Mega Man Ultimate Character Evolution [Infographic]

It’s been 31 years since Mega Man was released on the Nintendo Entertainment System, kicking off a franchise with 33 million units sold across 148 titles (at the time this article was published). That’s impressive, especially since—let’s face it—that first game’s cover art didn’t exactly do the game justice. That got us thinking about how many different ways Mega Man has appeared on the cover and in-game artwork, so we decided to take a look! In this infographic, we show how Mega Man changed through the original Mega Man series, Mega Man X, Mega Man Legends, Mega Man Battle Network, Mega Man Zero, Mega Man ZX, and Mega Man Star Force. That’s 39 games and 1 canceled prototype! Note that we focused on the main games released in North America along with their NA release dates as found at the Mega Man Wiki. Alright, it’s time to get serious and check out the evolution of Mega Man!

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Mega Man Ultimate Character Evolution Transcript

Original Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Man - NES (December 17, 1987)
• Mega Man 2 - NES (July 10, 1989)
• Mega Man 3 - NES (November 22, 1990)
• Mega Man 4 - NES (January 1, 1992)
• Mega Man 5 - NES (December 15, 1992)
• Mega Man 6 - NES (March 13, 1994)
• Mega Man 7 - SNES (September 14, 1995)
• Mega Man 8 - PS1 (February 28, 1997)
• Mega Man & Bass - GBA (March 12, 2003)
• Mega Man 9 - WII (September 22, 2008)
• Mega Man 10 - WII (March 1, 2010)
• Mega Man 11 - Switch, XB1, PS4, PC (October 2, 2018)

X Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Man X - SNES (January 19, 1994)
• Mega Man X2 - SNES (January 1, 1995)
• Mega Man X3 - SNES (January 30, 1996)
• Mega Man X4 - Saturn ((September 18, 1997)
• Mega Man X5 - PS1 (January 31, 2001)
• Mega Man X6 - PS1 (December 4, 2001)
• Mega Man X7 - PS2 (October 14, 2003)
• Mega Man X8 - PS2 (December 7, 2004)

Legends Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Man Legends - PS1 (August 31, 1998)
• Mega Man Legends 2 - PS1 (October 4, 2000)
• Mega Man Legends 3 - 3DS (Canceled Prototype)

Battle Network Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Man Battle Network - GBA (October 30, 2001)
• Mega Man Battle Network 2 - GBA (June 17, 2002)
• Mega Man Network Transmission - GCN (June 17, 2003)
• Mega Man Battle Network 3 - GBA (June 24, 2003)
• Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge - GBA (March 2, 2004)
• Mega Man Battle Network 4 - GBA (September 3, 2004)
• Mega Man Battle Network 5 - GBA/NDS (June 21, 2005)
• Mega Man Battle Network 6 - GBA (June 13, 2006)

Zero Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Man Zero - GBA (November 9, 2002)
• Mega Man Zero 2 - GBA (October 14, 2003)
• Mega Man Zero 3 - GBA (October 5, 2004)
• Mega Man Zero 4 - GBA (October 4, 2005)

ZX Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Man ZX - NDS (September 12, 2006)
• Mega Man ZX Advent - NDS (October 23, 2007)

Star Force Series In-Game Versions:

• Mega Star Force - NDS (August 7, 2007)
• Mega Star Force 2 - NDS (June 24, 2008)
• Mega Star Force 3 - NDS (June 30, 2009)

*Release Dates According to Mega Man Wiki

Sources: Bountie.Io/Blog, CreativeUncut.com, GamersTavern.com, GamingRocksOn.BlogSpot.com, HardcoreGaming101.net, Hero.Wikia.com, IGN.com, Legends-Station.com, LPArchive.org, Megaman.Wikia.com/Wiki, MobyGames.com, Nintendo.com, Nintendo.Wikia.com, PlayerFusion.com.br, StrategyWiki.org/Wiki, Wikipedia

Which Mega Man look is your favorite? Do you like the classic two-toned blue suit or one of the later, more vibrant designs? We’d also like to know which boss gave you the most trouble! Tell us in the comments below! And be sure to check out our Mega Man gifts for kids and adults!

Infographic designed by Brady Johnson