Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection Preview

I was a big fan of the Mega Man Battle Network series, but when its successor Mega Man Star Force started for one reason or another I just didn’t play them. I owned the first game and played some of it, but I definitely didn’t finish it, nor play the sequels. So, I jumped at the chance to play them on a full screen instead of a tiny handheld, thanks to the Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection.

The three Star Force games (spread across seven versions) feature the alien Omega-Xis (AKA Mega) coming to Earth and befriending a child. They team up to defeat evil and make friends along the way, because who else will you trade Battle Cards with?

The main portion of the game is running around an isometric map, either as a human or an energy being, and trying to work out where you need to be to fight an enemy. While in “energy” mode, you come under attack by alien viruses which you have to battle in an active time format. As you move from side to side you can fire your Mega Buster whenever you like, though it does minimal damage. When it’s your turn (there’s a bar which fills to tell you when), you can select Battle Cards, which range from swords to guns, bombs, and power-ups. There is a choice of six, and you can use at least two depending on certain rules (colour, type, proximity), then use them as you see fit.

There are seven games total, but that’s because the first game had three versions, the second had two, and the third also had two. Clearly, Capcom realised that nobody was going to spring for three copies of the same title. All versions are the same, barring some bosses, Battle Cards, and a transformation.

Capcom has a few of these collections under their belts by now, but honestly I don’t own any others. I’m no good at the Mega Man games that I’ve not played, and I’ve no burning desire to replay the ones that I’ve finished, so I can’t confirm whether the extras included are on par with the others. This one has galleries for artwork and music, as well as a specific mode for online matches, allowing you to play with any of the Battle Card decks that you’ve put together.

The Network section has a choice between Ranked matches, Casual matches, or Friend matches. The latter requires a code to join a room, as does the Trade function, which lets you swap Battle Cards with someone you know. One neat feature is how you can select a region or allow matches worldwide.

The collection has more additions, since this was a series from the Nintendo DS, including a comprehensive selection of options for the screen layout. Since you need to have two screens displayed, you can choose how much real estate each one takes up on your TV, and also reposition the non-dominant one. There is also a really handy Assist Mode which can speed up your running speed, and/or decrease the encounter rate.

The biggest change is the number of difficulty options now available. Customise the Mega Buster power, reduce your damage taken (up to 100%!), increase your reward money, and toggles for HP recovery after battles, guaranteed escapes, making special bosses easier to find, and whether or not to include Battle Network content! Not sure what that last one adds, but I turned it on regardless.

Something that I didn’t even realise was included until I noticed the option in the E-Mail screen is a “Cypher List”, which is a huge list of codes that gives you special cards and items. Unfortunately, you have to do them one-by-one by selecting it, exiting the menu, receiving a call, accepting the gift, then going back into the menu. It does give you very powerful cards from the very start of each game, though.

From what I’ve played of each game, they still seem to hold up, though I had a bit of frustration with some quick-time events. While you can play the games with their classic art styles, you can also choose to use the new, smoother, graphics. I like the original graphics, but I know it’s not to everyone’s tastes. There are apparently new voices added, but as I said, I didn’t play the originals so can’t confirm what’s new and old, but the voiced lines all sound good.

Mega Man Star Force Legacy Collection is the definitive way to play these games. Sure, they’re no longer for sale on a discontinued handheld console so it’s the only way to play them, but the new features and extras at least make it worth your while playing them this way. It releases on 27th March 2026 on PC, PlayStation 4|5, Xbox One|Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.