Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters (Arcade) Review
Now we’re playing with power…sort of.
~by tankMage (July 2025)
Score: 79/100 (Decent)
I figured I’d review Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters as a follow up to the first arcade game, Mega Man: The Power Battle. Not a great idea on my part, because the games are so similar this one felt stale from the oustset. This game is kind of odd, because there is some doubt as to whether or not it was ever released in North America. Regardless, The Power Fighters is a small improvement on the first game. It’s more difficult, has better bosses, and drops the roulette wheel stage select in favor for one where the player can actually see the boss he or she is fighting before choosing the stage. And they added a fourth playable character. But it’s freakin’ Duo, so who cares? At least Rush is in this game.
At the Same time, they still used the same ending for every story, a fair amount of the bosses were recycled from the first game, and it cost 2 coins to play instead of one.
I should also note that there is a certain amount of mystery surrounding the localization of this game. Like it’s predecessor, Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters seems to be a primarily Japanese release, but it may have seen a limited run in North America. While I could not find anything to confirm its release in the United States, I have a vague memory of playing this game in an arcade in the late 1990s and there are stories about it coming to Canada, though it could have very well made its way into the US through the second hand market. Please let me know in the comments if you encountered this arcade cabinet in North America (and where) back in the 90s, because it’s an interesting piece of arcade history. It would also be cool to know if it found its way to other parts of the world.
Story
Power Fighters has a bit more substance to it than Power Battle (the first Mega Man arcade title) thanks to its references to Mega Man 8 and the Mega Man X series. The basis of the story remains the same: Dr. Wily resurrected a bunch of Robot Masters and started causing trouble. He stole a new device Dr. Light was working on, kidnapped Roll for some unimaginable reason, and is generally making a mess of life in 20XX. There are three stories to play, each with its own goal and set of Robot Masters, but anyone who has played a Mega Man can guess what’s going to happen in the end.
This game suffers from the same issue Power Battle had with its endings being the same no matter what the player did or which story they played. The ending only changes with the character. That said, I have to give them credit for including some cool lore and adding a new hero. I also have to take points away for including a shameless plug for Mega Man 8.
Gameplay
This game plays a lot like any Mega Man title: you jump, shoot, and slide your way to glory while collecting weapons from bosses which can be used to beat other bosses. The main difference is there are no stages between the player and the boss, which makes Power Fighters feel more like a mashup of the fighting and boss rush genres. The action is fast paced and there are a lot of robots to test your mettle against with Mega Man, Proto Man, Bass, and Duo.
All four characters can use weapons from bosses and charge of their shots. They can also execute a special charge attack by charging their weapon and pressing up on the stick while firing. Everyone’s special is different and very fun to use, plus Duo handles more like a melee fighter, which adds some much needed variety to the action.
Capcom also added special power ups which Dr. Light sometimes sends to players when they are low on health. These power ups summon Rush (who should have been in the first game) Beat, and Bass’s pet, Treble. Rush will help Mega Man attack bosses or acts as a springboard. Beat gives Proto Man and Duo a shield. And Treble helps Bass dish out the pain. These additions are really nice improvements to the formula, especially in light of the fact that it costs 2 coins to play Power Fighters while the previous game only cost 1!!
The bosses were also improved with new movesets and a better selection overall. I was happy to see Quick Man and Elec Man, but still no Metal Man. On a side note, I didn’t like the way they redesigned Elec Man, but you can’t win them all. Some Robot Masters were recycled from Power Battle (lazy!) but they got new moves, so it’s kind of OK. Wily’s machine is a lot cooler in this one as well…but it only has one form.
One odd thing the devs did was have bosses occasionally drop health and weapon refills upon getting hit and when they are defeated. Players also have to pick up the defeated Robot Master’s weapon at the end of the fight if they want to use it, which was also an odd choice. Getting energy from a defeated boss works as a callback to the boss rematches from the platformers, but having them drop energy while they are still functional is just weird.
Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters is touch better than the first game with all its improvements, but it still gets repetitive if you’re trying to beat every story with every hero. In fact it overstays its welcome thanks to the inclusion of Duo. Sure, he’s kind of interesting to play as, but this is just one of those games that would have been better if the devs took risks and made it more like an actual fighting game, which was one of the things that bothered me about the first title.
Challenge
Mega Man’s first arcade game, Power Battle, was far too easy. Power Fighters is slightly more difficult, at least initially, but I found myself getting good at it much quicker than the first game. It’s possible I was just paying more attention to what I was doing since the bosses put up more of a fight, but it may be a result of the game design being easier to exploit. Either way, I found myself crushing bosses, even Dr. Wily, after playing through with two characters. Hell, I even figured out how to exploit one of the bosses on my first playthrough.
It’s probably good that this game is easier to learn. In my Power Battle review I mentioned that you could probably beat the game on your first play with less than $5 US. It took me a bit more than that with this one. I must have used $7 or $8 in coins, because a single play requires 2 coins. I wasn’t spending real money, so it’s not a big deal, but that’s a dramatic price hike for a game that was made just a year after the first one.
Graphics
Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters looks awesome, but it lacks the liveliness of the first game. A lot of assets from Power Battle were recycled back into its sequel, but a lot of the little details that made the first game so nice looking were gone. It’s a shame, because Capcom had a chance to really followup on Power Battle and decided to cut corners, but they’ve been pulling antics like that for a long time.
Sound
Once again, the remixes of old Mega Man tunes that appear in this were superb and the sound effects were just as good. I really love the arcade rendition of the Wily Fortress theme from Mega Man 2 they used for the Mech Dragon fight and I was happy to hear it every time it came up.
User Interface
The controls were great for the most part, but I did encounter a problem. Sometimes I couldn’t move my character after getting the Beat shield. Full disclosure: I played on an emulator (oh no!) so I’m not going to count this against the game. I imagine the vast majority of people who play this game are going to do so via emulation or the Anniversary Collection, so it’s something to look out for if it’s an emulation issue. If it’s not…shame on Capcom!
Final Thoughts
Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters improves on the first game a little bit, but it’s still just OK. You’d really have to love the Mega Man series in a way that surpasses even my fanboyism to play this game more than once or twice. Just like its predecessor, Power Fighters is a novelty that’s great for a rainy day, but that’s about it.
Thanks for reading my Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters review!!
RetroMaggedon.com ©2025