Remakes, Reimaginings and Reboots

[TomGuycott]

Well out of all the Mega Man games, the Zero series IS the closest to being dark and gritty. It has the most casualties beyond the scope of the main characters and villains, mentions atrocities like mass genocide (of humans too, not just Reploids), characters have deep-seeded desires for hatred and vengeance, a main villain kills himself in a last ditch effort to destroy Zero, identity crisis, forbidden love, and for once in the entire series we see more than four human characters present in one game, almost all of whom are in mortal danger at one point or another.

Stuff's been much darker and grittier than that, but not Mega Man.