3 Things I Love about Mega Man IV

Welcome to Mega Man Month! Every weekday in January I’ll be listing three things I love about the original Mega Man series. Let’s go!

It’s got a totally awesome intro

They didn’t hold back in the cinematics department for this game. The ending is pretty nuts too, but we’ll get to that in a bit. This whole intro has so much awesome artwork in it, especially considering it’s a dang Game Boy game. Great music, too.

Pharaoh Man’s stage is still awesome in black & white

I don’t care much for Mega Man 4, at least by Mega Man game standards, but one easy standout from that game was Pharaoh Man’s stage, and the same holds true here in Mega Man IV. It’s just as awesome here as it is in full color, and it’s even got a few new tricks up its sleeve to keep things fresh, like these neat falling blocks that sink one square each time you land on them. Pharaoh Man is phenomenal no matter what medium he’s used in.

The whole Wily/ending sequence is awesome

In all honesty, especially considering how unique the first two GB Mega Man games were and how remarkable MegaMan V is, Mega Man III and IV ultimately wind up feeling a tad forgettable to me. That said, there’s absolutely no denying just how awesome the Wily and ending sequence is in this one. First of all, it takes place on a big ‘ol spaceship, which is cool. Then you fight Dr. Wily is a giant Dr. Wily robot! Usually he comes up with some sort of cockamamy tank-looking thing or something. NOT THIS TIME. Wily Bot. Then, after you blow that thing up you actually fight him in his little spaceship thingy.  It’s a pretty clever battle, too, blowing up the ground, bouncing bubbles, etc. But then, after you beat that, Dr. Wily escapes with some wacky wire backpack thing. You follow him into a corridor in the spaceship (that happens to be blowing up now) and get trapped at a dead end searching for a way to escape. And who of all people shows up but Ballade, this game’s Mega Man Killer (and arguably the coolest one). He decided that after you beat him up earlier that you were right, Dr. Wily was wrong, and he’s going to help you escape by blowing himself up. Completely bad-ass, and a heck of a cool ride following a very tight game.

Alright, all. There’s just one Game Boy game left before we get to the main series proper. See you tomorrow for Mega Man V.

Kris Randazzo

Kris is the Content Supervisor of Geekade. As an avid consumer of all things video game, Kris spent his formative years collecting cartridges, CDs, discs, and assorted paraphernalia in an effort to amass a video game collection large enough to kill an elephant. He works with Stone Age Gamer, writing for their blog and hosting the Stone Age Gamer Podcast right here at Geekade. He's also the host of the WaveBack Podcast, co-host of This Week's Episode, and can occasionally be found in the pages of Nintendo Force Magazine.

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