Mega Man Star Force (DS) Review
A New Megaman
Throughout the many years of its existence the Megaman franchise has witnessed a number of different spin-offs and iterations. In addition to continuing his traditional 2D side scrolling shooting adventures, the blue bomber has also made a highly successful entry into the RPG genre with the Megaman Battle Network series on the Game Boy Advance. Megaman Starforce is set several hundred years after the events of the Battle Network games and the internet has been superseded by new technology based on electromagnetic waves. However, the earth now faces a new threat from a mysterious alien race with the ability to fuse with humans and allow them to enter the wave world. A young boy becomes a new Megaman when he teams up with Mega, a rebel alien who holds the key to weapon of otherworldly strength. So is this a brand new adventure or just Battle Network 7 in disguise?
The big internet in the sky
At first glance you could easily be forgiven for thinking Starforce was one of the battle network titles. In fact, changes to the battle interface aside, the progression of the story and the entire layout of the game has not changed at all. As the hero of the game you have the ability to pulse in to the wave world, which is essentially a series of fluorescently coloured pathways that are only visible to you when you don some rather funky eyewear. Its basically the internet in the sky and it connects all electronic devices and such in the area. To start off with youll have a few rather simple tasks to perform around your local wave neighbourhood until your first encounter with a hostile enemy alien. From then on the game follows a very linear plan. An alien who has gained a human host will take over the machines and electronic devices in an area with the intent of using them to cause havoc, take hostages and generally spread the evil all around. The boss will lie in wait within some sort of control system which typically serves as a dungeon and Megaman has to make it past all of his foes traps before beating them into next week and restoring the peace. Once thats done youll simply move on to the next area and the formula continues to hold true.
An extra dimension to battle
For this reason anyone who has played the previous titles may find themselves becoming bored of the way the game is structured at times. Thats not to say that the game is all akin to a souped up version of Battle Network. The battle system, for one, has been completely revamped and is now rendered in 3D. When moving around in the wave world battles are triggered randomly. The same grid-like field of the previous games returns, only this time the players view is from directly behind Megaman. EM viruses, which serve as you enemy in the game, appear in the grid directly in front of you. Before the battle begins you must use the touch screen to choose battle cards for Megaman to use. These cards range from cannons and swords to barriers and recovery items. The individual properties of cards varies, with each having different attack ranges and targets. Six cards will be available to choose from and they all come from your card folder, which is like your deck. More than one card can be selected consecutively if it is the same type or in an adjacent position. Defeating enemies can reward the player with new battle cards that can then be used to modify their playing folder. As always, being able to customise your attacks to suit your playing style is a good way to engross you in the game. On a more unfortunate note, the shift to the new battle style has not been completely clean. Difficulty wise, the game is significantly easier than its predecessors, so fans should be wary that they might find themselves breezing through without much trouble. Regardless of this, the revamp to the battles is certainly the fresh change that the game needed and when viewed on the whole, is quite enjoyable.
Another unique addition to Starforce is the brother system, whereby the player can form a bond with characters in the game and friends in real life who also have the game. Having a brother bond grants Megaman specific abilities and allows you to use several of your brothers battle cards. In addition to this, Starforce features a new approach toward side quests. While in the wave world Megaman can enter devices called transers which serve as the PDE of the modern era. You can then find out if the character is having any problems and decide whether or not to help them. However you can only accept one quest at a time, which is quite a pain. Starforce is also a Wi-fi compatible title, allowing you to send messages and trade battle cards online. Unfortunately battling other players is restricted to wireless local multiplayer.
GBA or DS?
Visually, its rather difficult to rate Megaman Starforce, considering that the over world uses traditional sprite based character models and the battles are rendered in 3D. One thing about over world that did catch my attention though was how static all the backgrounds had remained. Aside from the sprite characters moving around them there really isnt much else going on. In the jump to the DS platform I would have expected there to at least be a bit more life and movement rather than a continuation of what Id already seen in the previous six battle network games. To be blunt, the same level of detail from a previous generation of handhelds simply wont cut it. In contrast the cel-shaded visual style of the battles is very nice. Megaman looks rather spiffy and so do the majority of the enemies and bosses, although the design for some boss characters is exceptionally lame. (See the libra themed boss)
Regarding the sound effects and musical score, the presentation mirrors the older games. Appropriate techno beats are most common considering youll be running around inside machinery and on an electronic highway for most of the game. It may not be especially memorable, but its well suited enough to the cause. The same old nostalgic explosion of a virus as it is deleted is back again as well as several other familiar sound effects. The output is good quality and the game sounds nice whether you choose to play with or without headphones.
A step in the right direction
In some ways, Starforce feels like an attempt at change that didnt work out perfectly. Fans of Battle Network may find themselves feeling disgruntled as what was previously a rather difficult franchise is toned down to a considerable extent; not to mention that Starforce is structured almost nail for nail like its predecessors. However, the new features that have been added combat these gripes by attempting to take the Megaman RPGs in a new direction. Considering that most of these gripes are to do with the originality of the game, anyone with an interest in RPGs who hasnt played the originals will have a ball with it. In conclusion, Megaman Starforce is a good solid title with great replay value, but what else could you expect from the blue bomber himself.
