I truly do not know where I have played Metal Slug before, or even if I had ever played the first one in the series. I used to see Neo Geo machines all over the place, and the demos it would play of Metal Slug always made it look really good. I'm sure there has been some free play machine in a game store or something that I've played, but I've always had an affinity for Metal Slug because of the art style.
Oh, that art style. This is one of the most beautiful video games ever created, period. Every single character and animation positively crackles with life and humor. My favorite moments in the game were when you would die, come back to life, and the enemies would scream in terror, a touch that few other companies would have given, and that animates this world in a way that lets you know that this isn't serious, and have a good time with it. Everything moves oh so smoothly, and 1996 me was (I presume) blown away compared to the fare we had on the SNES and the Genesis. Unlike some of its arcade peers from the time, though, this game still absolutely dazzles. Apparently the original had a lot of slowdown, but I didn't detect any on the version I was playing, which was the Metal Slug Anthology on PS4.
The controls are good enough, but not great. This might change if I had an actual clicky Neo Geo joystick on which to play, but unfortunately I am restricted to my humble Dualshock 4. Oh well.
I really didn't notice the music, but the sound is generally good. The weapons all make satisfying sounds and the death and enemy sounds are all tremendous. Especially the terror screaming. Music was rarely an important factor for arcade games anyway, since you couldn't hear anything in an arcade anyway.
The gameplay is fun, but the difficulty of this game is definitely balanced to eat. those. quarters. I used 33 (roughly $8.50 in 1996) continues on my way through the game, which seems like cheating, but it's actually the only way for an average person to beat this game. The designers wanted you to need to sink $5-10 into the game for a complete playthrough, so I obliged with my pretend quarters. This is not a game with a ton of replay value as a result, as there's essentially no challenge that can't be overcome with deep enough pockets. Or enough shamelessness to keep hammering that continue button. If I played it again, I would almost certainly have fewer than 33 continues, but not less than 20.
Metal Slug does what it sets out to do, and does it really well. I can't stress enough that it has to be played as though you were standing in an arcade with your friend, $10 of quarters from your mom jingling happily in your pocket. It shouldn't make the slightest sense to those who grew up without arcades, but will absolutely speak to anyone who's ever paid $5 for a box of lollipop hammers on Candy Crush Saga. It has all of the hallmarks of bright and shiny slot machines at the casino; flash designed to simulate entertainment while draining a tiny bit of your wallet, and perhaps your soul as well.
I really enjoyed Metal Slug, but also felt like a victim of some of the more predatory and manipulative aspects of capitalism while doing so. It's a game that everyone can enjoy, but should they? I'll give it a 7.6 out of 10. Up next I'll review Metal Slug 2!
-TRO
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