Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context VideoGame / MegaManStarForce

Go To

1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/megaman_battlecards_1.png]]
2[[caption-width-right:350:[[TransformationSequence EM Wave Change! Geo Stelar, On The Air!]]]]
3
4->''Wave Battle!''
5->''Ride On!''
6
7''Mega Man Star Force'' (''Ryusei no Rockman'' lit. ''Shooting Star Rockman'') is a series of ''Franchise/MegaMan'' video game titles on the Platform/NintendoDS, a SequelSeries following ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' from the Platform/GameBoyAdvance.
8
9Taking place two hundred years after the events of ''Battle Network'', it stars a young boy named Geo Stelar (Subaru Hoshikawa in the original Japanese), who lost his father after a journey to space and teams up with a rogue alien, Omega-Xis ([[GratuitousEnglish War-Rock]] in the original Japanese version). By performing a FusionDance (in this series called "EM Wave Change"), the two transform into Mega Man, and they use their power to fight various threats. Quite literally (for the first game at least) ''Battle Network''...[[RecycledInSpace In SPACE]]!
10
11!!There are three installments in the franchise[[note]]second only to fellow Platform/NintendoDS series ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' in shortest series in the franchise[[/note]]
12[[index]]
13* ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForcePegasusLeoAndDragon'': At the beginning of the story, Geo is given a keepsake of his father's, a device called a Visualizer, which allows him to see electromagnetic waves. That night, he meets a blue alien named Omega-Xis, who is on the run from Planet FM, whose enforcers are hot on his tail. Omega convinces him to work together and are thrown into a battle against the other FM-ians for the fate of the galaxy.
14* ''Mega Man Star Force 2: Zerker X Saurian and Zerker X Ninja'': Geo, Omega and their friends meet Lady Vega and her compatriots, who are obsessed with finding the lost continent of Mu. Vega and her assistant Solo are seeking the keys to Mu, the [=OOParts=] via the use of [=UMAs=] -- Unidentified Mysterious Animals -- wave-based lifeforms like FM-ians that take the shape of cryptozoological creatures.
15* ''Mega Man Star Force 3: Black Ace and Red Joker'': Geo and Omega must stop Meteor G, an ''EM meteor'', from destroying the earth, while contending with the spread of Noise caused by it. Meanwhile, Dealer, led by the public philanthropist Mr. King, seeks to use the asteroid for their own nefarious ends (basically the premise of ''Battle Network 4'', but without all the tournaments...and better use of the asteroid in question).
16[[/index]]
17
18An [[TheAnimeOfTheGame anime adaptation]] of the series also aired but ended with an abrupt finale of the second season, ''Ryusei no Rockman Tribe'', based on the second game. The English dub first premiered on Cartoon Network's Creator/{{Toonami}} block before moving online to Toonami Jetstream. Only half of the first season was released. No [=DVDs=] ever circulated in the United States ''or'' Japan, though the dub got a UK DVD release thanks to [[Creator/MangaEntertainment Manga UK]]. There was a manga serialized in ''Corocoro'' that loosely adapted the first and second games, and Ryo Takamisaki (of ''Anime/MegaManNTWarrior'' fame) produced a promotional manga for ''Star Force 3''. Neither of these were translated into English.
19
20Following the end of the series, an UpdatedRerelease of the ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork1'' with the subtitle ''Operate Shooting Star'' was released, adding a new crossover scenario between the two series. This crossover takes place after ''Star Force 3''.
21
22The first game has an enhanced GameMod called ''VideoGame/MegaManStarForceDX'', which fixes up issues in the original game, adds in new quality of life features, restores cut content, and adds new post-game content. It has [[https://forums.therockmanexezone.com/mega-man-star-force-dx-t16546-s440.html#p353015 its own thread]] at the Rockman EXE Zone Forum.
23----
24!!Tropes used in ''Mega Man Star Force'':
25
26[[foldercontrol]]
27
28[[folder:# A-C]]
29* AbilityMixing: This version of Mega Man isn't the only one to mix their {{Multiform|Balance}} {{Super Mode}}s[[note]]The heroes of ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' start with Model X and layer different Models on top of it, and [=MegaMan.EXE=] could use the Cross System and Beast Out {{Power Up}}s in tandem in ''Battle Network 6''[[/note]], but Geo and Omega make it their bread and butter. The second game allows you to mix any combination of three unique "Tribes", while the third game limits you to combinations of two "Noises" at a time, but gave you ''ten'' options.\
30\
31Notably, mixing the same elements in different orders yields different forms, so the second game had a total of three basic Tribe forms, six Double Tribes, and the Tribe King, while the third game had ten basic Noise Forms and no less than [[ExaggeratedTrope ninety]] Double Noises.
32* AcademyOfAdventure: Echo Ridge Elementary, which has had up to a total of ''eleven'' EM Humans walking around its halls at some point or another, including six students (plus Sonia and Solo), a pair of teachers, and ''[[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking the gardener]]''.
33* AceCustom: With few exceptions, every Wizard on the planet is man-made, but Acid was designed for use by Ace [[spoiler: and is the only one that can engage in Wave Change]].
34* AchillesInHisTent: Geo starts the series as a {{Hikikomori}} following the disappearance of his father and relapses in the first two games following drama. Inverted in the third game where he fights to keep his friends from getting demoralized themselves.
35* ActionizedSequel: In comparison to the ''Battle Network'' games. Movement is restricted to sidestepping and blocking and you can lock on and FlashStep towards the enemies.
36* AdaptationExpansion: The anime spent some time elaborating on side characters and especially the FM-ian invaders. The Tribe anime reworks the events of the game into a MythArc and adds a couple of completely new segments to accommodate all the [=OOPArts=].
37* AdultsAreUseless: Geo is the best Wave Changer in the world despite being only twelve, which is justified on the grounds that Mega Man is one of only a couple dozen EM Humans and also one of the longest-active. Additionally, Mega Man gets a lot of support from institutions like AMAKEN and NAXA and the grownups who run them.
38* AfterTheEnd: The post-game BonusDungeon in ''Star Force 2'' is an AlternateUniverse in which the world fell prey to a BadFuture very quickly.
39* AlternateContinuity: Like with ''Battle Network'', the manga and anime adaptations deviate from the original games in very notable ways, though both adaptations feature expanded roles for the FM-ians.
40* AlternateUniverse: ''Star Force 2'' has the Trans Dimension, which is a [[AfterTheEnd horrifying]] picture of what would happen if [[DownerEnding you couldn't defeat the final boss]].
41* AlwaysCheckBehindTheChair: As in ''Battle Network'', it behooves the player to check everything he can get his hands on. Hidden items and activation points for computers abound.
42* AllThereInTheManual: Loads of backstory (especially for ''Star Force 3'') is stuffed into the Japanese websites and {{Universe Compendium}}s.
43** Transcode-000 is [[spoiler:Dread Joker]].
44** The Ace Program and Joker Program are collectively known as Noise Control Programs.
45** Mega Man's noise-forms are adapted from the FM-ians because Meteor G collected data from the FM-ians and Omega-Xis can resonate with that data due to having a similar frequency.
46* AlwaysInClassOne: Geo, Luna, Bud and Zack are in Class 5-A. In the first game, Pat's also there, but in the anime, he's in a different class.
47* AnimalThemedSuperbeing: Many bosses, being based on western constellations or cryptids, take the form of animals real or mythical. A [[OurMinotaursAreDifferent minotaur]], a [[SwansASwimming swan]], a [[GiantEnemyCrab crab]], a [[SnakesAreSexy snake]], a [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent werewolf]], a {{Pegasus}}, a [[KingOfBeasts lion]], a [[OurDragonsAreDifferent dragon]], a [[BigfootSasquatchAndYeti yeti]], a [[StockNessMonster plesiosaur]], a [[GiantFlyer condor]], a [[ExtremeOmniGoat goat]], and a crow.
48* AnimationBump: Whenever [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4PxZhzekSI Shingo Adachi]] was in charge of the art direction for an episode, you could expect the animation to be top-notch; this resulted in several striking fight scenes, like the Crown Thunder's debut and the second Wolf Woods arc.
49* AnimeOfTheGame: Was adapted into an anime that may or may not follow the {{canon}} of Anime/MegaManNTWarrior[[note]]The ''Tribe'' anime notably reuses a location from Battle Network's ''Stream'' anime[[/note]]. Notable for giving unique personalities to the FM-ians. And [[AdaptationalBadass Hyde]].
50* AnotherDimension:
51** In the second game, the entire BonusDungeon is a BadFuture AlternateUniverse. Due to a bad translation, though, it's very hard to figure out how the gap between the two was bridged.
52** Also in the second game, special event data from Real Life download stations (now [[TemporaryOnlineContent unavailable]]) allowed Geo to obtain a Brotherband with [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic the original Mega Man]], suggesting at least a small bridge between their worlds was possible[[note]]This reflects the Battle Network 4 - Zero 3 crossover content from back in the day, except here Geo is connecting to an alternate past rather than Lan and Mega connecting to an alternate future[[/note]].
53* AntiHero: Solo/Rogue in the third game, who is hunting Dealer for stealing and manipulating Mu technology. His first appearance in the game involves him throwing the Laplace Blade at Jack Corvus' exposed back, and we don't think he would have minded if Jack [[DeadlyDodging hadn't dodged]].
54* AppliedPhlebotinum
55*** Large concentrations of Zet waves (especially Murian ones) also work slightly in reverse -- EM Beings may spontaneously become visible. A small story arc in the beginning of ''Star Force 2'' is based around this.
56** Noise, which appears in ''3''. Originally thought to be a kind of [[TheCorruption corrupted]] electromagnetism, interfering with Earth tech and driving mass-produced Wizards violently crazy, comments [[spoiler: from Spade Magnes R]] about the ability to use the [[SubspaceOrHyperspace Noise Wave]] suggest that it rather simply [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity overwhelms]] the Wizards in question.
57* ArcSymbol:
58** For the series itself, Geo's Shooting Star pendant. In the first two games, as you unlock achievements (beating the game, collecting all the Battle Cards, etc.), various marks will appear on the title screen. When you [[HundredPercentCompletion get all six]], the marks connect and produce a silhouette of the shooting star. In ''Star Force 2'', the same six-point pattern is the basis of a ''very'' useful Wave Command Code. The series' logo also uses a shooting star, but not quite the same design as Geo's pendant.
59** The chief symbol of Mu (which has no established meaning[[note]]The Official Complete Works guidebook indicates that there is a massive Murian alphabet and provides a sampling of the characters, but this is largely for aesthetic[[/note]] but might as well be its trademark). Solo's clothes, Rogue's outfit, the Badge of Loneliness, Whazzap Lines, The Indie Proof, you name it. Shows up much less, but noticeably, in 3.
60* ArmCannon:
61** As is traditional for the franchise, Mega Man has a Mega Buster. Untraditionally, this version of the Mega Buster is a whole ''face''--Mega Man's left forearm consists of Omega-Xis' head, which shoots blasts of energy. This design was later revamped into a sleeker barrel in the third game.
62** Many battle cards replace the Mega Buster with the weaponry depicted by the card, including a variety of ballistic weapons.
63* ArmorPiercingAttack: Sword, Breaking, and Wind attributes all return to void Shadow, Shielding, and Barrier/Aura defenses. The Scope attribute (which voids Invisible) is ''present'' but much reduced in significance (the ''Gorgon Eye'' Giga Card has it and maybe a few others).
64* ArtifactTitle:
65** The Japanese series title is "Shooting Star Rockman" (a [[GratuitousEnglish deliberately English]] translation of ''Ryuusei no Rockman''), despite the CosmicMotifs of the series being severely diminished in the second game. The third game obviously attempted to mend this by making more use of outer space.
66** The Western title of "Star Force" likewise ceases to be accurate after Mega Man [[DiscardAndDraw loses the power]] of the Satellite Admins.
67* ArtisticLicensePhysics:
68** Inevitable given the nature of the series, but one of the most egregious examples is the fact that Geo can prance around inside a black hole without worry. In reality, ''anything'' gets torn apart inside a black hole since the forces inside approach ''infinity'' in all directions in a process called spaghettification.
69** Then there's the fact that, barring a few teleports, Geo can actually WALK across planets lightyears away from Earth.
70* ArtShift: Downplayed. While the series maintained the same artists across the series (''Battle Network'' had a large shift after the third game), the ''aesthetic'' of the series changed dramatically between installments, with TheAestheticsOfTechnology from ''Star Force 3'' (for example) being a far cry from the second game's.
71* ArtifactOfDoom:
72** The [=OOPArts=] of the second game[[note]]"Out of Place Artifacts", examples of AnachronismStew in RealLife archaeology[[/note]] are the last remaining artifacts of three tribes of {{Precursors}} that disappeared without a trace; each is made of an [[{{Unobtainium}} exotic material]], leak massive surges of [[AppliedPhlebotinum Zet-Waves]], and are coveted by the villains for power and profit. Each of them is infested with the souls of its tribe, which threaten to overpower anybody who tries to use them, but mastering any of them allows Mega Man to wield it as an AmuletOfConcentratedAwesome and TransformationTrinket.
73** The Indie Proof is the EvilCounterpart of the [=OOPArts=], an ancient artifact that is designed to completely isolate its holder from the world around him.
74* AsteroidsMonster: The head of Star Force 3's FinalBoss [[CoresAndTurretsBoss blocks its core]], but when you destroy it, it splits into two other heads.
75* AstralFinale: In the first and third games.
76* {{Atlantis}}: The second game and ''Tribe'' anime use the lost FloatingContinent of Mu as a core plot element and setting.
77* AxCrazy: Gemini Spark Black, Wolf Woods when under a full moon, and Jack Corvus are all manic destroyers. [[spoiler:Acid Ace B. is one, too]].
78* BackForTheFinale: The final episode of the ''Tribe'' anime had nearly the whole supporting cast of the first season cameo during Misora's concert at the end, [[spoiler:including the FM-ians, who had all been KilledOffForReal]].
79* BackgroundMusicOverride: In ''3'', when an Omega Boss appears in the area the regular background music is replaced with an extremely ominous tune. This persists even through battles until either you encounter the boss or leave the area. Also, the Satella Police theme plays nonstop throughout the attack on WAZA HQ. Finally, for a less extreme example, the Dealer Base's theme carries over to the Wave World.
80* BadassBoast: Geo gets a few ''epic'' ones in ''3'' that seem [[OutOfCharacterMoment a bit out of place for a guy like him]].
81--> '''Mega Man''' (''to [[spoiler:[[AxCrazy Jack]] [[PlayingWithFire Corvus]]]]''): "Your wish will remain only a pathetic pipe dream!!"
82--> '''Mega Man''': "[[spoiler:Crimson Dragon!!]] [[HeroicSpirit For the people that I love... I]] ''[[HeroicSpirit will]]'' [[HeroicSpirit defeat you! You won't see the light of tomorrow!]]"
83* BadFuture: The BonusDungeon in the second game is AnotherDimension . One of the inhabitants implies that it's ''Geo's fault''.
84* BagOfSpilling:
85** Geo's Battle Cards do not carry over between installments, though ''Star Force 2'' and ''Star Force 3'' allow you to "unofficially" obtain cards from ''Star Force 1''.
86** Geo gets a new type of handheld in each game, which disperses his Brother Bands and makes it necessary to recreate them. In ''Star Force 2'', they're only reforged following major events in the story, but ''Star Force 3'' quickly gets it out of the way, since Luna and company aren't tardy to re-friending each other.
87** Mega Man's entire power-up system is subject to DiscardAndDraw between installments. He loses the Star Force after the first game and the Tribe forms after the second.
88* BarrierBustingBlow: In ''Star Force 3'', Geo, Sonia, Zack, and Solo are all trapped in Class 5-A during a Dealer agent's attack. While Geo and Sonia puzzle over how to get out, Solo summons the [[{{BFG}} Laplace Blade]] and smashes a massive hole in the floor, which leads to the Teacher's Lounge, and then a second one in the wall to get out to the hallway.
89* BattleOfTheStillFrames: Plenty in the anime. Taurus Fire's BreathWeapon was often subject to shots that panned across the full stream of flame.
90* BettyAndVeronica: Zigzagged with Luna and Sonia. At first glance, Sonia--a lonely orphan in casual wear who is BirdsOfAFeather with Geo--is the Betty and Luna--the fancy UptownGirl and ClassRepresentative trying to get Geo out in the world--is the Veronica; on the other hand, Sonia is a world-famous IdolSinger who travels the globe while Luna lives down the street from Geo and both are in the same posse of classmates.
91* BigBad:
92** Lady Vega in the second game.
93** Mr. King in the third game.
94* BigEater:
95** Bud Bison, and, given his family crest is a crossed knife and fork, the whole Bison family, apparently.
96** Depending on the direction you take the DatingSim [[BeachEpisode minigame]] in ''3'', [[WomanScorned Luna or Sonia or both]] will be seen scarfing tons of food. On her own, Sonia claims to be able to eat as much as she wants without gaining any weight.
97* BitCharacter: Numerous generic {{NPC}}s recur from one game to another, many with a gimmick expressed in their PunnyName, their [[MonsAsCharacterization Favorite Cards]], or even a {{Sidequest}}.
98* {{BFS}}:
99** Rogue wields a OneHandedZweihander in the second game and replaces it with Laplace, who takes the form of a SinisterScimitar (with a SerratedBladeOfPain) in the third.
100** Mega Man wields another One-Handed Zweihander with a blade made out of lightning when using any Zerker-based SuperMode in the second game; in the third game it returns with the "Thunderbolt Blade" LimitBreak. As the Tribe King, Mega Man wields an evolved version of the sword as a BladeBelowTheShoulder
101* BilingualDialogue: Laplace can communicate only through a type of buzzing noise, but Solo can apparently understand him just fine, and even tells him to shut up at one point.
102* BloodKnight: Almost every optional boss in the first two games enjoys battle.
103** Claude, the rude and friendless eight-year-old {{Delinquent}} that hangs out at [[MakingASplash Big Wave]].
104** Damian, a silent and antisocial gardener whose natural inclinations to violence are only aggravated by his alien partner.
105** Jean, a five centuries old ghost[[labelnote:*]]Sort of. It's complicated.[[/labelnote]] who comes from a long line of bellicose warriors. Naturally, he's quite traditional.
106** Kidd, a young martial artist who actually does so for reasons of sport and challenge.
107** Pat is the exception here. He mostly takes to sparring [[spoiler:so he can exercise his ability to control Rey.]]
108* BondCreatures: EM beings, with the exception of most Wizards, who can also work on their own.
109* BonusDungeon: Deep Space in ''1'', the Alternate Future in ''2'', and the Black Hole Server in ''3''.
110* BookEnds: The series ends just like how it officially began: Geo staring off into space until Omega crashes right on top of him. [[spoiler:The second time, however, Omega has brought someone else with him: Kelvin Stelar.]]
111* BossInMookClothing: Zack's Link Power sidequest in the second game involves battling a [[MarathonLevel wave of ten difficult virus battles]] that can give even players who have bested Le Mu a run for their money.
112* BossRush: At the end of every game.
113-->'''Mega Man:''' ''*Sigh* Not again...''
114* BossWarningSiren: In the third game, an alert displayed on the bottom screen indicates an incoming battle with a giant virus. However, if the current BGM is [[BGMOverride the persistent and ominous Omega Boss theme]], then the alert means an Omega boss is approaching fast.
115* BreakHisHeartToSaveHim: [[spoiler:When Geo discovers Sonia has undergone a sudden FaceHeelTurn late in the second game, he's understandably stunned and heartbroken. Upon learning this, Luna insists that Sonia did so in order to keep him from hurting himself and gets so upset ''at Geo'' that she nearly starts crying. The game kind of glosses over the fact that Sonia's decision would only make sense if she suddenly lost faith in Geo; which got swept under the rug so that Geo can be wholly blamed instead. [[NotWhatISignedOnFor This, of course, backfires on Sonia]]]].
116* BreakingOldTrends: Unlike every other final boss in the Network timeline, the final boss of ''3'' is the BigBad himself rather than his monster. He's also the only BigBad in the timeline to die.
117* BreakingTheFourthWall: "Touch the screen...[[LampshadeHanging er, train!]]"
118* BrosBeforeHoes: In the third game, Geo can choose to seize Bud's clothing when it's falling rather than Luna's handkerchief or Sonia's bag; Bud appreciates the show of solidarity [[spoiler:and uses the moment to reveal he can Wave-Change to the audience]].
119* BullfightBoss: [[PlayingWithFire Taurus Fire]] and Queen Ophiuca have attacks where they charge you. They are, however, mostly out of your range, unless you have a Card that attacks your sides.
120* CainAndAbel: [[spoiler:Acid and Joker. Notably for being a rare example of non-human brothers]].
121* CameBackWrong: In ''Star Force 3'', [[spoiler:Strong, Luna, and Ace all get destroyed in the same fashion. Guess [[MauveShirt which one]] is revived as an EmptyShell of their former self.]]
122* TheCameo: ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' characters [=ProtoMan, PharaohMan=], and Bass sneak their way into the series by featuring in battle-card art.
123* CaptainErsatz: Virgo and Corvus are two criminals from Planet FM. The way it is set up (particularly with Omega's origins) brings to mind the villains of ''Film/SupermanII''. They match up even better to the Franchise/DCAnimatedUniverse [[http://dcanimated.wikia.com/wiki/Mala counter]][[http://dcanimated.wikia.com/wiki/Jax-Ur parts]] of said villains.
124* CardCarryingVillain: Omega-Xis laughingly calls Dr. Vega a comic-book villain after she announces her plot to TakeOverTheWorld. In the anime, she goes so far as to self-identify as a "bad adult".
125* CastOfExpies: Zigzagged--''Star Force'' has a cast of {{Suspiciously Similar Substitute}}s. Many characters use the same characterization and design tropes as their ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' predecessors, but in new combinations.
126** [[BettyAndVeronica Luna and Sonia]] mix-and-match traits from several characters. Luna, as the haughty blonde ojou, resembles Yai, but also suffers from parental issues like Mayl had, though Mayl's went unexplored. Sonia as the RoseHairedSweetie better resembles Mayl (and the blonde in pink Harp Note is clearly imitating [=Roll.EXE=]), but as Mega Man's combat companion, she's reminiscent of [=ProtoMan=].
127** Bud fits quite nicely into [[StoutStrength Dex's]] old position, but with an emphasized penchant for eating - his family crest is a crossed knife and fork. (Most aspects of Dex's character regarding food were only in the [[Anime/MegaManNTWarrior Anime]])
128** Zack has a collared shirt, tie, glasses, fluffy brown hair, and intellect like Higsby, but he's also a midget NonActionGuy like Yai; he also closely resembles Aster from ''Battle Network 6'', who was likewise a midget Higsby clone.
129** Taurus Fire, the first boss of ''Star Force'', as DumbMuscle who likes punching things on the one hand and a HotBlooded BloodKnight who likes PlayingWithFire on the other, is a mix of the earliest Battle Network bosses [=GutsMan.EXE=] and [=FireMan.EXE=].
130** Gemini Spark's humanoid appearance, [[AmazingTechnicolorPopulation inhuman skin color]], metallic arms, and electric element are very reminiscent of [=ElecMan.EXE=].
131** Cancer Bubble, as a crab that likes MakingASplash, imitates [[VideoGame/MegaManX2 Bubble Crab]], and being a PintsizedPowerhouse who attacks with flooding torrents of water reminds of [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork AquaMan.EXE]].
132** Hyde/Dark Phantom from the second game takes an occult motif, fancy dress, SmugSnake, and [[IHaveYourWife girl-abducting]] traits from [=ShadeMan.EXE=], but Hyde is a TheatrePhantom while [=ShadeMan=] was a ClassicalMovieVampire.
133** Solo is a mix of [=ProtoMan.EXE=]'s and [=Bass.EXE=]'s traits, being TheRival with a penchant for swords on the one hand and a darkly-colored BarrierWarrior on the other.
134** Ace, as the leader of ''Star Force 3's'' anti-villain response team, serves as an heir to the team leaders of ''Battle Network 5'', Chaud and Baryl. Like Chaud, he fights crime as a prodigy member of the police, and like Baryl [[spoiler:he has a history with a villainous organization]].
135** Dealer, the villainous organization of ''Star Force 3'', spreads TheCorruption and works to seize control of an impending meteor, making it a dead-ringer for ''Battle Network's'' Nebula. Concept art indicates that BigBad Mr. King's original design was based on Dr. Wily before the creators settled on a design closer to Dr. Regal.
136** Jack and Queen Tia imitate [[VideoGame/MegaManZX Prometheus and Pandora]]: a HotBlooded BloodKnight brother who attacks with ghostly fire and [[SinisterScythe scythe-like wings]], and his [[TheStoic quiet]], [[EmotionlessGirl emotionless]] sister who peppers her sentences with lots of ellipses and attacks by manipulating the elements[[note]]Water, technically, while Pandora used Ice and Lightning.[[/note]] with her staff.
137* CastingAShadow: Downplayed with the Grabity virus family, which is immune to all damage except swords, a style of defense that was [[CallBack previously used by]] various EldritchAbomination {{Living Shadow}} viruses from ''Battle Network''. Grabities even have a single Cyclopean eyeball like the Nightmare viruses before them.
138* CastingGag: In the Japanese edition of TheAnimeOfTheGame, the main character is surrounded by preceding ''Franchise/MegaMan'' voices--Geo's mom Hope is voiced by Creator/AkikoKimura, who played his predecessor [=MegaMan=].EXE, and Omega-Xis is voiced by Creator/KentaroIto, who voiced X himself in ''VideoGame/MegaManX4''[[note]]This is a double nod to ''Mega Man Star Force'' being a parallel of ''VideoGame/MegaManX'', taking place two hundred years after ''Battle Network'' as ''X'' took place two centuries after ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic''.[[/note]].
139* CharacterDevelopment: In a refreshing change from ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'', whose characters remained largely static throughout the series, Geo goes from being [[{{Wangst}} mopey and introverted]] in the first game to having a chipper and outgoing personality (bar a [[HeroicBSoD slight setback]]) in the second one due to his experiences. In the third game, he has matured to the point where he functions as the team's pillar of strength during Luna's absence.
140** In the first game, Geo acted like asking someone to be his Brother was like proposing to someone, since he was timid back then. His first person that he asked to be Brothers with was Sonia. The first boy, incidentally, [[HoYay Pat]]. But in the third game, he went around getting Brothers everywhere. (Then again, the third game seems to forget that becoming Brothers involves sharing your [[SecretIdentity secret]] with them...)
141* CheatCode: Cipher Mail, the ''Star Force'' replacement for the [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Number Trader]]. By sending messages to very specific recipients, Mega Man can obtain various power-ups and specific battle cards (even including the strongest versions of each Mega Card).
142* CheckpointStarvation: After defeating [[TrueFinalBoss Le Mu XA]], maxing all Link Power with Geo's friends and defeating Le Mu XA again, you can fight [[{{Superboss}} Rogue SX]] at Whazzap Ruins. If you lose, you will have to fight Le Mu XA again and endure the unskippable credits before you can have another attempt at Rogue SX.
143* ChestInsignia:
144** Geo's [[ItWasAGift Shooting Star pendant]] is embedded in the center of Mega Man's chest, rather than an artistic design. [[AllThereInTheManual The official website]] notes that it symbolizes Geo's bond with his father, as well as showing that Geo is still in control of himself in his [[SuperMode Finalized Noise Form]].
145** Both the Black Ace and Red Joker forms each have Geo sport two symbols: the symbol of the person he's copying (upside down A, triangular J, respectively) and his traditional star pendant on his chest, to symbolize he's still in control.
146** Most (if not all) Wave Change forms have one of the artistic design category, though none are necessarily located on the chest.
147** Also, the Crest of Mu on Solo's clothes, both when he's in human or Wave form.
148* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: A lot of the characters do this, most notably Copper and Pat, who have major roles in the first game, minor ones in the second, and only get a partial appearance and a mention in the third game (respectively).
149* ClarkKenting: Thanks to sharing the same style of AnimeHair, Mega Man is a PaperThinDisguise for Geo even at the best of times.
150** To the game's credit, the one person really looking for Mega Man's identity, Copper, is actually suspicious of Geo (and even plants a tracking device on him at one point in the second game), but that's because he keeps encountering Geo in suspicious circumstances.
151** The game toys with this by having Luna force Geo into her really bad imitation Mega Man costume and ''still'' fail to connect the dots.
152** A few Mr. Hertzes at Geo's home and school hang a lampshade on their resemblance, but nothing comes of it.
153* ClassRepresentative: Luna Platz is Echo Ridge's fifth grade president, and is constantly trying to get Geo to go to school.
154* CloneAngst: In the second game, [[spoiler: Hollow is well aware that he is a ReplacementGoldfish, and regrets that he cannot recall any of Altair's memories in order to make Vega happy]].
155* LesCollaborateurs: When the BigBad of the second game pulls a DoNotAdjustYourSet and announces how her new society of Mu will be reserved only for the elite of society, nearly everyone on the planet starts backstabbing each other and breaking Brother Bands in the attempt to save their own skin.
156* ColorCodedElements: Inherited directly from ''Battle Network'', the series has red Fire, blue Aqua, yellow Elec(tricity), and green Wood. ''Star Force 2'' uses purple for the PowerOfTheVoid attacks peculiar to Rogue and EliteMook Murians ("Ye born of Nothing."), which are NonElemental for purposes of gameplay.
157* CombatClairvoyance: According to the defunct [[AllThereInTheManual official website]], Rogue's [[GogglesDoSomethingUnusual visor]] can trace the movement of [=EM=] energy in his opponents, ostensibly allowing him to see them preparing attacks. [[InformedAttribute This has no influence on gameplay]], since most of his attacks are flinch-inducing {{Spam Attack}}s meant to keep you from moving.
158* {{Combos}}: Battle Cards that inflict status effects or field effects frequently set up other cards as well.
159** Chain Bubble traps foes in a bubble, which prevents enemies from doing anything and sets up double-damage for electric cards, like Stun Knuckle. (Both Chain Bubble 1 and Stun Knuckle are available before the Lyra scenario begins).
160** Grass Stage sets up every Fire-element card for a damage multiplier; one notable combo is to initiate Break Time Bomb, and then to [[HarmlessFreezing hit the target with a Freeze Knuckle]], which will earn the bomb (which has the breaking attribute) a damage boost both from shattering the ice trapping the target and, if grass stage is set, from burning the grass.
161* CompressedAdaptation:
162** For the sake of the LighterAndSofter AdaptationDeviation, many of the {{Dark and Troubled Past}}s attributed to each character are simplified or removed, and the FM-ians (usually) are not preying on the insecurities of their chosen humans so much as simply helping themselves to the nearest useful human body.
163** The abrupt GainaxEnding of the Tribe anime was not able to explore the characters of the BigBad and TheDragon, but was clearly conscious of them--the former gets a brief but intense FreakOut when the latter loses in battle.
164* ConsoleCameo: Geo has a Platform/NintendoWii in his room.
165* ContestWinnerCameo: Goat Kung-Fu and Moon Disaster were designed by fans.
166* ContinuityNod: The franchise is littered with throwbacks to ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' and ''Anime/MegaManNTWarrior''.
167** The first ''Star Force'' game is saturated with [=NetNavi NPCs=] and the Dream Island junkyard has an area with large piles of [=PETs=].
168** The quiz-giving [=NPCs=] also returned in force, complete with introductory catchphrase: "Hey, hey! Ho, ho!"
169** The mini-game from Harp Note's chapter in ''Star Force 1'' has Mega Man trying to fend off Shock Note attacks from all sides, remarkably similarly to how [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Lan]] had to fend off Edo Castle's dummy soldiers in ''Battle Network 5''.[[labelnote:*]]Notably, 5 was the only game to be [[UpdatedRerelease DS-ified.]][[/labelnote]]
170** Geo makes the same "Item Found" fist-pump as Lan and Mega.
171** The first game of the series kept the tradition of {{Crossover}}s with Boktai inherited from the latter half of the ''Battle Network'' series and included content from ''Boktai DS''; this was not kept in the Western release of the game, possibly in keeping with the attempted rebrand of ''Boktai DS'' as ''Lunar Knights''.
172** Bob Copper's least favorite thing in the second game? Baseballs. In the first game, Geo beaned him with one to keep himself from being found out.
173** Blair Loude is a lounge singer in the second game, which naturally implies he was fired [[spoiler:as the Echo Ridge Elementary principal after the first game]].
174** In the second game, Luna is both Brothers with her mother Veil, following up on the Platz family drama in the first game. Further, Luna's favorite food is Veil's home cooking; in the first game, Veil's quest is to collect a recipe so she can cook something for her family.
175** The third game in particular draws heavily from the Regal saga in Battle Network. The bad guy is named King, his plan involves an [[ColonyDrop Impending Meteor]] and TheCorruption, the heroes form a team to take him down, and the Noise Change system heavily mimics Soul Unisons.
176** The 3rd game has a scene at the beach discussing the art of "boxers-off" from the beach scene in the ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork5TeamColonelAndTeamProtoMan'' that has been passed down though the ages.
177** In some classroom scenes of the anime, there's a kid running around in Lan's clothes.
178** Another Lan reference in the anime -- some kid with his outfit is in the giant crowd trying to get into Sonia's concert during her debut episode. He even has a bandana this time.
179** In the anime, Mega Man is afraid of ghosts (like [=MegaMan=] in ''Anime/MegaManNTWarrior'').
180** When Akane tags along for Hyde's art class in the Tribe anime, she's carrying a bag with the [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Hikari Insignia]] on it.
181** In the Tribe anime, Subaru and Gori have a meeting in a restaurant that has been around since at least ''[[Anime/MegaManNTWarrior RockMan.EXE Stream]]''.
182** In the anime, a TV has the brand name IPC, short for Ijuin PET Company or Blaze Quest Games in the Western release of VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork.
183** The Star Force 3's website character profile for Rogue indicated he used technology called the Darklight Harvester to power several of his attacks; one of its functions was to keep the "[[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork4RedSunAndBlueMoon dark power]]" he used from running wild and [[TheCorruption causing harm]] to Rogue himself.
184** In the Mega Man NT Warrior anime, Lan and Mega Man visit Ameroppe (or Netopia in the localization) as one of the locations in their world tour for the second place prize after the N1 Grand Prix and talk about "[[StockNessMonster Dossie]]" as the episode ends with a silhouette of what appears to be Dossie in the background and both of them seemingly unaware. In both Starforce 2 and the tribe anime, Dossie is revealed to actually be a UMA that becomes the boss "Plesio Surf".
185* ContrastingSequelMainCharacter:
186** Geo Stelar is a brown-eyed brunette, just like [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Lan]] was, but he's also an introvert and a {{Hikikomori}} at the beginning of the franchise.
187** Omega-Xis likewise replaces the calmer, responsible, humanoid [=MegaMan.EXE=] with his own monstrous appearance and brash violence.
188* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Rich Dotcom, alias Yeti Blizzard, in the second game. We never see him engaged in his actual company, but we do meet him in the middle of a hostile takeover.
189* CreepyTwins: Gemini Spark, the series' iconic DualBoss.
190* {{Crossover}}:
191** Following the ''Battle Network'' tradition of crossovers with Konami's ''Boktai'' franchise, the first ''Shooting Star Rock Man'' game exchanged some crossover content with ''Boktai DS'', including a sidequest for each game, Battle Cards for Rock Man, and War-Rock acting as a terrenial for Django and Sabata. This content was DummiedOut of the localized versions for both games for reasons unknown, but possibly related to the attempt to rebrand ''Boktai DS'' as ''Lunar Knights''.
192** The premise of ''Battle Network: Operate Shooting Star'' is a VideoGameRemake of the first ''Battle Network'' game with the ''Star Force'' cast visiting from the future. Mega Man and Harp Note both appear during the game, the former as a playable character. Luna, Bud, Zack, and Dr. Yoily cameo in the credits, and Burai appears in ''Star Force'' battle chips and a program advance.
193* CursedWithAwesome: Echoing ''Battle Network 6'', late in the second game, Geo and Mega lose the [=OOPArt=] but (conveniently) retain the ability to Tribe-On. Geo suggests that the power of the [=OOPArt=] is more of a curse than a blessing. Omega-Xis, well...
194-->'''Omega-Xis:''' ''Well, if it makes me strong, it's my kind of curse!''
195-->'''Geo:''' ''Um...OK...''
196-->'''Omega-Xis:''' ''Why are you so scared? It's my curse and I'm cool with it!''
197* CutscenePowerToTheMax:
198** Rogue. This dies down the more he appears, but in his first appearance in ''Star Force 2'', it's ridiculous how much the cutscene boasts of his power, despite only having 800 HP and none of his special abilities yet.
199** Jack Corvus too. He's probably one of the easiest bosses in the game (well, pretty much everything is easy in Star Force 3 if you know what you're doing, but still) but in your first boss fight the battle immediately ends before you can finish him off, cutting to a scene where Jack Corvus is at full strength and Mega Man is panting.
200* CutsceneIncompetence: In the second game, it seems like Geo can't do anything without the power of the OOPART. But the most ridiculous example ties in with Rogue's CutscenePowerToTheMax, where Geo is helpless to stop his friends from being sucked into a black hole, despite being right next to the source of the black hole, which Geo was quite capable of [=OHKOing=] in the previous three cutscenes.
201[[/folder]]
202
203[[folder:D-F]]
204* DamselInDistress: Happens a ''lot'' with Luna. This comes to a head in the third game where [[spoiler:her DamselInDistress tendencies get her killed. Until the scientists find a way to put her back together.]]
205* DarkerAndEdgier: The main characters, especially Geo, are often inflicted with {{Conflict Ball}}s and issues noticeably less cartoony than those of ''Battle Network'', especially in the first and third games. In fact, a major part of the advertising for the third game was that it had a more serious story than the others.
206* DemotedToExtra: Despite being a core mechanic in the game, both story-wise and gameplay purposes, Brother Band is absent entirely in the anime and was only mention in the last few episodes of the first season. In fact, the gang never even heard of it, meaning Brother Band in the anime is only a space communication tool instead of a future version of [=FaceBook=].
207* DinosaursAreDragons: The Fire Dinosaur Tribe-On gives Mega the ability to, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin well]], spit fire. Plesio Surf can also spit [[ShockAndAwe lightning]].
208* DiscOneFinalDungeon: In the third game, Dealer's Base probably counts, the later orbital base also seemed like the end as well.
209* DisappearedDad: Geo's father, Kelvin Stelar, vanished while on a FirstContact mission to Planet FM. This not only kicks off the events of the series, it even has repercussions at the end of it.
210* DiscardAndDraw: Each installment of the series has a different, more developed power-up system.
211** In the first game, Mega Man can draw upon the power of the AM Sages.
212** In the second game, they've left, but Mega Man can take advantage of the powers of ancient OOPART superweapons...and their [[ComboPlatterPowers mixes]].
213** In the third game, Mega Man can, through either the Ace or Joker program, tap into the power of Noise, which, short term, gives him the power of the FM aliens who invaded in the first game, and at its higher levels, can tap him into the power of the Meteor currently on a collision course with the planet.
214** Notably, the [[FinishingMove Big Bangs]] of the various powers tend to mimic each other. The Wood and Heat Big Bangs are always a tornado and a single massive blast, for example (even if he can wave the Extinction Blazer around a little bit) - and the Noise Force Big Bang for the Elec element deliberately reproduces Thunder Zerker's Thunderbolt Blade. On the other hand, the Aqua NFBB produces three large waves of water, in equally deliberate contrast to the Star Force Big Bang Magician's Freeze.
215* DisneyDeath:
216** [[spoiler:Luna]] in the third game. [[PlayingWithATrope Sort of]]. See the character sheet for more details.
217** Also in the third game, [[spoiler:Ace sacrifices himself to stop Joker from blowing everyone up. Every character present, and some that weren't, act like and state until he's shown bandaged up in the hospital during the credits with no apparent explanation other than it makes for a happier resolution.]]
218** Presumably, [[spoiler:he was brought back the same way Luna was.]]
219* DistantSequel: ''Star Force'' take place two hundred years after ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork''.
220* DistractedByTheSexy: Late in the second game, [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans Lady]] [[WellIntentionedExtremist Vega]] pulls the old DoNotAdjustYourSet routine to spread her demands for [[TakeOverTheWorld world domination]]. One NPC in Wilshire Hills has no idea what she actually ''said'', because all his attention was dedicated to how hot she looked.
221* DoItYourselfThemeTune: [[Creator/MisatoFukuen Sonia Strumm]] sings the opening themes for the anime, and engages in ''constant'' [[BGMOverride Background Music Overrides]] whenever Lyra Note arrives in a scene as a result.
222* DoNotAdjustYourSet: Lady Vega and Mr. King both make pronouncements this way. King doesn't settle for TV, though -- he also broadcasts directly to everyone's Hunter-VG.
223* DownloadableContent: Each game allowed you to download a Secret Battle Card or two and possibly even extra [[SocializationBonus BrotherBand Data]]...[[TemporaryOnlineContent back when the Download Station still hosted them]]. If you have access to a hacking device like Action Replay, you can simulate the transmission and get them, anyway.
224** The second game offered the King Grandeur and [[PhysicalGod Le Mu]] Cards, plus [=BrotherBand=] data for both L.M. Shin and the original VideoGame/MegaMan himself.
225** The third game had the Acid Arrest and Crimson Meteor cards, but no [=BrotherBand=] Data.
226* TheDragon:
227** Hollow to Vega, and he's notable as such since the Bermuda Maze chapter is essentially his fault, down to convincing Harp Note to work for the Neo Mu Empire. He has a famous ILied moment, but he does keep himself from "permanently" damaging Mega Man.
228** Gemini and Heartless both count as both TheStarscream, and Heartless may arguably be a case of EnigmaticMinion.
229* DubInducedPlotHole: In Black Ace/Red Joker, when Jack is introduced to Geo's class, everyone comments that his name indicates that he isn't from around there. One problem for the English versions: they change any Japanese name to more English-sounding ones, meaning Jack's unchanged name shouldn't sound odd to them.
230* DubNameChange:
231** The FM-ians all have {{Stellar Name}}s based on constellations, but their names are an erratic mix of English and Latin. The original English dub [[PragmaticAdaptation saw fit to Latinize]] Ox to Taurus and Harp to Lyra, but neglected to expand such courtesy to ''Harp Note'', Wolf[[note]]Though it gave Wolf Forest an AlliterativeName in Wolf Woods[[/note]], and Crown. It also gave the female Ophiuchus the feminine name Ophiuca.
232** The second game also saw a few name changes--Phantom Black to Dark Phantom, Condor Geograph to Terra Condor, but especially [[ArtisticLicensePaleontology Brachio]] Wave to the much more appropriate ''Plesio'' Wave.
233* DudeWheresMyRespect:
234** Unlike ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'', where StatusQuoIsGod and the BagOfSpilling conspired to ensure the heroes almost never got any recognition for their feats, this series features Mega Man becoming a major public figure and essentially becomes world famous from the second game onwards. This is especially noticeable with the EM Bodies, who treat him like a superstar.
235** Played for drama later on [[spoiler:when Sonia explained (Luna's interpretation, but still) that the reason for her FaceHeelTurn is that she did not think Mega Man could stop the villains she was forced to associate with, despite his world-saving reputation in the first game and she actually acknowledged him as a hero in one of their dates.]]
236** In the third game most of WAZA refuses to take Mega Man seriously. On the other hand, he's amazingly popular around the globe and his star power eclipses that of an aspiring idol like Belle.
237* EldritchLocation: Noise Waves in ''3'', Wave Road areas composed entirely of Noise. They are unstable zones that take on a random mishmash of characteristics of the Wave Road they spawn out of, and are populated only by "Noism" creatures that are similarly unstable, like an InUniverse GlitchEntity.
238* ElementalRockPaperScissors: The same basic cycle of elements is inherited from ''Battle Network'': [[PlayingWithFire Fire]] beats [[GreenThumb Wood]] beats [[ShockAndAwe Elec]] beats [[MakingASplash Aqua]] beats Fire in turn.
239* EmptyShell:
240** TheDragon of the second game, as suggested by his MeaningfulName, [[spoiler:is the ReplacementGoldfish Dr. Vega created when trying to bring her lover back to life. The result had no memories or personality, alas]].
241** In the third game, Aaron is able to restore a victim of Joker's Dread Laser technique... [[spoiler:but the dismaying result is that Strong CameBackWrong. Notably, while Strong ceases to matter to the story, later conversations imply he may be recovering]].
242* EnergyBeings: If a character isn't human, it's this. Even the [[HardLight artificial ones]].
243* EstablishingSeriesMoment: Rather than have PowersInTheFirstEpisode like the games or the anime, the ''Ryuusei'' manga introduces itself with a bank robbery. The robber's HostageSituation peters out when he notices that both the police and the hostage are more interested in a shooting star than him; he dismisses it only to have an OhCrap moment when the meteor ''turns around in mid-air'', crashes through nearby skyscrapers, and lands right in front of him. In the rubble is ''[[CharacterTitle Ryuusei no Rockman]]''. While the robber is terrified at first, he's rather put-out when he realizes Subaru and War-Rock are more concerned with arguing with each other rather than taking him seriously, but his decision to threaten them with a meat cleaver fails when War-Rock snaps the blade off of the handle with his teeth and ''eats it''. The robber quickly turns himself in, and Rockman turns at the sound of the crowd crying his name, only to find a mob facing him down [[BrickJoke for the massive damage he did to the skyscrapers]]. He collects himself, makes a deep bow of apology, and then leaves...snapping several more skyscrapers in half as he flies away.
244* EverythingIsOnline: Including sunken galleons, lost medieval treasure, ''rocks'' and '''rotisserie chicken''', and that's just in ''2''.
245* EvilDuo: Queen Tia and her younger brother Jack in the third game. Their FM-ian partners, Virgo and Corvus, were an EvilDuo themselves back on the FM planet.
246* {{Expy}}:
247** As a PrettyBoy with oddly-colored hair and DissonantSerenity who gets close to the main character [[spoiler:while in league with aliens]], Pat is [[Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion the Kaworu to Geo's Shinji]].
248** As a ProudWarriorRaceGuy and the LastOfHisKind with upward-flying ShonenHair, Rogue is a take-off of [[Anime/DragonBallZ Vegeta]]; official art of Rogue in battle with Tribe King Mega Man (who also has upward-flying AnimeHair, like a Super Saiyan) evokes Vegeta's rivalry with Goku.
249* {{Fanservice}}:
250** Sonia, in her transformation sequence, gets a blatant ass shot.
251** Orihime got a notable FanservicePack in the anime, with her bust in particular benefiting from AdaptationalCurves. This has ramifications for her ornate dress during the final arc, which even in the games had an ImpossiblyLowNeckline.
252** In the ''Tribe'' anime, Phantom Black kidnaps Subaru's mother Akane and throws her over his shoulder, giving the camera a good excuse to get a straight-on shot of her butt.
253** The third game puts Sonia in a SailorFuku. Bud, Zack, and Geo appropriately go wild over it.
254** The third game also has a BeachEpisode at Alohaha with all the kids in swimsuits.
255* FantasyKitchenSink: While the first game restricts itself to CosmicMotifs based on western constellations and the third game PlayingCardMotifs, the characters original to the second game use an eclectic collection of UsefulNotes/{{Tanabata}}, {{Cryptid|Episode}}s, and the [[LandmarkOfLore Nazca Lines]].
256* FightLikeACardPlayer: Wave Battle is basically a card game version of [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Net Battling]], and Mega Man and company use Battle Cards.
257* {{Filler}}: [[http://lparchive.org/Mega-Man-Star-Force-2-Zerker-x-Saurian/Update%2021/ As one Let's Play puts it]], if the theme of the second game is that "losing friendship sucks" (Cf. the precursor to ruin), almost half of the game fails to touch on that at all. You could remove a good 2.5 scenarios from the game.
258* {{Flanderization}}: Many supporting cast members have their HiddenDepths and {{Dark and Troubled Past}}s glossed over, simplified, or ignored in both the anime and the second game, with their surface personalities taking up more narrative space. Luna is extra-pushy, Bud is extra-hungry, and Zack is extra-nerdy.
259* FlunkyBoss:
260** Queen Ophiuca, Wolf Woods, and Cygnus Wing summon {{Attack Animal}}s to rush at Mega Man in battle. Cygnus Wing also has a special variant of his flunkies, the Quacky Lackies (who insist that they are not ducks, [[InsistentTerminology but nascent swans]]), to guard him and harass intruders in his dungeon. The mini-game of the area is to shoot each and every one of them with a rocket.
261** Hollow and Le Mu are both {{Enemy Summoner}}s; the former will call viruses to attack you, while the latter exclusively summons [[EliteMook Murian soldiers]].
262* FoodEnd: In the credits of Star Force 3.
263* ForTheEvulz: Virgo and Corvus are sadistic FM-ians who take pleasure in making people miserable and cause devastation wherever they go. [[spoiler:The moment Jack and Tia have second thoughts about their plan, Virgo and Corvus turn on them until the heroes intervene.]]
264* ForegoneVictory: In the second battle against Crimson Dragon, you are invincible. Really. No matter what he shoots at you or how many HP you have left, you won't die. The whole point of this "battle" is to get to show off in Finalized form; in fact, the only way to beat him is to use the Noise Force Big Bang attack, which is suddenly strong enough to kill him off instantly.
265* ForgottenPhlebotinum: Despite all the amazing future-tech the kids have access to, they almost never think to use it. ''Star Force 2'' is especially notable considering that Geo collects a HoverBoard that works at up to [[SkySurfing thousands of feet in the air]] and Zack owns a personal ''sports car'' that neither of them sees fit to use more than once each.
266* FriendshipHatingAntagonist:
267** The second game introduces Solo, a white-haired boy currently working for Dr. Vega and her group because their plans involve Mu, his home civilization. Despite this, Solo actually hates bonds and refuses to accept help from others, making a big deal of this every time he shows up. Unlike other characters who fuse with EM-beings to Wave Change, Solo can transform into Rogue without help from others, showing disgust in Mega Man's belief in Link Power all the while. After getting his ass handed to him for the first time, he [[spoiler:later [[{{Hypocrite}} begrudgingly accepts Hollow's help]] and absorbs the Indie Fragment -- a representation of the rejection of bonds -- to make himself strong enough to take revenge against [=MegaMan=]. If the player defeats [[TrueFinalBoss Le Mu XA]], the player gets a secret ending where Rogue takes [=MegaMan=] with him from the crumbling Mu so he can challenge them to one last fight to prove that Link Power is worthless.]]
268** In the third game, he becomes a lone wolf who still opposes Mega Man's belief in bonds but is less hateful, even going as far as to help him take down Dealer only because they were using Murian technology for their own agenda and Solo wanted to take vengeance on them. Additionally, he managed to find an EM-being called Laplace though he only uses Laplace as a weapon during battles, replacing his sword from the previous game.
269* FromTheAshes: With some mild notation about how it's 200 years in the future and none of the original cast is left, ''Star Force'' is a rather transparent attempt to keep up the flagging ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' series. Lan and [=MegaMan=] were featured on key pieces of promotional art when the first game was being released.
270* FusionDance: EM Wave Change, and it's not just Geo who gets it. It also applies to the game's antagonists and some of the optional bosses as well.
271[[/folder]]
272
273[[folder:G-I]]
274* GainaxEnding: In the ''Tribe'' anime. The last episode was rushed with the sudden end of the anime and so made some fairly radical decisions to compress, ignore, or change important parts of the original finale.
275** Burai's backstory was completely altered to re-cast him as a protector of the Murian civilization, which robbed him of [[IWorkAlone his original game motivation]] but provided no actual explanation of his previous actions in the anime.
276** The backstories of the BigBad and TheDragon weren't explained, though the anime compensated with a two-second FreakOut and SkywardScream by the former when the latter died.
277** The fate of Mu and the [=OOPArts=] also weren't elaborated on, and the final boss was ultimately defeated in one attack before it got to do anything.
278* GambitPileup: In ''Star Force 3'', each villain and one or two major supporting characters has his own agenda. [[spoiler:King wants to TakeOverTheWorld with Meteor G, Heartless is TheMole working to undermine him and contact Kelvin, Joker [[TurnedAgainstTheirMasters joined Dealer]] because [[IJustWantToBeFree he wants to be free]]; Queen Tia and Jack want to use Meteor G to destroy Earth's EM technology, Corvus and Virgo are ready to kill them if needed to take over Earth, and Ace betrayed them all to join WAZA]]. Solo has a vendetta against Dealer for stealing Mu tech; Geo's just about the only one without some sort of ulterior motive.
279* GameplayAndStoryIntegration: During the Messie Village scenario, Zack and Luna's relationship takes a turn for the worse. His Link Power practically flatlines to a measly 10 (which implies he's not that great with Bud, either).
280* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: Geo seems to need at least two of these per game whenever he slips back into angst mode. Ironically he's doing these for everyone else in ''3''. Go go CharacterDevelopment!
281* GeoEffects: Burning, Freezing, Paralysis, Gravity, Attack Boost, Assist Drone, and Broken are all panel effects - and let's not even get started on when War-Rock starts taking swipes at the territory.
282* GeometricMagic: The second Star Force game seems to have been shooting for this, complete with [[FunctionalMagic Function]] and (small, almost inncouous) [[RitualMagic Ritual]] - an attempt that might've worked if Solo wasn't the only one using it on-screen. Mega Man can do it, too, but it's a lot harder to [[IncrediblyLamePun connect the dots]] when all you're looking at is a [[SymbolDrawingInterface Wave Command Card]].
283** The next time you try inputting the Tribe King Wave Command, take a look at the dots - it's an outline of Mega Man's Shooting Star symbol.
284** ''Star Force 3'' carries this on with the Noise Kaizou ("Modification") Gear and its relatives.
285** In the anime, Burai's transformation does this with Instant Runes, instead.
286* GlobalCurrencyException: Two instances in ''Ace'' and ''Joker'': As they travel the Wave Road, Geo and Omega-Xis will be granted the opportunity to rescue a number of Hertz from battle and to collect Noise Frags, the latter-day equivalent of ''Battle Network'' Bug Frags. King Root in Hertz Square will accord them a point for every Hertz they save, and will exchange those points for various programs. Later in the game, Geo and Omega find a Noism who will do the same in exchange for the Noise Frags. Neither will accept Zennys.
287* AGodAmI: [[DownplayedTrope Played on a smaller scale]] with Bud in the second game. At the encouragement of the Shaman, the villagers of Whazzap revered Bud -- or rather, "Budicus" -- as an emissary of Mu. Bud, who was then suffering from amnesia, went along with it primarily to enjoy the great food. Played fully straight when the Shaman becomes Terra Condor. In the anime, the shaman is roughly possessed by Condor, who believes this about himself -- and starts [[HumanSacrifice gunning for Luna]].
288* GogglesDoSomethingUnusual: The Visualizer given to Geo by Aaron Boreal (that belonged to Geo's dad) allow him to see EM waves.
289* GrandFinale: The third game is marketed as "the ultimate climax" of the series (and thus, the ''Battle Network'' timeline). [[spoiler:And it very much does, as Geo finally finds his missing dad and gets to bring him home.]]
290* GuideDangIt:
291** Each game in the series has multiple input systems for {{Classic Cheat Code}}s that will earn Mega Man powerful battle-cards, abilities, and other benefits. Some of these cheat code systems are MerchandiseDriven, like the Wave Command Codes of the second game and the Noise Modification Gear of the third, and are tucked away from normal gameplay to keep unguided players from stumbling on them.
292** Star Force 3 features multiple [[https://clips.twitch.tv/NeighborlyFuriousBaconImGlitch-eyuTfhP6ND4dUdK0 invisible warp points]], with at least one in WAZA containing an HP Memory behind it. You have no in-game indication these exist without getting lucky enough to stand on one while transformed into Mega Man.
293* HardLight: Matter Waves and the successor Real Waves and Wizards. [[spoiler:[[MeaningfulName Hollow]] is a ''person'' made out of Matter Waves, or, well, [[EmptyShell almost]].]]
294* HartmanHips: Heartless. If you squint hard enough, you can seen it in the sprites. Definitely so with the [[http://megaman.wikia.com/wiki/File:Heartless.jpg artwork]] .
295* HatesMySecretIdentity: Luna the ClassRepresentative treats Geo like dirt, while admiring his alter ego Mega Man, especially after he saves her from an enemy attack. She struggles with this for the whole series.
296* HeartContainer: Like with ''Battle Network'', you can collect HP Memory to increase Mega's maximum HP. This time, it comes in two variants which raise max HP by 10 or 20. There's still enough to reach the 1000 cap.
297* HelloInsertNameHere: The third game explicitly says not to make your nickname naughty -- A notice which may actually be warranted, as the profanity filters the second game had, which changed anything indecent into a series of asterisks, are no longer in place.
298* HenshinHero: Most characters receive superpowers and secret identities by doing a FusionDance with EnergyBeings, exactly like [[Anime/MegaManNTWarrior Cross Fusion]].
299* HereThereWereDragons: The anime and second game reveal that the Wave Road (and a number of viruses) existed in the far, far past, during the age of Mu, so modern technology successfully made TheMagicComesBack. Whether Murian and Modern capabilities to interact with the internet count as MagicFromTechnology or {{Magitek}} is still up for debate.
300* HeroicBSOD:
301** Zack and Bud have one in the third game when [[spoiler:Luna dies...[[DisneyDeath but not really]].]]
302** Thanks to CharacterDevelopment, Geo steps up and takes charge of the situation while Bud and Zack FreakOut over [[spoiler:Luna dying.]]
303** Geo's had them in other games. In the second game, he has one over his failure to pull Zack, Bud, and Sonia out of the Un-Dimension...which just ends up depositing them in other places of the world, and then another one where [[spoiler:Sonia betrays him for Lady Vega]].
304** Something exclusive in the anime, he gets a particularly spectacular one when he and Cygnus Wing BattleInTheRain. Cygnus Wing gives him a BreakingSpeech and reveals that [[spoiler:Omega-Xis, that very same alien he is currently fused with, is responsible for his father going missing]]. He gets the DullEyesOfUnhappiness and de-merges with Omega-Xis, ''while standing on a wave road''. And there is a river below. You know what happens next.
305* HeroicResolve: The entire ending of ''3'', as well as [[spoiler:how Kelvin was holding off Meteor G in the first place]].
306* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:[[TheAce Acid Ace]] pulls a pretty [[TearJerker heart-wrenching]] one after Geo's fight with Joker]].
307* HighSchoolAU: The third attempt by the franchise at setting Franchise/MegaMan in elementary school.
308* HopelessBossFight: At least one per game, often as a segue into unlocking some new PowerUp.
309* HostageForMacGuffin: In the Tribe anime, Hyde is teaching an art class when Subaru's mom - Akane - shows up, interested in taking part. After he learns who she is, Hyde immediately hijacks control of every viewscreen in town, showing that he's taken her hostage (really, she's just sitting for a portrait he asked to paint of her - and, no, nobody learns who Rockman is by association). When Rockman shows up unexpectedly (he got sidetracked by the portrait), Hyde wave changes to Phantom Black and kidnaps Akane, who is given one of the LEAST subtle [[MaleGaze ass-shots]] ever in all of shonen.
310* IdolSinger: Sonia Strumm, who has to work with a corrupt manager who exploits her songs to get himself out of debt. She quits at the end of her chapter in the first game, but gets back into the business with a vengeance before the second starts.
311* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight:
312** Subverted. Any time Geo has to [[FightingYourFriend fight his friends]] (such as the [[WakeUpCallBoss first boss battle]] with Bud/Taurus Fire), he worries that defeating the FM-ian possessing him/her will kill the host body. Omega-Xis, the alien who gave Geo ''his'' powers, assures him otherwise.
313** This is played straight in ''3'', when Joker makes [[spoiler:Acid destroy]]. Extra points for the fact that he would've [[spoiler:killed Ace from inside-out]] if he wasn't stopped.
314* InconsistentDub: That particular issue is fixed in the anime, although Lyra Note's human name also becomes Sonia ''Sky'' (perhaps because Sonia ''Strumm'' was too much of a PunnyName for the localization's tastes). Other attempts to deal with the conventions of the translation include restoring Ophiuchus Queen's original name (in the game, she refers to herself as "Queen Ophiuca"), and changing Mr. Shepar's name to "''Shepard''". One episode, however, contains an outright mistake - it's not the "Rock Buster", it's the "Mega Buster".
315* {{Invocation}}: ''Star Force'' tried to keep ''Battle Network'''s energy going with similar catchphrases. When Geo transformed in the first two games: "EM Wave Change! Geo Stelar, on (the) air!" In Japanese: "Denpa Henkan! [Wave Change!] Hoshikawa Subaru, on air!" To announce a boss battle (in both versions): "Wave Battle! Ride on!"
316* IWasJustPassingThrough: The end of ''Star Force 2''. "Your body was in my way", indeed. [[TrueFinalBoss Horrifically subverted]] in the 100% ending, as Rogue collects Geo's body to have one final showdown with him.
317* InterfaceSpoiler: If TheLawOfConservationOfDetail didn't give it away already, in the third game, Geo can read a little snippet of information on or from the Wizard whenever he meets anyone who has one. There are a handful of characters who have their Wizard's information locked, which at least in one case gives away a character's upcoming significance.
318* InvisibleToNormals: The Wave World and the EM Beings which inhabit it are usually invisible except in special circumstances. Occasionally, {{Muggles}} can see it or at least sense that they're BeingWatched.
319** [[GogglesDoSomethingUnusual Visualizer technology]] was specifically designed to see it, but it's rare; Geo, Legendary Master Shin, and the Satellite Police have it, but no one else.
320** Solo is able to see them unaided, but that ability comes from his Murian blood.
321** Aaron Boreal has a picture in his lab of something he saw after going three straight days and nights without sleep (a Mr. Hertz).
322** Joe Hawnt, a recurring BitCharacter, can apparently see them regularly, but thinks he's dealing with [[ISeeDeadPeople matters of the occult]].
323** The fortune teller Madame Hills can see Mega Man plain as the nose on her face (and you have to be Mega Man to find her corner of the world, anyway).
324** Inverted in the third game: all nornal humans become invisible once Mega Man transforms (leaving only a shadow where they're standing).
325[[/folder]]
326
327[[folder:J-L]]
328* JekyllAndHyde: Played straight with Pat and his other personality, Rey.
329* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Omega-Xis, later in the series. At the start he's just a plain old jerk.
330* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Mr. King in ''Star Force 3.''
331* JokeItem: Equipping certain upgrades on Omega-Xis is ''Star Force 3'' can change the Mega Buster's sound effects, as well as changing the L buttons help/talk messages to more humorous dialogue.
332* JustifiedTutorial: In the second game, Geo's first scene involves setting up and getting used to new hardware.
333* KickTheDog: TheDragon of ''Star Force 3'' vaporizing characters outright serves no real narrative function except to generate antipathy. [[spoiler:Especially blowing up Luna.]]
334* KidHero: Deconstructed and reconstructed in the games. Geo is only 10-going-on-11 in ''Star Force 1'' and is little more than a lonely child devastated by the loss of his father, thrown into heroism only by his chance meeting with Omega-Xis. And unlike with Lan in the precursor ''Battle Network'' series[[labelnote:*]](while he does get into danger, MadeOfIron is ''liberally'' applied to downplay it)[[/labelnote]], the dangers and implications of Geo's superhero double life are played much straighter: Geo as Mega Man is directly in harm's way when fighting Wave Beings, and several classmates and ''especially'' adults who know his secret identity have very grounded concerns about sending the boy on missions he might not return from. The reconstruction starts when Geo rises to the occasion and the friends he made on his journey lift him up when he needs it; without the dangers he faced, he never would've repaired his shattered life.
335* KleptomaniacHeroFoundUnderwear: In the first game, examining Luna's dresser will cause Geo to acknowledge her frog stuffie, but he will abstain from rummaging through it. In the second game, Omega will force him to rummage through it to look for something interesting, which reveals a secret ES. In the third game, Geo happens upon..."a little girl's [[UnusualEuphemism secret]]". He immediately panics, but he [[CovertPervert can't seem to stop staring]].[[note]]You can also have Geo take a gander at "the little ''boy's'' secret" in Zack's room, though Geo takes to this [[BrainBleach even less]].[[/note]]
336* LaserGuidedKarma: Solo's attempt to break Geo's spirit by banishing his friends to the Un-Dimension backfires when an amnesiac Bud winds up in Whazzap, a site of Murian ruins, where the local shaman decides to refashion him as Budicus, false prophet of Mu. This sacriligeous sham enrages Solo, who is albeit blind to his own responsibility for enabling the situation.
337* LastDiscMagic: You will receive your first Giga Card as you begin the final chapter of the game. They are really powerful individual cards -- strong enough to clear out most virus battles in a single use.
338* LatexSpaceSuit: These are worn by the crew of the space station ''Peace'' in the anime prologue.
339* LivingWeapon: Wizards/FM and [=AMians=] can be considered this. As well as the weapons that [[spoiler:Omega-xis consumes to obtain the powers of Zerker/Saurian/Ninja.]]
340* LizardFolk: The original name for the fire tribe in ''Star Force 2'' is "Dinosaur", and their section of the museum features models of animals; and yet they have a Murian weapon and are treated as sentient.
341* TheLoad: Zack, who in the first two games is the direct cause of much frustration or setback. In the first game he spies on Geo, which is how Luna knows to head down to [=AMAKEN=] to chase him, and he informs Chrys Golds about a Sonia sighting, precipitating Geo getting physically assaulted and the Harp Note scenario. In the second, he declines to reach out after the PartyScattering because he was too attracted to the idea of having his own accomplishments through spreading the word about Messie.
342* LostInTranslation: Shows up every now and again.
343** In ''Star Force 2'', Geo, Luna, and Zack find Bud in an area called Whazzap. This is technically an accurate translation of the original Japanese "nanska" (a corruption of "Nan desu ka?"), but it loses the correlation to the Real World phenomenon the location references - the Nazca lines.
344** In the third game, Geo has a poster of the Pleiades star cluster on his wall. This makes more sense if you know Subaru is the Japanese name for that constellation.
345* LoveHurts: [[spoiler: In the second game, the death of Vega's lover first inspired her to create Matter Waves and then (after she found Mu relics) [[LoveMakesYouEvil decide to rule the world]].]]
346* LovesMyAlterEgo: To the point that even when Luna discovers Geo ''is'' Mega Man, she insists that her attraction is solely to Mega Man and not Geo, refusing to consider them one and the same.
347* LoveTriangle:
348** Luna is in a TwoPersonLoveTriangle with Mega Man (whom she has an exaggerated crush on) and Geo (whom she initially holds in contempt) and eventually grows to reconcile those impressions; Geo considers her his {{Protectorate}} and has secretly given her his DeclarationOfProtection.
349** Geo and Sonia ([[AdaptationPersonalityChange in the games]]) are BirdsOfAFeather who become each other's {{First Friend}}s by BondingOverMissingParents; Lyra, acting as Sonia's CoolBigSis, actively [[ShipperOnDeck pushes Sonia into asking Geo on a date]].
350[[/folder]]
351
352[[folder:M-O]]
353* MagicalDatabase: Meteor G is part of the Black Hole Server, which holds massive amounts of data (including Battle Cards). Geo accesses Meteor G's power for [[SuperMode Noise Changes and Finalize]], but the Black Hole Server is only utilized by SF3's postgame boss Sirius. Despite having a massive advantage, the guy's going up against Mega Man.
354* MarkedChange: Inverted with [[TheRival Solo]], who ''loses'' his FacialMarkings when he [[TransformationSequence transforms]].
355* MascotMook: The series have its own variant of the franchise's mascot Mettool, the Mettenna (they are, in fact, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Metts with individual antennae]]). They're more or less identical in combat to their EXE originals, but their Shockwave Battle Cards have the improved ability to turn once after being launched.
356* {{Masquerade}}: Geo and Sonia do their best to hide Omega and Lyra from the public eye. This is made somewhat difficult by the aliens, who don't seem to care about exposing themselves to the world. By the third game this has become far easier, as instead of hiding them away entirely they can get away with simply passing them off as normal Wizards.
357* MeaningfulName: Many of which double as {{Punny Name}}s.
358** At first, [[ScaryBlackMan Joker]] only has that name to fit with Dealer's ThemeNaming, but after he [[TheReveal reveals]] [[spoiler:his true form as the strongest Battle Wizard ever created, and his VillainousBreakdown, in which he turns into a crackling mess, it becomes meaningful]].
359** Geo had some fun with this, calling Luna "Satellite Girl" early in the first game because the moon is the Earth's satellite, and '''Luna''''s always around him, nagging him to go to school. Interestingly enough, judging by dialogue in the second game, Sonia's name is apparently pronouced as "Sunya" (Geo stammers "S-Son-" and a nearby person states "Sun?")[[note]]Assuming it's not an awkward attempt to preserve a joke from the original Japanese. An equivalent joke would be Subaru saying "Miso-" (-ra) and the man asking why he was talking about noodles.[[/note]]. And I'm sure we all know the relationship between the sun and the earth.
360** Also, just about everybody else who has a sidequest of some sort. There's gotta be at least 30 people from the first and second games whose names [[PunnyName drop hints]] at your quest for them. Many of them are also recurring characters, so you'll see them in each game.
361** While most people call him "War-Rock", everyone's favorite alien carries an obvious play in his name on "warlock", which is not just the male equivalent of "witch" (in that he gives Subaru his powers), but also literally means oath-breaker or traitor.
362*** Further exemplified in the third game as the ''Star Force'' equivalent of Navis come into fruition: Wizards, meaning War-Rock, or Warlock, is now considered a Wizard as well.
363* MerchandiseDriven: As with the latter half of ''Battle Network'', the games came with hidden built-in PurposefullyOverpowered upgrades that you can obtain by purchasing RealLife merch and peripherals. While these upgrades in the first and third games are largely unusable for western games outside of hacking, the second game's "Wave Command" menu is accessible, allowing anyone who knows the Wave Command Codes to input them for immense profit.
364* MercyInvincibility: As per usual, many attacks can cause this for both player and enemy alike, and certain attacks can pierce this state. Then there's the Noise meter mechanics in the third game -- Getting over 100% Noise disables mercy invincibility on both sides, increasing danger but letting you go loose on boss enemies.
365* MesACrowd:
366** Le Mu can only summon [[YouAllLookFamiliar about five different models]] of EM Being (Phantom, Yeti, Plesio, Condor, and the Warriors). It will summon thousands of them during the final chapter.
367** Promotional art for tournaments would often feature different forms of Mega Man doing combat with each other.
368** The animated TV spot in Japan for ''Star Force 3'' shows Mega Man being knocked back by a wave of energy from the Crimson Dragon. As he gets up, his various Noise Forms shimmer into view behind him.
369* MissingTrailerScene: The Tribe anime's penultimate episode's OnTheNext sequence has a dramatic shot of Rockman as Thunder Berserk swinging his sword and lunging at the camera. It never shows up in the final episode... because it's actually from the Brachio Wave arc.
370* MissionPackSequel: While each game in the series operates via the same core mechanics, the sequels each introduce different mechanics to diversify themselves. The second game, however, gets the fullest brunt of this trope as it doesn't differ too greatly from the first.
371* MoleInCharge: Possibly. Somebody with access to [=WAXA's=] main lab sealed one of its computers with the ''Dealer Key''. In turn, and quite bizarrely, at least one Dealer computer is sealed with the ''WAXA key''.
372* {{Mon}}: EM Beings are basically this, especially since they replace [=NetNavis=], the Mons of [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork the previous series]].
373* MonsAsCharacterization: Many {{NPC}}s have a selection of Favorite Cards that hint at their personality.
374** Major characters often have the mega-cards for {{Boss|Battle}}es listed among their favorites, [[InterfaceSpoiler often well before the boss even appears in the story]].
375** In the first game Cindy White, a female {{NPC}} who shows interest in older men, has a string of Recovery +10[[note]]The most basic of healing cards[[/note]] cards capped off with a Poison Apple[[note]]A trap that punishes people for healing[[/note]], a [[MoodWhiplash juxtaposition]] that suggests she's prone to lavishing minor compliments but has nasty ulterior motives, as if she's a black widow to be.
376** Joe Hawnt, a local {{NPC}} who is obsessed with ghosts, has a selection of ghostly Invisible and Ghost Pulse cards.
377** Blair Loude, the Echo Ridge elementary principal in the first game, wants a new school song; his favorite cards consist entirely of the Song series.
378* MoodWhiplash: Rarely, but when it occurs, it can be startling.
379** When Condor Geoglyph kidnaps Luna and co. and threatens to sacrifice their laughter to the land of Mu. Which he will get by ''tickling'' them. For reference purposes: the misguided, manipulative leader of the village of Whazzap, who has transformed into a living, avian-themed ''jet fighter'', is now busying himself by tickling his hostages.
380** Joker's first field appearance. [[spoiler:In which he violates Luna's PlotArmor so hard that Geo struggles to reassure the others that she isn't ''dead''.]] Note: this happened right after the DatingSim BeachEpisode.
381* {{Mooks}}:
382** EM Viruses serve as generic monsters that fill the wave road and serve as the most typical RandomEncounters.
383** Jamming are enemy agents belonging to the FM-ians, who subject human beings to DemonicPossession and occasionally MoreThanMindControl.
384** "Murians" are sets of AnimatedArmor from Mu that use a sword and shield; they come in NonElemental, ElementalRockPaperScissors, and PowerOfTheVoid varieties. Notably, they can [[FusionDance EM Wave Change]] with EM Beings.
385** Most wizards of the third game are non-violent, but hordes of AxCrazy Noised Wizards can be fought. There are also cruel [=MalWizards=] and myriad copies of Omega-Xis himself to be fought.
386* MorphWeapon: Mega Man's Mega Buster transforms into the battle card weapons that he attacks with. In the third game, this takes another level with the Mega Arm, which in itself transforms into the Mega Buster,
387* MundaneUtility: Geo occasionally needs his EM Wave Change technique to accomplish relatively menial tasks, usually during sidequests or to get past some InsurmountableWaistHighFence. For example:
388** When he uses his powers to get to the upper section of Zack's room, despite the fact that there's a supposedly functioning elevator-step in plain sight.
389** Geo can only get behind the counter of Big Wave by becoming Mega Man and finding the relevant Wave Hole.
390** After accidentally breaking the express mail's packaging system in the anime, Geo decides to use his incredible wave form powers... to deliver mail.
391* MysteriousProtector: Geo swears to keep [[DesignatedVictim Luna]] safe in the first game. Luna, only half-conscious, manages to hear the specific line and has it added to the SchoolPlay.
392* MythologyGag:
393** The GlobalCurrency here is still Zenny, as it was in ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'' and ''VideoGame/MegaManLegends''.
394** While Cygnus Wing's minions are called the Cygnets in English, they were originally called "Shitappā" in Japanese, which is also the original Japanese name for the Birdbots of ''Mega Man Legends''.
395* NeverTrustATitle: Zigzagged; despite the StellarName series title, the second game made a radical departure from the CosmicMotifs of the first game, but the third game brought them back.
396** The "Star Force" in the title refers specifically to the power Mega Man receives in the ''first'' game and further evokes the cosmic motifs of the cast and setting, as does the original Japanese title ''Shooting Star Rockman''.
397** The second game keeps both titles while having ''nothing whatsoever to do with space'' and only having a one or two fringe references to the original motif.
398** The third game takes a step back in the direction of the original by bringing back a handful of the first game's characters, featuring an incoming meteor as a looming doomsday event, and setting the BonusDungeon entirely in space.
399* NeverBringAFriendToAnAudition: Sonia invites Geo and his friends to the studio where she's filming a movie with her friend and co-star Belle. Partway through the visit, an incident forces Geo to intervene as Mega Man. The director is so starstruck by the sight of the hero in action that he insists that Mega Man replace Belle in the movie. Although everyone is stunned, Belle willingly steps aside, much to her Wizard Ice's horror. Ice's frustration and anger on behalf of Belle makes Ice a prime target for Dealer, who transforms Ice into Diamond Ice with a Noise Card by promising to give her the power to make Sonia and Mega Man disappear.
400* TheNicknamer: Dr. Goodall of [=WAZA=], who calls Omega-Xis "Meggers", and Acid "Acidina".
401** [[SubvertedTrope Surprisingly]], she refers to Ace by his given name of "Arthur".
402* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: The power-up systems of the second and third game expand the range of Mega Man's MultiformBalance by allowing him to stack multiple forms on top of each other, combining TheGimmick of each as well as their powers.
403** The second game gives you a free "Auto-Brother" to provide the Zerker tribe to either Ninja or Dinosaur versions and vice versa, allowing you to create ninja-knights or knightosaurs. By becoming Brothers with the fellow version, you could not only create ninja-dinosaurs as well, but [[FullSetBonus by combining all three tribes]] you could make Mega Man the ''king'' of the ninjaknightosaurs.
404** The third game replaces the three tribes with the Noise system, allowing Mega to stack the powers of up to two sets of powers derived from the FM-ian aliens, like Wolf and Crab or Taurus and Corvus.
405* NonStandardGameOver: During the third game, Geo and Solo team up to battle against Noise monsters left by Dealer as they make their way to the scenario's boss. If the mini-game tied to these enemies is failed three times in a row, there is [[GoryDiscretionShot a fade to black]] as both Geo and Solo are explicitly killed before time rewinds to right before the mini-game began.
406* OncePerEpisode: In every game, Geo obtains the transformation mechanic in order to save Luna from imminent danger.
407* OneGameForThePriceOfTwo: While the first ''Star Force'' is one-game-for-the-price-of-''three''(Pegasus, Leo, and Dragon), ''Star Force 2'' is, oddly, ''three'' games for the price of two (Zerker x Ninja and Zerker x Saurian). The third game reverts to the two-versions shtick (Black Ace and Red Joker), but there's no reason to buy both as none of the version-exclusive content can be transferred.
408* OneWingedAngel: Played straight in the first two games, where both of the final bosses pull off one of these when their health gets low. However, in the third game [[spoiler: this trope is actually inverted when Mega Man enters his Finalized form in a second round with the Final Boss, who hasn't changed.]]
409* OptionalBoss: There are a few optional bosses in each game that aren't involved with the story and just fight you for the heck of it.
410* OurGhostsAreDifferent: Several varieties of Virus are particularly ghostly. One variety specializes in disrupting their targets with StatusEffects; another are more interested in disorienting you with their own off-kilter motion and vulnerability patterns.
411** A couple of characters actually deal in this, too. The "boss" of the second group of Ghost viruses is Phantom Black, an IntangibleMan in operatic dress with some [[BlowYouAway ghostly wind]] powers.
412** Another technical "ghost" is Crown Thunder, a boss from the first postgame; his attacks are based in either striking you with lightning or delegating to his trio of TacticalRockPaperScissors [[FlunkyBoss minions]]. His ghostlyness is largely backstory; apparently the alien Crown was ''[[NinjaPirateZombieRobot already a ghost]]'' when he first Wave Changed with the human Jean. Jean, naturally, was busy dying from arrow wounds when this first happened.
413*** The anime circumvents this small plot implosion by having Crown fuse with the ''dead remains'' of the human, which unfortunately binds him to [[ClosedCircle the land the man died on]]. Luckily for Crown, Jean ''[[LoopholeAbuse died on a ship]]'', which agitates Mega Man and Harp Note to no end.
414* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: These ones become Wave Road entities when they transform!
415[[/folder]]
416
417[[folder:P-Z]]
418* PaperThinDisguise: Some humanoid FM-ians like Cygnus Wing and Gemini Spark join the AmazingTechnicolorPopulation, while Harp Note's hairdo gets a distinctive blonde dye-job. Mega Man's merely sports a slightly darkened version of Geo's unique AnimeHair, and [[ClarkKenting not one person makes the obvious connection]].
419* ParrotExposition:
420** Lots of it in the second game. The final chapter has Geo and Zack repeating Vega's backstory once or twice and then a few cutscenes later Aaron e-mails Geo and reveals he's all caught up on his current events trivia by going over it all again.
421** From the third game: "Accumulate? You mean it builds up inside them?"
422** The first game has several examples when Geo first meets with the Satellite Admins: "We have words that must be conveyed." "You mean you have things to tell me?"
423* PartyScattering: Early in ''Star Force 2'', Solo tosses Luna, Zack, Bud, and Sonia into the Un-Dimension. Geo successfully retrieves Luna, but is unable to stop the last three from being sucked in, though we later find they've been cast around the world.
424* ThePowerOfFriendship: Exaggerated. Like in ''Battle Network'', making friends gives you ''superpowers''.
425** In the first game, collecting Brothers produced the Brother Force, a unique bond between Mega Man and one of his friends that would provide him with an HP Boost, access to his friends' Favorite Cards, and [[PowersAsPrograms an ability]] (''e.g.'' Sonia's provided [[BarrierWarrior First Barrier]] and [[LastChanceHitPoint Undershirt]], while Bud's gives [[ImmuneToFlinching Super Armor]]).
426** In the second and third, Brother Bands create the more generic ''Link Force'' instead, which allows Mega Man to equip abilities he's collected elsewhere, so long as he has sufficient space for it. The second game really tries to sell it -- people with high Link Power get all sorts of freebies, such as discount bus tickets or even free hotel suites.
427** In all three games this gets used as a SocializationBonus -- forming [=BrotherBands=] with other players will give you extra perks or Link Power that you will have difficulty accessing while playing alone. The second and third games also offer the ability to reject this power to access [[IWorkAlone Rogue's power of loneliness]].
428* ThePowerOfRock: Harp Note uses [[MusicalAssassin a guitar and its music as an offensive weapon]].
429* PowersAsPrograms: As with ''Battle Network'', this is once again taken in a very literal sense.
430** Battle Cards are the people's way of combating viruses and are often self-contained instances of enemy attacks; some EM Humans like Mega Man and Acid Ace are capable of using them as weapons.
431** Mega Man can likewise duplicate specific powers or abilities of other characters through his myriad {{Super Mode}}s.
432* PowerFloats: The EnergyBeings in their natural state, and some [[FusionDance EM Humans]], too.
433** You can't really see it in battle (or realize it due to the camera), but when Le Mu TurnsRed, it actually ''rips itself free'' of its stone mountain casing and ends up floating hundreds of feet in the air.
434* PowerupLetdown: The Rogue Tribe of ''Star Force 2'' is meant to be the EvilCounterpart to the Tribe and Brother Band systems; it avoids ElementalRockPaperScissors by being NonElemental and favoring the sword ''attribute'', and it gives you the regenerating Mu Barrier and resistance to lock-on. However, it dives so far into the anti-friendship motif that it actually cripples most mechanics; clogging your Brother Band with the Indie Fragments prevents you from boosting your [[SocializationBonus Link Power]] and limits your abilities, you can't use Mega Cards (which include some of the better cards in the game), your [[LimitBreak Big Bang attack]] can only be triggered in a multiplayer match, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking the sword cards aren't that good anyway]].
435* PrinciplesZealot: Rogue goes from being standoffish and rude to being more than a little eager to validate his ideals of solitude and self-reliance. From his very first appearance he assumes Mega Man is his ideological enemy.
436* PunnyName:
437** Almost every NPC not important to the plot has one(usually related to their sidequest).
438** Viruses, too, ''Mettennas'' are Metts with antennae, and ''Grabities'' are small black holes with arms.
439** Late in the original anime, a giant EM Meteor named "Rajione VI"[[note]]According to the series' fansub[[/note]] passes by the Earth and inflicts either new powers or a new personality on each of the FM-ians. However, since the Japanese pronounce the English word "radio" as "rajio", it seems that the intended name of the meteor was ''Radion'', not "Rajione".
440* {{Railroading}}: The games have a very strict sequence of event flags that you must pass, and sometimes this means coming up with excuses to prevent Geo from exploring areas that are ostensibly open to you; at least once the player can't make Geo turn into Mega Man because Omega-Xis thinks Geo has other things to do.
441* RandomDrops:
442** Downplayed with the basic Card Force. Since the Star Force series did away with [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork chip codes]] for the Battle Card system, the only real randomization you have to worry about is if you're fighting a set of different viruses, since you'll only get one of their cards from defeating them.
443** The third game's Illegal Data cards (PurposefullyOverpowered cards not registered in the card library) are sometimes obtained when you defeat viruses with over 100% Noise.
444* RandomEncounters: Yet another mechanic retained from ''Battle Network''. The instant Mega Man steps foot on the Wave Road, he is set to be besieged by EM viruses.
445** One specifically overdramatic example of this is the Omega Boss system from ''Star Force 3''. From the very first moment of the game, Mega Man has a chance of encountering the ''strongest possible form'' of almost any of the bosses, [[InterfaceSpoiler regardless of whether or not you've encountered him in the plot yet]], with thousands of hit points, attacks capable of dealing several times Mega's max HP in damage, and once the Hunter-VG flashes "WARNING" at you, it's impossible to escape.
446* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: In the second game, Rogue delivers one to Dark Phantom, calling him a leech by the way he acts. The other takes pride in that, declaring to be the greatest parasite in the world.
447* RecapEpisode: The English dub of the anime only covers the first half of season 1; to compensate for this, the dub ends with Geo recapping that part of the story along with footage from earlier episodes.
448* RecycledInSpace: ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork''... [-IN SPACE!!-]
449* RedEyesTakeWarning:
450** Mega, one of the main heroes, has red eyes, and Geo's eye color changes to red when he transforms into Mega Man[[note]]Or, at least, that's what some people assume -- some camera hacking of the first game got an up close and personal look at Mega Man's eyes, which are indeed red on his model, though whether or not this is deliberate is debatable.[[/note]]
451** The [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20091218022443/megaman/images/5/5c/Mega_Man_Star_Force_3_Black_Ace_DS.jpg Black Ace]] and [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20091218022458/megaman/images/a/ad/Megamanstarforce3redjoker.jpg Red Joker]] forms ''do'' have Red Eyes, however, mixed with GlowingEyesOfDoom (which are very evocative of F-Beast and G-Beast [=MegaMan=] from ''Battle Network 6''). These are both a mix of RuleOfCool and a subtle nod to BadPowersGoodPeople and DarkIsNotEvil (with a futuristic Sci-fi aesthetic), but not after you realize what's making his eyes red. Visor, why?
452** Played straight with Solo.
453* RedOniBlueOni:
454** Geo and Omega. [[InvertedTrope Despite Omega being blue]], he proves to be the hothead to Geo's calmer, slower pace.
455** Mega Man and Harp Note. Geo tends to be the more serious of the pair, whereas Sonia's far more [[GenkiGirl outgoing and perky]].
456** Omega-Xis can also play blue oni when he wants to; in the anime during an early face-off with Taurus, Mega calmly analyzes Taurus' fighting "strategy" and explaining how he was bound to lose (Taurus' brute emphasis on power put him at a disadvantage against Mega's speed).
457** Jack and Queen Tia in the third game. Jack is brash, impulsive, and impatient while Tia is calm, collected, and cold. [[spoiler:They have a moment near the end of the game where they switch, with Jack being the one to calmly talk an emotionally charged Tia out of their scheme to let Meteor G hit Earth.]]
458* RedemptionEarnsLife: [[spoiler:Near the end of the third game, Jack and Queen Tia [[HeelRealization realize the error of their ways]] inside Meteor G and decide to stop following through with letting Meteor G hit the Earth. They end up being the only prominent members of Dealer alive by the end of the game.]]
459* RelationshipValues:
460** In the first and second game, Geo's in-game Brother Bands develop over time, giving him access to superior abilities.
461*** In the first game, each NPC Brother's choice of favorite cards improves the further the story has progressed, improving Mega Man's selection of cards.
462*** In the second game, Mega Man only gets a highly-limited set of cards from each of his NPC Brothers, but specific story events will increase the strength of Geo's relationship with his friends, which raises the Link Power each Brotherband generates and thereby increases Mega Man's capacity [[PowersAsPrograms to install abilities]].
463** The second game has several gates that will only let Mega Man pass if his [[ThePowerOfFriendship Link Power]] is high enough. The story further indicates some people or institutions will give freebies to people for having large quantities of it--shopping Malls give out expensive gifts and at least one hotel may allot you a room based on your Link Power.
464** In the third game, each character is given a static amount of Link Power, which appears to be explained more by their role in the story than anything else. Of course, Geo makes up for this by [[CharacterDevelopment easily befriending]] a good dozen or so extra [=NPCs=].
465* RememberTheNewGuy:
466** Averted--Laplace is present in the third game with no explanation, and no one comments on it. His name is only ever even mentioned twice in the game itself, neither of which occurs during the main plot.
467** Played straight with Virgo and Corvus, rogue FM-ians that Omega has history with.
468* ReplacementGoldfish: Hollow was originally created by Vega in an attempt to bring her lover back to life. It didn't quite work, hence the MeaningfulName.
469* RiddleForTheAges: Who made the Ice Sculpture in the Grizzly Peak Resort, and why?
470-->'''Omega-Xis:''' I feel sad waves coming from it.
471* RivalsTeamUp: The basis of a four-stage minigame in ''Star Force 3'', in which Geo and Solo attempt to take down a series of massive monsters of Noise that may remind you of the [[CallBack Dark Soul Monsters]] from ''Battle Network 5'' and the [[Anime/MegaManNTWarrior Anime]].
472* RunningGag: In ''Star Force 2'', at least three different people[[note]]Geo, his mother, and the Whazzap Shaman[[/note]] share the same disbelieving reaction.
473-->I SEE.
474* ScaryBlackMan: Joker certainly fits the bill. It doesn't hurt that he [[spoiler:blows Luna up. [[DisneyDeath Temporarily.]]]]
475* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: [[MeaningfulName Rich Dotcom's]] Modus Operandi, especially in the anime, where he even tries to bribe Geo, who immediately [[ScrewTheMoneyIHaveRules inverts this]].
476* SecretIdentity: Geo and Omega have to bust their butts trying to keep it that way, though [[BoisterousBruiser Omega]] is [[RedOniBlueOni considerably less concerned]] with taking care of stuff like that.
477* SequentialBoss:
478** [[spoiler:Dread Joker R and Acid Ace R. In that order. Also [[ThatOneBoss Those Two Bosses]] because you have to fight them ''[[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment in a row]]''!]]
479** Subverted in ''Star Force 2''. Rogue shows up after the battle with Hollow, but Harp Note blasts Mega Man away so the player can save and heal.
480* ShmuckBait: In the second game, Hyde kidnaps Luna (round two) and then demands Geo make an appearance at the theater to star in his new production.
481-->'''Omega-Xis:''' ''[[CaptainObvious I'm 100 percent sure this is a trap.]]''
482* ShoutOut: Several.
483** When Goodall asks Mega Man to investigate the areas where Wizards went out of control, Mega gets into a detective frenzy, and Geo remembers of a program he liked: [[Series/{{CSI}} WRI]]. On said mission, one of the Noise Hertz sings a part of "Somebody's watching me". Geo also has an earthworm for a school project; its name is [[VideoGame/EarthwormJim James]].
484** As for Capcom itself, at one point Geo's teacher [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJoOEdYkQ1M mentions]] he drinks coffee blend [[Franchise/AceAttorney #107]].
485*** Another one occurs with an NPC's name: [[Franchise/StreetFighter Sho Ryuken]].
486** Alex Trebek. One sidequest even has Mega suggesting the guy "might be in ''Series/{{Jeopardy}}''" when they hear the name.
487** Not to mention the fact that in the third game there is a generic satella male police officer named after ThoseTwoGuys from ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers''.
488** The Satellite Admins Pegasus Leo Dragon [[Series/GoseiSentaiDairanger might bring a certain Sentai series to mind]], the only difference is that the latter two switched colors with each other.
489*** Made even funnier that the working title for ''Dairanger's'' appearance in ''[[Series/PowerRangersMegaforce Power Rangers Super Megaforce]]'' is...''Star Force.''
490** The ''Ghost Crisis'' movie's (''Star Force 2'') hero is the [[Franchise/{{Ghostbusters}} Ghost Duster]]. Pulls double-duty as a Shout Out to ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion'', given that he's carting a vacuum cleaner around.
491** Also in ''Star Force 2'', the FloatingContinent of Mu can be used as a KillSat, like Laputa itself in ''Anime/CastleInTheSky''.
492*** At least one of the rooms has inert Murian soldiers held in tubes, much like the robots from the movie.
493** King bears some resemblance to Daniel J. D'Arby from ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'', from their facial markings to their gambler motifs.
494** The Final Boss of ''Star Force 2'' is continuously spawning energy and forming it with its will into even solid objects. [[Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann Like drills]].
495** The K. Knuckle weapon. ''Kaiser Knuckle'' was the name of a ''Taito'' fighting game produced in 1994. You might know it as ''VideoGame/GlobalChampion''.
496** In the anime, the scene where Taurus is carrying Luna up the tower is very familiar to anyone who has seen Film/KingKong.
497* SmugSnake: Dark Phantom is just not as good as getting people to match his "script" as he wants to be. Also, King.
498** And both [[VillainousBreakdown go totally bonkers]] when you ''finally'' crush their plans into dust.
499* SocializationBonus: A central feature of the game was to allow players to become Brothers with up to six other RealLife players to generate ThePowerOfFriendship.
500** In the second and third game, each new Brother the player gains provides him with Link Power, raising Mega Man's capacity for installing PowersAsPrograms. [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness In the first game]], each unique Brother Band provided a limited set of abilities as {{Power Up}}s, and in-game Brothers competed with Real Life Brothers for space, while the sequels separate in-game and Real Life Brothers.
501** All three games allow players to share their favorite cards and even their own {{Super Mode}}s, which in the second and third game mean sharing ingredients for AbilityMixing.
502** For players who can't enjoy this perk, the second and third games offered an [[IWorkAlone Antisocialization]] Bonus that allowed Mega Man to imitate TheRival Rogue with a sword-based SuperMode. In the second game, installing all six Indie Proof pieces into the Real Life [=BrotherBand=] slots would unlock the Rogue Tribe as a FullSetBonus; the third game will randomly provide the Rogue Noise so long as you haven't formed any real-life [=BrotherBands=].
503* TheSomethingForce: "[[CallBack Star Force]]" in ''3''.
504* SpellMyNameWithAnS: In the second game, Plesio Surf ([[spoiler:AKA Gerry Romero]]) calls himself Plesio Wave, possibly because his Japanese name is Brachio Wave.
505* SpinOffspring:
506** Averted for the first three games. No one has any established relationship with the Hikari family or any other major characters of ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork''.
507** The concept for the unfinished ''Star Force 4'' featured Kazuma, a descendant of the Hikaris who would ally with Geo.
508* SpiritualSuccessor: Despite being set in the world of ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork'', the series is actually more in line with ''Anime/MegaManNTWarrior'', as it shares the premise of the latter seasons of the anime, where there are {{Henshin Hero}}es who transform in special environments where the digital and analog environments overlap.
509* SpotlightStealingSquad: Ace in the third game. Geo and Mega are ostensibly the main characters, but the third game is really about ''Ace's'' history, with ''Ace's'' team fighting ''Ace's'' enemies.
510* StayFrosty: Practically becomes Omega's CatchPhrase in the third game.
511** Or, his second favorite. "Buck wild" shows up more noticeably.
512* StealthMentor: The first game actually teaches you a few things that you may not notice on the first playthrough:
513** For starters, Fire type attacks do more damage if the enemy is on a Grass panel. If you're willing to explore every Comp area, you can find a [=GrassStage=] card which goes great with several of the Fire type battle cards that you can gain early on.
514** Enemies having elemental weaknesses. Though this comes into play after the Taurus Fire scenario, it's possible to find an [=IceMeteor=] in the [=FridgeComp=], which can be used against several of the Fire type enemies you can encounter.
515* TheStarscream:
516** Dark Phantom is implied to be this by Solo [[spoiler:before he and Dark Phantom fight each other]].
517** Gemini has nothing but contempt for the [[InformedFlaw cowardly]] King Cepheus in the anime. In the games, he's just bad at keeping his cool.
518** In the third game, Dealer is a DysfunctionJunction where literally everyone has their own agenda, which results in a GambitPileup by multiple disloyal factions.
519* StarCrossedLovers:
520** [[UsefulNotes/{{Tanabata}} Vega and Altair]].
521** [[spoiler:Ace and Queen Tia are this in ''3'', but thanks to Geo, [[EarnYourHappyEnding they finally get a happy ending]].]]
522* StellarName: Not just a play on the main character's name, but every FM-ian is named after a constellation (Taurus, Cygnus, Gemini, Lyra, etc.).
523* StylisticSuck: The translation of ''Star Force 2'' more or less deliberately plays up the offbeat source material. Among the Saurian Tribe, we have the Chompsrealhardasaur vs. the Neckistoolongadon, and then there's the town of Whazzap.
524* {{Superboss}}: Within the BonusDungeon of each game, there's a powerful foe waiting at the end (the Satellite Admin in ''1'', Apollo Flame in ''2'', and Sirius in ''3'').
525** Just traversing the BonusDungeon of ''2'' pits the player against IF version of the game's bosses, which are one step above the SP versions and way stronger than a player who's just loaded their clear data can expect to handle comfortably.
526** Certain Wave Command Codes in ''2'' replace a specific boss's SP version with a special DX form, which gets a [[GoldColoredSuperiority shiny golden color scheme]] and truly ''absurd'' stats, but always drops its SP-level Battle Card.
527** If you're wandering the Wave Roads and suddenly find the usual music replaced with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiPSFopTjdw this track]], that means an Omega Boss can be encountered. ''Which'' boss you're up against is randomly determined, but the one certain thing is that they're incredibly strong -- on par with a postgame boss.
528** Fulfilling certain criteria in ''3'' unlocks special advanced versions of bosses -- Rogue ZZ, Apollo Flame Sigma, Moon Destroyer Sigma, Sirius Sigma, and Crimson Dragon Sigma.
529* SuperMode: Geo gets a new one each game, generally tied to the player's version. You can access other transformations through [=BrotherBands=], and ''2'' and ''3'' let you meld transformations to create interesting combos.
530* SuperRegistrationAct: In ''Star Force 3', the use of Wave Change with the [=Hunter-VG=] automatically registers the EM Human in question with a designation called a Trans-Code (Mega Man is [[{{Foreshadowing}} Number 003]]), which must be [[ByThePowerOfGraySkull deliberately accessed]] (which nicely [[JustifiedTrope justifies]] the until now {{Invocation}}).
531* SurplusDamageBonus: In ''3'', overkilling an enemy with a card attack will fill up the Noise gauge. When the gauge reaches a certain point, you can access a powerful transformation.
532* SweetTooth: Ace binges on candy bars ''constantly''.
533* TheTeam: ''Star Force 3'' uses teams as both a gameplay mechanic and a recurring plot element.
534** In-story, Geo joined a variety of teams as various struggles came up beyond the scope of his own abilities, collecting allies throughout the story.
535** As a gameplay mechanic, teams worked hand in hand with part of the Noise Modification Gear called Rezon Cards[[note]]Rezon cards, like Noise Cards, never made it overseas due to licensing issues[[/note]]. By equipping a Rezon Card, Mega Man implicitly became part of the team of EM Humans shown on the card, and he would receive benefits in [[SuperMode Finalized form]] (such as a First Aura or an extra level-up when finalizing), which could then be shared to every single one of your brothers. This could lead to potentially absurd situations such as having ''six extra turns'' in Finalized form.
536* TeamDad: Geo, after being adopted into Luna's gang. Especially notable when Luna drops out of the picture in game 3.
537* TeamMom: Luna, after Geo gets adopted into her gang. Especially notable at the beginning of the second game, following the tutorial, when she starts fussing over whether the boys are wearing warm enough clothes.
538* TerribleTrio: They aren't villains, but Luna, Bud, and Zack have this dynamic. This changes into FiveManBand when Geo and Sonia join up.
539* TitleDrop: In the original Japanese version at least. References to shooting stars abound, especially in 3; and some of the Murian Hertzes at the end of the 2nd game address Geo as the Warrior of the Fallen Star. Also, there was a MythologyGag in which Geo and Omega exclaim "Let's Rock!" (And later "Let's Blues!"), which you might've missed if you weren't aware of one of the most basic translation issues effecting the original VideoGame/MegaManClassic games.
540* ThemeMusicPowerUp: ''Moving Scene/Rise as a Hero'' plays whenever Geo and friends are being heroic. The third game also has ''Go, Satella Police!'' when the namesake policemen are involved.
541* ThemeNaming: All the EnergyBeings have themed names; the majority of them are {{Stellar Name}}s. In the third game, even the humans get in on the theming.
542** Constellations: Taurus, Cygnus, Cancer, Lyra, Libra, Ophiuchus, Wolf, Gemini, Cepheus, Andromeda, Pegasus, Leo, Dragon, Goat, Auriga, Corvus, and Virgo. (Apollon Flame, Moon Destroyer, and Sirius also have Stellar Names but they're not constellation specific).
543** Legendary Creatures: Phantom, [[BigfootSasquatchAndYeti Yeti]], [[StockNessMonster Brachio]], and Condor (for the Nazca lines).
544** PlayingCardMotifs: Spade Magnes, Diamond Ice, Club Strong, Heartless, Jack, Queen Tia, Mr. King, Ace, and Joker.
545* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: The third game rewards overkill by having Mega Man's Noise levels increase by the difference between the attack power of a battle card and the remaining HP of the virus killed by that card. In Boss Battles, Noise levels are raised by half the attack power of NonElemental cards used on bosses, which still behooves the player to use powerful cards to make the Noise jump up faster.
546* ThoseTwoGuys: Zack Temple and Bud Bison, Luna's closest friends/fanboys. Until the third game [[spoiler: where Bud's compatible alien (Taurus) returns]].
547* TitleDrop:
548** By the third game, Subaru signs into the EM network as "Shooting Star Rockman".
549** Also in-game three the name of the final storyline team, dedicated to stopping Meteor G, is called "Star Force".
550* TooDumbToLive: In ''Star Force 2'', Geo's friends all decide that it's totally safe to approach while Rogue is still riding high on his introductory CutscenePowerToTheMax. Rogue promptly [[PartyScattering dumps them in the Un-Dimension]].
551* TookALevelInBadass:
552** Many bosses get substantially quicker and develop new attacks during re-matches.
553** Bud Bison and Tom Dubius, victims of DemonicPossession at the hands of the FM-ians in the first game, become willing partners of their respective FM-ian in order to become willing EM Humans in the third.
554* ToxicPhlebotinum: Noise, the main gimmick of ''3''. It's a byproduct generated by Wizards that messes with EM technology and ''severely'' messes with EM beings not acclimated to it, can even be harmful to humans in high concentrations. But someone who can learn to harness it can draw power from it; Mega Man is one of the few to do it, and the villainous faction of the game seeks to use it in their plot.
555* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: The third game features the [[FinalBoss Crimson Dragon]] in promotional art and teasers; in the actual game, however, the dragon is a GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere, so little of significance was exposed.
556* TransformationIsAFreeAction:
557** While most of the EM Wave Changes are fairly fast, usually just involving a dramatic pose and shout, Solo's special EM Wave Change is an elaborate process that goes on ''much'' longer than the normal versions, and yet nobody ever tries to stop him.
558** Accessing Mega Man's {{Super Mode}}s in ''Star Force 1'' and ''Star Force 2'' are big mid-battle showstopping affairs, as are the Finalization sequences in ''Star Force 3''. Averted when Mega Man gains new Noise Changes, however, which happen ''after'' battle.
559* TransformationSequence: Many Wave Changes have one, as do the various Super Modes.
560* TransformationTrinket:
561** The [=OOPARTs=] in ''2'', but not as apparent, since [[PlayingWithATrope Omega-Xis SWALLOWS them]].
562** The Ace and Joker programs as well - they allow for Noise Change.
563* TrueFinalBoss: Your prize of HundredPercentCompletion is the game's FinalBoss getting an upgrade as a final test of your abilities. In ''2'', on top of defeating a souped-up Le Mu, you still have to fulfill a few more conditions before Solo decides to go against you in one last duel as Rogue SX before you can truly say you've fully completed the game.
564* UnexplainedRecovery: During the credits of the third game, a character who'd undergone an ostensibly fatal HeroicSacrifice [[DeusExMachina inexplicably]] appears during the credits recovering in the hospital. The artist commentary in the [[AllThereInTheManual Complete Art Works book]] muddies the waters by indicating that the scene was actually meant to depict someone's "heartfelt wish".
565* UniquenessRule: Only one Giga Card may be put in a folder at a given time, which restricts them to prevent abuse of their powerful effects. There are ways to expand your Giga Card capacity, but they are rare.
566* UniverseCompendium: The various official strategy guides, plus things like databooks on Wave Command Cards[[labelnote:*]]Punch these in to Star Force 2 for various bonuses.[[/labelnote]], the Secret Satellite Server[[labelnote:*]]Information on a secondary folder system you could access in battle, possibly with more powerful cards, with over 30 levels to the Satellite Server and the 24 Levels of the Meteor Server.[[/labelnote]], and the Battle Black Box[[labelnote:*]]Tournament-class strategies, cards, Merge Noises, suggested folders for particular Noises, background information on [[ScaryBlackMan Joker]], all sorts of fun stuff[[/labelnote]]. These are all in Japan, though you can buy them either on Amazon (the Official Complete Works for ''Star Force'' and ''Battle Network'' were translated into English not too long ago by [[Manga/MegaManMegamix UDON]], but there should still be Japanese editions listed) or from E-Capcom, the company's all-Japanese shop site. [[NoExportForYou Good luck.]]
567* UnrealisticBlackHole:
568** The Grabity family of viruses ("Hell Black" in Japan) are spiraling vortexes with a single eyeball and four limbs emerging from their depths. They launch small projectiles at you and [[VampiricDraining siphon your health]], and their cards will instadelete anything with less than a certain amount of HP. Like the [[VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork Shadow and Nightmare viruses]] before them, they can only be hurt by swords.
569** The LimitBreak of the Black Ace form in ''Star Force 3'', Black End Galaxy, features Mega Man sealing every enemy on the field in a black hole and then subjecting that black hole to a single stroke of his sword, which makes it explode.
570** In the post-game of ''Star Force 3'', Planet FM is under attack from the "[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Black Hole Server]]", a giant Noise Cluster-like zone piloted by Sirius, who uses it to collect planets. Messrs. Hertz that are trapped inside are drawn inexorably towards the center, but Mega Man is free to walk around as he pleases.
571* VictorGainsLosersPowers:
572** As with ''Battle Network'''s battle chips, beating enemies nets you cards that replicate their attacks.
573** In the first game, the Satellite Admins would grant Mega Man a SuperMode with their powers if he defeats them.
574** Averted with the Noise forms in the third game, which give Mega Man {{Super Mode}}s based on other EM Beings but are randomly obtained.
575* VillainPossessedBystander: Averted in the second game where Hyde investigates likely candidates on behalf of the BigBad and parcels out Murian Energy Beings to them, but played straight in the ''Tribe'' anime where a couple of those Murians are acting independently and seize control of local humans for their own purposes.
576* VillainousBreakdown:
577** Hyde snaps in the third game when his plan to beat Geo fails.
578** Joker also starts to laugh hysterically upon defeat, which creates dissonance with his strictly solemn mugshot.
579* VillainousGoldTooth: Rich Dotcom is a greedy, shady businessman and BoisterousBruiser who's honestly convinced that [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney money can do anything]] and goes berserk when that's not the case. He has a gold ''fang'' that juts up from his lower lip.
580* VirtualSidekick: Zigzagged.
581** [=NetNavis=] appear in the first game but have been generalized to run in the background of society rather than be personally associated with human operators; they can be summoned by individuals through the use of their designated cards.
582** Navis did not appear in the second game but were replaced in the third game by Wizards, artificial EnergyBeings who serve much the same purpose but can also manifest themselves and act in the real world. Several Energy Beings from the first two games are converted into Wizards in the third including Omega himself.
583* WalkingArmory: Interestingly, only a few characters in the series make use of Battle Cards; for the first two games, only Mega Man has access to them, though Harp Note and Burai both use them in the anime. Acid Ace and [[spoiler:Dread Joker]] can use them in the third game.
584* WalkingSpoiler: At least one character from each game has a major chunk of spoilers under their belt.
585* WealthsInAName: The Shirogane family appears to be wealthy industrialists. "Shirogane" is the Japanese word for platinum. In the localization, they're called the Platz family.
586* WellIntentionedExtremist:
587** The Shaman of Whazzap Village in the second game legitimately wanted his country to prosper, but to do this, he conspired to manipulate his people through a false prophet and later fell in league with Hyde to gain access to the powers of the Murian Condor. On defeat he admits his fears that none of the advanced civilizations would help a backwater like Whazzap; he reforms afterwards and Whazzap finds a niche as a tourist trap.
588** The BigBad of the second game grew up in the kingdom of Tanabata, which suffered from terrible and stupid leadership[[note]]Similar to the Somoza Regime in Nicaragua (right down to spending most of the treasury on frivolous things while waging wars on trivial matters)[[/note]], which eventually caused her lover to die during its wars. She was convinced that the LostTechnology of Mu could bring her lover back to life and she could use it to establish a Neo Mu Empire, comprised entirely of the qualified, in order to rid the world of the fools she suffered under.
589* WhamEpisode: Each game has a demoralizing catastrophe in it near the end: [[spoiler:Patrick betrays Geo in the first game and Harp Note joins Vega's cause in the second]]. The third game in particular boasts the HeroKiller Joker, who dishes out no less than ''three'' {{Gut Punch}}es.
590* WhatSongWasThisAgain: The finale of Sonia's concert at the end of her scenario in ''Black Ace/Red Joker'' comes complete with the series theme, notably given lyrics. However, the song's subject is the eponymous "Shooting Star", Geo. To Japanese audiences, this would double as a TitleDrop, but the reference [[ArtifactTitle is generally lost to the western audience]].
591* WhiteHairBlackHeart: Solo, complete with [[RedEyesTakeWarning red eyes]], tan skin, and FacialMarkings.
592* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds:
593** Jack and Queen Tia's life have been pretty much crap since their childhood, and they wanted to bring TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt because of it.
594** Solo got the short end of the stick himself. Remember why he hates everyone?
595* TheWorfEffect: In the anime, Hollow transitions from being a NonActionGuy to TheDragon by subjecting Yeti Blizzard and Phantom Black to a CurbStompBattle each in sequence.
596* WouldHitAGirl:
597** Mega Man fights Harp Note, Queen Ophiuca, and Queen Virgo with little trouble.
598** In the anime when Burai, Rockman, and Harp Note fight, Burai makes a point of not just taking out Harp Note, but taking her out ''early'' so she can't distract him.
599* WouldHurtAChild: Compared to ''Battle Network'', where most villains' attacks were mostly non-targeted and would usually only affect children as collateral, villains in ''Star Force'' are much more inclined to purposefully attack children. This ranges from Sonia's manager being willing to strike Geo in frustration to Joker [[spoiler:temporarily executing Luna simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.]] Special mention goes to Mr. King, who unashamedly sends child soldiers on suicidal missions and even frames his potentially lethal punishments of Jack and Tia as disciplinary actions.
600* YouCantGoHomeAgain: Geo's dad is safe in space, but has no way of navigating home, and Omega-Xis is a fugitive from his own planet. [[spoiler:Geo's two forays into space at the end of the first and third games also leave him stranded, forcing his Brothers and the people he's helped to band together to help guide him home.]]
601* YinYangBomb: Played with in the third game, thanks to GameplayAndStorySegregation. While Rogue Noise ostensibly requires you to reject ThePowerOfFriendship in favor of IWorkAlone (you cannot have any RealLife [=BrotherBands=] when using it), it does nothing to limit you from enjoying the benefits of in-game [=BrotherBands=], allowing you to both use and refuse Friendship at the same time.
602[[/folder]]

Top