Mega Man X6
Encyclopedia
Mega Man X6, known as in Japan, is a video game developed by Capcom
. It is the sixth main entry in the Mega Man X
series. The game was first released on the PlayStation in Japan on November 29, 2001 and was later made available in both North America and Europe.
The plot of Mega Man X6 takes place during the 22nd century
where humans and intelligent androids called "Reploids" live together. The game follows shortly after the events of Mega Man X5
in which planet Earth was devastated by an attack by the "Maverick" leader Sigma and the protagonist Zero
sacrificed his own life to save it. As the world recovers, a Maverick known only as the "Zero Nightmare" has begun spreading chaos. Zero's comrade Mega Man X, curious of its name, seeks out this new threat. Like past games in the series, Mega Man X6 is an action
-platformer
in which the player tackles a series of stages and adds the unique weapon of each boss to X's arsenal.
Prominent series artist and producer Keiji Inafune
was not involved in the game's production, as he had intended the fifth installment in the series to be the last with Zero's death. Critically, Mega Man X6 has received mixed to positive reviews. The game was released for the PC
in different parts of Asia
in 2002 and 2003. It was also re-released in 2006 as part of the North American Mega Man X Collection
for the GameCube
and PlayStation 2
.
, with Zero missing, presumed dead, and the Earth's surface rendered uninhabitable. Rumors are spreading through the Reploid World of a Maverick named the Zero Nightmare, a Reploid of pure evil that is spreading chaos throughout the world. X, curious about this Maverick, and angered by its use of his late friend’s name, seeks him out.
After destroying the Zero Nightmare, X learns that Zero is alive, just recovering from damage sustained in the last game. When Zero is recovered, he joins X and they seek out the researchers who built the Zero Nightmare.
X finds the lead researcher, Gate, in his lab. After X defeats Gate in battle, Gate reveals that he has rebuilt Sigma, the leader of the Mavericks, but due to the timing of X's arrival Sigma isn't fully rebuilt. Sigma kills Gate, then challenges X to a duel. X is able to defeat the nearly rebuilt Sigma.
. The player can select X with the option to outfit him with different armors offering unique abilities (most of which have to be downloaded, as always, through Dr. Light's hidden capsules.) Zero can be unlocked after finding and defeating the Zero Nightmare, bringing his own weapons and techniques to the fold, including a refined Z-Saber fighting style. Both characters can be equipped with various power-up items earned after rescuing a reploid.
Mega Man X6 has an increased emphasis on rescuing reploids over previous titles in the series. Whereas previous games rewarded the player with health or an extra life, Mega Man X6 rewards the player with additional parts or other permanent prizes. Rescuing reploids was made more difficult in this game with the addition of the Nightmare, which makes any reploid it infects evil, thus rendering the reploid impossible to save. The parts system was altered as well. Rather than attach a certain part to a certain armor, parts are attached to the character itself. The number of parts that can be equipped at once is dependent on the player's rank.
was not involved in the development of Mega Man X6. He had originally intended for the fifth chapter
in the series to be the last due to the death of Zero at that game's conclusion. "And so I’d always planned to make Zero come back to life in the Mega Man Zero
series, but then X6 comes out sooner from another division and Zero comes back to life in that, and I’m like, 'What’s this!? Now my story for Zero doesn’t make sense! Zero’s been brought back to life two times!'" Inafune also felt he owed fans of the series an apology for the decision to create Mega Man X6, although the series was "starting to go in a direction out of[his] control" at that point. Artist Haruki Suetsugu, who had worked on both previous PlayStation Mega Man X games, signed on as the game's primary character designer and promotional artwork illustrator. Suetsugu stated that the development schedule of Mega Man X6 was tight. As such, he described his designs for the Maverick bosses were "relatively simple", and he took a similar approach to designing all of them. The designs for other characters also feature unique traits, including Gate as a "merging of scientists and combatants, High Max as "big and strong", and the DNA
-like Nightmare.
The soundtrack for Mega Man X6 was composed by Naoto Tanaka. The opening songs are "Moon Light" and "The Answer" by Showtaro Morikubo
, the voice actor for X. The ending theme is "I.D.E.A" by RoST. This is one of the few X games to have the opening song appear in both the Japanese and English versions. All of the game's instrumental and vocal music was compiled on the Capcom Music Generation: Rockman X1 ~ X6 soundtrack released by Suleputer in 2003. The theme songs were also included on the Rockman Theme Song Collection, published by Suleputer in 2002.
, Mega Man X6 was the seventh best-selling game in Japan during its week of release at 39,318 units sold. Dengeki Online
reported that Mega Man X6 sold a total of 106,980 units in Japan by the end of 2001, marking it as the 109th best-selling game of the year in the region. The game eventually saw a re-release as part of the PlayStation the Best
range of budget titles. Mega Man X6 was also included on the North American Mega Man X Collection
for the Nintendo GameCube
and PlayStation 2
in 2006.
Mega Man X6 received mixed to positive reviews, with an average score of 69% on Game Rankings
. GameSpot
gave the game a 7 out of 10, saying that the game is "a disappointing effort. The nightmare system and item collecting add variety and longevity to the game, but... The graphics aren't really even up to the standards set by older games in the series, and while the music is good, there aren't any tracks that particularly stand out. Despite these shortcomings, it's still Mega Man, and the gameplay is still entertaining, making X6 an attractive package for hard-core Mega Man fans." IGN
gave a more positive review, an 8 out 10, stating "It's an all-new Mega Man game, yet it's still pretty much the same. There's nothing wrong with that"; they praised the soundtrack and replay value. Among the most negative reviews, Electronic Gaming Monthly
gave the game a 3.5 out of 10, saying "I thought I’d sooner see Sasquatch ride a Chimera bareback through the streets than a bland series like Mega Man X last through six installments."
Capcom
is a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...
. It is the sixth main entry in the Mega Man X
Mega Man X
The Mega Man X series is the second Mega Man franchise released by Capcom. It debuted December 17, 1993 in Japan on the Super NES/Super Famicom and spawned sequels on several systems, with the PC platform notably having the most releases within the series...
series. The game was first released on the PlayStation in Japan on November 29, 2001 and was later made available in both North America and Europe.
The plot of Mega Man X6 takes place during the 22nd century
22nd century
The 22nd century is a century of the Christian Era or Common Era in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. It is the upcoming century, beginning on January 1, 2101 and ending on December 31, 2200.-Events:...
where humans and intelligent androids called "Reploids" live together. The game follows shortly after the events of Mega Man X5
Mega Man X5
Mega Man X5, known as in Japan, is a video game developed by Capcom. It is the fifth main installment in the Mega Man X series. It was first released for the PlayStation in Japan on November 30, 2000 and in North America and PAL territories the following year.Mega Man X5 is set in the 22nd century...
in which planet Earth was devastated by an attack by the "Maverick" leader Sigma and the protagonist Zero
Zero (Mega Man)
is a video game character present throughout the Mega Man franchise. First appearing in the 1993 game Mega Man X for the Super Nintendo, Zero has since been the star of the Mega Man Zero series and has played a supporting role in other game series such as the Mega Man ZX series.First developed by...
sacrificed his own life to save it. As the world recovers, a Maverick known only as the "Zero Nightmare" has begun spreading chaos. Zero's comrade Mega Man X, curious of its name, seeks out this new threat. Like past games in the series, Mega Man X6 is an action
Action game
Action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes diverse subgenres such as fighting games, shooter games, and platform games, which are widely considered the most important action games, though some...
-platformer
Platform game
A platform game is a video game characterized by requiring the player to jump to and from suspended platforms or over obstacles . It must be possible to control these jumps and to fall from platforms or miss jumps...
in which the player tackles a series of stages and adds the unique weapon of each boss to X's arsenal.
Prominent series artist and producer Keiji Inafune
Keiji Inafune
is a video game producer and illustrator. He was the former head of Research & Development and Online Business and Global Head of Production at Capcom, best known as the illustrator and co-designer of the character Mega Man, as well as the producer of the Onimusha and Dead Rising video game series...
was not involved in the game's production, as he had intended the fifth installment in the series to be the last with Zero's death. Critically, Mega Man X6 has received mixed to positive reviews. The game was released for the PC
IBM PC compatible
IBM PC compatible computers are those generally similar to the original IBM PC, XT, and AT. Such computers used to be referred to as PC clones, or IBM clones since they almost exactly duplicated all the significant features of the PC architecture, facilitated by various manufacturers' ability to...
in different parts of Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
in 2002 and 2003. It was also re-released in 2006 as part of the North American Mega Man X Collection
Mega Man X Collection
Mega Man X Collection is a compilation of video games developed by Capcom. It was released on January 10, 2006 exclusively in North America for the Nintendo GameCube and Sony PlayStation 2 platforms...
for the GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
and PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
.
Plot
The story begins three weeks after Mega Man X5Mega Man X5
Mega Man X5, known as in Japan, is a video game developed by Capcom. It is the fifth main installment in the Mega Man X series. It was first released for the PlayStation in Japan on November 30, 2000 and in North America and PAL territories the following year.Mega Man X5 is set in the 22nd century...
, with Zero missing, presumed dead, and the Earth's surface rendered uninhabitable. Rumors are spreading through the Reploid World of a Maverick named the Zero Nightmare, a Reploid of pure evil that is spreading chaos throughout the world. X, curious about this Maverick, and angered by its use of his late friend’s name, seeks him out.
After destroying the Zero Nightmare, X learns that Zero is alive, just recovering from damage sustained in the last game. When Zero is recovered, he joins X and they seek out the researchers who built the Zero Nightmare.
X finds the lead researcher, Gate, in his lab. After X defeats Gate in battle, Gate reveals that he has rebuilt Sigma, the leader of the Mavericks, but due to the timing of X's arrival Sigma isn't fully rebuilt. Sigma kills Gate, then challenges X to a duel. X is able to defeat the nearly rebuilt Sigma.
Gameplay
The gameplay is very similar to Mega Man X5Mega Man X5
Mega Man X5, known as in Japan, is a video game developed by Capcom. It is the fifth main installment in the Mega Man X series. It was first released for the PlayStation in Japan on November 30, 2000 and in North America and PAL territories the following year.Mega Man X5 is set in the 22nd century...
. The player can select X with the option to outfit him with different armors offering unique abilities (most of which have to be downloaded, as always, through Dr. Light's hidden capsules.) Zero can be unlocked after finding and defeating the Zero Nightmare, bringing his own weapons and techniques to the fold, including a refined Z-Saber fighting style. Both characters can be equipped with various power-up items earned after rescuing a reploid.
Mega Man X6 has an increased emphasis on rescuing reploids over previous titles in the series. Whereas previous games rewarded the player with health or an extra life, Mega Man X6 rewards the player with additional parts or other permanent prizes. Rescuing reploids was made more difficult in this game with the addition of the Nightmare, which makes any reploid it infects evil, thus rendering the reploid impossible to save. The parts system was altered as well. Rather than attach a certain part to a certain armor, parts are attached to the character itself. The number of parts that can be equipped at once is dependent on the player's rank.
Development
Series producer Keiji InafuneKeiji Inafune
is a video game producer and illustrator. He was the former head of Research & Development and Online Business and Global Head of Production at Capcom, best known as the illustrator and co-designer of the character Mega Man, as well as the producer of the Onimusha and Dead Rising video game series...
was not involved in the development of Mega Man X6. He had originally intended for the fifth chapter
Mega Man X5
Mega Man X5, known as in Japan, is a video game developed by Capcom. It is the fifth main installment in the Mega Man X series. It was first released for the PlayStation in Japan on November 30, 2000 and in North America and PAL territories the following year.Mega Man X5 is set in the 22nd century...
in the series to be the last due to the death of Zero at that game's conclusion. "And so I’d always planned to make Zero come back to life in the Mega Man Zero
Mega Man Zero
The Mega Man Zero series, known as in Japan, is the series succeeding the Mega Man X story-line, and the fifth series in Capcom's Mega Man video game franchise, co-produced by Keiji Inafune, and directed by Mega Man Legends series director Yoshinori Kawano...
series, but then X6 comes out sooner from another division and Zero comes back to life in that, and I’m like, 'What’s this!? Now my story for Zero doesn’t make sense! Zero’s been brought back to life two times!'" Inafune also felt he owed fans of the series an apology for the decision to create Mega Man X6, although the series was "starting to go in a direction out of
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
-like Nightmare.
The soundtrack for Mega Man X6 was composed by Naoto Tanaka. The opening songs are "Moon Light" and "The Answer" by Showtaro Morikubo
Showtaro Morikubo
is a Japanese voice actor, and singer who has voiced characters in anime, drama CDs and video games. According to the Anime News Network and as of July 8, 2006, Morikubo has about 55 voice role credits under his name. He was formerly affiliated with I'm Enterprise.He was born in Hachiōji, Tokyo....
, the voice actor for X. The ending theme is "I.D.E.A" by RoST. This is one of the few X games to have the opening song appear in both the Japanese and English versions. All of the game's instrumental and vocal music was compiled on the Capcom Music Generation: Rockman X1 ~ X6 soundtrack released by Suleputer in 2003. The theme songs were also included on the Rockman Theme Song Collection, published by Suleputer in 2002.
Reception
According to the Japanese magazine FamitsuFamitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
, Mega Man X6 was the seventh best-selling game in Japan during its week of release at 39,318 units sold. Dengeki Online
ASCII Media Works
is a Japanese publishing company in the Kadokawa Group which formed on April 1, 2008 as a result of a merger between ASCII and MediaWorks where MediaWorks legally absorbed ASCII. Despite this, the former president of ASCII, Kiyoshi Takano, became the president of ASCII Media Works. The company...
reported that Mega Man X6 sold a total of 106,980 units in Japan by the end of 2001, marking it as the 109th best-selling game of the year in the region. The game eventually saw a re-release as part of the PlayStation the Best
The Best range
The Best is a Sony PlayStation budget range in Japan and parts of Asia. For the PlayStation, The Best was followed by PSone Books when the PSone was released in 2000...
range of budget titles. Mega Man X6 was also included on the North American Mega Man X Collection
Mega Man X Collection
Mega Man X Collection is a compilation of video games developed by Capcom. It was released on January 10, 2006 exclusively in North America for the Nintendo GameCube and Sony PlayStation 2 platforms...
for the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
and PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
in 2006.
Mega Man X6 received mixed to positive reviews, with an average score of 69% on Game Rankings
Game Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
. GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave the game a 7 out of 10, saying that the game is "a disappointing effort. The nightmare system and item collecting add variety and longevity to the game, but... The graphics aren't really even up to the standards set by older games in the series, and while the music is good, there aren't any tracks that particularly stand out. Despite these shortcomings, it's still Mega Man, and the gameplay is still entertaining, making X6 an attractive package for hard-core Mega Man fans." IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave a more positive review, an 8 out 10, stating "It's an all-new Mega Man game, yet it's still pretty much the same. There's nothing wrong with that"; they praised the soundtrack and replay value. Among the most negative reviews, Electronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly is a bimonthly American video game magazine. It has been published by EGM Media, LLC. since relaunching in April of 2010. Its previous run, which ended in January 2009, was published by Ziff Davis...
gave the game a 3.5 out of 10, saying "I thought I’d sooner see Sasquatch ride a Chimera bareback through the streets than a bland series like Mega Man X last through six installments."