Topic: Which Mega Man game should I get?

I enjoyed Mega Man 9 on WiiWare, despite it being far too hard for me, and only allowing me to complete one stage in total so far. I still want to give the series another shot though, so which of the three NES titles would you guys recommend to me personally (I'm not asking for the best, I'm asking for a combination of excellence and easiness... at least to the extent of Mega Man easiness).

I would not recommend 1. There are fewer main levels, and if 9 is too hard for you, you have no chance of passing the first stage of Dr. Wily's castle. The yellow devil or whatever it is called is ridiculously hard. That's not to say it's a bad game. I don't regret buying it, but out of the three, if I just had to get one, this would not be the one.

2 and 3 are both good. 3 is not generally hard, but there are these harder reprises of previous levels before Dr. Wily, and I can't pass most of them. 2 has an easy mode, but even on easy I can only get two or three levels into Dr. Wily's castle. So the difficulty between the two is probably about even, at least for me.

It is hard to judge between the two because they are so wrapped up in nostalgia, but I would go with 3. Unfortunately, I can't pinpoint why I prefer it, so I guess my opinion isn't too helpful.

I think 2 is generally the favorite though, so despite my preference, that might be the better choice for you.

Honestly, if you're looking for something easier than 9, you're going to find yourself out of luck, I think. I can get to Dr. Wily on 9, which is much farther than I can get in any of the VC titles. It's a shame 4-6 haven't been released yet because those dial down the difficulty quite a bit, and I think they're generally better (partly because of the difficulty).

2 is the one you'll hear everyone rant about. People always say it's more difficult than 3, and that it has better level design. My opinion? Completely not true. Imo that perception is so backwards. Honestly I'd recommend both 2 & 3, since both are superb titles. But if you're going to start with just one, I highly, highly recommend 3. And no, having the slide, which is absent in 2, does NOT make the third game any easier. In Megaman 2, all I have to do is beat Metalman and run through the whole game using his power. And you hardly ever run out, because the amount of energy used is so small. In 3, using any power on anything but the boss can be a major mistake, because they're depleted so much faster. Also, in 3, after defeating the robot masters, you have to run through 4 devilishly hard levels, in which you fight 2 of the MM2 robot masters (making a total of 8 more robot masters to kill).

So yeah, to the point- my recommendation is 3.

So... you're saying three is harder, anthonyb? Thanks, I'll go for two, and then if I get the hang of it, I'll get on to three at a later date. Or am I missing something here?

I would start with Mega Man 2. The difficulty is not crazy insane like Mega Man 9. It has some of the best music and very colorful visuals. You can't go wrong for 500 Wii points. If you beat Mega Man 2 and 3 then try MM9 again you should be ready for it at that point.

Mega man 3

Yes, both games will be a good warm up for 9. That's exactly what I did. I don't know about you guys, but my thumb gets sooo tired after fighting the wall shooters in MM9 on the first Wiley level.

@TwistedVivid: Thanks for your input... but why?

And thanks for everyone's help. I'll sleep on it, and decide tomorrow what I'll do

OR you could find the GC anniversary edition.

EVERYONE SHUT UP! All megamans (originals) are hellishly difficult.
But megaman two would be the best choice

I refuse to shut up.

Mega Man II is the easiest, and usually considered the best in the series. I like V but it isn't on the VC yet.

Megaman 2. If you like it, then 3 or 9. MM1 is difficult, a bit awkward and, honestly, not all that enjoyable. (and I say that as a nes MM fan)

Digiki, Mega Man II and Mega Man V are on Game boy.
You must be talking about Mega Man 2 and Mega Man 5

Number 2. it's the best for you, it's good and it have a dificult option for the people outside japan.
So get it NOW!!!

Mega Man 2 is the best choice.

Meh, true enough, although the title screens are all in roman numerals.
Cliche time! You can't judge a book by it's cover, its whats on the inside that counts.

Mega Man 1 is almost unplayable hard and frustrating. Mark my words, I went through it and it was hell. It didnt push the Mega Man franchise, Mega Man 2 did !

Mega Man 2 and 3 are both great and easier then MM9 altast for sure. Both can be "abused" to reduce the difficulty even more. MM2 has Metal Mans insanely overpowered Metal Blades and very easy bosses on "normal mode" and MM3 has the "too usefull" Rush Jet to carry you over any tricky situations and a laughable final battle.

But:
It is important to know if you are going to play on a PAL or NTSC TV !

Mega Man 2´s portation to the PAL system is horribly. Yes, all PAL games run slower but in Mega Man 2 even the music does ! If you know the great tunes (you should) it is sooo painfully to hear them on PAL. The whole game also plays very "sticky".

Mega Man 3 got a much better port ... it still runs about 5/6 slower but the music plays at the correct tempo and the game plays much more fluid.

So:
NTSC: MM2 or MM3 (rather 2, but just play both ffs)
PAL : MM3 (and hope for 4 to 6 to follow)

Why, thank you all very much. I'll try Mega Man 2, and if I have any trouble with the game... I'll never touch a game branded "hard" again

MM2 isnt easy!!!!

Well, since you already picked MM2, I shouldn't bother...but...

obligatory Mega Man whore post

Buy 1,2,3 AND 9! Now!

Sensible post

I'd say 2 or 3, leaning more towards 3 with the slide, 4 "extra" levels and 8 "extra" bosses. MM3 and MM5 were the first two MM games I owned so I've got a special fondness towards them.