More low-budget smartphone fun for Capcom’s mascot
When the late, great Tony Ponce wrote his heartfelt goodbye letter to Mega Man, I came at him like a know-it-all jerk, stating that there was no way that Mega Man series was “finished.” With Inafune gone, I predicted that Mega Man was destined for a “hardcore” reinvention in the next ten years, with tons of cheap mobile throwaway games to come in the meantime. Capcom may not care about Mega Man, but they do care about money, and there is plenty of money still to be squeezed from one of their most marketable, recognizable characters.
Sadly, I was right on at least some of that. Here we have yet another low-budget iPhone game featuring Mega Man. That’s not to say the game couldn’t be fun. Sound Rangers: Rhythm and Battle likely does a fine job of meeting its goals. The game is free to play, so if you want to set up a Japanese iPhone account, you can check it out for yourself.
It will be interesting to see if Capcom will continue utilize Mega Man exclusively as a spokesman for shallow-but-accessible mobile titles, or if he’ll get that “hardcore” reboot I predicted at some point as well.
Mega Man and Co. Appearing in Capcom’s “Sound Rangers” [Rockman Corner]
