So what exactly happened to the original Mega Man in-between the Classic and X series?

[Uzumaki Goku]

It's one of the biggest mysteries among Mega Man fans, the timeline goes from Classic -> X ->Zero -> ZX -> Legends. (which takes place in the far off future) There is information that pertains to what happened in-between the other various series, but the biggest mystery is what happened between the end of the Classic series and the X series. We do know that Dr. Light built X and Dr. Wily built Zero and they both passed away shortly after (or DID they? That's an interesting debate) But what happened to the original Mega Man as well as Roll, Proto Man and Bass? Nothing has ever been said about their fate. A popular theory is that Zero killed them, but Inafune refuted it as well as saying that Mega Man and X are not the same robot.

The interesting thing about the X series is that there are little nods that connect it to the Classic series. There were hints that Dr. Wily was still around in some form. In the Japanese version of X2, the character of Serges is HEAVILY implied to be Wily. He mistakenly calls X "Rock...ehhh.. X" suggesting that he mistook him for the original Mega Man and when he is defeated, he says "Defeated by the robotic memento of Light. Such regret." Something only Wily would say. In X5, it's severely hinted that Wily is around in some form, if Zero goes Maverick, a voice is heard that is rather strongly implied to be Wily's. X6 hints that Isoc and Wily are on the same... and then it's never mentioned again. If there is an X9, this plot thread needs to be revisited and resolved.

But what happened to the original Mega Man? It's something I myself have always wondered. (Nor do I think Capcom will ever reveal or depict it as that would mean they could no longer make Classic Mega Man games.)

 

[BriGuy]

Fell into a well. Couldn't get out.

 

[hotcyder]

he got a glow up

 

[The Almighty Tria]

Fell into a well. Couldn't get out.

Click to shrink...

 

[Regiruler]

How many God damn megaman games are there. I didn't know zero and zx were separate from X.

 

[Gold Arsene]

Considering Light built X to be a robot that can act and feel on its own I always figured whatever happened to Rock had something to do with his limitations as a robot.

Alternatively their retirement date came up.

We'll likely never know for sure as I doubt Capcom wants a definitive end to the Classic line.

It is fun to think about though.

 

[JazzmanZ]

Nintendo bought him out, now he appears in Mario and Smash

 

[Kinsei]

If he outlived Light then it's possible that he fell into disrepair and there was no one around to repair him. It's also possible that the world entered an era of peace and Light deactivated Mega Man as he wasn't needed anymore. Hell Zero might have even destroyed him.

it doesn't matter in the end.

 

[Hamchan]

I'm going to ignore what Inafune says because Zero killing him is too good a theory.

 

[TyraZaurus]

He was taken back to the past and remodeled into Quint.

 

[Gold Arsene]

How many God damn megaman games are there. I didn't know zero and zx were separate from X.

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The main timeline goes.

Classic(Mega Man 1-11,Mega Man and Bass,Mega Man Game boy I-V,etc)
X(Mega Man X 1-8,Command Mission)
Zero(Mega Man Zero 1-4)
ZX(Mega Man ZX and ZX Advent)
Legends(Mega Man Legends 1 and 2,The Misadventures of Tron Bonne)

Then you have the alternative Battle Network timeline which leads into the Star Force games.

 

[Zippo]

We don't know.

Capcom wants to keep making classic Mega Man games, so it's understandable that they don't want to confirm an endpoint.

 

[Chindogg]

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JFC

 

[Soul Unison]

As far as Light and Wily go, some of the Upgrade Capsules in the X series have conversations that go far beyond "pre-recorded messages."

Light seems to have digitally uploaded himself to some kind of networked consciousness, and Wily appears to have somehow built himself into the Maverick Virus, jumping from Maverick to Maverick over time.

Protoman presumably "passed away" due to a defect in his power system.
Bass and Treble, I imagine, would challenge Zero, refusing to accept Wily had built a superior robot, and would be utterly destroyed.
Roll, Rush, Auto, Eddie, Beat, Tango, etc.. I imagine them all decommissioned and as part of a museum exhibit, somewhere.

 

[Orochinagis]

My bet is Megaman being killed by zero before zero gets sealed until Megaman X, even Dr Light was focused on X after an unknown events

Funny thing X outlived megaman by a lot of different eras except in Megaman Legends while original megaman exist only in Megaman.

 

[TwinBahamut]

Ultimately, it is hard to be sure whether the classic games and the X games are actually in the same continuity. The shift in tone and setting is dramatic. The classic games are very cartoonish and feature tons of things like alien robots, ancient robot civilizations, and forces of pure good and evil. The X series basically disregards all of that and is both darker and more grounded. Basically, the division is so great that a mere series of events couldn't really make up the difference.

From that perspective, Megaman as he existed in the classic games may never have existed in the X games. Dr. Light and Dr. Wily are referenced a lot, but their robots almost never are.

At the very least, I never really bought into the big fan idea that there was some kind of cataclysmic event that killed the original Megaman. That is just way too out of place for the original games.

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

As far as Light and Wily go, some of the Upgrade Capsules in the X series have conversations that go far beyond "pre-recorded messages."

Light seems to have digitally uploaded himself to some kind of networked consciousness, and Wily appears to have somehow built himself into the Maverick Virus, jumping from Maverick to Maverick over time.

Protoman presumably "passed away" due to a defect in his power system.
Bass and Treble, I imagine, would challenge Zero, refusing to accept Wily had built a superior robot, and would be utterly destroyed.

Click to shrink...

Well, there are several hints in the X series that Wily is still around in some form. Serges and Isoc are strongly implied to be him and his voice is heard in X5.

 

[Soul Unison]

Well, there are several hints in the X series that Wily is still around in some form. Serges and Isoc are strongly implied to be him and his voice is heard in X5.

Click to shrink...

Right, which I feel is covered by Wily being somehow contained within the Maverick Virus and his consciousness surfacing at his will in any Reploid sufficiently infected.

 

[MP!]

This happened

 

[Zippo]

Well, there are several hints in the X series that Wily is still around in some form. Serges and Isoc are strongly implied to be him and his voice is heard in X5.

Click to shrink...

It's also heavily suggested that Dr. Light transferred his conscious into the AI of his capsules.

 

[JoDa]

The main timeline goes.

Classic(Mega Man 1-11,Mega Man and Bass,Mega Man Game boy I-V,etc)
X(Mega Man X 1-8,Command Mission)
Zero(Mega Man Zero 1-4)
ZX(Mega Man ZX and ZX Advent)
Legends(Mega Man Legends 1 and 2,The Misadventures of Tron Bonne)

Then you have the alternative Battle Network timeline which leads into the Star Force games.

Click to shrink...

Actually there's a timeline split in X6 (it used to be in x5 but inti made X6 cannon on the zero collection) you either go into x7 or zero 1 which is why Axl does not exist in the zero or zx(no model a is not Axl)

 

[Gold Arsene]

Actually there's a timeline split in X6 (it used to be in x5 but inti made X6 cannon on the zero collection) you either go into x7 or zero 1 which is why Axl does not exist in the zero or zx(no model a is not Axl)

Click to shrink...

I've heard this before but I don't personally believe it. I just go with the "Zero's X6 ending is a distant epilogue." Unless there official confirmation of it I'm unaware of.

 

[Gunny T Highway]

I'm going to ignore what Inafune says because Zero killing him is too good a theory.

Click to shrink...

Same. That is my head canon.

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

I've heard this before but I don't personally believe it. I just go with the "Zero's X6 ending is a distant epilogue." Unless there official confirmation of it I'm unaware of.

Click to shrink...

I think that's what they said.

 

[MP!]

I'm going to ignore what Inafune says because Zero killing him is too good a theory.

Click to shrink...

Wait... I've never heard this... Zero Killed Megaman?


explain.

 

[mindsale]

X was definitely a repurposed Rock. Note that they do not have the same memory and personality.

Source: He's blue.

 

[Keym]

Someone spiked his punch.

 

[ethomaz]

The classic series probably will ends where X starts (or at least fill the gap).. the issue the story of the classic series is still being told.

 

[PCPace]

I think he's still out there and still alive, just obsolete. He keeps a low profile and helps people when he can but could never hope to successfully engage a Maverick.

 

[Chairmanchuck (另一个我)]

This:

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

Y'know I've always wondered if Rock knew X was being made?

 

[Vicious17]

The main timeline goes.

Classic(Mega Man 1-11,Mega Man and Bass,Mega Man Game boy I-V,etc)
X(Mega Man X 1-8,Command Mission)
Zero(Mega Man Zero 1-4)
ZX(Mega Man ZX and ZX Advent)
Legends(Mega Man Legends 1 and 2,The Misadventures of Tron Bonne)

Then you have the alternative Battle Network timeline which leads into the Star Force games.

Click to shrink...

Is thereba Zelda style Megaman timeline that keeps changing and no one really knows whats happening, or is this more or less set in stone?

 

[Gold Arsene]

Ultimately, it is hard to be sure whether the classic games and the X games are actually in the same continuity. The shift in tone and setting is dramatic. The classic games are very cartoonish and feature tons of things like alien robots, ancient robot civilizations, and forces of pure good and evil. The X series basically disregards all of that and is both darker and more grounded. Basically, the division is so great that a mere series of events couldn't really make up the difference.

From that perspective, Megaman as he existed in the classic games may never have existed in the X games. Dr. Light and Dr. Wily are referenced a lot, but their robots almost never are.

At the very least, I never really bought into the big fan idea that there was some kind of cataclysmic event that killed the original Megaman. That is just way too out of place for the original games.

Click to shrink...

There is a Classic Arcade game that shows Wily building Zero in Bass' ending.

 

[Rutger]

I don't care for the Zero kills the idea, seems too edgy for the tone of the classic series imo.

I don't think the connection between it and X is that important honestly. The Classic series will probably stay with the Saturday morning cartoon tone, where the status quo never changes too much(though that won't stop references like 9 and 10 had), and that's fine imo.

 

[Deleted member 8752]

He was in a bad ski accident.

 

[V_ac]

Y'know I've always wondered if Rock knew X was being made?

Click to shrink...

Maverick Hunter X said Light woke X up from the capsule to talk to him occasionally, right? If Rock and Roll were still around I don't see any reason why Light wouldn't introduce them.

 

[Thatguy]

Capcom will never say so they can keep making Mega Man games.

 

[Gold Arsene]

Is thereba Zelda style Megaman timeline that keeps changing and no one really knows whats happening, or is this more or less set in stone?

Click to shrink...

It's actuslly been surprisingly consistent as far as timelines go.

Bar some fuzziness on the exact end points of the games(bar Zero as it's the only series with a definitive end so far) the timeline of events flows decently enough.

X, Zero, and ZX all acknowledge there predecessors and set a timeline so you have a decent enough idea on what happens.

Legends is like a massive time jump in the future so details are a bit more vague there besides what's told in the games own backstory(these are the games in most unfamiliar with so sorry if I got any details wrong.)

 

[PlanetSmasher]

My "headcanon", as unlikely as it is, is that Zero killed him after Wily released him and then Light used what was left as the starting point to build X.

 

[Gold Arsene]

Wait... I've never heard this... Zero Killed Megaman?


explain.

Click to shrink...

It's a popular fan theory that since Zero was originally evil and built by Wily he was unleashed and destroyed Mega Man before being sealed away(likely because Wily couldn't control him)

But again it's currently just a fan theory.

 

[L Thammy]

everybody fucking died

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

It's a popular fan theory that since Zero was originally evil and built by Wily he was unleashed and destroyed Mega Man before being sealed away(likely because Wily couldn't control him)

But again it's currently just a fan theory.

Click to shrink...

Inafune has said that no, Zero did not kill them.

 

[Capra]

Wait... I've never heard this... Zero Killed Megaman?


explain.

Click to shrink...

Zero was made by Dr. Wily, and as we see in X4 he was basically programmed to be a mindless killing machine spreading the Maverick virus. If you've played Zero 3, Omega is said to be what Zero was supposed to be like. Since Rock and everyone else from the original games (except Light and Wily) is absent from X it's a popular theory that he wiped them all out after Wily woke him up.

I personally would never want to see it because that's way too dark for the original series but for X/Zero it fits.

 

[MP!]

It's a popular fan theory that since Zero was originally evil and built by Wily he was unleashed and destroyed Mega Man before being sealed away(likely because Wily couldn't control him)

But again it's currently just a fan theory.

Click to shrink...

I never knew wily built zero... I thought he was sigma's creation for some reason

 

[Kiddo Cabbusses]

Ultimately, it is hard to be sure whether the classic games and the X games are actually in the same continuity. The shift in tone and setting is dramatic. The classic games are very cartoonish and feature tons of things like alien robots, ancient robot civilizations, and forces of pure good and evil. The X series basically disregards all of that and is both darker and more grounded. Basically, the division is so great that a mere series of events couldn't really make up the difference.

Click to shrink...

On top of all these, I find it really glaring that the thing that's supposed to make X distinct from prior robots is displayed in "Classic" Mega Man Robots CONSTANTLY - Bass, Mega Man, 9's Robot Masters, Protoman... they all act in ways that would not make sense if they were strictly following a programming protocol, they HAVE to have the "free will" that supposedly makes X special.

 

[Vicious17]

It's actuslly been surprisingly consistent as far as timelines go.

Bar some fuzziness on the exact end points of the games(bar Zero as it's the only series with a definitive end so far) the timeline of events flows decently enough.

X, Zero, and ZX all acknowledge there predecessors and set a timeline so you have a decent enough idea on what happens.

Legends is like a massive time jump in the future so details are a bit more vague there besides what's told in the games own backstory(these are the games in most unfamiliar with so sorry if I got any details wrong.)

Click to shrink...

Thank you.

So, Battle Network is a completely separate time-line with no relation to the other Megaman?

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

On top of all these, I find it really glaring that the thing that's supposed to make X distinct from prior robots is displayed in "Classic" Mega Man Robots CONSTANTLY - Bass, Mega Man, 9's Robot Masters, Protoman... they all act in ways that would not make sense if they were strictly following a programming protocol, they HAVE to have the "free will" that supposedly makes X special.

Click to shrink...

Well, there was the end of Mega Man 7, where Mega Man tried to kill Wily, but Wily reminded him that he couldn't do it since a robot can't harm a human being.

 

[skeezx]

because the classic series will run on indefinitely and was never seriously story driven i don't think it matters much. just assume the classic series was a long time ago, everybody's dead because that happens with time, even with robots

i'd rather the series just be two separate 'canons' than having to fuss with serious stuff in a classic MM game

 

[Noisepurge]

My "headcanon", as unlikely as it is, is that Zero killed him after Wily released him and then Light used what was left as the starting point to build X.

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Yup, I'm in this team too. Megaman and Zero had a fight. Both were badly injured. Light rebuilt them both and upgraded Megaman to X while at it.

 

[batfax]

After coming out of hiding once they learned their natural enemy, Cut Man, was defeated, Paper (Wo?)Man smothered Rock and reigned supreme.

Light then went to work on a new robot without an easily defined weakness. "X".


Alternatively, iirc that cancelled MMO was supposed to take place even further on than Legends and was supposed to have the original Mega among all the clones or something.