Mega Man 8

Mega Man 8, known in Japan as Rockman 8: Metal Heroes (ロックマン 8: メタル ヒーローズ), was released for the Sony PlayStation and Sega Saturn from 1996-98 and is the eight game in the classic Mega Man series. The game is the first in the classic series to feature FMVs (cartoons/anime) in order to tell the story and is the first and only game (aside from the DOS games) in which Mega Man is capable of swimming. The game also marks Mega Man's tenth anniversary (1987-1997), and limited copies were released with a color history booklet called "Mega Man Anthology" celebrating the series' history.

Release Dates
Sony PlayStation:
 * Japan: December 17, 1996
 * North America: February 27, 1997
 * Europe: November 1, 1997

Sega Saturn:
 * Japan: January 17, 1997
 * North America: February 27, 1997
 * Europe: November 1, 1997

Mega Man: Anniversary Collection:
 * GameCube and PlayStation 2: June 22, 2004
 * XBox: March 15, 2005

Version Differences
Although Mega Man 8 was released on the Sega Saturn shortly after being released on the Sony PlayStation, the Saturn version was not identical to the PlayStation version. The differences are:


 * A Bonus Mode was included, which includes official and fan artwork, voice test, music test, and a secret animation test for the FMVs. Of note, the voice test includes some unused vocal samples, including an unused line by Frost Man, Dr. Light, and Mega Man saying "Metal Heroes" (used in the Japanese version). Bonus Mode replaces the promotional videos of Mega Man: Battle & Chase and Superadventure Rockman that were present in the Japanese PSX version.
 * Special water morphing effects in Aqua Man's stage; the water flowed and moved more lifelike. Although it's not a transparent blue like in the PlayStation version, the wave effects gave it a more realistic feel.
 * Special lighting effects and and a siren flashing during Duo's mini-stage.
 * Some additional enemies in many of the stages (for example, the game's first two enemies are Metools).
 * Some of the Robot Masters in this game are slightly tougher in the Saturn version, but the difference is negligible.
 * Cut Man (from Mega Man) and Wood Man (from Mega Man 2) make cameo appearances as one-time mini-bosses in Duo's mini-stage (Cut Man) and Search Man's stage (Wood Man). Defeating them earns Mega Man two Bolts that are otherwise lying in the open in the PlayStation version. (On a side note, Cut Man and Wood Man are thought to be the apparent stolen robot masters that were in the two broken display cases seen in the background of the Robot Museum stage in Mega Man 7.)
 * The music is slightly different in the Saturn version. Two notable examples are Aqua Man's Stage, which is moodier and has a wider variety of instruments, and Tengu Man's Stage, the only stage in the game which had an entirely different tune. Also, because of Cut Man and Wood Man's appearances, their respective themes are played in the Saturn version when players battle them; both are remixed to match the sound of the rest of the music. The Saturn version uses PCM encoded audio, while the PlayStation version uses the internal MIDI system of the console.
 * The FMVs in the Saturn version are compressed using Cinepak compression, which causes artifacting and slight blockiness, whereas the PlayStation uses its native MPEG.

Overview
In space, two strange objects are fighting. As they colide into each other, they start falling towards earth. On Earth, Bass and Mega Man are fighting. But the battle is cut short, when Roll calls Mega Man.

Dr. Light tells them that a strange meteor has fallen to earth. Mega Man is teleported to the island, and learns that Dr. Wily is searching the island as well...

Actual Story
A year after the events of Mega Man 7 and Mega Man: The Power Battle (sometime in the year 2014), two powerful robots battle each other in outer space and, in the process, damage each other and go careening to Earth. They land on an island that is occupied by Dr. Wily and, as such, Wily harnesses one of them and uses its extraterrestrial powers to make a new batch of Robot Masters. Mega Man, who was battling Bass in the city, is summoned by Roll (really by Dr. Light) to go to the island to investigate. He finds Dr. Wily salvaging the robot and, in the process, discovers the second robot in a crater and sends it to Light Labs to be repaired. Mega Man defeats the four Robot Masters that attack various places on the globe and, when he returns to Light's Lab, he finds that the robot is undergoing repairs. Then, while talking to Light, the robot breaks free and heads out into the desert. Mega Man follows him, fights him briefly, and then Proto Man intervenes and tells him that Wily's new fortress, "Wily Tower," is up ahead. Mega Man goes ahead and is captured by Wily, but the robot saves him and introduces himself as Duo (a member of the Intergalactic Police Force). Duo explains that the other robot contained "Evil Energy" within it and that Wily was using that energy to make his robots more powerful. Mega Man needed to defeat the other four to open the entrance to Wily Tower. He did so and managed to defeat Bass and Treble and, in the end, Dr. Wily. Mega Man was injured in the process, but Duo saved him and left him out in the desert, where Proto Man was there when he awoke and told him that Duo said "Thank you..."

Bosses
First boss: "Claw Crab"

1st four Robot Masters:
 * Tengu Man
 * Grenade Man
 * Frost Man
 * Clown Man

Mid-boss: Duo

2nd four Robot Masters:
 * Astro Man
 * Sword Man
 * Search Man
 * Aqua Man

Fortress Bosses:

Stage 1: Atetemino

Stage 2: Bliking

Stage 3:
 * Mid-Boss: Bass and Treble
 * End Boss: Green Devil

Final Stage:
 * Rematch with the eight Robot Masters
 * Wily Machine and Wily Capsule

Enemy Guide
List of Mega Man 8 Enemies

Level Strategies
Click here to see a walkthrough.

Trivia

 * The opening FMV of the game shows some Bosses from previous games; in one sequence, the Robot Masters that appear are in the order of the game they appear in (1-7): Guts Man, Quick Man, Snake Man, Pharaoh Man, Charge Man, Tomahawk Man, Shade Man.
 * Other robots in the opening theme include the Yellow Devil, Mecha Dragon, Wily Machine Number 4, and the Robot Masters Wood Man (MM2), Centaur Man (MM6), Spark Man (MM3), Skull Man (MM4), Gyro Man (MM5), Cut Man (MM1) and Freeze Man (MM7).
 * This game marks Duo's first (chronological) appearance.
 * This is the first (and only) numbered game in the classic Mega Man series to feature FMVs and voice acting.
 * This is the only game since the first Mega Man (without counting spin-offs) to not include Energy Tanks.
 * Starting with this game, Mega Man was no longer able to use the Super Adapter. However, Bass was still able to use it.
 * This is the first game where Capcom didn't try to "Americanize" the boxart (excluding Mega Man 6, which wasn't published in the U.S. by Capcom, themselves).
 * This is the only numbered game where Mega Man could swim, the first game being Mega Man 3 for DOS.
 * As with Mega Man X4, the game is often poked fun at for its voice acting in the US and European releases, particularly Dr. Light who speaks with an apparent speech impediment, infamously pronouncing Wily as "Wahwee". His voice happens to sound very similar to Elmer Fudd's.
 * As with Mega Man 7, there's a part in this game that contains a typo in Mega Man's speech, as well. After Bass is defeated, he'll say, "Bass, why you don't understand?", when it should have been, "Bass, why don't you understand?" There's also a typo in Proto Man's speech after the Duo intermission stage, where he'll say, "What happend?"
 * Some of the bosses listed in the Saturn version's Bonus Mode that did not make it into the final version, such as Pirate Man and Magic Man, made it into later games, namely Mega Man & Bass.
 * This is notably the only Mega Man game where Dr. Wily doesn't try to trick Mega Man when defeated of feigning guilt (in fact, his reaction when the Evil energy tries to corrupt Mega Man implies that he was not planning on using the Evil Energy to attack Mega Man to cover his escape, and that he probably had no intention of tricking Mega Man.)
 * The Saturn version is thought to be the original version or at least closer to the original vision of the game - according to interviews, it was intended to be a Sega Saturn game all along, but Sony allegedly demanded the game be released on their system.
 * The music that plays just before a robot master fight starts sounds a lot like the final Wily Stage's theme.