With a new generation of consoles, it was time for Mega Man to leap into a new era! Upgrading the Blue Bomber’s adventures to 32-bit, Mega Man 8 improved the series’ visuals with detailed sprites and gorgeous backgrounds, while taking the opportunity to give Mega Man and company fluid animations that helped bring Mega Man’s world to life. Read on to check out our recap video of what else made this entry in Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 stand out, as well as some thoughts on the game’s robot masters from Capcom staff!

Mega Man slides into the 32-bit era

With great sprite work, a memorable storyline, and unforgettable voice acting, Mega Man 8 stands the test of time as a true classic. Check out our recap video above for more!

Amazing art from UDON Entertainment

The legendary Jeffery “Chamba” Cruz from Udon Entertainment has created an illustration featuring a selection of Robot Masters from the landmark game, as well:

With Mega Man riding Rush into the fray with Duo ready to back him up, Mega Man has his work cut out for him against the sky-high Tengu Man, elusive Astro Man, explosive Grenade Man, and tricky Clown Man. You can grab this excellent art from the official Mega Man page for free to use as a phone or PC wallpaper, as well!

Capcom’s Favorite Robot Masters

Just like last week with Mega Man 7 , I asked Capcom staff to share their personal favorite Robot Masters from Mega Man 8. Let us know your favorites in the comments; we’d love to hear your picks, too!

Kazuhiro Tsuchiya (Producer, Capcom Japan): Sword Man. I thought the unique design with how his upper-half and lower-half were separated made him particularly cool.

Kellen Haney (Social Media Specialist):  The voices for Mega Man 8 are well-known for being a bit goofy, but Sword Man’s voice always stood out to me for having a regal tone to it. While other Robot Masters might taunt or insult you, such as Tengu Man saying “It’s just a kid,” Sword Man challenges you to a duel and compliments you with an “Impressive!” if you avoid taking damage from his Fire Slash. Despite being a Robot Master made by an evil mastermind determined to take over the world, he makes me think of a noble knight that you’d see in folklore.

Sword Man has clearly defined attack patterns that feel like they’re a test of skill over random chance, too. As a result, I always take my time to use the Mega Buster against him – after all, it only seems fair to challenge the regal knight to a duel instead of exploiting his weakness. If you find yourself in a bind, though, Water Balloon will stamp out his health bar in no time.

Tim Turi (Associate Brand Manager): I’m a sucker for unique Robot Masters that sometimes don’t gel with the rest of the lineup. I like to pinpoint who I think might be the biggest chump of the bunch and therefore easiest to defeat. Usually, goofy Robot Master aesthetics betray a tough boss fight (Wood Man, Top Man, and Sheep Man look silly but will mess you up). Clown Man wins me over with just how absurd he is.

He’s an electrified robot clown who specializes in aerobatics and turning into a deadly sparking ball? Okay! His colorful, cheery level stands apart from other Robot Master themes. Plus, how odd is it that he says he’ll see Mega Man “in his dreams” after being defeated? That’s hard to do when you explode into pieces. In short: I like Clown Man because he’s a big, colorful weirdo.

Patrick Kulikowski (Customer Support Representative): “I’M TENGU MAN!” Although he’s an incredibly arrogant robot modeled after a mythical Japanese yokai, Tengu Man always first comes to mind for me when thinking about this game’s Robot Master lineup. I think the guy just oozes style. His triple-bladed Tengu Blade and long nose immediately stick out to me, and fighting him was no breeze. His voice is fun to emulate, too. “Kamaitachi!” “Torrrnado Hold!” “HERE YOU gooOOO!”

Plus, Tengu Man’s stage theme is such a joy to listen to with its sitar-esque synths and chill bass groove. Whether I was being propelled by a fierce wind up in the clouds, riding on Rush in the shoot-em-up on-rails segment, or dodging spike traps while encased in a bubble, Tengu Man’s chipper, upbeat theme always put me in a good mood. Never mind his rude remarks to Mega Man. “It’s just a kid? Don’t make me laugh.”

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That’s all for Mega Man 8, but next week we’re bringing things back to the 8-bit days with the retro revolution sparked by Mega Man 9! And don’t forget, Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 is coming to PS4, Xbox One, and PC on August 8th, 2017! Grab some great wallpaper and pre-order the game from your favorite retailer at the official website !