Mega Man Zero 2 - 100 Point S Rank Run [Part 2]

Channel:

DZ3

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Published on March 31, 2023 10:00:21 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gENw7u9tv24

Game:

Mega Man Zero 2 (2003)

Duration: 17:50

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This is part 2 of my 100 point S rank run of Mega Man Zero 2. There’s a lot to go over this time, so it’s straight to the notes.

-Starting with what is likely the most famous MMZ2 stage, the Neo Arcadia Airship offers a highly eclectic mix of level design. Luckily, the most failure-prone section is up first, namely, jumping across the ships firing bullets in both directions. An important detail: the ships begin shooting as soon as the level starts, before you even have control over Zero. Mashing through the text at different paces will result in various firing patterns for you to circumvent. The English and Japanese versions will inevitably differ in this regard, as the text will be longer in English. Practicing several variations of this segment is recommended so you can properly react to the pattern at which you arrive. The miniboss is trivialized with damage stacking, thankfully reducing your stay in this already lengthy level. Proper planning will significantly simplify platforming within the ship’s interior; there are numerous methods with which to strike the switches and deactivate the electric barriers. Defending Ciel is exceedingly simple with the Buster and Shield. Walk forward when firing the Buster and the shot will be lowered by a few pixels, destroying the Pantheon Hoppers. Also, the Erase From is acquired unavoidably by using the Shield to reflect shots.

-The battle with Leviathan is decidedly less complex than in the first game, but there are some new tricks to delineate. The changes to her pattern along with the lack of Triple Rod necessitate strong individual hits over combos. Tenshouzan is perfect for this, and when augmented with the fire chip, it interrupts her patterns by inflicting knockback. Leviathan has been given a counter maneuver; when in close proximity to her, she’ll wallop Zero with her spear, sending him flying across the screen. Unfortunately for her, this animation is pathetically slow, and Tenshouzan just so happens to place Zero at the precise horizontal spacing required to bait it out. For the third hit, I lure Leviathan’s second counter, the downward stab from which Sharp Edge is derived. The only departure from retaliatory Tenshouzan use is when she conjures her ice ring. Here, striking with Tenshouzan from either direction will result in taking damage, so instead, I use a charged slash into a Chain Rod spin to break her out of the pattern and deal heavy damage. The last noteworthy point is that unlike Z3 and Z4’s equivalent EX Skills, the height of Tenshouzan is constant. When used underwater with the flame chip, Zero will achieve insane hang time with no capacity for modulation, keep this in mind when using it.

-A rather serendipitous miscalculated jump led me to discover that it’s possible to stand between the flame pillars that Fefnir juts out of the ground during his EX Skill. Upon this epiphany, I made it the sole point of focus to showcase this during the battle, as it’s otherwise rather routine. Choosing between a Sengatotsu into charged Chain Rod or a Rise Form triple slash is largely irrelevant. The battle is short either way.

-Harpuia receives a massive upgrade from his incarnation in Z1. When brought to the ground, the player must quickly react to one of two possible patterns. To my knowledge, no tell exists to predict whether he’ll perform his new high speed dash or the classic triple slash. In the event that the triple slash is chosen, another 50/50 occurs: he once again selects between his dash, along with the ascending slash from the first game. While these changes may appear innocuous at first, they provide Harpuia with a sorely needed defensive boost; playing this fight with the same hyper-offensive mentality from Z1 will get you nowhere fast. For the first half of the fight, I elect to use Tenshouzan instead of Sharp Edge to knock him out of the air, followed by a Chain Rod spin. As soon as half health is reached, I leave the Chain Rod uncharged for a highly specific reason: with proper timing, it’s possible to interrupt Harupia’s EX Skill with an upward Chain Rod strike, saving a ton of time. Unless you have a penchant for jumping back and forth between saber waves repeatedly, I highly recommend this tactic. For second phase damage, I rely on ice powered Sharp Edge, whose hitbox is woefully inadequate. Striking bosses with it is usually a fool’s errand, but thankfully I consistently land it in this fight.

-Burble suffers from Z4 boss syndrome. He can either do almost nothing, or summon caterpillars endlessly. Luckily, he chooses the former this time.

Here are the timestamps for this part:

00:00 - Neo Arcadia Airship | Kuwagust Anchus
05:21 - Computer Zone Roof | Fairy Leviathan
07:35 - Crystal Cave | Sage Harpuia
10:33 - Shuttle Factory | Fighting Fefnir
13:02 - Forest of Notus | Burble Hekelot
15:49 - Neo Arcadia Temple | Rainbow Devil MK-II

I hope you enjoyed this part! Comments and questions are welcome as always.

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