REVIEW – There are only a few cases in the history of video games when a popular game of one genre has been successfully adapted into another. SNK’s classic arcade run-and-gun Metal Slug series doesn’t seem like the best choice for a turn-based tactical action game – let’s see if the developers of Metal Slug Tactics have succeeded in making the leap!

If there is one truly emblematic arcade shooter from the 90s that is hard to forget, it is the Metal Slug series. Developed by the Japanese Nazca Corporation, then SNK, the games combined frenetic run-and-gun action with the charm of a dieselpunk manga/anime world, with funny heroes and a wide variety of enemies, from South American native warriors to zombies and mummies to aliens. Not many would think that this charmingly chaotic world and gameplay would fit into a turn-based tactical action game, but the developers at Leikir Studio and the publisher Dotemu have tried to create just that in Metal Slug Tactics.

Rolling Thunder

Indeed, Metal Slug Tactics is not the first such attempt: just think of Gears Tactics or Into The Breach, for example. From a distance, Leikir Studio’s game is perhaps most comparable to the latter. We have to choose three characters and fight lightning-fast turn-based battles on small, non-randomly generated maps. The main difference is the nature of the combat: there is no trace of the tactical planning and precision typical of ITB or even X-COM games!

Metal Slug Tactics is all about running, shooting and generally extremely messy combat – in that respect, it’s fair to say that it’s faithful to the original games. The fast, fluid action is served by simple objectives, small battlefields and speed bonuses. The more tiles you jump over, the more “Dodge” and “Adrenaline” you gain. Adrenaline can be spent on special abilities, while Dodge is exactly what it sounds like. The more Dodge points you have, the less damage you take from attacks. This makes for a very fun, intense gameplay where rapid situational awareness and action are more important than overall tactics.

Paradoxically, the riskier the game you play, the safer you’ll be. Sprint as fast as you can before you charge (with bonuses for jumping over gaps and high ledges), and your heroes will be virtually invulnerable!

Three against the world

Like pretty much every mainline Metal Slug game, Tactics puts you in control of the Peregrine Falcons, an elite combat team from The Normal Army (lol). The spin-off takes full advantage of Metal Slug’s legions of different enemy types, diverse locations, extensive arsenal, and awesome fleet of vehicles.

Before you can take on a mission, you’ll need to choose three of the nine characters from a surprisingly diverse cast. Each character has four different unlockable loadouts, each offering a slightly different approach. Marco, the commander, is a versatile player whose leadership status means he focuses most of his skills on teamwork in both offensive and defensive roles. For example, he can maximize the number of synchronized attacks he can perform with his teammates in a round. Alternatively, there’s the melee specialist Trevor, who goes into the action armed with movement and attack-focused tactics. Meanwhile, Fio is a support character with a lot of valuable tools, who can also be a self-healing tank if played well.

If you target an enemy within combat range of one of your allies, then a “sync attack” comes – essentially a free extra shot. It’s worth syncing all three characters as much as possible, testing the synergies of different hero combinations. The game becomes a fun juggling act as you try to cover as much area as possible with your units to gain Dodge/Adrenaline while trying to keep them in cover and, of course, in a situation where all their attacks are synchronized…

Destruction in a diverse environment

The world map is divided into regions, each of which, in true Metal Slug fashion, culminates in a boss fight. Each region is divided into multiple missions that players can complete in any order they choose. Each mission has its own objectives and rewards, and players must decide what resources to prioritize when choosing which mission to complete. It’s important to note, however, that once a boss “rears its head”, you can’t choose between the missions you haven’t completed yet but must fight it, which also means after “defeating” the boss, there’s no way to go back and complete the missions you missed.

Aesthetically, the game is pure Metal Slug, and that’s high praise. While retaining SNK’s original sprite-rich visuals, Tactics makes a serious effort to recreate the arcade experience from its isometric perspective. Everything is detailed, colourful and clean, with vibrant pixel soldiers jumping and waving in classic arcade style, clearly standing out from their (impressively detailed) backgrounds. The heavily comedic-parodistic dieselpunk world here is just as much fun to watch as it was on the arcade machines back then.

Tee Lopes’ music is a hit – after Sonic Mania and Streets of Rage 4, he finally cemented his position as the king of retro game music with this title. Here, he mixes the military parade motifs of Metal Slug with some suitably enthusiastic melodic breakdowns. This game is both fun to watch and listen to – and we haven’t even talked about the classic announcement voice, which has also returned!

Bug-ridden team

No game is without bugs, and Metal Slug Tactics occasionally produces such a bug parade that it makes your jaw drop. I’ve encountered everything from minor gameplay bugs to graphical glitches to freezes. Unreachable tiles and perspective issues can be highly frustrating. Okay, there’s nothing that can’t be fixed by occasionally pressing “Undo Turn”, but even that is only available twice per mission, and honestly, it would be nice not to waste this option on bugs.

The UI also leaves something to be desired. The walkie-talkie, which allows you to revive your heroes, has two different icons for no apparent reason. The coins you collect are grey in your inventory, but they appear as gold in the mission selection – at first, I thought there were two types of money in the game.

Metal Slug Tactics didn’t miss the leap

As I wrote in the introduction, it’s rare for a game series to make such a genre leap, but Metal Slug Tactics certainly jumped the bar. It’s not perfect: sometimes a little too simple, sometimes a little too clumsy and quite buggy, but the overwhelming action, the humour reminiscent of the 80s GI Joe series and the atmospheric visuals make it worth trying even for those who are not familiar with the original arcade games. For fans of the Metal Slug series, it’s almost a must!

-ROD-

Publisher: Dotemu

Developer: Leikir Studio

Style: Turn-based tactics

Release date: 5 November 2024