Akira Kitamura, one of the key figures in the creation of the Mega Man / Rockman series, is working with the character again after a gap of 36 years.
Kitamura directed the character's NES debut back in 1987 and is credited with coming up with the design of the Blue Bomber.
Keiji Inafune would later create more detailed artwork based on Kitamura's pixel design, and this led to people incorrectly assuming he created the character instead. To his credit, Inafune has tried to set the record straight, saying in 2007:
I'm often called the father of Mega Man, but in fact, his design was already created when I joined Capcom. [...] My mentor (Akira Kitamura), who was the designer of the original Mega Man, had a basic concept of what the character should look like, so I only did half the work to create it.
Kitamura also directed the NES sequel, which is considered by many fans to be one of the best entries in the entire series. However, he retired from game development in the 1990s, which makes this new announcement quite exciting.
The Mega Man creator is working with Brave Wave, a company which produces re-releases of popular video game soundtracks. He will apparently be playing a direct, hands-on role in projects already in production, one of which is a non-music-related venture which is due to be revealed later this year – and, most exciting of all, is related to Mega Man.