History YMMV / BlasterMaster

* HilariousInHindsight: Sunsoft's AprilFoolsDay prank for 2010 was ''[[http://web.archive.org/web/20160726042149/http://www.sunsoftgames.com/news/2010-04-01_20BlasterMasterDF.html Blaster Master: Destination Fred]]'', a {{Retraux}} adventure where Jason spends the entire game trying to stop an infection spreading through his dearest companion caused by the previous game's boss. ''VideoGame/BlasterMasterZeroII'' had a different Jason doing the same for his companion Eve 9 years later, though he wouldn't have to go through a FantasticVoyage to cure her.

* SoBadItsGood: The voice acting in ''Blasting Again'' is so atrocious, it's actually somewhat hilarious to listen to.

* InvisibleAdvertising: Blaster Master Overdrive. There was no advertising for this game. The WiiWare was not as promoted as a competent online service. The game was announced 2 months before North American release. Almost no one has heard of this as a result. People had to dig deep to even hear that this game even existed.

* ContestedSequel: Every game released between the NES original and ''Zero'' ended up being this. ''2'' is considered to be outright bad, ''Jr.'' [[DolledUpInstallment isn't truly a part of the series]], ''Enemy Below'' is sometimes seen as [[ItsTheSameSoItSucks too similar]] to the original, ''Blasting Again'' is an okay-but-not-great VideoGame3DLeap, and ''Overdrive'' suffers from the limitations of [=WiiWare=] (mainly in [[CutAndPasteEnvironments asset reuse]]). They still have their fans, but the NES game and the ''Zero'' series are much more popular.

* SignatureScene: Even people who've never played it remember [[https://youtu.be/Vb8b02474FM?t=43s SOPHIA III's initial start up]]. ''Zero'' replicates that as well as doing one for [[spoiler: SOPHIA Zero before the TrueFinalBoss.]] [[spoiler: ''Zero III'' replicates the shot during the true ending sequence.]]

For YMMV exclusive to ''VideoGame/BlasterMasterZero'', click [[YMMV/BlasterMasterZero here]].

''VideoGame/BlasterMasterZeroII'' has its own YMMV page [[YMMV/BlasterMasterZeroII here]].

* SignatureScene: Even people who've never played it remember [[https://youtu.be/Vb8b02474FM?t=43s SOPHIA III's initial start up]]. ''Zero'' replicates that as well as doing one for [[spoiler:SOPHIA ZERO before the TrueFinalBoss.]][[spoiler:''Zero III'' replicates the shot during the true ending sequence.]]

* ThatOneLevel: The bulk of Area 4 as until you get the dive upgrade, you have to traverse the level out of your tank and avoid enemies. It's telling that ''Zero'' had a FandomNod where Jason just at the first screen says ThisIsGonnaSuck word for word.

* CultClassic: Although it's not as well known as some of the bigger hits on the system, the original NES title is one of the most beloved video games out there. The sequels... [[SoOkayItsAverage Well, not so much.]]

* SignatureScene: Even people who've never played it remember [[https://youtu.be/Vb8b02474FM?t=43s SOPHIA III's initial start up]]. ''Zero'' replicates that as well as doing one for [[spoiler:SOPHIA ZERO before the TrueFinalBoss]].

* SoOkayItsAverage: Part of the reason the sequels aren't particularly well remembered is that they weren't really outstanding in any degree like the NES game was. Sure, they're far from terrible games, but they aren't great either.

* CompleteMonster: [[AliensAreBastards The Plutonium Boss]] is a sadistic PlanetaryParasite who feeds on a planet's radiation. Ingraining itself into a planet's core and slowly killing it as it feasts on the core's radiation, once the Plutonium Boss has had its fill, it arises from the ground and annihilates everyone on the planet. Doing this to Eve's home planet Signar-el before moving on to Earth, the Plutonium Boss experiments on organisms to make them its mutated warriors, including a teenage human named Alex. Kidnapping Eve to lure Jason Frudnick and Alex to its lair, the Plutonium Boss reveals to the trio the Psychlotron machine, which will speed up both the feeding process and the destruction of Earth at a much faster rate.

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* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic:
** The first game has lots of it.
*** For example, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwMU9zkflYc this frenetic, yet catchy tune]] from Area 7.
*** Or the classic theme from Area 1, or the Area 3 techno theme, or... hell, just call it an Awesome Soundtrack, really.

* FirstInstallmentWins:
** Good luck finding any fans of ''2'', ''Enemy Below'', ''Blasting Again'', or ''Overdrive''.
** ''Zero'' is well liked and led to this page getting plenty of WikiMagic. Still falls under this trope as a remake of the original.
*** Its own sequel, however, seems to be finally breaking free of this as it's been hailed as an EvenBetterSequel by many who've played it.

** ''Metafight'' is not particularly well-remembered in Japan, probably due to the somewhat non-linear action-based gameplay. For the same reason, ''Blaster Master'' is '''beloved''' by gamers who cut their teeth in the NES era, as the game practically [[{{Metroidvania}} out-Metroided]] the original Metroid. The [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic awesome tunes]] helped this.

** Interestingly, the remake of the original by Inti Creates, ''[[http://inticreates.com/blaster-master-zero-3ds/ Blaster Master Zero]]'', quite clearly uses the ''Blaster Master'' name and aspects of the ''Blaster Master'' NES story, but in an entirely new continuity closer in tone to ''Metafight'' - for instance, Jason is a robotics engineer who has the design of Kane Gardner from ''Metafight'', Fred is an alien creature rather than a normal frog, humanity has been driven underground for a time by an ice age before they came back to the surface and restored it, and Eve is present with the design of Dr. Jennifer Cornet from the original ''Metafight''.

** The UK version of the original is horribly glitched; pausing can negate FallDamage, [[GameBreaker getting trapped in a wall now shoots you upwards]], and combining these two with the door glitch allows you to complete the game without fighting the first seven bosses and leaving [[CoolCar SOPHIA]] at the start of the game.
* PlayerPunch:
** The seventh boss battle, if one reads the aforementioned Scholastic Publishing tie-in, becomes one, as it turns out that the boss is Jason's escaped pet frog, Fred. But when you beat the game, you see Jason and Fred sitting on SOPHIA's roof watching the enemy's stronghold crumble, so either Fred turned back to normal after being defeated and the game never bothered to show it or neither of the frog bosses was Fred and Jason found him somewhere between beating the final boss and escaping the enemy stronghold. The ''Worlds of Power'' novelization explains that the frog boss' appearance was merely a disguise, meant to torment Jason psychologically. The real Fred was alive and well.
** Having to [[spoiler: fight Eve and SOPHIA III at the end of ''Zero'' is really sad. Sure, you can save Eve, but after spending the last 90% of the game with the SOPHIA III on your side, it can be heartrending having to destroy it. It gets even ''worse'' if you bothered to chat with Eve a lot in the various areas, especially after the end of Area 6 while on the way to Area 7, where you learn that SOPHIA III has been fighting to keep Earth safe for potentially ''centuries.'' One small mistake on Eve's part ended up with the destruction of humanity's greatest defender...]]

* SignatureScene: Even people who've never played it remember [[https://youtu.be/Vb8b02474FM?t=43s SOPHIA III's initial start up]]. ''Zero'' replicates that as well as doing one for [[spoiler:SOPHIA ZERO before the TrueFinalBoss]]

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Shovel Knight's addition in ''Zero'' was met with some pushback, with fans claiming that Shovel Knight has already appeared in dozens of other indie games and didn't really need to appear in more. On the other hand, there are also fans who are happy about Shovel Knight because he's a good character, and his gameplay looked very fleshed out and interesting when first revealed.
* BreatherBoss: The Skeleton Boss in ''Blaster Master Zero''. By the time you face it in Area 7, you should have acquired the Acceleration Blast, which takes it down in one fell swoop. Basically, the only way to die in this fight is to enter it with low health or mess up a jump while playing as Jason. The Skeleton Boss is then pretty much reduced to MemeticLoser status when he reappears in Area 9, as he can be defeated with 2 or 3 cannon shots from Sophia [[spoiler:Zero]].
* CatharsisFactor:
** Hated the [[DemonicSpiders searchlight guards]] in ''Zero''[='=]s Area 7 dungeons? Play as Gunvolt in EX Characters Mode, get Voltaic Chains, then laugh in their faces as you proceed to OneHitKill entire swaths of them simultaneously.
** Similarly, it's cathartic to use Voltaic Chains against Ancient Freeze on the Area 9 rematch, as the mere press of a button proves to be enough to take down ThatOneBoss in a single shot.

* DemonicSpiders: The searchlight enemies in Area 7 of ''Zero''. The overworld enemies are normally docile, but if you walk into their cone of sight or attack them, they'll suddenly become aggressive and start leaping at you while firing lots of bullets. Not only are they crazy fast, they also have ''much'' more health than most non-boss enemies, which means it can take a while to kill them if you decide to confront them head-on. The dungeon versions are similar to the previously encountered soldier enemies, but if one spots you, ''every single one in the room'' will converge on your position and start attacking with a bullet storm. These guys also have ridiculous amounts of HP, and they can only be stopped by leaving the room or killing them all, which is easier said than done considering they're aggressive damage sponges.

* GameBreaker: ''Zero'' has a number of these:
** The Wave Gun, which fires a wide triple shot that goes through objects and enemies and can be rapid fired as fast as you can [[ButtonMashing mash the Shoot button.]] Most bosses can easily be defeated with it in only a matter of a few shots. Of course, if you take a hit (or get hit in rapid enough succession for the Energy Guard to not work), [[UnstableEquilibrium the situation can go out of control in a hurry...]] That said, made even more broken when you have the upgrade that gives your weapon gauge a regenerating shield that takes a hit before your weapon does. Of course, the devs planned around this and [[spoiler:made the second form of the final boss immune to this weapon (the inverse holds true in Destroyer Mode; good luck maintaining that upgrade though!)]].
** While the Wave Gun is fantastic for enemies and many bosses, the Striker Gun two levels below it is also extremely good. Only one shot can be on screen at a time, but in addition to it going through walls and being pretty powerful, when it hits an enemy, it will also hit every enemy on screen and even a bit off screen for full damage. On top of that, it can be spammed at close range, and can tear apart many multi segment bosses such as Ancient Freeze. Photophage units in particular die in one hit from the Striker Gun, meaning that if multiple are active at once, shooting one will kill them all.
** Remote Blast trivializes dungeon bosses once you get it. Landing a full 15-hit salvo on a boss can burn through up to '''4/5ths''' of the boss's health. Ekoro has a nerfed version of this ability that lets her repeatedly hammer her targets while they move in slo-mo, but the fact that they move means you can't just fire and forget.
** Gunvolt himself is largely overpowered. The Prevasion mechanic means that as long as he isn't inside the SOPHIA III, he can pretty much never die while he still has EP and isn't Flashfielding, and SP charges fast enough that you can freely dump Luxcaliburs and Dragonspheres on enemies without worrying too much about downtime. His ability to WallJump and glide with Flashfield also makes the SOPHIA III nearly obsolete except for the Hover and Dive abilities, and Gunvolt can easily recharge lost hit points by hopping into a dungeon and using Galvanic Patch. The only thing Gunvolt doesn't have going for him is the lack of flexibility in his offensive options, which has the side effect of upgrading some of the bosses into ThatOneBoss.
** The Brainy Dance is the only transformation Shantae has to go out of her way to unlock, and for good reason. It can be obtained roughly halfway through the game and offers much more utility than the Mutant and Elephant Dances. The Brainy Dance transforms Shantae into Mother Brain, which allows her to move as fast as her untransformed running speed, gives her a powerful exploding projectile that can be used indefinitely and can be redirected while in use, and, uniquely, gives Shantae flight properties, which allows her to fly over holes, lava and bodies of water, drastically cutting down travel time in later dungeons, especially in Area 5 and Area 7. The only drawbacks are the increased hitbox and the inability to move while attacking, but that's a small price to pay when everything on screen can be annihilated in seconds.
** Shovel Knight in general can be called one for the most part as far as dungeons are concerned as he has no defense penalties, his attacks do hefty damage and he can reflect projectiles into equally damaging and piercing shots. He has an invincibility sub weapon, and can fish up more life/magic at low cost. And he can get an upgrade to give him a projectile (at max life), faster attack rate, and a wide arc charged attack. Navigation wise, his shovel can break through Area 4's special blocks and cracked walls (despite how the attacks may reach you have to hit the cracked wall from the proper side). People wonder if his damage output would get nerfed or not. What keeps him from being utterly broken is the hefty MP costs of his relics, but a cautious and/or skilled player can work around that. His Phase Locket is even more broken that it is in his own game, since it lasts much longer and allows him to walk through bosses and go to town on them (very useful on Hard Shell, but [[ThatOneBoss Gurnahide]] is immune to it because you cant walk through it to get to its weak spot).

* ItsEasySoItSucks: A common criticism of ''Zero'' is the lack of challenge, especially owing to the [[GameBreaker game breaking]] Wave Gun, which can be acquired very early on in the game, and easily defeat most bosses. Difficulty issues aside, it's revered as a well-done retro remake overall. The difficulty issue was remedied with the addition of a "Destroyer Mode", a NintendoHard variant of the game unlocked after beating the game, as of the version 1.2 update.

* SurpriseDifficulty: The major complaint about ''Zero'' revolves around [[ItsEasySoItSucks its low difficulty curve.]] If you then decide to jump into Destroyer Mode while thinking it's just the same game with beefier enemies, ''[[NintendoHard you're in for a huge shock.]]''
* SurprisinglyImprovedSequel: The sequels to the original are generally SoOkayItsAverage. ''Zero'', on the other hand, rivals the original for the title of best game in the franchise.
* ThatOneBoss:
** In the first game, the sixth and seventh bosses. Not to mention the fifth boss if you didn't enter his room with your gun fully powered-up.
** In ''Zero'', the bosses can mostly be trivialized by Jason with the Flamethrower and Wave Gun, and Ekoro plays most similarly to him, meaning she can destroy enemies efficiently as well with charge shots and the Ekoro Kick. Shantae can't cheese the bosses with a single form, but between the Storm Puff's gradual damage, the Mutant Dance's piercing shots, the Elephant's invincible charge and the Brainy Dance's mobility and explosive shots, she can handle things as well. Gunvolt and Shovel Knight, on the other hand...
*** Ancient Freeze is going to be hell for Shovel Knight, since the floor can be refrozen if it gets melted, and the Wall upgrade it yields is mandatory to getting the Ultimate Shovel Blade. This limits him to a melee attack, which means CollisionDamage ahoy if he walks the wrong way; playing footsies with the nodes' lasers and bladed discs is the order of the day. The Phase Locket can grant limited invulnerability, but since it consumes magic, it won't last forever. The fight gets easier as the nodes get destroyed, but see about lasting that long first.
*** Gurnahide without the Ultimate Shovel Blade upgrade is pretty hard if tackled recklessly as he can't keep it back at his normal attack rate and its head takes less damage. It boils down to keeping one wing alive as long as possible to whittle it down, strafing to keep the shots aimed as straight as possible, and when both wings go down, using the Phase Locket to dig away at Gurnahide's face hoping it dies before you do. It might be best to wait until you get the Ultimate Shovel Blade before challenging this one, since the item it drops is inert, so have fun with Ancient Freeze!
*** Hard Shell happens to be a BullfightBoss that can only be significantly injured after a charging attack, and constantly sprays out bubbles that Gunvolt has problems punching through because his Tagging mechanic means he can only hit a few targets at a time without Skills; Gunvolt is the only DLC character without an at-will piercing option, meaning he has to fight the boss the ''hard'' way. Luxcalibur is thankfully long enough to hit his back when he's facing you (at the cost of 2 of his at most 3 SP), and Gunvolt can continue dealing damage to Hard Shell once he lands a Tag, but he has to restore Tags once they wear off, and Hard Shell can give you a hard time while you're trying to do that.
** The Boss Blaster mode is awfully generous with its health and energy pickups, allowing Jason to keep his weapon level raised as much as possible on foot and keeping the others topped off on the energy they need. None of that matters against Invem Sophia, which makes very competent use of all of the Sophia III's weapons systems in ways that make the player want to scream. The player is capped at 8 life maximum, which wouldn't be so bad if you weren't stuck with the Sophia III yourself, meaning the boss is better at what you can do, and it starts the fight with the [[OneHitKill Acceleration Blast]], putting you in a bind with having to manage your energy levels while avoiding getting yourself nuked into oblivion by its other weapons once it's done firing. Expect to die a lot to it no matter what you try.
* ToughActToFollow: The soundtrack for the original game is pretty hard to beat. Despite Ippo Yamada's best efforts, renowned Inti Creates music director as he is, some fans are disappointed about the soundtrack of ''Zero'' in comparison to the NES classic. [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption The sequel hasn't fared much better in this regard, either]].
* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: [[spoiler:Area 9, "Alternate Dimension"]], in ''Zero'' is '''weird.'''