The New Best Mega Man Game - Rock N' Roll

I stumbled upon this fan game fairly soon after its release and was blown away by it. Welcome to my review of "Mega Man Rock N Roll", the Sonic Mania of Mega Man games, if you will. Let's take a closer look and have some fun. It's available for free download here:
dennisengelhard.com/rock-n-roll/
*Also, in the defense bunker, the rooms that I spoke of having a single enemy based on the robot master allies would normally have a rematch encounter there, had I not fought and recruited them earlier.

[@johnnyfulton4755]

Realizing at the end that the entire game is themed around taking turns playing a game, or switching out who is playing during a boss, broke me.

[@thebreathofwater5206]

Oh... Oh no... It never clicked for me... That is incredible (and sad as hell), holy crap...

[@tubaraofluente]

that's absolutely genius

[@christianhilditch9333]

My son is 8. He just recently discovered my NES and Cartridges. He has ignited a new love of mega man. Thank you for sharing this. I am glad the algorithm delivered.

[@bickuribox12]

Love to hear it

[@skyj7361]

The ending really caught me off guard and made me cry a little. I really hope Dennis get the recognition he deserves. His dad would been very happy to see this. Otherwise I'd like to see more of these game reviews from Talwar. It was definitely worth of 30 minutes of watching lol

[@zak69420]

why did it also make me cry T-T

[@beingadeeb2345]

​@@zak69420 It didn't make me cry. But my father has the same name as you, Zakir.

[@YinYarnsBarn]

I didn't even grow up with Mega Man much (aside from X), but even just looking at the gameplay makes me nostalgic for memories I never had.

[@minerxen]

Same here but wow, the ending is just... All I can say is I'm lost for words Yinyarn

[@minerxen]

I'm just hungry for good content right now

[@mouseman6265]

BRUH IM LITERALLY OBAMA

[@minerxen]

Obama, you may not be the president I live in or a president anymore but you just made my day

[@mr_indie_fan]

@@minerxen "the president i live in" wait hold up-

[@SpiritLife]

Dang, that ending got me all choked up. I hope my own kids remember me this way

[@TheRubenazo]

24:22 I will tell you exactly what those rooms were. If you didn't save the respective robot masters, you would have to face them in those cells that have "1 enemy" because you didn't free them and they were controlled to the core. So basically if you knocked sense to every robot master and saved them you won't battle them later, but if you don't save them, you will be forced to battle them and NOT being able to save them.

[@TheRubenazo]

You should also add this to the description just in case someone else tries to say the same thing.

[@Gamesmarts194]

Some corrections and trivia: -The lightbulb boss actually has a few different weaknesses (Beetle Drone specifically outside, Desert Storm inside, Charge Beam for either). -Using Drake Man's weapons on fire enemies power them up. -The single boss rooms with an enemy in them are actually for fighting the Robot Masters you didn't rescue.

[@niclaswa5408]

Man. I didn’t know how much I’ve missed Egoraptor/Jontron style reviews until now. Thank you so much for making this. And yes, the game kicks ass.

[@casualtom82]

This really made my day. Nice to see this game get the review it deserves, and from a player who totally gets it! Also, while Dune Woman may seem unforgiving, we went back and forth on the effectiveness of her Desert Storm in testing but ultimately decided that the fight was way too easy before strengthening it.

[@bickuribox12]

I’m late on this, but thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it! And that makes sense, I can see why that would be the case

[@growlithekid1]

Yo Talwar. Just wanted to say I adore these types of videos from you. I obviously enjoy your Realm of the Mad God content, but there's something special about your reviews. I think it's because I can tell you really have a passion for these games, and you enjoy just nerding out about them a while.

[@Lulink013]

24:21 Don't you think these 4 rooms with only one enemy in them right before the boss-rush contain the optional bosses if you didn't rescue them before?

[@bickuribox12]

My goodness, you're absolutely right.

[@niclaswa5408]

I was waiting for him to mention that, but it never happened.

[@dudeinaboxeatingsometomato2323]

I'm happy that a fan project became an amazing master piece, but sad that it isn't cannon nor official because it truly deserves it to be

[@AidanqtFeesh]

This was long overdue, and I'm sincerely happy that it was. The effort that went into making this is clear, and the quality of the presentation reflects that. I greatly enjoyed your voice, the script, and the simple yet effective edits. You've certainly convinced me into giving this game a full playthrough, but it's a damn shame the developer didn't make a cent for their work. I'd love to see this style of review on games as a staple for your channel in the future!

[@hunam1464]

This game blew me away, in the same way that Unlimited did. But this one’s construction is so good, the boss fights so enjoyable, the stage design so careful.. And then there’s the onion cutting at the end. It’s in the same quality as 4, 7, and 9. Top shelf Mega Man. I’m really looking forward to recording it.

[@randominternetman8177]

Man. That ending note hit me like a fuckin' train. And I've never even met this guy.

[@Key-cf5yw]

i didn’t realize till you made the direct reference to sequelitis but the way you pace your sentences and do your cuts and zooms is incredibly reminiscent of it! I’m impressed you replicated the parts of sequelitis that i would call most important and did so without making it obvious! I don’t know if it’s intentional or not but i’m deeply impressed and love it!!!

[@holvillain2990]

That developer note at the end got me in tears

[@Airhammer]

Amazing video. Funny and informative, I love it. RnR playtester here. If anyone has any questions about the game please do ask. :) Also if anyone is interested in the beta content just hit me up. Version 1.2 of the game just came out along with a Linux version. One thing of note from this video. The rooms from the boss rush stage with a lone enemy in them. If by chance you didn't beat the kidnapped robot masters earlier in the game they will appear in those rooms. This can alter the difficulty of the stage drastically based on your progress so you could wind up fighting anywhere from 8-13 bots.

[@bickuribox12]

I’m glad you enjoyed it! And yeah, that makes perfect sense for the abducted robot masters to be in the defense bunker if you didn’t rescue them. That’s really clever, actually.

[@randomguyontheinternet7940]

That can be 10-13 because if you didn't rescue Proto Man by saving all of the kidnapped Robot Masters and defeating Copy Robot MK3 you fight Proto Man at the end of the revisits.

[@StormGallade]

Came from the algorithm, and got blessed with Egoraptor vibes within the first 5 seconds. You earned another sub, my dude.

[@bickuribox12]

Thank you so much!

[@omegaknight6421]

When i saw that end note i simply saluted and said "goddamn man.....goddamn"

[@DrizzleMonster2567]

The Fact Dennis Made This Game In Memory Of His Father Is Amazing... Mega Man Rock N Roll Is The Most Beautiful Looking Fan Game I've Ever Seen... I Love How Dennis Put In So Much Little Detail Into Everything, I Love It...

[@diorse1167]

I'd also like to mention they kept the silly skull man "bug" in where he doesn't move or attack unless you do. I waited when I fought him just to see what he would do and I was so happy when I realised they kept it in. Thats how you can tell this was made by a real fan of the series for fans

[@Gyrokun]

There's a very special batton in Ghost Woman's stage that certain fans of another mm game will know well too :)

[@tarotcard0371]

When I read the title of this video, my immediate reaction was to get the game for myself before watching the video. My only thought, still with that title in mind, was "I'll be the judge of that." - I am happy to report that the title of the video is accurate. My main fear going into the game was the difficulty. I've played plenty of NES romhacks and fan games, and more often then not, the game is difficult and nothing else. I can safely say that, while the difficulty of Rock n' Roll is nothing to sneeze at, it thankfully never reaches the absurdity of the Inti Creates titles. It never puts the player in a position where they have to jump down to the next screen, only to put spikes in the spot they're most likely to land in, it never fills areas to the brim with spikes and pits to account for the Items that can let the player survive those obstacles (Which is also why I'm glad for the removal of the shop), and even the Instant Death LASER Stage (TM) broke series tradition by never, _ever_ putting the player in a position in which they would just be "too late" and have to purposefully jump into one of the LASERs to restart. To me, the Inti Creates titles were designed to make the player want to give up, but Rock n' Roll wants the player to keep trying, no matter how many times they fail. - I will admit, that despite being considerably more fair than 9 and 10, the final levels and bosses still got intense enough that my hand got some really bad cramps, so to anyone who hasn't played yet, be sure to take a break every so often, especially in the final stages. I have no Idea how to end this, so; This is a masterpiece, anyone who likes Megaman should go play it.

[@rosswestney7756]

That note……. I play Megaman to this day because of the time I spent with my mom on Megaman 2 or 3. She’s always playing it with me

[@laurenhahn8569]

Your video absolutely sold me. I had to stop watching halfway through because you kept showing really cool tricks and stuff and I decided I had to experience it all firsthand.

[@beingadeeb2345]

"Lieber Papa, Als ich 10 Jahre alt war, hast du uns ein Videospiel über einen blauen Roboter gekauft. Du hast es zusammen mit mir wie verrückt gespielt. Du hast Quick Man für mich besiegt, als mir die Zeit-Anhaltefunktion ausging. Einige meiner schönsten Kindheitserinnerungen stammen von diesen alten Videospielen, die ich mit dir gespielt habe. Vielen Dank für alles, alter Mann. Ich vermisse dich so sehr."

[@twotailedavenger]

I'm really glad Capcom takes the benevolent approach to fangames. Dennis deserved this.

[@flewis02]

Wow, that ending got me, I got a similar feeling to watching my son play the punch out games with me only to get stomped out for years (he was 7 at the start and 10 by the finish) he practiced, studied online strategies and work at it until he finally beat Wii punch out on the hard difficulty

[@LordVucious]

Glad you enjoyed the game. I can obviously tell that you had a blast playing the game as much as we did in making it (Dennis being at the head with helpers around from the start and near the close at given points of development). I hope this video will continue to spread the good word of Rock n Roll and will inspire others to play. That said, a couple of side notes, assuming others haven't mentioned this already, which they may have. First, v1.2 is out now, so a bit of bugfixes should be in place to make the game smoother (although there are some cases where some stutter/lag issues may still be apparent). Next, as a small point of emphasis, the Soul Trap got a redesign since v1.1.1 as it's now an 8-way directional attack when grabbing an affected enemy when touching it causing the weapon to fire in said different directions. It's more versatile, but still requires work to use right as it's pretty finicky with collision detection which can lead to awkward angles while firing a full powered trap. Of course, I'm sure you already know by now about how the four empty boss rooms before the boss rush actually could have contained the robots you didn't save as a boss fight at that point. So there's no need to go over that too much, but it will effect other parts of the stage and the ending. So again, thank you for your review of this fan game. I'm sure Dennis and everyone else that worked on the game are pleased that you view the game so highly. With that, good video and good luck on the rest of your endeavors. - LVCreed, RnR playtester

[@bickuribox12]

Thank you very much! It's an honor to be recognized by people so close to the project's development.

[@genericfriend2568]

Your sense of humor is amazing and I have been binging you at work

[@AidanFeemster]

I still loved the fact they added a robot master from ANOTHER mega man fangame.

[@FuriousMaximum]

This ...made me cry a little...

[@owasumi6151]

When the silence and the note kicks in 😭😭😭

[@friendthebarrel154]

This is my second favorite Mega Man game, barely behind Mega Man Rock Force. Nice to see a review of it!

[@mrcomegatos6381]

Such a nice video... I really love when you make videos like this talking about your favorite games or games that you discovered and you give us your point of view and opinion about it

[@zenzenulous2243]

As someone who’s liked Realm of the Mad God and Megaman both since I was about 7, seeing you cover this game is something I never knew I wanted until today.

[@jouheikisaragi6075]

It's probably the best Classic Megaman fangame out there. I'd still put it below X4, Zero 3 and ZX, but it's easily top five Megaman games I have had the honor to experience. I particularly love how Roll basically fills the same Niche as Bass did in M&B as the "Better platforming, worse combat" character in a game where Combat actually DOES matter and where platforming isn't as brutally unforgiving(seriously, M&B is so biased in Bass's favor it hurts) so she feels equal to Megaman. The only other Megaman game where I can feel there is such balance is ZX where Models X, ZX, FX, LX and PX all feel pretty viable(LX and PX requiring a little more finesse to be *as* good at boss killing but still perfectly fine). Though said game also has the overpowered memery that is Model HX(an air dash, a double jump, a slow fall and on top of that, combat equally as good as ZX's), I'd include OX here if it wasn't a post game reward for beating the hardest challenges in the game

[@ChipsNCellos]

I’ve played mega man games for 30 years and I’d say this game is VERY difficult. But, it’s really sharply designed. Amazing job by the programmer overall!

[@ChaosAura452]

I was looking through MegaMan Battle Network music and saw this video... I wasn't that interested in its content but DUDE your voiceover work is impeccable! I'll subscribe for that!

[@Mundo64677]

As someone whose favorite megaman game is Megaman & Bass, tbh this is what Megaman & Bass should have been

[@atHoang-cq6bl]

I wanna see Talwar playing this game with his Spiderman suit on!

[@Dieselnaut16]

This game is a masterpiece. Easily the best mega man fangame (best mega man game?) at least until X corrupted comes out

[@MegaManJake]

I'm 30 this year. Let's hope I'm not 40 by the time Corrupted comes out. ;-;

[@DezorianGuy]

Just played the game. It is indeed one of the best in the series. Cannot believe how good it feels to play. Perfect harmony and stuff.

[@pepegalvan_]

For me is also the best Megaman I’ve ever played.

[@d0tS...]

this is the first time I have ever cried at a Review

[@Nootathotep]

parallax "really does add a new whole dimension" yes

[@rainawareness1495]

I loved the editing!

[@ShiaTheBunnyGirl]

I saw your sonic forces and sonic mania review, good to see you were able to keep your good vids for the recent years.

[@reggie1847]

I would say a joke about money being low, but I'm glad you uploaded!

[@randomguyontheinternet7940]

This game is freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[@ChaoGuy2006]

Hey, just saw this after your recent Megaman fan-game review. After that ending hit like a ton of bricks, it's fascinating to see how your style has changed and improved over the years. Keep up the good work.

[@brendanmorris2679]

Jeez, those mini Yellow devils are so cool, we need cool designs like that in MMM! Those aside i saw plenty of other cool designs as well.

[@alicevioleta3184]

Rock n Roll is absolutely fantastic. playable Roll always catches my eye, but this is something else. it's fantastic.

[@inorris609]

Sheesh that part at the end really caught me off guard 😅😂

[@fortitudevalance8424]

I agree, just discovered this video a few weeks ago and the gameplay walkthrough the graphic are so slick and smooth for an 8 bit game, obv new PC tech has made that possible. And adding Roll in a combative mode is a good move by the developer.

[@Nico_Pun_Nise_Robin]

I love the option to either play as Roll or Rock, haven't seen this since since ZX and ZX advent

[@Mega_Man_Master]

27:20 "Once I turned off Gen-Z mode..." this man I a comedic genius

[@itsjustseb9784]

This is prolly one of the best reviews ive ever seen, legitimately, you sir, get a tip of the hat~

[@A0D0D7Y]

How come I never heard of this game? Gotta play it now.

[@azazel_playz7055]

In memory of dieter engelhard 1953-2018 😢my mouth was agape from the shock i know how it feels to lose a family memeber my heart got broken all over again but as i did recover you can too -azzy alaklabi 👊

[@beingadeeb2345]

Salām! Khair?

[@gabrielmayen3933]

Always refreshing to see your videos Talwar, they are well constructed, humourous and to the point. Your personality really shines through the content you play and makes it enjoyable. I really enjoy these mixed videos with games you have enjoyed played or are playing. Also, that dev note was really heartfelt and I hope it gets more recognition

[@ajflink]

I always thought respawning enemies was a weird memory thing where the game would fail to remember which enemies have or have not been destroyed. So, it respawns enemies as soon as the screen has moved in a certain direction, unless the enemy is explicitly programmed to respawn like on a factory conveyor belt. The only 2D platforming MegaMan game that I got into and am very good at is MegaMan X6. Yes, I know. It's a crime against humanity!

[@capofthink]

_"JUST WAIT ONE NANNOSECOND THERE, SIS--I Don't Need Any GIRL ROBOTS Getting In My Way!!"_

[@slateoffate9812]

Now I really want a fan game starring Quake Woman.

[@JoLiKMC]

Are we not going to talk about Daggerman's cameo from _Super Fighting Robot,_ another above-and-beyond fan game? You should totally play it, bick. It's a delight! Also, not gonna lie? I happy-cried at the ending, but sad-cried at the dedication. _Kinda crying now, thinking about it._

[@user-oy2zg3bt6n]

if the Archie megaman comic wouldn't have been -canceled- on hold, i REALLY wish that Ian Flynn would adopt this into an ark for the comic

[@randomguyontheinternet7940]

I would reccomend playing this game with low saturation, like 2 color temperature and 2 saturation. It gives this game a really grimorse tone with I really like. The stages are all very unique. You have not just a fire level, but instead a volcano stage. A hectic forest theme. A Saudi Arabian themed desert stage. A beautiful Castle. A deep sea stage which emulates the deep sea very well. The stage has like 7 enemies and even has darker parts, it's like exploring the deep sea, having to get through all of the different enemies, its it's perfect. A heated sewer bunker with water. I also love that enemies really interact with the environment. Anyone who doesn't like this game I can confidentially say are just people that pretend to be smart but in reality are just smoothbrains. I like all of the refrences, Wily 1 is like a complete MM4 Wily 1. Enemies like the Worms and Firetackers, You have 3 hidden bosses from official games and Dagger Man from Super Fighting Robot. Also, the rooms with the single enemy based on the hidden bosses will be replaced by said bosses if they haven't been killed. It's such a nice thing to see a community get together and enjoy a game. A game that brings challenge, fun, and brings people together. If only more people didn't mindlessly complain about difficulty. This game along with Unlimited and 9 show how much true effort and passion can go together and make an excellent experience.

[@franr5371]

For anyone trying to read the text at 0:57, it says “I don’t know why I did that.”

[@giselaandrade5627]

Wow. That game really was inspired.

[@Thy-Chu]

the level design seens to be one of the best reasons to play it

[@GreenninPC]

seeing your uploads is such a treat i love listening to you talk!! it’s a shame you don’t upload so much anymore but i really hope your life is going nicely

[@napoleonfeanor]

He could have made a normal and expert mode. Or have a limited number of bolts so you cannot buy everything or add the resarch tanks from the X games that need to be found first. I want games to be somewhat accessible in a balanced way. If you are not good enough for the regular way, you can grind and search the levels for secrets that make it easier without dumbing down level design.

[@napoleonfeanor]

I personally could beat 2-4 as a pre school kid (beginning at 3, which I consider the easiest) but I always had a hard time making my friends like the games,too. The only one I had a hard time with was the Bass one lol.

[@Tuschi17]

These reviews are a joy to watch. They hit a nice sweet spot between jokey and serious. The audio quality is also quite nice.

[@magic656]

I love these videos where there's clearly so much love and character put into it.

[@matthewmorgan3913]

Nick evaluates was involved with this, he's on youtube

[@napoleonfeanor]

Finally someone who hates the shortness of MM11 in the wily parts

[@TetranDakker]

damn, the staff roll really shocked me

[@TeoReviews]

I've always been a stan of gaining a mobility option as well as a battle option from bosses.

[@nguyenthinh2539]

It’s almost midnight where im at, and im about to cry myself to sleep. Damn I wasnt expect that ending at all :(

[@_hekken]

This is multitudes better then the content I thought I wanted.

[@draga_]

i decided to play the game based on what you said. holy shit this might be mega man 9 level good, the whole game is hard but balanced and the level design is literally flawless all the way through. the game was so balanced i barely fel the absence of the shop, managing to beat all wily levels without it. (of course, with MANY deaths) recently i've been playing mega man unlimited and even though i do like it, i find the level design and enemy placement very unbalanced most of the time. rock n roll is truly amazing, and i'm glad you made me aware of it.

[@jeezed2950]

I'll be honest I went and played it expecting it not to come close to topping mega man 2 for me even if it was still good. After beating I can say that I don't know which one is the best now. I lean towards this game now, but megaman 2 and RnR are so close it's unreal I can't decide!

[@superkuperx9512]

My favorite fangame :D

[@astrog7361]

Love these types of vids mate. Keep it up! Hope you're doing well!

[@justinstewart9291]

@24:25, if you fail to rescue the allies early on in the game, they appear in the empty Wily rooms, and you have to do battle with them.

[@zeeepicyoutuber8971]

Cool

[@HighFalutinTootin]

This game is a masterpiece a love letter in the truest sense

[@quentc]

It's a really fun one but I do wish there were a couple tweaks to help on replay Like being able to skip the weapon get/tutorial scenes

[@Skullman8970]

This game had one of flame stag falling pillars thingy the hell!

[@toitman2]

'Booap* megaman megaman! There's a hole ahead, so u better watch ur step'

[@ilucasz]

28:40 That hit hard...

[@andreasfreij4485]

An amazing review. Very insightful and lovable

[@bickuribox12]

Thank you! I worked very hard on it

[@HippieMoney]

Just finished watching a play through of this game and was blown to bits. What a great game.

[@leotmbg.]

the ending made me cry. usually i am numb to stuff like that but man, i broke with this one.

[@k.w.pillsbury4070]

24:27 Those are for if you didn’t save the Captured RM within the levels. They show up there and take you on. I assume.

[@lemlem35]

Thank you for bringing my attention to this!

[@LuckyBird551]

On the You can play as Roll note, ever played the Roll-chan ROM hacks of the first 6 games? You need an emulator to play them, and the only change is that it switches Megaman sprites for Roll and Rush for Tango. However even that made it an interesting way to revisit the 6 original claasic NES games.

[@k3lvinbr]

you know i was aways envious of the sonic series by having the most passionate fanbase to ever exist to the point the fanbase singlehanded saved the series not once not TWICE but THREE whole times, maybe more. but you know what , ill be so bold to say that megaman has the most Talented fanbase and im happy with that. its not as wide as the sonic fanbase and they are not as loud as the sonic ones, but when a megaman fan decides do make some crazy shit, it more often than not ends being fantastic.

[@johnrosie9769]

I watched Hatred Elemental w/Draco sodasier buster only playthrough it was very entertaining and I enjoyed it so much I watched it again and I watched a few other playthrough vids and am enjoying the heck out of them I love the original mega man games and the 8-bit style still rocks this game fits right in with the originals it is a masterpiece

[@maokai09]

Thank you so much

[@therealgorg]

Heck yeah. Great video dude.

[@Elyseon]

Rock and Roll look like they've googled themseves with safe search off.