Dark Hold (ダークホールド Dāku Hōrudo) is a Special Weapon obtainable in Mega Man X5 by defeating Dark Necrobat. Upon activation, it stops time in X and Zero's surroundings, signified by all colors inverting; the duration of the weapon depends on the Weapon Energy. Once active, it can only be shut off if X or Zero switch Weapons. Because it is activated as soon as the Special Weapon button is pushed, it cannot be charged. To deactivate Dark Hold, either simply go to the Sub Screen and choose another weapon or use a Giga Attack.
Spiral Pegasus is the only boss that can be frozen by this weapon - all other bosses are otherwise immune to the Dark Hold. When used against Dark Necrobat in the boss rematches, it will only consume one unit, and the screen will only flash white for a split-second.
Other appearances
- In Mega Man X Legacy Collection and Mega Man X Legacy Collection 2, Dark Hold is one of the weapons available in the X Challenge stages 2, 5 and 8.
- Dark Hold appeared in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars as Zero's level 3 hyper combo. After stopping time, he changes the shape of the Z-Saber as it grows in size for the finishing move (where he glides through his target into the air to impale them), making it resemble the saber from the Mega Man Zero series.
- Dark Hold is an Action card in TEPPEN that can halt an enemy unit for 13 seconds.
Damage Data Chart
Damage values in units in Mega Man X5.
 Dark Hold 
| ||
| Boss | Damage | |
| Magma Dragoon | -- | |
| Sigma Head | -- | |
| Crescent Grizzly | 0 | |
| Tidal Whale | 0 | |
| Volt Kraken | 0 | |
| Shining Firefly | 0 | |
| Dark Necrobat | 0 | |
| Spiral Pegasus | * | |
| Burn Dinorex | 0 | |
| Spike Rosered | 0 | |
| U-555 (Head) | 0 | |
| U-555 (Tail) | 0 | |
| U-555 (Top) | 0 | |
| Prism Guardian | 0 | |
| Pteranoid | 0 | |
| Dynamo | 0 | |
| Shadow Devil | 0 | |
| Rangda Bangda W (Green Eye) | 0 | |
| Rangda Bangda W (Red Eye) | 0 | |
| Rangda Bangda W (Blue Eye) | 0 | |
| Rangda Bangda W (Sun) | 0 | |
| Mega Man X | 0 | |
| Zero (Normal) | 0 | |
| Zero (Awakened) | 0 | |
| Sigma: 1st Phase | 0 | |
| Sigma: 2nd Phase | 0 | |
- Spiral Pegasus is the only boss that is vulnerable to Dark Hold, thus more damage can be inflicted on him with this weapon using the X-Buster or Z-Saber than with other bosses.
Gallery
Mega Man X5 screenshots
Other appearances
Zero using Dark Hold in Tatsunoko vs. Capcom.
Zero summoning a giant sword in Dark Hold.
Zero striking his opponent during Dark Hold.
Dark Hold card in TEPPEN.
Animation
.gif "X5 DarkHold(X).gif (30 KB)")
X using Dark Hold in Mega Man X5.
.gif "X5 DarkHold(Z).gif (54 KB)")
Zero using Dark Hold in Mega Man X5.
Trivia
- This weapon functions almost exactly like the Time Stopper, which stops all enemies from moving, the only difference is the inverted colors and being able to use the buster/saber without wasting energy, unlike in Mega Man 2 where the buster is not usable.
- This weapon is immensely helpful in successfully navigating through the latter half of the first Zero Space area, which contains lethal laser beams reminiscent of Quick Man's stage from Mega Man 2. Note that using Dark Hold is not absolutely necessary, as there are ways to dodge the laser beams successfully, even without Dark Hold. If skilled enough, it is possible for the player to even clear the area with Gaea Armor X, which cannot use special weapons.
- In Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, when Zero does his Dark Hold level 3 Hyper combo, sometimes he will say "Chekkumeito da!" (チェックメイトだ! Checkmate!) which may be a reference to the manga series JoJo's Bizarre Adventure in where one of the main villains named Dio Brando, who has the ability to stop time, says "Checkmate!" when throwing knives at his opponents. This reference could also be a callback as Capcom also worked on both an arcade fighting game and Japan-only PS2 game of the brand.
- Prior to the X Challenge, this was the only special weapon in the X series that could not be charged. Even so, charging it during the X Challenge simply activates a normal Dark Hold.
| Time / Space / Holographic Special Weapons and Techniques | |
|---|---|
| Special Weapons | |
| Mega Man series | Time Stopper (2) • Flash Stopper (4) • Gravity Hold (5) • Star Crash (5) • Centaur Flash (6) • Astro Crush (8) • Black Hole Bomb (9) • Black Hole (V) • Copy Vision (M&B) • Time Slow (PU) • Time Switch/Time Bomb (R&F) |
| Mega Man X series | Gravity Well (X3) • Soul Body (X4) • Dark Hold (X5) • Squeeze Bomb (X8) |
| Zero's Techniques and EX Skills | |
| Techniques | W-Shredder (X5) • Dark Hold (X5) • Twin Dream (X5) |
| EX Skills | Time Stopper (Z4) |