Mega Man X8 for Sony Playstation 2

The Mega Man X games have gone a long way progressing in graphics, gameplay, and story ever since the series started 1993 on the SNES console. Mega Man X8 serves as the final installment in this long series before it shifts to the events of the Mega Man Zero titles. With it being the last, getting through the game can be a bit difficult even for some experienced Mega Man X players.

Gameplay

The good news regarding the gameplay is that Mega Man X8 returns to the classic style gameplay that’s used with the older Mega Man X games with better camera angles than Mega Man X7. There are a few 3D elements to it, but players who have played the previous series should get the hang of things quickly. You can select X, Zero, or Axl to plow through the 8 levels that each have end bosses along with some final levels afterwards. Each character has their own set of abilities that can be obtained from the 8 bosses. Two characters can be chosen and can be switched at any time by pressing the L2 button or the R2 button for a combo attack.

Good strategy is needed to go through these levels as some of them can be really frustrating as many of the level designs require some memorization or trial and error to overcome. The limited continue system also adds to the frustration, but there are some game cheats that can add a little bit of thrill to the experience if the game proves to be too hard.

Hints

If you are starting the game for the first time, make sure you play on normal or hard because the easy mode doesn’t give you access to the ending and battle with the final boss. Rare metals can never be found in this mode either. Normal is a good start, but playing on hard will give you the added benefit of fighting Lumine after you defeat Sigma.

When selecting your character, simply choose the one that best fits your playing style. Most players end up with X or Axl since they both specialize in range attacks, but melee combatants will have more fun with Zero’s close quarter and evasive skills.

After you beat the easy introduction stage at Noah’s Park, you will be introduced to 8 bosses. Like the old Mega Man games, you will need to beat them in a certain order to exploit weaknesses of future bosses. The preferred order is Gravity Antonion, Earthrock Trilobyte, Gigavolt Man-o-War, Avalanche Yeti, Burn Rooster, Bamboo Pandamonium, Optic Sunflower, and, Dark Mantis.

As you progress the levels you will encounter a lot of baddies along the way. If some of the give you any trouble, take them on with double attacks by pressing R2.  Whenever your life gets low, change characters by pressing the L2 so that the character that’s not on the battlefield can regain his health over time. Don’t forget to perform combos on enemies too so you can be rewarded with more metals that is used for the development shop.

Cheats

All of the game cheats listed are button sequences that should be entered at the Title Screen where it says “Press Start”. After the code has been entered, simply start the on normal or hard. The codes that unlock playable characters (navigators) and the Sigma Blade need to be purchased development shop before they can be used for the development shop.

Unlock Alia – Down, R1, Up, L1, Square, X, Triangle, Circle
Unlock Layer – Square, Square, Right, X, R1
Unlock Pallette – R1, X, Left, Square, Square
Unlock Sigma Blade – L3, L3, R3, L3, L3, R3, L3, L3, R3, L3, L3, R3
Unlock X’s Ultimate Armor – Left (3x), Right (3x), Left (4x) Right, (4x)
Unlock Zero’s Black Armor – L1, L1, R1, R1, L1 (4x)
Unlock Axl’s White Armor – L2 (3x), R2 (3x), L2 (3x), R2
Unlock Cutman Boss – Left, Circle, Up, Triangle, Down, X, Right, Square, L1, R1, L2, R2

Alternatively, you can unlock most of these codes just by playing through the game and purchasing all the metals of each character and loading the clear data after finishing the game.

Mega Man X8 can be a difficult game, but the real skill involves the familiarization of the stages and the memorization of the boss attack patterns. After you mastered that, you should be able to finish the game and play the game all over on hard mode.