Do you suck at videogames? Go ahead, ask yourself.

Over the past few hours, I've learned that I do indeed suck at videogames. But I'm OK with it, because Mega Man 9 is totally worth the ass kicking.

Mega Man 9 is the latest in the series of original Mega Man games, that has been at a standstill since Mega Man 8 in 1997. But don't get confused, because it has less in common with Mega Man 8 than any of the original Mega Man's for the NES. The graphics, music, and gameplay look, sound, and feel just like one of the originals. In fact, since it was originally announced, Mega Man 1 and 2 have been cited as the main inspiration for Mega Man 9.

So how does this all manifest itself? Well for one, the graphics are mind-blowingly 8-bit. I'm talking pixels everywhere. The low frame animations look just as smooth as they did on your NES back in the day. Which is to say, not very. But thats fine, because it works great. From the moment I started playing I was taken in by severe retromania. They really went all out too. The sprite flicker triumphantly returns, and yeah it's a little annoying at times, but you get used to it. It really mimics the old behavior.

The music, as always, is pumping. The classic energy the music is known for is present, and I couldn't be happier. The music from these games has always been one of my favorite things about them, and I'm glad this one follows suit. The title theme and stage select theme are notably full of extra awesome.

Finally, we get to the core of the Mega Man series, the gameplay. Lets get the most obvious one out of the way first. This game is HARD. I haven't been challenged like this in a long time. It's not without its limits though, and with enough practice you can get through it. However, it can also get a bit frustrating at times, and even seemed a little cheap on 1 or 2 occasions. These were rare though, and you can generally pass through them with ease the next time around. I noticed the stages themselves provided more challenge than some of the bosses, which does a good job of evening out the difficulty. Don't get me wrong, the game is fairly consistently hard, but as you become accustomed to it, you grow wise of certain aspects.

The bosses themselves overall are very challenging, with certain ones standing out above the others (ahem, Concrete Man). Even with the right weapon selected, you can find yourself fighting a losing battle. This is a nice change, as I can recall times during the X series when a weapon would completely disable a boss, making him ridiculously easy.

Outside of the gameplay, there are some new features. Roll has opened a shop, and is accepting screws as currency. Here you can buy energy tanks, extra lives, and new power ups like 1/2 damage modifiers and get-out-of-instant-spike-death-free cards. This is a welcomed addition, although at times I did miss hunting for the energy tanks.

Also among the new features, Capcom has implement its own achievement-like system, that keeps track of special goals that can be accomplished. There are about 50 of these in the game, and they range from very easy to near impossible. Speaking of achievements, the XBox Live version includes the most difficult achievements I've ever seen. They really took the meaning of achievement to heart when thinking these up.

I'll be honest, I haven't officially beaten the game yet, but rather I watched as the final boss and I died at roughly the same time. At about this same time I also lost my cool for about the 1000th time of the night. But I digress. Mega Man 9 is an excellent game, and I'm very pleased with the retro choices that were made during development. If not for the nostalgia, for the challenge. It feels good to win when you've struggled so much, and Mega Man 9 rewards. It's a bit short, but most Mega Man games are. The polished gameplay and the extra content / in-game achievement system make it well worth the price.