Mega Man ZX is an action and platform game made in 2006 by Inti Creates and released by Capcom for the Nintendo DS. It came out in Japan on July 6, 2006, in North America on September 12, 2006, in Australia on June 20, 2007, and in Europe on June 22, 2007.

This game is part of the Mega Man series. It takes place 200 years after the events of the Mega Man Zero games. The story follows the main character as they try to recover powerful ancient items called "Biometals" from evil robots called Pseudoroids, who want to use the Biometals for their own purposes. The game features a new type of gameplay where players can explore freely and choose the main character's gender, which was not possible in earlier games.

Critics gave the game good reviews, especially for its gameplay and level design. However, some critics thought the game was too difficult. A sequel called Mega Man ZX Advent was released in 2007. The game was later released again in February 2020 as part of the Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Microsoft Windows.

Gameplay

Mega Man ZX includes features from the Mega Man X series and the Mega Man Zero series. Players control a character on a side-scrolling 2D screen, using jumps, dashes, and both close-range and long-range weapons to move across platforms and fight enemies. The goal is to travel through the game world and complete missions. Missions are chosen from a list shown on a computer. Players can explore the game world freely during and between missions, and they must find the mission’s specific area on their own. The game includes level design ideas from the Metroidvania genre, offering more exploration opportunities than the main Mega Man series.

During the game, players use "Biometals," mechanical items that can think and act on their own, to change into different forms. These forms look and act like characters from the Mega Man X, Mega Man Zero, and the Four Guardians from the Mega Man Zero series. Each form has special abilities that help fight enemies, solve puzzles, and find special items. The Nintendo DS’s touch screen changes its function based on the form used. For example, one form shows a radar on the touch screen, while another lets players control the direction of their attacks. The Model X form is only available temporarily at the start of the game but becomes a permanent option during a second playthrough. Players can also switch back to a human form without powers, allowing them to move through tight spaces and civilian areas without being noticed or attacked by security devices.

Nine extra bosses from the Mega Man Zero series appear as hidden challenges: four from Mega Man Zero 3, four from Mega Man Zero 4, and Omega from Zero 3. Omega can be fought normally, but the other bosses are found in secret rooms. To access these rooms, players must insert a special game card from the appropriate Mega Man Zero game into the DS or DS Lite. After defeating all eight stage bosses or Omega and finishing the game, players can choose to play as Omega until they start a new game.

In the Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection, gameplay was slightly changed to make features unique to the DS available on all platforms. Touch screen functions are now shown in a small window next to the main game screen, which players can move and control with a joystick. Hidden encounters with bosses from the Mega Man Zero series are now accessed through "Link Mode" in the collection’s main menu. When playing Mega Man ZX, players can choose to link with either Mega Man Zero 3 or Zero 4 to face bosses from those games.

Plot

In the year 25XX, humans and Reploids (sentient androids) live together peacefully. Slither Inc., an energy development and security company led by a Reploid named Serpent, helped restore Earth’s former nations. However, peace is disrupted when some Reploids suddenly become Mavericks, causing conflicts. Trade between nations is blocked, leading to the creation of separate utopian cities.

To stop the Mavericks, people formed the Guardians, a group that defends against and investigates Maverick attacks. The Guardians’ original leader, Ciel, disappeared after discovering a Biometal (a living artifact linked to a person from the past) called "Model W." This Biometal turned her team into Mavericks. Ciel later created six new Biometals inspired by X, Zero, and the Four Guardians of Neo Arcadia to fight the growing threat. The current leader of the Guardians is a female Reploid named Prairie, who is believed to be Alouette from the Mega Man Zero series.

The player controls an adolescent human, choosing between Vent (a boy) or Aile (a girl). The protagonist lost their mother during a Maverick attack on an amusement park ten years earlier and was later taken in by Girouette (called Giro in North America and Europe), who owns Giro Express, a delivery service.

Giro and the protagonist are hired by an unknown person to deliver a package containing Biometal Model X to a forest. They are attacked by Mavericks after meeting. The protagonist escapes with the package while Giro protects them. They meet Prairie but are interrupted by a Maverick attack. Model X gives the protagonist power to "Megamerge" and transform into Mega Man Model X, allowing them to destroy the Maverick. After finding Giro, who has become Mega Man Model Z, they board the Guardians’ airship.

A Maverick attack occurs at Slither Inc.’s main office. The protagonist meets Serpent, the company’s president, and his Reploid guardians, Prometheus and Pandora. Serpent reveals he is a Mega Man with Model W and plans to find the Model W Core. He uses Model W to weaken Giro, who attacks the protagonist before dying and giving them Model Z. The protagonist merges with both Model X and Model Z to escape.

The Guardians and the protagonist search for the remaining Biometal pieces. After finding four of eight pieces, the Guardians’ headquarters is attacked by Mavericks led by Prometheus. The protagonist helps defeat Prometheus and retrieves the remaining pieces. With all eight Biometal pieces, the protagonist enters a sealed cavern to find the Model W Core. However, Pandora moves the Biometal to Slither Inc.’s headquarters. The protagonist sets out to destroy it.

After battling through Slither Inc., the protagonist confronts Serpent, who uses innocent Cyber Elves to power Model W and fuses with it. The protagonist temporarily reverts to human but regains strength with the help of the Biometals, transforming into Mega Man ZX. They defeat Serpent, destroying Model W and killing him. The protagonist reunites with Prairie and the Guardians, vowing to continue working for peace and justice.

Development

In January 2006, news about a Mega Man game for the Nintendo DS was first shared on GameSpot. On the same day, Capcom created an official website to preview the game. Capcom stated that the game would be a 2D side-scrolling action game, allowing players to choose between a male character named Vent or a female character named Aile.

At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2006, a demo of the game was available at an unlabeled kiosk in the Capcom booth. The demo included parts of the game’s introduction and allowed players to try two levels, Area H and Area E. The controls were described as "simple enough… yet challenging," but some reviewers noticed moments of lag in the game’s performance.

On October 27, 2006, Inti Creates released the first remastered soundtrack album for the Mega Man ZX series, titled Rockman ZX Soundtrack -ZX Tunes-. The album includes two discs named Aile and Vent, after the game’s hero and heroine. It is 131 minutes and 37 seconds long and features one vocal track called Innocence and five remix tracks.

Reception

Mega Man ZX received good reviews from most sources, with a Metacritic score of 76 out of 100. Like Mega Man Zero, Mega Man ZX was compared to the original Mega Man series. Some players liked how hard the game was, but others found it too tough. Players praised how the game looked and how the levels were designed. Some reviews mentioned problems, such as a confusing world map and a difficulty level that frustrated some players.

During its first week of release, Mega Man ZX sold 33,652 copies in Japan, making it the sixth best-selling game in the region. By the end of 2006, 94,341 copies of the game had been sold in Japan. A direct sequel, Mega Man ZX Advent, was announced for release the following year.