For those of us who enjoyed Mega Man 9 - a return to the old-school, side-scrolling style of game play - you'll no doubt have the upcoming Mega Man 10 firmly nailed down on your radar.  Capcom just released quite a bit of information about their upcoming downloadable trip to nostalgia-land.  They dropped the names and abilities of many of the special weapons you'll be able to make use of throughout the game, as well as the difficulty modes and the release schedule.

First, let's take a look at the weapons, shall we?  Capcom has worked up nifty images for all the abilities they talked about today, which shows what each can do, so you can get an idea behind the strategy of using them.

megaman10_wheelcutter

megaman10_watershield

megaman10_tripleblade

megaman10_thunderwool

megaman10_solarblaze

megaman10_reboundstriker

megaman10_commandobomb

If you're having problem reading more than the weapon name, click on the image to see more detail.  These aren't all that Capcom let out.  The game also includes two different modes.  If you played the previous title, you'll know these games can be pretty brutal.  Apparently the developers recognized this and adjusted for it.  While normal mode is still...normal.  As in, you have the typical difficulty.  But there is also an easier mode where the enemies have simpler attacking patterns, fire less projectiles and the mode just has fewer enemies on the screen to deal with.  In addition to that, power-ups are more powerful, checkpoints are more frequent and you'll have more lives to start with.

The challenge mode also returns from Mega Man 9, giving you the chance to work on various challenges and master controlling Mega Man through the various treacherous situations he will likely find himself in.  This is good for both beginners - to be able to master various techniques before playing through the whole game - and for returning players - to brush up and get the correct synapses firing again.

Finally, I'm sure you're all wanting to know when you can download Mega Man 10.  Here's the release schedule:

  • WiiWare ~ 1000 Wii Points: March 1, 2010
  • PlayStation Network ~ $9.99: March 11, 2010
  • Xbox Live ~ 800 Microsoft Points: March 31, 2010

So, as you see, the game will be incrimentally released throughout the month of march.  You would think they'd do it in alphabetical order or something, so as not to make Xbox 360 owners feel so left out, but I guess Capcom prefers the Wii, eh?  Regardless, in March you'll be able to play this game, which is new and old again, both at the same time.  I'm looking forward to it!