After 26 Years, Mega Man Seems to Finally Be Fixing One of Its Most Prominent Characters in Dual Override

Mega Man remains an icon of the gaming industry, even though the character has been in a bit of a drought. The last mainline entry in the series, Mega Man 11, came out almost a decade ago. The upcoming Mega Man: Dual Override looks to be a return to form for the series, with the crisp graphics and tight gameplay making for a very solid modern take on the franchise.

The Dual Override title is extra fitting because the game actually has two gameplay styles, thanks to a major overhaul and upgrade for Proto Man. The long-running character has previously felt more like a reskin of his more famous brother, but Dual Override reshapes the character in some creative ways. It’s a big advancement for a character who’s been around for over 35 years — and is a long-overdue update for the fan-favorite former Break Man.

Proto Man Gives Dual Override A Whole New Mega Man Experience

While the blue bomber gets a fun upgrade in Mega Man: Dual Override, the more impressive rehaul is the one Capcom has given to his older brother. Functionally, Protoman plays the same as his brother in terms of raw gameplay — he’s a run-and-gun side-scrolling hero, with a blaster as his primary weapon. However, the finer details are where the development team has honed in on the character’s more unique qualities. His blaster feels heavier than Mega Man’s own buster blaster, doing more damage but failing to travel as far as his brother’s shots. His charge attack is a semi-circle slash, requiring the player to close the distance with the enemy if they want the attack to really hit.

The biggest change is Proto Man’s shield, which completely reinvents the character’s playstyle. The shield serves as a ranged weapon that can be thrown in a curvy arc as well as a traversal mechanic, with shoves and uppercuts serving both as impressive leaps and powerful attacks. The trick is that the shield comes with an overheat system, which becomes more strained the more the player uses it. If it overheats, Proto Man will be left exhausted (and more importantly, vulnerable) to enemy attacks. That shield alone reinvents the moment-to-moment gameplay of Dual Override. The two characters approach the same levels in distinct ways, with different qualities and learning curves.

While Mega Man unlocks new abilities with each boss he defeats, Proto Man is limited to what he has — as well as an override ability that overpowers him for a few moments but leaves him open to counterattack once the major boost dies down. The same platforming challenges and boss battles are completely different between both characters, emphasizing the depth afforded to each playstyle. The fact that both of them are their own protagonists gives the game an additional bit of shelf life and forces players to approach challenges in completely different ways — better get used to Proto Man’s shield mechanics, because they’re key in overtaking some of the robot masters the player will encounter. It’s effectively a second single-player campaign that is strong enough to stand on its own (and is a pretty big incentive for giving Dual Override a try).

After Decades, Proto Man Finally Feels Like His Own Character

Proto Man debuted in Mega Man 3 and was initially set up as an antagonist before graduating to an ally and playable character. The first notable robot constructed by Dr. Light, Proto Man is effectively Mega Man’s older brother — and like Luigi before him, has a similar but slightly tweaked gameplay mechanic. At first, Proto Man played very similarly to his younger brother, with the defensive shield he carried being the biggest distinction in their kits. Even more modern titles like Mega Man 9 and Mega Man 10 kept Proto Man very close to the Blue Bomber, with a few unique traits like a sliding dash to help distinguish the characters. Dual Override takes it significantly further, though, really emphasizing the idea that Proto Man is his own character with his own adventure. Even taking on the same missions results in different experiences, with Proto Man’s shield giving him advantages over certain enemies that Mega Man couldn’t match.

This upgrade for Proto Man is long overdue. While similar palette-swap classic characters like Luigi gradually developed far more distinct gameplay mechanics and distinct personalities, Proto Man has still felt largely defined by his comparisons to Mega Man. Dual Override is doing very well for the franchise, with the gorgeous graphics benefiting from the underlying gameplay as rock-solid as ever. It’s all baked into what makes Mega Man: Dual Override more than just a retread of a classic series but a genuine addition to a larger legacy. Mega Man has been long overdue for a resurgence, with Dual Override already justifying fan interest with its approach to the title character. The advancement of Proto Man and his elevation to a genuine peer of his brother just makes it all the better.