When the original pitch for Inafune’s Mighty No. 9 was launched onto Kickstarter, I threw down $100, without hesitation. I was a huge Mega Man fan, I grew up on the Capcom games of old, so why not? It wasn’t like, Keiji Inafune, would allow the game to be nothing but the best or nothing at all, right? Well, that was back in October 2013 and I couldn’t have been any more wrong.
What Happened?
Fast forward to today, June 20, 2016, and one more day before the game is officially released. Never mind that along the way to release, that game suffered many of delays that caused the game to slip from its original release date of April 2015. Yes, we’re getting it one year later. Nevermind that the game has now picked up a publisher along , when we were promised that wasn’t going to happen and why it was on Kickstarter. Oh, we can’t forget the disappointing beta and demos that we got, mainly as a “We’re sorry we’re late, try this instead”. There are tons of other issues stemming from bugs to issues with online play not working correctly, but more importantly and this is what really drove me crazy, the lack of transparency.
Oh, we can’t forget the disappointing beta and demos that we got, mainly as a “We’re sorry we’re late, try this instead”. There are tons of other issues stemming from bugs to issues with online play not working correctly, but more importantly and this is what really drove me crazy, the lack of transparency. If anything was more upsetting, it was the lack of communication regarding the progress. Sure, we got updates but they were few and far in-between. On top of that, it seemed just felt like the team behind the game was out of touch with the Mighty No. 9 community. Something that everyone who is / was on the Mighty No. 9 official forums can tell you. Least us not forget all the hell and frustration caused by Dina Karam caused on the forms as well – here and here.
The final rub of salt into an open wound is on how they’re handling the distribution of the game. Why is the game being distributed to game review sites prior to it going to the people who helped Kickstart the game? I know you want to get those salty review scores, but really? The people that poured in over 3 million dollars to help get the game off the ground and you snub them like that? At the very least this should have gone out at last a week before anyone else got access to the game. Now it just seems that we’re put a pre-order in for a game, just that we did it three years ago.
How is it that various other companies and smaller ones I should add, that are able to produce works similar or better to what Mighty No. 9 was trying to accomplish? For example, one of my favorite games hailing from the Batterystaple camp. Yes, 20XX! It looks better than MN9, plays better, tons of replayability, has co-op and online play and in my eyes is the worthy Mega Man successor. The game just keeps getting better and better, which is converting a lot of Mega Man and former Mighty No. 9 fans over to its cause. It’s also easily the best Mega Man-like experience that many have had in a long time. And this isn’t just me making that last line up. I’ve asked multiple people about 20xx since I found out about it. So if Battlestaple Games can do it, surely a company like Inti Crates along with Keiji Inafune can, right? So what the heck happened along the way?
Disappointment All Around
At one point I was truly excited about Mighty No. 9, I really was. I’ve made Youtube videos of it, broke several large stories about it and was hoping that it would spawn some sequels. Now, I really don’t even want to touch the game, despite throwing down over $100. Can you also believe that he’s already talking about a sequel? How long is that going to take? Six years?
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Regardless, tomorrow is the day that we’ll finally be able to get access to the game we were promised last year. And despite the fact that we’ll be reviewing it, though I’ve stated that I shouldn’t be the reviewer. I really don’t want to seem like I’m coming off this with a chip on my shoulder because that’s not what I’m about. Hell, that’s not what anyone here at this organization is about. However, with all the crap we’ve endured upon waiting on this flawed gem, I’m not 100% I could leave my feelings at the table. As a review, as someone who you does something that could ultimately decide if a game or for you, I don’t want to stir you wrong. In the end, I really wanted Mighty No. 9 to be good, however from what I’m seeing now, it doesn’t seem to be that way. One way or another, we’ll all find out tomorrow.
After all, that has happened, I find myself asking one question, over and over. If I had to do it all over again, would I? HELL NO!
*This does not mean that Kickstarter is bad, just that some companies don’t have the know-how or ability to get what they promised out when they promise. I still firmly believe that Kickstarter is a fantastic crowdfunding service and without it, we wouldn’t have the games and items we have today.
Mighty No. 9 releases on June 21, 2016, for PS4, PS3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Wii U, PS Vita and Nintendo 3DS.
