Cannon Spike

http://img110.echo.cx/img110/8226/cstitle4lo.jpg

Overview
To combat terrorism, a special force is organized and equipped with specialized Motor Boots for mobility (That's why everyone floats around, although Mega Man isn't wearing them...).

Special Features
This is something like Smash TV crossed with Resident Evil. It's not really a Mega Man game, but Mega Man was thrown in as a "hidden" player character (press left or right on the character select screen until he shows up).

To put it simply, this game involves Mega Man floating around shooting at robots and zombie-like things with an assortment of weapons and special moves. Naturally, this page will not be a complete coverage of the game, but it will brief Mega Man's role.

Note that the manual uses a graphic of MegaMan Voulnutt from MegaMan Legends, but in the game it's actually Mega Man (the original). (Duh Capcom--as if you weren't confusing people enough as it is!)

Review
Here are some observations:


 * Graphics: The graphics aren't bad, considering. Mega Man looks a little plastic-y, but at least he's pretty round, and during normal game play the view is zoomed out so far that you can't make out the details anyway.


 * Play Control: Many find that find the biggest problem with the control is the lock-on. If the lock-on worked well, it would probably vastly improve the control, but as it is, it's more of a hassle to use.


 * Replay Value: The game is short, as anyone will tell you, although in some cases it gets so monotonous you're just waiting for it to end. However the levels are chosen somewhat randomly, at least, so you won't be fighting the same sequence every single time.


 * Overall: Mega Man is actually pretty true to his character, considering the vast difference in play style here. It is not recommended picking this game up just because it has Mega Man in it, but if you like this type of game, it will provide a few hours of entertainment. Just beware that all of the levels are extremely short and thus don't last very long.

Moves
Like all of the characters in the game, Mega Man has a small assortment of moves which are executed using the following buttons (according to their names in the button configuration screen):
 * Shot: Gatling Gun. Theoretically this should be Mega Man's arm cannon, but the shots look like little dashed lasers rather than his typical spheres. Highly rapid-fire, but inflicts very little damage. You're better off using the Mega Buster attack instead; however you can use the rapid-fire while the Mega Buster is recharging.
 * Attack (Melee): Mega Man unleashes a series of punches. If you press this button three times rapidly he'll do a "Rock Punch" which goes a little farther and inflicts a bit more damage.
 * Heavy Shot: Mega Buster. A very powerful blast that can hit multiple enemies, but it does not rapid-fire, naturally. You don't need to hold the button to charge; Mega Man evidently charges automatically. However you can only fire one Mega Buster shot every few seconds or so.
 * Heavy Attack: Tornado Hold. Probably the best attack in Mega Man's arsenal. There is some amount of startup delay but the tornado protects Mega Man once it goes off, and travels forward a short distance. Can inflict a high number of hits.
 * Special Attack: Mega Man spins himself up into a large invincible ball of energy. You can direct where he rolls with the control stick. Obviously, since this requires a special move icon to execute, it also does a lot of damage, as well as multiple hits on targets.
 * Mark (Lock-On): Fires a thin beam of red light which will target whatever enemy it strikes. Your character will always remain facing whatever he's targeting. Unfortunately the lock-on in this game is nowhere near as well done as the one in Legends 2; if you move too far away from your target or get hit, you lose your lock-on. It also wears off after a short period of time no matter what you do. Also the lock-on does not automatically acquire new targets for you when you lose your previous lock-on; you have to manually let go of the button, press it again, and hit a new enemy with the resulting beam.

Items
There are a few items you can win from defeating enemies. If you're playing the arcade version and aren't quite sure what's what, here's a quick list:


 * Life Capsules: These look like pills and will restore small amounts of health when you pick them up.
 * Life Cubes: The rectangular cubes will actually add more units to your life bar, thus increasing your maximum health level.
 * Special Move Icons: Orange icons with an "S" on them. You need these to perform your special attacks.

Ending
'''WARNING!!! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!'''

When the base collapses, Mega Man calls Rush and flies away from the chaos on Rush Jet. Not a terribly complex ending, but the artwork is really nice.