We recently went hands on with an entire stage of Mega Man: Dual Override, and so far it's delivering the classic side-scrolling action with a few appreciated twists.12:00, 26 Aug 2026Capcom's upcoming Mega Man game is so far doing a lot right to meet the expectations of long-time fans, maintaining the core challenge and a few different ways to play.‌If there’s one thing I remember Mega Man being - especially 2018’s Mega Man 11 - it’s tough. A classic, run-and-gun platformer that challenges you to take on several differently themed robot masters across bespoke stages, taking each one down has forever proved a tricky balance of knowing when to jump, shoot, and combine these two simple actions so as to avoid catastrophe. In this sense, the upcoming Mega Man: Dual Override is as faithful an entry as they come - despite the lack of a number at the end of the title.‌Yes, despite my initial expectations, Dual Override is indeed a full-fledged new Mega Man game made in the classic mould, but one that mixes this core challenge in with a handful of modern accessibility tweaks that should see this play as the smoothest (and dare I say, fairest) instalment yet. Oh yes, providing you don't mind a routine arse-kicking, Mega Man is back.‌The stage I got to play as part of my short, 30-minute hands-on preview centred on a boss called Twinkle Girl. Just as mischievous as she is stylish, the bulk of my play session saw me battling through her firework factory, taking on all kinds of sparkler-wielding robot enemies, to try and reach her. Interestingly, reaching the boss is no longer a case of simple starting at one side of a level and getting to the end. Instead, in a first for classic Mega Man, each boss’ stage seems to be broken up between multiple areas, somewhat lessening the challenge a tad while letting you catch your breath between these three separate stages that made up Twinkle Girl’s domain.I can see this simple change irking a lot of Mega Man purists, but I’d honestly be shocked if there wasn’t at some point a mode available that connects each area into a single level like the classic games of old. For now, though, I enjoyed the way this broke up the pace. Coupled with a fairly generous checkpointing system, it made reaching the final battle against Twinkle Girl far less intimidating.‌While this structural change might shave off the challenge a little, it only does so slightly. Because punctuating each area is still a boss fight, with the one in the middle in fact proving a lot tougher than Twinkle Girl herself.Digging into the detail of the entire stage proper, and I enjoyed the way that Capcom’s more segmented approach better builds a sense of aesthetic progression into the zones. Previously, Mega Man games would only have a dozen or so screens to riff off the theme of a boss’ special ability.Now, however, the firework theme surrounding Twinkle Girl is given more time to be further explored; an aspect I noticed when moving from outdoor robot skyline full of beautiful scenery before plunging into the depths of a firework factory.‌In terms of Mega Man himself, he handles incredibly responsively. Better yet, holding down and pressing X to slide feels smooth, while holding down the shoot button to unleash a charge blast feels immensely cathartic since it packs a proper punch against enemies. Prior to starting each level you’re given the choice to play using a defensive or offensive chip upgrade. I chose to use the former, and various times while playing through Twinkle Girl’s stage was I glad to have the temporary shield that the defensive chip offered that enabled me to eat an extra hit upon activation.Out of the blueGone is Mega Man 11’s love-it-or-hate-it double gear system. In its place is Mega Man Override’s namesake, which is a lot more helpful whenever you’re in a pinch. Essentially, as you deal damage to enemies throughout the stage you’ll build up an Override meter, which can then be activated to temporarily imbue Mega Man with added strength, defence, and shots.Activating it is treated as a real event, actually transforming Mega Man’s existing outfit into more of a transformer-like robot look complete with anime-style transformation animation. While waiting for the five-second animation to play out each time I activated Override proved a little annoying, it always proved worth it given the extra ‘oomph’ it imbued into me - especially when duking it out against bosses.‌Speaking of which, the boss in the second area I came across, Astro Man R, proved to be a real nuisance for me. Battling him in space offered a cool enough visual, but my number of tries fighting him entered well into the double digits before I found the best way to dodge his falling rocket attacks and two sentient metal balls that would forever circle him. Fortunately, thanks to another new Mega Man: Dual Override feature that allows you to switch between what I presume are the abilities of previously defeated robot masters on the fly, I could have Mega Man dash across the midpoint of the screen to deal damage upon high instead of just from a ground level.So Mega Man: Dual Override features tough bosses and even tougher platforming… big whoop, right? With Capcom at the top of its game these aspects are almost a given. What did catch me off guard, however, was just how beautiful Dual Override looks for a traditional 2D platformer.‌Effortlessly using 3D assets and glorious art design to have the world and characters still feel true to that original Capcom cover art, this is a game that along with 60fps gameplay, looks and feels almost like a 3D animated movie in motion. The visuals truly did surprise me. It’s a seriously big leap compared to Mega Man 11.Although it might not be as revolutionary as Mega Man die-hards likely expected, even after playing through one stage it’s clear that Dual Override retains the spirit of the franchise’s classic era. That’s despite the newly added ways to help you offset some of the old-school challenge.True, the Override system itself works as a bit of a ‘get out of jail free’ card, yet you needn’t activate it if you don’t want to. Plus, it works well to help you feel more powerful than I ever have in a 2D Mega Man game, which, when combined with the quick-switching to other robot master suits, sees the blue bomber boast the most flexible combat skills yet. It’s a slight rework of an existing blueprint, but I feel confident in saying that Mega Man is primed to be truly back.Article continues belowMega Man: Dual Override is scheduled to release on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch sometime in 2027.