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Better than the last few games, but still old and tired...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 4 / 8
Date: February 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I have to shake my head in utter disbelief at how far the Mega Man X series has fallen from its glory days on the SNES and it's first outing, X4, for the PSX. Then again it's really not hard to see why looking at the last few games, but I can't fathom how Capcom let this happen...

Mega Man X8 does manage to make many improvments over it's prevoius predecessors. First and most notably is the revamping of the tag team system started in X7. Now when one of your characters bites the big one, the other jumps in and continues the fight (which didn't happen in X7), and the ability do tag team moves (which includes a impressive ripoff the Matrix movies due to its look) and revive fallen comrades through use of the attack gauge which fills when you combo, is a welcome change.

X8 also ditches any attempt of going into full-out 3D gameplay like X7 (which we all know was a complete failure). Only two stages (the hover bike levels) break the 2D game with 3D graphics design. The voice acting is also a huge improvement over X6 (which didn't include english voice acting at all) and X7 (which had english voice acting but was horrid).

Unfotunately, these improvements can't hide the fact the rest of the gameplay has been recycled over half a dozen times. Almost all of X8's stages can be compared to level concepts in previous games, which is only natural considering the series is over ten years old, but it's just a little too obvious when you get that feeling of deja vu, or when your asking yourself why your even playing this game in first place.

This feeling is enforced further by the fact Capcom went to the trouble of ressurecting one of the more "classic" and "cooler" Mega Man X villians (I'm not gonna tell you and ruin it for you, but who really cares at this point?) for this installment, but you'll ultimately realize bringing this character back from the junk heap (for the second freakin time mind you!) is just another sorry ploy to arouse player interest and avoid having to put to much creativity and thought into creating new villians. Storywise, X8 has a better plot than many of the prevoius games, but that really doesn't matter as Capcom never really gave any of the X games a truly great story or a twist you talk about for years to come (well they did come close in X5 with the whole Zero thing, but they screwed that up in X6).

X8 is not a bad game, but it definaitely is not a great game in any way, shape, or form. If your just getting into Mega Man X, do yourself the biggest favor (and save some money) and buy Mega Man X4 for the PSX (which is the best game in the series in my opinion, and is a greatest hit - I wonder why that is?) If your a fan, you probably already have that, but I honestly can't recommend buying X8 for it's retail price of $40 (no, wait, $39.95). The game is honestly not worth buying for that much. Wait for price to come down, buy a used one, rent it, or borrow it off a friend that bought it.

Hopefully X9 will be the last game in the series (cause their was only nine original Mega Man games, excluding the Game Boy games and side games - it would make sense). If Capcom is not going to let the game evolve beyond it's tired and true boundries, or even add somekind of two player mode, then I rather the series be put out of its misery that countinue making so-and-so sequels.

Recommended for 8 and under

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 7
Date: August 12, 2005
Author: Amazon User

The game wass short lived, my son completed the game within a couple hours of receiving it and has not played it since. However, he stayed with it until he finished it.

Better than X7, But Still Not As Good as it Could've Been

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: April 23, 2005
Author: Amazon User

It's sad to watch a series that was as good as Mega Man X slide into the ruin it's been sliding into for the last few years. Mega Man X8 works hard to revive what was once a great series. The problem is, the series may be a bit too tarnished after the last three installments. That means Mega Man X8 has to work hard for forgiveness. The good news is that it is better than X7. The bad news? The game could've been so much better.

The Jakob Project, an effort to get humans to the moon away from the repolid war, is in danger. Sigma (it's always Sigma) has threatened the leader of this project, Lumine. As usual, it's up to X and company to stop him.

The Mega Man X series has never been much for plot, and in X8 it's no different. While there is story, and it tries hard to be a satisfying one, it just isn't all that great. If you've been with Mega Man X since the first one, you probably aren't as interested in the storyline as you are in the actual action of the gameplay. Newcomers to the series might like the story telling aspect, but for those who've been with Mega Man in general since the 80's know that a game can hold together if it's a lot of fun.

Mega Man X8 has unique gameplay mechanics. It's really no different than the basic gameplay presented in the very first Mega Man X game. It's basically run and gun. Anything that's in your way you shoot and kill. You'll select a level to go into, march your way through and defeat the big bad boss at the end. The difference is you can do this in a tag team style way. Before each level you'll be given a choice of two characters you want to take into a level and a navigator. There's X, Zero and Axl, and they all have their own distinct abilities. X is no different than he has been in previous games. Zero has his Z-Saber as well as a multitude of other weapons and Axl has a rapid fire weapon and can hover in the air. Unlike previous games, the characters begin with abilities they'd otherwise have to acquire. For example, Zero begins the game with his double jump rather than you actually having to acquire it.

In each level you can switch between your two characters at the click of a button. If one character is low on health, you can switch. Likewise, if one character dies, the other steps in and fights the rest of the battle out. The only time this doesn't happen is if it's a one hit kill.

There have also been some unique changes to the gameplay. You now collect metals in each level. Similar to the Mega Man Zero games, you can exchange them for items. Energy bottles to restore health, powerups for your characters and more. The game also has rare metals. These are metals that will let you purchase bigger and better abilities for your characters. One, for example, might be another weapon for Zero. Another might be a sub tank. You'll also spend metals to increase a characters health or weapon capacity.

The game isn't without fault, and unfortunately, despite all the unique treatment the game has gone through that could make elements better, the faults of this game are more than enough to frustrate gamers. For one, the game is very challenging. Difficulty usually makes a game a lot of fun to play. The problem with Mega Man X8's difficulty is that too much of it derives from trial and error. In one instance you're supposed to jump into a pit, but you'll meet an untimely death because of the spikes below which there's no foreshadowing. In previous Mega Man X games, this was not a problem. They were hard, but not unreasonable, and I never had to go through several trial and error moments. The difficulty doesn't help the game, it only frustrates. Mix that with the unreasonable "retry" system instead of actually having lives. You only get five retries (and you have to buy three of them) and if you use them all, then you have to re-enter the level and start from the very beginning. This didn't bug me as much, seeing as how most levels are short anyway, but with the trial and error moments, you'll blow through most of your retries.

The level design of most of these levels is also not up to par. The main problem stemming from the levels where you ride vehicles. They move fast, and you don't. It's too easy to fall into a pit and die in one of them. Again, there are also plenty of trial and error moments there too, and these moments really degrade the game. Finally, the bosses aren't creative enough. Many of them just aren't really fun to battle against, and the abilities and weapons you get from them aren't exciting. Most of these weapons (save perhaps for some of Axl's) aren't going to be of much use to you. You're better off using your default shot than anything you'll get from the bosses.

Graphically, Mega Man X8 doesn't look too bad. Not the best graphics out there, but the game is still nice to look at. It's also fast paced with few frame rate issues (they don't come until the last level). If you're looking for a 3D side scroller that looks good, you've certainly found it for Mega Man X8. I can't say the same for the music unfortunately. Most of the voice acting is bad. At least Mega Man actually sounds like a guy in this one. This doesn't mean other voices are good. All the main characters have fairly good voices. Other characters, such as the bosses, have terrible voices. The minor characters didn't seem to be of any importance, and it shows in their voices. The level music isn't all that exciting either. There are maybe one or two good tracks (Sigma's Palace, for instance), but nothing remarkably special. Which is strange seeing as how even the Mega Man X games that aren't well liked (such as X5) even had good music.

As unique as Capcom made Mega Man X8, it can't quite live up to previous installments. The game serves its purpose as fan service, but doesn't have enough quality. From the trial and error moments to the not so special story, Mega Man X8 is only sending the series further into ruin. It's much better than Mega Man X7, and has a lot of secrets to unearth (more than even Mega Man X3), but it's just not a satisfying experience.

The Good
+The game, for the most part, doesn't look bad
+Some tweaks to the gameplay are very helpful
+Tag teaming works
+Plenty of extra secrets to unearth
+For a Mega Man game, the length is pretty satisfying, actually taking more than ten hours to do everything there is to be done.

The Bad
-Frustrating difficulty
-Way too many trial and error moments
-Level design isn't good
-Lame bosses
-Lame voices
-The music isn't really all that great

So while there are some pretty neat tweaks to the gameplay, it can't save Mega Man X8. What had potential to be a truly remarkable game, is nothing of the sort at all.

Garbage .... well thats an understatement

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: December 18, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I quit playing Megaman games back at Megaman X3. Not that the games where getting at all bad, just repetitive. X8 keeps it real to the side-scrolling shooting fest. However its far too frustrating. Reason -being all the minigames. I don't know what else to call them. You know how previous Megaman games had a couple of stages where you start off in a ship or something other than the normal routine ? Well now ALL the stages are like that. Sooner or later you'll have to do some petty cheap jump and dodge game. Megaman isn't made for that. He can dash and jump, considering we aren't shooting thats about it. I gave the game an extra star for having tons of cool aspects. But considering the game has no difficulty settings, most will never get to use them.

Its Better Than X8....but the road to recovery is gonna be long.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 5
Date: March 11, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This Game overall is a 4 of 10....and i'm a real fan, im not letting the graphics fool me, the gameplay has sum kinx to work out....for starters: WHERE ARE ALL THE HEALTH CAPSULES?????? during the game i probably get like 1 or two capsules, i mean yea u can tag in ur partner, but wat happens when your both low on life, i mean it would have been alright if while ur fighting your partner's life gradually rises, but no....dont get me wrong though, after x6 and x7, i thought it was over, but x8 did surprise me...the graphics r excellent and i like the tag team method, but still jus like x6, TOOO HARD, at least for me...i beat x4 and x5, those were challenging ,x6 dont get me started on...

all in all, rent it before you buy it, just to be sure, this game might not be for everybody

Fun but yeah it isnt perfect.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 4
Date: September 12, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I got this game for christmas 2004 and loved it but I should have got X7. X7 looks better and is better than this. I still like this game but I wanna get x7.

Pros: Back to the roots, sweet dauble team attacks, sweet power ups.

Cons: They haven't put Bass (my fav Megaman character of all time) in the X series, frustrating at times, hard boss battles, mediorce voice acting (english ones), graphics arent good as X7.

Graphics: 7/10: Well, of course, x7 looked better. But these graphics aint bad. But I would have been more amazed if these graphics were used in the past (not megaman past, gaming past).

Sound: 5/10: While the music is good. The voice acting is terrible. English voice acting, to be honest. But if there is a japanese track sound might go up to 8/10.

Gameplay: 8/10: Ain't perfect but fun!........ But hard. The game can be a bit frustrating at times but the game is still fun. BUT X7 is better! Axl has his guns, which I think arent very strong but makes up for the rapid bulltes. X has his buster cannon, which is strong and gets crazey at full power when a laser comes (not the standard armor) but cannot aim upwards. Zero has his Z- Saber which is used for close combat. But some bosses will attack at close-range so it might give Zero quite a while to solve the problem.

Story:....... I forgot the story.

Overall: Megaman X8 is a fun game but it has shortcomings. Be ready for this game when you buy it.

Same formula with some interesting changes

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 7 / 10
Date: March 28, 2006
Author: Amazon User

In broad strokes, this Mega Man X game is like all the others. You have a first level that indicates a problem, then 8 bosses with accompanying stages, and finally, two or three stages with bosses until a final showdown. As usual there are some good songs/music, background graphics, and boss challenges that make the Mega Man series the success that they are.

What is different is that you can pick two Maverick Hunters to go into each stage, just like in 7, however this is relatively new to the "X" games, no pun intended but I'll take it. Also you get "chips" for beating enemies that can be spent to give the three characters upgrades. There are also secret areas in each stage and I had to use the Gamefaqs website to find them all.

X8 is another fun game like all the other Mega Man X games. This time, too, a surprise end boss makes the ending a little different. This is overall a solid effort on Capcom's part.

Everything X7 should have been

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: August 24, 2005
Author: Amazon User

The world of "Mega Man" is becoming more and more convuluted every day, it seems. Five different alternate timelines and sets of characters is enough to make the mind boggle alone, but the fact that most of those timelines feature at least 5 games to their credit is downright daunting.

That said, X8 is a true reward for true fans--if you've stuck by the Blue Bomber for this long and managed to endure hiccups like X6 and X7, then you're probably a worthy candidate for this game. If not, well, as with most Mega Man games, it's really not going to offer much in the way of newness. The basic formula here hasn't changed since Mega Man 8-bit debut on the NES in 1987--pick a boss, go through his stage, kill said boss, retrieve said boss's special weapon, and use it to kick the crap out of the next boss you pick. It's dressed up in a nicer suit now than when the series first debuted, to be sure, but it's the same thing underneath.

Straight-up platform gaming done right is always, by its very definition, a challenge. Such is the case with this game--even on its Normal mode, the learning curve is fairly steep. On Hard mode, unless you know the boss's patterns from rote, it's nearly impossible to get anywhere.

The developers have added a little bit to the title in terms of replayability by inserting scores of secret items in the levels that you'll have to work very diligently to find, but this doesn't do quite enough to make it a lasting experience. The most fun bit by far is that you can save your clear data from a game that you beat into a new file to play the game over again, but this time with your upgraded weapons and such already intact. It's a big help when you start into a game on Hard mode.

The voice acting is actually quite good this time around also. Seems as if Capcom has finally settled on X, Zero, and Axl's voices being fairly teenage in nature--in fact, the only really grating voice in the game is that of one of the new "navigators" (a support character who gives you tips throughout the level).

So the overall point, I guess, is don't pick this up unless you like an old-school challenge. You will, most likely, die. A lot.

Great fun for MegaMan fans!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: August 27, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I bought this for my 9-year old son on his birthday. He loves MegaMan and really enjoyed this game. The graphics and gameplay are much improved over the past two MegaMan games. It brings together the spirit of the early games in MegaMan Anniversary Collection with slick 3-D graphics. The only downside is that it is pretty easy in "Easy" mode and my son completed the game relatively fast. Other than that, its a great buy!

Capcom Does it Right

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: January 16, 2005
Author: Amazon User

After the tired X5, the frustrating X6, and the "Nice try, but no dice" X7, Capcom went back to the drawing board. The end result is Mega Man X8, a vastly improved title and potentially the best X game since X4.

In the future, the humans are on the losing end of the war between mankind and reploids, sentient robots. To escape obliteration, humanity seeks to establish a moon colony. They embark on the Jakob Project, a program to construct a space elevator to the moon. For whatever reason, the humans decide they need next-generation reploids to complete the project and wouldn't you know it? They go maverick. Enter X, Zero, and Axl to defeat the rebellion and find the source of the evil - an answer long-time fans of the series may find unexpected.

Although X7 took the side scrolling series into full 3D, it was marred by poor camera work, loose controls, and it lacked the fluidity of the classic titles. In X8, Capcom kept the 3D aspect, but locked the camera and combat on a rail. You heard right - this is a 3-D side scroller, a concept visited in other titles like Klonoa: Door to Phantomile and Kirby 64.

Graphically, the game captures the spirit and stylized anime designs of the robots nicely. The only real qualm is that early levels, like the gorgeous Noah's Park, look far better than the final levels - which appear rushed.

Audibly, it has a great selection of tunes in the same melodic power rock style other X games have. The voice acting here is vastly improved over the previous title, though still not perfect.

Gameplay, though, is where X8 really excels. This is just like the SNES X games, so expect lots of wall jumping, shooting, and instakill deaths. The controls are razor-sharp. X8 is difficult, but not frustratingly so. If you die, you'll know exactly why you did and how to not die the next time.

X8 is marred by two poorly-executed driving stages. Though better than the driving stage in X7, these are still half-realized ideas. Why Capcom insists on these strange diversion levels is still unknown, but they hurt what's an otherwise strong presentation.

Although X8 does a lot correctly, it ironically loses to itself when it comes to value. X8 pales in comparison to the Mega Man Anniversary Collection, which costs ten dollars less and delivers ten classic Mega Man games. But, if you've played that to death and want more side scrolling action, look no further than X8 to satisfy your hunger.

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