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Author: Prof. 9

Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection launches on April 14, 2023! Online features detailed!

Prof. 9

Capcom has just dropped the 2nd Trailer for Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection, announcing the release date for the collection: April 14, 2023!

Additionally, the new trailer, as well as a new Mr. Famous News segment and Capcom News post showcased all of the online functionality, event Chips being obtainable in the collection and more.

As previously announced, Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection will feature online connectivity. Note that cross-play is not supported, so both players need to own the game on the same system. In addition to online, the Nintendo Switch version will also support local communication. You’ll be able to access all these features by opening the Network/Comm menu in the game.

Online Battles

You’ll be able to hold a Private Match against a friend using a room code, or be paired up against a random opponent in a Public Match.

For Public Matches, there’s the option to have a casual battle or a ranked match. You’ll be able to rank up and down based on your win record.

Battle rules are also available. Just like in the GBA games, you’ll be able to have a Practice match or a Real Battle, in which the loser forfeits one of their Chips. You can also choose between Single Battle or Triple Battle (the latter is only available for BN3-6).

Mr. Eguchi goes on to explain that some tweaks have been made to make online play a smooth experience. In the Custom Screen, a timer has been added; if you take too long selecting Chips, the Custom Screen will close automatically.

Some Chips may behave differently in single-player and online play as well. According to the Capcom News post, the infamous TreeBomb Prism combo from MMBN2 has been kept to work in single-player, but not in versus battles!

Trading

Chip Trade will be supported in all Battle Network games, and will let you trade BattleChips with other players. In this mode, the BattleChips are all depicted with high-resolution artwork!

Additionally, Style Trade will be available in BN2 only, letting you trade your Styles with another player. For BN3-6, there’s a Program Trade option to trade Navi Customizer Programs with other players.

For BN4 only, the Waiting Room returns. You can exchange Navis with other players to be able to fight them in your game. This even lets you experience those Navis’ story chapters in the other version.

Finally, in BN6 you’ll have the option to Folder Trade. This lets you obtain the other player’s folder as an Extra Folder in your game.

Just like battles, you can trade with friends privately, or do a public trade to be paired up with a random trade partner.

Comparing

For BN3-6, you’ll be able to Compare Libraries with another player. Doing so fills in Chips in your Data Library that the other player has obtained, and lets you order them from the in-game Chip Order system.

In BN4-6, you’ll also have the option to Compare Records. This lets you share level boss deletion times with your friends.

Download Chips

A much-requested feature for the Legacy Collection has now been confirmed! Download Chips will let you obtain the Chips which were previously only available at events. To obtain Download Chips, simply press a button in the Mega Man screen and choose the Chip you want.

The following Download Chips are available:

  • MMBN1: Bass
  • MMBN2: Gate SP, Aqua Gospel, Elec Gospel, Wood Gospel, Fire Gospel
  • MMBN3: Punk, Bass GS
  • MMBN4: Prix Power, Duo
  • MMBN5: Leader Raid, Chaos Lord
  • MMBN6: Double Beast, Gregar, Falzar

Hang on – BN6 includes Double Beast, Gregar and Falzar even in English? Yes, from the Capcom News post, we now have confirmation that the Legacy Collection games will be based on the original Japanese versions of the games, and all languages will have the same content!

Based on the Japanese games!

Here’s something that will interest some players. Capcom has now officially confirmed in their news post that the Legacy Collection games will all be based on the original Japanese versions, and will have all the same contents as the Japanese versions for all languages!

Capcom has not given a lot of details on this, but this means we can likely expect to see things like the removed Jack In animations in BN2 and BN3 restored, as well as the removed Cyberworld areas in BN5 and BN6.

Pre-order bonus

Pre-orders for the full Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection will be available starting today, and Capcom has announced a nifty pre-order bonus: the Custom PET Pack.

The Custom PET Pack includes two special skins for the game’s launcher. In the Vol. 1 launcher, you’ll be able to use a Hub Style skin, whereas the Vol. 2 launcher will have a Dark MegaMan skin.

Furthermore, the Custom PET Pack adds 4 rearranged music tracks to the collection’s Music Player:

  • Vol. 1
    • Hometown (Pop Rock Version)
    • Shooting Enemy (Dance Version)
  • Vol. 2
    • Central Town (Kawaii Future Bass Version)
    • Liberation Mission (Piano Version)

For more details on where to pre-order, check out the pre-order page on the collection’s website. We’ve also got some samplers of the arranged tracks, give them a listen below!

Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection to have Denuvo Anti-Tamper DRM

Prof. 9

Capcom has just updated the Steam pages for Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. The change adds a small, but significant note: the Legacy Collection will incorporate Denuvo Anti-Tamper DRM when it launches on Steam in 2023.

Previous Mega Man Legacy Collections only had standard Steam DRM, so this makes it the first Mega Man collection on the platform to incorporate Denuvo, and the second Mega Man game after Mega Man 11. Perhaps Capcom has high expectations for this one?

Incorporates 3rd-party DRM: Denuvo Anti-tamper
5 different PC within a day machine activation limit

Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 Steam pages

As part of Denuvo, the Battle Network Legacy Collection limits you to installing the game on a maximum of 5 different PCs per 24 hour period. However, this count resets daily, so it shouldn’t affect most players.

In the past, inclusion of Denuvo (or any DRM, for that matter) has often been controversial due to claims it negatively affects performance. Though, seeing as these are just ports of GBA games, it doesn’t seem very likely that Denuvo will have a big impact in this case. But this is something we won’t know for sure until the game launches.

Typically, third-party DRM like Denuvo is used to protect a game against piracy during the ever-crucial initial sales period, as this is usually when piracy has the biggest impact on sales. It’s common for publishers to remove Denuvo DRM from a game after initial sales die down. Capcom itself has also done so in the past, issuing updates that remove Denuvo for various Monster Hunter and Resident Evil games. Usually this is about 6-12 months after release.

Source: SteamDB (Vol. 1, Vol. 2)

Correction: An earlier version of this post stated that MMBNLC was the first Mega Man game on Steam with Denuvo. However, Mega Man 11 also had Denuvo DRM at launch (which was later removed).

Kotobukiya announces new Roll.EXE model kit

Prof. 9

Today at the All Japan Model and Hobby Show, Kotobukiya announced a number of new upcoming model kits, including one addition from the MMBN series! Following MegaMan and Dark MegaMan, now Roll will be getting her own posable model kit.

In their announcement, the company showed off an initial prototype of the kit. Check out the Kotobukiya website for more pictures.

Online NetBattling and chip trading confirmed for Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection!

Prof. 9 1 Comment

“No matter what, we’re always connected!” With those words, director Masakazu Eguchi made it official: online NetBattles and chip trading are confirmed for Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection! Just announced in Capcom’s TGS2022 showcase, online functionality will be added to every game in the collection.

With that said, the game will not support cross-play with other platforms. So you will likely only be able to battle and trade between other players on the same platform (Switch, PlayStation or Steam).

In addition, we’ve gotten a first look at the Legacy Collection’s PET screen. As many had suspected, when you start the game, you’ll be greeted by none other than MegaMan.EXE himself. This 3D MegaMan will act as your NetNavi to the collection, and is voiced by returning voice actor Andrew Francis from the MegaMan NT Warrior anime.

From time to time, MegaMan will comment on your play and control style, and you’ll be able to chat with him as well. But if you’d rather not, there’s also a Silent Mode option.

Check out a preview of the PET screen below:

Rockman EXE 4.5 PvP overhaul mod released

Prof. 9

NetBattlers rejoice! Frequent TREZ contributor Greiga Master has just released a brand new mod for Rockman EXE 4.5: Real Operation, building on the already great Real BN Gameplay mod.

The Rockman EXE 4.5 PvP Patch is focused on PvP, and overhauls many of the game’s systems for more varied matches. New chips have been added, existing chips have been reworked and each Navi has received new abilities and mechanics.

Some of the PvP Patch’s features include:

• Making the game’s 21 Navis more distinct from one another by introducing new Battle Chip and Custom Screen interactions.
• Porting balance changes introduced in later Battle Network games.
• Adding new Battle Chips. and removing or increasing the viability of Battle Chips that previously did not get much use.

Check out the official project page for the full list of changes, and head on over to TREZ Forums to discuss! The mod is included with Tango, the fan-made MMBN emulator client with online rollback PvP, for easy setup. Alternatively, the project page has patch files for manual patching.

Digital versions of Rockman EXE and Shooting Star Rockman Official Complete Works released

Prof. 9

Good news for all you Mega Man official art aficionados! As of today, all of the Rockman Official Complete Works series of art books are now available in digital format on Amazon.co.jp. That, of course, includes the Rockman EXE Official Complete Works and Ryusei no Rockman Official Complete Works!

While we’ve gotten a number of digital MMBN/MMSF artworks over the years, especially now with the incoming release of the Legacy Collection; for most of the art in these books, this is the first time it will be available digitally. Naturally, the books are in Japanese, but seeing as they are art books, you can enjoy them regardless of language.

Both OCWs are priced at ¥ 2,640. To buy them, you’ll need a Japanese Amazon account and a credit card. Though denoted as “Kindle editions”, you can also view them on a PC using the free Kindle app.

Regarding the Rockman EXE OCW, we can confirm that this digital version is based on the latest JP reprint edition, meaning that some crossover artwork from Boktai and Duel Masters is not present.

Source: Amazon via Reploid 21XX

P.S.: Looking for more MMBN/MMSF digital content on Amazon JP? There’s also:

Unreleased Tribe King Star Carrier toy discovered!

Prof. 9

When Ryusei no Rockman 2 released in Japan in 2007, as was series tradition, a line of toys based on the game’s new terminal device was launched alongside it. In this case, it was the Star Carrier, released by Takara Tomy in four different editions: Rockman, Green Shinobi, Fire Dinosaur and a deluxe Berserk Edition.

However, recently, an as-of-yet unknown fifth edition has been uncovered: Tribe King Version. Shared by collector Rock Blue and published on Rockman Toy Station, this appears to be a Limited Edition that was never released at all.

Being based on Tribe King, this Star Carrier features the symbols from all three Tribes and has a unique color scheme with all Tribes’ colors being represented. The unit appears to be a product sample, with the label indicating that it was meant to be a not-for-sale CoroCoro Limited Edition, produced in November 2007 and limited to only 78 units. The packaging is the same as the standard Rockman edition.

For more close-up photos, check out the article on Rockman Toy Station!

Bass Cross MegaMan jacks into Mega Man X DiVE

Prof. 9

The Bass.EXE love in Mega Man X DiVE continues as Capcom Taiwan has just unveiled the latest character to enter the Deep Log: Bass Cross MegaMan! This fusion of MegaMan and Bass was first seen in Mega Man Battle Network 5 and starred in the anime movie Rockman EXE: Program of Light and Darkness.

In terms of skills, Bass Cross is simple but effective. He brings his classic Charge Shot (Unison Buster in Japanese), a large projectile blast that can go through terrain. Charge it up completely and it will fire 3 shots in rapid succession.

If you need something with a little more firepower, there’s also Vanishing World Kai (Neo World in Japanese). This improved version of Bass GS’s Vanishing World fires a huge energy beam that can go through terrain. It also hits every enemy on the screen; not just those caught in the beam. The move seems to be influenced the blast attack used in the anime and manga.

Bass Cross MegaMan is another S rank character that will be available for a limited time. You’ll be able to draw for him in the Taiwanese and Japanese mobile version as well as the Steam release. Players on the international Android/iOS version operated by NebulaJoy will probably have to wait a while longer, though.

Mega Man Battle Network 6 online PvP now has fan-made rollback netcode

Prof. 9 1 Comment

Even though it’s been 16 years since the release of Mega Man Battle Network 6, the PvP scene for the games is stronger than ever, with frequent unofficial tournaments hosted by the N1 Grand Prix community.

Traditionally, online MMBN PvP has been played using programs like Hamachi that connect two VBALink emulators over the Internet, using ROMs dumped from a GBA cart. However, VBALink has seen no updates since 2004 and has some major drawbacks, including severe stutters and slowdown if players are not in the same geographical region.

But the winds of change are blowing and fans have been busy implementing new systems for Battle Network PvP. Created by developer Weenie and cohorts, Tango is a brand new emulator frontend (born out of initial experiments by ssbMars) for mGBA, that aims to make online PvP for the BN games as smooth as possible. This is achieved with rollback netcode, which greatly reduces stutter and lag even when playing with faraway opponents. In addition, Tango features a replay system to record and play back matches.

In simple terms, with VBALink’s lockstep netcode, both players’ games constantly need to be kept in sync 60 times per second. In case a player’s inputs don’t arrive quickly enough, gameplay has to be paused. This leads to all sorts of input delay, lag spikes and slowdown. With rollback, on the other hand, the game is able to predict what will happen next and can retroactively correct (roll back) the game state when a player’s action does arrive late. This type of netcode has already seen huge success in fighting games.

Tango currently supports MMBN6, with plans to add support for other MMBN games as well, plus a built-in folder editor. Even though Tango is still in alpha, it’s already stable and user-friendly enough that the N1GP community was able to hold a successful first tournament playing on Tango. You can see the results in the tournament highlights stream above!

If you’d like to watch or join MMBN6 PvP tournaments in the future, be sure to give the N1GP a visit.

Source: N1GP, Tango

Battle Story Rockman EXE manga released in digital form

Prof. 9 1 Comment

Following last year’s digital release of the main Rockman EXE manga, Battle Story Rockman EXE is now available in digital form! The manga can be purchased on various Japanese online bookstores including Amazon Japan for a cool ¥1540 per volume. All you need is a Japanese Amazon account and a credit card, and you can read these on your PC with the Kindle app.

Written by Jun Keijima and illustrated by Miho Asada, this Battle Story Rockman EXE was originally released in 4 volumes from 2002 to 2004. Official translations were later released in France and Indonesia.

In 2017, in celebration of Battle Network’s 15th anniversary, “New Editions” were released, which condensed the series into into 3 volumes as well as added new content, and these are the editions now released in digital form.

Source: Reploid 21XX, Rockman Corner