The Neo Geo Advanced Entertainment System, released in 1990 for a PS3-trumping US$ 650, was arcade developer SNK's home console super-power and it exists on a separate technological timeline to the SEGA Megadrives and Super Nintendos of our history.
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In main, this is because, despite being retro games, the system that originally powered the series was vastly more powerful and competent at pushing 2D sprites than even the PlayStation 2. The stabs at mainstream success with handheld conversions of the games to Neo Geo Pocket, GameBoy Advance and, more implausibly to mobile phone devices have done little justice to the series. Like SNK's other flagship series, King of Fighters, the Metal Slug games have attracted a fierce and enamoured underground following but have never managed anything approaching mass-market fame.
Most would argue that the SNK titles in the series (1, 2, X and 3) are the strongest.Īnd, of course, the value of these quirky, humorous and wonderful visuals, which might need a little explaining. Metal Slug 3 was the last true SNK title. Even if you do go weak-kneed at the prospect of playing through these games as 1st Lieutenant Marco Rossi or 2nd Lieutenant Tarma Roving again, the value of any nostalgia is still comfortably surpassed by the value of the gameplay. Every level is a glorious orgy of micro-strategising and precision-timing. If you're worried that misty eyes might be clouding Eurogamer's judgement here then rest assured: unlike many retro titles Metal Slug doesn't need nostalgia in order to milk your adrenal gland. Rather they must be experienced to be understood and appreciated. And these are things that you can't really express in words. However, like with all good things, the genius is in the balancing and, as you might have gathered from the above introduction, the style and personality with which it's all presented. If that all sounds a little orthodox then that's because, in text, it very much is. Random items and different weapons can be uncovered for bonus points and there are numerous hidden areas and hostages scattered throughout the exquisite levels. Defeat the level boss without dying and you'll earn a satisfying bonus points (and the name and rank) for each hostage saved since your last restart. Likewise, throughout levels you'll find kidnapped allied soldiers who you must touch to rescue. For example, try to shoot an enemy at close range and your character will knife them instead for a slightly higher point bonus. That said, the devil is in the detail and Metal Slug's simple mechanics have sub-surface depths that allow for those near infinite high-score possibilities Japanese arcade developers are so good at providing. The originals had eight difficulty settings, but this only has three - with everything above 'Easy' a big challenge. And that, in sixty-nine words, is how the seven Metal Slug games, each brilliantly emulated here on the PSP, function.
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You have a fire button, a jump button and a bomb button and, should you find any vacant vehicles or willing animals along the way, feel free to appropriate them to the cause.
There's no life bar: it's one shot one kill. The gameplay couldn't be simpler: make your way from left to right shooting enemy soldiers and vehicles before they shoot you. Rather, SNK's side-scrolling, run-and-gun war parody takes in a hundred different locales, from the deepest jungle to the deepest sea, each bristling with an individuality and style that a Tom Clancy cast would kill for. Sure, the latest 2D Street Fighter or Guilty Gear may have sharper characters and backgrounds but this isn't a stationary beat-'em-up. Indeed, it's thanks to this series that there are those of us for whom the prettiest face of videogames lies not in the future but in the past. Yes, sunsets are pretty to look at and yes, it's terribly impressive how life-like the metal on this AK-47 looks when viewed through that particle effect, but surely we play games to visit new worlds: not marvel at slightly more rubbish versions of the current one?Įxcuse the antagonism but, for fans of 2D pixel art, the decade-old Metal Slug series has never really been bettered for intricacy, personality, character and colour. One day soon, people will realise that there are only so many virtual suns reflecting on the surface of virtual lakes that one can go 'wow' at. Forget Alan Wake, Metal Slug Anthology showcases the best graphics ever seen in a videogame.
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