Good players or just cheaters?

[Don]

I was playing MMZ4 a few days ago and it reminded that the MMZ series is known as one of the most difficult action games ever. Yet, apparently everyone on the Internet have no problem whatsoever beating it and they all swear they didn't use save states. Are people really good at these games nowadays (or maybe I really suck), or are people just cheaters?

[Flip]

Or liers.

[Kupek]

Keep in mind these could be 14-year-olds with ample free time to waste.

[Zeus]

Keep in mind that these are likely people who are starved for attention. The first two games were freakin' hard with the second rivalling any game I've ever played (and I properly beat Super Ghouls 'N Ghosts). The third was MUUCCH easier, but you can't say that you went through the first two with no trouble. Even Zeus himself can't claim that :-)

[Don]

I thought Z2 was pretty easy so far as bosses go besides the Phoenix boss. You even have a final boss that you can abuse a wall on which isn't true in any other Z game. The stages in Z2 are tough especially the tarzan stages where you get to swing from platform to platform using the rod.

Though Z4 probably takes the honors for hardest regular 8 (Bee), special (Kraft), and final boss. To be fair Z4's final boss isn't hard in terms of damage output but the 2 minute timer makes it quite possible to fail even if you never get hit.

[Agent 57]

I've beaten the first two, and was halfway through the third before I got sidetracked by other things (I should really get back to that).

By the way, Don, do you realize that Z4 hasn't been released in North America yet, and thus it's 99% likely that you're the only one here who's played it?

[Don]

You should finish Z3, I think it's the best out of the Z series, certainly in terms of the story.

[Zeus]

Yes, it is. But that's mostly because of the build up from the other games. Really, the games are kinda like chapters in a book story-wise.

[Don]

Z3 had more 'story' stages because it went with a 4-3-1-4-1-1 format as opposed to the usual 4-1-4-final boss format that was used in Z1/2/4.

I think they need a Zero game with about 20 stages to get enough time to finish explaining everything.

[Zeus]

LOL, yes. Personally, I would love one, but they'd rather just split it up into 3 games, they make more money that way :-) Apparently Zero 3 did quite well for them this past year, over half a million worldwide.

I was quite shocked at how many levels there were in Z3. Essentially 4 or 5 extra levels over the first two. Reminded me a bit of MM3 in that respect with the four "shadow" levels. It was quite a long game. As you said, it helped flush out the storyline, although it only took me half as long to beat since the levels were WAAAY easier than in Z2. I found the Z1 bosses to be the toughest and they've become easier since (remember, I haven't played Z4 yet).

As long as they keep feeding me my great 2D Mega Mans, I'm happy. If they're going to toss in a pretty cool, continuous story like in the Zero series, even better

[Don]

Well, I don't think Z3 had more stages. When I say 'final stage' I mean everything after the first 8 which can be 5 stages easy. But I call those stage the final stage because there is nothing that happens until you get to the final boss when that sequence begins. So instead of having 3 or 4 bosses before the final guy that has no meaning they've the area X2 which I thought was really neat.

Z4 is probably going to be the last one, assuming Capcom has any integrity. But, like I said, a RPGish game featuring Ciel and Neige would be pretty cool to wrap everything up. I hope the whole Dark Elf/Omega thing doesn't become one of those mysteries like whatever happened to Megaman that gets unresolved.