Review #284: Megaman X 8

 Almost but not quite.

 Megaman X hasn't been quite the same since X4. X5 was alright, X6 was a disaster and X7 was a mess. Instead of building upon X7, they decided to begin anew with X8, axing the 3D/2D segments(as well as crouching!) and opting instead for classic Megaman X 2D action, albeit with 3D graphics(2.5D if you will). It goes a little further, characters have been redesigned and streamlined, so no more silly stubby legs, and look better than ever.

 It's the eight time around, so you know the gist of it: Defeat the 8 Mavericks then tackle Sigma, yadda yadda. The three heroes have been further differentiated this time around, X is a long-distance power house, however, charging his Mega Buster takes a while, Axl can't charge his shots, but he fires rapidly in any direction(Although it roots him to the ground) and is the only character that can hover, while Zero is the only character with a double jump and specializes in close combat. And just as it was on X7, you can take two characters with you, and a new 'Team-up' attack has been introduced, which is fairly unimpressive but deals decent damage.

 X5 introduced the Reploid saving mechanic, which I never cared for, but after X6 they got tied to upgrades. Not this time, now you have to find their chips and then buy them. Yes, Megaman X8 introduces a shop system and I love it. You can purchase a few basic upgrades, like more health or one-time use health items, and once you find a life tank, extra charges, at the outset, but the really juicy stuff must be found. I absolutely love this new system, much, much more than having to rescue Reploids. And on New Game plus, you can unlock new armors for the three main characters(Or, y'know, use a cheat code and get them on your first playthrough) as well as three female characters, which behave as nerfed versions of their male counterparts, but hey, new characters! Kinda. And you can cheat codes to unlock them early as well.

 The game's difficulty is a bit higher than what we've gotten used to, more reminiscent of X3 than anything. And it's mostly fair. Mostly. All fairness goes out the window once you hit the last levels, filled to the brim with cheap deaths and stuff you can't see coming the first time through. And the last boss, if you take too long to figure out how to off him, he automatically kills you, no matter how much health you've got left, because that's fun, isn't it? At least Megaman X4 through X7 offered unlimited continues and generous checkpoints, this time around, continues must be bought and they are a one-time use only, so unless you've got the cash, you are stuck with the default two continues. There's also an Easy mode, but they don't let you fight the true boss and get the true ending, not cool. There's also two horrible, horrible vehicle stages. The least said about them the better.

 When all is said and done, while not as good as the SNES games, this is the best Megaman X game since X4. Level design is, mostly, fair, the weapons are fun to use, all three characters are completely different from each other, there's a bunch of fun unlockables as well. It's a fine game all around, that lacks some refinement, but the X series had finally gotten on the right track again. Not that it matters, since Capcom basically did away with the series.
 7.0 out of 10