I really need to play 20XX, I guess.
I think a problem that exists for main line Mega Man games is that the game is built on a foundation of sequel iterations with minor alterations. Each of the 5 NES sequels served to further cement the 8-bit-style formula–graphics, controls, structure, etc.–as absolutely essential components of the series. 9 and 10 understood that. 11 is trying to understand that while also trying to step outside those bounds, but it’s constrained by the dictates of that essential heart of the series that it has to adapt to create a new game. If Capcom had built Mega Man 3 or 4 for the Super NES and started varying visual style, game structure, and the basic verbal grammar of the games earlier, that’d be one thing. Instead, a Mega Man sequel now has a harder time coloring outside the lines, because the lines are so restrictive and monumental to begin with.
OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
So X is cool. And Zero. And ZX.
I guess in a sense MN9 was an attempt to make MM11 somewhat freed from those bounds and free from the Capcom label. But it ultimately was maybe even more hobbled by needing to prove its fidelity with old Mega Man games.