I have been putting off replaying this game until I could get through the first game without continues. Well, that hasn't happened yet, so I decided to just load this up anyway. However, I didn't expect to blaze through both difficulties in one day!
I had no idea that "normal" difficulty was created specifically for North America. It was as easy as I remembered. I then tried "difficult" later in the day and there was actually some challenge. For example, I tried a slightly different order with the bosses, and Metal Man was much more difficult this time around, especially since I didn't yet have the boomerangs.
Speaking of Metal Man, his weapon is overpowered! It's essentially as strong and versatile as the regular cannon, except you can aim it in any direction! Add in the fact that it uses almost no power, and you could almost use it as the default weapon in all levels. I also found it hilarious that Metal Man dies in three hits to his own weapon.
Unlike the first Mega Man, I see no absolutely clear stage order. There is a bit more leeway. The levels themselves often encourage getting certain weapons first, even if you don't need them for the boss. So, it feels like there is actually a few small decisions to make, while in the first game, it is pretty much set in stone.
This game was one of the first NES games that really impressed me with its graphics. In my mind at the time, Capcom was the company that made the best graphics, and Konami made the best music. It's kind of strange to look at the graphics now and remember being blown away by the clouds and enemies in the Airman stage. Megaman actually goes behind the clouds! Unimaginable at the time.
The music is also well done, but I prefer the music from the first game. The tunes are less memorable here.
There was something I found strange in the ending credits. It starts the list with boss "No. 9", even though there were only 6 bosses in the first game.
Here is my original thread with my impressions of the first game (one of my first threads on the forum):
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