Episode 464: Mega Man Zero (Patreon)

In 1993, Mega Man X players watched with horrified fascination as a red Reploid named Zero sacrificed himself to give the titular Mega Man X a fighting chance at saving humanity. We needn't have worried: The old boy was just fine. In fact, Zero's talent for dying and coming back to life eventually earned him a title spot in Mega Man Zero, a 2002 platforming/adventure game for the Game Boy Advance.

Zero awakens decades after the events in the Mega Man X series to discover the justice he and X fought for has been twisted beyond recognition. The elite city of Neo Arcadia eliminates Reploids without provocation, all in the name of protecting humans. And X himself is seemingly in charge of this "paradise," making the relentless slaughter all the more disturbing.

Zero's skills and reflexes are put to the test in his quest for peace. Like, capital-T tested. Nadia Oxford gets together with Retronauts host Stuart Gipp and Brian "Protodude" Austrian of the Rockman Corner to talk about Mega Man Zero's challenging gameplay, intriguing story, and infamous lust for punishing players. (So much lust.) The conversation even extends to the other three games in the series, and outlines the changes developer IntiCreates eventually made in the name of accessibility.

Most importantly, there is in-depth conversation about the Mega Man Zero series' message on cohabitation between humans and robots. Where are all the humans in the overarching Mega Man narrative? Here they are! And they're kind of pissed!

Edits by Greg Leahy, and final cover art still in progress.

• 05:24 - Zero: Theme of ZERO
• 12:38 - Zero: Neo Arcadia
• 20:54 - Zero: Result of Mission
• 31:53 - Zero: Crash | Zero 2: Instructions
• 45:48 - Zero 3: Prismatic
• 52:07 - Zero 2: Departure
• 1:03:55 - Zero 4: Straight Ahead
• 1:11:41 - Zero 4: Promise -Next New World-
• 1:16:55 - Zero/ZX Legacy Collection: Trail on Powdery Snow (Zero 3 "Reploid Remix")
• Closing - Zero/ZX Legacy Collection: Sentimental Z