Mega Man Legends 3

Mega Man Legends 3, known as Rockman DASH 3 (ロックマン DASH 3) in Japan, was a video game from the Mega Man Legends series set to be the sequel to Mega Man Legends 2. The game was announced for the Nintendo 3DS on September 29, 2010. On July 18, 2011, the Devroom announced that the game had been cancelled.

Story
The game's story would have continued right after the events of Mega Man Legends 2. Two new characters, Aero and Barrett, would join returning ones to help rescue the protagonist, Mega Man Volnutt, from Elysium. Chris Hoffman of Nintendo Power implied the finished game may have focused on a mysterious item known as the Klicke Lafonica and the aftermath of the Elder System reactivating at the end of Legends 2.

Development
Fans had the opportunity to be part of the development process as they interacted directly with the team. "We have wanted to create a new installment in this series for a number of years," commented the title's original executive producer, Keiji Inafune. "And it is great that we now have the opportunity to bring this title to the Nintendo 3DS."

Capcom created a development room website, "Devroom" for short, in Japan and North America where fans could see the game's development and held events and contests for fans so they could collaborate:




 * Event 1: Nine artists from Capcom created a concept for a new heroine, Aero, to appear in the game. Between October 10 and 25, fans had the opportunity to vote on the official site for which design they would want to be used. Shinsuke Komaki's design won with 6202 votes.
 * Event 2: Fans could draw a Bonne mecha to appear as a boss in a ruin from the game. The winner was Donner Wels.
 * Event 3: Fans got to help with the townspeople of Legends 3 by creating biographies or making a catchy phrases.
 * Event 4: Fans could draw a four-legged Reaverbot to appear in one of the ruins of the game. The winner was Calamity.
 * Event 5: Fans could give ideas for town Easter egg events.
 * Event 6: Creation of promotional ideas to spread the word about the Devroom. Results were not given.
 * Event 7: Creation of a mascot to the Bright Bats. The design chosen was Tinker.

Side events:
 * Reaverbot Rea-vival: Fans could vote for up to five Reaverbots from previous games that they would like to see back in the game. The Reaverbots with most votes were Gorubesshu, Mimic, Firushudot, Poh, Arukoitan and Mandomantal.
 * Mega Man Volnutt's Design: Fans could vote on Mega Man Volnutt's potential new armor design.

Mega Man Legends 3: Prototype Version
Mega Man Legends 3: Prototype Version, known (roughly) as "Rockman DASH 3: The Prologue! Showing you the Game's Underbelly Version" (ロックマンDASH3 THE プロローグ! ゲームのウラ側見せちゃいます編) in Japan, was an early version of the game that would be available for download in the Nintendo 3DS's eShop. The prototype would have feature playable segments as Barrett and ten missions. It was originally planned to be available upon the launch of the 3DS eShop on June 6, but it was delayed to be improved. Initially, it was said by Capcom that if the Mega Man Legends 3 Prototype Version does not do well upon its release in the eShop, Mega Man Legends 3 may be cancelled, but the Prototype Version was cancelled along with the main game.

The Prototype's first mission has Reaverbots dropping from the sky (apparently from a structure in the sky) and attacking Teomo City, and it was up to Barrett to help evacuate the island and destroy the Reaverbot attackers. The missions that followed were all told as flashbacks, and the last mission brought things full circle and added some context for that Reaverbot attack. The missions are:


 * Trouble In Paradise: The opening mission. Reaverbots are attacking Teomo City and Barrett helps evacuate the island.


 * Barrett & Friends: An introductory story that tells players about Teomo City, Diggers, and the concept of the Rebel Rider youth gangs. It also introduces the members of the Bright Bats gang.


 * Late-Night Race: A Motorhorse racing contest through the Teomo City streets.


 * One Bullheaded Rival: A boss battle against a rival gang leader named Bullbreath, the leader of the Roast Beefs.


 * Take Me Somewhere - Barrett the Chauffer: Barrett has to drive Aero around to various locations, including the park and a place called the "Gate of Frontiers."


 * Operation Anti-Riders: Fed up with the Rebel Rider gangs, the chief of police Gonzo Goodwin attacks the Bright Bats with a mech/vehicle called the Anti Rider Crusader 1.


 * Rocket R&D Fundraising: Barrett venture into some ruins to get a refractor for Roll Caskett. She needs it so she can build a rocket to bring Mega Man Volnutt home from Elysium.


 * Yes, Miss Tron: Barrett has to retrieve Tron Bonne's missing Servbots within a time limit.


 * What's in the Box?: Another ruins-exploration mission. At the end, the player learns about a treasure called the Klicke Lafonica, which seemed like it was going to be a major plot point.


 * Bonne Family Showdown: Battle against the fan-created Donner Wels mech.

After completing all missions, the player would gain access to debugging features that allow to modify parameters from the game such as attack range, movement speed, and reduce gravity for high jumps.

Cancellation
On July 18, 2011, a message was posted in the Devroom announcing the discontinuation of the project. The reason for the cancellation was that "it was not felt that the Mega Man Legends 3 project met the required criteria". No further explanation was given, and the Japanese Devroom was closed on August 19.

Fan reaction
With two Mega Man games cancelled in the same year (the other being Mega Man Universe) and Mega Man Legends 3 being the sequel of a game released ten years ago, many fans were disappointed with Capcom for this decision, as it was said that the Prototype's sales would determine if the game was going to be released or not, but it was cancelled regardless, and later it was said that the Prototype was practically ready to be released. Also, it was said in Capcom Europe's Twitter that few fans took part in the Devroom and should have worked more in the game, even through the Devroom's promotional video clearly stated that "it's OK to just hang back and watch" and the North American and Japanese Devrooms together had over 13400 members at the time and rising. Capcom Europe later apologized saying that it was a misunderstanding, as Twitter has a limit of how much can be written in a post.

In response, many fans started campaigns to convince Capcom to continue Mega Man Legends 3's development, including a Facebook group by the name "100,000 Strong for Bringing Back Mega Man Legends 3", also known as Get Me Off The Moon, which reached its goal of 100,000 members by April 25, 2012.

The group made several things to show how much they like the series and call Capcom's attention, such as fan art, arranged music, and fan games, including a game starring the character Tuttle, and a 3D reproduction of the original game using Unity3D. One YouTube user pulled together many angered fans, and together, they sang an altered version of Do You Hear the People Sing? from the hit musical Les Miserables. Fans created a functional model of the game's rocket, which was launched on February 9, 2013. A 8-bit fan game of the Prototype Version was developed by Japanese fans, with the assistance of Hideki Ishikawa and Makoto Tomozawa, and was released in 2014.

In an interview with Game Informer, Mega Man 11 director Koji Oda said that he's "well aware that there is a voice out there that wants something new for games like Mega Man Legends and Battle Network."

Trivia

 * Some years before Mega Man Legends 3's actual announcement, Hideki made a post in the Rockman DASH series official site announcing the development of the games "Rockman DASH 3: Episode 1" and "Rockman DASH 3: Episode 2 - Revival! The Dark Lord of the Ruined Country" (「ロックマンDASH3」エピソード2～復活！亡国の冥王～). His post was shortly edited by another person to say not to believe him as he was drunk, being only a joke.