Mega Man X2

Did You Know?

• Mega Man X2 was included in the Mega Man X Collection for GameCube and PlayStation 2 in North America in 2006.
• The game was released on Japanese mobile phones in 2008 and 2009.
• It was ported to Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch as part of Mega Man X Legacy Collection in 2018.

Plot

Mega Man X2 is set in an ambiguous year during the 22nd century, where humans and Reploids coexist. Reploids are based on the android X, discovered by Dr. Cain, and some become Mavericks. The Maverick Hunters, led by X after he defeated Sigma six months earlier, work to stop them. Despite Sigma's apparent death, a trio of Mavericks called the X-Hunters—Serges, Agile, and Violen—gain control of the North Pole. Serges has collected the body parts of Zero, X's partner who died in the previous conflict. After a mission at a Reploid factory, X is assigned to eliminate eight Maverick leaders on a continent south of the North Pole. The X-Hunters taunt X with Zero's body, each offering a piece if X can defeat them.

Gameplay

Mega Man X2 is an action-platform game where the player controls X through eight side-scrolling stages in any order. X can run, jump, scale walls, dash (a permanent ability from the start), and fire his chargeable X-Buster. Players collect extra lives, health, and weapon energy items. Each stage ends with a boss; defeating it grants a special weapon that can be used in other stages, and each boss is weak to another's weapon. Optional elements include piloting a mech in Wheel Gator's stage and a hovercycle in Overdrive Ostrich's stage. Each stage may have an entrance to battle one of the three X-Hunters; defeating one earns a piece of Zero, affecting the late-game storyline. Hidden power-ups include Heart Tanks, Sub-Tanks, and armor upgrade capsules that grant abilities such as a mid-air dash or two consecutive charged blasts. Meeting specific conditions unlocks a capsule allowing X to perform a Shoryuken-like attack.

Development

Mega Man X2 was developed by a Capcom team including artists Hayato Kaji and Keiji Inafune, and designers Sho Tsuge and Yoshihisa Tsuda. Most staff had worked on the first Mega Man X or were new to the franchise. Inafune took a hands-off role with art design, focusing on planning, producing, and story writing. He decided to revive Zero because he thought it would be a shame to keep him dead. Inafune, who designed Zero and originally intended him as the main protagonist, refused major changes to Zero's illustration. The X-Hunters originated from Inafune's sketchbook before the first game; their features were combined for Sigma's design, then fleshed out as separate characters for the sequel. A planned fourth, female X-Hunter and Violen's second form were cut due to lack of resources. The team considered fan submissions for the eight Maverick bosses but decided against it to maintain a more hardcore feel for the X series.

Reception

Reception for Mega Man X2 has been primarily positive, praised for its graphics, sound, and enjoyable gameplay. GamePro's Chris Nicolella called it improved in almost every way, citing the C4 chip, responsive controls, and more enemies and hidden locations. Dave Halverson of GameFan enjoyed the level designs and found the new armor abilities and music better than the original. GameSpot editors Christian Nutt and Justin Speer appreciated the expanded story and engaging characters. Staff from Game Informer and Next Generation reviewed it positively but felt major revamps were needed to keep the series interesting; Rick considered it good enough to warrant a third game. IGN ranked it 31st on its top 100 SNES games list, noting it admirably followed the explosive debut. Complex listed it 57th on their best Super Nintendo games of all time, calling it a great follow-up with little change but great gameplay.