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In 1987, Keiji Inafune joined Capcom as a graphic designer on Street Fighter but to
make a push into the home console market, the company needed a new mascot to rally around.
Inafune was pulled from Street Fighter and appointed as the lead artist on a new Famicom
project they called "Rockman."
Because the team was so small, Inafune designed Rockman's characters, enemies, logos, and
even instruction booklet. Rockman, or to Western audiences, Mega Man, sold adequately despite
the revolting boxart but not well enough to warrant a sequel. Capcom eventually relented
but held the sequel hostage by forcing Inafune and his team to first complete Professional
Baseball *** Mystery and Legendary Wings. Mega Man 2 finally released in Japan in '88,
and the U.S. in '89, and was met with universal praise, compelling Capcom to line up yearly
installments.
Under Inafune's direction, the Mega Man franchise prospered throughout the early 90's thanks
in part to the Mega Man X series, but its popularity began to wane in the 32-bit era.
With Mega Man on life support and no corporate ladders left to climb, Inafune left Capcom
in 2010 to begin anew by forming his own company, Comcept. Now with support of his fans and
tons of Kickstarter money, The Father of Mega Man vows to resurrect the spirit of the Blue
Bomber as Beck in the Mighty No 9.
Have fun!