Mega Man: Dual Override Direct Feed Gameplay + New Details

Gamescom is officially underway, and press are already getting hands-on with the playable Mega Man: Dual Override demo, which features Twinkle Girl’s stage from start to finish.

And that’s only scratching the surface. Early impressions have revealed a ton of new details, including how stages are split into three distinct areas, the Custom Chip System, an expanded Special Weapon system, scoring mechanics, and much more.

 

Rather than each Robot Master having one long stage, each main boss appears to have three shorter areas associated with them. In the Twinkle Girl demo, selecting her did not immediately launch a conventional stage. Instead, the player was presented with three separate areas to choose from.

Each area is considerably shorter than a traditional Mega Man stage. Denfami says a careful first run took roughly 3–5 minutes, while an experienced run could potentially be completed in under two minutes. However, the shorter length does not mean the stages are easier or less substantial. They contain difficult platforming, enemy encounters and their own bosses.

Denfami compares the structure to a Wily Castle, except that this concept has apparently been applied to the eight main Robot Masters. Each of the three areas culminates in a boss whose identity is not revealed beforehand, creating an element of surprise.

At least one of Twinkle Girl's three areas ends with Astro Man, appearing as what the article calls a "replica robot". His movement and attacks closely reproduce his behavior from Mega Man 8, but he also has new attacks, meaning these returning bosses are apparently more than straight recreations. 

Before beginning the demo, the player chooses a preset Chip Set. The article says this preset system is specifically for the demo; in the final game, players will apparently equip several individual Custom Chips to create their own personalized setup.

The demo offered three configurations:

• Survival-focused: gives Mega Man a temporary Barrier and an E-Tank capable of completely restoring his health.

• Attack-focused: provides automatic charging and a Double Charge Shot, allowing two charged shots to be fired in rapid succession.

• No Chip Support: meant to resemble traditional Mega Man gameplay. Interestingly, Rush is available here and is apparently classified as a Custom Chip.

Custom Chip actions such as Barrier, Double Charge Shot and Rush were activated with the controller's trigger buttons.

Pressing the shoulder buttons activates Override. While Override is active, Mega Man temporarily becomes much more powerful and gains attacks such as the Final Charge Shot. The writer compares it to an evolved version of Mega Man 11's Double Gear system.

Unlike Double Gear's most extreme state, Override does not require Mega Man to be near death. Once the Override energy gauge reaches the necessary amount, it can be activated regardless of his remaining health. The article also notes that some Custom Chips may automatically activate Override when Mega Man reaches critical health.

There is a catch: Override only lasts for a limited period. Once it ends, Mega Man enters an overheated state, temporarily restricting some of his attacks and abilities. 

Special Weapons have also been expanded through a new mechanic called Power Shot.

Essentially, every Special Weapon can apparently be used normally or in a more powerful form. The writer compares this to the enhanced Special Weapons obtained while using Power Gear in Mega Man 11, except now the powered-up version is available directly with a button press.

The demo included a weapon called Jet Stinger, an aerial-compatible rushing attack similar in concept to Pile Driver from Mega Man 11.

Normally, Mega Man's rush stops when Jet Stinger hits an enemy. When used as a Power Shot, however, he pierces through the enemy and keeps going. Struck enemies can also be launched sideways into other enemies.

Weaknesses work similarly to Mega Man 11: hitting an enemy or boss with the correct Special Weapon produces a purple visual effect. The writer found that correctly applying weapons and powered-up abilities could make otherwise difficult encounters dramatically easier.

One especially interesting detail is that the game has a scoring system.

The article describes this as the first proper score system in the main Classic-series campaign since the original Mega Man.

Scores are calculated based on factors including:

• Completion time
• Damage taken
• Number of retries
• Consecutive enemy defeats / multiplier bonuses

The game also records clear times, giving players incentives to replay the short areas for both high scores and speedruns.

A few other noteworthy details:

• The demo did not have Lives but the full retail game will.

• Sliding now has its own dedicated button.
  
  
• The right stick Special Weapon shortcut from Mega Man 11 returns. Pressing R3 switches back to the Mega Buster.

• Ladder climbing also feels slightly faster than in Mega Man 11.

• Bolts are hidden collectibles again (Mega Man 8)

• The Charge Shot's Guard Break property returns, allowing charged shots to break through certain enemy defenses.

• Visible checkpoints from Mega Man Powered Up return.

• New English voice cast. Voice actors unknown.

Finally, Proto Man is not at all playable in this particular demo. Perhaps that's something we'll see in the future, maybe around Tokyo Game Show.