What’s perhaps most annoying about Mighty No. 9 is that Inafune clearly knows how to fix many of the problems present in the game. There’s a DLC transformation that allows attacking upwards from the beginning of the game and an additional DLC boss which throws out the gimmicks and just relies on skilled combat movement to fight.



There are examples in Mighty No.9 of Inafune designing content that feels rewarding, but it’s often set aside as optional DLC rather than being a core aspect of the game’s design.



Much like an anime fan on prom night, I would rather be at home playing Mega Man than here. I would rather be playing Shovel Knight. I would rather be playing most games in this genre.



Mighty No. 9? More like Shitey No. 9!