News Blog
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Freems • January. 26, 2026, 1:05 PM
Hey all you Mega Fans! We're back again with another V6C Newsletter! It's been a minute since we've had a proper one of these, so I hope you all had a great New Year and the such!
So let's get right to it this time, shall we? I only have a couple things to show you and they're surprisingly not terribly map related this go around. Instead, I want to take a look at an existing weapon in the game...
Skull Barrier has always been a very interesting weapon in MM8BDM, exclusively focusing on the defensive capabilities of the shield. Originally it just provided straight invulnerability for a period of time with it eventually being changed to being able to tank any one hit while being able to switch to any other weapon.
While this was certainly very effective, it has proven to be almost too effective. After all, there is practically never a scenario where you shouldn't use Skull Barrier if you have it, it's a free hit after all. There was some talk about how to handle this, and some very out there different ideas. But we decided to keep the gist of what Skull Barrier is, but add an actual offensive twist to it.
First of all, you might notice that Skull Man's stage has received some quality of life updates. It's nothing game changing (hence why it's not the point of this newsletter) but try to see how much you can see in this clip.
Back to the point though, Skull Barrier can now act as an offensive on contact weapon! It will still protect you from any one hit, and that one hit will still pop the shield. But if you make contact with an opponent, the shield will pop with one burst of damage surrounding the user, which turns it into something of a rush weapon.
To compensate for this change, you can no longer switch off of Skull Barrier once you have it activated.
Though there's certainly one more detail that's worth mentioning about it. You might have noticed it in that first clip but this one will show it off better.
Contact with the enemy also provides a knockback effect! There's actually also a knockback effect if the shield is popped by a projectile, but it is much smaller and much less dangerous. In the past you'd often expect to see players with Skull Barrier running away from you, but now you might want to show more concern if they're running toward you!
Now, if you're looking very, very closely in that last clip, you might notice some item pickup sitting in the background of that shot. It is very hard to make out, so let me give you a closer look.
An important part of Skull Barrier in all of its versions has been its ability to cross dangerous terrain. While it still retains that ability in its current form, the fact that you have to commit far more to it without the ability to switch off had us want to provide an alternative means to pull this off.
So, introducing Shock Guard!
Shock Guard won't protect you from any enemy projectiles like Skull Barrier, but it acts as a passive item that will protect you from any deadly map hazards! Lava, pits, you name it. It will even protect you from the likes of a Cold Man Ice Block if one were to finish you off. Though it's important to keep in mind that if the damage of the hazard isn't lethal, it won't protect you from that damage.
But it does open a number of new options with map hazards that weren't possible before...
Now there is one more thing I should address before I wrap this newsletter up, and it's the state of the buster sprites in the last two clips. If you recall, a couple of months ago we hosted a community poll looking for feedback on the idea of changing the sprites from two colors to three. I want to really thank everyone who filled out that form and especially those who gave us feedback to go with it. There was a lot of different aspects to consider when it came to this change.
Though as you can likely tell from the above clips, we have officially decided to keep the same two color style that they've previously had. There's definitely something pretty and appealing about the three color style to be sure, but for various reasons we've decided it is better for the state of the game to keep it the way it is. The tricolor sprites came into existence to better match the art style of the more detailed weapon get screens and Megaman artwork, but it just wasn't possible to keep that style AND have the busters be easily readable at the same time. There were certainly ways to add more colors to tricolor to fix that readable part, but in doing so we lost the entire point behind doing tricolor in the first place, and instead of being based on the artwork, they just turned into weirdly detailed graphics that didn't match anything.
Really, this was just one of the aspects that influenced our decision, but you all don't need an essay at this exact moment. Regardless, I do want to thank you all one more time for your feedback on the community poll, it was very very important.
Anyhow! That is all for today's newsletter! We'll see you next time for some more Mega Man action!
So let's get right to it this time, shall we? I only have a couple things to show you and they're surprisingly not terribly map related this go around. Instead, I want to take a look at an existing weapon in the game...
Skull Barrier has always been a very interesting weapon in MM8BDM, exclusively focusing on the defensive capabilities of the shield. Originally it just provided straight invulnerability for a period of time with it eventually being changed to being able to tank any one hit while being able to switch to any other weapon.
While this was certainly very effective, it has proven to be almost too effective. After all, there is practically never a scenario where you shouldn't use Skull Barrier if you have it, it's a free hit after all. There was some talk about how to handle this, and some very out there different ideas. But we decided to keep the gist of what Skull Barrier is, but add an actual offensive twist to it.
First of all, you might notice that Skull Man's stage has received some quality of life updates. It's nothing game changing (hence why it's not the point of this newsletter) but try to see how much you can see in this clip.
Back to the point though, Skull Barrier can now act as an offensive on contact weapon! It will still protect you from any one hit, and that one hit will still pop the shield. But if you make contact with an opponent, the shield will pop with one burst of damage surrounding the user, which turns it into something of a rush weapon.
To compensate for this change, you can no longer switch off of Skull Barrier once you have it activated.
Though there's certainly one more detail that's worth mentioning about it. You might have noticed it in that first clip but this one will show it off better.
Contact with the enemy also provides a knockback effect! There's actually also a knockback effect if the shield is popped by a projectile, but it is much smaller and much less dangerous. In the past you'd often expect to see players with Skull Barrier running away from you, but now you might want to show more concern if they're running toward you!
Now, if you're looking very, very closely in that last clip, you might notice some item pickup sitting in the background of that shot. It is very hard to make out, so let me give you a closer look.
An important part of Skull Barrier in all of its versions has been its ability to cross dangerous terrain. While it still retains that ability in its current form, the fact that you have to commit far more to it without the ability to switch off had us want to provide an alternative means to pull this off.
So, introducing Shock Guard!
Shock Guard won't protect you from any enemy projectiles like Skull Barrier, but it acts as a passive item that will protect you from any deadly map hazards! Lava, pits, you name it. It will even protect you from the likes of a Cold Man Ice Block if one were to finish you off. Though it's important to keep in mind that if the damage of the hazard isn't lethal, it won't protect you from that damage.
But it does open a number of new options with map hazards that weren't possible before...
Now there is one more thing I should address before I wrap this newsletter up, and it's the state of the buster sprites in the last two clips. If you recall, a couple of months ago we hosted a community poll looking for feedback on the idea of changing the sprites from two colors to three. I want to really thank everyone who filled out that form and especially those who gave us feedback to go with it. There was a lot of different aspects to consider when it came to this change.
Though as you can likely tell from the above clips, we have officially decided to keep the same two color style that they've previously had. There's definitely something pretty and appealing about the three color style to be sure, but for various reasons we've decided it is better for the state of the game to keep it the way it is. The tricolor sprites came into existence to better match the art style of the more detailed weapon get screens and Megaman artwork, but it just wasn't possible to keep that style AND have the busters be easily readable at the same time. There were certainly ways to add more colors to tricolor to fix that readable part, but in doing so we lost the entire point behind doing tricolor in the first place, and instead of being based on the artwork, they just turned into weirdly detailed graphics that didn't match anything.
Really, this was just one of the aspects that influenced our decision, but you all don't need an essay at this exact moment. Regardless, I do want to thank you all one more time for your feedback on the community poll, it was very very important.
Anyhow! That is all for today's newsletter! We'll see you next time for some more Mega Man action!
Freems • December. 15, 2025, 1:18 PM
Hey all you Mega Fans! We're back again with another V6C Newslett- What do you MEAN they announced a new Mega Man game?!
Well, with the knowledge that our work will never be finished and the fight is never really done, let's talk about V6C some more. I don't have a super flashy update for you guys this time, just a couple more map changes; one minor, and one major. Just like the old days. My apologies for the smaller updates that we will most likely have going forward, but sometimes that's how it has to be at this point in the newsletter cycle.
Firstly, here's a map that really only got one real change, but it's a nice quality of life to have.
Gemini Man's stage has been more or less fine for quite some time, but there was something to be said about the dead end nature of the Centaur Flash spike room. So the solution was simple, make a path out of that room that leads into a new smaller outdoor area that connects to both the interior caverns and the existing exterior section. Sometimes the best way to handle a problem with a map isn't to go crazy, but just add a little extra to flesh it out, which I think is the kind of case Gemini is.
Now, for something that did need a little more work...
That's right, Flame Man's stage has also received a complete rework!
Flame Man's map has always simultaneously been one that I'd consider iconic to 8-Bit Deathmatch, but also one where its popular very... widely fluctuates depending on who you ask. And while there was something special about the old map, it really stood out in a sea of all the other map changes we've already made this version. So it got the good ole' V6C treatment of keeping the blueprints and identity that the map had before, but taking those ideas and turning it into something new.
While the map isn't tiny like it used to be, the more cramped nature of it persists across a lot of the map, and of course the oil pits are as dangerous as ever. There's something to be said about a map where a weapon like Flame Blast can be treated like a map clearing pickup rather than where it'd be placed on nearly any other map. Plus, the map definitely could have used a visual sweep regardless of how remade it got, so it's also just a lot prettier now.
Well, it was a shorter one but that's all I have for you guys for this newsletter. We'll see you next time and in the meantime, I guess it's time to start getting hyped for Mega Man Dual Override. Get out there and help Dr. Wily build that robot master!
Well, with the knowledge that our work will never be finished and the fight is never really done, let's talk about V6C some more. I don't have a super flashy update for you guys this time, just a couple more map changes; one minor, and one major. Just like the old days. My apologies for the smaller updates that we will most likely have going forward, but sometimes that's how it has to be at this point in the newsletter cycle.
Firstly, here's a map that really only got one real change, but it's a nice quality of life to have.
Gemini Man's stage has been more or less fine for quite some time, but there was something to be said about the dead end nature of the Centaur Flash spike room. So the solution was simple, make a path out of that room that leads into a new smaller outdoor area that connects to both the interior caverns and the existing exterior section. Sometimes the best way to handle a problem with a map isn't to go crazy, but just add a little extra to flesh it out, which I think is the kind of case Gemini is.
Now, for something that did need a little more work...
That's right, Flame Man's stage has also received a complete rework!
Flame Man's map has always simultaneously been one that I'd consider iconic to 8-Bit Deathmatch, but also one where its popular very... widely fluctuates depending on who you ask. And while there was something special about the old map, it really stood out in a sea of all the other map changes we've already made this version. So it got the good ole' V6C treatment of keeping the blueprints and identity that the map had before, but taking those ideas and turning it into something new.
While the map isn't tiny like it used to be, the more cramped nature of it persists across a lot of the map, and of course the oil pits are as dangerous as ever. There's something to be said about a map where a weapon like Flame Blast can be treated like a map clearing pickup rather than where it'd be placed on nearly any other map. Plus, the map definitely could have used a visual sweep regardless of how remade it got, so it's also just a lot prettier now.
Well, it was a shorter one but that's all I have for you guys for this newsletter. We'll see you next time and in the meantime, I guess it's time to start getting hyped for Mega Man Dual Override. Get out there and help Dr. Wily build that robot master!
CS UPDATE: i'll be closing signups again 24 hours from now! it seems like the rate has slowed regardless, but now is your last chance!
Rick Edwardson • December. 1, 2025, 10:19 AM
Hello, i want to clarify me and Mushsect decided to grant another week to let people send their submissions in time, the deadline is updated, at the time i should have accounted for the fact some peeps have a very busy schedule, my oversight.
Freems • November. 24, 2025, 1:42 PM
Hey all you Mega Fans! We're back again with another V6C Newsletter!
Before we get into the subject of today's newsletter, I just wanted to thank you all for your input on the community poll. The poll is closed now but it will be some time before we announce our plan going forward. When we do, it will be back in that topic and will not follow the newsletter schedule. We just ask for your patience as even with the poll closed, it certainly won't be something we'll be ready to talk about immediately.
But enough of that. Let's actually show something new and exciting! I only have one subject to show you all today, but it'll be unique as far as these newsletters are concerned. So please take a look at this.
That's right! Chest, Plum, and Ripot are being added as brand new skins in V6C!
For those who don't know, this trio of news reporting robots originate from Mega Man Battle & Chase, more specifically Rockman Battle & Chase as they were more or less completely cut outside of the Japanese release of the game. But in our quest to try to encompass bits and pieces from the entire Classic Mega Man series, we felt that these three would make great additions to the skin roster.
Unlike map edits and weapon reworks, we very rarely get a chance to do anything new and exciting with skins outside of fixing up some older ones or adding a new roster when a new game is represented. So being able to add these three is certainly a very welcome addition to the many, many things being added in V6C!
I hope you all enjoy seeing this trio in action when V6C releases!
That's all for today's newsletter! While I have nothing I wanted to pair with these skins, we're not out of content to show you guys yet! So we'll see you next time with some more exciting updates!
Before we get into the subject of today's newsletter, I just wanted to thank you all for your input on the community poll. The poll is closed now but it will be some time before we announce our plan going forward. When we do, it will be back in that topic and will not follow the newsletter schedule. We just ask for your patience as even with the poll closed, it certainly won't be something we'll be ready to talk about immediately.
But enough of that. Let's actually show something new and exciting! I only have one subject to show you all today, but it'll be unique as far as these newsletters are concerned. So please take a look at this.
That's right! Chest, Plum, and Ripot are being added as brand new skins in V6C!
For those who don't know, this trio of news reporting robots originate from Mega Man Battle & Chase, more specifically Rockman Battle & Chase as they were more or less completely cut outside of the Japanese release of the game. But in our quest to try to encompass bits and pieces from the entire Classic Mega Man series, we felt that these three would make great additions to the skin roster.
Unlike map edits and weapon reworks, we very rarely get a chance to do anything new and exciting with skins outside of fixing up some older ones or adding a new roster when a new game is represented. So being able to add these three is certainly a very welcome addition to the many, many things being added in V6C!
I hope you all enjoy seeing this trio in action when V6C releases!
That's all for today's newsletter! While I have nothing I wanted to pair with these skins, we're not out of content to show you guys yet! So we'll see you next time with some more exciting updates!