Mega Man X5

Mega Man X5, known as Rockman X5 (ロックマンＸ５) in Japan, is the fifth game in the Mega Man X series and the third X game on the PlayStation console. It's also the only game to have a time limit on the stage select. The FMV sequences, seen in Mega Man X3 and Mega Man X4 (with the exception of the game's opening), have been replaced with still screens and text.

The player can choose X or Zero in the title screen, but you can still choose between the two characters later inside the game (a staple of the series starting with this game). The only difference is that if the player chose X, he will be able to use the Fourth Armor, and with Zero, he will be able to use the Z-Buster.

It should be noted that series creator Keiji Inafune originally intended for this to be the last title in the Mega Man X series, with Zero dying and resurrecting later in the Mega Man Zero series, but Capcom later decided to green-light Mega Man X6 against his wishes, changing his plans.

Story
Several months after the Repliforce war, Earth is at a peaceful time. The repair of the space colonies damaged during the war was almost complete, the only space colony remaining being the giant colony Eurasia located in a Lagrangian point. As it was quite old, it was planned to receive extensive renovation. However, one day someone had occupied Eurasia and took control of it, scattering a virus in the colony and using its artificial gravity systems to set it on a collision course towards Earth. Within 16 hours, Eurasia will crash and cause great destruction, in the worst case extinguishing all life from the planet. The Maverick Hunters plan on using the large particle cannon Enigma to destroy Eurasia before it happens. The Enigma cannon is somewhat old and needs to be upgraded. Signas, the Hunters' new commander, orders to Mega Man X and his comrade Zero, as they race against time to collect the four parts necessary to upgrade the Enigma and stop Eurasia before it's too late. To make things worse, Sigma scattered the Sigma Virus all over the world and the parts needed are being protected by Mavericks.

From this point, the story diverges into different subplots:
 * Once X and Zero have recovered the initial four items required to use the Enigma, it is fired and can either succeed in destroying the space colony or fail and only destroy part of it.
 * If the Enigma fails, only part of Eurasia is destroyed, slightly changing its orbit and delaying the crash. Signas begins his next plan: launching a space shuttle (which is infected by the virus and the auto-pilot doesn't work) directly at the colony to destroy it. Again, four pieces must be collected to enhance it from the last four Mavericks, and after doing so the shuttle will launch with Zero as its pilot (as Zero mentions, he is the only competent pilot left).


 * Like the Enigma, the space shuttle can either succeed or fail.
 * If the shuttle succeeds, 86% of Eurasia is destroyed and Earth is no longer in danger. Zero contacts the Hunters from his escape pod to tell them he's okay and that he'll land soon. After Zero lands, the Hunters come to pick him up. Mega Man X6 shows that this is the scenario that happened. However, the remains still caused large damage to Earth's surface, devastating its ecosystems and spreading pollution around the planet.
 * If the shuttle fails, only part of Eurasia is destroyed and it crashes on Earth. Zero becomes a Maverick.


 * If time runs out, Eurasia collides with Earth, and it barely survives. Zero becomes a Maverick.

In any scenario, Eurasia (either complete or only its remains) fall into Earth and the colony virus merges with the Sigma Virus, creating a new virus in the location of the collision in the point 11F5646. Alia detected the strange energy of the virus and dubbed it the Zero Virus due to its similarities with Zero. The Hunters go into Eurasia's remains to verify the virus. If Zero became a Maverick, X still feels as if he can save Zero, so X fights through the area to get to Zero and help him.

Upon entering the third Zero Space stage, X and Zero confront each other, the dialogue changing depending of the character currently used:
 * If the player is using X, he will confront Zero about the latter's rise in power, and plead with Zero to go back to the Hunter Base to get a check-up, which Zero stubbornly denies.


 * If the player is Zero, he will confront X and two Lifesavers (the Hunters' medical units) and will be labeled as a Maverick by the Lifesavers due to Zero's immunity to the Sigma Virus.


 * If Zero "awakened" with the virus, X confronts the "true" Zero, whose power had grown tremendously. X narrowly defeats Zero.

Either way, both X and Zero fight in a room where Dr. Wily's mark is displayed prominently in the background, and just as the fight is ending, the opponent uses Soul Body on the player to weaken him. They lie exhausted on the ground. Sigma appears out of nowhere intending to finish X off. Zero jumps in front of X's prone body and protects him from Sigma, claiming to know everything Sigma is trying to do.
 * If Zero is normal, he attacks Sigma with his Z-Buster, and collapses from exhaustion.


 * If Zero became a Maverick, he returns to normal and sacrifices his life to save X.

Sigma concedes defeat and vanishes for the moment, saying he will be waiting. The Hunters then prepare for the final battle against Sigma.

Once in the final chamber, Sigma reveals that his entire plan hinged on awakening Zero from his "false self" and giving him his true power by infecting him with a massive amount of the Sigma Virus, scattering it around the Earth. But, as the amount was not enough to awaken him, he used the colony as a virus and let it land on the Earth. The Hunters fight Sigma, who loses and reveals his final body; a huge, unfinished battle body. Sigma tells X of an old man he met, with a seemingly undying hatred for X. If the player is Zero, Sigma tells him of the same man, who supposedly knows enough about Zero to be his own father (at this point, it is obvious that Sigma is referencing Dr. Wily). X and Zero fight Sigma's last body and defeat him, but Sigma has one last trick up his sleeve; he self-destructs, attempting to take both of them with him.

After the explosion, the extent of the damage is shown; Zero's body lies shattered on the ground, his lower torso and left arm apparently destroyed in the blast. X kneels down to pick up Zero's broken body and pleads with him not to die, not noticing Sigma's severed head charging a blast behind him. Sigma fires an energy blast at X, catching both he and Zero in the chest and creating a hole there. This blast seemingly jars Zero from death, as he smiles and blasts Sigma's head with his Z-Buster, finishing him for good. He lies on the ground and calls for X, noting that his friend's optimism at the thought of Zero living is what lead to his death.

In Zero's ending, he reflects on his life as a vision of him in his original body fighting the original Sigma (a fight referenced in a flashback in Mega Man X4) comes up. He assumes these visions are due to his power source running out and his memory unit malfunctioning as another vision, this time of a blurred Dr. Wily, come into view. The focus shifts from the doctor to an incomplete Zero lying on a table, where Zero notes he was created for destruction. A red and faded image of Iris then flashes through his mind, while Zero apologizes to her. He then makes a remark that it would be better for him to die, so as to restore the peace. Zero then tells X goodbye, and passes away.

In X's ending, he is missing his lower torso and both arms after Sigma's explosion. A mysterious glowing figure (obviously being Dr. Light) appears and tells X to rest and relax. X is then repaired and returns to the Maverick Hunters. His ending has two varieties:
 * If Zero was normal, a scene three years after the final battle with Sigma is shown. Alia alerts the Maverick Hunters of a large Maverick rampaging in HORIE 2146 block, and X tells the three new Hunters nearby to move out. The final scene shows X holding Zero's Z-Saber, while one of the other Hunters remarks that X's eyes have changed and sharpened, more and more reflecting his former partner and friend, Zero. X then says that as long as he has Zero's saber, he can fight any enemy. This ending leads to Mega Man X6, which happens three weeks later instead of three years.


 * If Zero became a Maverick, the glowing hologram tells X to hold on for just a little longer, and to forget all of his painful memories. The scene fades. One week later, X and two other Maverick Hunters are moving some things. One of the Hunters asks X if he remembers anything about what had happened the previous week, with X firmly stating that he doesn't remember anything about the battle. The other Hunter remarks that X is now a Special-A rank Hunter, the same as Zero, and explains to X that he and Zero worked together to defeat Sigma. X comments that he didn't forget Sigma's name; he remembers it clearly, and yet he has no memory of Zero. He assumes that whoever repaired him may have accidentally deleted the data (Dr. Light erased X's memories to ease the pain of fighting Zero and leading to his death). One of the Hunters says that it's a miracle X came out of the battle at all. The scene then shifts to the control center, with Signas, Alia, and Douglas. Signas remarks that it's indeed a miracle X came back, and without so much as a scratch. Douglas mentions that it's still difficult to repair X and Zero's bodies, since their internal workings are still a mystery. Alia says that she's not interested in miracles, and doubts most Reploids believe in them either. Douglas asks about X's memories of Zero, and Signas admits that even he doesn't know how it happened, be it an accident or purposeful. Alia mentions that there's a protection in X's systems now; X's body won't even accept data related to Zero, and even she couldn't program a protection that complicated. The final scene shifts back to X and the two Maverick Hunters, where X says that they need to work harder to achieve peace, and that his secret dream is to build Elysium, a paradise for both humans and Reploids.

Gameplay
Mega Man X5 goes on to expand on the gameplay engine of the previous game. Like before, the player can choose to play through the game as either Mega Man X or Zero, traversing through perilous terrain and defeating a legion of enemies along the way with a variety of weapons. Both characters have changed somewhat considerably as well. Unlike previous games, not only can the player switch between both characters before starting a stage, X now starts out with a special armor known as the Force Armor, which gives him Ultimate Armor-esque abilities including an air dash and the ability to hover if the player should choose to start the game as him as well as a a Charge Shot that leaves behind a damaging energy orb. The player can choose whether or not to use this armor at the Maverick select screen. Zero's saber attacks are somewhat slowed down but he gains the ability to use his Z-Buster again, albeit very limited in its use as Zero needs to charge the weapon and has to be on the ground and even then, the blast is only as strong as a level 2 charge shot. This function can only be used if the player starts the game as Zero.

Due to the situation presented in the storyline, the game has a countdown to 16 hours until the space colony Eurasia crashes into the Earth and each stage venture spends one hour. To prevent the crash, the player must collect four essential parts for one of two options: intercept the colony by using the Enigma cannon or kamikaze into it with a space shuttle. One half of the Mavericks possess the pieces for the Enigma and the other for the shuttle. There is a chance that either plan may fail which can change the ending and boss battles, providing for a non-linear progression throughout the game. Dynamo will also show up through predetermined intervals to battle X and Zero, though these battles are to simply stall for time.

As with previous games, cheat codes can be entered for enhancement armors for both X and Zero. As usual, X can gain the Ultimate Armor and Zero can get his black sheen. Unlike the previous game though, Zero's armor is no longer a facelift as it upgrades his stats, enhancing his defense and powering up his Z-Saber to a state similar to Tenkuuha although its projectile-destroying ability has been enhanced.

Bosses
Eight Mavericks:
 * Grizzly Slash (Crescent Grizzly)
 * Squid Adler (Volt Kraken)
 * Izzy Glow (Shining Hotarunicus)
 * Duff McWhalen (Tidal Makkoeen)
 * The Skiver (Spiral Pegacion)
 * Axle the Red (Spike Rosered)
 * Dark Dizzy (Dark Necrobat)
 * Mattrex (Burn Dinorex)

Others:
 * Dynamo
 * Shadow Devil
 * Rangda Bangda
 * X (If Zero) / Zero (If X)
 * Sigma

Armor
X's Armors:
 * Force Armor - If X is chosen at the beginning, he begins with this armor. The Nova Strike and Head Part's effect from Mega Man X4 are absent, however.
 * Falcon Armor - Flight and maneuverability-based armor.
 * Gaea Armor - Defense and power-based armor.
 * Ultimate Armor - Replaces the Force Armor when a code is used or could be found in Virus Stage 3.

Zero's Armors:
 * Unarmored Zero - Zero starts the game with his normal armor.
 * Zero Armor - Accessible through a code or could be found in Virus Stage 3.

Notes:
 * If X is chosen at the beginning, Zero begins the game without the Z-Buster.


 * If Zero is chosen however, X will start the game without the Force Armor, instead he'll use his normal armor.


 * If X is chosen at the beginning of the game with the special code that allows him to wear the Ultimate Armor, the Force Armor will not be available, with the Ultimate Armor having permanently replaced it.


 * If Zero is chosen at the beginning of the game with the special code that allows him to wear his Zero Armor at the beginning, or if the player obtains the Zero Armor in Virus Stage 3, it will permanently replace his normal armor for the remainder of the game.

Trivia

 * Regardless of the gameplay progress (whether the player stops Eurasia or not) or selecting a character for the mission, the battle in the third stage of Sigma's fortress will always be between X and Zero.


 * When fighting X in the third Sigma fortress stage, he uses some of his Special Weapons from X4: an enhanced version of the Soul Body (where he launches many images at a time) and charged versions of Frost Tower and Double Cyclone.
 * In the same battle, X also dons his Ultimate Armor, making the battle the first (and so far, only) canonical appearance of the secret armor.
 * This is also the first time in the franchise's history the main protagonist of a series is fought as a boss.


 * This is the only game in which Sigma is not only fought once; he is fought as the intro stage boss as well. There are two battles against Sigma in X8 as well, but one of them is against just a copy of him.


 * Each of the eight main Mavericks' English names are based off of the name of a member from the rock band Guns N' Roses.


 * Though indirectly, Mega Man X5 is referenced in Mega Man Zero 4, as the game's main setting, Area Zero, is revealed to be where the Eurasia colony crashed. By that time, centuries after X5, nature had returned to Area Zero. That certain aspect also forms part of Doctor Weil's plot.


 * The first Zero Space stage is a remake of Quick Man's level in Mega Man 2 and the second stage is a remake of the first Sigma Fortress stage from Mega Man X.


 * Many music tracks were re-used from previous games:
 * Duff McWhalen's stage music is a remix of Bubble Crab's stage in Mega Man X2.
 * The boss music from fighting Shadow Devil is a remix of Mega Man 1's Wily Boss.
 * The boss music from fighting Rangda Bangda is a remix of the music used when fighting the same boss in Mega Man X (also the theme is used on a few of X1's other villains, including Vile).
 * The intro music is a remix of Variable X from Mega Man X and the Get Weapon theme from Mega Man 3.
 * The music for the final stage appears to be a heavily remixed version of Quick Man's stage in Mega Man 2.


 * A truncated version of Magma Dragoon appears as the boss of the training stage.


 * The last part of the final boss music is somewhat similar to the song "The Final Countdown" by Europe. For that matter, Infinity Mijinion's stage music from Mega Man X6 also bears a thematic similarity to The Final Countdown.


 * Unlike X, Zero can air dash from the beginning of the game. It is possible that he still had the Hienkyaku from Jet Stingray in Mega Man X4.


 * Also, when Zero is using the Black Zero armor upgrade, his Z-Saber is purple -- this could possibly be the Tenkuuha from Storm Owl.


 * This is the first Mega Man X game to include a training mode, possibly because of the new abilities to duck and hold on to ropes.


 * Like in Mega Man X4, the game has a minor glitch that can cause it to crash on the Warning Signal at the beginning of boss battles on the PlayStation version, forcing the player to reset the game.


 * Mega Man X5 is the last X game where the player can go underwater.


 * Mega Man X5 is the first X game where the player can't shoot through walls.


 * Since this was originally to be the last game in the series, it has the most endings in the series, which are: the Enigma can fail/succeed, the shuttle can fail/succeed, Zero can or cannot go Maverick, Zero can either take Sigma's attack for X, or shoot Sigma with the Z-buster, X's three endings, where they are good, bad, or normal, and then there is Zero's ending.


 * This game along with Mega Man X6 are the only ones in the series that utilize a unique "Leveling System" for bosses. This can determine the bosses' patterns as to how to match the player in the current setting.


 * The battle with Zero as a Maverick in this game has been ridiculed by fans by having the most predictable A.I, which is a possible throwback to Zero's A.I in Mega Man X2 if he's fought.


 * If the player leaves the game idle at the Final Results Screen for 5-10 minutes, an image of Black Armor Zero will appear, and will leave the cheat codes for X's Ultimate Armor, and Black Armor Zero.