Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection - Nintendo Switch 2 Review

After the launch a few years ago of Mega Man Battle Network Legacy, it was only a matter of time before a second collection, inheriting from BN, arrived on current-gen consoles. This collection packages a series with interesting traits that, at the time (about 20 years ago), was not welcomed in the best way by all fans.

There could be an infinite number of reasons, but perhaps the most credible one lies in the gameplay formula, which many considered a real step backward, a kind of simplification of a layered combat system that made Battle Network a memorable series in some respects. Not to mention the protagonist, no longer seen as a determined and daring hero, but more as a boy who struggles with his own traumas and insecurities: a growth process that will be particularly noticeable in the first Star Force and which, we won't hide it from you, we didn't dislike even back then.

Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection

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32,99

With Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection, an attempt is made to relaunch a saga that, in our opinion, perhaps suffered too much from the weight of past responsibility in a heroic change of direction. In 2026, not feeling the effect of Battle Network, it could be appreciated more and attract many new players to an RPG series that has a lot to offer. 

Not to mention that, in the Legacy edition, we will be able to play Mega Man Star Force 3 Black Ace and Red Joker for the first time in Italy (and in Europe in general). However, and we want to clarify this for accuracy, just as with the BN Legacy, this re-release lacks Italian localization in the subtitles: and this disappoints us given that two out of three chapters had been translated on Nintendo DS.

New graphics, functionalities, and some unreleased scenarios: Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection is an interesting package that allows you to approach a spin-off that, all in all, has its own appeal.

Many Versions for the Same Games

When Mega Man Star Force debuted on Nintendo DS, it was presented in three different versions: Pegasus, Leo, and Dragon. You're right, this reminds us exactly of the path taken by Pokémon for many years, and perhaps it wasn't so necessary to create all these variants, especially since each edition differs only in certain transformations of our hero and in the basic interface. This problem is now solved as the Legacy includes all variants of the trilogy, so we can consciously decide which variant best suits our needs.

The protagonist of this epic is Geo Stellar, a fifth-grader living in a society of an unspecified future, where technological advancements have improved humanity's existence. However, Geo still suffers from the loss of his father in a tragic accident: it was such a shock that it made him withdraw into himself. But, one day like any other, his existence took an unexpected turn thanks to an encounter with an alien with an electromagnetic body: Omega-Xis. After this fortunate encounter, the extraterrestrial proposed a deal to the young man: "if you fuse with me, I'll tell you about your father". This strange union thus gave birth to a new superhero, Mega Man! What we didn't know is that Omega is being hunted for stealing something that could activate a galactic weapon: our task is to fight the EM aliens who exploit people's good hearts.

The adventure of Mega Man Star Force thus unfolds in a dual manner: one where we will live the normality of elementary school students following the stylings of the most classic role-playing game in the city of Echo Ridge, and a second action phase where we will have to stop the EM Viruses and Jammers (humans infected by them). Without going into too much detail, at any time Geo can put on special glasses inherited from his father and enter the world of waves thanks to his fusion with Omega-Xis.

As Before, with a Few More Ideas

In the parallel plane, we can confront these hostile viruses by resorting to brute force. Once we encounter them, the most classic of RPG battles will begin with the camera pointed behind the Blue Bomber.

Our task will be to deliver precise attacks by choosing from six cards per turn according to specific rules. Essentially, we can select two cards in the same column or opt for identical ones regardless of their position. Each turn must be played intelligently, while also paying attention to the attacks of the various villains. To do this, we can move Mega Man left and right along a precise grid and assess the opportune moment to launch a counter-offensive.

When we have exhausted our cards, we will have to wait for a special indicator to fill up completely to return to the previous menu and deploy new countermeasures in battle. And if our memory serves us correctly (after all, 20 years have passed), nothing has been modified compared to the original, apart from a necessary "adaptation" of the game screens.

Indeed, because Mega Man Star Force had to replicate the Nintendo DS's dual screen as best it could, while also maintaining a 4:3 graphical aspect. For our part, Capcom has thought of several layouts that will allow us to switch, by pressing a shoulder button, the active screen to always have the next move under control. And incidentally, the "vertical layout" is also curious, allowing the game to be played as if it were a Nintendo DS: however, in this case, the console (or monitor) would have to be positioned vertically, and we don't think that's such a smart choice.

The combat system, despite the necessary simplifications of the era, has always seemed interesting to us and we believe it is still satisfying today: a sign of how J-RPGs are less affected by the passage of time. However, being a remastered operation, it was hard for us not to notice the technical limitations of the era in the general formula.

From a graphical point of view, the same care has been taken as already applied to the Battle Network Legacy with smoothing filters that "soften" the edges of the textures. To be honest, however, this pastel effect doesn't always excite us, especially in the isometric sections of the game world. 

The Debut of the Great Absentee: Mega Man Star Force 3

While we spent hours and hours on the first two chapters of the series back then, we never had the chance to play Star Force 3, a third chapter that went under the radar but is considered by many to be a return to its origins. In fact, we focused our attention more on Red Joker (but Black Ace is also present in the collection), which delighted us with more dynamic and immediate gameplay.

Indeed, while maintaining the characteristics of the previous episodes, Star Force 3 will allow us to transform into Mega Man without necessarily having to rush into a wave hole. This means that in the real world, we will be able to move like a true superhero and connect to certain computers to solve various problems caused by classic viruses and the new threats, the Noises.

The combat system is still the same but with an interesting addition: the introduction of "Noise". In practice, depending on how we defeat opponents, the Noise percentage will increase accordingly: the more we charge it, the greater Mega Man's available abilities. For example, we can fire new charged Mega Buster shots or perform unique attacks by effectively counterattacking an enemy action. It's a fact that Mega Man Star Force 3 confirms itself in excellent form and was a pleasant discovery that we could call unprecedented in this 2026, at least in our region.

Closing the circle of this trilogy (but in reality, we will have no less than 7 video games in our hands) is the online component: after choosing one of the three games (or all three) we can find an opponent to clash with. In casual matches, players can challenge others without putting anything at stake, just for the pure pleasure of it. However, things get serious when we dive into ranked matches: by beating opponents, we will earn ranking points with the goal of becoming the best Mega Man ever seen on the competitive scene.

During our test on Nintendo Switch 2, we only managed to play a few matches (after all, the game hadn't been officially released yet). The stability seemed very good, but we believe that if the infrastructure is not well managed in the long term, the risk of no longer finding opponents could become very serious.

Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection also offers many special contents such as artwork, a jukebox with perfectly rearranged tracks, illustrations, sketches, and some Shikishi. We found them very interesting: they will surely delight long-time fans.