Mega Man in Dr. Wily's Revenge (Game Boy)
Ever wonder what Electronic Gaming Monthly, GamePro and other popular magazines thought of your favorite 8-, 16- and 32-bit games? Now you can find out, thanks to Review Crew! This is the only show on the internet that is willing to go back in time to find out what old school critics thought of retro games at the time. Did they pan your favorite game? Did they love something terrible? Find out
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After seeing what critics thought of
the first two Mega Man games, it's time to turn our attention to his first Game Boy title -- Mega Man in Dr. Wily's Revenge. By taking several levels and bosses from previous console releases, this portable action game acts like a Mega Man's Greatest Hits album. Will critics love the Blue Bomber even when he's in black and white, or is this one franchise that should have stayed on the Nintendo Entertainment System? We dig through old issues of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Nintendo Power and GamePro for the answers.
(NOTE: Although we occasionally cut for length, no other edits are made to the review. Defunct Games does not change any of the wording, grammar or punctuation use. Also keep in mind that our score is the average of all critics at the time, not just the sample that is reprinted on this page. If you still have more questions, I recommend you check out the
Review Crew FAQ, where we address the review guidelines, converting scores, magazine covers and more.)
ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY #25
"It seems that Capcom really knows how to satisfy the Mega Man lovers. The GameBoy version is spectacular. The graphics are exceptional and virtually nothing has been sacrificed by going to the small screen. The quest is long, by GameBoy standards, and best of all it is fun to play!" -Ed
(9 out of 10)
NINTENDO POWER #27
"You've got to hand it to Dr. Wily. He's one mad scientist who just won't throw in the towel. The first Game Boy battle between the blue bomber and evil doctor is every bit as challenging as their NES bouts. It includes enough classic Mega Man enemies and new surprises to keep both Mega Man fans and newcomers on the edge of their seats."
(4.3 out of 5)
GAMEPRO (August 1991)
"Mega Man in Dr. Wily's Revenge has the great gameplay and graphics that has come to signify the Mega Man games. It doesn't get an "A" for Originality -- this cart is really just a rehash of past MM carts. But I'll take a high quality rehash over a poorly done original cart any day. From the success of the Mega Man series on the NES, it looks like most of you will too!" -The Unknown Gamer
(4 out of 5)
ELECTRONIC GAMING MONTHLY #25
"Awesome! Truly awesome! I never thought Capcom could really pull it off, but they far exceeded my exceptions!! The music is righteous, and the graphics are excellent. The big surprise was the down-right stupendous control of Megaman, as few Gameboy games have this." -Sushi X
(8 out of 10)
REVIEW CREW AVERAGE: 84% -
Despite being little more than a rehash with black and white graphics, critics liked Mega Man in Dr. Wily's Revenge nearly as much as Mega Man II. In fact, Electronic Gaming Monthly actually liked it more, with two editors scoring the game with 9 out of 10. With an average of 84%, this portable outing is just one point away from
Mega Man II's impressive 85%.
Thanks to Capcom's surprisingly solid porting skills, none of the critics seemed too concerned about replaying levels and bosses on the go. GamePro was one of the few magazines to bring the recycling up, and even they weren't too miffed. EGM's editors echoed the praise, saying that it has "stupendous control" and "righteous" music. Ed Semrad went one step further and said "the GameBoy version is spectacular." I can't disagree with that.
ON FRIDAY'S EPISODE:
We're about to wrap this week up with one of our most requested games -- Mega Man X. Were critics willing to make the leap from 8- to 16-bit, or was this a franchise best suited for the Nintendo Entertainment System? Find out on Friday when Review Crew tackles Mega Man X.
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