Cannon Driver

Enemy Info

Artwork from Mega Man X2.
General information
Name(s):	Cannon Driver
Appearances:	Mega Man X2, Mega Man Xtreme, Mega Man Xtreme 2
Game Info
HP:	X2: 14 XT: 20
Damage:	2 (contact) 4 (cannonball) 2 (explosion)

The Cannon Driver (キャノンドライバー) is an enemy Mechaniloid first appearing in Mega Man X2. It is a tall, stationary robot with two large 200mm cannons mounted to the front and homing missile launchers on the sides, the former of which provide its main method of attack.

In the Games

Mega Man X2

Sprite from X2.

In Mega Man X2, Cannon Drivers are rare enemies. The first Cannon Driver is found just outside the entrance of the Maverick Factory Stage, and is in fact the first enemy that players encounter in the game, though this one is badly damaged due to X crashing a Ride Chaser into it. The resulting enemy is missing its lower half, making it easier to jump over, and also leaving it with only one cannon to shoot from. Its HP is also reduced to 4 instead of the usual 14, though its attack damage remain the same.

A Cannon Driver guards each of the boss doors in Robot Junkyard Stage, Dinosaur Tank Stage, and X-Hunter Stage 2. While X is near, they will fire cannonballs forward in a straight line at regular intervals, alternating between the top and bottom cannon. These cannonballs explode when they hit a wall, but deflect all shots and deal 4 points of damage if X touches them, or 2 points if he touches the explosion. As the Cannon Driver can withstand many hits at 14 HP, X may have to time his movements around the shooting pattern when fighting it, though the Magnet Mine, Spin Wheel or Silk Shot can usually take it out in a single, well-aimed shot. Cannon Drivers always face to the left, even if X gets behind one.

Mega Man Xtreme

Xtreme sprite.

In Mega Man Xtreme, Cannon Drivers appear in the game's second set of stages, accessible only in Hard or Extreme mode. As the game's stages are largely derived from the earlier games, there is once again one Cannon Driver each to be found in the Scrap Factory Stage and Dinosaur Tank Stage, guarding their respective boss doors.

They act largely the same as they did in Mega Man X2, though their health has been increased to 20 HP. The one in the Scrap Factory Stage has been moved so that X's X-Buster shots can hit it without ever being in its line of fire, making it easier to defeat.

Mega Man Xtreme 2

File:MMXT2 - Cannon Driver.png

Xtreme 2 sprite.

Cannon Drivers also appear in the sequel Mega Man Xtreme 2, though only in the game's Opening Stage. They only ever appear lacking their legs, like the first one that was damaged in Mega Man X2, making them weaker and easier to defeat than the standing variant.

Mega Man X: Command Mission

Cannon Driver Figure in Mega Man X: Command Mission.

In Mega Man X: Command Mission, Cannon Drivers are enemies found only in Far East HQ. These Cannon Drivers are slightly redesigned from their Mega Man X2 look, with red in place of blue and more realistic gun barrels. In addition to their powerful Shot-type attacks, each one has a C/S Barrier which defends against both Shot and Combat attacks until struck by one attack type, upon which it becomes more vulnerable to that attack type until it regenerates the barrier on its next turn. This makes attacks of a repeated type more effective. They have a 1% chance of dropping the X Buster MKIII upon defeat, a valuable weapon for X.

A Figure of the Cannon Driver, belonging to the "Special 6 - Retro Mech Set" series, can also be obtained for the Sky Room. It is unlocked by completing the Challenge of activating over 100 Final Strikes.

Mega Man X DiVE

Cannon Driver in Mega Man X DiVE.

In Mega Man X DiVE, Cannon Drivers can be found in the Story mode starting from Oil Field, as well as appearing in some Event, Co-op and Jakob Orbital Elevator stages. They use their original Mega Man X2 design and function similarly to their X2 appearance, but fire yellow projectiles instead of cannonballs, which no longer block shots. They also have gained an additional attack, shooting a pair of homing missiles at the player character. Unlike the enemy in X2, they can attack in either direction and will try to face the player, though they flip around instantly rather than turning.

Trivia

• In Mega Man X2, the enemy has an unused behaviour type coded into the game that would have allowed it to walk after X instead of shooting. However, as it does not have a walking animation, it ends up gliding across the floor if this behaviour is enabled.
• Despite the Cannon Driver's design forgoing arms for four missile launchers, these missiles were never actually used until its appearance in Mega Man X DiVE.