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Protoman: Second Strike.

The graphics did not change, but the levels changed - their structure and the location of enemies. The levels are harder, but not difficult. It was interesting to pass each one. The enemies slightly changed their AI, but did not overload them, which is quite balanced levels turned out.

Bosses. Each boss has its own AI, and each is interesting in its own way. To each - the necessary different tactics over the boss, the variety of their tricks - is quite surprising. I was particularly surprised by the final Dark man. You are fighting the same "Protoman". It also reflects your attacks with a shield , attacks with a Charge, jumps and sometimes slides. Tries to be like MM7.

Protoman in Megaman5 - the same as the original.

Conclusion: the Advantages will be especially on the "Second Strike"... And the original remained the original.

• These are the levels, the correct location of the enemies and the level of the design - they give an edge to this creation, but do not overload the complexity.
• The menu is peculiar. You can customize the difficulty of the game in this hack.
• Bosses. They try very hard to differ from the original. Some characteristics of the main character. Reflection of bullets, some enemy attacks. And there are attacks that will not harm it.
• New powerful Proto Dash and the change in additional widgets. This is a jet and a spring. It is much more convenient to use them, and Dash - can be used against large enemies that are destroyed immediately.

Neutral: this is a change in history. He's changed a little, that's all.

In a minus: it is somehow far rebound after the damage. I probably didn't play MМ9 or MM10. It seemed out of place. If I'm wrong, I'm sorry.

But, in General, I recommend these two patches for review. But who needs something more interesting, take the "Second Strike" patch.

Note: Version played for this review was the Second Strike patch with x2 damage.

As another reviewer said, this Protoman edition for Megaman 5: Second Strike had all the official polish of a Capcom/Inti Creates release. Protoman has much of the same feel as he did in Megaman 9 & 10, from his buster to his shield mechanics and frailness. Nothing ever felt off (e.g. the proto shield covers your hitbox as expected), and the new Proto Dash move was a lot of fun to use and experiment with.

Having not played through Second Strike before, I was also pleasantly surprised to see it is a well-designed base hack. The levels, new boss AI, and weapon adjustments all play out great, while providing a little more challenge than the original. Certain bosses are pretty easy to figure out with just the buster, while others are pretty challenging to beat without their weakness (assuming you are taking x2 damage). Probably one of my favorites to fight was Crystal Man, since the proto shield could actually be used to nullify his projectiles with good timing. Protoman's new abilities seem to fit in pretty naturally to the hack, and even with the extra knockback and damage, the difficulty of the hack is manageable without save states. The only disappointing part for me was the last boss, which felt pretty anti-climactic after the challenge involved getting there.

Still, overall this is a great mod that I'd recommend to all Megaman fans, especially given how customizable it is for your own tastes.

This is a labor of love made for Mega Man fans. Having Proto Man playable at all is a novel idea, but going the extra mile (beyond just a simple sprite swap) and making him play like he does in Mega Man 9/10? In addition to a altered story and cutscenes? That's insanely dedicated and makes for a fresh, new game accessible to all Mega Man players. I especially appreciate the new weapon added to Proto Man's arsenal instead of Beat. This is easily one of the best Mega Man hacks ever created and one that I would recommend to anyone.

Playing with Protoman has always been a Megaman fan's dream come true, but most hacks out there are little more than sprite and pallet swaps that look nice but that's about it. MetHy, on the other hand, went above and beyond, and totally nailed it with this amazing hack. Protoman here plays exactly like he does in Megaman 9 and 10, complete with his signature shield that actually reflects enemy bullets, but what I really love are all of the numerous details that give it a professional polish: the reworked opening intro, the blues whistle that plays before he teleports in, his flailing scarf, the Proto Dash attack, the Proto Coil and Jet sprites. All of this could easily pass for Capcom's handiwork.

For even more authenticity, Protoman comes with the same weaknesses that he has in his debut titles, which includes farther pushback when taking hits, a longer Charged Shot time, and a two-shot limit. Kudos to MetHy for keeping his double-damage intake optional; a huge plus because of how excessively fragile he feels when it's enabled. Another thing is that Megaman 5 is one of the easier games in the series, but is harder with Protoman, since he requires more finesse to compensate for his drawbacks.

As for Second Strike, I can't say that I really enjoyed it. The reworked stages are hard without requiring pixel-perfect kaizo maneuvers, and I appreciate the branching paths, but the difficulty curve doesn't do it for me. I get that it's really meant for players who have already beaten the original game and want something with more bite, but the constant barrage of tricky enemy placements, one screen after another, wore on my patience. Some platforms and sections are not visually intuitive, so there were times when I needed a moment to read the stage, instead of the design telling me everything I need to know. A great effort, and it's probably a bit more forgiving with good ol' Megaman, but I find the challenge a bit much with Protoman.

Overall, an excellent hack that provides the most complete Protoman experience that anyone could ask for. Second Strike with Protoman isn't bad, but that crazy difficulty curve is just not for me. Definitely worth trying for anyone who wants a challenge though.

This is easily one of the very best Megaman 5 hacks, and the best Protoman hack of any NES Megaman game. Here, Protoman isn't just a sprite swap of Megaman; he has unique abilities that Rock does not, just like in Megaman 9 and 10. You charge a slow, narrow charge shot, can only fire two buster shots on screen at once, and have access to the Proto Shield, which can reflect nearly ALL enemy projectiles, no matter if they be a Metool's bullet, a Crystal Joe's Crystal shard, or even boss projectiles such as Crystalman's Crystal Eye! Rush Coil is also totally replaced, restoring how it worked in Megaman 3 and 4.

In addition to the new Protoman behavoir, there are many new sprites added that make the hack look very professional and canon.

The original game patch is fun, but the real enjoyment is from Second Strike.

The level layouts of every stage in the game have been altered, and are fun to explore if you know Megaman 5 well. In some stages there are even branching paths. Difficulty is higher than the original Megaman 5, but not too different from other Megaman games. This isn't a truly unreasonable rom hack. Boss Behavour has been modified to make the bosses more difficult and aggressive, but again not to the point where the game is truly unfair. The new patterns can all be beaten without the aid of savestates.

This is a highly recommended hack.

Just finished Second Strike and thoroughly enjoyed it. Very well made with just the right amount of difficulty. Learning the new stage layouts, boss weaknesses, and even updated boss attack patterns was a treat.