Cheaper/Better Alternatives

[mdesaleah]

Remember, you can get your Megaman style fix for cheaper and at higher quality if you miss when Capcom used to make good Megaman games more frequently. (Feel free to post more suggestions in this discussion). Especially now that Megaman X Dive NFTs are going to be a thing, Capcom does not deserve $30

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1029210/30XX/

(clearly made by fans of the X games, now as a roguelike but also includes its own level editor. A sequel to 20XX but also pretty standalone if you dont like the Flash style of 20XX).

https://store.steampowered.com/app/388800/Azure_Striker_Gunvolt/

(series started by the developers of Mega Man Zero series, ZX series, 9, and 10. Closer to Zero series, but with a more emphasized score attack focus as the games can be pathetically easy for beginners or incredibly difficult depending on what you choose to use and how you play. You wont get the typical X or Zero style character in any of these, but you do get new character movesets that fit the score attack well)

[Mavrickindigo]

Don't forget Gravity Circuit, Rosenkruezestillette, and Tayal.

[mdesaleah]

Originally posted by TikTikKobold:

Don't forget Gravity Circuit, Rosenkruezestillette, and Tayal.

Yeah, leave as many suggestions if they fit the Megaman style.

Cause its a shame Megaman gets all the attention due to its recognition, while Capcom overprices their mobile releases, mistreats the series, and expects everyone to buy it because its Megaman instead of making an actual new game in the series.

[Deep Weeb]

Even Mighty No. 9 is better than this, with gameplay that actually resembles Mega Man and requires some skill instead of mindless number-crunching, goes for extremely cheap these days AND it actually has an online multiplayer mode!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/314710/Mighty_No_9/

And also the Mighty Gunvolt side games:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/394600/Mighty_Gunvolt/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/774651/MIGHTY_GUNVOLT_BURST/

[mdesaleah]

I kind of include Mighty Gunvolt under the Gunvolt series, but since it plays so differently it can count as its own series too.

MN9 itself is pretty mediocre, but yeah better than XDive in terms of not just being bland level design, auto lock-on for everything, and focusing more on equipment than being fun.

Burst is definitely worth playing for Classic style Mega Man fans though. The sub-weapon customizing is really in depth.

[Casual Amateur]

Already got all of it ahead of times. During discount sell before offline x dive news come out. Wahahahah.

[CrowRising]

"Better" is subjective, though personally I do enjoy the other Mega Man games and the Gunvolt series more than X DiVE. Granted though, that's based on my experience with the terrible Online version, and since the Offline version isn't out yet everyone else is operating under the same bias. Given how much of a labor of love X DiVE clearly was for the devs and the fact that the aggressive monetization seems to be being ripped out in favor of a simple up front cost, I'm optimistic about this turning out to be the superior way to play the game and a good slap in the face to the predatory free to play model in general.

While I'm here though, I do want to take the opportunity to recommend the Shantae series for being really decent Metroidvanias with fun and quirky storylines and fun gameplay. The Castlevania Advance Collection is a pretty good grab too, and COGEN: Sword of Rewind is pretty fun as well.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/345820/Shantae_and_the_Pirates_Curse/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1552550/Castlevania_Advance_Collection/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1514380/COGEN_Sword_of_Rewind__COGEN/

[Null_User]

Also if you hurry, there's a MegaMan legacy bundle at a good discount right now.
https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/33860/MEGA_MAN_SUMMER_PACK/
If you cannot buy now, I wouldn't be surprised if a similar discount shows up later down this year, maybe for Winter.

[William Shakesman]

People defending Gunvolt 1 and 2 but claiming MN9 is mediocre is weird to me.

[William Shakesman]

Originally posted by CrowRising:

"Better" is subjective, though personally I do enjoy the other Mega Man games and the Gunvolt series more than X DiVE. Granted though, that's based on my experience with the terrible Online version, and since the Offline version isn't out yet everyone else is operating under the same bias. Given how much of a labor of love X DiVE clearly was for the devs and the fact that the aggressive monetization seems to be being ripped out in favor of a simple up front cost, I'm optimistic about this turning out to be the superior way to play the game and a good slap in the face to the predatory free to play model in general.

While I'm here though, I do want to take the opportunity to recommend the Shantae series for being really decent Metroidvanias with fun and quirky storylines and fun gameplay. The Castlevania Advance Collection is a pretty good grab too, and COGEN: Sword of Rewind is pretty fun as well.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/345820/Shantae_and_the_Pirates_Curse/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1552550/Castlevania_Advance_Collection/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1514380/COGEN_Sword_of_Rewind__COGEN/

I'm kinda curious how good X DIVE is now that you mention that. The trailer looked fairly soulless, everything blasted in one shot with damage numbers, but if you're that impressed by it you have my attention.

Shantae is alright but SatPC is the only one I would consider playable. If you're expanding the criteria out to just straight up metroidvanias then I'd have to recommend Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom, easily one of the best metroidvanias I have ever played. Yes, better than Hollow Knight.

How did COGEN turn out? The brief demo... or was it a refund... I played seemed unimpressive but I could definitely have been wrong about that.

[mdesaleah]

Originally posted by William Shakesman:

Originally posted by CrowRising:

"Better" is subjective, though personally I do enjoy the other Mega Man games and the Gunvolt series more than X DiVE. Granted though, that's based on my experience with the terrible Online version, and since the Offline version isn't out yet everyone else is operating under the same bias. Given how much of a labor of love X DiVE clearly was for the devs and the fact that the aggressive monetization seems to be being ripped out in favor of a simple up front cost, I'm optimistic about this turning out to be the superior way to play the game and a good slap in the face to the predatory free to play model in general.

While I'm here though, I do want to take the opportunity to recommend the Shantae series for being really decent Metroidvanias with fun and quirky storylines and fun gameplay. The Castlevania Advance Collection is a pretty good grab too, and COGEN: Sword of Rewind is pretty fun as well.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/345820/Shantae_and_the_Pirates_Curse/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1552550/Castlevania_Advance_Collection/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1514380/COGEN_Sword_of_Rewind__COGEN/

I'm kinda curious how good X DIVE is now that you mention that. The trailer looked fairly soulless, everything blasted in one shot with damage numbers, but if you're that impressed by it you have my attention.

Shantae is alright but SatPC is the only one I would consider playable. If you're expanding the criteria out to just straight up metroidvanias then I'd have to recommend Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom, easily one of the best metroidvanias I have ever played. Yes, better than Hollow Knight.

How did COGEN turn out? The brief demo... or was it a refund... I played seemed unimpressive but I could definitely have been wrong about that.

X Dive is really as shallow as it looks. But if you want to try it, the free Online version is still up. Just dont expect varying level design, and do expect a ton of grind for resources to upgrade weapons so that your damage numbers can compare to enemies in later levels.

Id say list more Megaman styled games, so something Castlevania Advance wouldnt really work since its a metroidvania collection, but the Anniversary Collection could work since classic Castlevania and Mega Man overlap better.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1018010/Castlevania_Anniversary_Collection/

Cogen looks fun. Definitely no Gunvolt or 30XX when it comes to a Mega Man style game, but it still looks decent.

[CrowRising]

Originally posted by William Shakesman:

I'm kinda curious how good X DIVE is now that you mention that. The trailer looked fairly soulless, everything blasted in one shot with damage numbers, but if you're that impressed by it you have my attention.

Impressed isn't exactly the word I would use, but as far as spinoffs go I consider it to be pretty satisfying. ...To a point.

My primary issue with it is the aggressive monetization in the Online version that's already out. While progression is fairly comfortable early on and it's easy to get into a fairly enjoyable gameplay loop (if you're willing to look past the 360 degree aiming with optional auto lock on), but eventually your progress gets consistently stunted by a lack of having good enough stats and the only reliable method to get strong characters is to cash in to do 10 pulls and hope you get a character you want or at least one that can do the job you need them to do, since not all characters are equally powerful even within the same rank.

While the Offline version does remove the multiplayer modes and crossover characters, it also removes the aggressive monetization and gacha elements entirely in favor of an up front cost. There's no in-app purchases of any kind, which has me feeling very optimistic about it.

Originally posted by William Shakesman:

How did COGEN turn out? The brief demo... or was it a refund... I played seemed unimpressive but I could definitely have been wrong about that.

The game is overall rather unimpressive, though it still manages to be an enjoyable experience and the DLC characters are very fun and interesting as well with their own unique twists on the gameplay formula. Just keep in mind that after you beat their DLC levels you can play as the DLC characters in the main stages, and they are very overpowered there and achievements will unlock as though you were playing as Kohaku.

[sumolagann]

I'd definitely recommend the gunvolt series to everyone if you haven't played them.

[Casual Amateur]

Maybe you guy like playing (One Step From Eden). That play very similar to Mega Man battle network.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/960690/One_Step_From_Eden/

I do recall there is earlyer verison of 30XX. I call 20XX instead.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/322110/20XX/

[mdesaleah]

Surprised Protodroid Delta hasn’t been mentioned.

It’s closer to X7 since it’s 3D, but it seems actually good

[CrowRising]

Originally posted by mdesaleah:

Surprised Protodroid Delta hasn’t been mentioned.

It’s closer to X7 since it’s 3D, but it seems actually good

I haven't played it, but I have seen some gameplay. It seems a bit inspired by the Mega Man Legends series specifically, which I also have not played but seems to be rather popular.

I've always held the opinion that there's nothing stopping a fun 3D Mega Man X style game from existing other than it just not getting made. There's been gameplay formulas similar enough to it in 3D that are popular for quite some time now, such as Metroid Prime and Mega Man Legends. It's just a matter of implementation.