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Now available at the Capcom Store (with other interesting tees) is the horrid mock box art for Mega Man 9 on a t-shirt! It's kind of steep at $25 and that doesn't include shipping.
http://shop.capcom.com/DRHM/servlet/Con … =107855400
Wrote about it as well...
Passing on this personally, and not just because it's 150% pricier than the actual game. No, my problem is that I'm afraid the media is being mistaken for the message with MM9. People seem to be arguing that the game is as good as it is simply BECAUSE it's wrapped in 8-bit-and-all-that-went-with-it, not because of meticulous design and balance. The faux boxart was one of those things that added to the perceived kitsch behind the veneer, and while it was amusing the first time, it's become a very tired joke, and - let's be honest - is just very abhorrent to look at, let alone wear.
Now that promotional disk on the other hand...
I jumped on this as soon as I could. (immediately)
But, if the medium wasn't the message, why did they strip everything down to 8-bit? Couldn't they have given the same design to something of Powered Up looks?
If anything, I think the media of the later Mega Man games distorted the true message of Mega Man's gameplay. The MM9 boxart not only was kitsch, it was a bold statement by Capcom that in addition to Mega Man going back to his roots, their entire design and promotional philosophy was, too. They couldn't have played homage to nostalgia in this way had it indeed been another chibi-style Powered Up title.
That, and I've heard Inafune say that they didn't expect to make that much money off MM9 itself and were depending on merchandising to bring in revenue.
...I've heard Inafune say that they didn't expect to make that much money off MM9 itself and were depending on merchandising to bring in revenue.
Well, considering the albums; OST and Arrange ST are over thrice the price of the game and the shirt is near that, I'd say success!
and don't forget the blue "E-can energy drink" which I'd love to buy if I could find someplace selling it.
(Merchandise sales indeed, except they gave them free to the press, oops)
I actualy am a lot more interested in saving up for the other more simple design with the jumping Megaman. 
Thought I should mention this here, too. Actually it's late, so I'll just cut and paste. Basically, Capcom is holding a contest for three remaining MM9 press kits with benefits:
"But, unfortunately, we don't have enough kits for everyone... So, in effort to make sure these kits go to the biggest Mega Man fans, we have a contest for you. Show us you're the ULTIMATE Mega Man fan! In return, we'll give you some Mega Man 9 love, including the Mega Man 9 Press Kit, a Mega Man 9 game code (for either PSN or XBL), a Mega Man 9 Poster, and a Mega Man 9 shirt signed by Kenji Inafune himself! We have three of these prize packages to hand out. I should also add that only 5 of these signed white MM9 T-Shirts exist. Very, VERY rare.
Here's what to do: Write a blog on your profile here on Capcom-Unity.com. Put in videos, photos, whatever you want to prove you're a real fan of Mega Man. Just don't do anything illegal! Once you've finished, send a link of your blog in a Private Message to CapcomContest. Put "Mega Man 9 Contest" in the subject line.
Contest begins immediately, and ends 11:59 PM Pacific Standard Time ("PST"), Wednesday, October 15, 2008."
I currently have a rather pathetic and desperate idea in mind for my attempt; I'll see if it's feasible in the (later) morning.
They had 200 of them and started selecting various contributors to the capcom-unity forums to receive them, and apparently people just had to post a lot on capcom's forum to be eligible to get it.