Running through levels. Kick robot ass. Stealing weapons. The is Mega Man...I mean Meta Gal.
Meta Gal is an interesting Mega Man clone game. You take the role of Meta, a female robot...or something as you try to free your fellow female robots from their kidnapper, the evil General Creeper. There is a miniscule amount of humor to show the game isn't taking itself too seriously.
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| General Creeper kidnaps your friends and you must get them back. |
In terms of gameplay, the game feels like Mega Man in Mega Man X 's world. Meta can shoot, dash, and climb ladders. Also, when you beat robot bosses, you take their weapon for your own use. Naturally, the bosses are weak to another boss's weapon, which you'll need to figure out through trial and error. It's all pretty basic for Mega Man veterans.
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| No Mega Man clone is complete without spikes. |
The game isn't just some easy knock-off, either. There is Mega Man-caliber challenge here, too. There are plenty of tricky situations to squirm your way through. Fortunately, you have air-tight controls to help you. When you die, it's not the controller's fault. The only way to win is to stop sucking and get it done, just like the good old days.
The game does bring a few different things to the table. Special weapons are mapped to a specific, which isn't different in and of itself. This same button however, is used to fire off a super shot or heal a miniscule amount of health. Yep, there are no E-tanks here. Also, you can collect gears to use the rebirth ability, which enables you to continue from the screen you died on. This is good because, in true Mega Man fashion, there are some spots that are tough to get through and those checkpoints can be pretty far back.
The game is shorter than typical Mega Man experiences. You have an intro level, four boss levels, and four "Wily" levels for a total of nine levels. As mentioned before, they didn't skimp on the challenge. You'll do pretty of dying if you like that sort of thing.
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| If you even sniff this lava, you will die. |
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| Like Quick Man's death lasers? You'll love these jets of flame. |
On to the little stuff. Graphically, the game could pass for a slightly rugged X game. It has the dark, somewhat grounded look of those games, rather than the cartoony look of the main series.
In terms of music, once again, I'm getting an X vibe with a slight feminine feel. It's pretty good. The tracks are short, though. Several sound effects are ripped straight out of Mega Man games, so it's not like their trying to hide the fact that this is a Mega Man clone.
Extras are limited to the ability to play as the four main bosses. Each girl has her own moveset and presents a unique challenge when it comes to tackling the levels. Parts of some levels may change to accommodate your girl's abilities, which actually makes the levels beatable. Unfortunately, the bosses can't use the other girls' weapons. Also, the girl you're playing as gets replaced by Meta as a level boss. It's cool. But that's ALL you get, so enjoy.
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| When playing as a boss, Meta will replace that boss at the end of her level. |
In Meta Gal, what we have is the Mega Man X game that never was. That's what it feels like. Simple running, jumping, and shooting, alongside the guitar-heavy music and semi-gritty graphics make it hard to not make the comparison. Playing as the bosses is a neat feature. It's nothing you haven't seen before and a little rough around the edges, but it's executed well. Check It Out.
