Mega Man ZX Advent explained

Developer:Inti Creates
Publisher:Capcom
Director:Ryota Ito
Yuujirou Hayakawa
Producer:Takuya Aizu
Takeshi Horinouchi
Keiji Inafune
Designer:Kinshi Ikegami
Masahiro Mizukoshi
Satoru Nishizawa
Programmer:Akihiro Shishido
Artist:Makoto Yabe
Composer:Ippo Yamada
Masaki Suzuki
Ryo Kawakami
Kōji Hayama
Luna Umegaki
Akari Kaida
Genre:Action, platform, Metroidvania
Modes:Single-player, multiplayer
Series:Mega Man ZX
Platforms:Nintendo DS

is a 2007 action-platform game developed by Inti Creates and published by Capcom for the Nintendo DS. The game was first released in Japan on July 12, 2007; in North America on October 23, 2007; in Europe on February 29, 2008; and in Australia on March 5, 2008.

Part of the Mega Man franchise, the game is a sequel to Mega Man ZX. ZX Advent follows two new protagonists, Grey and Ashe, as they battle with various enemy "Mega Men", the infamous Model W, and their own destinies.[1] The gameplay sees a multitude of expansions, including twice as many playable forms. The North American localization also includes a full English voice cast.[2]

The game was re-released as part of the Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection, on February 25, 2020, and February 27, 2020, in Japan, for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and Microsoft Windows.

Plot

Story

The story focuses on the chosen wielder of a Biometal, known in Japan as Live Metal (ライブメタル Raibumetaru), advanced technology that is capable of Mega-Merging with its wielder and absorbing DNA from defeated enemies. The story varies slightly depending on the character the player chooses to play: if Grey is chosen by the player, the story begins with Grey waking up in an Abandoned Laboratory; if Ashe is chosen, the story begins with Ashe who is the member of Hunters. The remainder of the story follows the same storyline.

Characters

Advent features a very large cast of characters both new to the series and returning from the first ZX, including the two main protagonists, eight Mega Men, the Sage Trinity, and eight Pseudoroids. A majority of the cast is playable by copying their forms with A-Trans, and thus, these characters are outlined in detail below in the corresponding sections.

Mega Men

Humans/Reploids chosen as the Biometals' "Biomatch" are regarded as Mega Men (regardless of the person's gender). Several enemy Mega Men appear throughout the course of Advent who possess the Biometals used from the first ZX.[3] By defeating them in battle, Grey/Ashe is able to copy their forms via A-Trans, but they never actually attain the Biometals.

Pseudoroids

The eight Pseudoroids can also become playable upon destroying them in battle.[4] Although the Biometal forms all use similar abilities (such as dashing and wall climbing), the Pseudoroid forms vary greatly in basic movement and abilities. There are two Pseudoroids to represent each element (fire, ice, and electricity) and two with no element, akin to the first ZX title.

Gameplay

Many of the elements from Mega Man ZX return, including the 2D world and several missions and collection side-quests, as well as much of the gameplay. The players begin the game in their normal forms and can revert to them at any time.[5] [6] Like other games in the ZX series, the game tries to inject metroidvania concepts into the level design, with more exploration elements than the main Mega Man series.[7]

Other features

Advent features several difficulty settings. Beginner simplifies the gameplay by weakening enemy's defenses and attacks and disabling instant-defeat obstacles among other things. By completing the game on Normal, Expert mode can be unlocked, and upon completing it, an extended ending can be viewed. Expert Mode also limits the gameplay for the player in being able to collect only one Sub-Tank, and removing all the Life-Up and Bio-Metal Upgrades.

The dual screen received some upgrades where it now has a secondary screen of allowing the player to switch between forms instantly without having to use the transformation button to help select the form the player wishes to use. Also the weapon energy system has been modified where now all forms share the weapon energy meter, but with the new benefit that aside from weapon energy capsules, the meter can now slowly refill itself over time. Like with the Life Meter it starts off small, but collecting the Bio-Metal Upgrades can expand the maximum weapon energy meter.

The Database from the first ZX returns. Eighty-five secret disks are scattered throughout the game with descriptions and images of the characters and enemies in the game. Several special disks are also featured, including an image of the infamous North American box art for the original NES game. Along with the secret disks, there are several equippable chip items that can enhance the players abilities, such as preventing the effects of wind and ice on the player's footing. A hidden room in the game will also give the player special items for each month of the year.

Furthermore, 24 medals can be collected depending on how the eight Pseudoroids are defeated in battle. Gold, silver, and bronze medals can be received for each Pseudoroid depending on the difficulty of the task involved. Tasks sometimes include what attack or form the enemy is defeated with, what part of their body is attacked, or the amount of time they're defeated in.

The game features a few unlockable mini-games. Quiz Advent requires the player to identify twenty characters with three visual obstructions. A mini-game from the first title, Gem Buster is now only playable between two players over an ad hoc network. Two boss mini-games called Survival Road and Boss Battle can be unlocked. Finally, Mega Man a (the "a" standing for "ancient" or "antique") is an imitation of the original 8-bit Mega Man games on the Nintendo Entertainment System using ZX characters and music. The Model a character can also be used in the main game as a result of New Game Plus, but only if the player obtained the 24 aforementioned medals in the previous game, but unlike the other forms, it can only be accessed with the transformation button, instead of the dual-screen transformation ability.

In Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection, much like the original Mega Man ZX, the original dual-screen features have also been changed to a support screen, where its position is based on the setting the player chooses.[8] In addition the new Casual Scenario Mode replaces Beginner Mode, which is activated from the main menu of the collection when selecting this game which serves the same purpose.

Audio

Rockman ZX Advent Soundtrack -ZXA Tunes- is the second remastered soundtrack album to be released for the Mega Man ZX series released on August 30, 2007, by Inti Creates. Unlike the first soundtrack, ZX Tunes, which was first released in limited numbers, ZXA Tunes was released nationwide immediately in Japan. Capcom's online store also provided a limited edition bonus for pre-ordering the soundtrack: a ZX Advent mousepad featuring ZXA heroine Ashe "crashing" in ZX hero Vent's pad.[9]

Rockman ZX Soundsketch "ZX Gigamix" is the third album to be created for the Mega Man ZX series, released on April 30, 2008, by Inti Creates. Among the album are Soundsketches and ZX portraits; these are drama tracks that provide insight to events in the Mega Man ZX series. Composer Ippo Yamada explains a Soundsketch as "when you listen carefully in a room that seems silent, you can hear all sorts of sounds like the hum of appliances, the tick of a clock and the environment outside the window."[10]

Reception

Critical reaction to the game has been mostly positive. IGN stated, "It's a fairly long and deep experience, though it's by no means a perfect game. However, the good certainly outweighs the bad, and we can't help but recommend this game as a result." GameSpot cited the main problem as the game's difficulty being a bit too high for the casual gamer. Game Informer magazine gave the game an overall score of 7 out of 10 praising the easier game navigation and the ability to transform into boss characters after defeating them and they felt that Mega Man ZX Advent was entertaining because of how the game sticks to the basics like the classic Mega Man games.[11]

Mega Man ZX Advent was the tenth-best-selling game in Japan during its release week at 21,379 units sold.[12] 63,977 units of the game were sold in the region by the end of 2007.[13]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Mega Man ZX Advent North American instruction booklet. 2007-10-23.
  2. Web site: IGN: Mega Man ZX Advent Preview . Craig Harris . . 2007-04-14 . 2020-11-29 . 2021-04-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210418021502/https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/04/14/mega-man-zx-continues . live .
  3. Web site: Your Biometals! Let me take them from you!. Atomic Fire. Kosmos. 2007-06-13. 2007-06-14. 2007-09-27. https://web.archive.org/web/20070927034145/http://www.atomic-fire.com/index.php?subaction=showcomments&id=1181711509&archive=&start_from=&ucat=21&. live.
  4. Web site: Mega Man ZX Advent :: DS Game Review . Kidzworld . 2009-04-03 . 2009-02-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090207184640/http://www.kidzworld.com/article/10533-mega-man-zx-advent-ds-game-review . live .
  5. Web site: Additional ZXA Tidbits . Heat Man . Atomic-Fire . 2007-04-15 . 2007-04-24 . 2007-09-27 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070927033826/http://atomic-fire.com/index.php?subaction=showcomments&id=1176661921&archive=&start_from=&ucat=21& . live .
  6. Web site: 「デンゲキニンテンドーDS」にて『ロックマンゼクス アドベント』の必殺技名を募集! . Dengeki Online . 2007-04-21 . 2007-04-24 . 2007-04-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070430233610/http://www.dengekionline.com/data/news/2007/4/21/0bb986244e5bd429045dc9f80c9c07c6.html . live .
  7. Web site: Saavedra . John . 2020-02-27 . Mega Man Zero ZX Legacy Collection Review . 2023-01-02 . Den of Geek . en-US . 2023-01-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230102021735/https://www.denofgeek.com/games/mega-man-zero-zx-review/ . live .
  8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P3RQFWfW64&feature=emb_logo Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection - Announce Trailer
  9. Web site: Musical Advent . Heat Man . Atomic Fire . 2007-07-09 . 2007-07-09 . 2007-07-12 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070712145059/http://www.atomic-fire.com/index.php?subaction=showcomments&id=1183960759&archive=&start_from=&ucat=9& . live .
  10. Web site: Just what is a sound sketch? . Heat Man . Mega Man Network . 2008-04-22 . 2008-05-11 . 2008-05-20 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080520071932/http://blue-bomber.jvmwriter.org/community/index.php?showtopic=1313 . live .
  11. Mega Man ZX Advent Review. . dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20080214134723/http://www.gameinformer.com/NR/exeres/91B4F36C-21B8-4255-A7D2-882EF32DD260.htm. February 14, 2008. December 4, 2020.
  12. Web site: Jenkins, David . July 20, 2007 . Clean Sweep For Nintendo Formats In Japanese Charts . . 2010-06-13 . 2021-10-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211024012702/https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/14767/Clean_Sweep_For_Nintendo_Formats_In_Japanese_Charts.php . live .
  13. Web site: 2007年テレビゲームソフト売り上げTOP500(ファミ通版) . Geimin.net . ja . 2010-06-13 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151017183611/http://geimin.net/da/db/2007_ne_fa/index.php . October 17, 2015 .