Mega Man 4

Mega Man 4 features similar gameplay to the previous three games. The player must complete a series of eight stages in an order of the player's choosing. The protagonist, Mega Man, is able to run, jump, shoot, and climb his way past obstacles and enemies; the game also retains the slide ability which debuted in Mega Man 3. At the end of each stage is a Robot Master boss.

Upon defeating a Robot Master, Mega Man gains the Robot Master's signature weapon, which can then be used by the player in subsequent stages. Once all eight Robot Masters are destroyed, two separate sets of linear stages must be completed to finish the game. One major addition to the gameplay in Mega Man 4 is the "New Mega Buster", an upgraded version of Mega Man's arm cannon. By holding down the firing button, the player can now charge a shot, resulting in a blast far more powerful than the standard shot.

Mega Man 4 takes place in an unspecified year during the 21st century, described as the year "20XX". One year after the events of Mega Man 3, a mysterious Russian scientist, Dr. Cossack, unleashes an army of robots with the intention of world domination, much like Dr. Wily before him.

Concerned over the situation, Dr. Light calls upon his own greatest creation, the hero Mega Man, to go after Cossack's Robot Masters, who have seized control of eight cities. He also creates the support robot Eddie and equips Mega Man with the New Mega Buster, an upgrade for his Mega Buster.

Mega Man series artist Keiji Inafune, credited as "Inafking", stated that the development team had very few problems while working on Mega Man 4. Inafune designed Dr. Cossack and Kalinka as two new storyline characters for the game. Cossack, who was originally named "Dr.

Vice", was made much younger than Dr. Light and Dr. Wily. Inafune also considered giving him American traits, but decided upon influences from Russia instead.

In Japan, Ichiro Tezuka writing for Hippon Super!  said that the additions made to gameplay, such as Rush the dog were designed just to give the impression that the game was an improvement on its previous games. He ultimately recommended the game saying that Mega Man 4 was still a game that surpasses the standard on action games and recommended for players who would have patience for its high difficulty.

Mega Man 4 has received mostly positive critical reviews. Reviews contemporary with the game's release by the United States magazine Nintendo Power and the United Kingdom publications Nintendo Magazine System and Total! all found Mega Man 4 to have high quality graphics, sound, and gameplay. However, they also noted very little improvement over previous entries in the series.