Reploid, or Repliroid (レプリロイド Repuriroido?, a combination of the words replica and android) in the Japanese games, from Megaman X is an android with complete free will and thought processes comparable to that of humans.
General Information[]
Reploids can be thought of as the next evolutionary step of the robots from the classic series. For all intents and purposes, Reploids are the same as human s on a mental level; they think and feel, giving them the ability to make their own decisions and develop unique personalities. Although Reploids undergo major physical changes throughout the series, they generally retain this one trait throughout their lives.
Since Reploids posses absolute free will to the same extent as human beings have, they can exist as civilians as well. This however has led to some Reploids becoming criminals or rebels, which leads to the classification of "Mavericks " ("Irregulars" in the Japanese versions).
Characteristics[]
Reploids are humanoids, and may appear either male or female. They usually have a human face (and sometimes, hair), as well as bulging armor around the forelimbs and upper body. However, many are built to actually resemble robotic animals with humanoid traits. These particular Reploids tend to be designed for very specific tasks; for example, a heavy duty Reploid may be large and bulky, whereas a marine Reploid may be based on a fish. There is no limit to the tasks Reploids can perform with the right design.
It is eventually revealed in the series that Reploids have a form of DNA; Iris even mentions that a Reploid's DNA is similar to a human's soul, calling it a DNA Soul. However, DNA was shown to integrate the actual body as well when Gate used a piece ofZero to carry out his plans. DNA can be manipulated for several purposes, such as Reploid resurrection (said to be illegal in Megaman X 6) and even cloning.
As machines, Reploids do not age, although they still require rest and maintenance to remain functional. The Hunters have capsules which X and Zero used to recover, although cybernetic beds were also used by Reploids in Giga City.
History[]
Megaman X[]
In Year 21XX, some 100 years after the events of the original Megaman game series and the apparent death of Doctor Light , an archaeologist named Doctor Cain excavated one of Doctor Light's laboratories and discovered a capsule which contained the highly advanced robot named "X". X represented a substantial jump in robotics technology, prompting Cain to reproduce X's technology from Light's original work and notes. Being unable to reproduce the technology perfectly, Cain was forced to invent alternative solutions. All robotic designs based on X's technology have been referred to as "Reploids," since like X, their mental faculties replicate those of a human.
From then on, Reploids were mass-produced to live among humans on Earth. However, some Reploids started to rebel against their creators, and would harm those they did not agree with. These reploids were labeled as Mavericks. A council decided to create a group of reploids that would rise to the occasion of Maverick outbreaks. This group was dubbed the Hunters.
However, a few of these Hunters would also break away from their original programming and cause, after the climax ofSigma 's first encounter with a rogue Zero. From then on, a mysterious virus (that would be later be known as the infamous Sigma Virus ) would infect this Reploid, who would cause mass destruction and trigger the Maverick Wars; for decades, the conflict divided the Reploids between those who fought for the humans and those who opposed them; either because of viral infection, rejection of their status as tools of the humans or other reasons.
New Generation Reploids[]
Lumine with a group of New Generation Reploids
First appearing in Megaman X 8, the New Generation Reploids were created from the prototype Axl . Their main purpose is to serve as workers for a space elevator project, known as "Jakob ". These Reploids are fitted with a chip that grants immunity from all viruses known at the time, and also permits these Reploids to change the shape of their bodies (like Axl). Also, Axl and the New Generation Reploids can copy the form of other Reploids by adding their DNA to their Copy Chips. However, this ends in failure, as the advanced chip also incorporates data from the Maverick Sigma, causing the Reploids to go Maverick at will.
Lumine , the main supervisor of Jakob, believed himself and all new-generation Reploids to be superior to even the original Reploids, and plotted to destroy both humans and old-generation Reploids alike. Lumine ultimately fails, and the production of the new generation Reploid line was discontinued after the news of Lumine's Maverick status was revealed. The use and manufacture of copy chips was also terminated; however, with space development in full swing, there was still a demand for the advanced new generation Reploids and "years later" copy chip production resumed.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Despite their overwhelming global presence in the series, no Reploid gained a playable role up until Megaman X 7 with the introduction of Axl.
- Except for rare custom-built reploids, the majority are built in factories and mass-produced. It is in fact much more common to be one of many identical (or near-identical) copies than to be a truly unique reploid, although due to the process of core generation, individual personality quirks tend to exist between otherwise identical models.
- There are only three "Reploids" based on Zero's architecture instead of X's: the copy of Zero from Megaman X 2, the Zero Nightmare, and Zero's newer body from the Megaman Zero game series.
- Although not fully based on his design, High Max from Megaman X 6 was constructed by the Reploid scientist Gate using Zero's DNA while Omega was created by Doctor Weil using Zero's own body as a template.
- The resemblance between Year 20XX robots and Reploids is highlighted in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, when Zero calls Roll a "housekeeping Reploid".
- In Megaman's ending in Megaman: The Power Battle, Dr. Light mentions that for there to be peace, robots need the ability to decide what is right and what is wrong by themselves, and should research more on A. I. program. This may be a hint towards the difference between robots and Reploids, implying that a robots remain bound to their programming while Reploids may change based on their experiences. X (and thus every reploid) is said to have the ability to mature in Compendium of Rockman X.
- The process of creating a reploid involves first forming a design for their physical body and determining their form, function, and similar details. While the body is being constructed, a core is created alongside it and loaded with initial Robot Master-like parameters as well as various kinds of knowledge intended to matching it to a desired personality. At this point, the core is Robot Master-like and non-sentient. The final process of creating a reploid core is to expose it to a large bank of stimulus provided by a supercomputer which causes the core to eventually "crash" to sentience. Once finished, the core is combined with the body and its higher functions are booted, giving birth to the finished reploid.
- Due to the continued outbreak of maverick reploids, a new notion has begun developing among reploid manufacturers to produce juvenile models, which are reploids with a physically weaker and less mature (child-like and later teen-like) body, in order to allow the reploid to mentally mature and grow before being given an upgrade to their final body.
- Examples of juvenile reploids include: Cinnamon , Lumine , Axl , Midi , and Techno
- Juvenile reploid who "grew up": Alouette, who became Prairie.
- The growth of these juvenile Reploids is quite different from that of humans. They do not show continuous growth, since they are not organic beings. Their growth occurs in a modular way, through successive temporal updates, when old parts are exchanged and new ones are added.