Rockman Battle & Fighters

Rockman Battle & Fighters
Rockman Battle & Fighters
Developer(s)	Capcom
Publisher(s)	Capcom
Designer(s)	Keiji Inafune
Series	Mega Man
Platform(s)	Neo Geo Pocket Color, Nintendo Switch
Release	Neo Geo Pocket Color JP: July 26, 2000; Switch WW: August 3, 2022;
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Rockman: Battle & Fighters^[a] is a Mega Man fighting game developed and published by Capcom for the Neo Geo Pocket Color handheld system in 2000. It is a portable version of the two arcade fighting games Mega Man: The Power Battle, and Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters. The game involves choosing one of four characters and fighting through a series of boss battles. The game was originally only released in Japan, but was localized in 2022 as Mega Man Battle & Fighters for the Nintendo Switch.^[3] This version was included as part of Neo Geo Pocket Color Selection Vol. 2 for Switch and Microsoft Windows later that year.

Gameplay

Rockman Battle & Fighters is a single-player fighting game. As in Mega Man: The Power Battle and Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters, players control one of four characters (Mega Man, Proto Man, Bass and Duo) and choose between three sets of boss battles with various Robot Masters from the first seven Mega Man games.^[4]^[5] The battles are fought linearly in any order and after each boss is defeated, a special weapon is added to the player's arsenal. Each boss is weak to one specific weapon, so the player is encouraged to strategize the order in which the bosses are faced. Players will battle six robot masters before challenging a sub-boss and a final boss battle against Dr. Wily.^[4] By playing the game, players will unlock entries in an in-game database for each of the main characters and bosses.^[6] Two players can use a link cable to transfer database information between systems, but no co-op or versus play is supported.^[4] The digital re-releases omit the database transfer feature but add the ability to rewind gameplay. The western release doesn't feature any in-game translation.^[6]

Reception

Critical reception for Rockman Battle & Fighters has just mixed. Tim Torres of 2D-X called the game "tightly designed and wonderfully animated", and summarizing it as "way better than it has any right to be".^[5] Colin Williamson of IGN stated, "I really enjoyed this one. Boss encounters have always been one of the big perks of the Mega Man series, and porting over not one, but two arcade games in the same package was a stroke of good fortune. I wish there was a little more to do with the link cable, but this is a fine little action game for one of the best 'dead' portable game systems out there".^[4] Jeremy Parish of 1UP.com didn't recommend the game, but found it to be "a fun (and cute) portable diversion".^[8]

In 2023, Time Extension identified Rockman Battle & Fighters as one of the best games for the NGPC.^[9]

Notes

^ Japanese: ロックマンバトル&ファイターズ, Hepburn: Rokkuman Batoru Ando Faitāzu

References

^ Mega Man: Official Complete Works. Udon Entertainment. January 6, 2010. p. 106. ISBN 978-1-897376-79-9.
^ Romano, Sal (3 August 2022). "SNK-developed Mega Man Battle & Fighters now available for Switch". Gematsu. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
^ Leone, Matt (4 August 2022). "SNK brings a pair of obscure Mega Man games to Switch". Polygon. Retrieved 8 August 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Williamson, Colin (August 7, 2000). "Rockman Battle and Fighters". IGN. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
^ ^a ^b Torres, Tim (February 7, 2012). "X-List: The Best Neo Geo Pocket Color Games". 2D-X. Archived from the original on February 10, 2012. Retrieved February 10, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Massey, Tom (August 9, 2022). "Mega Man Battle & Fighters Review (Switch eShop)". NintendoLife. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
^ Famitsu staff (July 14, 2000). クロスレビュー [Cross Review]. Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 604. Enterbrain. Archived from the original on April 28, 2019. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
^ Parish, Jeremy (May 10, 2007). "The Mega Man Series Roundup". 1UP.com. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved June 12, 2010.
^ McFerran, Damien (February 3, 2023). "Best Neo Geo Pocket Color Games". Time Extension. Hookshot Media. Archived from the original on 2023-02-03. Retrieved 2023-02-05.