The PlayStation 3 and Vita versions of Street Fighter X Tekken gain two more exclusive characters today - both Namco and Capcom lend their mascots to the battle, but in ways you might not expect... Yes, Pac-Man and Mega Man are indeed tossing their heads/helmets in the ring. These two join Cole (from inFamous) and the Kuro/Toro cats for a total of five Sony-exclusive characters on that platform. However, both 'Men arrive in altered forms, making their appearances in SFxT totally unique to this game.
If you're like me, you may be wondering, "w... why that version of Mega Man?" Well, in the spirit of crossover fun, the dev team wanted both Capcom and Namco's mascots to join the fray in a slightly silly, goofy way. Pac-Man riding Mokujin is about as weird as it can get, so the best equivalent for Mega Man would have to be the so-bad-it's-good-but-still-kinda-bad box art from Mega Man 1 in the US.
Make no mistake though, classic Blue Bomber Mega Man still has a future, and we have Top Men (not Top Man) on the case. December also marks the 25th anniversary of Mega Man, and we'll have more news in the future about our plans for the milestone.
After a one year hiatus, I'm back to spend more of my hard earned cash on you peoples. Miyabi's Legendary Rockman Valentine’s Day Fanart Contest Never Dies!! (Don’t think I’m gonna get 10 dozen strong on that one… ;D )
As in the past, there will be two categories, one that focuses on humor, and one that focuses on talent. This gives you two chances to submit something and win. And once again, these categories were voted on by my deviantART watchers.
PRIZES:
I'll still give you guys the option of picking your prize, so the grand prize winners of each category will be able to choose the prize of their choice, at $40 USD or less. Still haven't gotten a standard Bandai D-Arts X or Kotobukiya Zero? I should be able to foot the bill for it. UDON Megaman Tribute? Sure thing. Got something else in mind you've wanted to get from eBay, but haven't had the cash? I'll do what I can. Want a year subscription to dA? It's yours. As long as it's under $40, it's game. A cash prize through Paypal is also an option.
To go along with that, I have a few Rockman.EXE Xebec production artwork sketches available to distribute. They are from the first season. The choices include one of Blues, Netto, Enzan, Yaito, Devil Roll, and a small army of Metool/Biree viruses. The first place winners have the first choice at one sketch, to have their own piece of the animated series:
The second place winners of each category will be next in line to choose one sketch. They also will receive their choice of a 3-month dA subscription or an Archie Comics Megaman Graphic Novel.
The third place winners will be the last to choose one sketch. And I’ll probably throw in some random Link Battlechips for good measure.
RULES:
Two categories; you are allowed to enter in both if you would like. If you place in one category, you will be automatically disqualified from the other, for reasons of fairness (and to give other people a chance to win a prize).
CATEGORY 1: MEGAMAN DATING FORCE (Humor)
It’s been a rough year for Megaman when it comes to new games. Let’s face it, we all are hoping Capcom will do something different with the character, rather than repeating the same old formula over and over again. So, let’s pretend that the next Megaman game they plan to create ventures into new territory: a dating sim. Your goal for this category is to show us what this dating sim would look like. What do you have to say to get a Robot Master to go out with your character? What gift would you get a NetOp who has fallen for you? Will a marriage between you and your Navigator co-worker keep your bonds strong, or cause disruption when you are just trying to do your job? How do you woo a hot, single mother whose astronaut husband mysteriously vanished in space years ago and has yet to come back home?
Draw a screenshot, a game cover, make a flash, whatever you’d like, as long as it fits with the dating sim theme. Your humor can push the limit a bit, but try not to get too dirty. While there are more mature aspects to relationships, this is not a contest for a porn sim. This theme will work as the humor category, so the judging will focus on the wacky, zany content you come up with.
CATEGORY 2: RIBBONS AND LACE (Talent)
Ribbons, lace, and frilly things have always been synonymous with romance. They can also be really tough to draw! According to history buffs, the relation goes back to the days of the Middle Ages, when knight(man)s battled in tournaments, ladies would tie their scarves or ribbons around the arm or lance of the knight that they favored. So put in every ounce of your strength to draw some Megaman characters decorating for the holiday with their love or dressing up in some exquisite ribbons and lace for their significant other.
The only prerequisite is there must be at least one ribbon or something lacy in the image. Again, nothing dirty. You can be a little risqué, but no blatant nudity is allowed. This theme will work as the talent category, so the judging will focus on the work and effort you put into your piece.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:
- Only submit your own work, as usual. Any character, major or minor, from any series is allowed. Having characters from multiple series are totally allowed. Again, to be fair to all, same-gender groupings are allowed. Humans and robots and reploids and servbots and computer programs and viruses and alien AM/FM beings, etc. all deserve their chance for some lovin', without prejudice!!
- Participants are allowed to submit from all over the world. It’s easier for me to get prizes to US entrants, because international shipping is complicated and pricey, but I’ll do what I can for you guys who aren’t in the States. In some cases, Paypal might be the best option for your winnings.
- Entries do not need to be colored, but it is preferred.
- Please keep all your entries appropriate for most ages. No nudity or extremely suggestive sexual content. No, this is still not a Valentine's hentai contest. Lingerie or skimpy man briefs: I'll allow it. Nekked ladies showing the world what they got: I'll definitely look at them, but they will be disqualified until they get covered up.
- Entries can either be e-mailed to me at rock2125[at]hotmail[dot]com, or you can just PM/note me a link to your pic.
- DO NOT post your pics in this thread, in your fanart threads or dA galleries until the contest is over. This is the fairest way for competitive reasons. I prefer to keep them all secret until the deadline has passed.
- I'll edit a confirmed entry list in this thread when I receive them. So you won't be in the dark about whether or not I've received your entry.
DEADLINE:
The deadline for this contest will be Tuesday, February 14th, by midnight CST. This gives you about a month to get something drawn.
MISCELLANEOUS INFO:
- As usual, If you don't plan to enter, but would like to help me judge, please let me know through note/PM or mention so in this journal. Thanks to all my usual judges, and I’ll gladly let you help with it again if you’re willing.
So, if you have any questions, feel free to let me know. Join in if you'd like and good luck to everyone who enters!
Judges: Rock Miyabi linkfreak131 Protoman Blues Yllisos Zanon ???
It's a new year, my fellow fans of the Megaist of Men. And while last year is probably a year most MegaMan fans want to forget, this year is hopefully one we'd like to remember. Now as many of you know, the Rockman X iOS game had a possible 25th Anniversary Logo attached to it. You know, this one...
Now there is no word on whether or not this is official, but needless to say it isn't doing much for a lot of fans out there. Personally, I think it's a bit lazy. I don't mind the design so much, but I think the color choices are pretty horrendous. However, it's not official and being that I don't have much artistic ability I probably could not design a better one. Or maybe I could.
Or maybe you could!
Thus brings me to the point of this announcement. In my humble & actually kinda arrogant opinion, we have a vast amount of talented artists here on RPM and across the other MegaMan fansites out there. The other mods and I have discussed this and we want to see what you can come up with for a 25th Anniversary Logo for our beloved franchise hero. Now for some rules!
Members are allowed only one entry. However, during the course of the year they are allowed to change their entry if they think of a better design
Entries can be submitted via posting on the official 25th Anniversary Logo Contest post that will be set up in the near future, via the RPM Oekaki Board, or via the RockmanPM group on deviantArt
Hand drawn art and/or sprites are welcome. Be as imaginative as possible and try your best not to copy other people's work
Entries that are pornographic or inappropriate will be admired, probably laughed at quite a bit, but then ultimately deleted and not allowed in due to being pornographic & inappropriate
All entries are due in by October 31st, 2012
Voting will commence on November 1st, 2012 and will last until December 10th, 2012
The winning logo will be announced on December 17th, 2012. The winning logo will be displayed on the RPM front page on December 17th, 2012 for the entire year of the 25th Anniversary
All contest entries will be saved in the Contests folder on the front page, as well as in the RockmanPM deviantArt group
Over the course of the year, the mods and I will discuss other options for prizes, as obviously we're not sure we can fully deliver due to us being a fan site and all. The main idea here is for some fun, some awesome art, and just something to do to celebrate our beloved hero's 25th Anniversary as best we can. There will be more to come on this as we have some time, but what I want is to hear from you. This is just a Protoman Blues idea right now, but I would like to try to involve everyone to the best of my ability, so please please please please PLEASE offer your input, your opinions, your ideas and anything you might like to see come from this.
The Famitsu page mentions that the iOS version is based off a current phone version of the game. Not only will it have touch panel support, but it will also have GameCenter support for a Ranking mode. The game will feature 80 challenges that you can attempt and show off your Rockmantastic skills to everyone (this is similar to achievements or trophies).
The game is said to come out anytime this month. Currently, it's only been announced for the Japanese App Store. A price hasn't been set yet, but we'll let you know if more info shows up.
Perhaps appropriate that we are approaching our hero's birthday, Capcom US head honcho Christian Svensson is trying to alleviate the fans worries that Capcom has no plans to ever touch the franchise again and that they are indeed plans in the works. Now whether or not this is corporate PR bullpoopy or legitimate is up to you. Personally, I do feel that they are thinking about the future of the brand. However, my problem is that I think they'll come to the same conclusion that I have, that the franchise is no longer profitable.
I do think there's a way to make the series profitable again, however I don't know if it can be done. Essentially, a franchise needs marketability and Capcom needs to garner new interest in the franchise. There are three prominent ways to do that: movies, TV, and video games. Since a live action movie of Mega Man will not be made, and more or less should not be made, that leaves TV and Video Games. Actually, it only leaves TV since the main problem is that the video games are really no longer profitable and only current Mega Man fans are interested in them, outside of the nostalgic group that might play a downloadable classic series game. But nostalgia will only last for so long. The Mega Man franchise needs something new to build off of, so TV is the answer. Since you cannot make a live action Mega Man TV series, nor should they, the only logical answer is to make a brand new QUALITY Mega Man cartoon series.
I say quality because the NT Warrior cartoon brought over here was just dubbed anime and wasn't really all that good, and as much as I love the RS-MM cartoon for its cheesiness, it's a terrible cartoon. Cartoons like that only interest the MM fanbase, just like the Archie Comic, and do nothing to draw in new fans which is what Capcom has to do. So, if I were Capcom, what I would do is hire the creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender to make a new Mega Man cartoon. Avatar is hands down one of the greatest cartoons ever made, and I do say ever. It has quality writing, fantastic characters & character development, great humor, awesome animation, and essentially everything a good cartoon & series needs. If they could use the same quality to make a new Mega Man cartoon, I think it would be a huge success. They would already have a brand recognizable character and an established fanbase that would watch in us, plus when they slap the "FROM THE CREATORS OF AVATAR" logo in front of it, you would have the interest of the Avatar fans as well. Then hopefully, if the cartoon is indeed good, it will gain interest just like cartoons like Avatar & the new My Little Pony did from totally new fans and well the rest is marketability.
The question is though, do you base a new cartoon off of an established series like the Classic or X series, or do you just make a whole new series all together? Personally, I would just go for an all new series, because if you go with an established series you run the risk of just telling the same old story again, just in newly animated form. If you make a new series, then you'll have new games to base that off of, and you ride the hope that the new fans will also check out some of the older series as well. Either way, it's a long shot, but one that I think has potential. Like I said though, it has to be good. Of course, I'm not in charge of Capcom, so what I say doesn't matter unless I start a petition or something. Heh, maybe I should start a petition, just for the fun of it and see what happens.
Let me start by getting something out of the way. I could have reviewed this book months ago when I received the preview copy, but I genuinely wanted to read it on paper first. And I am glad that I waited.
Story: The story is a continuation of Asteroid blues that introduces the Star Droids in a unique way and combines many elements of Mega Man 8 and Mega Man V. Unlike Gigamix vol.1, Gigamix vol.2 has two separate chapters of the same story, making it a very lengthy and entertaining read. I don’t want to delve to deeply into the plot because I fear it may ruin the experience for you, but I will say that it is unique in that Wily and Light seem to truly be forced to team up to combat the threat of the Star Droids. Also getting to see a different side of Dr.Wily, and younger versions of he and Dr.Light was a unique opportunity. There is a Cutman transformation that is truly awesome, and an explanation for why Dr.Wily and Dr.Light ever decided to work together in the first place.
The story is packed with action and heart, it is an eye opening insight to the world of Ariga's Mega Man that is in line with how I originally viewed the character at a time when the internet didn’t truly exist and I was left to my own devices to interpret the story. This story invokes nostalgia and the desire to see Ariga direct and create the story for any future Mega Man game titles. If only Capcom would hire this man.
This manga is truly worthy of the paper it was printed on. The story is 10 times better than anything Capcom has ever officially given us in the game series. This is mostly due to the outstanding efforts of the Udon translation team. They seem to understand how to give us a story that is not simply translated directly, but instead tailored to an American audience while remaining 100% true to the original source material.
Art: Ariga's artwork has as many robots as possible jam packed into each panel, creating the feeling that even with their combined efforts, they are destined to fail. I was never left wondering what was going on, and each page has amazing detail and clarity. Every time I think Ariga cannot top himself, he goes the extra mile and dominates my brain with imagery that is explosive and complex. The character designs are hyper detailed and show that Mega Man characters can be so much more than the simple way Capcom's artists draw them, it just takes the right amount of imagination, and Ariga's got that in spades.
To sum up the review, I would just say that if you are a Mega Man/Rockman fan and this isn't in your collection, you should get it immediately. Why are you still reading this? Go get it!
Just got word from Matt Moylan about the freshest batch of Udon books that are soon to come!
Matt had this to say:
"MEGA MAN: ROBOT MASTER FIELD GUIDE
This project has been through a lot! It turned out to be a lot more work than expected, has got through a couple total overhauls, and also had a lengthy approval process. But the book is now completed. We have rescheduled the book for
January 2012. It could be ready a bit earlier, but because the book is so late we want to give comic shops the chance to adjust their orders on the book. (As a little background, comic book shops cannot return most unsold books like big chain book stores can, so shop owners appreciate being able to adjust their orders on a late title. “Mom & Pop” comic shops are still a big market for UDON, so we want to take care of those folks when we can.) Thanks all for being patient on this fun little book!
MEGA MAN GIGAMIX VOL.3
The final book in Hitoshi Ariga’s ultimate Mega-manga series is now at the printer. It’s expected to hit stores early November. A more precise date and previews will be coming closer to the release.
MEGA MAN: OFFICIAL COMPLETE WORKS
MEGA MAN: ZERO OFFICIAL COMPLETE WORKS
We are reprinting both of these titles, and they’ll be back in stock before the end of the year. So don’t pay any crazy reseller prices!
MEGA MAN TRIBUTE
Just a note, if you haven’t picked up this book and want a copy before X-mas (for yourself or for a gift) I’d suggest to you order early. Due to some miscommunication, our printed shorted us on this title about 20% less than we wanted for the first printing. We do still have a decent amount in stock, but that could sell out quick closer to the holiday season. Whenever MM Tribute sells out we will do a new printing, but it’s not likely to make it in time for X-mas, so just a heads up!
Also, we have a few new Mega Man projects in the works! Hopefully we can announce some of them soon. Thanks all!"
So there you have it, straight from Udon. What books would you like to see brought over from Japan?
TOM-PON (Naoya Tomita) is a Capcom employee that has been with Capcom way back in the late 80s, where he worked as an artist and designer on a couple of classic Capcom games, including Rockman games, starting with the very first game in the series. A few games to mention he worked on was Rockman, Rockman 2 and Final Fight, among others.
Rockman Unity's own Rockman guru Ucchy took the time to have a video interview with TOM-PON back in March, where he asks things like who came up with the original design for Rockman and what is TOM-PON's favorite stage, and other things.
GregaMan at Capcom Unity took the time to translate the interview and uploading the videos to the Unity account on Youtube. To see the translation, make sure the CC button is activated on the video player. If it isn't showing up, go to the youtube page where the videos are showing up.
Straight from Udon comes three awesome new books! We have a complete works book, an original art tribute book and a Manga. All three will be released on August 10th, 2011. EDIT: All books will see release on Amazon.com and other online retailers about a week after the street date of August 10th. MEGA MAN TRIBUTE SC Hundreds of artists of every imaginable style join forces to show their love for the blue bomber! Featuring over 300 pages of art starring the characters of Mega Man Classic, Mega Man X, Mega Man Zero, Mega Man ZX, and of course, Mega Man Legends! MEGA MAN STAR FORCE OFFICIAL COMPLETE WORKS While Star Force is one of the lesser known Mega Man series, we know it still has plenty of fans, and the artwork behind this series is top notch. Star Force OCW collects the artwork behind all 3 generations of the Star Force games, plus tons of artist notes and creator commentary. MEGA MAN GIGAMIX VOl.2 Volume 1 of Hitoshi Ariga’s latest manga was just a warm-up… Gigamix Vol. 2 is where Gigamix really kicks it into high gear! In this first half of the epic Stardroids saga you’ll see: The destructive power of the Stardroids, Mega Man’s most powerful foes yet! Doctors Wily & Light… on the same side? Rush merges with another robot to form Super_____! (hint, it’s someone besides Mega Man!) Proto Man, Bass, Roll, Dozens of Robots Masters from multiple Mega Man games, and more! It all begins in Mega Man Gigamix Vol.2: “White Nightmare!” Click on each preview pic for a larger size! Thanks to Matt Moylan, Managing Editor at Udon for the preview!
Hot on the heels of the unceremonious cancellation of the Megaman Legends 3 Project for the Nintendo 3DS, the internet is all abuzz with numerous instances of reports from Comic Con goers today stating that Megaman for all intents and purposes is a taboo subject around the Capcom booth. What initially started as a dubious 4chan post/reply has seemingly been corroborated by members of Capcom Unity forums with some people coming around and stating that they or people close to the main event have been asked to leave the area. In one such case, a person was asked by security to leave for donning a MM9 T-Shirt, in another situation a person was asked to leave over simple discussion of Tron's inclusion in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as trailers blared around the area, and in the one that started everything, a Tron cosplayer was asked to straight up not come anywhere around the booth.
This thread is meant for further discussion/fact checking on the matter. I had initially brushed everything off as internet nerd rage going haywire, but with many people stepping up to give this further credence, it would be stupid not to keep the fandom, and fans of gaming in general up to date on what is happening.
AbnormalGravity
