| 1 | ! Due to the nature of being the DistantSequel to the ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' series, all spoilers pertaining to it are unmarked. Administrivia/YouHaveBeenWarned! |
| 2 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mmz_series_5075.jpg]] |
| 3 | [[caption-width-right:350:''"I never cared about justice, and I don't recall ever calling myself a hero... I have always only fought for the people I believe in."''[[note]]Clockwise from the top: [[BigBad Dr. Weil]], [[RebelLeader Ciel]], [[AntiHero Zero]], and [[DragonInChief Omega]], with [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Weil's Numbers]] in the background.[[/note]]]] |
| 4 | |
| 5 | Another entry into Creator/{{Capcom}}'s popular flagship ''Franchise/MegaMan'' series, a DarkerAndEdgier direct SequelSeries to ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' for the Platform/GameBoyAdvance that continues the story of Zero, X's partner and best friend. |
| 6 | |
| 7 | A century after the [[WorldSundering Elf Wars]], themselves an unknown number of years after the X series, innocent Reploids are now being hunted by Neo Arcadia, the last bastion of civilization and a utopia for humans and Reploids GoneHorriblyWrong. Ciel, a human scientist who leads the Reploid LaResistance, revives Zero and asks for his help in protecting the Reploids from Neo Arcadia and to bring true peace between humans and Reploids. |
| 8 | |
| 9 | The series lasted for four games, the first in the franchise to be given proper closure. It would spawn a sequel series, ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'', which currently stands at two installments. A CompilationRerelease of the entire saga has also been released for the Platform/NintendoDS. Creator/IntiCreates later went on to develop ''VideoGame/{{Azure Striker Gunvolt|Series}}'', a {{spiritual successor}} to the ''Mega Man Zero'' series, and as their first independent video game series. Another compilation re-release, aptly named ''Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection'', was released in February 25, 2020 for [=PlayStation=] 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC through Steam, bringing the entire ''Zero'' and ''ZX'' series into one package along with new beginner-friendly features in the form of a Casual Scenario mode and a Save-Assist ability, optional CRT and smoothing filters, the Japan-only e-Reader Mod Cards for ''Mega Man Zero 3'' and Dual-Slot feature from ''Mega Man ZX'' implemented, a collection of music and artworks from both series, and a new Z Chaser mode where players can race against one another to quickly clear stages. |
| 10 | |
| 11 | Keep in mind that many of the following tropes contain '''spoilers'''. You've been warned. |
| 12 | |
| 13 | See the series's [[Characters/MegaManZero character page]] for more info. |
| 14 | |
| 15 | Vote on the best game in the series [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/crowner.php/BestEpisode/MegaManZero?open=all#kzgo7mov here]]. |
| 16 | ---- |
| 17 | !!Games in the series: |
| 18 | [[index]] |
| 19 | * ''[[VideoGame/MegaManZero1 Mega Man Zero]]'' (2002) |
| 20 | * ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'' (2003) |
| 21 | * ''VideoGame/MegaManZero3'' (2004) |
| 22 | * ''VideoGame/MegaManZero4'' (2005) |
| 23 | * ''Mega Man Zero Collection'' (2010, DS) |
| 24 | * ''Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection'' (2020, [=PlayStation=] 4, Xbox One, Switch, PC) |
| 25 | [[/index]] |
| 26 | |
| 27 | !!Tropes present in the whole ''Mega Man Zero'' series: |
| 28 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 29 | |
| 30 | [[folder:Tropes A to H]] |
| 31 | * OneUp: The Z-Panels, shaped as icons with a "Z" on them. |
| 32 | * AdultsAreMoreAnthropomorphic: Cyber-elves at first look like small critters. As you grow them by feeding them E-crystals, they become more humanoid (sans the Animal types). |
| 33 | * AfterTheEnd: This series is set after ''two'' apocalyptic events, the [[ColonyDrop Eurasia Crisis]] of ''X5'' and the [[WorldSundering Elf Wars]]. |
| 34 | * AimForTheHorn: Omega's OneWingedAngel form has the horn of the central head as the main weak spot. |
| 35 | * AllDesertsHaveCacti: In ''Zero 2'' intro stage, you'll find robotic cacti that can [[SpikeShooter shoot thorns]]. Averted in the first game and ''Zero 3'', though. |
| 36 | * AllThereInTheManual: Much of the backstory and plot details are given in drama tracks or in ''[[ConceptArtGallery Official Complete Works]]'', but not the games themselves. |
| 37 | * AllThereInTheStinger: The second game's stinger features a disembodied voice telling his "creation", Omega, that it's the "right time to attack." This leads directly into the events of ''Zero 3'', in which Omega appears in the intro level, and we're introduced to the likely source of the voice: the BigBad Dr. Weil. |
| 38 | * AllYourPowersCombined: The "mimic elf" in the fourth game; it has 21 abilities that were adapted from cyber-elves from the previous games. And, in Ultimate Mode, nearly all these abilities can be used without penalty, and true to the trope, ''all at the same time''[[note]][[AwesomeButImpractical it's not always as cool as it sounds though]], since the sheer overload can cause problems from visual clarity and prematurely triggering enemy invincibility frames[[/note]]. |
| 39 | * AndroidsArePeopleToo: Played with. The reploids in Neo Arcadia are treated as second-class citizens, except for the higher-ups in its governing body as well as the reploid army. However it's implied that they were treated the same as humans when X was still the ruler, seeing as it's his dream. |
| 40 | * AntiFrustrationFeatures: |
| 41 | ** Regardless of your remaining lives, when you die in the first game a menu comes up that, among other things, allows you to immediately reload your save without the need to reset the game. This can be very useful for players that don't want to waste their (very scarce) continues on, say, the {{Bottomless Pit|s}} a few meters away from the starting point. The mechanic is sadly gone in later games. |
| 42 | ** The Cyber Elf mechanics grant you some single-use cheats to use during levels at the cost of level points. In the latter half of the series, the player is allowed to use certain elves anytime and with no penalty. |
| 43 | ** The series tolerates you taking about 6 points of damage before it starts dropping your level score. |
| 44 | ** S ranks don't require the full 100-point score and most secrets such as EX Skills will be available at an A rank. |
| 45 | ** The ''Zero/ZX Legacy Collection'' adds two accessibility options, both of which can be used together or independently to make the game easier for players. |
| 46 | *** First is the option to enable a checkpoint system in the form of "Save Assist", which both replaces each game's lives mechanic and acts as a quicksave feature. If you die, quit the game, or turn off the console, you'll respawn with full health and weapons energy at the last checkpoint you passed, with everything that happened after that rolled back. This means your death and whatever other penalties you incurred to your mission ranking [[note]]aside from those you get from using Cyber Elves, etc[[/note]] are also discarded, making it easier to get and maintain an A or S rank required to unlock EX Skills and certain goodies. And lastly, turning on Save Assist does ''not'' disable achievements or otherwise penalize you for using it. |
| 47 | *** Second is called "Casual Scenario Mode", a feature similar to the "Rookie Hunter Mode" implemented into the ''X Legacy Collections'', which creates a separate set of saves and disables achievements if you the play any game with this on. It'll give you all collectibles, increase things like drop rates, and even remove One-Hit Kill hazards found in stages. If somebody wants to play a game for the story or just want an easier time overall, then this option is here to help. |
| 48 | * AntlionMonster: The [[http://megaman.wikia.com/wiki/Sand_Jaws Sand Jaws]] enemies lie in a middle of a quicksand pit, waiting for the player; they'll then bite the player for slow but continuous pain. |
| 49 | * ApocalypseHow: Class 5; there's the Elf Wars, which rendered the world uninhabitable except for one massive city named Neo Arcadia. Then [[spoiler:in the climax of ''Zero 4'', Craft used the KillSat Ragnarok to fire at Neo Arcadia to kill Weil; millions of casualties resulted from it]]. |
| 50 | * ArcWelding: Unlike the [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic two]] [[VideoGame/MegaManX series]] that preceded it, the first two ''Zero'' games [[ArcVillain have different villains]]. This is shot down by ''Zero 3'' and ''Zero 4'', wherein the villain those two games have in common, Dr. Weil, can be easily [[BigBad marked responsible for the events of the entire series]]. |
| 51 | * ArrangeMode: The "Ultimate Mode" will let you start a new game with most of the powerups (mainly the Cyber Elves) collected and unlocked from the start. To unlock this, however, you have to collect all Cyber Elves (first and 2nd games), Secret Disks (3rd game) or enemy parts (4th) in normal mode first and then beating the game. It's basically a "for fun" mode. The CompilationRerelease adds an "Easy Scenario" mode where you play all 4 games back-to-back in their own Ultimate Modes. |
| 52 | * ArtEvolution: ''Zero 1'' was known for its sketchy art style and washed out colors[[note]]at least in drawn artwork--the actual in-game graphics weren't undersaturated, but they also weren't the riot of color ''Zero 4'' would turn out to be[[/note]], but as the series goes on, the colors become more vibrant and outlines get much cleaner. Character designs also changed slightly over time; for example, Zero is quite wiry in ''Zero 1'' but looks much more muscular by ''Zero 4''[[note]]Although once again, this applies more to illustrations than the pixel graphics[[/note]]. |
| 53 | * ArtifactTitle: |
| 54 | ** The Four Guardians are reduced to three members during the first game, but don't change their title. It's likely because the demise of one of their members would cause civil unrest, so they try to keep it a secret. |
| 55 | ** And of course, the fact that nobody is called "Mega Man" in this game, you only get to play as Zero, and X himself [[DemotedToExtra barely even appears throughout the games]] (and is gone altogether after the third game). It is only included in the title to make it clear that it's related to the whole series. |
| 56 | * ArtShiftedSequel: This series introduced a new character designer, Toru Nakayama of Inti Creates, whose style is vastly different from the Classic and ''X'' series artists. [[YouDontLookLikeYou Zero and X's body designs look noticeably different as a result]], phasing out the thick and bulky armor for much thinner and smooth designs. The fact that [[spoiler:Omega Zero -- supposedly using Zero's real body -- looks just as your own Zero but with a deeper crimson color]] means that the ArtShift is meant to be retroactive. |
| 57 | * AscendedFridgeHorror: |
| 58 | ** As the first example of true AI, X was placed into stasis by Dr. Light to undergo morality testing for 30 years to make sure he'd actually be a good guy. [[KnightTemplar Copy X]] demonstrates what happens if he ''wasn't'' tested. |
| 59 | ** Still wondering what it would be like if Zero never became a good guy and Dr. Wily is in full control of him? Look no further than [[spoiler:Omega]] and Dr. Weil. |
| 60 | ** This trope leads to a PostScriptSeason. ''Zero 3'' was the original GrandFinale, and while its ending ties up most loose plot threads and resolves Zero's concern over his identity, it leaves one big loose end hanging--by the end of ''Zero 3'', the revived Copy X and the Guardians are killed off, leaving Dr. Weil alive and essentially with sole rulership over Neo Arcadia. ''Zero 4'' explores this and kicks off its plot with a caravan of human refugees fleeing the hellhole that Neo Arcadia has become under Weil's iron fist. |
| 61 | * AstralFinale: The fourth game ends up with Zero breaking in to the KillSat Ragnarok and trying to destroy it from within. |
| 62 | * AudioAdaptation: The drama tracks in ''Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero'' (the first, ''Telos'', and ''Physis''). The ''Telos'' tracks act as [[AllThereInTheManual supplements to the main story]], while the tracks on the first album and ''Physis'' are simply voiced versions of scenes from their respective games with a bit of AdaptationExpansion. |
| 63 | * AutobotsRockOut: The final boss theme from ''Zero 4'', [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p9hQokrhuc Falling Down]]. |
| 64 | * AwardBaitSong: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WctXJTxuHj4 Freesia]] from the ''Remastered Tracks Physis'' album, which seems to be about Ciel's love for Zero. |
| 65 | * BackgroundBoss: The Carnage Force 0 (the second stage boss), Hell The Giant (the boss encountered in Neige's prison), and Randam Bandam (after beating Craft the second time) in ''Zero 4''. |
| 66 | * BallOfLightTransformation: Cyber Elves are beings of data that are contained in floating balls of light. The previous hero VideoGame/MegaManX, now a cyber-elf himself, can take on either this form or a holographic version of himself. |
| 67 | * BarelyChangedDubName: Dr. Weil's name in the original Japanese is Dr. Vile. The former surname, being in German, is pronounced in a similar way of "Vile". |
| 68 | * BattleTops: The Top Gabyoall, which is the series' version of TheSpiny found in the classic series. |
| 69 | * BeastMan: the Mutos Reploids, the replacements of the animal Mavericks in the ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' series. |
| 70 | * BeeAfraid: |
| 71 | ** There are a number of bee Mechaniloids found in the stages; they will try to fly towards you to harm you. There's also a variant which can drop a high-power explosive on you. |
| 72 | ** There's a beehive sub-boss in the third game which spews out some brown goo and robot bees at you. Noble Mandrago in the fourth game also does a similar thing. |
| 73 | * BehindTheBlack: The game loves hiding secrets behind seemingly normal walls. |
| 74 | * BerserkButton: Although he's aware that he's not the X that everyone loves, Copy X will still be angry when one mentions that X will be always better than him. Fortunately, that one guy is Zero. |
| 75 | -->'''Zero:''' He was not as naive as you are. That's what made him a hero. |
| 76 | * BishonenLine: As you evolve the Cyber-Elves, they change appearance from simple, cute-looking critters to grown-up humanoids. Especially for Nurse Elves and Croire. |
| 77 | * BittersweetEnding: The end of ''Zero 4''. Sure, the bad guy is killed and the world is saved and peace is restored but...[[spoiler:the ending cutscene starts off with Zero's survival in deep doubt. Ciel runs off to a hill to cry her heart out in peace. She then regains her composure and looks hopefully to the sky, telling Zero to come back soon...[[HopeSpot cue a shot of his broken helmet and strewn mechanical parts in a crater somewhere]]]]. |
| 78 | * BlindIdiotTranslation: All the games have this to some extent, especially the first. |
| 79 | ** In ''Zero 1'': |
| 80 | --->'''Ciel:''' It was I who [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment recreated the duplication]] of X... |
| 81 | ** Also in ''Zero 1'', when you approach Ciel to save or start a mission: |
| 82 | --->'''Ciel:''' What's now? |
| 83 | ** In ''Zero 2'', Ciel's computer asks: "[[YouDoNotWantToKnow Do you want to know?]]" Ciel also constantly uses the word "subsequent" in reference to her new form of energy, when the obvious intended meaning is "substitute." |
| 84 | ** Tretista Kelverian. As he's a Cerberus-themed character, his second name should have probably been translated as Cerberian or Kerberian. |
| 85 | * BlobMonster: The Rainbow Devil in ''Zero 1'' and ''2''. |
| 86 | * BloodierAndGorier: The original Japanese games are ''far'' more graphic than classic ''VideoGame/MegaMan'' and even ''VideoGame/MegaManX'': The first game opened with each RedShirtArmy Reploid who got killed dying with [[MachineBlood a large splash of red mech fluid - A.K.A. Reploid blood]]. The same fluid splashed out of anything, including bosses, that you bisected with the Z-Saber. However, in the American export, where game ratings are considerably less flexible, the game was changed into BloodlessCarnage to market it to the younger kids without parental objections. Unless you have a sick kick for slashing up robots, it really doesn't ruin the gameplay, but it puts into perspective that this is a CrapsackWorld where AnyoneCanDie. ''[[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath Painfully]]''. |
| 87 | * BolivianArmyEnding |
| 88 | ** Literally in ''Zero 1'', where Zero faces down an enormous army of Pantheons after defeating Copy-X. However, ''Zero 2'' opens with Zero still cutting his way through the army. It's been a year since the end of the previous game. |
| 89 | ** [[spoiler:In ''Zero 4'', Zero's fate after re-entry is left "unknown"]]. |
| 90 | * BookEnds: The first and last major missions of the series are actually very similar; the major difference is the sense of scale. Both are timed boss fights against named Mavericks where innocent lives are on the line if the timer reaches zero - in ''Zero 1,'' it's three Reploids that Aztec Falcon is trying to retire. In ''Zero 4,'' it's [[spoiler: all life on the planet in the long run, as Weil tries to ram his KillSat into Area Zero, the last bastion of nature (and thus oxygen) left after Neo Arcadia was blown to smithereens.]] |
| 91 | * BossArenaIdiocy: Copy X's first encounter with Zero uses this with a dose of TacticalSuicideBoss; he destroys the majority of the floor with a set of spiked pillars that remain there for you to wall-jump off when he uses the [[OneWingedAngel Seraph Armor]]. Without them, Zero wouldn't be able to hit him and Copy X could just laser-spam him to death. |
| 92 | * BossRemix: The final boss theme of ''Zero 2'' incorporates the Dark Elf's leitmotif, while Omega's first battle theme in ''Zero 3'' is a remix of his own. |
| 93 | * BossRush: It's a series tradition. |
| 94 | ** In ''Zero 2'', one of the boss fights is a DualBoss: a boss from the previous game, joining his "brother" from this game to fight Zero together. It's all but outright stated that [[spoiler:Elpizo]] [[CameBackWrong brought them back with the power of the Dark Elf]], [[BrainwashedAndCrazy since they praise him and its power at the starts of their fights]], then suddenly forget what's actually going on when you cut them down again. |
| 95 | ** ''Zero 3'' and ''4'' {{handwave}} this trope, since the main field of research of the BigBad before his StartOfDarkness is "Reploid [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots DNA]] revival." |
| 96 | * BossWarningSiren: A '''WARNING''' sign flashes on the screen just like in the ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' series, only this time it appears ''after'' the boss' monologue, if any. |
| 97 | * BottomlessPitRescueService: In ''3'' with the Cyber Elves, but only once per Elf...unless when you upgrade them into Satellite-Elves, which makes them last forever and thus makes you permanently invincible from pits as long as they're active. Also in ''4'', where the nature of the special elf also gives the same result as above. |
| 98 | * BottomlessPits: A series standard. When you compare numbers, however, SpikesOfDoom seems to be more prevalent. |
| 99 | * {{Bowdlerise}}: A very mild version. In order to keep an E rating, the blood sprays were edited out of the American release. When the Japanese versions were included as part of ''Legacy'' collection, this bumped the collection up to a T rating. |
| 100 | * BraggingRightsReward: |
| 101 | ** Getting S ranks. A rank is sufficient to get any of the unlockable content, and S rank is damn hard to achieve in some levels, especially if you're playing on Hard Mode. However, in ''2'' and ''3'', where you got a new technique (see PowerCopying) that made the game easier if you ranked A or higher. Played straight in ''4'' where getting the power had nothing to do with rank. |
| 102 | ** Not to mention the mini-games from ''Zero 3'', including the ones you got by getting 100 points on each level, aka finishing quickly, not being hit more than once per level, destroy as many mooks as you see, not using any Fusion Cyber Elves, not falling to bottomless pits/spikes of doom, and not going to Cyberspace because doing so will harm your mission points. Simple, right? |
| 103 | * BroughtToYouByTheLetterS: |
| 104 | ** All bosses for the first three games have the Greek letter Omega as their symbol (due to it being the symbol of Neo Arcadia); the fourth game replaces this with W/V. Zero's own signature Z is gone, [[ArtShift for obvious reasons]], but concept art for the Z-Knuckle shows that the chips representing the weapon retains the iconic symbol. |
| 105 | ** The 4 Guardians have an X on their chest, as well as on their back. In concept arts at least, both Copy X and X themselves (without the special armor and robe respectively) also have the X. |
| 106 | * BusFullOfInnocents: |
| 107 | ** Area Z-3079, a ''whole city block'', the target of a missile by Dr. Weil, with Omega inside, who was sent to capture the Dark Elf spotted inside the area. Unfortunately, [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption no matter what, Zero fails the mission]], with hundreds of innocents killed. |
| 108 | ** There's also one in the final game, which is [[spoiler:all of Neo Arcadia itself!]] Not part of the BigBad's plans; in fact, the target of the attack was Dr. Weil himself, by his BastardUnderstudy. |
| 109 | * ButThouMust: In ''Zero 2'', refusing to help Elpizo with Operation Righteous Strike near the beginning of the game simply ends the conversation. However, there is literally nothing else to do other than roll around the base, which Elpizo snarkily lampshades if you initially refuse. Later on, once the operation commences, the two navigators will take turns begging you to follow Elpizo until you accept. |
| 110 | * CallBack: |
| 111 | ** The Cyberspace appearing caused by Omega's fall onto Earth mimics how Zero Space in ''X5'' is formed, though in a lesser scale. |
| 112 | ** In ''4'', the setting is the ColonyDrop from ''VideoGame/MegaManX5'', ironically [[spoiler:the target of the game's own colony drop]]. |
| 113 | ** In ''Zero 3'', Dr. Weil ressurects Reploids from ''1'' to lead the full-out assault on the Resistance; in addition to Copy X Mk. 2, Hanumachine R, Blizzack Stagroff R, and Anubis Necromancess V return to fight Zero once more. |
| 114 | * CataclysmBackstory: The Elf Wars shaped the present world into a CrapsackWorld. The war has killed roughly 90% of Reploids and 60% humans on earth in a span of 4 years. Dr. Weil and Omega were responsible. |
| 115 | * CentralTheme: |
| 116 | ** For the series as a whole: It's about the struggles of [[FantasticRacism persecuted humanoid robots]] who try to survive in a CrapsackWorld AfterTheEnd and find true peace between them and humanity. |
| 117 | ** For the second game: WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity. Alternatively, clash of ideals on how to achieve peace (Ciel's wish for a peaceful resolution with Neo Arcadia versus Elpizo wanting to crush them with military might, to be specific). |
| 118 | ** For the third game: The past has come back to haunt Zero and the world. Especially as he's an AmnesiacHero. |
| 119 | ** For the fourth game: What is a "hero"? Is being one a big deal? Also how the humans see the whole RobotWar from their perspective. Alternatively, a GreenAesop. |
| 120 | * ChangelingFantasy: Elpizo acts like this mentality [[TomeOfEldritchLore after reading about Project Elpis in an abandoned library supercomputer]], confusing himself [[{{Muggle}} (a representative Reploid with a serial number, TK-31)]] with [[TheAntichrist Omega]]. However, he does not fully embrace it until losing Operation Righteous Strike, where he thought it was the only way to be [[TragicDream redeemed as a hero]] after [[IDidWhatIHadToDo all the atrocities he committed]]. |
| 121 | * CharacterTitle: The series isn't [[EpisodeZeroTheBeginning a prequel of any sort]], [[ArtifactTitle nor is Zero himself really a Mega Man]], but [[MyHeroZero he's still our hero]]. |
| 122 | * ClamTrap: In aquatic levels, you can sometimes find robotic clams that will try to bite you. You can only attack them when they're opening their shells. |
| 123 | * ColorCodedElements: There are a few exceptions, but Fire is generally associated with Red, Water/Ice associated with Blue, Electric/Wind associated with both Green and Yellow, and Non-elemental associated with Purple. This is later brought out into the ''ZX'' series. |
| 124 | * ContinuityNod: |
| 125 | ** In ''Zero 1'', Copy X's arsenal is chock full of these. He has an offensive Slide Attack similar to the Charge Kick from ''VideoGame/MegaMan5'', and his elemental attacks are basically the Shotgun Ice, Fire Wave and Electric Spark weapons from the original ''VideoGame/MegaManX1'' game. He also dons a stylized version of his Ultimate Armor in battle. |
| 126 | ** Phoenix Magnion in ''Zero 2'', being an illusion specialist, is able to draw from Zero's memories images of his old foes from the ''VideoGame/MegaManX'' series to torment him. Vile, Agile, Bit and Colonel pop up for some tag team fun. |
| 127 | ** In ''Zero 4'', Dr. Weil summons the bosses from ''3'' to assault the hero. |
| 128 | ** The final mission in the first game takes place in an orbital elevator, like the [[MacGuffin Jakob]] from ''VideoGame/MegaManX8''. |
| 129 | ** In the first game, you encounter Repliforce (from ''VideoGame/MegaManX4'') submarines. |
| 130 | *** Interestingly, Old Andrew mentions having originally been a sailor who worked on a large, yellow ship, the color of the aforementioned Repliforce vessels, implying Andrew is a former member (and probably sole survivor) of the Repliforce Navy. |
| 131 | ** Ceratanium, a [[{{Unobtainium}} special alloy]] that was last mentioned in the [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic classic series]][[note]]It's the material that was used to make Cut Man and Metal Man's blades, as well as Mega Man's armor and Hard Man's body[[/note]], returns in ''Zero 4''. |
| 132 | ** Another returning element from the ''Classic'' series: the enemies Telly, Shotman, and Peterchy get redesigned and reappear as Telly Bomb, Shotloid, and Petaria after their absence from the ''X'' series. |
| 133 | ** In the Hibernation Chamber level of ''Zero 4'' there are various iron pipes that Zero can use with the Z-Knuckle. Zero used an iron pipe against Sigma back when he first awoke from hibernation in ''VideoGame/MegaManX''. |
| 134 | ** A [[LowerDeckEpisode Lower Deck Drama Track]] features Alouette wandering the Resistance base in search of a name for the Baby Elves. Zero refuses to even attempt naming them, which ticks Alouette off. In ''Zero 4'', if you refuse to use Alouette's name for your new elf, you are not allowed to [[HelloInsertNameHere name it yourself]] and Zero has to wander the trailer looking for names. |
| 135 | ** One of Andrew's {{Rambling Old Man Monologue}}s is about the time one of his students gave him a three-leaf clover after failing to find a FourLeafClover. Later on, Brise (one of the caravaners) states that clovers used to remind her grandmother of her teacher. |
| 136 | ** The rare Cyber-elf Jackson in the first game has its effect similar to [[InvincibilityPowerup charged Chameleon Sting]] in ''X1''. |
| 137 | * CoolGate: The third game has gates to the Cyberspace appear in between levels, courtesy of Omega's arrival. |
| 138 | * CranialProcessingUnit: Whenever Zero fights huge robot bosses, they tend to be only vulnerable on their heads. Case in point: Mega Scorpia, Copy X and Fefnir's {{One Winged Angel}}s, and Carnage Force 0 and Hell the Giant in the fourth game. |
| 139 | * CrapsackWorld: Supposedly set up by the ColonyDrop in the [[VideoGame/MegaManX previous series]], and the Elf Wars. Ironically, the "cure" to this dying condition is in the ruins of the aforementioned colony drop itself. However, with tons of hard work and sacrifices, it slowly becomes AWorldHalfFull. |
| 140 | * CrystalSpiresAndTogas: Neo Arcadia. |
| 141 | * CustomUniform: The only ones in LaResistance who don't wear the green uniform are Ciel, Alouette, Zero and Elpizo. |
| 142 | * CutsceneIncompetence: For some reason, during cutscenes, Fefnir's and Harpuia's attacks fail to graze Omega's armor, yet your attacks (in gameplay) can. |
| 143 | * CyberCyclops: Pantheons are eerie, one-eyed mockeries of X's design. |
| 144 | * CyberPunk: The story is set in a post-apocalyptic setting where the world's populace is reduced to just one big highly-technological city. Said city and its government try to be as comfortable as possible to humans, at the expense of the sapient robots (Reploids), who are systematically "retired" due to 1) an energy crisis, 2) the city's leader is just that inept. This sparks a LaResistance movement which consists of Reploids who are just trying to defend themselves against the oppressive regime, and Zero ends up joining their side. Zero mostly protects the Resistance from the Neo Arcadian forces, but their attempts at decisive moves to bring peace between them - both peaceful and violent - were rocky, to say the least. Meanwhile, the humans are basically at the mercy of the techno-government - once their leader is replaced by [[TyrantTakesTheHelm the tyrant scientist known as Dr. Weil]], he turns the already shaky utopia into a full-blown hellhole, so much that they have to flee and find a refuge...in a place with lush nature, almost free of technology. While the humans are tired of the whole RobotWar, most of them are too weak and complacent to do anything about it; it takes Zero's words, and [[spoiler:his HeroicSacrifice in the end]], to kickstart the peace and new life between the two races. |
| 145 | * CyberneticMythicalBeast: The "animal bosses" you fight are "Mutos/Mythos Reploids", most of them being reploids modeled and named after mythical beasts. Examples include Burble Hekelot (Heket from Myth/EgyptianMythology), Tretista Kelverian (Cerbeus of Greek myth), and Fenri Lunaedge (Fenrir from Myth/NorseMythology). |
| 146 | * {{Cyberspace}}: |
| 147 | ** Part of the gameplay in ''Zero 3'', supposedly caused by the arrival of Omega. Entering it will cause some certain Cyber-elves in your possession (marked with "A") to activate at once, making you more powerful; it's AwesomeButImpractical, however, because 1) you can't get Secret Disks in Cyberspace, 2) entering it will cut some precious points off your score, 3) you'll eventually have to exit it before the stage's finish, so don't expect it to be useful on bosses. [[spoiler:Except for Phantom, as you need to enter Cyberspace to even encounter him in the first place]]. Speaking of [[spoiler:Phantom]], he implies that cyberspace is a mix of MagicalDatabase and a place where AIs of dead Reploids and cyber-elves go. |
| 148 | ** In ''Zero 4'', the storyline requires Zero to enter one to disable the network security system of Ragnarok. |
| 149 | * CycleOfRevenge: While it's not always strictly "revenge", this trope is a significant part between the animosity [[FantasticRacism between humans and Reploids]]. The whole Maverick Wars that Sigma instigated may have led to Weil thinking that reploids are better off without free will and be more easily controllable. This led to the Elf Wars, which devastated the world and killed 90% of Reploids and 60% of human population; he was forced to be put into an undying cyborg body and be exiled to the wastelands he made himself, causing him to harbor grudge towards both sides. Some time after that, while the real X attempted to rule the last of the population (both sides of it) in peace and harmony, his replacement - Copy X - went on to systematically massacre low-class Reploids while favoring the comfort of humanity, because of the energy crisis. This caused Elpizo, who narrowly avoided becoming a victim of it, to plan to be a "savior of reploids" and KillAllHumans. |
| 150 | * DarkerAndEdgier: And [[BloodierAndGorier bloodier]], if you're playing a Japanese copy. This is the darkest saga in the series, hands down. The manga adaptation, [[LighterAndSofter on the]] [[DenserAndWackier other hand]]... |
| 151 | * DefeatEqualsExplosion: Practically all mooks and minibosses explode when they're defeated. So do most bosses; when they're defeated, they give off numerous small explosions before a big one at the end. The only bosses that do not explode are the [[EnergyBeings Baby Elves]]. |
| 152 | * DemotedToExtra: Mega Man X isn't playable in this subseries. While he's still an important character and plays a huge role in the first games plot due to sealing away the Dark Elf in his physical body and thus setting the stage for Copy X to be created, screentime wise, he gets what amounts to a bit player role in the first three games, since he no longer has his physical body to use. He returns to cyberspace for good in the third game, so he doesn't appear at all in the fourth one. |
| 153 | * DenialOfDiagonalAttack: Averted with the Rod weapons and Z-Knuckle, while the Z-Saber does hit enemies above you, and the Shield Boomerang flies in a circular arc when thrown. This is only played straight with the Buster Shot. |
| 154 | * DiagonalCut: Pretty much ''any'' enemy killed by the Z-Saber or any bladed weapon, including bosses, which also include an epic HitStop to let you admire your work. [[{{Pun}} Division by Zero]], if you will. |
| 155 | * DifficultButAwesome: |
| 156 | ** The Triple Rod's downward stab. While using the thing as a pogo stick can be incredibly awkward, doing so is required to obtain a couple of Cyber-Elves, as well as being the safest way to destroy some of the bear traps in the desert (in particular those that are lower than you, as stabbing downward at them presents a minor risk of walking into them). Where this actually comes into play heavily is against the first intermission boss, Hittite Hottide. Given your position at the start of the fight you can immediately dash jump and stab downward to pogo jump on its back, attacking it repeatedly. If you know the amount of hits it takes to destroy the bomb launcher (sixteen), can count those hits without mixing them up with hits to the hatch right next to it, and can position yourself to deal with the bat-like enemies (Gli-Eyes) from the hatch and para-bombs from the bomb launcher, you can destroy that bomb launcher nearly as soon as the battle starts, making it that much simpler to deal with the other things it can do. Better not destroy that hatch just yet if you want the associated Cyber-Elf and all the points in your Enemy ranking, though... |
| 157 | ** From ''3'' onwards, {{combo}}s. Typical play usually sees the player loading in an [[ElementalRockPaperScissors Elemental]] Chip and whacking at bosses with charged attacks; combo play requires knowing the hit priority of your various attacks, what type of attacks to use in the combo, and when it's safe to do so[[note]]as comboing typically means Zero is going to be stuck doing his skill animations[[/note]]. The former is a lot safer, while the latter is a lot faster, owing to how properly constructed combos will pierce a boss' invincibility frames. |
| 158 | * DistantSequel: The events of the series takes place a century after those of ''VideoGame/MegaManX'', by which time Zero and X have become downright legendary figures. |
| 159 | * DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: All of the Guardians but Phantom remark that Zero makes them feel "so alive" when battling him. Several times after a battle you'll hear them panting it. |
| 160 | * DownerBeginning: The first game: It starts with LaResistance being oppressed by the Neo Arcadian forces as they run away in a DramaticChaseOpening. Several of the {{Red Shirt}}s get [[BodyHorror cut in half]] by the [[GiantMook Golems]]. As Zero is [[SealedBadassInACan unsealed]], only Ciel was alive. |
| 161 | * DrillMole: The Molegule mooks are mole robots with drills in place of their snouts. |
| 162 | * DrillTank: One of the bosses in ''Zero 1'', Hittite Hottide. You have to destroy it before it reaches the Resistance Base. |
| 163 | * DrivingQuestion: |
| 164 | ** "Can true peace be achieved between humanity and Reploid-kind?" [[spoiler:In the end, the answer is "yes", but not without some great sacrifices to be done.]] |
| 165 | ** This series eventually answers a lingering question from ''Videogame/MegaManX:'' "WHAT AM I FIGHTING FOOOOOOOR??!" [[spoiler:The answer: "I've always fought for the people I believe in".]] |
| 166 | * DynamicDifficulty: If you have A or S rank when you're fighting bosses, they'll have a special move. The Guardians will have a DesperationAttack that makes them invincible during execution. In ''Zero 4'', if the stage's weather is compatible with the boss (indicated with highlighted lines near the stage icon), the boss and the stage will be harder. |
| 167 | * EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: |
| 168 | ** The first game featured a {{Metroidvania}}-style world map - the only locations that aren't accessible by walking are the Neo Arcadia levels, though missions were still done in traditional ''Mega Man'' style by choosing one and immediately starting at the mission location. This feature wasn't seen in any main series Mega Man game that preceeded it and wouldn't be revisited until ''VideoGame/MegaManZX''. |
| 169 | ** Mission selection didn't include the Boss' mugshot, which was tradition for the past series, but was reimplemented in the second game onward. |
| 170 | ** Alternate weapons in the first game (Shield Boomerang and the Triple Rod) must be unlocked through gameplay instead of being given to Zero early on. |
| 171 | ** The only form of PowerCopying is elemental chips, which only three bosses of the eight or so main bosses had. The only other progression system besides the above-mentioned other weapons was acquiring Cyber Elves; both of these mechanics returned in later installments, but in a way that supplemented the more traditional progression granted by EX Skills. |
| 172 | ** The Z-Saber in the first game flips back and forth between its katana-like ''X'' design and the triangular-bladed shape consistently seen from ''2'' onward. Promotional art and most of Zero's sprites depict the latter, but its menu icon and the shape it takes when initially dropped by Cyber Elf X are the former. |
| 173 | * EarnYourFun: |
| 174 | ** The "Ultimate Mode". To elaborate, you'll start the game with all of the Cyber-elves abilities activated without any penalty. It also has good stats, and you can do instant charged attacks using button commands. In ''Zero 3'', some of the upgrade chips are also available from the start, including the [[InfinityPlusOneSword Infinity Plus One Boots]]. That's worth all the effort of GottaCatchThemAll (the Cyber-Elves in first two games, Secret Disks in the third game, and all of the ItemCrafting parts in the fourth game). |
| 175 | ** The ''Zero Collection'' subverts this with Easy Scenario, which automatically starts the games in their "Ultimate Modes", but they have to be played in sequential order. |
| 176 | * EarnYourHappyEnding: In the end, the peaceful era after hundreds of years of war has finally come, and the enmity is finally dissolved between humans and [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots Reploids]] by the two sides working together. However, those who really fought hard for such peace, [[spoiler:X and Zero]], sadly never had the chance to see it (at least, not on the earthly plane). |
| 177 | * EliteFour: Copy X has his Four Guardians (literally called Shitennou in Japan), his 4 personal guards as well as generals of their own armies: [[LandSeaSky Harpuia (the air force), Fefnir (the army), Leviathan (the navy)]] and Phantom (the espionage and intel unit). |
| 178 | * EmergencyEnergyTank: Some Cyber-elves can function as this; some heal directly, some give extra lives, some become Sub-Tanks, etc. |
| 179 | * EmpireWithADarkSecret: Unknown to the human residents of Neo Arcadia, their utopia comes at a price [[spoiler:that Copy-X introduced]]: the [[DeadlyEuphemism retirement]] of their fellow (innocent) Reploid citizens. Then again, [[HumansAreBastards maybe they just don't care]]. |
| 180 | * EndOfAnAge: ''Zero 3'' and ''4'' serve as this for both the ''Zero'' series and ''VideoGame/MegaManX''. ''Zero 3'' features [[spoiler:the deaths of both X, Copy X and the Four Guardians made from his reploid DNA, making it the ultimate end of X's legacy, while Zero is forced to destroy his original body to stop Omega]]. Then by ''Zero 4'', Zero [[spoiler:pulls his final HeroicSacrifice to stop Dr. Weil and save Area Zero, finally bringing an end to the centuries-long conflict between humans and reploids.]] |
| 181 | * TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt: DoubleSubversion in ''Zero 4'': while the ColonyDrop really isn't going to devastate the entire planet, it still approaches the trope because the target of the drop is a NewEden area in a CrapsackWorld. |
| 182 | * EnergyBeings: The Cyber Elves, beings of data with a body of PureEnergy. It's also possible to turn Reploid AI into a cyber-elf; it happens to X [[spoiler:and Elpizo]]. |
| 183 | * EscortMission: Two in the first game: in the intro stage (where you escort Ciel) and in Anubis Necromancess III's stage (where you escort one of the RedShirts). |
| 184 | * EvilPowerVacuum: Killing the dictatorial leader of an oppressing regime doesn't magically make everyone's lives better. It only leaves the spot open for someone else, possibly as bad or ''even worse'', to take their place. |
| 185 | * EvilTowerOfOminousness: Copy-X's stage in the third game, which extends all the way into outer space. |
| 186 | * FakeDifficulty: Such as things being obscured by text boxes in Zero 1 (they crawl along as the game carries on preventing you from seeing anything that might be under them) or enemies and bosses being able to shoot at you long past the point where, if you shoot at the same distance, your shots will disappear, on top of simply not having enough lead room to see what's ahead, above, or below. |
| 187 | * FantasticRacism: As a result of the discrimination, most mass produced Reploids have NoNameGiven, being simply called by their designated serial numbers, like TK-31 or HE-22. It was Ciel who named most of the Resistance members, and she seems to [[ThemeNaming love birds]]. Shown more in the fourth game where most of the Caravaners distrust Reploids. Granted, they have been waging RobotWar for more than 2 centuries now... |
| 188 | * FinishingMove: Subverted with the EX Skills of most [[BossBattle Boss]] enemies (even including those that can't be [[PowerCopying obtained]]). However, if Zero finishes a boss enemy (this only applies to the Mutos Reploids) with a slice from his [[LaserBlade Z-Saber]], they will earn the unique animation of being [[HalfTheManHeUsedToBe sliced in half]]. |
| 189 | * FireIceLightning: Literally, as the simplified version of the ElementalRockPaperScissors compared to its predecessors, where, on the second game onwards, Bosses are always grouped in fours (one for each element and the fourth for a non-elemental). Fire beats ice, which beats lightning, which beats fire. Three of the four Guardians, Fefnir, Leviathan and Harpuia, respectively, even embody these elements. ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' would also follow this trend. |
| 190 | ** One of the bosses of the first game, Guard Orotic, wields all three. |
| 191 | ** One of the mooks in the fourth game can [[MookMaker create 3 kinds of mooks]], each with one of the three elements. |
| 192 | ** In the second game, the Golem miniboss comes in 3 elemental variants. In the intermission to rescue Elpizo from Neo Arcadia, you have to fight all 3 of them, one at a time, before the end of the level. |
| 193 | * FlunkyBoss: Some minibosses are this, such as Bee Server in the third game (spawns Mellnets) and Gearbank of the fourth game (spawns Serpent Gears). A few bosses delve into this as well. |
| 194 | * {{Foreshadowing}}: Each game has at least one example before an important {{reveal}}, in the form of character's dialogues. In order: |
| 195 | ** Before the gauntlet that are the final levels: |
| 196 | --->'''Unknown Elf ([[spoiler:the real X]]):''' Go. Terminate that copy of me. Terminate with extreme prejudice... |
| 197 | ** After one of the first missions of the second game: |
| 198 | --->'''X:''' The Baby Elves will do anything to reunite with their mother. Stir the humans' minds and bring chaos...It's all to meet their mother, the Dark Elf... the Dark Elf that I sealed... |
| 199 | ** Upon defeating Omega in the first encounter, Copy X and Dr. Weil issue a challenge to LaResistance to find out who can capture the Dark Elf first. Before leaving, Weil gives the following cryptic remark: |
| 200 | --->'''Weil:''' Let's see how far you get with that body! |
| 201 | *** After you defeat Copy X, X appears and tells Zero that "The heart is what's important". |
| 202 | *** Crea and Prea also refer to Zero as "the fake reploid." |
| 203 | ** In the fourth game, before being sent off to the final stage, [[spoiler:the Ragnarok core to stop the ColonyDrop]]: |
| 204 | --->'''Ciel:''' With [[spoiler:both Weil and]] Craft gone, who could still be [[spoiler:running Ragnarok]]? Zero, [[Franchise/StarWars I have a bad feeling about this]]. Just be careful, okay? |
| 205 | *** Also, in the ''Rockman Zero 4'' commercial, [[MyLifeFlashedBeforeMyEyes Zero disappears into light]]. Subtle. |
| 206 | * FourIsDeath: Aside from the Four Guardians, there's the Elf Wars, that lasted for only four years, yet brought so much damage to the world. Partial subversion: The only reason the war ended on its fourth year [[spoiler:was because of Zero only reappearing at that time]]. Also, there are four games in the series, and the fourth game ends with [[spoiler:our hero Zero's death]]. |
| 207 | * FourPhilosophyEnsemble: the five major bosses in the first game: Copy-X (the Cynic), Phantom (the Apathetic and pragmatist), Harpuia (the ''very'' Conflicted), Fefnir (the Optimist), and Leviathan (the Realist). |
| 208 | * FourStarBadass: The 4 Guardians technically qualify, as they're generals of their respective armies. |
| 209 | * FourTemperamentEnsemble: The Four Guardians: The leaderly and loyal Phantom (leukine), the [[TheDeterminator indeterrable]] and TriggerHappy Fefnir (choleric), the virtuous and civil Harpuia (melancholic), and the calm and playful Leviathan (phlegmatic/sanguine). |
| 210 | ** X-series enemies holographed by Phoenix Magnion: Vile (choleric), Agile (melancholic), [[FlatCharacter Bit]] (phlegmatic), and Colonel (sanguine). |
| 211 | ** Phlegmatic: Herculious Anchortus in 1st, Poler Kamrous ([[AnIcePerson element corresponds]]) and Burble Hekelot in 2nd |
| 212 | ** Sanguine: Maha Ganeshariff in 1st, Panter Flauclaws ([[ShockAndAwe element corresponds]]) and [[spoiler:Elpizo]] in 2nd |
| 213 | ** Leukine: Phantom in 1st, Kuwagust Anchus in 2nd |
| 214 | * FromBadToWorse: Every game always ups its bleakness from the previous. Even if it ultimately [[EarnYourHappyEnding ends well]], it comes ''after'' [[spoiler:Neo Arcadia is destroyed, claiming millions, and Zero sacrificing himself to stop Weil]]. |
| 215 | * FunWithAcronyms: The '''C'''onvergent '''I'''gnition by '''E'''nergen '''L'''inkage System, i.e what Ciel developed for solving the energy crisis. |
| 216 | * GameMod: Due to the way the ''Legacy Collection'' port works,[[note]]Unlike many similar retro game compilations, the ''Zero/ZX Legacy Collection'' is a set of native ports, rather than the original games run through an emulator[[/note]] it's possible to modify the [[https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2008335805 PC version]] to, for example, use the remastered CD soundtracks or play the uncensored Japanese versions (which contain blood and more frequent voiceovers) with the translated English text. |
| 217 | * GameplayGrading: After missions, the game will grade you based on completion time, enemies killed, number of times hit, number of continues used, and number of Cyber Elves used. An "A" or "S" ranking is typically required to get [[PowerCopying additional moves from the bosses]]. |
| 218 | * GiantEnemyCrab: The [[http://megaman.wikia.com/wiki/Gazamir Gazamir]] miniboss from ''Zero 2'', and Clabanger NS in ''Zero 4''. |
| 219 | * TheGoodTheBadAndTheEvil: Zero and LaResistance are the good; Copy X, the 4 Guardians and Neo Arcadia in general are the "bad" (at least at first); Dr. Weil and Omega are evil. The time comes when Neo Arcadia and the 4 Guardians join with the good side; Copy-X progressively worsens until in ''Zero 3'' he's become just as evil as Weil and Omega! |
| 220 | * GoombaSpringboard: |
| 221 | ** In the first game, some enemies are conveniently placed in a way that allows you to use the Triple Rod's downward thrust attack to bounce from one enemy to another. A few secret Cyber-Elves are found this way. Said attack also allows him to repeatedly hit Hittite Hottide easily. |
| 222 | ** In the third game, you can use the downward charged Recoil Rod on enemies' heads (including flying ones) to propel Zero upwards very high. This can be used even on bosses. One of the Sub-Tanks also require you to do a "Recoil Rod jump" from a certain enemy's head. |
| 223 | * TheGovernment: Neo Arcadia, which started out as a peaceful city-state where humans and robots lived in peace until it became tyrannical and genocidal after the disappearance of its original leader. |
| 224 | * GrandFinale: ''Zero'' is the first subseries in the ''Mega Man'' franchise to conclude definitively[[note]]however, the story continues into the distant future with the ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' series[[/note]] (followed only a few months later by ''VideoGame/MegaManBattleNetwork''). [[spoiler:The oppressive government that the heroes are fighting against is finally gone, and the BigBad, desperate, is getting ready to destroy the last hope of healing a [[CrapsackWorld dying Earth]] with a ColonyDrop. The hero confronts the BigBad, [[HeroicSacrifice passing up the chance to escape to safety]] so he can stop the ColonyDrop and the BigBad once and for all. Add the fact that the hero finally finds his purpose in fighting the war, a [[HeroicBSOD problem that has plagued him]] since the ''[[VideoGame/MegaManX previous series]]'', and that peace is ''finally'' restored after a very, '''very''' long time]]. |
| 225 | * GratuitousGreek: The remastered soundtracks for ''Mega Man Zero'', barring the first, have Greek names that correspond to a theme of their game. The second game's soundtrack is ''Idea'', [[note]] Elpizo's and Ciel's ideals clash, causing no end of grief[[/note]] the third ''Telos'', [[note]] Zero must confront his original purpose[[/note]] the fourth ''Physis'', [[note]] Zero must save the LastFertileRegion[[/note]] and the fifth ''Mythos''. [[note]] Accompanied the CompilationRerelease.[[/note]] |
| 226 | * GreatOffscreenWar: The Elf Wars, again. |
| 227 | * GreenAesop: Plot of the final game: Protecting the last trace of nature from a villain bent on making sure that his [[TheEmpire empire]] is the only habitable place left on Earth. |
| 228 | * GuideDangIt: |
| 229 | ** You can't [[GottaCatchThemAll find all the Cyber-elves]] without one. |
| 230 | ** All the games have an obscure Z-Saber technique that isn't alluded to in the series, the skull crush. Holding down on the d-pad after an aerial slash[[note]]instead of before, which initiates a different EX skill[[/note]] makes Zero hold out his saber as he falls, allowing him to kill enemies that are below him. |
| 231 | ** In the games from ''Zero 2'' onwards, there is a hidden {{Combo|s}} system that allows players to hit bosses even when they are under MercyInvincibility. The Z-Saber's triple slash is the most outwardly apparent instance of this system, but players can play the entire series without knowing that every weapon can participate in combos. |
| 232 | ** ''Zero 1'' gives you the basics on how to level up your weapons, but it doesn't at all mention certain hidden mechanics to the leveling system. While each killed enemy gives a weapon experience points, what the game never tells you, or at least only vaguely hints at, is that there are ''separate experience bars'' for different attacks with the same weapon (i.e. the Z Saber gets different experience with the normal slash, the dashing slash, the jump slash, and the charged slash). For example, while typical leveling with the Z Saber follows getting the double slash, then triple slash, the charged slash, the faster charging charged slash, and then the aerial spin and/or rolling slash, investing into killing enemies with the jump slash or dashing slash over normal slashing can unlock the aerial spin slash and the rolling slash before ''ever'' getting the double slash. The Buster Shot follows a similar pattern in that it's possible to unlock the second level of the ChargedAttack before unlocking the four bullets upgrade simply by prioritizing killing enemies with the Charge Shot over regular shots. |
| 233 | ** ''Zero 2'' only slightly hints at the [[PaletteSwap Forms system]]; after that, the players will have to rely on luck unlocking each of them unless they consult a guide. A player can possibly even go through the whole game without unlocking a single one (until completion, of course, [[spoiler:where the BraggingRightsReward for beating the game is the Proto Form]]). |
| 234 | ** In ''Zero 3'', players tend to ignore entering {{Cyberspace}} so as not to lower their rank. However, entering the Cyberspace in a specific stage is key to obtaining the [[InfinityPlusOneSword best foot chip]] in the game. |
| 235 | ** If you don't have a guide ready, be ready to use guesswork for most of the ItemCrafting recipes in ''Zero 4''. At least you can gather recipes from talking to people (even your elf!), but not all chips have recipes. |
| 236 | * GuiltBasedGaming: In this series, Zero can find powerups to upgrade his abilities and activate some temporary cheats. The problem about it is that the powerups are ''{{Ridiculously Cute Critter}}s'' that you raise and "eat" like a livestock. The third game softens this by allowing you to equip some Cyber Elves without sacrificing them while the fourth has just one elf that mimics the abilities of the others. Lampshaded in the first game: |
| 237 | -->'''Alouette:''' Have you ever heard of a thing called Cyber-elf? A Cyber-elf is an electronic entity that gives some kind of a power. But once they use their powers, they die...I feel sorry for them... |
| 238 | * HandshakeRefusal: Elpizo introduces himself to Zero as the new commander of the resistance and offers his hand after announcing his plans to destroy Neo Arcadia. Zero refuses both the plans and the handshake. |
| 239 | * HarderThanHard: An interesting case in that the Hard Modes that you can unlock through the series are making a NintendoHard series even harder, rather than a difficulty beyond Hard itself. Have fun with: |
| 240 | ** 50% more damage taken in the first game, though ''Zero 2'' pulls a fast one by forcing you into [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic Proto]] Form, where you become a GlassCannon that deals double damage and yet suffers a halved defense. |
| 241 | ** No Cyber-Elf usage, period. Even though you have Croire in ''Zero 4'', they cannot be raised whatsoever. This all means no side benefits like Sub-Tanks, either. |
| 242 | ** No EX Skills or alternate Forms. While chips are still able to be gained, you're disallowed from using charge abilities throughout the games besides the Recoil Rod and Shield Boomerang, meaning you can't even capitalize on Element Chips anyway. ''Zero 4'' goes lenient on charges and allows for full use. |
| 243 | ** Weapon leveling is also restricted, and in ''Zero 3'' the full triple-slash Z-Saber combo is unusable, which cripples Zero's damage potential. |
| 244 | ** The Cyberspace areas in ''Zero 3'' are also inaccessible [[spoiler:except for in Sub Arcadia, due to the OptionalBoss hidden in it]], which means no Satellite Elf usage whatsoever. |
| 245 | ** ''Zero 4'''s Hard defaults to all Hard stages, even though you cannot learn EX Moves, thus making it all risk and no reward. |
| 246 | * HeartContainer: A few Nurse Elves can be used as health upgrades, with the best of them doubling your HP. |
| 247 | * HellIsThatNoise: [[spoiler:The final battle of ''Zero 2'', against Elpizo, begins its second phase with Elpizo engulfing himself in the Dark Elf's power. His OneWingedAngel sequence is accompanied by a [[https://youtu.be/Gff3-McMD4M?t=44 soul-rending screech]] that indicates the transformation [[TransformationHorror isn't particularly pretty for Elpizo]].]] |
| 248 | * {{Hellevator}}: The Giant Elevator in ''Zero 3'', [[ElevatorActionSequence the setpiece in which]] [[MultiMookMelee many mooks plus a miniboss will come to get you]]. You take a massive elevator deep into the Earth to fight a boss who's based off [[HellHound Cerberus]]. |
| 249 | * HelpfulMook: |
| 250 | ** Hottalook, the firefly-producing mook in the Crystal Cave stage from the second game, can help you traverse the confusing path of seemingly spike-laden area by revealing the invisible platforms around them. |
| 251 | ** In a variant, if you destroy the Gyro Cannon H in the fourth game without destroying its propeller, you can hang yourself beneath the flying propeller with the Z-Knuckle to carry yourself upward. |
| 252 | * HoldTheLine: The second game has this as part of a mission where you have to defend Ciel for 90 seconds from enemy attacks while she is defusing a bomb. |
| 253 | * HonorBeforeReason: |
| 254 | ** The Guardians and the Neo Arcadian army are all heroic guys, but they are bound to obey the will of Neo Arcadia, even if that "will" is obviously either A) That of a tyrant who goes against everything the city once stood for, or B) A human government who is greedy and uncaring. Touched upon in one of the drama tracks, where the Gentle Judges converse about Master X's increasingly harsh decisions and judgments; Harpuia, while quick to silent them, also has doubts. |
| 255 | ** Averted in the 3rd game, where Harpuia finally decides to take a stand against the tyrannical ruler, knowing full well he'd be considered a traitor to Neo Arcadia for doing so. Fefnir and Leviathan soon follow suit and help Zero in the final battle. |
| 256 | * HubLevel: The Resistance Base is this for every game. |
| 257 | * HumansAreFlawed: Ciel and Neige are good humans, and X, even after all this time, still believes in fighting for peace between humans and reploids, but Dr. Weil [[HumansAreBastards holds the exact opposite view]] and is a prime example of it himself, and humans are at the peak of their complacency and reliance on machines for survival. Zero remains rather cynical of mankind throughout the series, but ultimately trusts X's opinion on them and fights to fulfill the peace he desires. |
| 258 | * HumansAreSpecial: The villains all hold this view, [[FantasticRacism but to a very cynical extreme]]. Played more optimistically straight in ''Zero 4'', where Zero has a short line about how humans are the ones who can change the world [[spoiler:and tells Craft that, as robots built for war, they can't change the world; instead, they should lend their strength for the humans, who can]]. |
| 259 | * HumansAreTheRealMonsters: |
| 260 | ** Revealed in one dialogue during ''Zero 3'', stating that humans of the dystopian Neo Arcadia only indulge themselves in food and comfort, letting the authorities do the thinking for them while regarding the conflicts Zero and Ciel have been fighting as mere daily news on the televisions. The whole GovernmentConspiracy and PropagandaMachine aimed at the Resistance don't help. In ''Zero 4'', Zero also further condemns humans fleeing from Weil's iron fist as cowardly beings who would do nothing about their refugee leader getting kidnapped just to avoid another war. It is not until [[spoiler:Craft blows up the city]] that the humans finally wake up with terrible pain in their minds. |
| 261 | ** Dr. Weil also implies in the third game that Humans innately feel that ruling all the eye can see and making others work for them is the ultimate joy for them, and believes that no Reploid could ever understand this joy, although Zero [[ShutUpHannibal counters this]] by stating that he doubts any decent human would understand Weil's viewpoint, either. |
| 262 | * HumongousMecha: |
| 263 | ** There is a Boss in the first game that qualifies, "Hittide Hottide." Needless to say that the ''entire mission'' is spent trying to destroy this monster. Also a borderline example of BattleshipRaid. |
| 264 | ** Hell the Giant and Carnage Force 0 from ''Zero 4'', who are [[{{Expy}} expies]] to the intro bosses from ''X2'' and ''X3''. |
| 265 | [[/folder]] |
| 266 | |
| 267 | [[folder:Tropes I to P]] |
| 268 | * IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels: Although it is only one uniquely-named mode, the ''[[EasierThanEasy Ultimate Mode]]'' present in all four games. It's almost always the hardest mode to unlock (all games present a GottaCatchThemAll requisite), with good reason: it's the best mode of play in the series. Simply put, it's a middle point for hardcore players who resent [[note]]The DS rerelease adds "Easy Scenario", which gives you all permanent cyber elf effects and the Ultimate Form where applicable[[/note]] ''Normal'' Mode, and casual ones and/or "newcomers" who resent Hard Mode, arguably enjoyable for both tiers. |
| 269 | * IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: With the exception of the first album, the ''Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero'' soundtracks are all given Greek philosophical subtitles: [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idea Idea]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telos_(philosophy) Telos]], [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physis Physis]], and [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mythology Mythos]]. |
| 270 | * ImageSong: |
| 271 | ** ''L'oiseau du bonheur'' (French for "Bird of happiness") in ''Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero: Idea'', sung by Creator/RieTanaka. It's sung entirely in French. |
| 272 | ** ''Clover'' in ''Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero: Idea'', sung by Toru Itoga. |
| 273 | ** ''Freesia'' in ''Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero: Physis'', sung by Rie Tanaka. |
| 274 | ** ''Everlasting'' in ''Remastered Tracks Rockman Zero: Mythos'', sung by Toru Itoga. |
| 275 | * InexplicableTreasureChests: The boxes containing Cyber Elves (1 and 2) and Secret Disks (3). |
| 276 | * InfinityPlusOneSword: |
| 277 | ** The Ultimate Mode (Form in ''2''). Handed to you at the start of them on Easy Scenario mode in the DS rerelease. |
| 278 | ** The secret Cyber Elf Jackson in ''1'', which is also handed to you at the start of the game on Easy Scenario Mode in the DS rerelease. |
| 279 | ** Ultima Foot Parts in ''3''. ''Also'' handed to you on Easy Scenario Mode in the DS re-release. |
| 280 | * InformalEulogy: Starting in the second game, should Zero lose to the boss, he/she will comment on Zero's death. |
| 281 | * InformedEquipment: A variant: equipping the Body Chips in the third and fourth games will change Zero's color palette into another color, but if you're playing Ultimate Mode, Zero will always be bright red-colored regardless of the body chip he's equipped. |
| 282 | * InjuredPlayerCharacterStage: The intro in ''2'' continues from the ending of the previous game where Zero wanders off and fights a lot of mooks hounding him for a whole year, and it didn't appear that he has himself repaired or even resting. As you're playing in the intro stage, you'll see that he always holds his shoulder (something you normally only see if his health is critical) and his weapon upgrades are lost from the previous game; the Triple Rod weapon from the previous game is also unusable because it's broken during the interim. |
| 283 | * InspectorJavert: In the previous series, the Maverick Hunters' judgement on Mavericks has become questionable, and it's discussed often about what is the right or the wrong thing to do. In this series, the Neo Arcadians pretty much has become this, with them antagonizing the Resistance just because they "resist" from their oppressive rule, even though they're mostly not hostile and only fought for self defense. The Four Guardians, at least, tone this down to differing extents, with Fefnir going the fastest and Phantom being the slowest. |
| 284 | * InnocentMeansNaive: The Baby Elves, Crea and Prea, are two incredibly powerful Cyber Elves with the intelligence of young children. BigBad Dr. Weil tricks them into opposing the heroes by claiming himself as their "grandfather" by saying he creating their mother, the Dark Elf. In actuality, Weil only corrupted the Mother Elf into the Dark Elf and is just taking advantage of their naivete. |
| 285 | * InvisibleToNormals: Cyber-elves can usually only be seen by reploids. Ciel is an exception to this, thanks to an innate ability to interact with them. |
| 286 | * {{Irony}}: |
| 287 | ** In ''4'', Zero pointed out that Area Zero -- which was a place utterly devastated by a ColonyDrop and a painful reminder of the past -- is now capable of sustaining life and that human refugees have settled there. |
| 288 | ** The same game also points out that what Noble Mandrago did -- trying to erode the soil around Area Zero with nanotech plant life - can be used to improve nature life instead. |
| 289 | ** In ''X2'', Zero easily destroys a copy of his, claiming that "there's only one Zero". In ''Zero 3'', [[spoiler:Zero is revealed to have inhabited a copy body all along, and Omega is in possession of Zero's real body. Interestingly, Zero appears to have little problem with it and proceeds to defeat Omega all the same.]] |
| 290 | ** Zero was made by Dr. Wily as TheAntichrist. 2 ironies come from this: 1) [[spoiler:Omega (Zero), especially after powered with Dark Elf (read: a Maverick antivirus that turns into a corrupting agent) is similar to Awakened Zero in ''X5'', i.e. what Wily intended Zero to become. Bonus points with Weil having similarities to Wily.]] 2) Zero ends up being the savior of the world, in the end. |
| 291 | * ItemAmplifier: The second and third games have a Cyber Elf that will double the amount of recovery from health drops and double the Energy Crystals gain amount. In the fourth game, Croire can simulate said elf's effect. |
| 292 | * ItemCrafting: In ''Zero 4'', Zero makes customization chips out of "recipes" of enemy parts. |
| 293 | * ItemDropMechanic: Sometimes, enemies can drop either health recovery item, [[EnergyEconomy E-crystals]] or, rarely, an extra life when they're killed. The first two games also have some Cyber Elves dropped from certain enemies, while the third game adds Data Disks, and the fourth game replaces the elves and the disks with enemy parts. |
| 294 | * ItsPersonalWithTheDragon: Dr. Weil's Dragon, Omega, turns out to be [[spoiler:using Zero's old body, with the one Zero's using being a copy]]. Weil pretty much taunts Zero whether he has the balls to defeat [[spoiler:"himself"]]. The backstory also shows that Zero and Omega were the hero and the spear-header of the [[GreatOffscreenWar Elf Wars]] respectively and that Zero (along with X) took Omega down before he reappears in the third game. |
| 295 | * JapaneseBeetleBrothers: The bosses Herculious Anchortus and Kuwagust Anchus in the first two games, respectively. |
| 296 | * JumpPhysics: Aside from the dash jump and wall-scaling seen from the previous series, this one introduces dash jump ''off the wall'' - useful for navigating dfficult platforms. The third and fourth game also gives Zero a DoubleJump ability, though you have to obtain the right equipment for them. |
| 297 | * KaizoTrap: During the first game's boss re-fights [[spoiler:Phantom]] will try to [[TakingYouWithMe self-destruct in order to kill you]] after his hit points reach zero. Failing to dodge it will make you take heavy damage, if not outright killing you. |
| 298 | * KillSat: The true means of Operation Ragnarok. |
| 299 | * LampshadeHanging: Occasionally. An NPC in ''Zero 2'' remarks on [[FridgeLogic the difficulty of getting pictures of bosses for the stage select]], and a mod card NPC in ''Zero 3'' will note Zero's CelibateHero tendencies if you refuse her advances. Another mod card NPC speculates about why the [[BridgeBunnies operators]] have NoNameGiven ([[DefiedTrope after he tells you their names]]). |
| 300 | * LandSeaSky: Fighting Fefnir, Fairy Leviathan, and Sage Harpuia respectively. |
| 301 | * LastNoteNightmare: The [[http://youtu.be/ypQSD9adrnE Mythos]]-version of ''1''s ''[[http://youtu.be/rRRhSqZjE9Q Resistance]]''-theme ends off on one of these, for some reason. |
| 302 | * LateArrivalSpoiler: Later games don't hide the fact that the X that ruled Neo Arcadia in the recent years was a copy, and that the real X is still around as a Cyber-elf, both of which are spoilers for the first game. |
| 303 | * LaterInstallmentWeirdness: ''4'' introduces item crafting, the Z-Knuckle, [[GeoEffects weather-based difficulty]], and overhauls the fusion-centric Cyber Elf system to only have one strong Satellite Elf in its place. |
| 304 | * LeapOfFaith: Some secrets are found this way. The first game is especially fond of this, with Cyber Elves often hidden in a ledge far below the platform you're standing on; thankfully you can always play it safe with your wall slide. |
| 305 | * LethalJokeItem: Ever make "Junk" out of ItemCrafting in ''Zero 4''? They're actually ingredients for the Junk Armor, a set of armor that makes him even more of a GlassCannon and doubles all damage he deals and receives. There are also S-crystals, which are never used as Custom Chips either, but make two of them and bring them to your friend Hirondelle for two free Sub-tanks (and a third one is required to help make one of the Junk Armor pieces). |
| 306 | * LethalLavaLand: Phoenix Magnion and Fefnir's stage in ''Zero 2''; Blazin' Flizard's stage in ''3''. |
| 307 | * LevelsTakeFlight: At one of the turning points of ''Zero 2'' (right after the failed attack on Neo Arcadia and during Elpizo's subsequent FaceHeelTurn), Zero has to cross an entire air fleet of Neo Arcadian vessels in order to hijack and stop a missile that Neo Arcadia launched at the Resistance Base. |
| 308 | * LightDarknessJuxtaposition: X becomes associated with light — he ends up becoming an {{Energy Being|s}} and has a nigh-angelic appearance. One of his Four Guardians, Phantom, has shadow powers; he's also the most loyal to X, the "shadow to his light". |
| 309 | * LiveItem: Cyber-elves are basically living beings that you can use in gameplay to support you; in the first two games they also have to be collected in the stages, whether from opening white boxes or defeating certain enemies. They also exhaust their energy and die after they're used, unless they're Satellite Elves or (in the fourth game) Croire. |
| 310 | * LivingBattery: Cyber-elves, and in particular, the Nurse types, function this way. |
| 311 | * ALizardNamedLiz: In a variant, characters are named after corruptions of animaloid mythological creatures. E.g Mino Magnus (a minotaur), Cubit Foxtar (a [[AsianFoxSpirit Kitsune]], name containing both "Kyuubi" and "Fox"), and Hyleg Ourobockle ({{Ouroboros}}). |
| 312 | * LockedOutOfTheFight: In the third game, the 4 Guardians only show up to aid Zero after he defeats all three of [[FinalBoss Omega]]'s forms. |
| 313 | * MeaningfulName: Some of the Cyber-Elves' names have either prefixes or suffixes hinting at their purpose. For example, Nurse types that give away an EmergencyEnergyTank use "-tan(k)", or ones that slow down time have "cloc(k)-". Some Animal and Hacker types don't even bother with subtlety in their names. |
| 314 | * MercyInvincibility: Typical for this kind of game. Both Zero and the bosses have it, while minibosses may or may not have it. |
| 315 | ** The fourth game as an equippable chip, Extend, that can extend the mercy invincibility time. |
| 316 | ** Zero's attacks (whether normal ones, EX-skills or those granted by elf/chip modifications) have "priority values" where they can bypass MercyInvincibility of bosses after a different number of previous attacks. For example, in his standard 3 saber combo, the second and third slash can bypass MI after the first slash hits. You can try using a charged saber to trigger the boss' invincibility, then do the 3 slash combo; the first one will not hit but the second and third ones will. Using this mechanic to its full potential using EX-Skills can be near game-breaking, as chaining multiple strong attacks with increasing priority values can be enough to melt a whole health bar off a boss in a single combo. |
| 317 | * {{Metroidvania}}: The hub of the first game. |
| 318 | * AMillionIsAStatistic: |
| 319 | ** In the third game, [[spoiler:the missile containing Omega successfully hit a whole city block, claiming thousands of lives]]. |
| 320 | ** In ''Zero 4'', [[spoiler:Craft fired the Kill Sat Ragnarok at Neo Arcadia, trying to kill the Dr. Weil. The attack, according to the manual, claimed 20,000,000 deaths of innocents. Yet the intended target ironically survives]]. |
| 321 | * MonsterCompendium: The collectible secret disks in ''Zero 3'' contain data of enemies, bosses and characters, which you can check at Cerveau after you acquire them in the stages (or by talking to people at the base). There's also the database in ''Zero 4'' which does a similar thing without the disks; you access them in the main menu. |
| 322 | * MonstrosityEqualsWeakness: Usually, the bigger the bosses, the easier they become. |
| 323 | * MookCarryover: Neo Arcadia's various Mechaniloid and Pantheon minions [[note]][[VideoGame/MegaManZero1 Pantheon Hunters, Pantheon Guardians, Pantheon Zombies, Barrier Counters, Cannon Hoppers, Carryarms, Carrybees, Condoroids, Floppers, Garms, Gli-Eyes, Gyro Cannons, Hoppiders, Kerberoses, Seal Cannons, Securipiders, Sharkseals, Shellcrawlers, Spikings, Top Gabyoalls]], [[VideoGame/MegaManZero2 Molegules, Poplans, Saranets, Telly Bombs, Yadokroids]], [[VideoGame/MegaManZero3 Crossbynes, Lamports, and Shotloids]]. [[/note]] initially have Copy X leading them in the first game, before Sage Harpuia and later Elpizo in the second game, before settling on Dr. Weil for the third and fourth games. |
| 324 | * MookMaker: A few of them, such as Carrybee of the third game (spawns Pantheon Hunters), Hottalook in the second game's Crystal Cave stage (spawns colorful firefly mooks) or the spider nest that spawns Hoppiders in the first game. |
| 325 | * MoralityKitchenSink: Compared to most games in the series, the morality of the main or recurring cast is ''very'' diverse. Only a few (Ciel, X and debatably, surprisingly and in a different way, Zero, if some of his dialogue is anything to go by) really qualify as being completely good, and only two (Weil and Omega) are completely evil. On the lighter end are the guardians (particularly Harpuia) and Niege. On the darker end are Copy X, Elpizo, and Craft. |
| 326 | * MothMenace: Mothjiros appear in Cubit Foxtar's level as enemies. They usually appear in darkened rooms, in which you can choose to turn on the light (by powering up the generator), causing them to move towards the light instead of swarming you. |
| 327 | * MultipleLifeBars: Bosses in these games have layered life bars. Zero can get them too, with a special Cyber-Elf. |
| 328 | * ANaziByAnyOtherName: Neo Arcadia, after an energy crisis, had started persecuting Reploids as being Maverick for no real reason, resulting in a mass amount of retirement (IE, execution) of said Reploids, allowing for anti-Reploid policies that are heavily implied to include genocide, and the person who directly created these policies is himself a Reploid (and by that, it means an actual Reploid, as in not even something of X or Zero's caliber). It's kind of hard not to see the parallels between this and the creation of UsefulNotes/NaziGermany, and more importantly the rise of UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler. And [[VillainWithGoodPublicity the human population sees him as a hero because he's doing this for humanity's betterment]]. |
| 329 | * NeverSayDie: The DS re-release of the saga received this treatment by cutting down most of the instances of "die," "death," and "kill" was edited in the each of the games' scripts to make it more kid-friendly to younger players. |
| 330 | * NewEden[=/=]LastFertileRegion: Area Zero, a place filled with natural vegetation after a century or two of Eurasia's still-working environmental control system doing its thing. Neo Arcadia citizens who flee from Weil sees this place as their new home, which causes him to launch the Operation Ragnarok to demolish the area; Zero (i.e you) has to stop him. |
| 331 | * NewGamePlus: Although what you carry on to the next playthrough is dependent on the game. |
| 332 | * NewNeoCity: Neo Arcadia used to be simply an organization made by X to shelter war refugees of the Elf Wars, named such because it was intended as a new {{Arcadia}}, i.e a new place for humanity to thrive. Especially after the war, where it slowly evolves into a giant city-state. |
| 333 | * NintendoHard: ''Especially'' the first two games. The critics even say that "it's not cheap to use cyber-elves to make the game(s) easier." |
| 334 | ** Specifically, in the first game, the bosses were very hard (to the point of [[SkippableBoss putting in a skip system]]), you couldn't backtrack if you did use said skip system, you had to grind with your weapons to level them up, the cyber elves were very unforgiving in mistakes and gave huge penalties, took an absurd amount of energy crystals to fully level up, and weren't nearly as useful as the later ones. In ''Zero 2'', the elves are more useful, didn't need so many crystals, there were two free e-tanks, you could get permanent power ups, and you could even learn special attacks from bosses; however, you still had to level up your weapons, and said special attacks were only available for A or S rankings. In ''Zero 3'', you no longer had to level up weapons, it was easier to get upgrades, there were more opportunities to use elves, and there were useful armor chips. And ''Zero 4'' was just so easy compared to the rest, it would take all day to compare it to the others. |
| 335 | ** Which is probably why the CompilationRerelease for the Platform/NintendoDS comes with an "Easy Scenario", an option to play through all four games in one go with all the weapons, items, and cyber-elves collected and maxxed out. |
| 336 | * NoCutsceneInventoryInertia: In the second game, Zero can acquire equipments that [[PaletteSwap change his color]]. In the sprite cutscenes, Zero may retain his color, but in the still picture cutscenes, he'll always be his default red. |
| 337 | * NoFairCheating: You lose score points if you use cyber elves. |
| 338 | * NonIndicativeName: The miniboss Tyrine has Glass Cannons protecting it...and unlike the trope, they're anything but fragile. |
| 339 | * NonIndicativeDifficulty: While Zero 4 frames going to the stage of Mino Magnus while there's a lightning storm as the harder option, the gimmick this introduces (magnetic waves in the first and third areas which can drastically increase or decrease your jump height) has a side effect. If you have the Double Jump chip, then it's possible to basically skip the last third of the stage completely by abusing the increased jump height and going clear over everything. If you were reasonably thorough with enemies up to this point, this won't even negatively impact your rank in the slightest. |
| 340 | * NoOSHACompliance: In ''Zero 1'', you have to restore power to your base so that the {{Red Shirt}}s can take the elevator to the shuttle bay so they can evacuate the base. Because, apparently, there are no stairs, ramps, or ladders. |
| 341 | * NotSoDifferentRemark: Dr. Weil tried to invoke this on Zero in the final game, as he tries to convince Zero that killing him would be stooping to his level of villainy. In an unorthodox move, Zero kills him anyway, making a note at how he never considered himself a hero to begin with. |
| 342 | * OmniscientDatabase: As said by [[spoiler:the ghost]] Phantom, the Cyberspace holds all the data of the past. How this comes to be is never so much explained, though. |
| 343 | * OneWheeledWonder: Kerberos, one of the mooks. |
| 344 | * OneWingedAngel: Pretty much every single final boss, three out of the four members of the [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Guardians]] (Phantom has one in concept art, but is dead by the time the others use theirs in-story), ''all'' of the [[QuirkyMinibossSquad Eight Gentle Judges]] (though some of their transformations are only slightly bigger than their human forms), and, finally, a [[{{Mook}} Pantheon]]. Boy, did Capcom go overboard with this one. The Guardians' transformations are referred to as [[AllThereInTheManual Armed Phenomena]]; {{fanon}} has come up with similar terms for the other transformations. Though in several cases (the Pantheon, Elpizo, Omega [[spoiler:before crossing the BishounenLine]]) this is explicitly a power-up granted by the [[ArtifactOfDoom Dark Elf]], not something they can innately do. |
| 345 | * OpenEndedBossBattle: if the player loses a life out on a mission, they may be given the option to "give up", where the mission is a failure but the story continues without the mission's rewards. |
| 346 | * OpeningScroll: Every game except the first [[ShoutOut a'la]] ''Franchise/StarWars'', yet again. |
| 347 | * OperationBlank: |
| 348 | ** In ''Zero 2'', there's Elpizo's "Operation Righteous Strike", which is essentially an invasion of Neo Arcadia. [[spoiler:It fails horribly, with many {{Red Shirt}}s dead, and Zero having to rescue Elpizo before he's killed by [[HeroAntagonist the Guardians]]]]. |
| 349 | ** In the [[AllThereInTheManual drama tracks]], there's "Project Elpizo", an operation to create Omega, a Reploid that's a perfect ruler using the Mother Elf's program rewriting ability. TK-31 (Elpizo's former codename) accidentally found the data about this project, and because it's supposed to be a secret for Neo Arcadia, he's declared as Maverick by Harpuia. Eventually, he managed to run away from the country and changed his name into...you know...as well as starting his quest for power by stealing the Baby Elves. |
| 350 | ** There's also Operation Ragnarok in ''Zero 4'', which aims for the destruction of [[LastFertileRegion Area Zero]] using [[KillSat Ragnarok]]. |
| 351 | * OutsideTheBoxTactic: Because the ''Legacy Collection'' comes on more advanced consoles than the DS and the Gameboy, they include the ability to capture images of things in-game. People with a poor memory thus don't have to worry about killing their score on Volteel Biblio's stage in ''Zero 3''; you can just take a capture of each location and go there when you get to all the doors. |
| 352 | * PainfulPointyPufferfish: ''Zero 4'' has a robotic pufferfish enemy that appears in water areas. They inflate and deflate when Zero is close to shoot out spikes in multiple directions. |
| 353 | * PaintingTheMedium: In the intro stage of ''Zero 2'', the Start menu is a burned-out shell of the design from the first game, representing the damage Zero has taken after a year constantly fighting for his life. Once he's taken to the new Resistance base and repaired, the design changes completely. |
| 354 | * PeninsulaOfPowerLeveling: In the first and second games, you have to grind with your weapons to level them up and unlock new abilities. There are easy ways to do them in each game: |
| 355 | ** In the first game, this appears as early as after the second level (i.e beating Aztec Falcon). There are numerous Totem Cannons in this area - they're the "growing tower" enemies that can regenerate after being destroyed. Thus you can keep attacking it with your weapons and they'll level up quickly. |
| 356 | ** In the second game, the train stage has a lot of respawning rolling spiked wheels for you to kill over and over. A bit more dangerous than the first game, but doable. Easier than that is the Power Room in general because of Top Gabyoall, the spinning tops which can be bashed incessantly with the Z-Saber and Chain Rod, and the magma bucket room with the Toitanks (shooting enemies on rails across from the ladder in the same room) for the Buster; it can just be used to shoot the buckets as they come (it goes over Top Gabyoalls). |
| 357 | ** For both games, Shield Boomerang has a trick for this: it can be duped into orbiting you as long as you stay still by doing a short jump before you throw it, allowing it to keep hitting enemies with no input from yourself until it maxes its level. |
| 358 | * PermanentlyMissableContent: |
| 359 | ** In the original ''Zero'': |
| 360 | *** Entire missions are lost forever if you get a game over and choose to continue instead of restart. And the game barely has any 1-Ups. |
| 361 | *** The abandoned laboratory that serves as the introduction stage, which has a few Cyber-Elves and nice opportunities to grind crystals. An early mission that sends you back there ends with the lab self-destructing. You'll be forced to wait for the NewGamePlus afterwards. |
| 362 | *** There are mission-specific Cyber-Elves that ''only'' appear if you defeat certain enemies ''during'' a mission. Fortunately, NewGamePlus remedies that problem, and by the second game, the developers made getting the Elves a built-in feature of any area, regardless of missing them on the first go-around. |
| 363 | *** A secret area containing a Cyber-Elf can be found so long as Zero doesn't rush the battle with Hittite Hottide, letting the mech cause destruction up to a certain point. Does the game tell you this? [[GuideDangIt 'Course not]]. If you do rush the battle, you can't access that point. [[labelnote:But wait...]]Actually, pulling shenanigans with the Triple Rod will allow you to secure this Cyber-Elf even before fighting Hittite Hottide, let alone if you don't let him break into the building. Go into the subway area on the overworld (which consists of the first half of the "Destroy the Train" mission) and do a downward stab on the bat-like enemy (Gli-Eye) next to the second hole in the ceiling. This will give you enough of a bounce that you can hop up and wall kick into the little room where the Cyber-elf, Hapitan, waits, completely irrespective of the status of the building above. Of course if you blew the mission to get the Triple Rod and didn't let Hittite Hottide cleave into the building, then you're still out of luck.[[/labelnote]] |
| 364 | *** There's a door to Ciel's room that will only open if your rank is A or S. Inside is a Cyber-Elf. Screwed up the ranking to the point of no return- well, then- that Elf's lost for good, but thankfully it's not a useful one to begin with. |
| 365 | ** In ''Zero 2'', you collect Forms by performing certain tasks during missions. However, the game only gives you one Form per mission, and there are a limited number of missions, so it's possible to miss some Forms. Fortunately, there are more missions than Forms, and the NewGamePlus lets you try again to collect anything you missed. |
| 366 | ** In ''Zero 2'' and ''3'', collecting EX Skills requires maintaining an "A" rank or higher on almost every mission. Each EX Skill is specific to a boss, so you get precisely one chance to get each one per playthrough. And using Cyber-Elves gets points deducted from your score on every mission afterwards, ''even into a NewGamePlus'', so [[UnstableEquilibrium using too many Cyber-Elves makes A-ranking impossible]] and thus renders all unobtained EX Skills truly lost. True, there are Cyber-Elves that got you a temporary A-rank, but there aren't enough of those to get you every EX Skill. |
| 367 | ** ''Zero 3'' has a a special feature where you can activate Ciel's supercomputer and link up to another Gameboy Advance with a ''[[MegaManBattleNetwork Red Sun or Blue Moon]]'' cartridge and initiate a very special, one-time-only trade to get the exclusive Z-Saber chip. Unfortunately, it ''won't'' work for multiple games- just ''[[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment one]]''. And guess what? The chip's ''not'' available on Higsby's ordering service! Buy another game copy, mooch off a friend's game, or dust off the Gameshark! |
| 368 | ** In ''Zero 4'', you can [[ItemCrafting make chips]] out of parts obtained from defeated enemies. A couple chips (specifically "Rolling" and "[=JunkFoot=]") require one part each from Moloid, an enemy that only appears during one mission that can't be repeated. If you didn't grab at least two (or three if you want one just to have, which is needed to unlock Ultimate Mode), you'll just have to wait until the NewGamePlus. |
| 369 | * PerspectiveFlip: Simply put, the roles of hero and villain is flipped between the "Mavericks" (LaResistance) and the "Hunters" (Neo Arcadia), a complete reversal of the [[VideoGame/MegaManX previous series]]. |
| 370 | * ThePhoenix: Phoenix Magnion from ''Zero 2''. |
| 371 | * PlatformingPocketPal: The Cyber-elves that Zero use, particularly the Satellite ones (in the third game) or Croire (in the fourth). They freely fly around Zero when he equips them. |
| 372 | * PopQuiz: Sometimes when you talk to the {{Non Player Character}}s (a few of them may appear after certain {{Event Flag}}s), they will take you into a quiz. There'll be a few prizes if you answer them right. |
| 373 | * PostDefeatExplosionChain: When bosses are defeated, they give off numerous small explosions before a big one at the end. The only bosses that do not explode in this manner are the [[EnergyBeings Baby Elves]]. |
| 374 | * PowerTrio: Ciel (Superego), Zero (Ego), and Elpizo (Id) in ''Zero 2''. |
| 375 | * PreExplosionGlow: All of the animal bosses glow before exploding after Zero defeats them. Not all the humanoid bosses die upon defeat, but this is present in the ones that do: [[spoiler:Phantom, Copy X (in the third game), Omega, Craft and Weil]]. |
| 376 | * PreOrderBonus: Those that pre-ordered the ''Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection'' also receive a bonus "Reploid Remixes" DLC, a set of new arranged music from the ''Mega Man Zero'' and ''ZX'' series that can be played during gameplay or listened to from the collection's music player. |
| 377 | * PreviouslyOn: Each game after ''Zero 2'' features a prologue of sorts that narrates what happened in previous games (see OpeningScroll). The narrator in ''Zero 4'' is actually a character introduced later in the same game: Neige. |
| 378 | * PyrrhicVictory: It's easy to say that ''all'' installments' endings (even the ''GrandFinale'') leave some sort of crushing blow to the heroes, even as they win the battle. |
| 379 | [[/folder]] |
| 380 | |
| 381 | [[folder:Tropes Q to Z]] |
| 382 | * QuirkyMinibossSquad: |
| 383 | ** The Four Guardians. |
| 384 | ** Weil's Numbers, the main bosses of ''Zero 3''. |
| 385 | * RandomDropBooster: Starting with the second game, there'll be a Cyber Elf (emulated by Croire in the fourth game) that makes all enemies drop something when destroyed. |
| 386 | * RankInflation: You can get up to an S grade on each level. [[NintendoHard In theory, anyways]]. And don't forget that achieving a perfect ''S-100'' in ''all'' levels is necessary for some unlockables. |
| 387 | * ReactorBoss: |
| 388 | ** The first game has Pantheon Core, the engine core for the train Zero is raiding. It attacks by [[FireBreathingWeapon a flamethrower]] and, if your rank is high enough, manipulating the floor to rise up and smash you against the spiked ceiling. |
| 389 | ** Heat Genblem in the fourth game is a living heat generator for the particle cannon he's operating, as well as the boss. |
| 390 | ** The final fight with Dr. Weil has him combining himself with the Ragnarok's core, turning the boss fight into this. |
| 391 | * ReclaimedByNature: In ''VideoGame/MegaManX5'', the space colony Eurasia crashes into Earth, leading to lots of casualties. Fast forward to ''4'', where it is revealed that, due to Eurasia's environmental conditioning system still being active, the ground zero has turned into a very lush green place, dubbed as Area Zero. The plot for said game revolves around protecting this area from your enemies. |
| 392 | * RecurringBoss: The Four Guardians for the first three games. |
| 393 | * RecurringRiff: |
| 394 | ** The first game's boss theme, "Crash", is remixed for mini-bosses in subsequent installments. |
| 395 | ** The main riff of "Esperanto", the second intro stage theme, is repeated multiple times in ''Zero 4'', and could be considered the theme of Area Zero as a whole. |
| 396 | * RedShirt: Subverted; after the fiasco that was Operation Righteous Strike, Zero makes a vow that no more of his teammates will ever be killed senselessly while he's around. |
| 397 | * RepeatingSoTheAudienceCanHear: If a conversation doesn't feature this it is safe enough to assume that Zero does not speak. |
| 398 | * LaResistance: The Resistance group, which partially consists of civilian Reploids. The group was founded and lead by Ciel. |
| 399 | * TheRevolutionWillNotBeVilified: Zero is found by the Resistance to Neo Arcadia, an empire that Zero's friend X (hero of the previous series) created with the best of intentions, only for it to go bad after he left. The Resistance is full of spunky, heroic types with French names, and they're always in the right — with one major subversion. Elpizo, the leader in ''Zero 2'', is zealous and aggressive; when his new methods fail, he goes nuts and becomes the game's BigBad. |
| 400 | * RewritingReality: [[AllThereInTheManual The Remastered Tracks]] says [[EnergyBeings Cyber Elves']] powers work like this, by rewriting the "programming code" of reality via {{Cyberspace}}. Too bad they [[HeroicSacrifice die]] after that...new models and really powerful ones such as X and the Mother Elf are exempt from this, though. |
| 401 | * RidiculouslyHumanRobots: |
| 402 | ** All Reploids. Up to the fact that Reploids are now capable of aging and even falling in love, with ''humans''. [[{{Squick}} Best not]] [[RuleThirtyFour to think]] [[BrainBleach about it]] [[PowerPerversionPotential too much]]. Here's a notable exchange: |
| 403 | --->'''Neige:''' I was amazed at how Craft fought to protect the humans. Hehe, it's kinda strange, a human falling for a Reploid.\ |
| 404 | '''Craft:''' Then I fell in love too. |
| 405 | ** Same goes for one Reploid, Andrew who actually married a human. He even went so far as to modify his age-appearance to match hers and stayed that way even after she died as a way to remember her. |
| 406 | * RidingTheBomb: The latter half of a mission, including the level's BossBattle, in ''Zero 3'' takes place ''inside a missile'' as it was launched towards an unsuspecting target. |
| 407 | * RisingWaterRisingTension: Volteel Biblio's level is set in a sunken library where the water goes up and down at intervals. The danger isn't the water itself (Zero is fine underwater) but when the water touches the exposed wiring that hangs off the ceiling, shocking the water; Zero can get harmed if he doesn't go out of the water quickly. |
| 408 | * RoboFamily: While the four never say it outright, some of the fandom call the Four Guardians "siblings", due to their similar origins and purpose. X can also be considered their "father" (and, by extension, Copy-X is their "stepfather." The four are loyal to both.) |
| 409 | * RobotHair: Aside from the usual Zero, there are Elpizo (blond), Omega (a pinkish/fuchsia ponytail sprouting out from the top of his helmet), and Kraft (dark spiky hair which appears to also form GoNagaiSideburns), among others. Seeing as [[spoiler:Omega's body is a shell[=/=]PowerLimiter for Zero's original body, this means that Omega also shares Zero's infamous long hair]]. |
| 410 | * RubberbandAI: In all games, the difficulty of the stages and bosses will depend on your current rank. |
| 411 | * RuleOfSymbolism: The FinalBoss of each game has a OneWingedAngel form that rather accurately reflects on their goals and motivations. They also all become increasingly sinister-looking to reflect how each of them gets much darker in motive and personality than the last. |
| 412 | ** Copy-X has an angelic six-winged form that heavily resembles a Seraphim, reflecting Copy-X's {{pride}} and belief in being a KnightTemplar utterly convinced of the righteousness of his cause. |
| 413 | ** Elpizo has a darker angelic yet demonic final form highly remiscent of a FallenAngel, reflecting his SanitySlippage from a WellIntentionedExtremist to DrunkOnTheDarkSide. |
| 414 | ** Omega has both his gargatuan robot form [[spoiler:and his true form as Zero's original body designed to bring out his full potential with a darker color scheme invoking a more sinister appearance combined with Zero's existing "devil-like" features]], reflecting his role as a [[BeastOfTheApocalypse destroyer]] almost worthy of being called a "god" as intended by his creator[[spoiler:s (both the one responsible for Omega's mind and the one responsible for Zero's body)]]. |
| 415 | ** Dr. Weil has a [[MechanicalAbomination twisted abomination of man and machine]], reflecting Weil's own twisted and self-serving lack of humanity [[CardCarryingVillain with no attempt at high-minded justification for all his villainy]], and fitting with his proclamation [[DevilComplex of being the devil]]. |
| 416 | * SceneryPorn: |
| 417 | ** Area Zero in ''Zero 4''. |
| 418 | ** Using the mod cards for ''Zero 3'' can turn your base into a SceneryPorn as well. |
| 419 | * ScienceFantasy: Very prominent in this part of the franchise. Magic Energy Crystals that power all technology, fairy-like Cyber Elves that assist the hero, nearly all of the standard bosses being {{Cybernetic Mythical Beast}}s, the presence of angel-like beings such as X, and the final arc of the story being explicitly themed around Norse mythology, it's all there. |
| 420 | * ScreenCrunch: Enemies and obstacles that are impossible to see ahead of time are a dime-a-dozen in these games. Boss fights, in particular, are made much more difficult than they otherwise would be, since most of them take place in arenas larger than the screen, so you cannot see their attacks coming and thus cannot prepare for them. |
| 421 | * ScoreScreen: Used after you finish the missions. |
| 422 | * SegmentedSerpent: A variant in the second game: Hyleg Ourobockle's boss room has this as the battlefield itself, with BottomlessPits below it. Said serpent can detach and its segments can form various shapes. |
| 423 | * SequenceBreaking: In ''Zero 1'', Leviathan will talk about your fights with Harpuia and Fefnir, whether or not * you've even met them. |
| 424 | * SequelSeries: To ''VideoGame/MegaManX'', which is itself a SequelSeries to ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic'', with each series being separated by about a century or two in the timeline. |
| 425 | * SeriesContinuityError: In ''Zero 1'', Zero must go to the Underground Laboratory where he needs to gain information, defeat the boss of the area, and escape before the level crumbles him in. In ''Zero 3'', somehow, it's completely fine before Omega Zero explodes which promptly destroys the area. |
| 426 | * SharedLifeMeter: The DualBoss fights with Kuwagust and Herculious in 2 and Crea and Prea in 3 utilize this, with the former performing one final suicide attack [[KaizoTrap once the life meter is emptied]]. |
| 427 | * ShiftingSandLand: The desert level in the first game and the second game. |
| 428 | * ShoutOut |
| 429 | ** The reploid known as Andrew had his age-appearance altered to match a human he married just to be with her, apparently borrowed from "Andrew Martin" in the movie ''Film/BicentennialMan''. |
| 430 | ** There are ''several'' to ''Franchise/StarWars'': |
| 431 | *** Ciel's line after the first Boss battle in the first game: |
| 432 | ---->'''Ciel:''' [[Film/ReturnOfTheJedi Just relax for a moment. You have hibernation sickness]]. |
| 433 | *** Which makes for nice BookEnds with her line before the last level in the last game: |
| 434 | ---->'''Ciel:''' With both Weil and Craft gone, who could still be running [[KillSat Ragnarok]]? Zero, [[OncePerEpisode I have a bad feeling about this.]] |
| 435 | *** A roundabout one with one of Phoenix Magnion's attacks in the second game: he pulls from Zero's memory four [[ContinuityNod past enemies]] from the [[VideoGame/MegaManX X series]] and holographs them. One of the four is Vile, the X series' resident Boba Fett {{expy}}. |
| 436 | *** And another ''Star Wars'' reference: Elpizo's Model Number is TK-31, similar to the designations for several stormtroopers. |
| 437 | *** In the drama tracks, the Z-Saber ignites using the same sound as a lightsaber, as it did in the Japanese versions of the ''Mega Man X'' games. |
| 438 | *** Another roundabout one with the Variant Missile enemy in the fourth game has a slight resemblance to Vile from ''VideoGame/MegaManX''. |
| 439 | ** The Guardians' OneWingedAngel forms are called Armed Phenomena, a term lifted from ''Manga/{{Baoh}}''. |
| 440 | ** Omega [[spoiler:Zero's]] finisher is a seven hit combo that he initiates by dashing low to the ground at Zero, ressembling Akuma's [[Franchise/StreetFighter Shun Goku Satsu]]. It is actually called ''Ranbu'', though, meaning "berserk dance." |
| 441 | ** One of the CD dramas is titled "[=Record1=]_[[Literature/AClockworkOrange Clockwork Apple]]." |
| 442 | ** Omega's second form has different-coloured arms and white middle body. You know, there's [[Anime/DigimonAdventure some other guy named Omega]] who has the same appearance...[[note]]I mean, Omegamon. You probably won't get the catch easily, because Omegamon's name overseas is Omnimon.[[/note]] |
| 443 | ** Heat Genblem, a turtle-based Reploid from ''Zero 4'', uses a spinning attack that resembles Film/{{Gamera}}'s method of flight. |
| 444 | ** When Zero finally reaches the Ragnarok Core, Dr. Weil says "[[Film/Armageddon1998 Welcome to your front row seat to the end of the world]]." |
| 445 | ** Dr. Weil's trying to crash Ragnarok into Area Zero heavily resembles ''VideoGame/SonicAdventure2's'' last story where the Space Colony Ark, after being given the seven chaos emeralds, ends up falling towards Earth's atmosphere due to a program that Gerald Robotnik made during his grief-enduced insanity and prior to his execution. Furthermore, one of the heroes ends up sacrificing himself in an attempt to stop the colony from falling into the Earth, complete with defeating the enemy fused to the falling colony. Coincidentally, the instigators of both events [[Creator/ChikaoOhtsuka share the same voice actor in Japan]]. |
| 446 | ** Another ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' reference: the boss Maha Ganeshariff, who has what's obviously the Hundred Hand Slap of E. Honda. |
| 447 | ** At one point, Hirondelle offers to read you some poetry that he supposedly wrote (but later admits to copying from "an ancient text"): |
| 448 | --->'''Hirondelle:''' [[VideoGame/MegaManX1 Fighting ends. Tomorrow offers the promise of peace. But to those who fall and vanish with the night sky, dawn never comes...]] |
| 449 | ** The Eight Judges' humanoid forms bear a strong resemblance to the main characters from ''Manga/Cyborg009'', with Copy X Mk.II presumablytaking the place of 009 himself. |
| 450 | * SlipperyAsAnEel: Volteel Biblio from ''3'' is a very sneaky character, his level being particularly trap-infested and snaking through secret passages all over his BossRoom to get the drop on you. |
| 451 | * SlippySlideyIceWorld: Expect a stage with an ice boss to be a variant of this. |
| 452 | * SlowDoors: In the first game, one mission requires you to sneak into a factory. If you're detected, the Slow Door starts closing. If you fail to through it before it closes, Game Over. |
| 453 | * SolemnEndingTheme: ''Zero 4'''s Freesia. |
| 454 | * SpellMyNameWithAnS |
| 455 | ** A carry-over from the ''X'' series: the Japanese term is Repliroid; the English term is Reploid. |
| 456 | ** ''Zero 3'' reveals that the animal-like Reploid bosses are known as Mythos Reploids, referring to the fact that they're all based on various mythological figures. The English translation slipped up and translated it "Mutos" (the katakana is ''myutosu'', for those curious. Japanese transliteration of Greek can be sort of weird). |
| 457 | ** A lot of names are victim of this, like Vile/Weil or Kraft/Craft. |
| 458 | * SpiritualAntithesis: To ''VideoGame/MegaManClassic''. The classic is a quirky series about a boy android who shoots up cartoony, googly-eyed robots and copies their powers with obvious Cartoon Physics. His creator, Dr. Light, and his nemesis, Dr. Wily, are also pretty comical in their own ways. Each game ends with the eponymous character saving the day once again. ''MMZ'' is much more anime-like, is about a teenage-looking android fighting a war alongside a group of freedom fighters, and has very little to speak of in the way of humor. Victories always come at a cost. The DarkerAndEdgier progression of the timeline has been so much that this series becomes a 180 degrees opposite of what started this whole timeline. The ''X'' series was somewhere in between. |
| 459 | * SpreadShot: Some bosses and mooks have this. Zero may get this from a few bosses such as Volteel Biblio's V-Shot, while in the fourth game Zero can acquire this from some mooks with the Z-Knuckle. |
| 460 | * StealthPun: |
| 461 | ** When you defeat an enemy with a bladed weapon, they split in half before exploding. In other words, they got [[spoiler:Divided By Zero! Wakka wakka!]] |
| 462 | ** Also, the Ragnarok's core is named after Laevatein, a legendary sword ([[AllThereInTheManual in the manual, anyway]]). Said core is sword-shaped. |
| 463 | * StealthyMook: In the Hibernation Chamber stage of ''Mega Man Zero 4'', if you set the weather into snowing, some of the Variant Claw mooks may try to hide beneath the snow pile and ambush you when you get close. |
| 464 | * TheStinger: At the end of ''Zero 2'', [[spoiler:Dr. Weil commands his creation Omega to act]]. |
| 465 | * StopHittingYourself: The Z-Knuckle in the fourth game can be used for this; the most basic being taking a foe's weapon and then using it to hurt other enemies. You can also try picking up Mandrago's seeds and throw them at her (though it does little damage to her) and picking one of Dr. Weil's falling swords to be used against him (it's fairly strong but ItOnlyWorksOnce). |
| 466 | * SturdyAndSteadyTurtles: One of the bosses, Heat Genblem, is a robotic tortoise. He's fond of a particular tactic during combat where he walks slowly forward, then, when an attack comes, he immediately turns his back to guard himself. If he's attacked further in that state, he'll do a CounterAttack with an ElementalPunch. In general, both his shell and his battle pattern makes it hard to find an opening to hit him. |
| 467 | * TalkingIsAFreeAction: Most bosses always take the opportunity to chat up the hero just before exploding. Even if they've just been visibly bisected down the middle. |
| 468 | * TechnicolorDeath: Defeated bosses are usually engulfed in a spherical blast that emits beams of light after being defeated. The explosion may be {{justified|Trope}} due to them being robots; since Zero's trademark weapon is a sword, it may have compromised their power systems. The radiating beams of light part? Not so much. Also, the attack that depletes their health meter causes much more damage than any other attack (blowing a chunk out of them if it's a charged beam shot, DiagonalCut if it's with the sword), but that's [[CriticalExistenceFailure another trope]]. |
| 469 | * TeleportationRescue: A few times, when Zero has to rescue someone, he'll go to a stage, run towards them and then gives them a teleport beacon so the MissionControl can teleport them to base. |
| 470 | * TemporaryPlatform: Both the crumbling variant and the timed variant exist. In particular, there's a set of them in the first game's first "final stages" where the platform ''shoots projectiles'' downward as they appear. |
| 471 | * ThemeMusicPowerUp: |
| 472 | ** Whenever that particular game's Zero theme song starts sounding, rest assured -- you're about to do something very cool. |
| 473 | ** Also, the music changes into the foreboding final stage theme after the first form of the final boss is defeated and [[spoiler:the Ragnarok satellite is plummeting toward the planet with Weil making a last bid by [[BodyHorror hooking up to the remains of its control system]] and directing it towards Area Zero]]. Then Zero has his speech and the final boss music starts up. |
| 474 | * ThemeNaming: |
| 475 | ** Bosses are named after various mythological creatures; Resistance members are named mostly after French names of birds. In the latter's case, the handle of the one who named them is French for "sky." |
| 476 | ** Cyber-elves are named after the use they have to Zero, and are grouped in such a way as well. (ex.: elves ending in "-tan" provide the Sub '''Tan'''ks) |
| 477 | * ThrowTheMookAtThem: |
| 478 | ** In the fourth game, you can pick some specific enemies with the Z-Knuckle and then throw them at other mooks. |
| 479 | ** You can throw Noble Mandrago's seeds back at her, though it only does little damage. |
| 480 | ** Interestingly, there's the miniboss [[GiantEnemyCrab Clabanger NS]], which spawns 2 kinds of mini-crabs. You may try to pick one red or blue mini crab and then throw them at the boss, which does little damage...or throw them at a differently-colored mini crab which releases an explosion that can hit the boss, dealing moderate damage. |
| 481 | * TimedMission: Some missions have a time limit, such as Tech Kraken's stage in the fourth game where you have to find a way to enter the submarine under 2 minutes. In a variant, one of the things that determine your mission points is your completion time. |
| 482 | * TimeLimitBoss: The very first fight against a Mutos Reploid, Aztec Falcon, takes place on top of a crusher that will kill Reploid hostages below it in a set amount of time. The [[spoiler:the FinalBoss of ''Zero 4'', Dr. Weil's second form, is another example, and must be killed before the Ragnarok satellite crashes to Earth]]. |
| 483 | * TimeSkip: This game skips a century after the ''X'' series. Also there's a year-long gap between the first game and the second. |
| 484 | %%* TitleScream: In the first game. |
| 485 | * TooAwesomeToUse: The Cyber-elves that you obtain will really help you in stages, but they have exactly one use before they die - and you get penalized if you use them, too! The permanent effect ones will be especially taxing on your points. Averted for the Satellite Elves in the third game because they don't die, but then again, with so many Elves and abilities how could you limit yourself to just two? |
| 486 | * TouchTheIntangible: Scrap Elves are EnergyBeings that possess and reanimate broken robots. While you can destroy the robots, you can't really destroy the Elves. However, if you picked up the "lamp" with your [[PowerPalms Zero Knuckle]], you can use it to push the Elves away. If the weather is set to sunny, you can try pushing the Elves towards the sunlight peeking out through the hole in the ceiling, which will kill them. |
| 487 | * TraintopBattle: Pantheon Core's and Panter Flauclaws' stages. In a variant, the intro stage of ''Zero 4'' has you do battles on fast-moving trucks. |
| 488 | * TransformationSequence: |
| 489 | ** Done for each of the final bosses' {{One Winged Angel}}s. Elpizo in particular gets an elaborate one that shows his body transforming into white and gold armor, complete with picture cuts of details, while Weil's second form transformation is the most graphic and [[PainfulTransformation painful]] of them. |
| 490 | ** Also done when the 4 Guardians are in effect of the Baby Elves' modification in the second game, as well as the same thing happening to a random Pantheon Aqua in the third. The Eight Gentle Judges also have their own sequences of accessing their battle forms. Copy X Mk II also has one for summoning his Ultimate Armor (in the first game only a small flash of light appears). |
| 491 | * TrashTheSet: [[spoiler:Craft obliterates Neo Arcadia near the end of ''4'']]. |
| 492 | * TrialAndErrorGameplay: If you're going for A or S rank, then expect to reload from your save file over and over while you memorize the layout of each level and the attack patterns of the boss therein. And god help you if the level doesn't end at the boss. |
| 493 | * TrilogyCreep: ''Zero 3'' was supposed to be the final game in the series -- the remastered tracks CD for its OST is called Telos (Greek for "the end") -- but ''4'' still came out after it. |
| 494 | * TronLines: Some stages have these in the background. |
| 495 | * TurnsRed: The enemies' attack patterns are modified once they're down to 1/2 or 1/4th of their hitpoints. Special mention goes to the guardians, who not only change patterns, but [[DesperationAttack gain an attack]] that [[InvulnerableAttack makes them invincible]] until they complete it. Moreover, they are covered in BattleAura which makes it impossible to jump over them without climbing a wall, which none of their areas have. |
| 496 | * TwoPartTrilogy: At least before ''[[PostScriptSeason Zero 4]]'' showed up. ''2'' and ''3'' are more directly linked, both dealing with the Dark Elf and the Elf Wars it played a part in. |
| 497 | * {{Tyrannicide}}: |
| 498 | ** In the climax of ''4'', [[spoiler:Craft [[TheStarscream rebels against]] the current ruler of [[TheEmpire Neo Arcadia]], [[TheCaligula Dr. Weil]], and hijacks the control system of [[KillSat Ragnarok]] in order to kill him. In a subversion, not only the Neo Arcadia gets utterly destroyed in the process, Weil survived the attack thanks to his regenerative armor. In the end Weil does get killed by Zero but by then the country is already no more]]. |
| 499 | ** Downplayed with the previous ruler of Neo Arcadia, Copy X. He does try to make the empire close to an utopia...but he's so oppressive to Reploids in that he considers retiring minor, innocent Reploids is a good solution for the energy crisis. Then Zero slays him in the first game. In the second game, his second-in-command Harpuia assumes the role in secret, where the empire becomes less oppressive under him. In the third game this is fully played straight - Copy X is revived by Dr. Weil and becomes worse; he now considers human society a fair game, as seen when he demolished an entire city block with a missile just to get the Dark Elf. Zero slays him again, only for Weil to take his place. |
| 500 | * UndeadCounterpart: In all games but ''VideoGame/MegaManZero2'', there are Pantheon (itself a mass-product knockoff of X) variants in the Pantheon Zombie and Pantheon Corpse, which are the wreckage of Pantheon Hunters and Pantheon Guardians. The Pantheon Zombies are re-animated by Anubis Necromancess in his boss battles, while the latter only appear revived by Scrap Elves in Fenri Lunaedge's stage, making them a UniqueEnemy. |
| 501 | * UnderTheSea: The third game has the Oceanic Highway Ruins, Childre Inarabitta's stage, while the fourth has Tech Kraken's stage, set around a submarine. |
| 502 | * UnderwaterBossBattle: [[OncePerEpisode Once an installment]]. ''Zero 3'' has a subversion in [[KillerRabbit Childre Inarabbita]]'s level, where fulfilling the mission's objectives will decrease the BossRoom's water volume to knee-high depths. Played straight when you fight him again during the BossRush though, since there aren't any switches to lower the water. |
| 503 | * UngratefulBastard: During the Battle for Area Zero, most of them didn't take too kindly to being rescued by Zero... |
| 504 | * UnlockableDifficultyLevels: In all 4 games, the hard difficulty is unlocked after beating the game in normal mode once. There's also the special "Ultimate" difficulty (only in second game onward), which requires GottaCatchThemAll to unlock (all Cyber Elves in Zero 2, all Secret Disks in Zero 3, all enemy parts in Zero 4). Said difficulty lets you play with most of the good stuff unlocked from the start, plus enabling instant ChargedAttack by button commands (ala fighting games). |
| 505 | * UntrustingCommunity: The citizens of Area Zero in ''4'' don't think very highly of Zero and the Resistance at first. |
| 506 | * UnusualEars: All of the Reploids seem to have these strange white headphone-like things instead of human ears, which is strange, considering that the first ''VideoGame/MegaMan'' had proper ears, despite being much less advanced. |
| 507 | ** The above is very much the norm in this continuity - even for the humans. The only characters in the entire ''Zero'' series who are shown to have normal, human ears are Neige (a human) and Dr. Weil ([[spoiler:''formerly'' human]]), [[InvertedTrope making them the unusual ones]]. |
| 508 | * {{Updated|Rerelease}} CompilationRerelease: |
| 509 | ** The ''Mega Man Zero Collection'' for the Platform/NintendoDS, which adds an "Easy Scenario" Mode for beginners, fixed some of the translation errors, brought over the Japanese-only e-Reader Mod Cards from ''Rockman Zero 3'' in the overseas release, the ability to use the DS's X and Y buttons, and a gallery with unlockable images. |
| 510 | ** The ''Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection'' for [=PlayStation=] 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC retains many of the features of the previous ''Zero Collection'' on the DS in addition to implementing a "Save-Assist" option that adds checkpoints at certain locations without penalty, a "Casual Scenario" Mode that is not unlike the ''Zero Collection''[='=]s Easy Scenario Mode, the ability to play the ''Zero'' and ''ZX'' series' different regional versions, and a new Z-Chaser mode, a leaderboard-based competitive speedrun mode with various stages from the ''Zero'' and ''ZX'' series. |
| 511 | * UpgradeVsPrototypeFight: [[spoiler:Omega vs Zero. The former is Zero's original body, with all of his abilities acquired from the X series, in addition to some extra additions added by Weil in the interim between games such as the armored shell. The latter is Zero's consciousness, uploaded into a new body and practically stripped of all the skills he learned before.]] |
| 512 | * TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: The final location in each game has some sort of climactic impact to the storyline. In order: Area X, the BigBad's headquarters and palace of sorts; Yggdrasil, a tower where the Dark Elf is sealed; Dr. Weil's secret laboratory, which, coincidentally, was near where Zero was sealed at the [[WhereItAllBegan beginning of the series]]; and finally, the KillSat-turned-ColonyDrop Ragnarok. |
| 513 | * VideoGameCrueltyPotential: The use of Cyber Elves. However... |
| 514 | * VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: |
| 515 | ** Using them also decreases Zero's game ranking. |
| 516 | ** ''Zero 3'' actually distinguishes with certain fusion elves. Instant A-rank for one mission? You just lose one point, meaning you can still get from a B-average to an A-rank in the same mission you use it. It also offers the use of Satellite Elves, which don't die when used. |
| 517 | ** There's a bizarre variation in the second game: The Crystal Cave area is full of turquoise Red Shirt Reploid allies under enemy control; you're supposed to spare them before saving them, but if you kill them instead, you get a 1-Up! However, killing them will reduce your mission points (which is important to your rank), and they won't become helpful [=NPCs=] at the Resistance Base like other Reploids you've saved. |
| 518 | * VideogameDashing: The dash mechanic from the previous series is brought back here, mostly the same; the third game also gives you the Shadow Dash chip that lets Zero pass through enemies and attacks while dashing. |
| 519 | * VillainByDefault: The term "Maverick" to be used for criminals is brought over from the previous series. Taken to the extreme in ''Zero 4'' where anyone who opposes or disagrees with Weil's rule is deemed Maverick, even if they're humans. |
| 520 | * VillainousBadlandHeroicArcadia: Inverted. For most of the series, our hero's group, the Resistance, has their base in the deserted outskirts of the large utopian city-state, Neo Arcadia, where our villains belong. Played with in the fourth game where our heroes and a bunch of human refugees find lush, untamed wildlife in a place called "Area Zero" and settle there while Neo Arcadia has become a hellhole under Dr. Weil's tyrannical rule. |
| 521 | * VillainousLegacy: [[spoiler:Wily's greatest creation, Zero, was used by Dr. Weil to create Omega as a DarkMessiah to exterminate all Reploids. Omega's consciousness inhabits Zero's original body since Zero's mind was extracted after the X series.]] The Mother Elf, who becomes the Dark Elf, another major antagonist, was created by Ciel's ancestor by studying the Maverick Virus and trying to create an antibody. |
| 522 | * ViolenceIsTheOnlyOption: Unfortunately for the series' resident ActualPacifist, this happens in ''Zero 3''. |
| 523 | * VisibleSilence: Abused throughout the first game, with ellipses that span multiple dialogue boxes. Later games dial this back to the regular three dots. |
| 524 | * VoiceGrunting: The whole series. One of the drama tracks from the ''Zero 4'' soundtrack even uses voice grunts taken from the game to depict a battle. Note that they only used Japanese actors, even in the NTSC version...[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Epcar even though Richard Epcar is uncredited for Heat Genblem]]. |
| 525 | * WakeUpCallBoss: Aztec Falcon, the first real boss in the first game, is known for [[IncrediblyLamePun shocking]] the players who have been used to the previous Mega Man games. Not only do you have a severely limited moveset by the time you fight him (unless you've been grinding, you're probably going to fight Aztec Falcon without the ability to fully charge your buster or do a three-hit combo with the saber), but the boss is also timed: fail to defeat him fast enough and the resistance members will be crushed in the trash compactor. |
| 526 | * WalkDontSwim: Just like in the ''X'' series, you don't swim on water; you just sink and walk down the bottom. |
| 527 | * TheWarJustBefore: PlayedWith. The big war that directly preceded the series, the Elf Wars, isn't a big part of the plot until the third game where Dr. Weil and his servant Omega, the ones responsible to start the wars, show up with a vengeance because of what humanity did to him before, after the war. Much knowledge about the war is also revealed there. Although the wars have been alluded to since the second game with Dark Elf, the MacGuffin of that game, being what Weil and Omega used in the war as a weapon. |
| 528 | * WarmUpBoss: Like in the previous series, the games love intro bosses that are both huge and pathetically easy. |
| 529 | * WarpWhistle: First game only, there's the Trans Server that you can use to go to other maps. Once you find a room containing it, you can access the room from other Trans Servers. This is reused in ''ZX'' series. |
| 530 | * WeaponizedOffspring: In ''4'', Popla Cocapetri (a cockatrice-based Reploid) can lay an egg with 2 legs that will run about, harrassing you. The egg is hard to kill, too. |
| 531 | * WeatherControlMachine: The Weather Changer in the fourth game. However, it is disabled on both easy and hard mode, which lock the stages' weather to "easy" and "hard" respectively. |
| 532 | * WhatHappenedToTheMouse: After Ciel refuses to hand over the self-titled Ciel System to Dr. Weil, it is never brought up again. |
| 533 | * WhatMeasureIsAMook: |
| 534 | ** Zero stops short of killing the Guardians when you first fight them, with no explanation offered. Granted, you find out later that they're {{Hero Antagonist}}s, but their subordinates, who are similarly just doing their job, are all fair game for bisection. |
| 535 | ** The Guardians also apply this as What Measure is a RedShirt. In the second game, Harpuia chooses to spare Zero when Zero is at his mercy, even though he spent the previous game [[DeadlyEuphemism retiring]] Resistance soldiers left and right. Later on, they also let Zero leave with Elpizo after slaughtering his entire army. |
| 536 | * WhatMeasureIsANonhuman: |
| 537 | ** The main conflict in the series involves the dwindling rights of the [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots Reploids]], relentlessly persecuted for trivial reasons. [[spoiler:Later, the humans receive this treatment as well, ironically from the most ''inhuman'' of them all]]. |
| 538 | ** There's also the Cyber-elves, small single-use programs typically designed to do a single function before dissipating completely once that function is complete. So ''why'' were they all programmed with individual personalities and sentience? Using a Cyber-Elf for the single function it was created for essentially ''kills'' it, and you're meant to feel a little guilty about doing so. Thankfully though, later games would have some advancements on its technology which makes ways for the elves to not have to die if they're used. |
| 539 | * WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: "[[http://megaman.wikia.com/wiki/Vile%27s_Incident:_Eden_dome,_its_sin_and_rebirth Vile's Incident: Eden dome, its sin and rebirth]]", on top of recapping on the events of 3 and 4 (collectively dubbed "Vile's Incident"), contains an epilogue set two years after the conclusion of the series. |
| 540 | * WhereItAllBegan: |
| 541 | ** The FinalBoss in the third game takes place where Zero was sealed in the first game's opening. |
| 542 | ** A minor one: The boss fight with Randam Bandam takes place right at the start of the level - the level consists of you going to each of the 4 doors to activate switches and then go back to the starting point. |
| 543 | * WhiteAndGreyMorality: |
| 544 | ** Deconstructed in the first two games. Barring the psychopaths (the bosses from ''Zero 3''-''4'', Copy X [at least in the third game], [[spoiler:Elpizo]], Omega, and Weil), no one in the war was truly a villain in the proper sense. This point is what makes the Guardians (especially encourager Fefnir and civil Harpuia) the most sympathetic antagonists in the franchise. |
| 545 | ** Even the never-matured Copy X and Maverick-intentioned [[spoiler:Elpizo]] had their AlasPoorVillain moments, and they both ultimately only wanted what was best for the people they were fighting for -- just never learned what true sacrifice and heroism meant. Arguably, the only ''real'' villain in these games was Weil, who was behind the horrible events of the games' backstory, plus being involved in some way in the plot of the first two games which was before he was even introduced. |
| 546 | ** Surprisingly, '''Weil himself''' too. [[AllThereInTheManual The Official Complete Works]] revealed that he started the whole Elf Wars because he thinks that Reploids, [[JustAMachine being just machines]], were getting off too easy for the massive destruction caused in the Maverick Wars, especially once the plan to solve the Maverick problem was to basically install anti-virus software (the Cyber-Elves) and call things even (which wouldn't help with free-willed Mavericks). His stated reason for his Project Elpizo (using the Mother Elf with his "perfect Reploid", Omega, to control Reploids' minds worldwide) was to prevent any Reploid from going Maverick again. So he was more of a WellIntentionedExtremist from the start; but then he went through the MoralEventHorizon by creating the Elf Wars in the first place (and he went nuts even more during his exile). This shows how much this trope is deconstructed in this series. |
| 547 | ** Basically a running theme of the series is "[[WellIntentionedExtremist The road to hell]] [[TotalitarianUtilitarian is paved with good intentions]]." |
| 548 | * WorldSundering: The aforementioned Elf Wars, the closest thing to TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt that the series ever approached. Nearly happened again (in a different way) at the end of Zero 4. |
| 549 | * WorldTree: Yggdrasil, [[spoiler:the prison of the Dark Elf, where X sealed himself]]. |
| 550 | * YouCallThatAWound: |
| 551 | ** Subverted in the first game's EscortMission. That escortee WILL die if he gets hit too much. Also subverted in the second game's Crystal Cave stage where there's some brainwashed Resistance soldiers; light attack from you will take them down momentarily, but after they get up, they'll die if you attack them again. And heavy attack (like ChargedAttack) will make them die instantly. The point is that you can hurt them a bit so you can pass through, but ''don't kill them'' - gone your mission points if you do. |
| 552 | ** Played straight in one mission where Ciel is teleported to your position to disarm a bomb for 90 seconds. Enemies will hound you and her in the duration; no matter how much Ciel is attacked, she won't get injured, ever. But every hit she gets decreases the mission points. |
| 553 | * YouKilledMyFather: Interestingly, used ''against'' the hero. In ''Zero 2'', Kuwagust Anchus tells Zero in their first fight that he seeks revenge for the death of his brother Herculious Anchus, who Zero killed in the first game. |
| 554 | * YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: In ''Zero 4'', let's see: [[TheDragon Craft]] has just [[spoiler:destroyed Neo Arcadia, the symbol of Reploid oppression in the series, with [[KillSat Ragnarok]], taking [[BigBad Dr. Weil]] with it]]. Before Craft could fire for a second time, Zero puts a stop to him. It's over, right? Nope, since [[spoiler:Dr. Weil ''survives'', and cues the ColonyDrop]]. |
| 555 | * ZerothLawRebellion: Played with copious amounts of irony via Zero's final decision in dealing with Weil. The irony here is two fold: while Zero was not designed to be ThreeLawsCompliant, he chooses to obey them of his free will, and Zero's actions are in perfect compliance with [[MeaningfulName Law Zero]]. This is notable only because Weil previously tries to guilt-trip Zero by invoking ThreeLawsCompliant on him.[[note]]The spirit of Law Zero is a threshold law with a very specific trigger (such as a mass murderer) for it to be appropriate.[[/note]] |
| 556 | [[/folder]] |
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