Metal Slug Tactics - PC Review

Metal Slug Tactics by developer Leikir Studio and publishers Dotemu and Gamera Games—PC Review written by Nick with a copy provided by the publisher.

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

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The Metal Slug series has been around for a long time, and despite its age, the titles tend to stand the test of time. They have a fun, colorful visual style that ages gracefully, and the core run and gun mechanics were so well done that most of the time? Signs of age are easy to overlook. Now the series takes its signature visuals and style to a turn-based tactics game, and in many ways Metal Slug Tactics feels like something from the past the past and not a game just released this month. However, Metal Slug Tactics does so many core things well enough that it’s still a good deal of fun today and will appeal to fans of the series and strategy games alike.

Metal Slug Tactics is ambitious. Taking the core of a long-running franchise and changing it to a completely new genre is often unsuccessful. Right off of the bat, the presentation drips Metal Slug style. Great use of color, the familiar but unique character design and rocking soundtrack all come together beautifully. The graphics won’t win any awards for pushing technical boundaries, but they’re an enjoyable pixel style that feels true to the series. For a series built around pulse-pounding sound and action, it’s surprising how well that feeling carries over to a turn-based tactics game here. 

That feeling of ‘action’ in a turn-based game is assisted by more than just the graphics and audio, but also the gameplay. How? There’s some interesting concepts baked in here that don’t reinvent the tactics wheel, so to speak, but give Metal Slug Tactics a bit of a unique feel. For one, it’s got a rogue-lite structure to repeated runs and lots of randomized elements. This feels like a genre that’s been showing up in a lot of spaces, especially card battlers and action games, so while at first blush I found it a little off-putting, the elements felt rather at home here. You earn experience and level up your characters, but it’s not a proper RPG. These are temporary improvements; incredibly important to your success but bound to the particular run you are on. Metal Slug Tactics also scratches that “Just one more run!” itch, due to this rogue-lite structure that almost guarantees failure… and the urge to do it better the next time around.

There is also this idea of more movement means higher chance of avoiding attacks. In a lot of turn-based tactics game, I tend to be conservative with my movement. Not here. The more movement the better, actually. Another cool mechanic that makes the game feel like bullets are flying everywhere (again, similar to the core series which has a heavy emphasis on shots being fired from all directions) is the Sync Attack system. It’s a mechanic that sees a target that puts a heavy focus on lining up a single target in front of multiple characters. That means if you get a shot in from a character to the left, and then you get a follow-up shot from the right, the first character will get a second attack. This means you can pile up loads of damage fast – but at the cost of taking out your opponents in a more balanced approach that has its own risks. There is also a timer aspect to the stages that create a sense of pressure, especially during boss fights where I often felt like I had to press the action instead of stalling to look for openings.

That being said, there is clearly thought required here. Leveraging the environment to cut down damage and using movement to improve your dodging ability gives Metal Slug Tactics an almost puzzle-like feel sometimes. There’s also a strong element of resource management as you have to weigh ammo consumption into your attacks.

There is quite the learning curve here, it should be noted. While most of the ideas here are ones I’ve seen in one form or another in prior games, the way they’re rolled together here and given their own unique flavors does make Metal Slug Tactics a bit slow to pick up. Add the aforementioned rogue-lite approach that will almost certainly see you get beaten up once you plug through the tutorial, and the potential for frustration is real. Also at higher levels of difficulty? Metal Slug Tactics can be pretty unforgiving.

However, the more I played and the more I experienced the trial and error (lots of error, but that’s probably a ‘me thing’), the more the disparate systems started to come together and really reveal Metal Slug Tactics for what it is. The variety of characters, weapons, stages and systems gel to create a game that at times looks and sounds like the original Metal Slug games, but the ‘Tactics’ part of the name really shines through when it all comes together. 

Metal Slug Tactics is a great twist on the venerable, bombastic action series. It looks and sounds the part, even as it tickles the brain with clever mechanics and an almost puzzle-like atmosphere. I’ll admit I had my doubts about the rogue-lite approach at first, but it was undeniably easy to pick it up for just ‘one more match’ – always a good sign. Even if you’re not familiar with the run and gun Metal Slug series, as long as you like tactics games, you should enjoy this entry. However, the Metal Slug DNA here just makes the overall package that much more entertaining for longtime fans such as myself.

Score: 8 out of 10