Mega Man 11 is One of the Most Successful Games in Series History
The Blue Bomber did quite well in his latest fight for everlasting peace.
This article first appeared on USgamer, a partner publication of VG247. Some content, such as this article, has been migrated to VG247 for posterity after USgamer's closure - but it has not been edited or further vetted by the VG247 team.
A recent update to Capcom's official chart of "Platinum Titles" (i.e. Capcom games that have sold more than one million copies) reveals Mega Man 11 has crossed the one million mark. This makes it one of the best-selling Mega Man titles in the series' long history.
If you take a look at Capcom's chart, you'll see the Blue Bomber's 11th adventure is perched at 89 out of 100 with an even one million. That's admittedly a modest number compared to Monster Hunter: World's 14.1 million, but it's a big effort for the little robot. Despite his status as an action game icon, it's rare for a Mega Man game to sell more than a million games. He only has a handful of titles on Capcom's list, including Mega Man 3 (1.08 million since 1990), Mega Man X (1.16 since 1993), Mega Man Legacy Collection (1.1 since 2015), and Mega Man Battle Network 4 (1.35 since 2003). Mega Man 2, which still consistently tops charts celebrating great action games, has only sold 1.51 copies since 1988. It's also worth noting Mega Man 11 pierced the one million mark in a single year, whereas the other million-sellers in the series did so across several years.
The Mega Man Legacy Collection and Mega Man 11 mark something of a revival for the retro warrior robot. His games were canceled and he was thrown into a deep slumber for years after series producer Keiji Inafune departed Capcom in 2009. Kazuhiro Tsuchiya kicked off his role as the series' new producer with Mega Man 11, which changes up the series' classic formula with the Gear System.
Mega Man's been a constant presence in the gaming space for a long time, but the success of Mega Man 11 and the Mega Man Legacy Collection games should encourage Capcom to keep releasing new titles. I've been sitting here for 15 years and holding onto the faith we'll see Mega Man X9 someday; I'm prepared to sit a little longer if I need to.