Too salty: Critical reaction to Mighty No. 9 is annoying

Mighty No. 9 is out and the reviews are in, and overwhelmingly the reviews are not good. Who could have seen this coming? With sky-high expectations, spiritually having to live up to the legacy of a classic series, a lengthy development, several release delays, multiple controversies the media has been quick to jump on, and plenty of outcry from what I’ve thought of as an extremely vocal minority of gamers, who could have possibly seen it coming? There was blood in the water, and gaming critics were only too hungry to bite.

No, it looks nothing like the gameplay concept images used in the Kickstarter campaign or the early test footage posted online; both of which look far superior to the final product we received. Yes, the game’s development became a public relations nightmare. Yes, the characters and premise are goofy and much of the story is eye-roll worthy. No, the gimmicky dash mechanic is far from loved by all. Yes, it seems the decision to try releasing the game on 10 consoles simultaneously was an ambitious yet ultimately disastrous choice, particularly in retrospect. Yes, this also means how Comcept decided to pitch the game via Kickstarter and plan for achievable stretch goals that would not detract from the core plan was flawed from its implementation.

No, the game is not everything I’d hoped for when I first put money toward the Kickstarter.

Yet no, all this considered, I don’t believe Mighty No. 9 deserves all the foul offal gleefully being tossed upon it.

If I sound like I’m annoyed by the game’s reception, I am. Feels like a popularity contest. I’m not disparaging those who are generally disappointed in the game they ended up receiving; I just think the amount of hate being piled on has become ridiculous.

When I backed the game, I wanted something fun, and I wanted something that was both familiar yet also a little different. As far as I’m concerned, that’s what I received. I’ve been enjoying the game. To me, it’s actually pretty fun. There are still things I don’t care for, but I feel some of the level design is pretty creative and it plays reasonably good. Not great, far from beautiful, but still fun.

A worthy project: Keiji Inafune’s Mighty No. 9

I emerge once again from blog hibernation in response to something in the video game industry I’m actually rather excited about, and that is Comcept’s Kickstarter campaign for a future game titled Mighty No. 9. It is being made by a veteran team of Mega Man developers. Comcept is Keiji Inafune’s company; Inafune being the Japanese game producer who worked on the Mega Man/Rockman series up until his departure from Capcom. If you’re in the mindset to be as excited as me about this, while somehow not yet knowing about the Kickstarter, then what I already said is probably all you need to know. To spell it out, the man behind Mega Man is going to be making a new, "evolved" classic-style side-scrolling game, which I personally consider to be the spiritual successor of Mega Man.

At time of writing, there are nine days to go for the Kickstarter. It has been a considerable success so far, currently at nearly $2.4 million, having surpassed its’ $900,000 goal within the first several days. So the game is a go even if the Kickstarter doesn't raise a dollar more, although the more it continues to get and the more stretch goals it reaches the better the end product should be. Under the topic of money, I do want to be clear I’m not asking for anyone to help fund the Kickstarter. My goal of this post is to just talk about something that I think is really great for several reasons I plan to explain further. This is the first Kickstarter I've ever put money on. I think the project speaks for itself whether it’s something others want to support.

So why am I so eager? Well, to begin, Mega Man is one of my favorite video game series (or perhaps franchise as there are actually multiple series under the name of Mega Man). The name of my blog is inspired by something in a Mega Man game after all. Yet where is Mega Man now? Despite being Capcom’s most recognizable property, there hasn't been a Mega Man game published since 2010, not counting a Japanese-only Apple iOS game that apparently few liked anyway. Inafune, the biggest name behind Mega Man, left Capcom in 2010. I don’t know what Capcom’s intentions are for Mega Man now, but while I’m sure there are still many good, creative people within the company, I just don’t trust Capcom anymore. Another Mega Man game may eventually be inevitable. Such a game might be one I get and enjoy, but I’m tired of looking to Capcom with hope.

Inafune, who worked for Capcom for 23 years and had become its’ global head of productions just before leaving, certainly had his own frustrations. His frustrations encompassed not only Capcom and the ability he had to pursue his own ideas, but the standard Japanese model of game development in its entirety. I don’t think I could give this topic the finesse it deserves though if I were attempt to speak in detail about it, so instead I will refer to a translated transcript of the initial interview of Inafune himself by 4Gamer announcing his departure from Capcom and the reasons behind it. I already liked Inafune before he set off on his own, but now he is easily one of my top favorite people in the entire video game industry.

Inafune, being outside Capcom, no longer has access to the characters and intellectual property he helped make great. With Mighty No. 9, it’s clear he’s starting something of his own design to bypass that issue, something familiar yet also something new. Inafune was restricted in what he was able to accomplish with Mega Man, so one of the other reasons I’m excited is he’s no longer restricted in his ability to manage his own creation. Sure, Mighty No. 9 may be classic side scrolling and by itself that sounds good to me, but I want to see how Inafune’s team is going to be able to go beyond the usual formula. Beck, the titular Mighty No. 9, will have the ability to transform his body to make different weapons and possibly even vehicles – one example of something I look forward to see how it plays out.

Important note: while this concept art looks pretty cool,
it is only art and not from actual gameplay.

Another important point is that, while I just mentioned that Inafune is no longer restricted in managing the prospective game, Comcept is voluntarily relinquishing some control to the fans. Part of that is the Kickstarter itself, but in a larger sense this is Inafune’s response to the business-as-usual Japanese game development process. It’s in this element of Mighty No. 9 that I am the most excited about. From what I've seen the community springing up around Mighty No. 9 is a very positive one. So far Comcept has been very welcoming and encouraging to its’ fans, whether they are in Japan or overseas.

Thinking beyond just the game, I also have a hope that this method of development could help revolutionize areas of the entire game industry. Perhaps that, to quote Marty McFly, is bit "heavy" though. I’ll store that hope away for safekeeping for now and primarily concentrate on eventually playing the outcome of this project.