- Quick Summary: Mega Man: Dual Override is a challenging but addictive 2D platformer that rewards learning enemy patterns and mastering abilities. Despite frequent deaths, something about the gameplay left me wanting to play more.
Mega Man: Dual Override is a tough 2D platformer, and I quickly discovered that I might be worse at these games than I thought.
I went into my preview expecting a relatively simple platformer, albeit one I had been warned was tricky. Difficulty is apparently a notorious trait of previous Mega Man games, so I knew I was going to have to be prepared. Even so, I was surprised by just how difficult this one could be.
The first thing I noticed was how much was happening on screen at any given time, with enemies moving around, debris falling, weapons flying, and plenty of other hazards to keep track of. It can quickly become difficult to work out where you should be standing, where you should be moving, and, perhaps most importantly, what is about to hit you.
It's a very unforgiving 2D platformer, but thankfully, the checkpoints are lifesavers. If you can grit your teeth, survive long enough, and make it to the next checkpoint, there's a real sense of relief. And that was important because I died quite a lot. Let me talk you through it…
Learning the attacks
At the beginning of the preview, I picked the more offensive chip attachment, which gave me access to a double super blast ability when activated with R1 (on the PS5 Pro).
This quickly became one of my favorite tools, particularly when I reached the boss fights. The second level's boss, in particular, made me realize just how important it was going to be to learn when to use these abilities rather than simply firing them whenever they were available.
My other favorite move was the dash attack, activated by pressing R2 and then Triangle (again, on the PS5 Pro).
Combining the double super blast with the dash attack became the key to getting through some of the tougher encounters. The important thing was timing in all of this, though. If I attacked at the wrong moment, I would quickly find myself taking damage from the unrelenting boss fights.
That is ultimately what Mega Man: Dual Override seems to be about. It's less about simply having the right abilities and more about learning attack patterns and figuring out when you can safely deliver your own strikes.
The bosses test what you've learned
The first stage boss was fairly straightforward, taking only a couple of attempts to beat. The second boss was a very different story…
This was easily the hardest encounter of the preview for me, largely because of the flying spheres that flailed around this enemy. There was already plenty to worry about from the boss itself, but these additional hazards made it much harder to navigate the arena without getting hit.
It took me multiple attempts before I eventually worked out what I needed to do. Finally, after an embarrassingly long amount of time, I got through it.
Then came Twinkle Girl at the end of the third stage and at the end of the preview. Interestingly, there was some discussion in the room that Twinkle Girl was the toughest boss of the three, but she actually ended up being somewhere in the middle for me. By this point, I'd had plenty of practice with the game's combat, and I had figured out that my chip abilities could be incredibly effective.
Using the double super blast followed quickly by the dash attack could take a huge chunk out of Twinkle Girl's health. The trick was making sure to attack quickly enough before she could unleash too many of her firework attacks. These could fill the screen, leaving very little room to jump or slide out of the way.
Once I understood that on the day, the fight became much more manageable.
A simple game I couldn't stop playing
From what I played, Mega Man: Dual Override feels like something of a throwback.
It's a relatively simple 2D platformer, with straightforward enemies and not a huge amount of variety in the mobs you'll encounter on the way to each stage's boss. But visually, it looks very sharp and clean, and there's something satisfying about the simplicity of the presentation.
I also found myself enjoying Mega Man as a character, despite having very little experience with the series. My only real memory of playing a Mega Man game is a vague recollection of a first-person shooter-style game on the Game Boy when I was a kid, so this was effectively a new experience for me.
What surprised me most was how addictive I found it. Dual Override is frustrating in the best possible way, and though I kept dying, sometimes in ways that felt unavoidable, I never really wanted to stop playing.
Each death gave me a better understanding of what I had done wrong, whether that was mistiming an attack, failing to recognize a boss's pattern, or simply getting overwhelmed by everything happening on screen. That's probably the biggest compliment I can give it after this short preview.
I'm interested to see how much Mega Man: Dual Override costs when it launches, because its almost nostalgic approach could make it an appealing option for anyone looking for a straightforward platformer that isn't afraid to test them, just as long as it’s not too expensive. Just be prepared to die a lot along the way.
Mega Man: Dual Override releases on an unannounced date in 2027, on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, PS5 and PS4, Xbox, Steam, and Epic Games Store.
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