| Sigma | |
|---|---|
| Mega Man character | |
 Sigma as he appears inMega Man X Dive | |
| First appearance | Mega Man X (1993) |
| Last appearance | Mega Man X DiVE (2020) |
| Created by | Keiji Inafune |
| Voiced by | English
Mugihito (1997–present)[2] |
Sigma (Japanese:シグマ,Hepburn:Shiguma) is a fictional character and the mainantagonist of theMega Man X video game series. Created by Dr. Cain, Sigma was considered the finest of theReploids and was the first leader of theMaverick Hunters, peacekeepingandroids who defend humans against their renegade counterparts. Although he was once respectable, Sigma unexpectedly goes berserk duringMega Man X and rebels against humankind after coming into contact with the Maverick Virus. He defects to theMavericks and assumes the role of their leader. Due to the virus integrated into his circuits, he can survive seemingly anything, and constantly returns to menace the world.
Sigma has appeared in almost everyMega Man X video game since his first appearance in the 1993 titleMega Man X. He has received praise from critics and fans for his design and charisma as a villain, though his introduction was noted as marking a darker and more pessimistic theme forMega Man X compared to otherMega Man sub-series.
Sigma appears as a tall, bald humanoid in most of his forms. As the former leader of the Maverick Hunters, Sigma is a capable military leader, rendering him a devious and strategic opponent to his primary enemies,X andZero. Sigma is a skilled and charismatic manipulator, managing to turn various Reploids, Maverick Hunters, and Mavericks to his side. Although he has been killed countless times, Sigma's programming always survives, either building himself a new form,[3] or is revived by Reploid and Maverick admirers alike; it is implied that he grows more insane with each revival. He is fond of incorporating himself into battlesuits vastly more significant than his "regular" form. He serves as thefinal boss in all games exceptMega Man X: Command Mission andMega Man X8 (he does not appear in the former and in the latter, Sigma is thepenultimate boss).
Before the first Mega Man X game, Sigma was the most advanced Reploid of his time, leading the Maverick Hunters. However, one day, the Maverick Hunters received reports of an overwhelmingly powerful "Red Maverick" that destroyed an entire squadron of Hunters. While investigating, Sigma, along with his unit, tracked it down to an abandoned laboratory and faced the Maverick alone. The Maverick is revealed to be Zero, an evil robot created byDr. Wily that carried acomputer virus called "Maverick Virus". After Sigma defeats Zero, the virus inadvertently transfers into Sigma. While the virus is purged from Zero, turning him benevolent, the virus adapts to Sigma, becoming the Sigma Virus.
After gradually succumbing to the virus, he suddenly leads a mass revolt among the Reploids, declaring total war on humans.[4] Many Maverick Hunters follow Sigma out of loyalty, leaving Zero in charge of the organization. X, the last creation ofDr. Light and the base model for every Reploid decides to volunteer and joins Zero. X and Zero battle through the Maverick regime, and it is X who finally destroys Sigma. But though his physical body is scrapped, Sigma's "soul" (the Virus) survives. After the end credits roll, Sigma's face appears on a blue monitor and warns X that he will be back.[5]
Sigma returns in each installment of the series in various forms but is defeated by X each time. His final appearance is inMega Man X8 – although he is finally destroyed for good, the Sigma Virus would remain, prompting the events of theMega Man Zero series.
Sigma appears in thecrossover gameMarvel vs. Capcom Infinite. In the story mode, he merges withUltron to become "Ultron Sigma" to convert the inhabitants of both of their worlds into their slaves.[6] Sigma as a playable character is available for purchase as standalonedownloadable content or as part of the game's character pass.[7]
Sigma makes a minor appearance in theMega Man (1994) episode "Mega X".
Sigma appears in a short unlockableOVA inMega Man Maverick Hunter X entitled "The Day of Σ". It shows the Maverick Hunters before the events of the firstMega Man X game under Sigma's command, before he ultimately revolts.
Mega Man X was originally meant to have a team of three villains, one tall, one short, and one chubby. However, the designs byKeiji Inafune were merged to create a single villain, Sigma. These designs were later reused as the basis forMega Man X2's X-Hunters. Ever since his creation, Inafune aimed parts of his appearance to hint at a connection withMega Man villainDr. Wily.[8] He was created with the idea of being an "absolute evil" type character to fit the dark narrative of the games as Sigma is a villain despite being manufactured to be pure good.[9] Starting withMega Man X2, Inafune wanted to use a computer virus as a plot device, something he considered a more interesting idea than a tangible villain. This led to the creation of the Sigma Virus seen inMega Man X3 onwards.[10]
Inafune denied multiple claims from his fans that Sigma was based onSagat from theStreet Fighter series and that he is instead an original character.[11] Kaiser Sigma was designed with the idea of being more "messy" than the original design of the character.[12] With the creation ofMega Man X4, Inafune originally avoided featuring Sigma since the story of the such game involved a lack of black and white view of the scenario.[13] Since Sigma received major damage inX5, he was redesigned inX6 to lack his early menace and instead "messy".[14] InMega Man X8 a new villain named Lumine appears; to contrast his angel-like appearance, Sigma was instead made to look like a demon.[15]
A figure of Sigma was released by Tamashii Nations in 2013.[16]
Sigma was praised for his backstory, resulting in the story ofMega Man X having unclear morality. Peter Tieryas ofKotaku stated that he felt guilty after defeating Sigma, due to the Mavericks' origins as normal Reploids whose design was patterned after the series protagonist, and that they just wanted independence.[17] As a result of his lack of humanity when becoming a Maverick and desire to eliminate all humans in the world, in the book the30th Anniversary Capcom Characters, Sigma was seen as a far darker villain than the originalMega Man antagonist,Dr. Wily.[18]Destructoid cited the original Sigma as one of the hardest bosses he has encountered when playing the franchise and noted that besides X's overpowered Hadoken move, the game offers several hidden treasures that can aid the player a better chance at defeating the final boss and his several phases as a form of good game design.[19] Meanwhile,Den of Geek cited the Sigma fromMega Man X3 as one of the best video game bosses from the Super Nintendo due to the multiple forms he takes and the challenge it takes to defeat him.[20]Eurogamer noted that while the player might relate to X's last monlogue in the original game, the twist in the end where Sigma is still alive changes the tone from peaceful to tragic as both X and the player will be forced to fight again, something X hates.[21]IGN acknowledged that Sigma's role in the franchise is so repetitive in the series that fans look forward his appearance in theMinecraft collaboration.[22]
Patrick Lee ofThe A.V. Club, however, stated that Sigma is "exactly the sort ofboogeyman anti-progress allegories are built around". Saying that he is the "first piece of technology theMega Man series suggests was a mistake to create", he says that Sigma runs contrary to the previous, optimistic themes of the series, which suggest that technology is ultimately beneficial to mankind, and that robots are "morally neutral tools".[23] He described this "more cynical worldview" as "anti-technology scaremongering."[23] Heather Alexandra of the same publication noted the character's heavy similarities withOverwatch'sSigma, to the point that they could be the same character. They called theMega Man Sigma "a bit of a pest, to say the least," due to his ability to "leap into new robot bodies and other computer systems".[24] In regards to the Sigma from theMega Man X: Maverick Hunter original video animation,Bonus Stage Magazine noted that Sigma's characterization was different from the original timeline as he appears to express free will about his betrayal to the Maverick Hunter rather than being a victim of a virus he suffered when capturing Zero.[25] Sigma's portrayal was the subject of analysis to Simão Cireneu Milani Addôr Nunes da Silva fromUniversidade Regional Integrada do Alto Uruguai e das Missões [pt] due to how Sigma's methods heavily contrasts with his underling X to the point that he does not share the same viewpoints from his ally Dr. Cain, who is interested in seeing X's entire potential. What Sigma does not understand, and tries to prove that his creator is not right, is that, as a being that has a capacity that, in the commander's view, limits him as Maverick Hunter, it can be synonymous with unlimited potential. While X was designed to help humans, Sigma instead believes Reploids are the superior race, meant to take over the world due to how their powers.[26] Artist Keisuke Mizuno was impressed by the character of Sigma upon first seeing his backstory to the point he would make headcanons about what is the true reason which made him betray the Maverick Hunters in the first game.[27]
With regards to Sigma's appearance inMarvel vs Capcom: Infinite, Mike Fahey fromKotaku thought the merging of Ultron and Sigma into an amalgamated being is "a great idea, and makes for a very cool visual", although he felt the game's idea of characters from Capcom'sMega Man,Resident Evil andStreet Fighter franchises sharing the same world and knowing each other to be silly.[28]Destructoid found Ultron Sigma's history too lazy as the player has to constantly face him in an appealing fight and then "fooders" in his place.[29]Den of Geek criticized the idea of Sigma being DLC due to how important is his role in the fighting game and wanted to fight more the hybrid more instead in the story mode.[30] Nevertheless, they considered Ultron Sigma as one of the best bosses in fighting game history, regarding his inclusion inInfinite as one of the best parts in the game.[31]
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