Bass

"I see, we were both made by Wily. Hand in hand, become the true ultimate one, doesn't sound bad. But I will do things my way, which is first to knock you out!"

- Bass

Bass, known as Forte (フォルテ) in Japan, is a Robot Master created by Dr. Wily to imitate Mega Man's design, along with Treble, an imitation of Rush's design. He was created based on a research conducted on Mega Man with the intention of surpassing his power sometime during or before the events of Mega Man 6, and made his debut in Mega Man 7. Bass is the prominent anti-hero of the original Mega Man series, and his goal is to become the most powerful robot in existence. Although Bass and Mega Man are rivals, at times they team up to take down mutual enemies of the two. Despite being created by Dr. Wily, Bass frequently rebels against his creator, usually for his own purposes. Bass was later succeeded by Zero, an advanced creation from Dr. Wily.

Mega Man 7


"You are far too weak, Mega Man. Wily may fear you, but I do not!"

- Bass

Bass is first encountered at the end of the Opening Stage and is fought as a mini-boss. According to himself, he and Treble were trying to stop Dr. Wily, and he picked that fight with Mega Man to see if he lived up to his reputation. If Mega Man defeats him, or fights him to a draw, then he'll tell Mega Man that he's as good as everyone says, and that he might not need his help. If it's the other way around, then Bass will scoff at Mega Man, telling him that he's too weak to battle Wily.

Later on, Bass and Treble are seen again at Shade Man's stage, after purposely getting themselves injured in battle. Bass then starts putting himself down, saying that he feels stupid to have been beaten so easily, and that he should probably leave Wily to Mega Man. Mega Man responds by telling him that "[they're] a team", and that Dr. Light will be glad to fix him up. Bass and Treble then warp away to Dr. Light's lab to get repaired. Sometime later, after the repairs were finished, Mega Man comes back to the lab to find that it's been trashed, and that the culprit behind it was none other than Bass. Dr. Light then tells him that Bass stole all the parts for the "new enhancements" as well. Shortly afterward, Dr. Wily appears on the monitor and reveals that Bass and Treble are his creations, and that he used Bass to get closer to Mega Man, so that he could earn his trust, and then steal the Super Adapter blueprints, so that he could use that enhancement for Bass and Treble.

Bass is encountered again for the third time at the first stage of Dr. Wily's castle, where he's once again fought as a mini-boss. The two of them have a battle, and Mega Man manages to defeat him. Bass then swears revenge, saying that he'll be back. He, of course, stays true to his word, as he is encountered for a fourth time at the very next Wily Castle stage. This time, he performs a fusion with Treble, and tries to destroy Mega Man with the very enhancements that he stole, which were meant for Mega Man and Rush. After a hard fight, Bass is once again defeated, and warps away. He and Treble aren't seen again until the ending, where they save Dr. Wily when Mega Man was about to kill him, with Bass stating that, "He who hesitates is lost."

Bass also appears as a playable character in the hidden two-player battle mode.

Mega Man: Battle & Chase


Bass appears as a playable character that uses the vehicle Treble Darkstar, a balanced machine with the attacks Bass Buster and Bass Blast. He entered the Battle & Chase contest to race against Mega Man. When not playing as Bass in Grand Prix mode, the player will face him as the penultimate opponent before Dr. Wily. If Bass wins the contest, he isn't satisfied for defeating Mega Man as it was just a race, and wants to defeat him in a real battle. In the Japanese version, Wily contacts Bass and asks him for the prize money, but he ignores Wily and leaves the money in a beach.

Mega Man 8


"I'm not the same weakling anymore! I've got new powers!"

- Bass

Bass is first seen at the very beginning of the game in the cutscenes, alongside Treble, fighting against Mega Man and Rush. After Mega Man questions their reasons for fighting, Bass responds by attempting to shoot him, prompting Mega Man to dodge the attack and return fire, knocking Bass into an elevator shaft and causing him to be tied up in steel cables. The battle was soon interrupted by Roll when she informed Mega Man about what was going on, causing Mega Man to leave. Bass then frees himself by tearing off the steel cables and destroying a falling elevator cabin above with a buster shot, before vowing revenge.

However, Bass shows up again later on, and fights against Mega Man in the third level of the Wily Tower. Although Mega Man had warned him not to do so, Bass used Evil Energy to power up his attacks, and assume a stronger form of his Treble Boost. Here, he has no weakness, although the Flash Bomb can hit him multiple times. Mega Man manages to defeat him once again and Bass then vows never to give up trying to defeat Mega Man, before teleporting out.

Mega Man & Bass


"What I've fought for? That is ridiculous. I don't need a reason to fight. I have and am going to fight only to destroy Megaman!!"

- Bass

A robot calling himself King attacked and took over the recently built Wily Castle, declaring he was the strongest robot and that robots were superior to humans, thus he wanted to create a nation of robots without humans. Mega Man ​​is sent by Dr. Light to stop King, and Bass, who took offense to King's claims of being the strongest robot, embarks on yet another mission to destroy the Robot Masters (as well as King himself) before Mega Man can, so that he could prove that he's the strongest, and to get Wily's Castle back.

Bass, of course, does manage to defeat them. After using all eight of the Robot Masters' powers to open the Crystal Gate to King's castle, Bass goes through it and destroys all obstacles in his way, and eventually comes across King himself. King congratulates Bass for making it that far into the castle, and then engages Bass in combat. King, wielding a shield with reflective abilities, used that to absorb Bass' blasts and send them right back at him in the form of a powerful laser beam. Because of this device, King was seemingly unstoppable. That is, until Proto Man appeared and used his powerful "Big Bang Strike" ability. Due to the fact that Proto Man used nearly all of his power on that attack, it was too much energy for King's shield to absorb, which led into it getting destroyed, as well as King getting hit and weakened by it in the process. No longer in possession of that shield, Bass' attacks actually began to do some damage, and he ended up defeating King.

King then questions Bass, asking why he's fighting for "lowly beings" like the humans, and tells him that robots are more advanced than them. Bass then tells him not to forget that humans are the ones who created robots. After that, King asks Bass to finish him off, but first teleports an unconscious Proto Man out of the fortress. Bass then asks King who created him, and King answers him by telling him that Dr. Wily was his creator, which shocks Bass. Shortly afterwards, Dr. Wily appears on the monitor, scolding King for helping an enemy, and telling him to finish Bass off. King refuses, and then Dr. Wily uses a device to increase his "brainwashing" (and supposedly enhancing King's power in the process). King's armor then changes from gold to a violet coloring, and then he breaks through the wall and enters the next room. Bass follows him, only to find King fusing with the giant blue machines that he fought while he was at King's fortress. Bass engages King in combat once more, and defeats him once again. After that, King tells Bass to get out of the castle quickly before it explodes while he's in it. Bass, in a rare display of humanity, shows concern for King, asking about his safety. King told Bass that he would make it out of the castle somehow, but after Bass leaves. Bass quickly warps out of the castle, leaving King behind. During King's "last" words, before he's supposedly destroyed, he says that he and Bass could have probably been good friends. After that, the castle explodes, seemingly killing King and burying him under rubble.

After his victory over King, Bass decides to go to Dr. Wily's newly built laboratory to challenge him out of anger of being deceived and betrayed. Bass once again manages to overcome all obstacles in his path, including the newly resurrected Robot Masters, and eventually came face to face with the doctor himself. Dr. Wily then thanks Bass for getting rid of King, and then told him that he was going to put a restraining bolt on him before he goes haywire like King did. The two of them engage one another in combat, and Dr. Wily is eventually defeated, and starts bowing to Bass, pleading for mercy. Bass then holds Wily at gunpoint, demanding an explanation for creating King. According to Dr. Wily, he created King to test Bass' abilities. He supposedly designed King with the intention of creating the most powerful robot in the world, and since Bass destroyed him, he has proven himself as the strongest. Bass scoffs at him, telling him that it was a "lame excuse", and then Dr. Wily changes the subject by revealing his plans for a second model of King. He told Bass that if he joins King II, then the two of them will be unstoppable. Before Bass could answer, however, Proto Man arrives and destroys the plans. Angered, Dr. Wily orders Bass to destroy Proto Man, but he refuses. Proto Man then asks Bass if he would rather destroy Mega Man with his own power. After that, he decides to give Bass a lecture, saying that he will never defeat Mega Man because he has "nothing to fight for". Bass then gets angry about it, telling Proto Man to get lost, in which he does. After that, Bass scoffs at Proto Man, saying that he doesn't need a reason to fight, and will continue fighting to destroy Mega Man.

Rockman & Forte: Mirai Kara no Chōsensha


A group of futuristic robots calling themselves the Dimensions attacked Symphony City, a city where robots and humans lived together in peace. The one leading the Dimensions was Rockman Shadow, a robot very similar to Mega Man. Mega Man heard this news at Dr. Light's laboratory and goes to the scene, while at the same time Wily sends Bass to see who this evil Mega Man was. Bass agrees to help Mega Man stop the robots because Wily's laboratory was near the city.

After Bass defeated the Grey Devil in Rockman Shadow's robot factory, Rockman Shadow tells Bass he will reveal his true identity if he can defeat his underlings. Bass manages to defeat all the Robot Masters and Rockman Shadow reveals to him he is a robot like Quint that Wily created when he traveled to the future. Rockman Shadow then offers Bass to join him to destroy the real Mega Man, and that way he will be truly the strongest. Bass rejects the offer and says he will do things his way, first of which to destroy Rockman Shadow. The two of them engage in a "battle to the death" and Rockman Shadow is eventually defeated. Before dying, he tells Bass that after Quint's defeat, he was the only robot left. He increased his strength, and devastated the world. As nothing was able to stop him in the future, he traveled back in time to find someone that could defeat him. He also tells Bass that seeking strength is not the way of robots, because even if Bass crushes his enemy, a superior one will always appear until he ends up dead like him. Bass admits it was a good lesson and he and Mega Man bury Rockman Shadow, before leaving Bass tells Mega Man that he will forgive his life at the time, but tells him to not forget that he (Bass) is the strongest. Bass later is shown in the game ending credits with Treble taking a nap and in the ending picture with Dr. Light's team and Rockman Shadow.

Mega Man 9


Although Bass didn't make a physical appearance in this game, he does make a small cameo in the ending. His blueprints can be seen in the background on Dr. Wily's computer. Supposedly, he was undergoing adjustments during the events of the game for Mega Man 10.

Mega Man 10


"You just never give up with your half-brained plans for world domination."

- Bass

As with Proto Man in Mega Man 9, Bass was confirmed as a playable character in Mega Man 10 unlockable through downloadable content after paying a small fee (original release) or available after unlocking the DLC content (Legacy Collection 2). According to the Mega Man 10 operations manual, he can shoot in 7 directions like he did in Mega Man & Bass. Unlike the Proto Man Mode in Mega Man 9, Bass has a story in this game and a store featuring Reggae as the owner, even though there are less items in the store and the remaining items cost more. As always, he was fighting the Robot Masters to prove that he's the strongest.

Sometime during his journey through Dr. Wily's castle, Bass succumbs to the Roboenza virus and collapses to the floor. However, Treble came to his rescue by giving him one of the prototype cures that he stole from Dr. Wily, and Bass was able to recover and continue his journey through the castle. He eventually came face to face with Dr. Wily, and defeated him once again. Afterward, he mocks him for his "half-brained plans for world domination". It was then revealed that Dr. Wily caught the flu, but Bass assumed that it was Roboenza. Dr. Wily then assures him that it isn't Roboenza (due to the fact that it only affects robots, rather than humans). Seemingly, Bass just left Dr. Wily there to suffer. However, it was later revealed that Dr. Wily was taken to the hospital by unknown circumstances.

Other media
Bass appeared in several Mega Man comics and manga, some of them being Rockman 7, Rockman 8, Rockman &amp; Forte, Mega Man Megamix, Mega Man Gigamix, Rockman Battle &amp; Chase and the Brazilian comic Novas Aventuras de Megaman.

Mega Man (Archie Comics)


Bass and Treble first appeared in the Short Circuits present at the end of issue #4 of Archie's Mega Man comic, and Bass also appeared in the Short Circuits of issue #18. His earliest official appearance in the series is in Mega Man #20 (Rock of Ages), when Mega Man is sent forward in time and meets him, also accidentally dragging him along in the time travel when they fought in a city under attack. Bass notices an abnormality in the sky every time they jump time, and with Mega Man's help, he destroys it, sending Mega Man back to the present.

Bass appeared in Issue 24 working with Dr. Eggman's robot, Metal Sonic. He was able to exist due to the flexible laws of the Skull Egg Zone, a dimensions created by Eggman and Wily to further their plans to take over both worlds. Unable to travel to Sonic's world without accompaniment from a native, Bass was teamed with Metal Sonic and sent to capture Tails, Amy Rose, Knuckles the Echidna, and Shadow the Hedgehog, who ended up becoming the first Roboticized Masters.

Prior to the crossover, he was mentioned in Sonic Universe #50 by Doctor Eggman telling Metal Sonic that he was going to be working with a partner who is a "base villain". The two worked together well, and Bass even volunteered himself and Metal Sonic to kidnap Dr. Light due to his interference in the evil doctors' plans. The two also pursued Rouge the Bat when she sabotaged the Wily Egg, and managed to catch her despite the distraction caused by the release of the Chaos Devil. After hearing Eggman order Metal Sonic to take her to become another of the Roboticized Masters, Bass sneered at the idea and proclaimed his own superiority, only to have Wily order him to assist Metal Sonic.

Dr. Light also mentioned Bass as being an example of another occasion when Dr. Wily had "complete control" and Mega Man had to save him from himself in Sonic the Hedgehog Issue 250. Bass and Metal Sonic later acted as the last line of defense, although he and Treble eventually ended up being defeated when Mega Man and Sonic ganged up on him and Treble after fighting one on one against Bass proved to be unsuccessful. The fight was so damaging to the pair that they were unable to merge and continue the battle, with Bass also expressing irritation at the doctors, feeling he should have just handled things by himself, and were later seen being enveloped by the Super Genesis Wave.

Short Circuits
Bass has made multiple appearances in the Short Circuits strips in the comic, making his first appearance in Issue 4. Here he was seen with Treble, Bass, Proto Man, and Rush, all with their faces against a window as Mega Man and Dr. Light walked by, demanding to be featured in the comic. In Issue 18 he anticipated being included in the comic after it had managed to reach a year's worth of issues, only to learn that the Mega Man 2 storyline had just barely been completed. To his dismay, he found himself in a waiting room with Proto Man, Enker, and either Quint or Rockman Shadow.

During the Worlds Collide crossover, Bass was featured in a number of Off Panels from the Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Universe series. In Sonic Universe Issue 51's strip, he was featured as a "Failed Concept" where Wily modified him with Sonic's bio-data, altering Bass' appearance to possess elements of Sonic's. He also appeared in the Short Circuits strip for Mega Man Issue 26, where he found a kindred spirit in E-123 Omega. It was planned for Bass to fuse with Metal Sonic during Worlds Collide as he does with Treble, but the idea was rejected. The cut concept, however, was given a brief allusion in the Sonic Universe Issue 54's Off Panel section, where Mega Man expressed confusion about Bass and Metal Sonic's team up being a band.

Issue 39 of Mega Man found Bass mocking Rush as a robot dog in comparison to Treble, only for them both to be mocked by Sigma showing off Velguarder. In Issue 44 he responded to Dubstep Man's threat to "Drop the Bass!" by blasting his head off. Despite not appearing in Worlds Unite, he was included in Sonic Universe 77's Off Panel, where he was one of several Mega Man and Sonic characters crushed together into a tight space.

Mega Man Megamix
When designing Bass, Dr. Wily carefully filtered through all the data he had ever collected on Mega Man. Based on the information he had gathered through his many battles against Mega Man, Dr. Wily created Bass with abilities and a Weapon Copy System that surpassed those of Mega Man's. Dr. Wily designed Bass to be a similar model to Mega Man to show off the idea that he could make a robot like Dr. Light's, only better. At the same time, Dr. Wily hoped that with such a similar build, Bass would gather the same combat data as Mega Man from each battle, which would allow Dr. Wily to ascertain what kind of data Mega Man had taken back to Dr. Light. Unfortunately for Dr. Wily, despite turning out to be everything he had wished for as far as abilities were concerned, Bass also developed a strong sense of pride and is rarely willing to obey Dr. Wily's commands.

His design is similar to his game counterpart, but with small modifications, featuring rivets along his gold trim, an enlarged white collarpiece, Wily's W insignia etched into his chest gem (as opposed to a belt buckle like Wily's Robot Masters), and his helmet lacks a chin guard. The most notable change from his game version is the fact he appears borderline psychopathic, prone to fits of insanity and extreme violence which often prove to be an enormous threat not only to Mega Man, but even to Wily's own robots. Instead of being fixated on defeating Mega Man like his game counterpart, Bass is highly focused on taking down anybody supposedly more powerful than he is, obsessed with proving he is the absolute strongest with the complete disregard for his own safety.

Bass first appeared in the story "Holiday of Soldiers". When Bass saw Proto Man's strength, he tried to fight him, but Proto Man left the area to avoid Dr. Light's six robots being harmed. In Wily's hideout, Wily is shown to be very angry because the eight robots from Mega Man 5 were defeated by Mega Man and Bass doesn't obey him, hitting the eight robots out to get money for him, destroying some objects, and punching a test model with boxing gloves. Some days later, Bass attacked Mega Man in the amusement park where the eight robots from Mega Man 5 were working to get money, and is defeated by their combined efforts and Proto Man.

In the story "Power Battle" Bass takes Roll hostage to make Mega Man fight him.

Mega Man Gigamix
Bass appears in the story "Burning Wheel", where he's one of the racers in the Battle & Chase contest, and in the stories "White Nightmare", "Moon of Darkness" and "Toward a Bright Tomorrow" where he goes to space to fight against the Stardroids and Sunstar.

Novas Aventuras de Megaman
Bass is called "Slasher" and works with Dr. Light's robots in the future. Although not much of his past is revealed, it is hinted that he was created by Dr. Light.

Mega Man Through the Ages
Bass, alongside Treble, teleported in just as Mega Man descended from a spike filled vertical tunnel, with the 30th Icon containing the key art and footage for Mega Man 7 being at their feet. Despite their rivalry with Mega Man, they do not attack him. It should be noted that, unlike most of the other characters and the overall setting of the trailer, they do not appear in their 8-bit sprites. Instead, they use the sprites from Mega Man 7, their debut game.

Rockman 10 -Extra F-
The Rockman 10 Image Soundtrack included a 16 page Japanese manga called Rockman 10 -Extra F- which focuses on Bass' story in Mega Man 10.

Appearance
Bass' design was made in mind to be a polar opposite of Mega Man's. Bass is adorned in black armor with gold lining. On his chest, there is a triangular blue-ish purple crystal (with some artworks showing an "F" for "forte" engraved inside its center). He has purple stripes running down from his eyes and extending down his cheeks. He has distinct red eyes (usually with pink retinas). His helmet features large yellow fins that resemble that of a cobra, giving him a slightly taller appearance than that of his rivals and a cross-shaped blue jewel on the forehead. Concept art of Bass without his helmet drawn by Hitoshi Ariga shows him with dark, wild hair featuring a widow's peak (see gallery).

Personality
"I can feel your justice energy, Bass. Don't deny it."

- Duo Bass is presented as an extremely smug, bad-tempered, egotistical, rebellious, fiercely independent and arrogant individual who believes that he's the strongest above all else. Bass is very prideful and thinks quite highly of himself, labeling everyone else around him as inferior "junk robots". He has always been shown to hold a rivalry with Mega Man, but aside from him, Bass happens to have hatred for every robot that was created by Dr. Wily (with the possible exception of Treble, Reggae, and, needless to say, himself), since he feels that they're standing in the way of his goal to destroy Mega Man and become the strongest. Bass looks down on them, believing himself to be superior to them in every way, shape, and form.

However, a notable aspect of his personality he showed in Mega Man & Bass was that he seemed to have some degree of respect for humans, since they created robots. Duo says that there is goodness in Bass (even going so far as to say that he has "justice energy"), which the latter ignored, saying that he only wants to fight, claiming that his only concern is who the strongest happens to be. Despite his rivalry with Mega Man, he is willing to work alongside him if it is to his benefits, as evidenced by Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters and his aiding Mega Man in defeating Rockman Shadow's forces. The latter instance also implied that the aftermath of the battle left Bass with some respect for Mega Man. There's a possibility that Duo's claim of there being goodness in Bass is true, since he was able to use the Evil Energy Capsules in Mega Man 8 without dying. During the events of Mega Man & Bass, he even began to show some form of concern for King. Bass appears to care for Treble and vice versa, Bass always welcomes the fierce Treble despite the confidence in his own abilities, his robotic wolf-like companion seems to understand all his commands and is very loyal to him, even bringing Bass a cure for Roboenza when he was infected.

Despite being extremely powerful, Bass' faults that usually lead to his downfall are his arrogance and overconfidence. According to Proto Man, it's because he has "nothing to fight for". The reason that he's continuously defeated by Mega Man is because of his selfish motive, which is simply to prove himself as the strongest, as opposed to Mega Man's desire to "fight for everyone's future" and bring peace to the world.

Mega Man 7
In Mega Man 7 and the arcade games, Bass plays very much like Mega Man, and the only real difference is that rather than sliding, Bass can Air Dash. He has the capabilities of firing a (albeit different colored and skull shaped) Charged Shot, much like Mega Man. In Mega Man 7, Bass can fuse with Treble, and it had exactly the same capabilities as the Super Adapter; a jet booster and flying fist attack. However, unlike Mega Man, Bass has the ability to fire either a regular charged shot or a rocket punch while in this form, as opposed to just the rocket punch. In the Mega Man 7 hidden two-player battle mode, Bass can perform a rising kick attack and an air dash attack, similarly in Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters he can perform two consecutive high jump flips.

Mega Man 8
In Mega Man 8, Bass gained many new abilities due to the fact that he used one of the Evil Energy capsules. He can fly as long as he wants, as well as being able to fire powerful laser beams. His super form with Treble also had a design change, although it's unknown whether or not this was because of the Evil Energy, or if the artists simply decided to redesign him that way (as they've also done with Roll).

Mega Man & Bass
In Mega Man and Bass, Bass is overhauled to make his gameplay inherently different from Mega Man's. While Mega Man can slide to reach into smaller crevices for secrets, Bass can Dash and double jump. He can also dash-jump to increase the distance of the jump. Bass' Buster was also modified to make him different from Mega Man, and instead of being able to charge, he fires quick, weak shots repeatedly in 1 of 7 directions; however, he cannot move while firing or fire through walls like Mega Man. Bass also shares Mega Man's ability to copy abilities from other Robot Masters. Similar to Mega Man's ability to fuse with Rush, Bass can perform that ability as well with the Treble Boost, being able to fly and shoot in three directions at the same time.

Mega Man 10
Bass' abilities in Mega Man 10 are the same as in Mega Man & Bass, except he can no longer double jump. The Bass Buster also can remove the shields of Shield Attackers and Sniper Joes. In addition, his Bass Buster only inflicts half the damage on regular enemies when compared to the Mega Buster (as unlike Mega Man & Bass, Mega Man no longer possesses the Charge Shot).

Other
In several instances, Bass has been shown to posses the ability to release energy in the form of an aura that usually suspends him in the air.

Mega Man: Battle & Chase



 * Vehicle: Treble Darkstar (ゴスペルダークスター, "Gospel Darkstar" in Japan)
 * Body: Treble Body (ゴスペルボディ, "Gospel Body" in Japan)
 * Engine: Double Engine (ダブルエンジン)
 * Wing: Accl. Wing (アクセルウイング, Accel. Wing)
 * Tire: Almighty Tire (オールマイティタイヤ)

Rockman Battle & Fighters data
ワイリーにつくられたスペシャルワイリーナンバーをもつ、せんとうようロボット. じぶんのてで、ロックマンをたおすのがのぞみらしい.

Translation: The Special Wily Number combat robot Wily created. Wants to defeat Rockman with his own hands.

Mega Man 7

 * "This is... Mega Man??" (If Mega Man fails to defeat Bass in their first encounter)
 * "You are as good as they say, Mega Man..." (If Mega Man defeats Bass in their first encounter)
 * "I'm Bass, and he's Treble. We have been trying to stop Dr. Wily while you were gone..."
 * "I see now that you don't need our help..."
 * "You are much too weak to battle Wily. Maybe you better sit this one out. Let's go, Treble!"
 * "Darn/Damn! I was careless! I feel stupid to have been beaten so easily... Maybe I should give up and leave Wily to you!"
 * "You are far too weak, Mega Man. Wily may fear you, but I do not!"
 * "You're too late, Mega Man. He who hesitates is lost! We shall return!"

Mega Man: The Power Battle

 * "Now you know that I am the strongest. There's no need for you to make any more junk robots."
 * "I underestimated him that time. But I will conquer him this time!"
 * "Ha! All you make is junk. Do what you want."

Mega Man 8

 * "Mega Man! Today, we'll finish this!"
 * "You're so naive! That will be your downfall! I'm not the same weakling anymore! I've got new powers!"
 * "C. cu..curse you, Mega Man! I'll never give up!"

Mega Man 2: The Power Fighters

 * "Ha! You created me? So what? If you created a powerful robot such as myself, it must have been an accident."
 * "Ha! This girlie-looking, long-haired robot will be the strongest? Don't make me laugh!"
 * "I don't care about justice or peace! Who's the strongest? That's my only concern."
 * "Hey, I accept your challenge. When will you come back to Earth?"
 * "Proto Man, what do you want from life!? "
 * "You don't have a choice! This is our fate! You can't escape! So come and get it!"

Mega Man: Battle & Chase

 * "I'm the strongest!"
 * "Don't despise me!"
 * "It was just a race. I don't feel I truly defeated him. I must defeat him in a real fight before I can claim victory."

Mega Man & Bass

 * "Is that the robot who calls himself King? What a joke. Everyone knows that I am the mightiest robot in the world. I will show him who deserves to be called king!"
 * "Before I go, you must tell me something... Who is your father? Who created you?"
 * "You pretended to be assaulted by King in order to have me take care of him? I will destroy you for using me!!"
 * "What I've fought for? That is ridiculous. I don't need a reason to fight. I have and am going to fight only to destroy Mega Man!!"

Rockman & Forte: Mirai Kara no Chōsensha

 * "I've come to end the life of Rockman who I hate to this day, but somehow this situation is different than usual."
 * "If you know that black Rockman's identity, tell me!"
 * "Bothersome bastards! If you don't want to be scrap get the heck out of my way! I just want to meet that black Rockman only!"
 * "Rockman Shadow! I came! That sissy smile of yours ends here, prepare yourself."
 * " I see, we were both made by Wily. Hand in hand, become the true ultimate one, doesn't sound bad. But I will do things my way, which is first to knock you out!"
 * "It's been a long battle... It's almost like I've been fighting with myself. And when I finally landed the finishing blow, it felt like something inside me changed."
 * "What!... In that case, you must have intended to lose from the beginning. You're saying that you went easy on me?!"
 * "I won't be like Rockman. I'll go my own way. But it was a good lesson."

Mega Man 10

 * "Don't tell me I've caught this dang Roboenza, too!"
 * "We gotta teach that old cook (sic) a lesson he won't soon forget!"
 * "You just never give up with your half-brained plans for world domination."
 * "Something wrong with you? Oh, you've got a fever! How'd you end up catching Roboenza!?"

Etymology
Forté is used as a dynamic directive in sheet music in its abbreviated form, {f.}, to indicate raising the volume of the music. Forte is also the Portuguese and Italian word for strong.

Bass refers to the lower bar in double-staff musical notation; his canine counterpart Treble's name refers to the upper bar. A Bass is also a type of guitar.

Behind the scenes
Bass and Gospel were originally named Baroque (バロック, Barokku) and Crash (クラッシュ, Kurasshu) in early designs by Keiji Inafune, a play on the names Rock (ロック, Rokku) and Rush (ラッシュ, Rasshu) to emphasize their role as rivals. Inafune wanted to create a full-time rival for Mega Man who was "extremely competitive, and absolutely hated to lose". Inafune eventually asked Hayato Kaji to create the designs that would become Bass and Treble. Baroque is also a style of music originating from the time period of the same name. Crash is a type of cymbal.

Trivia

 * Bass is labeled "Dr. Wily's most powerful creation" in the Bass mode trailer of Mega Man 10.
 * Technologically, Bass is considered a more advanced Robot Master than Mega Man.
 * Despite being Mega Man's rival, Bass is never a main stage boss. He is always a mini-boss.
 * Bass's rapidfire multi-directional firing is similar to Axl's gameplay in Mega Man X8.
 * Bass has a similar personality to Vile from the Mega Man X series. The two of them both have a rivalry with one of the Mega Men (so strong, that they even object to other enemies trying to kill their rivals), are both extremely cocky and arrogant, have the same rebellious attitude, and only fight for the sake of themselves. However, Bass happens to be a lot more sane and less destructive than Vile is.
 * Bass also has a few similarities to Ballade, since the two of them both consider themselves to be the strongest, as well as the fact that they both have a dislike of weak opponents.  Ballade seems to be competitive like Bass as well (though to a lesser extent), as he once fought Bass over who would destroy Mega Man in the manga.
 * Bass's name is mispronounced as bass, as in the fish, in Mega Man 8.
 * Aside from Dr. Wily, Bass actually has the most lines of any character in the original series.
 * Bass shouts "Damn!" in the original English release of Mega Man 7, but is censored to "Darn!" in re-releases.
 * "Emulous" (Bass' good point in the Mega Man & Bass CD data) is defined as "eager or ambition to equal or surpass another or characterized or prompted by a spirit of rivalry".
 * The cloak that Bass wears in Rockman Online seems to be inspired by Bass.EXE's similar cloak.
 * Despite Bass' helmet extending right down to his jaw, like Ballade's helmet, this feature is not present in any of his sprites, although it is seen in in-game artwork and official artwork of Bass. It should also be noted that in various manga's featuring Bass, his helmet also does not extend down to his jaw.
 * Bass' facial marks resemble those of Techno's.
 * Though rather selfish, Bass does have rare moments of compassion and seems to care about Treble, especially in mangas.
 * Bass' walking animations in Mega Man 7 share the same poses with X's walking animations in the SNES era Mega Man X games, which would imply that Bass' sprites were based on X's sprites since Mega Man X came out earlier than Mega Man 7.