Around the end of 2001, it felt like classic Mega Man was coming to a close. The original line of games had gone dormant for years, and it would be a while before they were revived with Mega Man 9. Mega Man X had been intended to end with X5, released the year prior, and X6 had also just come out with a similar feeling of finality. It would be a few years until the X line continued, though due to declining quality, it did not last very long. The Mega Man Battle Network era had begun, but one other Mega Man spin-off was about to arrive that kept the classic spirit alive.