It seems that Capcom isn't able to catch a break when it comes to the reviewers assigned
to their Mega Man franchise titles on the App Store - while Mega Man 2 is Dave's favorite
from the series (at least on its original console), Mega Man X was (and still is) my
personal favorite.
With this in mind the iOS release of the title was more than welcome and still a blast to
play through, but like so many of the developers releases on the App Store it suffers for its
disregard of the platform and its lack of finesse.
Initially the iOS version comes off as visually resplendent, borrowing from the PSP remake
of the game, however the illusion is quickly broken by the less than smooth frame rate
(in fairness it does remain consistent, but consistently low) and missing visual effects
that rounded out the game's appearance in the 18-year-old original.
An option to revert from full-screen to a zoomed-out perspective can help with the controls
obscuring the screen in boss battles, but no option to switch back to the 16-bit graphics
is currently available and players also have to manually flip the screen within the options
(an altogether antiquated requirement these days).
Oddly the modern visuals are paired with the classic SNES soundtrack, but if you're willing
to absorb the sting of another purchase, you can play with a preloaded set of modern tracks.
This isn't the first of odd purchases either and despite being available through the normal
course of play, the player can put down cash to side-step the collection of weapons from
bosses; heart and sub-tanks; as well as item upgrades for Mega Man himself.
This is extremely odd considering the lenient difficulty of the game itself, with many concessions
being made for the iOS platform and its less than perfect control system, this on top of
the game already being relatively easy by the series' standards.
At least some of these concessions make sense (auto-fire bullets; auto-charge weapons) and
can be toggled as required for those who want more finesse or challenge.
This still doesn't address the toned down difficulty of the enemies themselves or the
removal of level-changing consequences (such as defeating Chill Penguin and gaining access
to hidden items on Flame Mammoth's stage).
Additional features in the form of a score attack mode and achievements add some lasting
value, but given the loose controls and generously forgiving difficulty, their value is limited.
One shouldn't be too snobbish about something like this though - ultimately this IS Mega
Man X on iOS devices and while it's not on par with its ancient forebear, it still features
much of what made the game entertaining.
Nostalgic fans may not be overwhelmed by this release, but it's still Mega Man and that
may be good enough to warrant a playthrough.