With celebrations of Street Fighter's 25th year coming to an end, and Mega Man's about to begin, Capcom has revealed a little surprise for fans of both games, a retro 8-bit platformer titled Street Fighter X Mega Man, that will be released as a free downloadble PC game in a few days time.

“Our fans have been so supportive of the 25th Anniversary efforts on Street Fighter, that we wanted to provide one last surprise and token of our appreciation,” said Christian Svensson, SVP of Consumer Software at Capcom USA. “This game symbolizes the passion and dedication of our fans and with the 25th Anniversary of Mega Man coming up, we felt it was our duty to bring this wonderful experience to everyone who has shared the last 25 years with us and both of these celebrated franchises.”

Involving a true collaboration between a company and its fans, Street Fighter X Mega Man was created and developed by Singapore native Seow Zong Hui (aka “Sonic”), with direction and support provided by Capcom. The game stars Mega Man and features eight original Street Fighter-themed levels and bosses inspired by the legendary fighting game series. Each boss character will utilize their individual strategies and special moves against Mega Man, as players attempt to mega blast their way through each uniquely charming 8-bit world.

In addition to the retro look and feel that embodies Street Fighter X Mega Man, an original soundtrack created by Luke Esquivel (aka “A_Rival”) provides a classic backdrop to the action. Amazing mash-ups of memorable Street Fighter and Mega Man™ themes complete the crossover of the century!

Nostalgic fans should be able to download the game for free from December 17th 2012 via the Capcom-Unity website, and we're also told to expect Mega Man-related 25th anniversary celebrations throughout 2013.

Watch the trailer below for a taste of the awesome (or here in our video library), then ask: why has this taken so long to be a thing, and when are they going to make a proper HD version?