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One question I ask myself since I am a kid: Is Mega Man left or right handed?

(I am confused each time he turns left or right)

UPDATE: I am adding a bounty for whoever finds me some official press release documents or interviews showing that the character designers of Mega Man wanted him to be left handed, right handed, or .. both at the same time.

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    Tough question. Traditionally Mega Man's buster is in his left hand - but that doesn't mean he's left handed.
    – Wipqozn
    May 16, 2011 at 10:40
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    You made me laugh. This question is so fantastic. Thankyou. May 16, 2011 at 13:06
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    @Wipqozn > Well, if his buster is in his left hand, I would assume that makes him right-handed. Since the right hand is the only one he'll be able to use for anything else.
    – GnomeSlice
    May 16, 2011 at 19:51
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    @GnomeSlice You can't just assume that though - in could be his left hand so he can aim with the buster better. Also, " I think his dominant hand is determined by whatever the devs felt like when they sat down to make a given game in the series" I agree - with the possible exception of megamans creator, I doubt anyone at Capcom really cares
    – Wipqozn
    May 17, 2011 at 10:41
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    Given that OP raises a bounty specifically asking for proof in what the original creators were wanting, I am voting to close this question as a request for Developer Intent.
    – user106385
    Nov 17, 2015 at 2:27

10 Answers 10

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+100

Well, after looking at official box art, Megaman uses either hand for his arm cannon. For example, here's some Japanese promo art from Megaman 3 depicting the cannon on his left arm.

Left arm cannon Megaman

While here's some Japanese promo art from Megaman 2 depicting the cannon on his right arm instead.

Right arm cannon Megaman

If you check more of the images and box art, there's no real rhyme or reason as to which hand the arm cannon appears on. So, since he uses either hand just as often in the images and in the games, the only conclusion I can draw from this is that he is indeed ambidextrous.

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  • That's quite a good argument.
    – Vincent
    May 23, 2011 at 5:24
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    As additional evidence for ambidexterity, Zero, a similar robot to Mega Man, is clearly depicted as ambidextrous, often wielding a weapon in each hand or a buster in one hand and a sword in the other (official art often using different hands for each weapon)
    – Ben Brocka
    Sep 10, 2013 at 14:27
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Well... the original Megaman had his buster on his left, and X on the right.

(I am confused each time he turns left or right)

Well, this happens because when the Megaman sprite turns, the entire sprite image is flipped horizontally, meaning depending on which way you're facing, Megaman's buster will be on different hands. This page can tell a bit more of what I just said, though it isn't exactly an informative site : /

But being a robot/android/Navi, I really think Megaman is programmed to be ambidextrous.

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  • I was kidding when I wrote I was confused. I wrote it because this website didn't accept a question too short. Sorry. Still, you got my +1 for the first line, a fact that I didn't know.
    – Vincent
    May 16, 2011 at 10:49
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    Where have you seen the information about that first line? The boxart for Megaman X shows the buster on his left arm, while the japanese boxart for Rockman 2 shows the buster on his right arm.
    – Wilerson
    May 16, 2011 at 14:17
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    Actually Megaman X had his buster on the left too... youtube.com/watch?v=NvFd8sJfwsg&feature=related
    – Wipqozn
    May 16, 2011 at 16:54
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    @Wipqozn: Not necessarily. The sprites are made so the "background arm" has the megabuster. Go to ~2:30 in that video and you'll see that he becomes righty again. May 17, 2011 at 2:16
  • Most of the concept art I've seen has him using his buster with his left hand, and X using his right. But I think that since he morphs his hands to be the buster he could probably use either. Him being a robot I can't imagine anything that would give him better aim with one over the other besides how he is positioned at the moment. May 19, 2011 at 19:13
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In Megaman Legends (and/or Megaman 64), Megaman's buster is on his left hand. Since the game is three dimensional, there's no 'sprite flipping' like in the original sidescrollers. This would mean that he is right-handed, at least in this game, because that's the only hand he has free when a weapon is equipped.

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  • Is Legends considered part of the Megaman franchise? (As in, Megaman 1-10; clearly, X, .exe, zero, and ZX are different franchises) May 16, 2011 at 19:57
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    @Raven Yes. It's at the very end of the timeline. It goes. 1-8 > X > Zero > ZX > Legends. The Battle Network / Starforce timeline is AU. If you pay attention to the developments near the end of each series you can see the transition points into the next series. In Megaman 8 Zero is shown, at the end of X, Zero is lost, where he is refound in zero, the satellite event in Zero leads to the biometals in ZX and by the time of legends there aren't any people just biometal based humanoids. May 17, 2011 at 0:33
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    Keiji Inafune wanted the series to continue with a 3rd legends game, But Capcom wasn't having it until recently. May 17, 2011 at 0:37
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    Also also, X4 was supposed to be the last game in the X series, where Zero goes into hibernation to remove the sigma virus (to be refound much later by Ciel in Megaman Zero). I'm a little muddy on what happened after that, but that's where it was supposed to split. May 17, 2011 at 3:47
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    You can't just assume he's right handed just because his buster is in his left hand... the buster could be in his left hand because he's left handed, and as such would have better aim. He could also be ambidextrous.
    – Wipqozn
    May 17, 2011 at 11:02
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Turns out it's ambidextrous. In SuperAdventure Rockman, he turns both hands into blasters at the same time - the 'Double Rock Buster' special move in Episode 3. Granted, it almost kills him because it uses so much energy, but there it is anyway.

This means that the 'flipping' in the sidescrollers is just him switching hands.

Also, SuperAdventure Rockman can be pointed to as a 'shark-jumping' moment for Megaman.

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  • Interesting, but to take 2 weapons at the same time doesn't imply that you are ambidextrous. Proof: I can take 1 Wiimote in each hand, and I am left handed.
    – Vincent
    May 20, 2011 at 16:34
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    But, consider that this shows both arms contain blasters, and to use both to the same level simultaneously would require ambidexterity - at the very least the same power level in each arm, which would imply the same conclusion.
    – SickHippie
    May 22, 2011 at 4:07
  • I do not agree this logic. When I do push-ups, I use both arms with equal strength (because required by physic laws if I want to keep a good balance). Still, I am left handed.
    – Vincent
    May 22, 2011 at 10:41
  • But it's not a push-up or anything resistance-based (like a punch, etc), it's a shooting attack. The physics are completely different. Anyone and their brother can do a pushup, but almost no one can shoot two .44 magnums simultaneously and hit the same target. You can take a Wiimote in each hand, but can you use them both with same degree of skill? Nope.
    – SickHippie
    May 25, 2011 at 16:17
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On many box arts and title screens, the buster is on his right arm, but in some it is on his left arm or in none of them. So, one can assume that he "morphs" his arm into a buster, and that he may do that with either of the arms, depending on how clear a shot would be in each case. I agree with Oscar Cheung, Megaman is probably ambidextrous.

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    In X3 at least, X gains the ability to fire charged buster shots from each arm sequentially. It's pretty awesome. May 16, 2011 at 19:54
  • You might be right. Now I don't know which answer to choose as the correct one. Difficult choice !
    – Vincent
    May 23, 2011 at 5:28
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I generally depend on which hand is used for gulping energy tanks, writing, and for special weapons that involve throwing (blades, boomerangs) or melee (claws, sabers) as the dominant hand, especially if all four of those are with the same hand. Furthermore, making that dominant hand vanish to make room for a buster (to me) sounds rather inconvenient. I would thus place the buster opposite from the dominant hand, for the sake of convenience. Especially in the case of Zero, since he is a melee combatant. If I remember correctly, Zero switched his melee combat from righty to lefty upon operating a new vessel. I'm not sure, since some sources say vice-versa.

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Well, in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and 3DS, whenever Mega Man turns around the buster changes hands. Also, he has a taunt where he transforms an arm into the buster and back. Depending on which way you face when you do it, he can turn both arms into Mega Busters. So, logically, he is ambidextrous.

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Most people have covered the answer by now (he's an ambidextrous, which makes sense, because he's a robot.... why program something limiting like right or left-handedness? He's a SUPER FIGHTING ROBOT, he don't have time for that!)

Just wanted to add another source for that answer: The Megaman TV show. Anime/style aside, he often transforms either hand into the Megabuster (or whatever weapon he has "equipped"), as needed. He and Roll both can use both arms as weapons and are presumably ambidextrous.

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http://megaman.wikia.com/wiki/Mega_Buster

He is the best in the world and can use both hands. He is ambidextrous.

-1

Let's start this by referencing box art nobody wants to remember. Rockman

Our vaguely-Indo-Chinese billowy-armed Blue Bomber with frog legs appears left handed, as he's holding the weapon (a pistol, not the Buster Cannon) in his left hand. The pistol itself seems to be a traditional firearm, not an energy-based weapon. We also know that the arm cannon was something Dr. Light developed, using Solar shots (the many iterations of the Buster Cannon). This suggests the pistol image below references a time before Light made the cannon, indicating handedness. The Buster weapon itself is referenced as ambidextrous, but not the robot; this is similar to how a baseball bat is ambidextrous in nature, but handedness determines the swing. The pre-Buster pistol in the image is certainly not such a weapon, as while held in the left hand we have to infer that shells would eject out of the unseen side of the pistol (as no slide or ejection port is visible). This would make the gun itself a right-handed weapon, held by a left-handed person.

Following the art on the same page, we can see that standalone images of the various Mega Man incarnations begin to show the Buster on the left arm repeatedly. One could arguably say that the more plot in your Mega Man, the more right-handed he gets. There's a trope involved here; A Sinister Clue. For literally centuries, entertainment has placed the villain or the goofball as being left-handed. Even in modern movies, while the "main character" might be left-handed, it's actually a clue that the one character who is right-handed is the real hero of the story. This actually fits in with Mega Man's Lore, as from the Wikipedia entry, Mega Man was originally a battle robot made by BOTH Dr.'s Wily and Light. It goes on to say that Mega Man (originally named "Rock") was refitted after being a villainous battle robot:

"Following treachery by Dr. Wily in which he reprogrammed all of Dr Light's robots, Rock was converted into a battle robot to defend the world from Wily's violent robotic threats. Thus he becomes Mega Man."

This suggests that while the weapons he uses are ambidextrous, Mega Man actually started out left-handed and literally had his handedness changed for story purposes to match with Western culture's expectations and tropes. All because ugly-halfway-racist-proto-MegaMan pictured in the box art would have held a right-handed weapon in the right hand if he were ambidextrous or right handed, as the ejecting shells across the chest of a traditional firearm (as pictured) would risk damage and not fit with machine logic. He technically was born as a villain, so we see him with a gun in his left hand before Light ever modified him.

Edit: Captain N's Megaman doesn't count. Green with wrist launchers and toddler-sized. No.

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  • ... I don't think Wikipedia is a reputable source. Check the wiki, it actually has reference to official material. Wily didn't even consider Rock & Roll as worthy targets when he first reprogrammed the original 6 robot masters. Also, I wouldn't consider the usa box art canon - if you did you would have to consider the back of the box canon too..... "Megaman must penetrate the seven separate societies of Dr Wily.". Yeah, right, they described the real story 100%.
    – Ꮢedacted
    Sep 15, 2021 at 8:08

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