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Mega Man

Mega Man (known as Rockman (ロックマン) in Japan) is a Japanese science fiction video game franchise created by Capcom, starring a character named "Mega Man". The original game was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987, and spawned a franchise that expanded to over 50 games on multiple systems. As of October 2023, the series has sold 41 million units worldwide. Mega Man has gained cult status with gamers and has been reimagined and evolved as a video game character for over 30 years.

The main series consists of eleven games, the standalone Mega Man & Bass, the spin-off Game Boy series (released in Japan as Rockman World), and various ports, remakes, and compilations. The core games in the franchise have all been set in a single continuity; the storyline of the "classic" series is succeeded by the Mega Man X, Mega Man Zero, Mega Man ZX, and the Mega Man Legends series. This timeline excludes the spin-off Mega Man Battle Network and Mega Man Star Force series, both of which take place in an alternate universe where the internet flourished rather than robotics.

Original series

The original Mega Man series, dubbed Classic Mega Man marks the start of the franchise, released on the NES on December 17, 1987. In the original series, Mega Man is a android originally named Rock (nicknamed “Mega” in later installments), created as a lab assistant by the scientist Dr. Light with Dr. Wily as his partner. Following treachery by Dr. Wily in which he reprogrammed most of Dr. Light's robots, Rock volunteered to be converted into a fighting robot to defend the world from Wily's violent robotic threats, thus becoming Mega Man.

Mega Man is a side-scrolling action platformer. The player character must fight through the levels using Mega Man's "Mega Buster"—a cannon attached to his arm—to shoot the robotic enemies inhabiting his environment. When Mega Man was released in 1987, the characteristic that made it revolutionary was the choice given to the player of which robot master to attempt first. After defeating a Robot Master—the boss of a level—Mega Man gains the ability to use that Robot Master's special weapon. Each Robot Master represents a specific element or object, with bosses such as Fire Man, Ice Man, Guts Man, Cut Man, Elec Man, and Bomb Man. The weapons Mega Man gains share the theme of the defeated boss. After defeating all of the Robot Masters, Mega Man travels to a multi-stage fortress to confront Dr. Wily, the person responsible for the robotic enemies' destructive acts. In the fortress, Mega Man fights past new bosses, clones of the game's Robot Masters, and Wily himself, who is usually in a large multi-phase war machine.

Enemies are weak to at least one weapon; for instance, Fire Man will take more damage from Ice Man's weapon than from other weapons. This concept draws inspiration from rock-paper-scissors. Robot Master levels can generally be completed in any order, resulting in a strategic hallmark of the series: determining the best order to defeat bosses and earn weapons. Sequels of Mega Man games contain new enemies alongside familiar ones, new bosses, new weapons, and occasionally new gadgets that Mega Man could use. Starting from Mega Man 3, Rush—Mega Man's trusty robot dog companion became a series mainstay, and later installments would provide Rush abilities for Mega Man to use. Later installments of the game give the player the option of commanding other player characters with different abilities, such as Proto Man, Duo, and Bass.

The Classic series has not reached a definite conclusion. Originally developed for the NES, the original Mega Man series experienced graphical improvements in fourth and fifth-generation installments. The series had no games developed for sixth-generation consoles but returned in the seventh generation purposely sporting graphics, sound, and gameplay similar to the original NES games to inspire a nostalgic look and feel, distributed as downloadable content instead of retail games like the previous installments.

On December 4, 2017, Capcom announced that a new game in the classic series, Mega Man 11, would be released in late 2018. Unlike Mega Man 9 and 10, this game makes a return to the modern era, featuring Mega Man in a 2.5D environment, with 3D cel-shaded graphics, and is presented in a widescreen aspect ratio. When using a special weapon, in addition to changing colors, Mega Man's armor also changes appearance.

Mega Man X
Capcom wanted a redesign in graphics and control as the Mega Man series moved from the NES to the SNES, prompting the creation of the Mega Man X series in 1993. Set years in the future, this series follows the story of Mega Man's successor, X, a new, advanced robot that has complete free will over his actions, thoughts and feelings. This character, also a creation of Dr. Light, was put into suspended animation and uncovered 100 years in the future by a researcher named Dr. Cain. The Mega Man X series features more detailed 16-bit graphics and greater freedom of movement. In the Mega Man X series, the characters grow in abilities and power as the game progresses. While the gameplay loop and combat is largely similar to the Classic Mega Man series, Mega Man X series differs from its increased emphasis on mobility, with X being able to dash and reach higher places through the use of his various armors gained throughout the games, as well as its more mature story than its predecessor.

As the series progressed, various other player characters have appeared, such as fellow Maverick Hunter Zero who was created by Dr. Wily of the Classic series, and Axl, a Reploid with an adolescent personality who has the ability to shape-shift into other Reploids. Zero would later star in his own spin-off series, Mega Man Zero.

The series was originally intended to conclude with Mega Man X5, which will lead to the Mega Man Zero series, however, as Inafune began work on the Zero series, its storyline was continued without his supervision, with three additional installments (Mega Man X6, Mega Man X7, Mega Man X8), releasing in 2001, 2003, and 2004 respectively, causing confusion in the games' official timeline. Mega Man X8 ended with a cliffhanger, leaving the series to not have a conclusion.

A Role playing game spin-off, Mega Man X: Command Mission, was released on July 29, 2004, developed by Capcom Production Studio 3, who previously worked on the Breath of Fire series of role-playing games. The game takes place 100 years after the events of the Mega Man X series and follows X, Zero, and Axl as they take part in a resistance on an artificial island from its oppressors, and the conspiracy within the Maverick Hunters. Due to the game being mostly independent from the rest of the series, it is unclear whether the game was canon or not.

A mobile game spin-off, Rockman X DiVE, was developed and published by Capcom Taiwan and was released on March 24, 2020 in Taiwan, in Japan on October 26, 2022, and globally on August 16, 2021, the latter was published by NebulaJoy. The Steam version of the game was released in Asian territories by Capcom Taiwan on September 15, 2021. The game is a meta-narrative, taking place within a cyberspace database called the Deep Log which contains data from all games in the Mega Man X series, along with the experiences of players all around the world. The game follows the Player, and RiCO, the latest administrator of the Deep Log, welcoming the Player and enlisting their help in clearing up the glitches plaguing the database.

The Taiwan/Japanese servers of the game are scheduled to be shut down on September 27, 2023, while the offline version of the game, Mega Man X DiVE Offline, was released on September 1, 2023.

Mega Man Zero
In 2002, a follow-up series to the Mega Man X franchise was developed for the Game Boy Advance by Inti Creates. Taking place hundreds of years after the events of the Mega Man X series, the new series stars Zero, a sidekick/ally of X. Set in a post-apocalyptic world in which Reploids were falsely branded as Mavericks and were hunted down, and surviving Reploids formed an opposing faction called "The Resistance", with the help of human scientist Ciel, Zero awakens and begins his battle against a powerful human-supremacy force called Neo Arcadia as he protects the oppressed remaining reploids, uncovers the history behind "The Elf Wars", and the cause of his slumber.

In the Mega Man Zero series, the gameplay is largely similar to Zero's play style in the later Mega Man X games, featuring a more close-quarter hack-n-slash combat compared to Mega Man X's ranged combat, and features an in-depth ranking system that rewards the player with new abilities and enhancements (such as copied abilities from boss characters) in exchange for better play performance. In the fourth game, Zero can also physically steal weapons from enemies (such as axes and guns).

With its fourth installment, Mega Man Zero became the first series in the franchise to reach a definitive conclusion.

Mega Man ZX
The Mega Man ZX series debuted in 2006 for Nintendo DS, once again developed by Inti Creates, and chronologically takes place 200 years after the Mega Man Zero series. In this series, progression has led to the equality of humankind and robotkind. Humans are given the physical advantages of robots, and robots are also given biological lifespans. With equality achieved, the world enters a new era of peace. The series follows multiple protagonists as they become involved in a new incident called the "Game of Destiny", in which people who were chosen with the powers of a "Biometal", called a "Mega Man", are pitted against each other to see who was worthy of ruling the world.

The gameplay for Mega Man ZX is similar to the Mega Man Zero series, with an emphasis on close-quarter combat. The player is given the choice of choosing a male or female human protagonist in each installment, a first in the franchise. New to the series is the interconnected Metroidvania-esque world that encourages exploration and replay value, and the ability to collect "Biometals", which are central to the story. "Biometals" contains data on the legendary heroes of the past (including X, Zero, and the Four Guardians from the Zero series). Using these Biometals, the protagonists are able to transform (or "Mega-Merge", in the English releases) and use the powers of these heroes. In the second game, 2007's Mega Man ZX Advent, the player character is also able to transform into boss characters upon defeating them, which allows them to access previously inaccessible areas.

A third game, code-named Mega Man ZXC was under development around 2008, but was cancelled by Capcom's decision in favor of developing Mega Man 9. As such, the series has not received a proper conclusion.

Mega Man Legends
Beginning on the PlayStation in 1997, a 3D action game series called Mega Man Legends was created to take advantage of the console's advanced graphics hardware. The Legends series is set thousands of years in the future, where the world is covered by immense bodies of water, and humanity is extinct. In its place, Carbons, artificial humans, roam what was left of the world. The story follows Mega Man (Rock) Volnutt, a relic hunter called a "Digger" who scavenges various ruins throughout the world in search of refractor shards that can be mined and traded as currency. Mega Man Legends brings the gameplay into 3D and is an action-adventure game with third-person shooting role-playing elements.

The Legends series was left on a cliffhanger, with only two main games and a spin-off starring mainstay antagonist Tron Bonne before being discontinued. A continuation to the Legends series has become an oft-requested game among many Capcom and Mega Man fans. A third game was once under development for the Nintendo 3DS, but on July 17, 2011, Capcom canceled the project saying it did not meet certain requirements. This decision was met with criticism from fans and gaming news outlets.

Despite the many years since the last new release in the series, various characters from the Legends series consistently appear in Capcom cross-over games such as Marvel vs. Capcom, and the Servbot characters have become iconic within the Capcom community, making many cameo appearances in non-Mega Man games, including Dead Rising and as part of the outfit obtained via achievements in Lost Planet 2.

Mega Man Battle Network
Mega Man Battle Network, a series primarily on the Game Boy Advance, began in 2001 as a way for the Mega Man games to branch out into the role-playing video game market and to celebrate Mega Man's 15th anniversary. This series features a Net Navi called MegaMan.EXE. NetNavis acts as virtual assistants to Operators, such as the protagonist Lan Hikari, an elementary school student and a future hero who uses his Net Navi to help battle computer viruses and other Internet-based threats. The game combines real-time strategy, role-playing, and collectible card games to create a unique fast-paced battle system. Players and enemies are placed in a 6x3 grid, with each side usually occupying 3x3 of the space. Players must select Battle Chips from a select few from a folder deck, and once selected, the game switches to real-time as the player must move to dodge enemy attacks while attacking at the same time using said Battle Chips. Once the Custom Gauge is full, the player is able to select new chips from the deck.

An anime series, MegaMan NT Warrior, was also produced, ending with 209 episodes and a 50-minute film adaptation. A spin-off game Mega Man Network Transmission, was released in 2003. It is the only entry in the series released on a home console rather than a handheld, and takes place chronologically between the first two Battle Network games. It is also different from other games in the Battle Network universe as the game plays similarly to the Classic Mega Man series with several Battle Network elements.

Along with the anime and games, Mega Man Battle Network had toys mainly based on the Advanced PET from the series, the user would buy a starter pack which included 3 battle chips, and an Advanced PET, the toy came in three colors, Red (based on ProtoMan.EXE), Black (based on Bass.EXE) and Blue (based on MegaMan.EXE). Several battle chip expansion packs were also released, when the toy was discontinued, a total of 333 Battle Chips were released. The toy could be linked together via a link cable with another Advanced PET to battle each other.

With the series' sixth installment, Battle Network was the second series in the franchise to reach a definitive conclusion.

Mega Man Star Force
A follow-up to the Mega Man Battle Network series and released on the Nintendo DS, The Star Force series' marks the 20th anniversary of the Mega Man franchise. Star Force takes place roughly 200 years after the events of Battle Network, where network technology has progressed with electromagnetic wave technology to connect the world via radio waves. The series follows a boy named Geo Stelar, who lost his father after a space incident, and Omega-Xis, an extraterrestrial EM-wave fugitive arriving on Earth. The two transform into an EM-Human being known as "Mega Man," and as they explore both the real world and the EM-world, they face off against malicious EM-beings like Omega-Xis merging with other humans for their malicious intentions.

With the series third installment completing the story arc that started in the first game, Star Force became the third series in the Mega Man franchise to have a proper conclusion.

The Star Force games are similar to the Battle Network games, in which players must use a select number of Battle Cards on a folder deck to attack enemies. However, unlike Battle Network, combat takes place in 3D space, with most of the grid occupied by enemies, and the player having only a 1x3 grid to move, making combat much faster-paced and focusing more on player reflexes and quick-reaction time from an opening. To compensate, the collectible card system has been simplified, and players were given the "Mega Attack" ability which allows the player to lock on and move straight to the enemy to attack, and a regenerating shield that can deflect most attacks.

Like Battle Network, multiple merchandise and toys have been created for this series, such as add-on accessories for the Nintendo DS, as well as physical Battle Cards that can be used in-game. An anime based on this series began airing on TV Tokyo in October 2006 for 76 episodes. A remake of the first Battle Network game, "Operation Shooting Star", features crossover content between Battle Network and Star Force and was released exclusively in Japan in 2009.

Rockman Xover
Rockman Xover (ロックマン Xover Rokkuman Kurosuōbā, pronounced as Rockman Cross-over) is a game for Apple's iOS platform. The game marks the 25th anniversary of the Mega Man franchise and was released on November 29, 2012, on the Hong Kong iTunes Store. The game features a new protagonist, OVER-1 (オーバー ワン Ōbā Wan), a Reploid created by Dr. Light and Dr. Cossack, as he travels confronting villains from the entire Mega Man franchise, who have crossed between dimensions to join forces. The game received largely negative reviews from Japanese players, prompting Capcom to cancel the game's North American release. The game ceased operations on March 31, 2015.

In other video games
Various incarnations of Mega Man appear as playable fighters in the Marvel vs. Capcom series. The original was a playable fighter in Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes and Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes. He is assisted by his companion robots, Rush, Beat and Eddie. His sister robot, Roll, is also playable in both games, but is a secret character in the first game. Although he did not make a playable appearance in Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds, and its successor, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Zero from Mega Man X and Tron Bonne from Mega Man Legends appear as representatives for the series. X appears as an alternate costume for Zero and Frank West and as a card in Heroes and Heralds mode. The original Mega Man appears in the arcade endings of Thor and Nova, and also appears on a poster in the Days of Future Past stage, and finally, as another card in Heroes and Heralds Mode. X and Zero appear as playable characters in Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite, with Sigma appearing as both a DLC fighter and a major antagonist in the Story Mode, where he merges with the supervillain Ultron to become Ultron Sigma.

MegaMan.EXE and Zero both appear as bonus playable characters in the fighting game Onimusha Blade Warriors, while a different version of Mega Man, based on his appearance on the American box art of the first game, appears as a playable fighter in the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita versions of Street Fighter X Tekken. Mega Man Volnutt and Roll also make an appearance in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, with Zero added to the U.S. version. In 2013, Mega Man appeared as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U and its sequel, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. An amiibo based on his appearance was confirmed on November 11, and can be utilized in Super Smash Bros. as well as Mario Kart 8 where it can be scanned to unlock a costume for the player's Mii based on Mega Man's. In Super Mario Maker, the player can unlock a Mega Man costume by scanning the character's amiibo.

In Monster Hunter: World, Mega Man is a playable character through downloadable content.

Television appearances
Mega Man's first television appearances were produced for the American market and were based on the classic series. First was Captain N: The Game Master (1989–91), a show that took place in a universe that was made up of many different Nintendo games. It featured Mega Man as a main character and also featured Dr. Wily as one of the antagonists. This was followed by Mega Man (1994–95), the first series to be based in the Mega Man universe.

Mega Man next appeared in anime produced in Japan and based on spin-off series. First was MegaMan NT Warrior (2002–06), based on the Mega Man Battle Network video game series (both the anime and the video game series were known as Rockman.EXE in Japan). This was followed by Mega Man Star Force (2006–08), based on the video game series of the same name (both were known as Shooting Star Rockman in Japan).

A series titled Mega Man: Fully Charged began airing in 2018. Unlike the previous anime, it is again an American-produced animated series loosely based on the classic series.

OVA
Mega Man starred in Mega Man: Upon a Star, a three-part OVA that was developed in Japan. Production on this series started circa 1992-1993, before the American TV series, but was not officially released in the United States until 2005.

Film adaptation
Development of a film based on Mega Man had begun by December 2014 when 20th Century Fox registered a website domain for the film. In September 2015, Fox was revealed to be developing the film with Chernin Entertainment, and its CEO Peter Chernin was set to serve as a producer, with David Ready and Michael Finfer overseeing the production for Chernin, while Mike Ireland and Ryan Horrigan were overseeing for Fox. Fox had attempted to secure the Mega Man rights for over two years, and officially signed a deal to do so in early 2017. The filmmaking duo of Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman were in final negotiations to write and direct the film for Fox and Chernin Entertainment in July 2017, when Masi Oka joined as a producer. In October 2018, Capcom officially announced that a live-action film was in development at Fox and Chernin Entertainment, and confirmed the involvement of Joost and Schulman along with Oka. The film was part of Capcom's plans to increase value in the Mega Man franchise following the release of the Mega Man original series video game Mega Man 11 that month, and the company intended for the film to draw different audiences interested in video games or action films. The film was set to depict the world of the Mega Man games by using a higher-budgeted film production. In March 2019, The Walt Disney Company officially acquired Fox, and in August, Disney CEO Bob Iger announced that several films in development at Fox would not be progressing, citing operating losses from that studio in Disney's third fiscal quarter; the Mega Man film was believed to have been one of these films. That October, Capcom announced that Mega Man remained slated for a live-action film adaptation to create further awareness for the brand.

In January 2020, Disney and Chernin mutually agreed to end their production deal, citing Disney rarely having third-party studios finance their films. Chernin Entertainment was set to retain 70 of its projects from Fox, while the remaining productions were Disney-owned properties that would still involve Chernin as an executive producer. Later that month, Mattson Tomlin was revealed to be rewriting the Mega Man script. In April, Chernin signed a non-exclusive multi-year first-look film deal between Chernin Entertainment and the streaming service Netflix. In July, Joost and Schulman said that "big news" would soon be provided for the film, and said they invited Tomlin to co-write the script after he wrote their Netflix film Project Power (2020), a process they enjoyed. Joost and Schulman wanted to combine their interest in robotics and the future of automation with their favorite Mega Man games, and called Mega Man an "underdog hero". In August, Tomlin said his approach was to explore Mega Man as a real person with a "primal and emotional" story that can be relatable beyond the character's traditional depictions. In December 2021, Joost and Schulman's production company Supermarché was revealed to be developing the film alongside Chernin Entertainment for Netflix, with the duo's in-house producer Orlee-Rose Strauss also attached. Ryan Leston at IGN reported the film was still in early development at that time. In August 2022, Schulman confirmed that he and Joost were writing a Mega Man film adaptation for Netflix, and said it would explore the future of automation and "man and robot becoming one" as either being good or bad. Shortly after, Joost said that Josh Koenigsberg, who co-wrote Joost and Schulman's film Secret Headquarters (2022), was writing a new draft of the screenplay with the duo and hoped to turn in a completed draft to Netflix in the following weeks. Koenigsberg said he had replayed past Mega Man video games to research the property.

Artbooks
Various artbooks and source books have been released for many years in Japan, often including conceptual artwork, interviews with production staff, and background information on the storyline and concepts that are not present within the games themselves. One of the most well-known is the Rockman Perfect Memories sourcebook released in 2002 which first confirmed the presence of an alternate timeline (for Battle Network), as well as exactly where the Legends series fit into the fictional Mega Man universe.

Recently a series of artbooks called the Official Complete Works has been published for individual Mega Man series, showcasing a large collection of artwork and background information. To date, books for the Zero, Classic and X (released together as R20), Star Force, and Battle Network series have been produced. Although these books have for many years been exclusive to Japan, UDON Entertainment Corporation has finished translating the Official Complete Works series for the North American market, called "R25". Mega Man: Official Complete Works was re-released as a hardcover on October 16, 2018, Mega Man X: Official Complete Works was followed by a hardcover re-release on November 27, 2018. A hardcover re-release of Mega Man Zero: Official Complete Works was released on June 11, 2019. On April 2, 2019, it was announced that Mega Man Battle Network Official Complete Works would be getting a hardcover re-release on August 20, 2019. On October 31, 2019, it was announced that Mega Man Star Force Official Complete Works would be getting a hardcover re-release on May 5, 2020.

Comics
Mega Man has also been featured in many comics and manga in Japan, although few have been localized in North America.

The most well-known series is produced by Hitoshi Ariga (who went on to provide character designs and artwork for future official Capcom releases, including the Super Famicom game Mega Man and Bass). The series began with Rockman Remix, later known as Rockman Megamix, and followed up by Rockman Gigamix. The Megamix portion of the series would eventually be brought to North American shores thanks to UDON Entertainment Corporation, also responsible for the localization of the short Mega Man ZX manga by Shin Ogino. In the original Mega Man series, Dr. Light was known as Dr. Right, so many of his robots featured in Ariga's comic have "R"s in their designs. UDON did not alter this detail in the English version of Mega Man Megamix.

In addition, Viz Media localized the 13-volume Rockman EXE manga by Ryo Takamisaki under the name MegaMan NT Warrior. Takamisaki would later serialize a short adaptation of Mega Man Star Force 3 that was never published outside Japan.

Some other manga series that have not been localized outside Japan include a 12-volume Rockman X adaptation by Yoshihiro Iwamoto, over 15 Classic and X adaptations by Shigeto Ikehara, a light-hearted adaptation of Rockman Zero by Hideto Kajima, a slapstick adaptation of Shooting Star Rockman by Masaya Itagaki, another Battle Network adaptation by Jun Keijima and Miho Asada called Rockman EXE Battle Story, and a short series of slapstick Battle Network and Star Force-themed adaptations by Takumi Kawano.

Dreamwave Productions and Brazilian publisher Magnum Press made its own comic books based on the classic game series. The Brazilian series, Novas Aventuras de Megaman ("New Adventures of Megaman"), were originally published and sold in Brazil between 1996 and 1997 and drew certain criticism for featuring bizarrely altered storylines (with characters from several installments appearing at random, as well as erotic and sexual innuendo in Mega Man and X's relationship with Roll) as well for frequent nudity involving Roll and an original character named Princesa, which attempted to take over the status as the main character of the comics; its sudden end on a cliffhanger. The series was illustrated by Erica Awano, Eduardo Francisco, Daniel HDR and others.

The Dreamwave series lasted only four issues and also ended abruptly, with plot-threads from the first three issues being dropped completely in the final issue and the inclusion of a short story promising a Mega Man X follow-up that never materialized. This was one of several Dreamwave Capcom comics that were cut short or simply never made it to issue #1, including Maximo, Darkstalkers and Rival Schools.

On July 20, 2017, it was announced that Mega Man Megamix would be getting remastered on January 24, 2018, titled “Mega Man: Mastermix” These releases will contain remastered versions of the original stories and in full color provided by Josh Perez. And on September 29, 2018, It was announced that Mega Man Mastermix would be getting released in trade paperback form on April 2, 2019.

Archie Comics
In April 2011, Archie Comics released their first issue in an ongoing series of licensed comics based on the Mega Man franchise which features the titular character going against his nemesis Dr. Wily in various, original story arcs. The overall concept was created and almost exclusively written by Ian Flynn, who was also the head writer for Archie Comics' other video game licensed comic series Sonic the Hedgehog. Consequently, as of May 2013, both series have been crossed-over in a major story arc called "Worlds Collide", which spans twelve issues between the Mega Man comics, the main Sonic the Hedgehog comics, and the latter's side-series Sonic Universe. The popularity of this crossover is such that another meeting of the two series, "Worlds Unite", was announced for spring of 2015. The series was put on “indefinite hiatus” after Issue 55.

Junior novel
In 1990, a junior novel version of Mega Man 2 was released as part of the Worlds of Power novel series. Mega Man is turned human by Dr. Light during an accident in a machine designed to clone Mega Man. Instead of a Mega Buster, human Mega Man uses a hand gun, and instead of being able to copy the robot master's weapons, he instead takes them off of their arms. For some reason, being human does not affect him much and he is still able to consume E-drinks (Energy Tanks) and gain a power boost. The book follows the general plot of Mega Man 2 and even provides game hints at the end of some chapters.

Music
Ascertaining the identity of video game composers, especially prior to the fifth generation of consoles, can be difficult, as the composers were often uncredited or credited under a pseudonym. Recent soundtrack releases and interviews have discovered the true names of the composers; and in some cases, specific track credits.

The indie rock music group The Protomen dedicated their first two albums to a rock opera based on Mega Man, called The Protomen (2005) and Act II: The Father of Death (2009).

Independent rap artist Mega Ran remixed several Mega Man tracks for an album called Mega Ran (2007) and several follow-up albums, which were officially licensed by Capcom. He now holds a Guinness World Record for the most songs recorded referencing Megaman with 130.

Indie video game cover band The Megas (band) is a band that covers the music of the original NES Mega Man games, known for adding their own twist on the original story in their lyrics such as giving Robot Masters distinct personalities unseen in the games. Get Equipped (2008), their debut album covering the events of Mega Man 2; while their most recent albums, History Repeating: Blue (2012) and History Repeating: Red (2014) cover the events of Mega Man 3.

Reception and legacy
According to GamesRadar, the Mega Man games were the first to feature a non-linear "level select" option. This was a stark contrast to both linear games (like Super Mario Bros.) and open world games (like The Legend of Zelda and Metroid). GamesRadar credits the "level select" feature of Mega Man as the basis for the non-linear mission structure found in most open-world, multi-mission, sidequest-heavy games, including modern games like Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption and Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions. In Street Fighter: Assassin's Fist tenth episode "Raging Demon", Ryu and Ken were seen playing Mega Man 2 from a gift from Ken's father.

The original Mega Man series was well received, with IGN ranking all six original titles in the top 100 best NES games. Mega Man 2 in particular is widely regarded as the best of the series and one of the finest and most influential platformers of all-time. IGN ranked it as the fourth best NES game, behind only Super Mario and Legend of Zelda titles, calling it "virtually flawless" and its gameplay "oft-replicated and never exceeded".

The Mega Man X series has been positively received. The first Mega Man X game was widely acclaimed by critics since its release. Gaming magazines in the United States and Europe including Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM), GamePro, Game Players, Nintendo Power, Super Play, and the German version of Total! consistently lauded the game's visuals, audio, control, and overall gameplay. Game Players summarized Mega Man X as "a near-perfect cart with classic gameplay, excellent graphics and sound and tons of hidden items and power-ups". Nintendo Power stated that the game had "great control and fun" along with "challenging play".

Websites such as IGN, GameSpot, GamesRadar, and 1UP.com retrospectively held Mega Man X as a successful milestone in converting the Mega Man series from its increasingly stale existence on the NES to the SNES. Brett Elston of GamesRadar stated, "X was a total reinvention of the series, a perfectly executed update that had fans anticipating its release with a fervor the franchise hadn't seen since the Mega Man 2 and 3 days."

Mega Man X received criticism from some publications as well. Ed Semrad, Danyon Carpenter, and Al Manuel of the EGM review panel all noted that the game may have too low a difficulty level; Semrad disliked the introductory stage and felt that the game was too short as well. Super Play editor Zy Nicholson lowered his review score of the game because he found the levels were neither large nor challenging. "A few elementary tricks like repeating easy sections to recoup energy and weapon power will see you through the harder bits," Nicholson explained. "Within the level you'll also find restart points, extra lives, and no harsh time limit to put pressure on your performance. Couple this with a password system that records your level completion, status and weapon accumulation and you'll see we're not looking at a lasting challenge for the experienced player." Nintendo Power criticized how little the game had changed stating that "the theme remains the same as the Game Boy and NES Mega Man titles." The game's title initially proved a source of some confusion; the gaming media reported that many gamers mistook the "X" for the roman numeral 10.

Mega Man X was ranked number 58 in Nintendo Power's "100 Best Nintendo Games of All Time" in its 100th issue in September 1997, number 103 in the publication's "Top 200 Games" list for its 200th issue in February 2006, and the 11th best SNES game of all time in its August 2008 issue. Both GamesRadar and ScrewAttack listed Mega Man X as the eighth best game in the SNES library. GamePro similarly listed it as the eighth greatest 16-bit video game. Game Informer considered it the 120th best game of all time in its own 200th issue in December 2009. IGN named it the twelfth-best on its own top 100 SNES games list in 2011.

Mega Man X was a commercial success. The SNES version has sold 1.16 million copies worldwide as of March 31, 2021, making it the 89th best-selling Capcom game of all time. IGN's Jeremy Dunham speculated that the game's more mature storyline and its inclusion of numerous gameplay extensions over the original Mega Man series helped create a "unique cadre of fans". A spin-off series, Mega Man Zero, began in 2002 on the Game Boy Advance handheld as a result of the immense popularity of the character Zero.

The Mega Man Zero games have earned generally positive reviews. Review sources both criticized and praised the high difficulty level of the game and remarked that they were similar in nature to earlier installments in the Mega Man series. Positive reviews noted the variety of abilities and customization along with an engaging story than compared to its earlier series, while negative reviews focused on the series repetitiveness and lack of originality. Review scores were lower for the last two games in the series, with critics pointing out that the games were just using the same gameplay without introducing anything new. When the first game in the series came out, reviewers were quick to hail a return to what they considered "the Mega Man roots", however some fans criticized that the lack of knowing which boss the player will face next was a change for the worse and that it "takes away what made the series unique in the past".

Overall, the character of Mega Man has been well received by critics. IGN called him an icon of Capcom. Nintendo Power listed Mega Man as their fourth favourite hero, citing his ability to steal weapons from downed Robot Masters. Mega Man was also listed as the best robot in video games by many sources such Joystick Division, UGO Networks, and Complex. GameDaily ranked him as the best Capcom character of all time. UGO Networks listed Mega Man as one of their best heroes of all time, and called him "one of the most iconic video game heroes of all time". He was included in GameSpot's "All Time Greatest Video Game Hero" contest and reached the "Elite Eight" round before losing to Mario. In a Famitsu poll done in February 2010, Mega Man was voted by readers as the twenty-second most popular video game character. The 2011 Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition lists Mega Man as the 23rd most popular video game character. In 2012, GamesRadar ranked him as the 12th "most memorable, influential, and badass" protagonist in games.

Complex ranked him as having the tenth best fighting game cameos for his guest appearances in Street Fighter X Tekken in 2012. Joystick Division cited his rivalry with Dr. Wily as seventh of the ten greatest in video games, adding giving "great credit to this rivalry for its open-endedness" and GamesRadar listed him and Proto Man as having one of the best brotherly rivalries in gaming. UGO Networks have placed Mega Man as the eighth character who most deserves his own movie.

1UP.com described Mega Man as "Capcom's ill-treated mascot", and "one of the most incongruous characters of all time", saying "it wouldn't be completely incorrect to assume that the popularity of the series has almost nothing to do with Mega Man himself", but with "his rivals, his enemies, and their abilities." IGN agreed with his dependency on support characters, saying Zero is "cooler than Mega Man". Den of Geek listed Mega Man's incarnation from Street Fighter X Tekken as the 15th best cameo in fighting game history due to how it represented Capcom's lack of interest in featuring other games as of 2012, as well as the apparent self-mockery of it due to Mega Man's poor characterization. Destructoid described this Mega Man as "legit" stating it was "an unexpected and interesting creative decision by [Capcom] using this version of Mega Man to represent them in what may be one of their biggest games of 2012".

Mega Man series director Keiji Inafune announced the similarly themed Mighty No. 9 in September 2013, but after much controversy surrounding delays and mishandling, the game was released in June 2016 to a mixed-to-negative reception. Batterystaple Games released the Mega Man X-inspired 20XX in 2014.

Related

 * Magical Kids Doropie
 * 20XX
 * Azure Striker Gunvolt
 * Mighty Gunvolt
 * Mighty No. 9

title: Mega Man


text:
Talk:Heavenly Creatures

Citations for use

 * Please add to the list references that can be used for the film article.

References to use. Wildroot (talk) 14:45, 1 January 2011 (UTC)

Religious undertones?

 * See also angel, god.?

Can someone who has seen this more recently than I comment? I don't remember an angel in the film, or much play with religion, but I saw the film about 3 years ago and have seen hundreds since. I took the title to be ironic. Koyaanis Qatsi

 * Absolutely not relevant to the movies, and 'heavenly creatures' is not an expected entry point for those subjects.

I would just like to add some comments that I think might be pertinent and worthwhile. I would like also someone who could be bothered to comment critically on the comments I make. Perhaps even I would suggest that the person responsible for writing or editing the main article on the film might see fit or not as the case may be to add my points. I loved the euphemistic way that the writer of the article described the relationship of the two girls. The use of the term "close friends". Now while I must admit, that I havn't actually seen the film recently so I'm relying on my memory stores but I think my memory might be serving me well, when I say that by the use of the euphemistic terms "close friends" the author probably being as neutral as possible used these words rather than the word describing the relationship as lesbian. Now I don't think that euphemism is necessarily "neutral language"-it in fact could be construed as a form of propaganda coming under perhaps the field of omission. Saying "close friends" is not really accurate and indeed is actually misleading and degenerate and pejorative of the term friend. In my book and a lot of other people's books close friend except being "euphemistic" has no sexual content. Being euphemistic leaves the interpretation of the text open to possible misunderstanding and misrepresentation. This text could lead people to believe that the two girls were in fact good friends and not lovers. In truth they were. Is the truth important or is keeping up appearances under the cloak of "neutral " language acceptable, wanted, desirous, necessary? Why in this day and age where supposedly in the majority of Anglo-Saxon and Western countries where it is considered legal to be a lesbian is there this hesitancy resulting in euphemism probably trying to be neutral coming from? I also love the way the author continues to put together in the same vein and the same juxtaposed thought referencing, the fact of this relationship and the girls continually spiralling down into a world of fantasy. Now while in the film I must admit that they did live in and perpetuate and even egg each other on into more and more irreality (which is fantasy is it not?) I wonder whether this can be seen as more evidence of the mainstream heterosexuals who deem anything they don't understand or disagree with as being "not serious" "frivolous" and quite frankly from this text "of the fantastic (related to fantasy)".

Another point that I would like to make is that of all the 7 major types of plot you can ever have in a story this is essentially another take on the Romeo and Juliet level even if a bit obscure and "scratching for straws", as my detractors might say but I obviously don't because I bothered to mention it. The two girls were if not properly in love and who can judge but the subject because love is subjective and they were like in Romeo and Juliet prevented from seeing each other and this prevention like in R and J lead to death or a lot of death as in R and J.

I also don't quite know the protocol for submitting text. Do you have to put your name and can you remain anonymous?

I also agree with the comment possibly made by the person in charge of the site that said in response to the person above whose argument was I think that they thought there was enough "God, angel" stuff in the film, (obviously the title helped), to put a link to angels or God. I agree with the person in charge of the site that there is not enough evidence (cogent, pertinent, and relevant that is, to the subject) to link this film in any way to sites about angels, religion or god.

 * I'm very sick of hearing people refer to heterosexuals as "homophobes". I hate, absolutely HATE that term and wish it would go obsolete. "Heterosexuals deem anything they don't understand as 'not serious', frivolous'". What a misinformed thing to say! There may be some "intolerance" here, but I certainly can't see what is wrong with the right kind of relationship. Homosexuals deem anything that they don't understand or don't agree with as "intolerant" or "arrogant". A sexual relationship should be between a man and a woman, not between a man and a man or a woman and a woman. Scorpionman 23:05, 9 February 2006 (UTC)

 * What are you talking about? Who suggested this? When? Where?
 * And yes, you are intolerant. It may be your view that there is a 'right' kind of relationship, but your failure to accept other relationships is, by definition, intolerant. I need waste no more time on this. -- Ec5618 01:38, 11 February 2006 (UTC)

 * There should be no other relationships. And you are intolerant of those who are intolerant of homosexuality, so you might as well not call anybody "intolerant" until you become tolerant yourself. And frankly, you might as well not waste any more time on this, because it's pointless. Scorpionman 01:35, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

 * I never said I was intolerant of intolerance. I merely pointed out that you are intolerant. And technically, I don't think that even objecting to intolerance is intolerance in itself. Still, indeed, pointless. You're objecting to ficticious commentary. -- Ec5618 08:13, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

Pictures please?
Since I don't know how to add pictures to Wikipedia, could someone please find some screen caps from the film, that aren't copyright and post them on the page to imporve it. Thanks Movie-lover93 04:17, 29 July 2006 (UTC)

Redundancy
"The original 1994 American release was rated NC-17 for a chilling murder and some sexuality, while the 2002 Director's Cut was rated R for violence and sexual content." Is there anything functionally different about those two descriptions? Recommend revision. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.215.188.55 (talk) 07:03, 4 January 2008 (UTC)

Original Screenplay??? And where is Daughters of Heaven on Wiki?
"It received an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay" I thought it was based on the play 'Daughters of Heaven', which doesn't seem to have a single mention on Wiki. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 202.154.147.28 (talk) 00:30, 24 May 2008 (UTC)

emerse/immerse
Emerse: Rising above the surface of water Immerse: To plunge or dip into a fluid —Preceding unsigned comment added by 4.227.237.99 (talk) 00:40, 13 April 2009 (UTC)

Plot Description
Pauline is 14 at the beginning of the timeline of the film, a fact stated clearly by her mother when she discovers that Pauline and "John" have had a nighttime meeting in Pauline's room. Someone keeps changing her age to 16, which is not correct. 18:39, 4 August 2009 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Zelmia (talk • contribs)

They both go on to play Roses
In 1997 Winslet starred as Rose in Titanic, which won the Academy Award for Best Picture. In 2003-present, Lynskey stars as Rose on the very popular TV series Two and a Half Men.

I'm not sure this is notable enough to be put in the article... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.247.244.120 (talk) 00:22, 4 October 2009 (UTC)

Film running time/Info box
Do not put the DVD running time into the info box. It does not belong there. It is already noted in the DVD section at the end of the article. 109 minutes is NOT the "original" running time, but rather the running time of the Region 1 DVD release only. The film was 99 minutes in the theatre, 99 minutes on laserdisc, on VHS, and on the 1st DVD release. Then a so-called "uncut version" was released in the No. America market, and ran 109 minutes. The 99 minute, original version is now streaming on Hulu Plus and on Netflix. There is only one, anomalous 109 min. version, and this information needs to be kept in its proper place. In general, the info box should have a minimum of information in it, and only the most important. Keeping those boxes tidy and consise is an ongoing effort on WP right now.

Also, it is customary to avoid categorizing a film at all, and certainly "crime-fantasy" is an opinion, not a fact. Even calling a film a drama is usually avoided. It should be left as it is, merely a film.

To AbsoluteGleek92: You Wikilinked the same names multiple times, when one only does it once, the first time they are mentioned. We also avoid Wikilinking more than is absolutely necessary, as it makes the article unreadable when every other word is in blue. I restored your Wikilink to The Simpsons, but any other links should be carefully considered before you do them again. You also put in lots of unnecesary things like "previously unknown Kate Winslet" when the above paragraph states clearly that both girls were making their film debuts. We don't need to know to what film this lost the Oscar to, either. Excess verbiage is discouraged. Please consider carefully before making any more edits to this page, and always read the article in its entirety first, to avoid repeating things that are already clear, or completely covered in another section. Thank you.--TEHodson 05:01, 10 September 2011 (UTC)

Age
That change to 13 years old appears to have been either an error or vandalism by an anonymous editor. The film doesn't change her age to 13.--TEHodson 22:39, 2 January 2012 (UTC)
 * Perry born in October 1938; the murder occurred in June 1954, which makes her 15. The movie doesn't have to be accurate, but if it differs from such detail a citation or at least explanation is needed.- gadfium 19:27, 18 December 2012 (UTC)

The Fourth World
To BlueJay Young: As the Fourth World is complex and evolves throughout the film, it's best that it's described in full, not merely called an afterlife. The fact that they are able to experience and enter it while demonstrably still alive rebukes that interpretation, so I've restored the fuller text which explains that. Also, you added an awful lot of words, taking us way beyond the limit. Thanks.--TEHodson 07:46, 23 April 2012 (UTC)

 * Rebukes? Perhaps you meant refutes.  A dictionary is a writer's friend.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.144.64.89 (talk) 07:09, 18 September 2013 (UTC)

'Heavenly Creatures created an uproar in the United States'
The article currently states "B. Ruby Rich writes that Heavenly Creatures created an uproar in the United States" but it doesn't say why. More info on this please. 86.181.133.9 (talk) 11:35, 7 July 2014 (UTC)

Lesbian-related and LGBT-related categories
WP:CATV > The plot states "The doctor suspects that Pauline is homosexual....", but there is not one, single source verifying it and, thereby, the categories. Pyxis Solitary  (yak yak). Ol' homo. 09:14, 19 June 2024 (UTC)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Talk:Heavenly Creatures


text:
Isotropic etching

Isotropic etching is a method commonly used in semiconductors to remove material from a substrate via a chemical process using an etchant substance. The etchant may be in liquid-, gas- or plasma-phase, although liquid etchants such as buffered hydrofluoric acid (BHF) for silicon dioxide etching are more often used. Unlike anisotropic etching, isotropic etching does not etch in a single direction, but rather etches in multiple directions within the substrate. Any horizontal component of the etch direction may therefore result in undercutting of patterned areas, and significant changes to device characteristics. Isotropic etching may occur unavoidably, or it may be desirable for process reasons.

title: Isotropic etching


text:
University of Missouri–Kansas City

The University of Missouri–Kansas City (UMKC or Kansas City) is a public research university in Kansas City, Missouri. UMKC is part of the University of Missouri System and has a medical school. For the 2023-2024 academic year, the university's enrollment was over 15,300 students. It is the largest university and third largest college in the Kansas City metropolitan area. It offers more than 125 degree programs over 11 academic units. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity".

Lincoln and Lee University
The school has its roots in the Lincoln and Lee University movement first put forth by the Methodist Church and its Bishop Ernest Lynn Waldorf in the 1920s. The proposed university (which was to honor Abraham Lincoln and Robert E. Lee) was to be built on the Missouri–Kansas border at 75th and State Line Road, where the Battle of Westport (the largest battle west of the Mississippi River during the American Civil War) took place. The centerpiece of the school was to be a National Memorial marking the tomb of an unknown Union soldier and unknown Confederate soldier. Proponents of the school said it would be a location "where North met South and East met West." The Methodist interest reflected the church's important role in the development of the Kansas City area through the Shawnee Methodist Mission which was the second capital of Kansas.

As the Methodists started having problems piecing together the necessary property, other civic leaders including J.C. Nichols began pushing to create a cultural center on either side of Brush Creek, just east of the Country Club Plaza. According to this plan the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art and Kansas City Art Institute would be built north of Brush Creek around the estate of The Kansas City Star publisher William Rockhill Nelson and a private nonsectarian University of Kansas City (initially proposed as a junior college) would be built south of the creek. In addition, a hospital would be constructed around the estate of Kansas City Journal-Post publisher Walter S. Dickey. The hospital was never built.

In 1930, after the Methodists had brought the Kansas City Dental School into their fold, the two plans were merged. The new school was to be called "Lincoln and Lee, the University of Kansas City." and plans were underway to develop it into a four-year school.

The university was built on a 40 acre plot, southeast of the Nelson mansion. William Volker had purchased and donated this land for the University of Kansas City. The original Volker purchase did not include the Dickey mansion itself. Dickey died unexpectedly in 1931 and Volker acquired it to be the first building.

University of Kansas City
The two groups were to squabble back and forth, with Ernest H. Newcomb attempting to mediate. The Church did not maintain its ties, and the Lincoln and Lee name was abandoned. The school announced that it would start if 125 students enrolled. The target was met, and the University of Kansas City, or "KCU" for short, held its first classes in October 1933 with a faculty of 17 and a student enrollment of 264.

The campus (now expanded to 90 acre) is called the Volker Campus. The Dickey mansion is now Scofield Hall. The second building on the campus, the library, was named for Newcomb. A Carl Milles fountain on Brush Creek opposite the Nelson Gallery is called the Volker Fountain.

The University of Kansas City grew quickly, and soon incorporated other existing local private institutions of higher learning. The Kansas City School of Law, which was founded in the 1890s and located in downtown Kansas City, merged into the university in 1938. The Kansas City-Western Dental College followed in 1941 and the Kansas City College of Pharmacy merged in 1943. This was followed by the Kansas City Conservatory of Music in 1959. During this period, the university also established the School of Administration in 1953, the School of Education in 1954, and the Division for Continuing Education in 1958.

University of Missouri–Kansas City
On July 25, 1963, at the urging of alumnus Hilary A. Bush, the university became part of the University of Missouri System and $20 million of assets including 23 buildings were transferred to the University of Missouri. At the time, KCU had 3,300 students (2,000 full-time) and 175 full-time faculty.

At the time Missouri already owned the campuses in Columbia and Rolla. Accordingly, the university's name was changed to the University of Missouri–Kansas City. After this, UMKC established the School of Graduate Studies in 1964, the School of Medicine in 1970, the School of Nursing in 1980, the School of Basic Life Sciences in 1985 (which was renamed the School of Biological Sciences in the mid-1990s), and the School of Computing and Engineering in 2001.

In 2012, the school conducted studies on whether to rename the school back to the University of Kansas City (while still remaining in the University of Missouri system). In November 2012, the school decided against the change noting at the time, "while prospective students and the community at large had strong interest in the name change, several other important groups — current students, faculty/staff, and alumni — do not favor a name change at this time."

In the mid and late 2010s, UMKC came under fire for corruption and cover-ups that alleged a pursuit of outside money above all else. Critics highlighted examples in the management school and pharmaceutical school, including a faculty member who required international students to perform personal tasks for him and false information used to rank the business school.

Academic units
Today, the academic divisions of UMKC are as follows:
 * the College of Arts and Sciences
 * the Conservatory of Music and Dance
 * the Henry W. Bloch School of Management
 * the School of Science and Engineering
 * the School of Dentistry
 * the School of Education
 * the School of Law
 * the School of Medicine
 * the School of Nursing and Health Studies
 * the School of Pharmacy
 * the School of Graduate Studies

The School of Medicine is known for its six-year post-secondary program, wherein a student spends only six years obtaining both a Bachelor of Arts and Doctor of Medicine degree. The school operates two campuses, one in Kansas City, Missouri, and one in St. Joseph, Missouri. The School of Medicine in Kansas City, Missouri, is known as the Health Sciences District campus or HSD. It is situated away from the main campus on Hospital Hill, where it is connected to University Health Truman Medical Center, an extensive research hospital. The St. Joseph campus, or STJ, is located within Mosaic Life Care hospital, with construction underway on a new $14.5 million, 22,000-square-foot medical school.

The School of Law is one of four law schools in Missouri (St. Louis University School of Law, University of Missouri School of Law, and Washington University School of Law are the others). It is one of only seven American law schools to have educated both a President of the United States (Harry S. Truman) and a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (Charles Evans Whittaker). Truman attended but did not graduate from the law school and never practiced law. The schools that actually have had President-Supreme Court graduates who practiced law are Yale Law School, Harvard Law School, Columbia Law School, the University of Virginia School of Law, the William & Mary Law School and the University of Cincinnati College of Law.

The university is the home of New Letters, a literary magazine, as well as the nationally syndicated public radio program New Letters on the Air. For over 50 years, UMKC has broadcast live, taped, and syndicated programming over KCUR, the university's radio station and NPR affiliate.

In 2004, the Fungal Genetics Stock Center moved to UMKC where it is in the School of Biological Sciences. The FGSC was founded in 1960 and is supported by the US National Science Foundation. The FGSC distributes research materials around the world, and is part of the World Federation for Culture Collections. Collaborators include researchers at the Broad Institute and the US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute.

UMKC Theatre is considered to have one of the stronger M.F.A. programs in acting in the country. In 2017, 2018, and 2019 the MFA costume design program was ranked in the top 10 best costume design schools in the country by The Hollywood Reporter.

The university is the site where the Supplemental Instruction program was established and developed.

Rankings
In 2014, Princeton Review named the university a "Best Value" public university, for the third consecutive year.

U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings, UMKC was ranked 269th (tied) in the National Universities category.

Athletics
UMKC's mascot is Kasey Kangaroo (originally drawn by Walt Disney). Historically, UMKC athletics had used the identity of "UMKC Kangaroos," but the short form "Roos" was widely used both within and outside of the program. On July 1, 2019, the athletic program officially rebranded itself as the Kansas City Roos. The school's colors are old gold and royal blue. It is a member of the NCAA's Division I Summit League, having rejoined that conference on July 1, 2020, after seven years in the Western Athletic Conference.

The men's soccer team won the Summit League men's soccer championships in 1996, 1999, 2001, 2003, and 2010. The team set an NCAA record on October 12, 2001, with the fastest trio of goals scored in Division I soccer during the MLS era, by scoring three times in 1:46 against Valparaiso University. Notable Roos soccer players have included goalkeepers Kevin Corby and Connor Sparrow, defenders Roberto Albuquerque and Coady Andrews, forwards Levi Coleman, Eric McWoods, and Jordan Rideout, and midfielders Manny Catano, Jony Muñoz, and Bryan Pérez.

The department sponsors: men's basketball and women's basketball, men's soccer and women's soccer, men's tennis and women's tennis, men's golf and women's golf, men's indoor and outdoor track & field and women's indoor and outdoor track & field, men's cross country and women's cross country, softball, and volleyball. The men's and women's basketball teams play at Swinney Recreation Center. UMKC sponsors 16 sports for both men and women at the intercollegiate level. In April 2007, the school dropped its Co-Ed Rifle Program in order to add women's soccer and men's baseball. Women's soccer was added to the institution for the 2009–10 school year.

Campuses
UMKC is spread across multiple locales; the main Volker Campus, home to the majority of university operations, is located in Kansas City, Missouri's Rockhill neighborhood, east of the Country Club Plaza, and adjacent to both the Stowers Institute for Medical Research and the Linda Hall Library. In 2017 the university, in collaboration with University Health Truman Medical Center, Children's Mercy Hospital, the Missouri Health Department, the Jackson County Medical Examiners Office, and the Missouri Department of Mental Health Behavioral Medicine, formed the UMKC Health Sciences District on Hospital Hill. This district is a first-in-the-nation partnership between local and state governments, the university, and these nationally recognized healthcare faculties, designed to promote collaboration in research, innovation, education, grant funding, and community outreach, for the advancement of health and wellness in the greater Kansas City metropolitan area. Also in 2017, the university announced plans to expand its metropolitan identity with the construction of a downtown Campus for the Arts, located near the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

Volker Campus

UMKC has two campuses in Kansas City. Most of UMKC's main campus (Volker campus) is inside a square formed by Volker Boulevard (north), Oak Street (west), 53rd Street (south), and Troost (east). The Health Sciences District campus houses the health sciences academic departments. Directly across Troost from UMKC is Rockhurst University, a Jesuit university.

Health Sciences District Campus
The Health Sciences District campus houses the School of Nursing, the School of Medicine, the School of Dentistry, and the School of Pharmacy.

St. Joseph Campus
The School of Medicine–St. Joseph campus is currently under construction of a $14.5 million, 22,000-square-foot medical building in St. Joseph, Missouri. It is planning to open in the Spring of 2025.

Biological Sciences Building
Built in 1972, the Biological Sciences Building is located north of the Spencer Chemistry Building and east of Katz Hall. The building houses offices, classrooms, and research laboratories of the School of Biological Sciences. The school offers undergrad, grad, and doctoral degrees in the life sciences. The Biological Sciences Building and Spencer Chemistry Building are connected on four of its floors; in addition to this, the south stairwell on the basement floor of the Biological Sciences Building is the north stairwell of the Spencer Chemistry Building.

Fine Arts Building
The Fine Arts Building was built in 1942 and remodeled in 1975. Currently, the Art and Art History departments use the building. Student works are often displayed in the building's UMKC Gallery of Art.

Spencer Chemistry Building
The building, located at 51st & Rockhill, was built in 1972 using funds donated by Helen Spencer. The purpose of the building was to nurture scientific advancement at UMKC. It currently houses the main office of the Chemistry Department, as well as several chemistry laboratories and classrooms. Spencer Chemistry Building and the Biological Sciences Building are connected on four of its floors.

The Quad
The majority of UMKC's students regularly attend classes in buildings on the Quad. These buildings are Flarsheim Hall, Newcomb Hall, Manheim Hall, Royall Hall, Haag Hall, and Scofield Hall.

Cockefair Hall
Cockefair, (pronounced coke-fair), is located on Rockhill across from Flarsheim Hall. It was built in 1950 and is named for former faculty member Carolyn Cockefair, who was a humanities professor at UMKC. The building currently houses the departments of History, English, and Philosophy.

Flarsheim Hall
Flarsheim Hall was built in 1999, and is the largest building on UMKC's campus. The Chemistry, Physics, and Geosciences departments, as well as the School of Computing and Engineering, are located in Flarsheim Hall. The hall was named after Robert H. Flarsheim, who left a $9 million endowment to the university in his estate. Flarsheim Hall is located on the northeast corner of the Quad.

Haag Hall
Haag Hall (pronounced Hāg), built in 1937, contains offices and classrooms including the departments of mathematics and communication studies. Its most recognizable features are large murals stretching along the main stairwell. Haag Hall is connected to both Royall and Flarsheim Halls. Haag Hall is located on the southeast corner of the Quad.

Katz Hall
Completed in 1965, Katz Hall is named in honor of Isaac and Michael Katz, founders of a major Kansas City drug store chain. The building currently houses the Department of Architecture, Urban Planning + Design's offices and classrooms, and was once the location for the School of Pharmacy. The Pharmacy School has moved to the Health Sciences Building on UMKC's Hospital Hill campus, approximately four miles north of the Volker Campus.

Manheim Hall
Manheim Hall, along with Newcomb Hall were the first two buildings originally built for the university. It is named for Ernest Manheim, a professor of sociology, who taught at the university and founded its sociology program. Currently, Manheim Hall houses offices. It is connected to Royall Hall by a second-floor walkway. Manheim is located on the southwest corner of the Quad.

Newcomb Hall
Newcomb Hall (built in 1936) was named after the first manager of the university, Ernest H. Newcomb. Originally designed to house the library, Newcomb Hall is now home to offices, the University Archives, the Western Historical Manuscript Collection and the Edgar Snow Collections. Newcomb Hall is located on the extreme west edge of the quad.

Royall Hall
Royall Hall was built in 1968 and is almost exclusively classrooms. Two large lecture halls are on the ground floor, and an astronomical observatory is on the roof. Also on the ground floor is a lounge area with an Einstein Bros. Bagels. Royall Hall is connected to both Manheim and Haag Halls, and to a five-level parking structure across the street. Royall Hall is located on the south end of the Quad.

Scofield Hall
Scofield Hall was built in 1912, and was originally a private residence. In 1931, William Volker acquired it and donated it to the university. It was named after Carleton Scofield, who was chancellor of the university when it merged with the University of Missouri System. The Arts & Sciences advising office as well as the Language Resource Center and the Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures are located in Scofield Hall. Scofield Hall is located on the north end of the Quad.

Epperson House
Epperson House is located south of 52nd St. between Oak and Cherry. The Tudor-Gothic structure was completed in 1923 at a cost of $450,000. Originally built as a private residence, Epperson House contained 48 rooms, six bathrooms, elevators, a swimming pool, and a billiard room, spread through four floors. The residence was built by Uriah S. Epperson, who was a banker, industrialist, and philanthropist who amassed significant wealth from insurance and meat-packing industries. The building was donated to the university in 1942 for use as a men's dormitory until 1956. Epperson is well known for its apparent hauntings, which earned it a spot on Unsolved Mysteries as one of the top five haunted houses in the United States. The house now sits vacant and unused, awaiting incite from the chancellor on what it will be used for next.

University Center and Atterbury Student Success Center
The University Center (known as the "U-Center") was built in 1961. The student dining hall is located here, as is Pierson Auditorium, an often used site for career fairs or luncheons. In 2012, the University Center underwent renovations and was rededicated as the Atterbury Student Success Center. It was designed to promote student academic success.

Swinney Recreation Center
Swinney Recreation Center was built in 1941, and was gifted to the university by E. F. Swinney. There are five basketball courts, an Olympic-sized swimming pool, racquetball and squash courts, weight-training center, soccer field, and indoor and outdoor tracks at the recreation center. Along with the Kansas City Club and the Pembroke Hill School, Swinney is one of only three locations in Kansas City containing squash courts. University students, faculty and staff have access to the center, and paid memberships are open to others.

James C. Olson Center for the Performing Arts
Known on campus simply as the PAC (Performing Arts Center), this building partially houses the Conservatory of Music and Dance and the Department of Theatre, as well as the Kansas City Repertory Theatre. The PAC, designed by Kivett and Myers, opened in 1979 and contains White Recital Hall, Helen F. Spencer Theatre, and a black box theatre space, Studio 116.

Proposed new downtown arts campus
A proposal for a new downtown arts campus got a funding boost on June 26, 2013, with a $20 million challenge grant from the Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation, but an additional $70 million needs to be raised. The backers say a new campus will increase the profile of the university's arts programs and the new performing arts facility. The first phase involves moving the university's Conservatory of Music and Dance to a location in the Crossroads District. Other programs would be moved in subsequent phases.

Housing
As of Fall 2022, 7% of the university's students lived in housing that was owned by UMKC, operated by it, or affiliated with it. The remainder lived off-campus.

Cherry Hall
Cherry Street Hall is a former dormitory located at 5030 Cherry Street on the UMKC Volker campus. It was constructed in 1955 and had a more traditional dormitory style. The building had 168 single, double, and triple rooms, housing approximately 300 students. Each floor was segregated by gender and shared a communal bathroom. Students often viewed Cherry Street Hall as offering more opportunities for social interaction compared to Oak Street. The building ceased being a student residence in 2009. In 2011, the Psychology Department relocated to the renovated Cherry Hall.

Twin Oaks Apartments
Twin Oaks Apartments, formerly situated at 5000 Oak Street, were purchased by the university in 1998 to accommodate students who desired more independent living arrangements than the traditional dormitories could offer. Over time, the buildings began to deteriorate, and in 2002, the university determined that demolishing Twin Oaks and constructing a new residence hall in its place would be more cost-effective. As a result, UMKC stopped leasing to new tenants in 2005 and granted current tenants an extended grace period to find alternative housing. The buildings were entirely vacated by 2006. In September 2006, the Kansas City Fire Department utilized Twin Oaks for firefighter training. The buildings were then demolished with a wrecking ball in November 2006 and the process was completed in 2007.

Oak Street Hall
Completed in 2004, Oak Street Hall is located at 5051 Oak Street. The five-story building houses approximately 559 students in single room and suite-style two-bedroom suites. The ground level is a large common lobby with a kitchen, laundry facility, music practice rooms, pool tables and a widescreen television set. On floors 2–5, kitchenettes, vending machines, quiet study rooms and social lounges comprise the common areas. Oak Hall was set as the quality standard for the UMKC 30-year Master Plan.

Oak Place Apartments
The Oak Place Apartments were located at 5050 Oak Street on land once occupied by the demolished Twin Oaks Apartments. Twin Oaks construction on Oak Place started in 2007 and Oak Place was opened to students in 2008. Oak Place consisted of two four story apartment complexes separated by an above ground parking structure. Oak Place housed around 500 students in 1, 2, and 4 bedroom suite style apartments, each complete with a kitchen. Common areas included lounge areas, an academic room, and 1 computer lab in each building.

The apartments were demolished in mid-2020 after various issues with the buildings such as water damage and mold prevailed, forcing students to evacuate. The University of Missouri Board of Curators filed a lawsuit in March 2018 against JE Dunn construction, Gould Evans Associates and other companies involved in the construction of Oak Place. The board listed 34 entities responsible for what it called “reckless” construction and design.

Herman and Dorothy Johnson Hall
Construction on Herman and Dorothy Johnson Hall began in 2008, and it is situated on the UMKC Volker Campus, north of Oak Place Apartments. The four-story building opened its doors to students in 2009 and has a capacity to house up to 328 students in traditional dormitory-style living arrangements. The suites consist of single and double occupancy rooms that share a bathroom, and the building has gender-segregated floors. Amenities available to students include music practice rooms, a computer lab, laundry facilities, and outdoor green space.

Greek life
Greek Life at the University of Missouri–Kansas City is administered by the Office of Student Involvement's Fraternity and Sorority Affairs. UMKC is home to 24 Greek Letter Organizations (six social fraternities, seven social sororities, one multicultural sorority, and ten professional fraternities). Although the Greek population is relatively small, it maintains a proud heritage, and several chapters have received awards from their organization's international offices.

Greek Life at UMKC traces its origins to 1936, with the establishment of the Bounders Fraternity. The Bounders was the first social organization recognized by the University of Kansas City, and the fraternity originated many of UMKC's school traditions. The Bounders even led the push for the removal of university president Clarence Decker. Decker's resignation in 1953 opened the door for both intercollegiate athletics and national Greek organizations on campus. In 1956, the Bounders petitioned Delta Chi and received a charter. Delta Chi became the first national fraternity to charter on the UMKC campus. The Delta Rho chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha was founded four years earlier, in 1952; however, it was originally chartered at nearby Rockhurst University and did not submit its charter for official recognition by UMKC until 1963.

Hobo Day and Bum Friday
One of the best known traditions in the history of UMKC was Hobo Day, later known as Bum Friday. The campus-wide event was created as Hobo Day, and it first occurred on May 8, 1935, to celebrate the end of the spring semester. Students dressed as hobos throughout the day, and various events and competitions took place. The day started with the Hobo parade, and then everyone gathered in the quad where university president Clarence Decker would read a proclamation that he was cancelling classes and turning the university over to the students. President Decker was an appropriate master of ceremonies for the day, as he had lived the life of a hobo during a portion of his younger years. Events throughout the day included beard growing contests, pie eating contests, glee club performances, skits satirizing campus life, car rallies, talent shows, and athletic contests. The Bum Friday Queen and the Most Fascinating Man were crowned, and the day ended with a dance in which students switched out their bum attire for formal wear. Awards for the daytime activities were presented at the dance. A bonfire closed out the evening. In 1951, Hobo Day was renamed Bum Friday, although the activities essentially remained the same. In 1982, the Student Life Office put a stop to Bum Friday and replaced it with "Roo Fest", which lacked many of the activities and traditions of Bum Friday and its predecessor, Hobo Day.

The Bounder Bells
Alumni members of the former Bounders Fraternity raised nearly $30,000 in donations for the purchase of a Van Bergen 49-bell carillon. The Bounder Bells was dedicated on the UMKC campus in May 1989. The carillon is located in the tower of the Swinney Recreation Center. The bells controlled by an electronic keyboard, and they ring on the hour. The bells can also can be programmed to play melodies.

Chancellors
Presidents (when the school was independent)/Chancellors (when the school became part of the University of Missouri system) of the school are:

Ernest H. Newcomb, executive secretary, 1933–36 John Duncan Spaeth, president, 1936–38 Clarence Decker, president, 1938–53
 * Roy Rinehart, interim, 1953

Earl J. McGrath, president, 1953–56 Richard M. Drake, president (initially interim), 1956–61 Carleton F. Scofield, president 1961–63, chancellor 1963–65 (becomes part of University of Missouri System) Randall M. Whaley, chancellor, 1965–67
 * Hamilton B.G. Robinson, interim, 1967–68

James C. Olson, chancellor, 1968–76
 * Wesley J. Dale, interim, 1976–77

George A. Russell, chancellor, 1977–92 Eleanor Schwartz, chancellor, 1992–99
 * Gordon Lamb, interim, 1999–2000

Martha Gilliland, chancellor, 2000–05
 * Elson Floyd, interim via system president capacity, 2005
 * Steven Lehmkuhle, interim, 2005

Guy Bailey, chancellor, 2006–08 Leo Morton, chancellor (initially interim) 2008–17
 * Barbara A. Bichelmeyer, interim, 2017-18

C. Mauli Agrawal, chancellor, 2018–present

title: University of Missouri–Kansas City


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Market system

A market system (or market ecosystem ) is any systematic process enabling many market players to offer and demand: helping buyers and sellers interact and make deals. It is not just the price mechanism but the entire system of regulation, qualification, credentials, reputations and clearing that surrounds that mechanism and makes it operate in a social context. Some authors use the term "market system" to refer to specifically to the free market system. This article focuses on the more general sense of the term according to which there are a variety of different market systems.

Market systems are different from voting systems. A market system relies on buyers and sellers being constantly involved and unequally enabled; in a voting system, candidates seek the support of voters on a less regular basis. In addition (a) buyers make decisions on their own behalves, whereas voters make decisions for collectives, (b) voters are usually fully aware of their participation in social decision-making, whereas buyers are often unaware of the secondary repercussions of their acts, (c) responsibility for making purchasing decisions is concentrated on the individual buyer, whereas responsibility for making collective decisions is divided, (d) different buying decisions at the same time are made under conditions of scarcity --- the selection of one thing precludes the selection of another, whereas different voting decisions are not --- one can vote for a president and a judge in the same election without one vote precluding the other, and (e) under ordinary conditions, a buyer is choosing to buy an actual good and is therefore never overruled in his choice, whereas it is the nature of voting that the voter is choosing among potential alternatives and may be overruled by other voters. However, the interactions between market and voting systems are an important aspect of political economy, and some argue they are hard to differentiate; for example, systems like cumulative voting and runoff voting involve a degree of market-like bargaining and trade-off, rather than simple statements of choice.

Types
In economics, market forms are studied. These look at the impacts of a particular form on larger markets, rather than technical characteristics of how buyers and sellers interact.

Heavy reliance on many interacting market systems and different forms of markets is a feature of capitalism, and advocates of socialism often criticize markets and aim to substitute markets with economic planning to varying degrees. Competition is the regulatory mechanism of the market system. This article does not discuss the political impact of any particular system nor applications of a particular mechanism to any particular problem in real life. For more on specific types of real-life markets, see commodity markets, insurance markets, bond markets, energy markets, flea markets, debt markets, commercial markets, online auctions, media exchange markets, real estate market, each of which is explained in its own article with features of its application, referring to market systems as such if needed. One of the most important characteristics of a market economy, also called a free enterprise economy, is the role of a limited government.

Protocols
The market itself provides a medium of exchange for the contracts and coupons and cash to seek prices relative to each other, and for those to be publicized. This publication of current prices is a key feature of market systems, and is often relevant far beyond the current groups of buyers and sellers, affecting others' supply and demand decisions, e.g. whether to produce more of a commodity whose price is now falling. Market systems are more abstract than their application to any one use, and typically a 'system' describes a protocol of offering or requesting things for sale. Well-known market systems that are used in many applications include: The term 'laissez-faire' ("let alone") is sometimes used to describe some specific compromise between regulation and black market, resulting in the political struggle to define or exploit "free markets". This is not an easy matter to separate from other debates about the nature of capitalism. There is no such thing as a "free" market other than in the sense of a black market, and most free-market advocates favor at least some form of regulated market, e.g. to prevent outright fraud, theft, and retain some degree of credibility with the larger public. This political debate is out of the scope of this article, other than to note that the "free" market is usually a "less regulated" market, but not qualitatively different from other regulated markets, in any society with laws, and that what opponents of "free markets" usually seek is some kind of moral purchasing rather than pure rationing.
 * auctions - the most common, including:
 * Dutch auctions
 * reverse auctions
 * silent auctions
 * rationing
 * Administrative allocation (including the command economy of some states)
 * regulated market (including most real-life examples as above)
 * black market (the term 'black' indicating lack of regulation, or any trade, often illegal, operating in violation of official regulations)

As this debate suggests, key debates over market systems relate to their accessibility, safety, fairness, and ability to guarantee clearance and closure of all transactions in a reasonable period of time.

Importance of trust
The degree of trust in a political or economic authority (such as a bank or central bank) is often critical in determining the success of a market. A market system depends inherently on a stable money system to ensure that units of account and standards of deferred payment are uniform across all players—and to ensure that the balance of contracts due within that market system are accepted as a store of value, i.e. as "collateral" of the holder of the contract, which justifies "credit" from a lender of cash.

Banks, themselves, are often described in terms of markets, as "transducers of trust" between lenders (who deposit money) and borrowers (who take it out again). Trust in the bank to manage this process makes more economic activity possible. However, critics say, this trust is also quite easy to abuse, and has many times proven difficult to limit or control (see business cycle), resulting in 'runs on banks' and other such 'crises of trust' in 'the system'.

Criticisms
In The Economics of Innocent Fraud, Economist John Kenneth Galbraith criticized the concept of the "market system" as nonsensical and as a weasel word intended to replace the term "capitalism", but which does not specify anything specific.

Marketing System
Marketing System is a consistent pattern of provisioning relationships in society that exists between members of society including individuals, firms, communities and institutions. While marketing, in the sense of firm's micro marketing activities, can be the same across contexts, cultures, and nations, a marketing system is a unique market structure pertaining to a specific context (e.g. agricultural marketing systems in Africa). Marketing system is a differentiated subset of social system. Marketing system is a general term that represents how different patterns of the flows of goods/services from producers to consumers are culturally (uniquely) organised, whereas terms such as market system (a market based economic system of the West), horizontal marketing system (cooperation between two firms at the same level), and digital marketing system (a specific type of centralised channel distribution) represent its context-specific variations. Marketing systems are mostly researched within the discipline of macromarketing.

Definition
The notion of "aggregated marketing system" signifies all marketing practices at the societal level. Roger Layton defines a marketing system as "a network of individuals, groups and/or entities, embedded in a social matrix, linked directly or indirectly through sequential or shared participation in economic exchange, which jointly and/or collectively creates economic value with and for customers, through the offer of assortments of goods, services, experiences and ideas, that emerge in response to or anticipation of customer demand". Marketing systems can be rudimentary or complex, emergent or purposefully designed, spatio-temporal or virtual; these can also be aggregate, parallel, symbolic, dignity-based and chrematistics-driven. From the societal perspective, a marketing system represents a public good which can have value over and beyond goods/services it generates.

MAS theory
MAS (mechanism, action, structure) theory of marketing systems proposed by Layton focuses on social mechanisms, strategic action fields, and emergent marketing system structure to explicate potential sources and causes of marketing system's formation, adaptation, and evolution. Social mechanisms include cooperation, specialisation, and self-organisation, while strategic action fields comprise the action and practices of marketing system actors in their specific roles. Layton argues that marketing systems emerge as localised exchanges grow in scope and become stabilised while specialisation expands, and in addition, as key structures become formalised.

MSPG theory
MSPG (marketing systems as a public good) theory conceptualises a marketing system as a purposefully designed structure that resembles a "public good" in its features. According to this theory, the holistic design of a marketing system as a public good enables its structural elements (e.g. goods, value, exchanges and processes) to become meaningful. Hence, purposeful design precedes emergence.

Symbolism in Marketing Systems
Marketing systems are strongly driven by symbolism.

title: Market system