7 came after X on the same system. It was a game no one asked for or wanted.
The original series should've died once X came out. There was no reason to go back to previous inferior formula. 7 wasn't bad, but what's the point? Imagine if Final Fantasy VII went back to text-based battles like the very first game.
I was never able to Find Mega Man X3, but what did I find? Mega Man 7. It was enjoyable, but I went back to the NES ones a lot more.