Mega Man & Bass

Mega Man & Bass is a Game Boy Advance video game that stars the two characters mentioned in the title. It was released in order to celebrate the blue bombers' 15th anniversary, and is a homage to the classic Mega Man sidescrolling games during a time that was infested by RPG's. While not a revival of the NES titles (players' would have to wait till Mega Man 9), it did retain many of the aspects that made the series so popular while not refraining from introducing new ideas.

Gameplay

As always, each boss defeated will give the playable character their special power. To keep in fashion with the originals, there is a set pattern in which to take on the bosses, though what this pattern is is unknown seeing that many of the stages are available from the start. For example, it is best to take on Cold Man first, come in possession of the Ice Wall, and then head over to Burner Man's stage and use the newly acquired weapon against him, which will deliver more damage than any other. The order in which to defeat the bosses are:

1. The Green Devil is the first boss that you are forced to take on.
2. Cold Man
3. Burner Man
4. Pirate Man
5. Ground Man
6. Tengu Man
7. Magic Man
8. Astro Man
9. Dynamo Man

After you've defeated all the bosses, you'll head onto the Crystal Complex and finally take on the primary antagonist of the game who is simply known as King.

The two playable characters in the game, Mega Man and Bass, are both entire different, with each possessing three unique skills that the other doesn't have. The only major similarity, excluding the basic maneuvers, is the ability to take on the powers of the defeated bosses.

Mega Man's exclusive abilities include the Buster Shot, which will shoot a shot in the direction he's facing. The main advantage Buster Shot has over Bass' shooter is that Mega Man can move while shooting, while Bass can't. Charge Shot will shoot a large blast when the player holds down the B button, and slide will cause Mega Man to slide under places that Bass can't reach.

Bass, on the other hand, has three unique moves of his own. Dash can be performed by tapping twice in the desired direction, which will cause him to move faster than before. His Bas Buster can shoot rapid fire just by holding down the B button, and, in an advantage over Mega Man, he can change which direction his shots will go. Finally his Bass Jump is a double jump that is considered his primary advantage over Mega Man.

One special feature that the game has are the 100 distinct CD's that are scattered throughout the game. Some of them can only be acquired using Mega Man's slide and Bass' Bass Jump, and each one you come in possession of will be added to a special CD collection.