. It certainly seems more promising than Fully Charged, at least.

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  25. Looking good~ Some slight variation/interpretation here and there aside, looks like it'll be a fun watch. I'm not betting we'll see another MM game in any series for a while, so I'm glad Megaman is getting some spotlight here. Feels like they are aiming more for a nostalgia trip than anything imo.

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  26. Seems everyone here is pretty split. I'm not liking what I'm seeing so far, but I'll still give it a shot.

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    1. People are so starved for Mega Man content that they will even take the most mediocre offerings.

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  27. Lol it's going to be a "bleep" show. The warhammer 40k is the only thing I'm interested in. Besides MegaMans games are good not his story structure lol!

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    1. Oh, *this* should be interesting…

      Though you’re honestly not wrong. At least with 20XX, most of the interesting parts of the story happen in manuals. What’s the best story beat in a game? MM5’s intro?

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