NetNavi
NetNavis (ネットナビ Nettonabi), or Navi (ナビ Nabi) (derived from the term "Internet Navigator"), also known as Network Navigator[1][2] (ネットワークナビゲーター Nettowāku Nabigētā) are a key concept in the Mega Man Battle Network series of video games as well as the MegaMan NT Warrior anime and manga. They also appear in the Mega Man Star Force series, 200 years in the future of Mega Man Battle Network, where their roles in society have been drastically cut down, acting more as utility workers in favor of EM Waves.
Characteristics[]
Concept art of minor NetNavi characters.
A NetNavi is a sentient, or semi-sentient, computer program with artificial intelligence, designated by the extension ".EXE"; most have humanoid appearances or shapes. They are designed to be an assistant for their operator and reside in his or her PErsonal Terminal, abbreviated as "PET". Specifically, the PET is a multipurpose device that is capable of acting in numerous functions, such as sending and receiving e-mail, acting as an alarm clock and calendar, and acting as a cell phone. Each of these functions is controlled by the NetNavi that resides within the PET under normal circumstances. A PET is, however, also capable of connecting to computerized devices, referred to as "Jacking In" (Plug-in), in which case the NetNavi is transferred to that device and may roam around its Cyberworld, affecting programs contained in that device as required, and moving through that device to any other devices connected to it, such as moving from a specific computer to the larger Internet. In addition, NetNavis may function as anti-virus software, directly combating the offending programs in an activity called "Virus Busting". Two Navis can also battle one another in NetBattles.
When NetNavis are defeated in NetBattles, they are usually logged out to avoid permanent damage, though if they suffer a fatal blow or they're not logged out fast enough, they may get deleted. For example, GutsMan was deleted when he tried to stop the problems caused by NumberMan, and Dex needed to use a backup to restore him.
NetNavis are customizable and have a unique personality that often reflects upon their operator's personality, also usually developing a strong friendship with their operators. NetNavis can also be used as assistants in their operator's occupation. Malicious users may use their Navi to hack into secure computer networks and commit crimes. Though these NetNavis are not technically viruses, they are treated as such, with Official NetBattlers being in charge of stopping them.
Functionally, these NetNavis are analogous to the Robot Masters of the original Mega Man series. Indeed, many of the NetNavis in the Battle Network series are similar in name, appearance, and concept to their corresponding classic Robot Masters, although not all Navis have a Robot Master equivalent, or vice-versa. There have been a few NetNavis based on characters from other Mega Man series as well, such as Colonel, Iris and Zero from the Mega Man X series and Glyde from the Mega Man Legends series. With the sole exception of Ring.EXE, all Navis based on existing characters retains the full name.
As they are digital, details such as hair and fabric are not like the ones from the real world. For example, ProtoMan's hair is a big clump without individual strands, and ShadowMan's clothes do not wrinkle. There are only a few exceptions to this, like the cloak from Bass.[3]
NetNavis have the ability to download Battle Chips sent by their operators for use in battle against viruses or each other. Civilian NetNavis cannot use Battle Chips on their own, requiring their operators to send Battle Chip data for them, but Navis from Official NetBattlers can use Battle Chips on their own.[4] Certain NetNavis have elemental stereotypes that define their fighting styles and techniques.
After powerful Navis are deleted, they leave behind junk data that resembles a ghost and gets carried off somewhere in the Net, as seen when certain areas, a stronger version of previously defeated Navis can be encountered as an apparition and fought.[5] Also, in a request from Mega Man Battle Network 6 one must find the data of a certain Navi belonging to a certain old woman (who is actually someone who died a long time ago).
Story[]
30 years before the events from the first game, in order to win an international competition, a country had to pick one project to fund. Tadashi Hikari's research on networks was selected, while Wily's research on robots was canceled. It is unknown when the first NetNavis were created, but this led to the improvement of networks around the world, including the creation or improvement of the NetNavis used by operators to navigate through the Net. Drs. Hikari and Wily had a friendly rivalry before this, but Wily got angry with the decision and blamed Hikari for losing his research, despite Hikari not being the one who cancelled it, eventually creating the WWW to destroy everything related to the networks created by Hikari as revenge.[6] Dr. Hikari created the PETs that house NetNavis when he was 45.[7]
10 years before the first game, in SciLab, Tadashi was able to create Alpha, a prototype of the Internet, while Dr. Cossak developed Bass.EXE, the first autonomous Navi. When Alpha started malfunctioning, SciLab's researchers thought that Bass was responsible for the problem and sent Navi Elite Corps to delete him, believing that would stop the problem. However, Bass had no relation with the issue, and he survived, going into hiding to get revenge against humanity. Meanwhile, the problems with Alpha got worse, leading to the events that became known as the Alpha Revolt, which was only stopped after Tadashi installed the Guardian program within Alpha and it was sealed. The Alpha Revolt resulted in the Internet stopping for 6 months and the loss of several Navis.[8]
After this, the Undernet was created by SciLab to hide a dangerous program able to stop Alpha in case it escaped. The Undernet was made as a vast area to prevent damage in case of an accident, but it being isolated from the regular Net ended up making it a perfect a hiding place for many criminal Navis, becoming a dangerous area for normal Navis.[9]
Also 10 years before the first game, Tadashi Hikari's son, Yuichiro Hikari, was working on a new kind of Navi that could truly befriend its operator. Though he could make a Navi follow its operator's orders, he couldn't make one think and act on its own. To solve this, he considered that if the operator had some connection with the Navi, the Navi could respond to the operator's emotions and thereby create its own emotions. Based on human DNA, he tried to make a Navi with DNA just like its operator's, its basic values and emotions being the same, making an ultimate Navi that would become a single entity with its operator. Despite the difficulty to make a program with DNA, he managed to make about 95% of the program, but was unable to figure out the last five percent, his research coming to a sudden stop about the time his wife had twins, Lan and Hub.
However, Hub was born with HBD, a rare heart decease that would result in his demise. Wishing to somehow keep his memory alive, Yuichiro decided to finish his research, and as both Lan and Hub had the same DNA, he was able to create MegaMan.EXE, a new generation Navi that was as close to the operator as a brother. But Yuichiro noticed that if he made the Navi's DNA 100% identical to the operator's, they might synch, so damage to the Navi could also damage the operator. To prevent this, he changed MegaMan's DNA by 0.001%. MegaMan was aware of him being Hub, but Yuichiro asked him to keep it a secret from Lan. The NetNavis seen during the series are the result of Yuichiro's research.
Years later, when Wily set his plan to destroy Net society in motion, MegaMan was almost deleted by WWW's MagicMan. Yuichiro then revealed how he created MegaMan to Lan and gave him Hub.bat, which could save MegaMan by making the 0.001% difference disappear. This also also increase MegaMan's power and the bonds between him and Lan.[10]
In Mega Man Battle Network 3, Bass and Wily made an alliance and they released Alpha to help in their goals, something that almost destroyed them. When MegaMan was apparently deleted alongside Alpha, Yuichiro wondered if him including an "emotion simulation program" in Navis in order to make them get along better with humans was a mistake, as if Navis are given a soul, then they would be no different from humans, and losing one would be more painful for the operator and those close to them. While painful, Lan assured his father that his research was good, as Hub was happy to be able to continue living as MegaMan, and he also liked living with MegaMan, enjoying his company and learning a lot with him.[11] Thanks to data Tadashi installed on Alpha alongside Guardian, Yuichiro was able to retrieve MegaMan in the remains of Alpha and return him to Lan. Later, in Mega Man Battle Network 6, thanks to Lan, MegaMan, Colonel, and Iris, Wily realized the error of his ways and gave up of his destructive dream, surrendering to authorities and later working on programs that helped maintain peace in the Net. When Lan became an adult, he also became a researcher, and his strong bonds with MegaMan led him to develop a "Link Hypothesis" that is implied to be the basis for the Link Power developed centuries later.[12]
Mega Man Star Force series[]
In the Mega Man Star Force games, most NetNavis have been significantly downgraded from their original functions. Most generic Navis now seem to be autonomous (without need of an operator), and those with specialized functions and expertise (often for outright mundane things, such as air-conditioning) can be summoned through the use of their representative Navi Cards. Geo obtains a number of these cards over the course of the first Mega Man Star Force game, though, strangely, NetNavis seem to disappear from the second game onward, with Matter Waves and Wizards taking similar roles. Some Navis are unusable, such as the Delivery Navi (a Navi in the shape of a truck), which is seen mostly on EM Wave roads.
Other media[]
Several NetNavis seen in the MegaMan NT Warrior anime.
MegaMan NT Warrior anime[]
In the anime, as shown in Rockman EXE Stream, 20 years in the past people referred to NetNavis as Network Navigators and regarded them as little more than tools.[2]
Battle Story MegaMan NT Warrior[]
In the manga, most NetNavis are pre-made, with Lan obtaining MegaMan in a NetNavi Central Management Center.
Gallery[]
Concept art of Normal Navi.
Artwork of Normal Navi.
Concept art of Girl Navi.
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ Back of the box from the English original Mega Man Battle Network.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Rockman EXE Stream episode Space-Time War.
- ↑ Mega Man Battle Network Official Complete Works pages 66, 85 and 130.
- ↑ "Don't get it? 'Cause you're an official Navi, you can carry your own battle chips--so you can fight alone!" (...) "'Cause I'm a civilian Navi, I can't fight alone. That's why I've got Lan backing me up! We've come this far together...Because we fight as a team! The better friends you are with your operator... The better you fight!" - MegaMan, Mega Man Battle Network.
- ↑ Mega Man Battle Network 3 ACDC Chat BBS.
- ↑ Detailed by Dr. Wily in his base before Lan sends MegaMan to stop the Life Virus in the first Mega Man Battle Network.
- ↑ Kid reading about PETs in ACDC Elementary School's library after NumberMan's defeat in the first Mega Man Battle Network.
- ↑ Detailed during the events after WWW obtains Alpha in Mega Man Battle Network 3.
- ↑ Informed by Mamoru when he is found in Yoka in Mega Man Battle Network 3.
- ↑ Informed by Yuichiro Hikari when he gives Hub.bat in the first Mega Man Battle Network.
- ↑ Mega Man Battle Network 3 ending.
- ↑ Lan's messages from Mega Man Star Force 2.
- Rockman.EXE no Himitsu - Official Settei Illustration Guide (ロックマンエグゼのひみつ―オフィシャル設定イラストガイド), ISBN 4-86233-059-2
| Mega Man Star Force series |
|---|
| Main characters |
| Geo Stelar (Omega-Xis • Mega Man) • Luna Platz (Vogue) • Bud Bison (Taurus • Taurus Fire) • Zack Temple (Pedia) • Sonia Strumm (Lyra • Harp Note) • Solo (Laplace • Rogue) Hope Stelar • Kelvin Stelar • Aaron Boreal • Bob Copper • Dr. Goodall Pat Sprigs (Gemini • Gemini Spark) • Hyde (Phantom • Dark Phantom) • A. C. Eos (Acid • Acid Ace) FM King • Dr. Vega • Hollow • Mr. King |
| Games |
| Mega Man Star Force • 2 • 3 • 4 (cancelled) Shooting Star Rockman: Wave Change! On Air! • Rockman.EXE Operate Shooting Star |
| Media |
| Mega Man Star Force • Shooting Star Rockman Tribe Rockman the Shooting Star • Rockman the Shooting Star Tribe Shooting Star Rockman 3 • Shuugeki On-Air!! Shooting Star Rockmeen! |
| Related items |
| Battle Card • BrotherBand • Link Power • EM Being • EM Wave Change • OOPArt • Noise • Dealer • Satella Police • Mobile Terminals • Locations Wave Scanner • Wave Command Card • Noise Mod Gear |