If you want the story of how I made these reviews, let me tell you: months ago, I was in an argument with someone on the wiki, and my review was… cringe at best. I only based my review on my personal first-time experience playing it (I also blame myself for the stupid route I took), and I wrote it out of frustration from not agreeing with someone. That post ended up getting locked, and I tried another time, giving it another go. While it was better, I still think it was just me trying to look cool or overly critical. But after my review of Mega Man 9, I realized I enjoyed talking positively about games more than hating them. So today, I want to talk about Mega Man 5 one last time.
In my Mega Man 4 review, I stated that after that game, Mega Man games weren’t talked about that much and had the reputation of being more of the same. This really can be seen with Mega Man 5. It has the reputation of just being "Mega Man: The Next One," and while that’s true, it doesn’t make the game bad. So today, I want to talk about Mega Man 5. What’s my opinion of it? Well, I think the game is great!
The story, while not on the same par as 4, is still great. Eight robots go to the city and terrorize it. Dr. Light gets kidnapped, and the leader of all of this is Protoman!?
The controls have been perfected at this point in NES Mega Man games, but there are some differences. You can’t jump out of a slide. This, in my opinion, makes it more comfortable to mash the button to slide and go along the ground more easily. Along with that, the Mega Buster (upgraded to the Super Mega Buster thanks to Dr. Cossack) is BROKEN. It charges faster than in 4, does more damage, and has a bigger hitbox, making it easier to hit enemies. The only drawback is that it resets if you take damage, but I don’t care—it’s FUN.
Boss Route:
Star Man
Gravity Man
Gyro Man
Crystal Man
Napalm Man
Stone Man
Charge Man
Wave Man
The level design is EXACTLY like 2; this might as well be called "Mega Man 2 II." Each level introduces a new gimmick in a safe spot, making it harder and harder the more you progress in the game. For example, Gravity Man challenges you when you’re upside down, or Crystal Man challenges your timing with the falling crystals. Each level introduces a new gimmick first in a safe spot and then amps it up more and more. Sure, the level design is a bit easy, but I don’t mind.
The weapons are also good. While I did say the Mega Buster is broken, the weapons are just as good. Star Crash is a very useful shield (a precursor to Jewel Satellite in Mega Man 9). Gravity Crush is a screen-clear but looks cool. Gyro Man’s weapon is a bit hard to control at first, but once you get used to it, it’s really useful. You basically control where it goes, and then by pressing up or down, it can kill enemies out of range, and I like it. Crystal Eye is powerful in its regular form, but when it hits a contact point, it bounces all over the place, and it’s good for enclosed spaces. Napalm Bomb is probably my favorite weapon in the game. It does a lot of damage on contact, and you can do multiple at once. Power Stone is pretty useless regularly, but when it hits just right, it’s great. Charge Kick basically makes your slide do damage; it also makes it travel farther, so I like it. Finally, there is Water Wave, which sends water in front of you until the edge of the screen—it's really useful. Along with those, we have Beat, which you can get by finding letters in levels and touching them to spell MEGAMANV. Beat is a great weapon; he goes and kills any enemy in range until they are DEAD or until you run out of energy. This is a great incentive to go out of your way to get it, and it’s a really good way to incentivize players to take some risks and try it out.
Finally, we have the Protoman stages, which… now playing it again… THIS IS ABSOLUTE PEAK. The stages take everything you’ve learned and put it to the test, and the stages are not too long but not too short either. They are a MASSIVE improvement from Mega Man 4. At the final stage, it is revealed that Protoman was framed by Dark Man 4, made by Dr. Wily. After that, we go to the Wily stages, which are just as good as the Dark Man levels. I still think the final boss is a bit of a joke with Beat, but I mean that in a good way.
The music in this game is different but just as good. Dark Man stages, Wave Man, Napalm Man, Gyro Man, Star Man, and Gravity Man are my personal favorites.
Overall, Mega Man 5 is actually a great game. This game truly states that Protoman is on your side and not Wily’s. This game is actually pretty underrated, and I say that because it’s the most expensive of the NES saga, but thanks to the Legacy Collection, it is available for everyone to play. I’m glad I can go back and fix my mistakes and make a fair review of Mega Man 5. So Mega Man 5… you made me feel more alive.
Ranking: A+ (9/10)
Up next: Why Mega Man 6 is the perfect end to the NES saga.
(Playing,writing and editing by @Nathanthehazingdaze007 )(Post for