Mega Man (universe): Difference between revisions

Capcom was originally known for creating arcade games and porting them to home consoles. In the mid-1980s, however, a team of only six employees developed the original ''Rockman'' for the Famicom, as part of Capcom's initial "focused" foray into the Japanese home console market. The developers strove for perfection in all aspects of the project despite the severe technical limitations of the Famicom, and incorporated designs inspired by Osamu Tezuka's manga ''Astro Boy''. The eponymous hero of the weapon-based platformer was colored blue simply because blue had the most available shades within the Famicom's limited color palette. For the game's simultaneous release in Japan and the United States on December 17, 1987, Capcom's then-Senior Vice President Joseph Marcini renamed the localized version of the game and titular character ''[[Mega Man]]'', believing it would have a much wider appeal to American children. ''Mega Man'' was released to favorable critical reception, but moderately low sales, though they were higher than Capcom originally anticipated.

While ''Mega Man'' was not a large enough commercial accomplishment for Capcom to necessarily justify a sequel, the company allowed the development team to create a sequel as an aside to other projects. The team focused on improving the original formula with enhanced graphics and audio, more levels, and new supportive items that addressed consumer concerns over the extreme difficulty of the previous title. ''Mega Man 2'', in stark contrast to the original, was a huge success worldwide, and definitively established ''Mega Man'' as one of the industry's largest and longest-running franchises and one of Capcom's flagships, and also propelled Capcom to its present-day status as a game developer. As of 2013, over fifty ''Mega Man'' games have been released, with many populating specific "sub-series" and exploring genres outside side-scrolling platforming. Iterations of the Mega Man character himself and other related characters, meanwhile, have appeared in Capcom-involved games outside the main series such as crossover fighting games, like the ''Marvel vs. Capcom'' series that pits Capcom characters against Marvel superheroes and, more recently, Nintendo's own ''[[Super Smash Bros. 4]]''.