While Twisted Pixel did have discussions with our console game team about publishing 'Splosion Man' on game consoles, Capcom Mobile is a different division of Capcom with separate offices and as such, had no prior knowledge of any meetings between the console game team and Twisted Pixel. 'MaXplosion' was developed independently by Capcom Mobile. Nonetheless, we are saddened by this situation and hope to rebuild the trust of our fans and friends in the gaming community.

Twisted Pixel CEO Micael Wilford has also told Joystiq that the indie developer has no intention of suing Capcom over the alleged rip-off:

We're definitely not going to pursue legal action. While I think the similarities are pretty nauseating, we're too small to take on a company like Capcom. That, and we owe them one for inventing Mega Man, so we'll let them slide. I just hope they're not counting on the fact that indies can't fight back.

[Original story: 17:00 2011-01-12] Members of 'Splosion Man developer Twisted Pixel have accussed Capcom Mobile of ripping-off the explosive platformer with its own MaXplosion, Eurogamer noticed.

"MaXplosion gameplay video makes me sad," Twisted Pixel programmer Mike Henry wrote on his personal Twitter account. "If you're going to outright steal a game, you should at least understand what makes it fun."

Have a peek at the SM trailer and this MaXplosion gameplay to see for yourself. Both are platformers starring an eponymous character who detonates himself to jump, also damaging nearby enemies. Both are escaping from a cartoony science facility. Both can jump several times in a row, even in mid-air, before needing to recharge. While there are a few differences--combat seems to be a bigger element in MaXplosion, plus Max has a tail--the two are strikingly similar.

Twisted Pixel Ceo Michael Wilford joined in on Twitter, writing "Not sure what to say about MaXplosion. Pisses me off. Guess we're just gonna have to make a better iPhone game than them. Shouldn't be hard." He added, "Best part is, we originally pitched 'Splosion Man to Capcom and they said no." Wilford also provided this statement:

We're just disappointed that our once heroes of game development have turned to making clones of our games. On one hand that's super flattering, because I remember spending countless hours at our dining room table drawing up new Mega Man robots. But on the other hand it's very saddening because the Capcom I used to love is no more. And trying to rob me. While I'm sleeping. Thanks to all our fans and to the press, though, for supporting us. We may just have to reward them with a mobile game of our own.

'Splosion Man was released for Xbox Live Arcade in July 2009, while MaXplosion came out for iOS devices on January 6 this year. Ms. Splosion Man was recently announced, slated for a fall launch. In Capcom's defense, at least it hasn't announced a 'Ms. MaXplosion' yet.

Shacknews has contacted Capcom for comment and was told that a statement will be made later today. We'll share that with you when we receive it.