Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection Review

by

The Mega Man Battle Network series was a really important part of my childhood. It genuinely shaped who I am today, thanks to its focus on friendship and connection. That’s why it’s so odd to me that I never got around to playing Mega Man Star Force when I was younger. 2007 was a busy time – I was completely absorbed in being a top player in World of Warcraft and getting ready for college – and I didn’t have a Nintendo DS at the time.

Looking back now, I’ve been able to see how the Mega Man Star Force series changed (or stayed the same) with the release of the Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection (which I’ll refer to as Star Force LC). This collection has a lot of fantastic features that make it a must-have for both longtime Mega Man fans and anyone new to this particular series.

Just to be clear before we start, I didn’t test everything. Due to time limitations, I largely skipped optional extras like Andromeda Infinity/Deep Space and anything that involved repetitive gameplay, such as completing the Battle Card collection. Also, the Star Force Collection includes multiple versions of each game – three of Star Force 1, two of Star Force 2, and two of Star Force 3, totaling seven games. I didn’t play every single version; for example, I only played the ‘Leo’ version for my Star Force 1 playthrough, as going through all three versions didn’t seem necessary.

I wasn’t able to try out the multiplayer, mainly because it doesn’t let you play with people on other platforms – I’ll get into that more later. And honestly, I’m not going to spend too much time talking about the story in these older games. It is early 2000s Mega Man, though, so expect a lot of themes about the power of friendship, which, just to be clear, is a good thing!

As a big fan of the Battle Network games, I’d say Star Force feels pretty familiar in how you play. The biggest change is the camera – now it’s behind Mega Man, giving you a third-person view. If you’re new to the series, you basically control Mega Man on a three-space-wide grid, dodging attacks and fighting back. Star Force adds a shield and a quick lock-on, which I think makes the battles a bit more thrilling. Though, it does limit your movement options a little, since you only have three spaces to work with instead of the nine in Battle Network. I haven’t had a chance to try the Star Force multiplayer yet, but I love watching competitive Battle Network matches on YouTube, so I’m really curious to see what the pro players think of this collection and how Star Force plays competitively.

The team behind Star Force LC clearly worked hard to stay true to the original games, even when they had to rebuild certain parts using a new engine. This approach has both advantages and disadvantages. For instance, because the game doesn’t support a stylus or mouse, many puzzles had to be redesigned to work with a controller or keyboard. A good example is the star puzzle in the final dungeon of Star Force 1. Originally, you’d connect stars with a stylus on the DS, but in Star Force LC, you simply select which stars to connect using the controls.

As a long-time fan, I was really happy they kept the original scripts intact, even the awkward parts. That means the infamous racial slur in Star Force 1 is still there, and they do give you a warning when the collection loads. Honestly, though, with all the other changes they made to the games, it feels like they could have easily swapped out that one word without much trouble. It just seems like a missed opportunity to make the collection more universally enjoyable.

Beyond that, the game includes several nice new features. I even asked some friends who played the original Nintendo DS versions to help me compare them, so I appreciate their help! For example, transformations now have voice acting – you’ll hear “EM Wave Change! Geo Steler, on the air!” every time you transform into Mega Man. After each battle, Geo or Omega-Xis will also say a quick line, adding to the game’s personality. There’s also a splash screen where you can chat with characters like Geo and Zack, complete with voice acting, similar to what you find in the Battle Network Legacy Collection.

The updated visuals for character transformations and portraits are much clearer and sharper than in the older version. While there’s a high-definition filter option, it actually looks quite poor compared to the game’s detailed pixel art – thankfully, you can easily turn it off. You can also customize the battle music through the Gallery on the main menu, and it includes tracks from both the Battle Network and the complete Star Force soundtracks. (I was definitely listening to Surge of Power from Battle Network 6!)

The Star Force games include a lot of collectible items, and while they’re relatively easy to get, it takes a while. Back when these games were first released, they were heavily promoted with things like toys and even an anime series. So, it wasn’t a surprise to find hidden codes that unlocked powerful Battle Cards. However, there were also unique punch-cards released only in Japan. These cards had a special design that you had to line up with the DS screen and solve a small puzzle to unlock even more content.

The Star Force LC system is a bit unusual, and honestly, quite repetitive. It presents you with a list of items, but you have to select each one individually, leave the menu to receive it in the game, and then return to the menu to choose the next one. While it can be tedious, the Legacy Collection does include all the content that was previously only available in Japan. For instance, you can unlock the Tribe Form in Star Force 2 right from the start if you choose to.

The game includes several helpful features for players who like to complete everything. You can significantly increase the amount of in-game currency earned (Zenny Drops, up to 500%), and a new system called the Navi Locator makes it much easier to find optional bosses for re-fights. In the original game, finding these bosses again meant either knowing their exact locations or finding them by chance. The Navi Locator solves this by displaying the boss’s avatar on the game map, showing you exactly where to go for a re-fight.

The game includes optional content from the Battle Network series, letting you connect with Megaman.exe and even use Lan Hikari as your avatar in Star Force 2. You can also customize how often you encounter enemies – from completely avoiding them by holding the right trigger, to increasing the rate to ‘high’. Releasing the trigger returns the encounter rate to normal. Other helpful features include automatic healing after battles and a Mega Buster damage boost of up to 500%.

One interesting addition is the ability to search for matches in both ranked and casual multiplayer across all three games simultaneously – a change from the previous Battle Network Legacy Collection, which required queuing for each game separately. While this could potentially speed up matchmaking, finding a game will likely still be challenging because the game doesn’t support crossplay between different platforms. You’ll be limited to playing with others on the same system, and won’t be able to team up with friends on other platforms, which is a surprisingly restrictive choice.

I really enjoy Mega Man games, but competitive multiplayer is pretty limited. Splitting the player base between different versions doesn’t seem like a good idea. The biggest Mega Man Battle Network competitive community, N1GP, uses emulators like Tango to connect players for matches, share strategies, and build teams – which keeps everyone in one large group. It remains to be seen where the competitive scene will focus, but the lack of crossplay feels like a missed opportunity.

Before I finish, I highly recommend checking out the Battle Network Legacy Collection. In my opinion, Megaman Battle Network 5: Double Team is the best in the series, Team Colonel is the strongest team, and NapalmMan is the ultimate DoubleSoul – feel free to disagree, but I stand by that!

Despite a few minor flaws, the Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection is a great package overall, especially considering all the useful additions. It’s fantastic that both new players and longtime fans can now enjoy the Star Force series, and customize their gameplay without needing emulators. Capcom deserves praise for bringing these older games to modern platforms in convenient bundles. Whether you’re new to quirky action RPGs or a returning fan, I highly recommend the Star Force Legacy Collection.

9

We tested Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection on PC. It’s also available on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.

Read More

2026-03-25 18:28