Nintendo Direct Minis aren’t often jam-packed with exciting new announcements, but today’s did have some pretty intriguing reveals. Along with the somewhat surprising reveal thatPersona 5 Royalis finally heading to the Switchafter years of speculation and rumors, along with its predecessorsPersona 3 PortableandPersona 4 Golden, Nintendo also announced some neat titles heading over to the hybrid console in the next 12 months. One of these announcements was a collection of some of the most beloved Game Boy Advance titles of all time, theMega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection.
Heading to the Nintendo Switch as well as PC and PS4 in 2023, theMega Man Battle Network Legacy Collectionbundles together all 10Battle Networkgames, originally released on the Game Boy Advance in the early 2000s. While the first and secondBattle Networkgames were standalone releases, the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth entries all had two different versions, much like thePokemonseries. While the general narrative and gameplay mechanics are the same between versions, each version does have their own unique set of exclusive content, often affecting certain story sequences and the collectibles that can be found throughout the game.Mega Man Battle Network 4: Blue Moon and Red Sunhave some of the most diverging content of the bunch.
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Every Difference Between Mega Man Battle Network 4: Blue Moon and Red Sun
For those who have never played aMega Man Battle Networkgame before, there are a few things to know before the versions' differences are explained.Mega Man Battle Networktrades in its source material’s run-and-gun side-scrolling for anaction-RPG card-battler. While player do control the titular hero on the field, firing Mega Man’s Buster at their opponents, they also control Lan, who has access to a range of Battle Chips.
Acting similarly to just about any other collectible item in a TCG,Mega Man Battle Network’s Battle Chipsare found throughout the game, and are used to aid Mega Man in battle. These Battle Chips are categorized into rarity, ranging from common, to Giga. As the series progressed, this Battle Chip system would evolve, and become more complex, adding new types of Chips that would affect the gameplay in different ways.
One of the biggest differences betweenMega Man Battle Network 4: Blue Moon and Red Sunis that each version has five exclusive Gigachips that are wholly unique to that game.Red Sunallows the player to obtain Meteo Red Sun, HolyDream, Bug Chain, Forte, and Darkness Barrier, whileBlue Moonhas Blue Moon Ray, Signal Red, Curse of Bug, Forte Another, and Delta Ray Edge. Each of these Gigachips unleashes devastating attacks on the opponent, or can greatly heal the player, but only one Gigachip can be equipped per deck.
InMega Man Battle Network 4, players can use a special type of item called a Soul to transform Mega Man, and grant him temporary special abilities. InpreviousBattle Networkgames, these items were called Styles. BothBlue MoonandRed Suneach have six exclusive Souls to collect, each of which can be obtained by beating the game’s story and advancing through its tournaments.Red Sungives players the GutsSoul, FireSoul, WindSoul, RollSoul, ThunderSoul, and SearchSoul, whileBlue Moonhas the AquaSoul, NumberSoul, MetalSoul, WoodSoul, JunkSoul, and BluesSoul. Each of these will change the type of ammo that Mega Man fires, or will grant him a powerful temporary ability to use in battle.
In theMega Man Battle Networkseries, the player fights againstsentient computer programs named NetNavi, usually shortened to Navi. In the game’s Tournament mode, players will fight against multiple Navi in a consecutive series, with a storyline connecting each fight. Each version ofMega Man Battle Network 4has their own set of six unique Navi opponents, withBlue Moonhaving Aquaman, Blues, Junkman, Metalman, Numberman, and Woodman, whileRed Sunhas Fireman, Gutsman, Roll, Searchman, Thunderman, and Windman, each of which give the player the corresponding exclusive Souls mentioned above.
Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collectionreleases in 2023 on PC, PS4, and Switch.
