The Ultimate Ranking of 17 Core Mega Man Games!

[@megamanmarchek8293]

Mega Man 9 is easily the best one for me. The best weapon selection in the series, excellent level design, and fantastic boss battles.

[@ryanwest5179]

Agree with this entirely. 9 is the only Mega Man game that I think is a *perfect* video game. Every robot master is great. The stages are expertly designed. The OST is one of the best in the series. The game is hard, but I think it’s hard in a well-designed way (unlike a game like 10, which is hard because of infinite pit hoppers). And so on. I love the whole Classic series, but man, 9 stands tall amongst them all.

[@retrobeliever]

These games are always so frustrating for me but I still keep playing lol, there are so many I still need to play on top of that! Great list/ranking my friend, I love these vids!

[@BittyKongsQuest]

Oh buddy. You know I'm showing up for this one! Fun fact - did you know that there were 8 robot masters planned for MM1 as well, but they ran out of resources before they could complete it? The seventh was going to be Bond Man, and was going to have a glue mechanic to stick things in place! The eighth never reached the design phase. And I like MM11 too! It was a really fresh take on the franchise that I appreciated. The soundtrack is LOADED with bangers too! MM7 is the lame duck of the franchise for me. It had an extremely short dev time, so I can forgive some of its faults, but it's pretty close to the bottom of my list TBH. There are so many other comments I want to say, but I absolutely agree about the Weapon Get screens in the GBA series. It's a travesty that those are locked away on a part of the series that most folks probably won't play. MM5 is literally peak Megaman. I wish everyone would play that one.

[@SailorPalutena]

Megaman 7 and 8 never appealed to me, especially 8 with its broken Rush. Megaman 7 I only liked the Protoman shield and Ghouls n Ghosts music.

[@johnhancockretro]

I cant tell you how many times I punched my leg dying in these games lol.

[@Ruudos]

Recently purchased Mega Man 9 and 10. So far I've only been playing Mega Man 9 and loving it. While it certainly kicked my ass at first I got better and better. The special weapons are a joy to use. Haven't started with 10 yet.

[@tommycwills]

This is a really interesting perspective! I think Mega Man 9 is the best game out of the 17 in this video and then maybe 6 right after that. I would put some of the Game Boy games (like the first two, maybe three) at the bottom as well as Mega Man & Bass.

[@totemlordreviews7242]

Love ranking videos! Even if I don't agree with them, i just love hearing different perspectives on games. I've never understood why people get upset because they're game ranks low or it's not the cream of the crop. Anyhoo, awesome list! Cheers!

[@coopleofnerds]

I have not played any of the Game Boy MM games. I will have to keep an eye out for them. I also completely missed the Switch release...

[@LordBeerusHakaiGod]

Regardless if I agree or disagree with you, I admit that you did a fantastic job and I know that you did MegaMan some proper professional justice

[@dionelr]

I replayed 1-4 recently and my opinion on 1 definitely changed for the better.

[@James-cf2mr]

Great list, thanks for sharing! I do consider Mega Man 3 as the best, and my favorite, so I like its ranking! The only main game I want to discuss is Mega Man 1 on the NES. My brothers and I had a terrible time with it back in the day. Although, I do have a memory of us eventually getting good at it some time prior to the Sega Genesis coming out. I don’t know why we became “competent” at playing it, but I don’t really think it is a good game. The main positive I remember is the music. I dislike most other things about it (including many enemy designs and level layouts). I intend to buy a lot of the Mega Man compilations on Steam someday. Maybe I will grow to like it after giving it some serious time again.

[@Skypatroller_BenCD]

And Megaman&Bass Challengers from the future? Also I don't know if you count Powered Up and Wily Wars

[@mopbrothers]

3 will always be the best. It’s fair, has great music, memorable and it’s fun.

[@SquarePegs]

@@mopbrothers Yup. For me picking between 2 and 3 is really tough. Ultimately, I think 2 is my favorite, but 3 is objectively the better game based on the factors you mentioned above, as well as all the different things that became staples in the series that were introduced in 3.

[@mopbrothers]

@@SquarePegs 2 is more flashy and colorful, but it’s got some unfair, bullshit parts that hurt it. If you don’t know what’s coming in 2 you’re guaranteed to die. Some of the bosses like Wood Man and Air Man are terrible. Objectively 3 is a much better game and more fair. 3 doesn’t rely on gimmicks and surprises. While not as exciting as 2, 3 is more enjoyable because it’s more fair and forgiving.

[@SquarePegs]

Very well said.

[@MatthewTheWolf2029]

You and I have this in common, dude; I also, am a passionate Megaman fan. In fact, I have been a Megaman fan for as LONG as I can remember.

[@Chr0mePisto1a]

Love me a good ranking video.

[@SquarePegs]

I hope this qualified as 'good', in that case! ;)

[@schlubopbeebop886]

Was not expecting that Mega Man 9 opinion. It's easily the most balanced and well designed of the whole series. It is not difficult at all if you learn to work with the special weapons. Mega Man 10 was fine but an enormous step down.

[@Canadian_Gamer]

Mega Man 2 is the first Mega Man game everyone played, our parents bought it for us on launch. Mega Man 2 is like NHL 94, it’s the one everyone bought, it’s the chef’s kiss 💋

[@SquarePegs]

Zero lies detected, my man. Agreed with all points!

[@WarhawkFAQs]

The first Mega Man game I played was Mega Man X2 but in the classic series, it was Mega Man 6.

[@roddyb33]

Loved this! But where is Mega Man for the Game Gear?

[@SquarePegs]

Is it considered part of the core series? I thought it was more an Elseworlds your thing since it was made by US Gold. Happy to be wrong - it's the only Mega Man game I've never played! :)

[@SquarePegs]

And thank you so much for watching!!

[@MichaelLoudenTV23]

Mega Man is my favorite video game series. I have beaten Mega Man 1-10. I haven't played the Game Boy games or 11 yet. My favorite is also Mega Man 2 and it was the first one I ever played. I have Mega Man and Bass. I bought a copy that was put onto an SNES cart.

[@stang6552]

Mega man 8 - that felt good. Mega man 3 = broken rush jet which is lovely. Rockman and forte = tengu man music.

[@sevendeadlystreamersLEGO]

Does MMIV for the Gameboy have a recoil on the mega buster? I never played it, but I think that would bother me.

[@SquarePegs]

@@sevendeadlystreamersLEGO It does when you charge it, yes. I got used to it very quickly. :)

[@RetroRivals]

I wish I had some brilliant pearls of wisdom to add in the comments about my thoughts and opinions on Mega Man, but the only time I played Mega Man was once when Scott went to the bathroom during the live stream and I played a little bit of one of them 😂😂😂 I'm a terrible retro gamer but I trust your rankings. So do I just start at S+ and work my way down 👇

[@OmegaFox09]

Megaman 3 - You forgot to mention the banger track of wily castle 3/4!

[@EirkenElite]

Man I love 2...never knew their are so many mega man games

[@anhramainyu2027]

Any chance for an Ultmate Ranking of Castlevania games? 👀

[@OrbitalFrog_]

My personal favorite mega man game is mega man world 5, on the game boy. For me, it’s a perfect video game.

[@WarhawkFAQs]

I'd say a drawback in Mega Man 9 and 10 is not being able to slide. It felt weird not being able to slide or even charge the Mega Buster.

[@subwaymanYT]

Megaman 2 is great but 3 is the most nostalgic for me

[@D0ntTaseM3Br0]

How the hell can you tell me Mega Man 9 is hard!? Mega Man 1 (and 3 due to the Doc Robots) were HARD. And then no mention of that in Mega Man & Bass? Did you even beat the game because I just feel you haven't.

[@SquarePegs]

Mega Man 1 is quite hard. I said as much - I've beaten it once in my life. Mega Man 3 I don't find hard at all, I've beaten it numerous times. Mega Man & Bass I say that I haven't beaten it in the video, I just picked up the cart about a month ago. But while there's parts that are difficult, I haven't found it to be unforgivingly so. As far as MM9 - I've never beaten it. I've never enjoyed it. The difficulty is unforgiving, and frequently unmanageable - it was developed to be hard, and I don't find that to be enjoyable. I don't mind a game having hard aspects - and I love a ramping difficulty in a Mega Man title, but MM9 is just brutal from jump.

[@puffdaddy6488]

⁠@@SquarePegs This has to be the worst take on Mega Man 9 I’ve ever seen. The game is well balanced, and isn’t even very difficult. If you really think it is that brutal it has an in game shop that makes it easier. In no way is it harder or more frustrating than Mega Man and Bass. To each their own sure, but this Mega Man 9 take almost goes beyond opinion, and closer to being factually wrong lol.

[@SquarePegs]

@@puffdaddy6488 I'm glad you feel that way, honestly, because knowing something I don't enjoy is well liked by someone else gives me reason to try it again. But never since it launched, I've legitimately never enjoyed the game or thought it was at all balanced. I've tried paying it legitimately every year since it came out and never once had fun with it. And I'm not alone in looking at reviews of the title, but as I said at the start - what I feel doesn't make me right for anyone but me. Everyone's least favorite game is someone else's all time favorite. It's all opinion - as long as you're enjoying it, that's all that should matter. :)

[@CoolLogoDude]

MegaMan 9 took away things that made MegaMan easier and more approachable for no reason. That's the definition of hard. Doc Robo stages were beaten by an 8 year old me but a now 24 year old me can't even beat half the levels in MegaMan 9. I completely agree with this guy's take on the game. Also I think it's incredibly overrated.

[@GoodVibeCollecting]

Well, I wouldn't say the level design is magnificent in Mega Man 3 since you can literally get stuck LOL. I agree that it's one of the best games in the series though.

[@broncosbreaks]

I was waiting the whole time to see the megaman legends rankings, but I guess they don’t constitute as “core” games

[@SquarePegs]

Correct. For the record: MML: B, MML2: A, TMAoTB: S

[@joeangeles1215]

Great video. I agree that the original Mega Man is probably the worst if you were to rank them. It's kind of weird to see the first entry in a series ranked as the worst; just about everything else in US pop culture if you were to rank an entire series - the original is almost always ranked #1 or close to being #1 (for example Star Wars, Rocky, Back to Future, Ghostbusters series for movies; in video games the first Mario and Sonic games are always ranked high for their influence; any ranking of a band's albums will have their debut close to the top as well). People always seem have lots of love for the original - except for Mega Man 1.

[@erickavery1]

Obviously since you left Mega Man Soccer off the list it was ranked too high something like SSS+. Counterintuitively my favorite Mega Man is 7 mainly because when I was young and my parents separated, my Dad would always rent this for me when I was going over to his house and we would play together even though he doesn't like video games. Second favorite is probably 2 for the music most of all but really everything and finally 8 for the story and how it kinda vaguely hints at Mega Man X.

[@aldoushuxleysghost]

Mega Man 8 came out in 1996, then we wouldn't see Mega Man 9 until 2008

[@Swagster1000-sy3ng]

Putting 9 at D is possibly the most contrarian thing I’ve ever heard. It’s without a doubt my favourite. Don’t see why 8 is so high when a lot of the level design is bad gimmicks.

[@SquarePegs]

@@Swagster1000-sy3ng :shrug: Different opinions my dude. Me not liking 9 doesn't change if you like it or not. Nothing wrong with us being into different games. :)

[@Swagster1000-sy3ng]

@@SquarePegs not saying your opinion is bad, though I was pretty shocked to see 9 in D. Still don’t get why you think 8 is pretty high? I can definitely agree with you on 2 as newer fans dislike it for a lot of reasons I just don’t see.

[@SquarePegs]

@@Swagster1000-sy3ng 8 probably has a lot of nostalgia pulling weight. First Mega Man I played in PS, I enjoy the voice acting, and I like the level designs. :)

[@ColonelHarry]

First game will always be #1 in my heart. But times going... now I find the X séries superior.

[@bestintheworld4850]

Megamane & Bass is in my top 5 megaman, man the GBA music was by far really a downgrade from the SNES.

[@jeffreyerekson2179]

I've only played the 6 MM games on the NES, and 7 + 8. I STRONGLY disagree with you on MM8. IMO, That game absolutely sucked. It was too kiddish and cartoony from beginning to end, and it would get an F- from me. MM7: great graphics, but too slow for my liking, probably a D. 5 and 6: too easy. Pretty much the bosses from both games can be beaten without wpns easily. C tier for me. The original MM. Like you, only beaten it once in my life. Still better than 7 and 8, but still can't give it higher than a D tier. MM2 would have received an S tier if it had the slide instead of waiting until MM3. Instead, only an A tier, but still fun. Surprisingly, the only game with 2 difficulty settings. Would have liked to see it more in the NES world. MM3: S tier, no question. Doc robots were a nice touch. Would have been cool to get 16 wpns but I don't think you actually faced the MM2 robots, but rather their programming. MM4: A tier for me. Solid game, but not as good as 3.

[@SquarePegs]

@@jeffreyerekson2179 Respect all of those rankings, and completely see where you're coming from on all points - even if I disagree. Thank you so much for watching!

[@jeffreyerekson2179]

@@SquarePegs of course good sir 👍

[@misk-ivus2990]

If you think Mega 9 is bad then I pray for your soul if you play Mega Man Unlimited XD

[@barryjohn9415]

Once u get to megaman 4 all of them get better because u can slide and charge ur shot

[@almeidachannel7121]

Nice Video ! Sub & Big Like ! And Love Retro Megaman Games !

[@mrpopsful]

I dont think i made it to a single robot master in 11, and I have beaten 1 through 10 (except 9) without cheating

[@samuelallen2831]

Mega Man 8 is a smash, DEFINITELY not a pass. 😆 For real though, the voice acting in that game is so bad it’s good

[@mjdf122]

Ranking Mega Man games with Square Pegs

[@rrickydanby]

Disclaimer: I haven’t watched yet WHERE THE HELL IS MEGA MAN SOCCER

[@SquarePegs]

I didn't realize it was mainline! It would be a B or an A - I unabashedly adore that game.

[@rrickydanby]

@@SquarePegs oh my god you replied! I probably paid thrice what that game was worth in blockbuster rentals. Thank you so much for replying to my algorithm comment lol

[@biostemm]

My first experience was with mega man 2, then i went and rented the first game some time later, and frankly didn't like it ..

[@SailorPalutena]

Megaman 8 sucks so bad, I would give it a D. Megaman 7 is worth a C tops. Megaman 3, 4, 5 are gold indeed.

[@eddiedutra3359]

I own a Japanese version of Rockman 8 on the Sega Saturn and the American version is cursed wiff terrible voice acting,