Custom Chips are the build-crafting layer in Dual Override, and the second thing that separates this entry from the classic template. They sit alongside Special Weapons rather than replacing them - you still carry a Mega Buster, a Charge Shot and a set of boss weapons, and chips modify and extend that kit.
You earn Screws by completing areas, and spend them to buy chips. Because the currency comes from area clears rather than from enemies, the reward is tied to progress rather than to grinding, and the shop is a reason to clear optional content. The full chip list of 50+ entries is not published, so the practical shopping list will only become clear as more of the game is shown.
A further division matters in practice: active chips like Barrier or Hover consume a slot and do something when triggered, while passive stat chips just make the hero better at something permanently. With only four Support slots, an active chip costs you two passive choices, which is where most of the build decisions live.
Chips drawn from classic Robot Masters are inspired by those bosses' old Special Weapons, which means the chip list quietly spans the whole series rather than only the new game.
The demo shipped with three presets, and they are a good summary of how the system is meant to be read:
Chips are shared between Mega Man and Proto Man and modify both of them, but the same chip is rarely equally good on both. Barrier reads very differently on a hero whose entire kit is shield-based than it does on a shooter, and a chip that improves buster damage is close to wasted on Proto Man, who has no buster. Because both heroes run the same stage progression but have different enemy placements, the same chip list produces genuinely different runs. The chip count is stated as 50 or more, and a full list has not been published - so the shopping list will keep growing as more of the game is revealed.