We Can Rebuild Him: Mighty No. 9 Looking Mighty Fine

Somewhat shamefully, I was always too weak for real Mega Man growing up. I knew all the principle players - Mega Man/Rock Man, Roll, Rush, King Crimson, Procol Harum, pre-Phil-Collins Genesis - but my hopping fell flat, my bopping landed with a wet thud. I'm actually rather happy about Mighty No. 9's existence, then, as it gives me a second chance at that most quintessential of gaming experiences, only I'm not a tiny frightened child anymore. I'm a big frightened child! Sometimes people even ask me to pay loans.

There's a new trailer showing off Mighty No. 9's development progress below, and the Kickstarter mega-success is definitely showing its roots. In (I think) a good way.

Those clips focused on No. 2 and No. 5, showing off both stages and boss battles. One's power appears to be ice while the other's is gun.

The visual style and sound seem to be pretty spot on, making it abundantly clear that original Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune is back in his wheelhouse. I do kinda worry about movement and stuff in this context because it's always seemed to me that 2D is ever-so-slightly more precise for old-school platformers than 3D, but we'll see. That might just be a personal thing.

If anything, my only big worry is that Mighty No 9 looks a little too Mega Man - with power stealing and everything - but a) that's what people asked for, especially since Capcom doesn't really seem to be in the Mega Man business anymore, and b) subtle differences are often what set these games apart.

Here's hoping this one lives up to all the promise. If so, maybe we'll even get another far-better-than-it-has-any-right-to-be rock opera mega-band out of the deal.