Megaman X4, it's one classic game that went to take advantage of the Playstation 1's technology back then and is still a classic. So I did play Megaman X3 on the Playstation 1 (really hard game), X4 tries to balance difficulty of levels with easier controls and other stuff to make things "easier" while giving harder level designs to add to the fun factor. And this was the first game to actually make Zero playable- his buster gun was removed in favor of his sword which he plays differently. Like the "Rockman and Forte" game which was later released for the Game Boy Advance as "Megaman and Bass", you play as either Megaman X or Zero for the entire duration of the game. So here once you play as either, you can't change characters and each one has a separate storyline.
So Zero here is basically the "Bass" of the series but not really. Playing as Zero, we discover his origins that he was actually a robot created by Dr. Wily, and that "The Doctor" was actually Dr. Wily. While Megaman's storyline focuses with Double, Zero has a more interesting one. Zero has a relationship with Iris, her "brother" Colonel and the Repliforce. Zero's storyline is also more tragic considering he clashes with Colonel a conflict he wanted to avoid which leads to his battle with Iris. Poor Zero thinks he can't save anyone when he just saved the world and this is probably the darkest X entry ever as four means death- Double (who is really Sigma's agent), Iris, Colonel and General all die thanks to Sigma's engineered conflict.
For aesthetics, we have interesting Anime-like cutscenes which sadly the next game up to X6 didn't restore. In terms of gameplay, graphics are really upgraded for the PS1 and we do get a lot. Megaman has standard must collect armor pieces if I expect to cut through the game with ease (which he has a hidden armor cheat) and Zero, well he doesn't get upgraded. Now I could talk more about Zero and why I had more fun with him. Zero is a challenge considering he uses a sword and not a buster gun... which he is a short range character yet that sword packs a punch. Aside from that, Zero gets UNLIMITED weapon usage using his sword except for Rakkoha. Which he gets fun to play especially when he learns to double jump, it becomes easier to maneuver later stages than when you are playing as Megaman.
For boss fights, I'd say they are difficult but fortunately not THAT difficult like Megaman and Bass. I know the challenge is tough but the game is generous to refill your weapon energy every time you start over, like in Megaman 8. For Zero, he has a harder time with bosses with his short range BUT it's fun to get creative right? I just thought Zero's saber techniques can also be the most fun thing to do in the game. X gets boring because of him getting "too easy". On the other hand, I wish Zero's background as Dr. Wily's successor was more explored after Sigma revealed more of his past and Zero's past in Zero's story.
My overall verdict? 8.5/10. You MUST play this X game!
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