History YMMV / BlasterMasterZero

* ThatOneLevel: Area 7. Upon entering it you're advised to use OptionalStealth instead of trying to blast through everything and you should really take this to heart. Searchlight Mutants are much bulkier and will rain bullets on you on the side view map and during the dungeons the Searchlight Mutants are no less dangerous being able to swarm your character aggressively. While brute force is still possible, in Destroyer Mode getting caught is practically a death sentence, especially if you're inside dungeons.
* WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs: [[spoiler:Area 9, "Alternate Dimension"]] is '''weird.'''

* ThatOneLevel: Area 7. Upon entering it you're advised to use OptionalStealth instead of trying to blast through everything and you should really take this to heart. Searchlight Mutants are much bulkier and will rain bullets on you on the side view map and during the dungeons the Searchlight Mutants are no less dangerous being able to swarm your character aggressively. While brute force is still possible, in Destroyer Mode getting caught is a near death sentence, especially if you're inside dungeons.

* SurpriseDifficulty: Destroyer Mode is a significant step up from the standard mode, employing arbitrary rules and various ClassicVideoGameScrewYous to make the game excruciatingly hard.

* HarsherInHindsight: Eve's following line after she meets Jason and they go in search of Fred is this considering [[spoiler:Jason's fate in ''[[VideoGame/BlasterMasterZeroII II]]''[='=]s endgame, made even worse in its DownerEnding, in which Eve couldn't save him and also dies. Turns into HeartwarmingInHindsight instead in the route to its GoldenEnding]].

** While the Wave Gun is fantastic for enemies and many bosses, the Striker Gun two levels below it is also extremely good. Only one shot can be on screen at a time, but in addition to it going through walls and being pretty powerful, when it hits an enemy, it will also hit every enemy on screen and even a bit off screen for full damage. On top of that, it can be spammed at close range, and can tear apart many multi segment bosses such as Ancient Freeze. Photophage units in particular die in one hit from the Striker Gun, meaning that if multiple are active at once, shooting one will kill them all.

* HarsherInHindsight: Eve's following line after she meets Jason and they go in search of Fred is this considering [[spoiler:Jason's fate in ''[[VideoGame/BlasterMasterZeroII II]]''[='=]s endgame, made even worse in its DownerEnding, in which Eve couldn't save him and also dies. Turns into HeartwarmingInHindsight instead in the route to the GoldenEnding]].

* SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments: The final scene of the GoldenEnding. [[spoiler:After defeating the Mutant Core, Jason, Eve, and Fred are back in the surface on top of SOPHIA Zero. Eve thanks Jason for being by her side and supporting her to the very end. He monologues about how beautiful her smile is, and proceeds with his implied LoveConfession to her.]]

* AntiClimaxBoss: The TrueFinalBoss, [[spoiler:Invem SOPHIA]], despite the fact that it's [[spoiler:the very same tank you've been fighting in for 98% of the game]], is a complete pushover. For starters, its pattern is incredibly basic and easy to avoid, [[spoiler:you're in the upgraded SOPHIA Zero which allows you to spam charged attacks]], and it's not particularly tanky to begin with. Really, most of the impact from the fight comes from the fact that [[spoiler:you're forced to destroy the tank you had become attached to for most of the game.]]

* BreatherBoss: The Skeleton Boss. By the time you face it in Area 7, you should have acquired the Acceleration Blast, which takes it down in one fell swoop. Basically, the only way to die in this fight is to enter it with low health or mess up a jump while playing as Jason. The Skeleton Boss is then pretty much reduced to MemeticLoser status when he reappears in Area 9, as he can be defeated with 2 or 3 cannon shots from Sophia [[spoiler:Zero]]. [[note]]However in Destroyer Mode this boss will survive the Acceleration Blast with plenty of health and its Area 9 version fought with Sophia Zero doesn't go down in a single shot-- in fact it has ''a ton'' of health.[[/note]]

** Similarly, it's cathartic to use Voltaic Chains against Ancient Freeze on the Area 9 rematch, as the mere press of a button proves to be enough to take down ThatOneBoss in a single shot.

** The Wave Gun, which fires a wide triple shot that goes through objects and enemies and can be rapid fired as fast as you can [[ButtonMashing mash the Shoot button.]] Most bosses can easily be defeated with it in only a matter of a few shots. Of course, if you take a hit (or get hit in rapid enough succession for the Energy Guard to not work), [[UnstableEquilibrium the situation can go out of control in a hurry...]] That said, made even more broken when you have the upgrade that gives your weapon gauge a regenerating shield that takes a hit before your weapon does. Of course, the devs planned around this and [[spoiler:made the second form of the final boss immune to this weapon (the inverse holds true in Destroyer Mode; good luck maintaining that upgrade though!)]].

** Turret will also trivialize a ton of bosses, including [[spoiler: The Mutant Overlord's second form]]. Not only can it draw aimed shots away from you, due to most bosses lacking MercyInvincibility any boss on top of a turret will have their health quickly go down just from one turret.

** The Brainy Dance is the only transformation Shantae has to go out of her way to unlock, and for good reason. It can be obtained roughly halfway through the game and offers much more utility than the Mutant and Elephant Dances. The Brainy Dance transforms Shantae into Mother Brain, which allows her to move as fast as her untransformed running speed, gives her a powerful exploding projectile that can be used indefinitely and can be redirected while in use, and, uniquely, gives Shantae flight properties, which allows her to fly over holes, lava and bodies of water, drastically cutting down travel time in later dungeons, especially in Area 5 and Area 7. The only drawbacks are the increased hitbox and the inability to move while attacking, but that's a small price to pay when everything on screen can be annihilated in seconds.
** Shovel Knight in general can be called one for the most part as far as dungeons are concerned as he has no defense penalties, his attacks do hefty damage and he can reflect projectiles into equally damaging and piercing shots. He has an invincibility sub weapon, and can fish up more life/magic at low cost. And he can get an upgrade to give him a projectile (at max life), faster attack rate, and a wide arc charged attack. Navigation wise, his shovel can break through Area 4's special blocks and cracked walls (despite how the attacks may reach you have to hit the cracked wall from the proper side). People wonder if his damage output would get nerfed or not. What keeps him from being utterly broken is the hefty MP costs of his relics, but a cautious and/or skilled player can work around that. His Phase Locket is even more broken that it is in his own game, since it lasts much longer and allows him to walk through bosses and go to town on them (very useful on Hard Shell, but [[ThatOneBoss Gurnahide]] is immune to it because you can't walk through it to get to its weak spot).
* HarsherInHindsight: Eve's following line after she meets Jason and they go in search of Fred is this considering [[spoiler: Jason's fate in ''[[VideoGame/BlasterMasterZeroII II]]''[='=]s endgame, made even worse in its DownerEnding, in which Eve couldn't save him and also dies. Turns into HeartwarmingInHindsight instead in the route to the GoldenEnding]].

* SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments: The final scene of the GoldenEnding. [[spoiler: After defeating the Mutant Core, Jason, Eve, and Fred are back in the surface on top of SOPHIA Zero. Eve thanks Jason for being by her side and supporting her to the very end. He monologues about how beautiful her smile is, and proceeds with his implied LoveConfession to her.]]
--> '''[[spoiler: Jason]]:''' [[spoiler: Eve... I have something I need to tell you too...]]

* PlayerPunch: Having to [[spoiler:fight Eve and SOPHIA III at the end of the game is really sad. Sure, you can save Eve, but after spending the last 90% of the game with the SOPHIA III on your side, it can be heartrending having to destroy it. It gets even ''worse'' if you bothered to chat with Eve a lot in the various areas, especially after the end of Area 6 while on the way to Area 7, where you learn that SOPHIA III has been fighting to keep Earth safe for potentially ''centuries.'' One small mistake on Eve's part ended up with the destruction of humanity's greatest defender...]]

** The bosses can mostly be trivialized by Jason with the Flamethrower and Wave Gun, and Ekoro plays most similarly to him, meaning she can destroy enemies efficiently as well with charge shots and the Ekoro Kick. Shantae can't cheese the bosses with a single form, but between the Storm Puff's gradual damage, the Mutant Dance's piercing shots, the Elephant's invincible charge and the Brainy Dance's mobility and explosive shots, she can handle things as well. Gunvolt and Shovel Knight, on the other hand...

*** Gurnahide without the Ultimate Shovel Blade upgrade is pretty hard if tackled recklessly as he can't keep it back at his normal attack rate and its head takes less damage. It boils down to keeping one wing alive as long as possible to whittle it down, strafing to keep the shots aimed as straight as possible, and when both wings go down, using the Phase Locket to dig away at Gurnahide's face hoping it dies before you do. It might be best to wait until you get the Ultimate Shovel Blade before challenging this one, since the item it drops is inert, so have fun with Ancient Freeze!

** While most bosses are difficult to deal with in Destroyer Mode, one among them stands out: Venom Master. It is only vulnerable to the Reflector weapon which means you can only damage it by reflecting its shots or shots from its minions back to it. Not only this makes the fight drag on forever you have to be ''very'' careful not to take too much damage and lose the Reflector or else the fight might drag on for even longer since you'll have to farm for energy drops and level up your gun again. Oh, let's not forget your Energy Guard is useless, you're capped at 8 max health and this boss will use the ''Acceleration Blast'' on you if you're not careful.

** Shovel Knight in general can be called one for the most part as far as dungeons are concerned as he has no defense penalties, his attacks do hefty damage and he can reflect projectiles into equally damaging and piercing shots. He has an invincibility sub weapon, and can fish up more life/magic at low cost. And he can get an upgrade to give him a projectile (at max life), faster attack rate, and a wide arc charged attack. Navigation wise, his shovel can break through Area 4's special blocks and cracked walls (despite how the attacks may reach you have to hit the cracked wall from the proper side). People wonder if his damage output would get nerfed or not. What keeps him from being utterly broken is the hefty MP costs of his relics, but a cautious and/or skilled player can work around that. His Phase Locket is even more broken that it is in his own game, since it lasts much longer and allows him to walk through bosses and go to town on them (very useful on Hard Shell, but [[ThatOneBoss Gurnahide]] is immune to it because you cant walk through it to get to its weak spot).

* PlayerPunch: Having to [[spoiler:fight Eve and SOPHIA III at the end of ''Zero'' is really sad. Sure, you can save Eve, but after spending the last 90% of the game with the SOPHIA III on your side, it can be heartrending having to destroy it. It gets even ''worse'' if you bothered to chat with Eve a lot in the various areas, especially after the end of Area 6 while on the way to Area 7, where you learn that SOPHIA III has been fighting to keep Earth safe for potentially ''centuries.'' One small mistake on Eve's part ended up with the destruction of humanity's greatest defender...]]

* AntiClimaxBoss: The TrueFinalBoss, [[spoiler:Invem SOPHIA]], despite the fact that it's [[spoiler:the very same tank you've been fighting in for 98% of the game]], is a complete pushover. For starters, its pattern is incredibly basic and easy to avoid, [[spoiler:you're in the upgraded SOPHIA ZERO which allows you to spam charged attacks]], and it's not particularly tanky to begin with. Really, most of the impact from the fight comes from the fact that [[spoiler:you're forced to destroy the tank you had become attached to for most of the game.]]

* AntiClimaxBoss: The TrueFinalBoss, [[spoiler:Possessed Sophia]], despite the fact that it's [[spoiler:the very same tank you've been fighting in for 98% of the game]], is a complete pushover. For starters, its pattern is incredibly basic and easy to avoid, [[spoiler:you're in the upgraded Sophia ZERO which allows you to spam charged attacks]], and it's not particularly tanky to begin with. Really, most of the impact from the fight comes from the fact that [[spoiler:you're forced to destroy the tank you had become attached to for most of the game.]]

* ToughActToFollow: The soundtrack for the original game is pretty hard to beat. Despite Ippo Yamada's best efforts, renowned Inti Creates music director as he is, some fans are disappointed about the soundtrack of ''Zero'' in comparison to the NES classic.

* BreatherBoss: The Skeleton Boss. By the time you face it in Area 7, you should have acquired the Acceleration Blast, which takes it down in one fell swoop. Basically, the only way to die in this fight is to enter it with low health or mess up a jump while playing as Jason. The Skeleton Boss is then pretty much reduced to MemeticLoser status when he reappears in Area 9, as he can be defeated with 2 or 3 cannon shots from Sophia [[spoiler:Zero]].

** Turret will also trivialize a ton of bosses, including [[spoiler: The Mutant Overlord's second form]]. Not only can it draw aimed shots away from you, due to most bosses lacking MercyInvinciblity any boss on top of a turret will have their health quickly go down.