It was a lot of time since a played a good side-scrolling game, and its good that I played this, because is so a classic of the gaming industry that never gets od, and with this music and simple gameplay that makes megaman a jewel of the games, this is a game that you need to buy

If you enjoyed the early Mega Man games (Who didn't?), then Mega Man 9 is almost a required purchase. The game offers the same classic graphics, you know, the ones that younger teenages say "That game looks like crap! COD is so much better graphix!!".

With the classic visuals, incredible soundtrack, and side-scrolling greatness comes the inevitable Mega Man difficulty level. It's ridiculously hard, and I bow down to those who've earned all achievements, let alone a single one. I've beaten one level since the day the game was released, and I still go back to it and get my ass kicked.

If you want a challenge, and you enjoy an old-school style of gaming, this is surely a safe bet for your MS Points!

You know what you're getting with Mega Man 9 if you've ever played an earlier title. I didn't know how I felt about the 8-bit graphics, especially given that I liked the look of the 16-bit sequels. That said, it looks strong here.

I originally scoffed at the difficulty complaints. For the most part, I had no issues with the original 8 robot masters. The final stages are another story entirely. Extremely difficult, sometimes bordering on cheap, but never feeling IMPOSSIBLE. This is a game that rewards those who keep trying and are willing to remember patterns.

It's worth noting that the XBLA version has some graphical issues. While this is apparently not true on every TV, the game overscans for me. It's the only XBLA title I have that does this. The top and bottom of the screen are cut off, although nothing important is missing.

Additionally, the game seems slightly zoomed in. On the Wii the sprites are jagged and sharp. On 360 (HD or not), they're a bit softer. I found this a bit disappointing, but the game still looks good and is more than playable.

I also felt a bit taken advantage of with all of the DLC. Additions are one thing, but difficulty levels? Really?

I will say that the Endless Mode DLC is worthwhile, though.

Still hate the difficulty of the game, but still when I want to play an old game like Mega Man I don't have to wait 5 hours to play it because I have to keep cleaning it and such.

Fans of the MegaMan series should be delighted by this offering of a brand-new installment in the original series. 8-bit graphics, sound and difficulty make this a blast from the past even though it's completely new.

Some might find this difficult, especially if you're new to this series, but after playing this through several times and replaying some of the old ones, this fits in nicely. Some additions, such as the use of items go a long way in making this an easier affair.

My only complaint is that they released additional DLC for this game that costs money. It would have been nice if some of these modes (Protoman, Hard mode) had just been included with game.

Overall, though, it's a great game, worth every cent for fans of the MegaMan series.

some hate the difficulty level, but i viewed it as more of a challenge. The controls were spot on and felt like all the older games. this is actually one of my games of the year

Bringing back 8-bit sprites is always okay it my book, plus, IT"S MEGA MAN!! I'm not sure what you think, but this game is perfect for the type of guy who still claims mega man 2 is the best game he ever played...

Old school Mega Man returns in an ultra-cool package. It has all the challenge (if not a little harder) of the original NES titles but it also has the ridiculously cool music and simple gameplay we've all come to know and love. By keeping the graphics and feel like Mega Man 2 instead of trying to "upgrade it" with 2.5D, the spirit of what made this series great is celebrated. If finding a Mega Man 3 cartridge seems like a difficult task, I understand, but there's no reason not to pick this up at such a low price. I was expecting this to be $15 so you can imagine how happy I was to know that more people would be able to snag this.

One of the best games to hit XBLA. Capcom going back to it's roots the 8-bit game. Capcom was brave in doing this making a game old school style and they did it grand fashion I'm not sure if anyone can pull this off. The first few levels I played were amazing and challenging. This is what games are supposed to be like. The soundtrack fit in perfectly and the sounds where true. Controls are normal and easy to use. Perfect balance of everything. Well worth the 800 Microsoft points.

The old school Mega Man we loved is back the way it should be! Deff. a must have for any gamer in general, easy to pick up and play but it can get hard for the casual gamers though but they can always decrease the game difficulty so it all works out well in the end.

This game is a great game, and it is very fun... that is for many hardcore players. If you are a casual player, you can always turn down the difficulty, as you most likely will get frustrated from having to memorize what to do. Overall, it's worth a pickup so definitely check out the trial on XBLA.

Mega Man 9 is Capcom’s attempt to return to the roots of one of their most famous franchises. To recreate the feeling of the original NES games the developers imposed mock 8-bit limits into the design of the game. This is an approximation of 8-bit technology is partially created by interpolating NTSC 8-bit graphical limitations across the current HDTV standard resolutions. Other ambience effects include using graphical tiles to create levels as well as paged level sections. The 8-bit approximation is very impressive, but does create some game play issues.

Long time followers of the original Mega Man series will remember that learning the level was just as important to completing the game as learning how to use Mega Man’s special abilities. Memorizing the safe path through a spiked section had always been a component of Mega Man games, but MM9 takes this cheap tactic to a new level. The original games were forced designed around the page frame limitations and created checkpoints within a level as well as a short safe area for the player at the beginning of each section. The level designers of MM9 have decided to use the artificial page frame limitations as a device to increase difficulty rather than design the levels as in the originals. A page frame swap in MM0 often means you must react immediately or die and start at either the beginning of the level or at the occasional checkpoint (and there are far fewer checkpoints in MM9 than in the original titles).

To combat this increased difficulty there is an added save feature as well as an item shop to buy items to help your journey. Unfortunately this does little to help with the negatives of MM9’s game play. Energy tanks do little to protect you from insta-kill spikes or from endless pits and both are quite common in every level. The reduced number of checkpoints also means that to attempt navigating around the spikes which defeated you previously will often require quite a run. Getting past that troublesome set of spikes often ends at a new set of spikes. This ends up with MM9 getting tedious quickly.

Out of my own curiosity I compared MM9 to my favorite 8-bit counterpart Mega Man 4 on an original cartridge in an original NES. While MM4 had a few sections designed to simply frustrate the player the game was much less difficult overall. MM9 forces you much farther back in a level upon death and relies of insta-kill devices much more often than in MM4. It seems Capcom has deliberately increased the difficulty in MM9 in an attempt to separate it from the casual game market. A challenge menu which is similar, but in addition, to achievements also suggests a deliberate attempt to avoid the casual tag.

The 8-bit homage is well done and the controls work well with the 360 controller. Unfortunately I have trouble suggesting Mega Man 9 due to the difficulty curve. The difficulty itself is not a reason to avoid MM9, but the dull repetitive replay of levels is a good reason to avoid this game. If you do pick the title up I suggest focusing on a section or level and once completed take a break from the game to avoid boredom. However when the advice to make a game more enjoyable is to stop playing there is a problem.

i tried just the demo version. i don't remember playing the original version. this one is just not for me. maybe if it was 400 points, i would download it just for a challenge. but i gave it a higher rating because of them bringing old school back

Good ol Mega Man. Hard game to beat but it always feels good to take a trip down memory lane

This is a great old-school mega man game. It's hard as balls though. If you are new to mega man you are better off playing mega man 2 first.

I don't understand how one can complain about graphics and difficulty in a mega man game. I am a die hard mega man fan, i have been playing mega man since I was 2 when 3 came out, and I am very pleased with how this turned out. Capcom went and made a game that looks and feels like it was meant to be played on the NES. The game looks like a direct sequel to mega man 6, and the 8-bit music is just as great as ever. The game is extremely difficult, even for the "die-hard" mega man fans, I mean they really want you to die alot in this game, which makes it even better as it is more of a challenge. I have my fingers crossed for mega man 10 or X9 (as long as its not in 3D.

"Painfully difficult" -- and I say that with a smile on my face... with my teeth gnashed so hard, that they're about to break.

This is definitely going to be a niche title, as the levels are absolute brutality. They might even be more difficult than Mega Man and Mega Man 2.

If you feel like punching yourself in the face and smashing your HDTV's screen (via-thrown controller), download this now!

Beating this title will make you feel like you've accomplished something grand, much like the video games of old.

The graphics of this game aren't even good for an 8-bit game. I didn't find the game very fun either.

This arcade verision was just not up to par with the rest of the megaman series. It could have been a lot better

It's just my opinion, but MM9 is not a good game. I was in college when the first one came out in 1987, so I know about kicking-it-old-school-retro. I own the Anniversary Collection with the MM1-3 games.

It was easy and cheap for Capcom to produce an 8-bit game without nice graphics and widescreen support. With all they hype, they are likely to make plenty of money though, just not off of me.

I've played the game a few times now, and it's just not fun. It is of course designed to be pretty hard. But some of the best games these days are accessible for anyone to play, and this game is not. Really only a small group of die-hard Mega Man fans are going to truly love this game.

What would it have taken for Capcom to make me happy you ask? Good graphics with widescreen HD support and 3 levels of difficulty, so anyone and everyone could enjoy playing this game.