Simulation
Simulations are a recurring concept in the Make a Good Mega Man Level series, most prominently serving as the titular levels themselves. Simulations are virtual reality constructs that can be entered through objects resembling teleporters, and typically take the form of obstacle courses filled with enemies, traps, and hazards - in other words, Mega Man levels. Simulation technology was pioneered by Dr. Cossack and other members of the Festival Committee, primarily for the second festival honoring Mega Man's exploits.
The "goal" of a typical simulation is to find and collect an Energy Element inside it, which acts as the simulation's power source, though it appears that simulations can work just fine even after their Energy Element is removed. Some simulations can have two or three Energy Elements inside them, while others seemingly have none at all.
Though a simulation often takes the form of a level or other forms of entertainment, they can serve various purposes. One simulation has served as a hub for multiple, more traditional simulations, as well as a virtual training area for robots to test their weapons. The Dojo contains multiple arena simulations filled with high-level "boss" fights, ranging from recreations of Robot Masters Mega Man fought in previous adventures, to more complex and original opponents. It also contains a simulation that can read a person's memories and recreate battles against previously-fought opponents; a similar simulation is (theoretically) able to recreate entire environments using just a person's memories. Other times, a simulation may be used as a construction blueprint for a physical area or structure, and never intended for general use.
Although primarily a human invention, not all simulations are manmade. Tier X, an extradimensional void, is able to create simulations seemingly of its own accord, complete with Energy Elements. However, it appears that even it is subject to human influence; at least two simulations in Tier X are suggested to have been created using "garbage data" broadcast from pre-existing simulations.
Conceptual history[edit]
Simulations were introduced in Make a Good Mega Man Level 2, and were used as an in-universe explanation for how the contest levels exist. Prior to this, no real thought was ever given to how the submissions for the original Make a Good Mega Man Level contest existed in-universe. However, with the often bizarre content seen in the second contest's submissions (and the occasional mentioned or implied involvement of Dr. Wily despite the game's actual story), the decision was made to make them virtual reality creations designed by in-universe fans of Mega Man. The Wily stages, meanwhile, are stated to take place in reality, as is The Pit of Pits.
While this implies all simulations and the characters and situations within are completely fictional, Launch Man & Shuttle Man are shown to exist "in reality" in MaGMML2, and later games show other original MaGMML2 Robot Masters as being real. SnoruntPyro has stated that such robots either already existed and had simulations made about them, or were "defictionalized" and physically built in response to their simulation's popularity. Contrarily, arena-exclusive boss fights such as Zero Soul, Gamma, and Volt Man the Assimilator have been stated by her to be non-canonical to a MaGMML game's story, though this does not necessarily preclude said characters from existing in reality.
The origins of simulations were retroactively teased in Make a Good Mega Man Level Remastered, which also retconned the original contest's levels into being real places that physically exist. After clearing the game, both Dr. Cossack and Ring Man will mention researching simulations for the upcoming second festival, while Dr. Light recreates the Wily stages as simulations following the Wily Castle's destruction. Make a Good Mega Man Level: Episode Zero, meanwhile, largely eschewed simulations in favor of having levels that were physical places, although one, Out of Order, was designed as a corrupted simulation. Chapter 3's levels, meanwhile, are largely suggested to be a collection of simulations made by Tier X. The same game also rationalized the story-less Make a Good 24 Hour Mega Man Level as Mega Man testing the simulation technology that would later be used in MaGMML2.
