Mega Man: Battle & Chase, known as Rockman: Battle & Chase (ロックマン バトル＆チェイス Rokkuman Battoru Ando Cheisu) in Japan, is a racing game from the Mega Man series released in 1997 for PlayStation in Japan and Europe, and released in North America in 2006 as part of Mega Man X Collection for PlayStation 2 and GameCube.
Story
Wily stealing the prize.
A new-hit show called Battle & Chase has been released. It is an extreme racing show, that pays off a large amount of money to the winner: 10 million Zenny. Soon, word reaches out to everyone and many robots decide to enter for their own gain, and it becomes a challenge where the stakes are high, and the reward is higher. When word reaches Mega Man, he decides to enter to use the prize money to fix Dr. Light's computer, which had broken after a thunderstorm. In the end of the tournament, Dr. Wily appears and steals the prize money for his own evil purposes, and the player must race against Bass (when not playing with him) and Wily to recover it.
Characters
Mega Man in his Rush Roadstar
Playable racers
| Racer | Vehicle | Grand Prix description |
|---|---|---|
| Mega Man | Rush Roadstar | A balanced machine. Mega Buster and Charge Shot are available. |
| Roll | Pop'n Beat | For beginners. Jump and Spin Attack are available. |
| Proto Man | Red Striker | A high speed machine. Shield and Proto Strike are available. |
| Bass | Treble Darkstar | A balanced machine. Bass Buster and Bass Blast are available. |
| Guts Man | Wild Arms | Powerful off-roader. Can throw rocks and cause earthquake. |
| Quick Man | Sonic Formula | Good acceleration. Slide Move and Quick Turbo are available. |
| Ice Man | Cool Mobile | This machine is cool. It can drop ice blocks or freeze the opponent. |
| Shadow Man | Shinobi Master | Uses Ninja moves. Throwing Stars and Smoke Screen are available. |
| Napalm Man | Patriot Bomber | Has powerful weapons. Can put bombs behind or throw them away. |
| Spring Man | Surprise Boxer | A tricky machine. The springs absorb shock and attack the opponent. |
| Dr. Wily* | Skull Machine XX | None |
| Duo** | Hard Grandeur | None |
Duo Memory Card
*Dr. Wily is unlocked after completing the game. Only playable in Versus and Time Attack modes.
**Duo is playable only in Versus and Time Attack modes. Outside Japan, Duo is unlocked after obtaining all four hidden parts that appear after defeating the Black Troop members. In the original Japanese release Duo is unlocked only by loading a special save given in a promotional event from the Dengeki PlayStation magazine or using a cheat device. When starting the game with the save, a cutscene will introduce Duo and his machine, he replaces Bass in the opening race, and the message "デューオ登場" ("Duo Appears") is present in the title screen. In the PlayStation the Best for Family version, Duo is available from the beginning, the special cutscene being absent.
Non-playable racers
The Black Troop
- 4 Roader
- Truck Joe
- Yellow Devil
- Black 4 Roader
- Black Joe
- Black Yellow Devil
Other characters
Courses
| Course | Image | Character and notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sky Circuit 1 | 
|
None (Versus and Time Attack only) |
| Sky Circuit 2 | 
|
None (Versus and Time Attack only) |
| Sky Circuit 3 | 
|
None (Versus and Time Attack only) |
| City Course | 
|
Mega Man |
| Street Course | 
|
Roll |
| Sunset Course | 
|
Proto Man |
| Rocky Mountain Course | 
|
Guts Man |
| South Pole Course | 
|
Ice Man |
| Ridge Course | 
|
Quick Man |
| Crystal Course | 
|
Shadow Man |
| Arms Factory Course | 
|
Napalm Man |
| Toy Factory Course | 
|
Spring Man |
| Base Course | 
|
Bass (Unlocked for Versus and Time Attack after completing Grand Prix 2 times.) |
| Wily Fortress Course | 
|
Dr. Wily (Unlocked for Versus and Time Attack after completing Grand Prix 3 times.) |
| Space Course | 
|
None (Associated to Duo. Versus and Time Attack only. Unlocked after completing Grand Prix 4 times.) |
Gallery
Video
Trivia
Chest in the course select screen of the Japanese version
- Battle & Chase was originally scheduled for a release on the PlayStation in North America in April 1997,[Citation needed] a month after its Japanese release. Despite appearing in a number of magazine advertisements, the game was ultimately not released in North America, due to Sony Computer Entertainment feeling there were already too many mascot-based racing games in the market at that time. The game did not see a North American release until Battle & Chase appeared in North American copies of Mega Man X Collection, which is presumably the European version of Battle & Chase running at 60fps.
- Most of the voice-overs and the appearances of the characters Plum, Chest and Ripot were removed from the non-Japanese versions for unknown reasons.
- The two loading screens can be interacted with. Each player can accelerate Auto (Player 1) or Eddie (Player 2) by pressing the X button, and the Baccone eyes can be moved.
- The secret Extra Parts resemble four Robot Masters. The Hammer Body is similar to Knight Man and attacks with a spiked ball, Retro Engine ("Retro Turbo Engine" in Japan) resembles Turbo Man's engine, Sky High Wing resembles Gyro Man's propeller, and the Blade Tires resembles Slash Man's legs.
- On the Mega Man and Roll courses, the player can see a "Resident Evil" logo together with a Capcom logo at the start.
- The cars of Mega Man and Proto Man, Rush Roadstar and Red Striker, appear as toys in the game Mega Man ZX. They also appear in the racing sidequest in the Highway area of Mega Man ZX Advent, where the player can ride on them.
- There is also a Mega Man racing game for cellphone called Rockman GP. It was released in 2004 in Japan and only has three racers.
- If the game is completed without being defeated with Roll or Guts Man in the Japanese version, a karaoke image will appear after their endings with the songs "Kaze yo Tsutaete" (with Roll) or "Ah Otoko Ichidai" (with Guts Man).
- In the promotional video of the game that came with the Japanese version of Mega Man 8, it can be noted several changes happened from it to the final version, some of them being different item icons, the character faces don't move, Roll's car's ability to "fly" for a short time, and a course not present in the final version.
- Battle and Chase was referenced a few times in Archie Comics' Mega Man series: the B&C Gazette (which included Chest, Plum, and Ripot as journalists), the mainframe for Wily's portion of the Egg Wily Machine X, and the Skull Machine XX appears in Short Circuits #11.
- Messily described or not mentioned moves to use:
- To drift a bit sooner, instead of holding just the right or left button, tap the button of the oppsite direction for a split second, and then resume. (Black Devil said a bit about this, in a misleading way.)
- Press down, up and then taunt when going over a mine(the green one) may cause the car to hop with acceleration. However, the suceess rate is too close to zero, rendering it almost useless. (Black Troop reveals this, but the details are missing...)
- While using the Bone Head Body, there is a third mode of attack. Hold the down button while launching the special attack uncharged, four bombs will be left behind, floating a bit off ground.
- The Extra Body's charged attack can happen in four directions. Choose it by pressing the direction button before the specil attack button.
- The Twin Arm Body's uncharged attack is rock throwing. Most are brown, occasionally grey ones come down. The latter deals more damage.
- Holding up or down adjusts how far Full Metal Body's throws the bomb in an uncharged attack.
- Sky Circuit 3 contains an invisible shortcut; just run into the kerb to reach it.
- In versus and time attack modes, 1P may put the pointer at the question mark on the left, then press R1, X and Start together. The big question mark will turn from red to blue. The result is that a car with random parts and rider will be given to you.
- While using the Retro engine, tap the acceleration button rapidly to speed up more quickly.