In Mega Man Zero 2, he tells Zero about how gave a shy student a doughnut after she forgot her lunch on a field trip. He was a sailor, a baker (this is important), and a teacher.Īndrew was particularly happy as a teacher. He talks about professions that put him in close contact with humans and their children and recalls how peaceful things were. It's not confirmed, but it seems as if Andrew's stories recall a time before Neo Arcadia turned Reploids into pariahs-possibly at some point between the Mega Man X and Zero series, or in the earliest days of Neo Arcadia before everything went south. This short but sweet exchange gives Mega Man Zero more story development than the Mega Man X games' hours dialogue and cutscenes. Moreover, Andrew explains he's "old" because he modified himself after his mate grew older and resented his eternal youth. That's why one of the first stories Andrew tells you-how he once fell in love with a human and lived with her for a time-is immediately interesting. | Inti Creates/Capcomįor instance, even though the Mega Man X and Mega Man Zero games revolve around humans' and Reploids' attempts to co-exist, very few humans make an appearance in the games' stories. Reploids and humans living together, mass hysteria. It's usually worth your time because much of what he says fills in some of the Mega Man series' lore gaps. He asks Zero to listen to his stories about the old days. Who is Andrew?Īndrew is an old Reploid who shows up in Mega Man Zero, Mega Man Zero 2, and Mega Man Zero 3. It's not relevant to the timeline Andrew relays in the Mega Man Zero games. The Battle Network/Star Force games take place in a different universe from the main series, and therefore subscribes to a different canon. There's lots more to it playing the Mega Man Zero/ZX Collection should help you wrap your head around at least part of the Mega Man timeline.Īs for the other games, Mega Man Battle Network links to Mega Man Star Force.
Mega Man X is a paragon of justice in the Mega Man X series that precedes the Zero series, so you're immediately driven to try and understand what went wrong.
(Reploids have an unfortunate tendency to go "Maverick" and attack humans the Zero series takes place some years after a particularly huge Maverick War decimated the human population.) The first Mega Man Zero game gets your attention by setting up Mega Man X as the mastermind in charge of the Reploid cull. The overarching story for the Mega Man Zero series is especially interesting: It follows the struggle of Reploid refugees who are being mercilessly dispatched for the "safety" of the humans living in a walled city called Neo Arcadia. Many of the games examine nature versus nurture, the impact of war on the soldiers on the frontlines, and the relationship between humans and Reploids (our sentient mechanical counterparts). That doesn't mean the Mega Man series is bereft of interesting messages, themes, or storylines. It's been over 20 years and I still can't unhear it.) (Incidentally, a friend once pointed out to me that Zero sounds like Pee-Wee Herman when his scream of anguish trails off.