Is this game better than the first and does it improve! It shows in this game that sequels are sometimes better.
Gameplay ---------- 8.0
Graphics ----------- 7.5
Sound -------------- 7.0
Lasting Replay ---- 8.0
Tilt ----------------- 7.5
Last year in the summer Capcom released their first new franchise of Megaman called Megaman Starforce, or Ryuusei no Rockman in Japan. This new Megaman took a different turn from the EXE series that many fans of the franchise were fond of. The new 3-D mechanics made Capcom decide that free moving in battle mode wasn't needed anymore and took more on the side of simple gameplay with a little bit of strategy.
While the gameplay stayed true to the original Starforce game there were some mechanics that were changed here and there. The game is a simple RPG in which you play as Geo Stelar, or Hoshikawa Subaru in Japanese, to save the world from destruction. As Geo you have waveholes in the world in which you can basically transform into the blue bomber Megaman. While you are Megaman you are free to roam the real world as well as the wave world while you encounter many of the viruses that plague the world. Running into viruses are random which makes it tedious at times and it seems like you encounter viruses much more often than you would usually like making the game very tedious at times. However, the bulk of the game comes from battling these viruses or somewhat difficult bosses. You have one row to move around in and there is a grid of 3 by 5 in which the battle stage is set. The player will be set in one of the farthest side of the rows and the viruses are randomly scattered in other spots. You will only be set in that specific row but you have a targeting system to help you virus bust as well as many ranged attacks. Chips are chosen on the battle screen to help you fight these viruses but you can only choose so many at a time. Because of the limitation of how many chips you can choose there is some strategic element in how you play and how you build your chip deck. Another handy feature added to this game is the Tribe-On feature which allows Megaman to be transformed into Zerker or Ninja. Both has its own advantages and its weaknesses. When you combine with brothers from around the world you can fuse these forms to create a very power Double Tribe form or Tribe King. The Brotherband system helps you to increase your stats as Megaman but gains you access in other features in the game.
While the graphics don't seem stunningly amazing the game suffices to make it not unbearable. The world has you in an isometric world that looks cartoonish. This is sort of the same style that the EXE had. Once you go into battle though everything appears in 3-D. Now this can either be a good or a bad thing. It's good because some of the bosses look awesome in 3-D instead of a flat image. However, because of the DS limitations some of the pictures look jagged and awkward. Overall though the graphics shouldn't hinder the overall game.
Sound is the usual techno and melancholy track. It's not unbearable but at times it just gets so annoying that you just want to turn it off. Every place has its own theme and every type of fight basically has its own tune. The tunes aren't bad but sometimes just flat out annoying. One thing that the Capcom of America decided to do in the English version of the game is to remove the voice acting. The voice acting would certainly help to fans of the series but at the same time it would diminish the awesomeness from certain players.
Lasting appeal and replayability is certainly more than the last game. There is the Sky Tournament system for the players to go around play with other users on wi-fi which the last game did not allow. There is still the casual wi-fi brotherband so you can just fiddle with that and there is also the multiple sidequests and after-quests to do after you beat the game. Even if you did beat the game 100% there is still quite a lot of stuff to do.
Overall the game is a nicely wrapped package with a lot of things to do. The gameplay will satisfy many of the players and with the ability to play with other users on wi-fi makes this game that much sweeter. There are some shortcomings and problems here and there but if you look past that it's a good game.
Overall ----------- 7.5