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Mega Man Powa 1

Levels: Eh

Graphics: Okay

Music: No Change (shuffled)

Enemies: No Change

Bosses: Eh (room layout changes)

Weapons: Eh (Few changes)

Castle: Eh

Difficulty: EASY-MEDIUM

Comments: Besides some sassy text, there isn't really anything remarkable about Powa 1. Stages can be dryly amusing at times but are mostly straightforward and boring, having palettes anywhere from decent (Needle Man, Wily 1) to downright ugly (Spark Man, Top Man). Level design rarely impresses and the bosses can be frustrating — not because they're difficult, but you'll be randomly softlocked if you die to some of them (Hard Man, Gemini Man, and some of the Doc Robots) There are definitely worse hacks out there, but that fact does little to prevent Powa 1 from feeling mediocre, if not anemic.

(not recommended)

Mega Man Powa 2

Levels: Good

Graphics: Good

Music: No Change (shuffled)

Enemies: Okay (mostly increased HP)

Bosses: Okay

Weapons: Eh (few changes)

Castle: Okay

Difficulty: MEDIUM

Comments: Powa 2 is what you want out of a hack sequel: improvements across the board. There's a lot more to like about it, including cohesive level design (although garish at times), tricky enemy placement, and a few minor changes to the weapons and bosses to add some extra spice. However, be warned that Powa 2 is a spiteful beast; enemies have obnoxiously inflated HP values, stages are designed to knock you into pits, checkpoints are imbalanced (or in the case of Magnet Man & Wily 3, placed over spikes), there are barely any E-tanks (0 for Doc Robot stages!), and several bosses are impossible to beat damage-less—with Gemini Man being the worst. Still, as long as you can stomach some of Powa 2's more odious bits, there's some nice stuff here (like the Doc Robot stages). Still not great, but at least it tries.

(recommended)

Mega Man Powa 1 - honestly, a buggy hack, because if you lose to the boss, you can catch a bug that will force you to restart the game completely. However, we do not forget that these are "early hacks" of those years, So it is forgivable. An interesting Level Design and the use of the original mechanics of the original is worthy of respect. Because it is difficult to do something original on old mechanics.

Plus - the author tried to diversify the fight against bosses. Strained ideas with clones from cars, but for those years - excusable.

To redraw the original robomasters - in some century - really some look different, and some - an unsuccessful recolor.

For fun, for a draw on April 1 and just for a simple stress relief - this hack is what you need.

Mega Man Powa 2 - God, this part is more hardcore. Not because it is well designed in Level Design, where precise jumps and actions are required, but because of "Enemies who have a lot of HP and take off a lot of health with one touch."

As in Mega Man Powa 1 - it has glitches like "getting stuck in the wall" (a complete restart of the game) and bosses that will not appear if you lose if you do not press left.

In this hack, there is a good Level Design, as I said earlier, and a more hardcore performance. Fun, but it could have been more honest. Bosses are slightly "Repainted" or "redrawn", some managed to do inexplicable things for me, like "teleport to different ends of the screen" or "jump through walls". This surprised me.

The quality of the Graphic part of the hack has become higher. Plus, they managed to create the effect of "turning on the light", which became one of the links for hardcore and interesting Gameplay.

If not overloading enemies with "HP" or "Taking away a lot of health from the hero of the game" - would be an ideal hack of THOSE YEARS. Plus, this hack passes the test of time, which is rare for MM3 hacks. But will I recommend it? Honestly, yes

The overall result in these hacks is:

"They have a good Level Design, the Graphic part of the hack is well done, Bosses can be interesting and a special addition to some extent. But because of the difference in complexity in them - not everyone will be able to master them.

However, these two are good and fresh and interesting in their own way. I recommend them for their interesting presentation and the fact that they were able to pass the test of time, despite the fact that the hacks of the old generation. The general conclusion is as follows: I recommend you to familiarize yourself!"

These hacks are very unique. A lot of hacks use tilesets from other games, as well as themes; I've seen a Super Mario Bros. level in several Mega Man hacks. These hacks do use assets from other games and design levels inspired from commercial releases, but they're very out-of-the-box. Beginning with the first Mega Man Powa, you'll see a level in which the castle from Tetris is seen in the background. Another level is built from the background of Duck Hunt, set at night, and expanded into an entire zoo level. Who even thinks to do something like that!? There's another level that uses tiles from Super Mario Bros. 3, but it's like absolutely no Super Mario Bros. level you've ever seen before; it's put together like some sort of wonderful fever dream. Make no mistake: Mega Man Powa is strange, but it's strange in the way that a child's imagination might craft some of the most seemingly random constructions, resulting in some very creative level design. There are also many ways in which the hacker requires you, the player to be clever. Not only are there some hidden pitfalls that do have subtle visual cues, but this one also has the lifebar hack, which shows enemy lifebars. This might seem like a minor point, but it warns you about what might be ahead, and when you might be looking at nothing more than a part of the background; you really have to pay attention to everything to succeed. This is the kind of challenge that you typically face; very rarely are you dealing with jumps that were made for save scumming. As such, Mega Man Powa is reasonable to play without states. The visual design has a lot of wonderful aspects, too. Plasma Boi's stage has large tanks of beautiful, glistening water in which to swim, and Wily Stage 5 is a complete acid trip.

Mega Man Powa 2 has the screenshots that made me try these hacks in the first place, and it certainly has some interesting visuals. Yes, this is the hack with the Dr. Mario stage, but it's not even the most interesting stage you'll see here. There's a Simon's Quest stage that even has a "HORRIBLE NIGHT TO HAVE A CURSE". There's also a stage based upon Sonic the Hedgehog's Labyrinth Zone, with little Sheep Men creating lightning barriers; these barriers change in your second run (Doc Robots), forming not only an entirely new path through the level, but one you've already seen, running parallel to it during your first. My favorite was that the Dr. Wily Castle map screen was changed into the city of Monsteropolis, which is where the Wily Stages take place in the first Mega Man. Some of the Wily stages are reminiscent of them, as well, but often dark and rainy, or almost empty, making this seem almost like the ruins of Monsteropolis; it's a lovingly-crafted, yet haunting reference to Mega Man's first adventure. Mega Man Powa 2 isn't quite as strange as its predecessor, and it has a few more segments that hold it back, like a boss that can instantly kill you just by touching you, and a room that pushes you through a deadly obstacle course without the "JUMP JUMP SLIDE SLIDE" prompts. Even the clever gimmick with the flickering lights in the Punk (formerly Spark Man) stage has the lights flickering entirely too slowly for the pace of the game. Still, I would recommend both; they're only a few minor tweaks away from achievable perfection.