Classic shooting gameplay
Mega Man ZX is primarily an extension of the long running Mega Man X series, including the GBA Mega Man Zero series. Set 200 years after the Zeroseries, humans and robots have leaned to co-exist in peace. However, it wouldn't be Mega Man without robots running amok, and some robots still go 'maverick' even in these peaceful times. You play as either Vent or Aile, two kids who lost their parents in Maverick attacks. While working for a delivery company, your chosen kid is delivering some rare 'biometal' when they get caught in a Maverick attack, and during the chaos accidentally drops the package, which fuses with your kid and makes them a 'Model X' cyborg with Mega Man-like powers. It's decided your kid will keep the biometal, and as the game progresses you'll gain access to more biometal with different powers. The different weapons are creatively designed, and each is fun to play around with. A particular favorite is the FX biometal, which allows you to aim a flamethrower with the touchscreen. You can still change back into human form via a quick menu, primarily for communication with NPCs, which is necessary given the game's structure.
Mega Man ZX breaks from the series' traditions for its structure, and instead of simply choosing what level you will play next, the game is designed around a RPG-like hub world, which you can explore more of as you gain more powers, Metroid style. You still have to select missions from computers that are in various places throughout the city, but you'll also have to find the levels themselves. It's a nice change, and fleshes out the world quite well, but it's an inelegant effort. You'll have to traverse the whole world on some occasions, and while there are some teleporters, the layout is confusing, the map isn't very good, and you can often be stumped as to where you have to go. There are also enemies in many areas, and it can be quite annoying just trying to go somewhere without taking much damage. On top of this, the RPG type elements, such as NPC interaction, are rudimentary and clunky, often dropping to NES level 'fetch quest' grinding work.
There are many references to things in the past
Luckily the action levels are top notch 16-bit platform shooting. In classic Mega Man X style, you jump, wall jump, slash, charge and shoot your way through lush, nicely detailed levels shooting robots until you come to a boss who gives you a power-up once defeated. It sometimes feels like someone took a really good Super Nintendo game, buried it, and then re-released it 12 years later. Along with old-school sensibilities comes old-school difficulty, as Mega Man ZX is a difficult game that discourages reckless play. You'll have to patiently progress through levels, time your shots correctly, and use resources wisely to make it through. Young'uns not used to dying in their games may get a rude shock, as many bosses will require a couple of attempts until you even work out how to hurt them. An interesting twist is that in order to recover a boss's biometal, you must avoid shooting it in certain places to save as much as possible. With the right item, you can see which parts to avoid on a bottom screen chart.
Just like the gameplay, Mega Man ZX's graphics and sound are a pleasant throw-back to the best of the 16-bit era. Drawn entirely in traditional 2D, the levels are colourful, detailed and consistently styled, creating a cohesive universe that matches its predecessors, as are the well animated sprites. There's also some unexpected creativity at points, although much of the game will still be familiar to series veterans, theme-wise. It could almost certainly have been done on GBA, especially as none of the DS's extra features have been used much (even the bottom screen map, amazingly useful in the DS Castlevania games, is so badly done as to be pretty much a waste of time here), but the additional resolution of the DS screen is appreciated, as is the increased cart size allowing for some nice anime cutscenes. The music also fits this retro-theme, using instrument samples reminiscent of the SNES sound chip, with classic style catchy tunes to match.
The 2D worlds are intricately detailed
While the story isn't much, and the overworld stuff is sometimes a chore, Mega Man ZX is still a high quality 2D platformer. It doesn't have the flash of a more modern style game, but classy pixel art, tightly designed action levels, interesting locations and old-school playability make it worth a go for all old-school fans.
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